After Ethan finally reaches the Tower and spots Elara and Kenneth, what he sees crushes him, Kenneth kneeling before her, Elara's face soft, unreadable. He doesn't hear the words. He doesn't know she just rejected him. All he feels is the sharp, hollow ache of betrayal.
That moment breaks something inside him.
When Mae catches up to him, she sees the pain in his eyes and, without asking questions, simply stays by his side. She becomes his light in that shadowed hour, talkative, funny, a little too warm, trying to fill the silence Elara once held.
But Ethan, too wounded to face what he believes is the truth, decides to walk away from the Tower, from Elara, from everything. He tells Mae they'll find another route through the Realm, a new path, a different way out.
Meanwhile, Elara feels it , that invisible pull between them snapping, like a string cut in two. She tells herself it's better this way, yet when she sees Mae's reflection shimmering beside Ethan in the Realm's mirror light, something burns in her chest, jealousy she can't explain, and a fear she refuses to name.
Kenneth notices her distraction, his heart tightening. He knows she's thinking of Ethan, even now.
The Tower loomed behind them, fading into mist as Ethan walked without looking back. The sky above was no longer gold or violet, but a muted gray that bled into every horizon. He didn't know where he was heading, only that he couldn't stay there.
Mae followed a few paces behind, her usual light steps muted by the weight she saw in him. "So…" she started softly, trying to break the silence, "are we pretending you didn't just walk out on some epic reunion or should I start making jokes now?"
Ethan didn't answer. His jaw tightened, and the reflection in the mirrored path ahead showed eyes that didn't quite shine anymore.
Mae sighed, stepping beside him. "Okay, silence it is. But just so you know, I'm not great at deep brooding moments. I tend to fill them with random facts. Like, did you know lightning can strike the same place twice? Which, honestly, is kind of poetic right now."
He glanced at her, the corner of his mouth twitching despite himself. "You talk too much."
"And yet," she grinned, bumping her shoulder against his, "you're still walking with me."
He wanted to smile, but the ache in his chest made it hard. He saw her, he reminded himself. On her knees. With him. Whatever words had passed between Elara and Kenneth, it didn't matter, the image had already burned into him like a brand.
Across the Realms
Miles away, or maybe worlds, Elara stood at the edge of the Tower's next gate, the air shimmering with ancient runes. Kenneth was beside her, quiet but steady.
She could still feel Ethan's presence, like an echo fading into static. The bond between them, the strange connection formed since the first realm, was dull now, muted. She wrapped her arms around herself.
"Are you cold?" Kenneth asked, his voice gentle.
She shook her head. "No. Just… I don't know. Something feels wrong."
Kenneth hesitated, then said, "You mean Ethan."
Her breath caught. "I didn't."
"You don't have to." His smile was soft, pained. "I can tell. When I talked to you, I saw how you looked past me. Like you were seeing someone else standing there."
Elara lowered her gaze. "I didn't mean to hurt you."
"You didn't." He exhaled. "You just reminded me what it feels like to want something you can't have."
She didn't know how to answer that. The Realm hummed faintly around them, like it was listening to every word.
The Weight of Misunderstanding
Ethan and Mae camped beside a crystalline lake that night, its surface glowing faintly with drifting constellations. Mae had scavenged fruit-like orbs from the nearby vines, edible, apparently, though she'd joked about "risking poisoning for flavor."
Ethan sat on the shore, visor off, staring at the strange reflection of himself, not the Ethan from his apartment, but the one the Realm had shaped: sharper eyes, streaks of silver through his hair, a mark glowing faintly on his wrist.
Mae joined him, plopping down with two of the glowing fruits. "You know," she said between bites, "when I first got here, I thought this place was a video game. I kept waiting for a menu to pop up."
He glanced at her. "And now?"
"Now I think it's worse than reality. Because here, everything you feel sticks. It doesn't fade when you log off. It stays, even when you want it gone."
He didn't answer, and she watched him quietly. "You care about her," Mae said softly. "The girl from the Tower."
Ethan's shoulders stiffened. "I thought I did."
Mae tilted her head. "Thought?"
He finally looked at her, eyes tired. "Maybe it's stupid. I don't even know what's real anymore. Maybe the Realm made it feel stronger than it was. Maybe she's exactly where she wants to be, with him."
Mae hesitated, fingers tightening around the fruit. "Maybe," she said quietly. "Or maybe she's just as lost as you are."
For a moment, neither spoke. The lake's glow reflected in Mae's eyes, and Ethan realized she was closer than he'd thought. Too close.
"Get some rest," he murmured, standing. "We move at dawn."
Mae smiled faintly, masking the sting. "Right. Commander Broody has spoken."
But when he walked away, her smile faded. She stared at the place where he'd sat, tracing circles in the glowing water. "You'll see her again," she whispered to herself. "And maybe… you'll see me too."
Elara's Trial
The Tower's gate opened to a corridor of shifting light. Elara and Kenneth stepped through cautiously, the air electric with tension. Each step revealed another scene, fragments of memory, pain, and doubt.
One moment, Elara saw her reflection as a child, crying over something she couldn't remember. The next, she saw Ethan's back turned, walking away just as he'd done in her mind a thousand times since that day.
Kenneth reached for her shoulder, steadying her. "It's an illusion," he said. "The Tower's trying to break you."
"Maybe," she whispered. "Or maybe it's showing me what's already broken."
A tremor rippled through the corridor, and the light fractured into thousands of shards. A voice whispered in the air, not the Tower's usual guide, but something older.
"Two hearts divided cannot conquer what binds them."
Elara flinched. "What does that mean?"
Kenneth looked down, his expression unreadable. "Maybe… that you have to let go."
She met his gaze, and for the first time, saw the truth there. Not arrogance. Not pity. Just quiet, patient affection.
"Kenneth…"
He smiled sadly. "You don't have to say anything. I already know."
The light around them dimmed. The trial was over, for now. But the silence that followed was heavier than any test the Tower could conjure.
A World Apart
By morning, Ethan and Mae reached the edge of a vast canyon, where rivers of light ran through the cracks like veins. The air shimmered with a faint hum, alive with echoes.
Mae stood at the edge, wind whipping through her hair. "You think this leads back to the Tower?"
Ethan nodded faintly. "Maybe. Or maybe it leads nowhere. But if there's a chance she's still there, I have to find out."
Mae turned to him, her eyes soft but shadowed. "Even if she's already chosen someone else?"
He hesitated, the wind caught his silence.
"I just… need to know," he said finally.
Mae smiled, small but brave. "Then I'll go with you. Someone's got to keep you from walking off cliffs."
Ethan almost smiled. "Thanks."
She shrugged. "Don't thank me yet. I'm terrible with directions."
They shared a laugh, short, fleeting, and started down the path. But above them, unseen, the Realm's constellations shifted. Somewhere far away, Elara looked toward the same stars and whispered his name.
The next dawn in the Realms was unlike any other.A faint red haze clung to the horizon, as if the world itself bled light. The wind carried whispers, voices that weren't wind at all, but the echoes of people who had once walked these paths and failed to return.
Ethan awoke before Mae did. He sat on a ledge overlooking the canyon, the RealmLink flickering faintly on his wrist. Every pulse of light reminded him of her, the mark Elara bore in the same place. It should've comforted him. Instead, it felt like a reminder of what he'd lost.
He ran a hand through his hair, exhaling. "You're still there, aren't you?" he muttered to no one. "Fighting. Always fighting."
A soft voice interrupted his thoughts."I'd bet she's thinking the same about you."
Mae stood behind him, still in her travel cloak, holding two canteens of water she'd scavenged from a stream. Her smile was bright but small, careful not to intrude on his mood.
"She's strong," Ethan said quietly. "She doesn't need me."
Mae handed him a canteen, sitting beside him. "That's not the same as not wanting you."
Ethan turned to her. "You sound like you know a lot about that."
She chuckled without humor. "Maybe. My boyfriend back home, well, ex now, I guess, used to say that love's a two-player game. But the truth? Sometimes only one of you keeps pressing continue."
Ethan looked at her, seeing the truth behind her lightness for the first time. "Is that why you put on the RealmLink?"
Mae shrugged. "Maybe I wanted to escape him. Or maybe I just wanted to see if another world could make me feel something again." She smiled wryly. "Joke's on me. Now I'm stuck with a guy who barely talks and broods like it's a competition."
Despite himself, Ethan laughed softly. "You're not stuck with me."
"Oh no," Mae grinned, "I'm choosing to follow you, hero. There's a difference."
Their laughter echoed faintly, carried by the canyon wind.
Meanwhile – Inside the Tower's Heart
Elara stood in silence before a fractured mirror, the last remnant of the Tower's latest trial. The air shimmered with energy, the aftermath of illusions that had cut too deep. Kenneth leaned against the wall nearby, watching her.
"You still feel him, don't you?" he asked softly.
Elara didn't answer at first. The mark on her wrist pulsed faintly, but distant, like a heartbeat separated by miles of glass. "It's faint," she whispered. "Like hearing someone call your name underwater."
Kenneth nodded. "Maybe that's mercy. Sometimes distance is the only thing that keeps us from breaking."
She turned toward him. "You talk like you've lost someone."
He gave a small, pained smile. "Everyone who comes here has. Some of us just keep pretending we haven't."
Silence stretched between them. The Tower's light shifted, throwing fractured colors across his face. In that moment, Elara saw not the brave stranger who'd fought beside her, but a man carrying ghosts of his own.
He stepped closer. "You shouldn't face this place alone."
"I'm not."
Kenneth tilted his head. "Aren't you?"
The question cut deeper than she wanted to admit.
The Rift Between
Back in the real world, Ethan and Mae reached the edge of what looked like a city suspended midair. The floating architecture shimmered, bridges and towers made of translucent stone, drifting over clouds that pulsed with lightning.
Mae whistled. "Okay, this officially beats any skyline back home."
Ethan scanned the distance. The city looked… familiar. Its central spire reminded him of the Tower, except fractured, as if the Realm itself was bleeding into reality.
Mae noticed his expression. "You think she's here?"
"Maybe." His fingers tightened around his sword's hilt. "Or maybe the Realm's just playing tricks again."
They crossed a narrow bridge of light. Beneath them, miles of storm churned. Mae stayed close, her usual teasing quieted by awe. "Ethan?" she asked softly. "If you find her… what will you say?"
He didn't look back. "I don't know anymore."
She nodded. "That's okay. Just… don't lose yourself trying to find her."
He almost smiled. "Too late for that."
Elara and Kenneth – The Confession Unspoken
Hours later, deep within another layer of the Tower, Elara and Kenneth stood before a gate shaped like interlocking wings. The seal would only open with two marks two souls bound by mutual trust.
Kenneth extended his hand. "Looks like it needs both of us."
Elara hesitated before pressing her palm against his. The symbols flared, unlocking the gate in a burst of light.
When the glow faded, Kenneth didn't pull his hand away. "Elara," he began, voice steady but gentle, "you don't have to answer. Just… let me say this."
She froze.
"I know what this place does, it twists things. It makes you question every bond, every feeling. But what I feel for you… it's not because of the Tower. It's because of you. The way you fight. The way you look at pain and don't turn away."
Her chest tightened. "Kenneth, please."
He smiled faintly. "I'm not asking for anything. Just… let me stand with you. Even if it's only for a while."
The gate opened with a sigh of wind. Elara stepped through first, her voice barely audible. "I can't give you what you want."
"I know," Kenneth said softly, following her. "I just hope you'll let me try to protect what I already have."
Collision
In the floating city, Ethan and Mae found a signal, a faint pulse that matched the Tower's resonance. The air shimmered with ripples of energy. Ethan's mark flared bright.
"She's close," he breathed.
Mae's heart sank. "Then… you found her."
He didn't hear the pain in her voice. "Stay behind me."
They followed the light through corridors of shifting crystal until, at last, a chamber opened ahead.
And there she was.
Elara stood with Kenneth, the glow of the gate still fading around them. Kenneth was on one knee, his hand brushing hers as he rose.
Ethan froze. No. Not again.
Mae saw his face pale. "Ethan, wait, maybe it's not what it looks like."
But he was already turning away, jaw tight, breath trembling. "She made her choice."
Elara's head snapped up. "Ethan?"
He didn't look back. The portal behind him flickered, unstable.
"Ethan!" she shouted, stepping forward, but the gate's magic flared between them. Kenneth reached for her, pulling her back as the entire chamber began to shake.
"Don't!" Kenneth shouted. "You'll get pulled in!"
The portal collapsed into blinding light. Ethan and Mae vanished.
Aftermath
Elara fell to her knees as silence crashed over the chamber. Only the faint echo of Ethan's voice lingered in her ears.
Kenneth knelt beside her. "Elara, it wasn't your fault."
But she couldn't hear him. Her gaze stayed on the fading sparks of the portal. Her mark burned faintly, then went cold.
"Ethan…" she whispered, her voice breaking.
Kenneth looked away, jaw tightening. He'd never seen her cry before. It made his heart ache and twist with jealousy he wished he didn't feel.
Elsewhere
Ethan woke on a different platform, surrounded by mist. Mae was beside him, unconscious but breathing. The air here was different, still, heavy, almost real.
He stood slowly, staring at the horizon. There was no Tower. No Elara. Only the endless sprawl of floating ruins beneath a blood-red sky.
He knelt beside Mae, shaking her gently. "Mae. Wake up."
She groaned, opening her eyes. "Ugh… what hit us? Please tell me it wasn't you."
He almost laughed in relief. "We're not in the same Realm anymore."
Mae sat up, blinking. "So… new world, new trauma?"
He nodded grimly. "Looks like it."
She brushed dust from her jacket, forcing a smile. "Well then, Ethan, looks like you're stuck with me a little longer."
He didn't respond. His gaze stayed fixed on the distant horizon, where faint towers shimmered in the fog.
Elara.
He could almost hear her whisper his name in return.