When we came out of the ruins of Miralith, dawn was already breaking. The light spilled across the cracked plains, coloring the Riftlight clouds in shades of gold and violet. For a moment, it was almost beautiful, like the world itself was trying to pretend nothing was dying.
Kael walked beside me in silence. The wind tugged at his cloak and carried the faint hum of the Rift from deep beneath the ground. Neither of us spoke for a long time. Words felt too small for what we had just seen.
Above us, the air shimmered faintly. It looked like the sky was bending, not breaking, but folding inward. I could feel it in my bones. The Rift was spreading faster than before.
Kael was the first to speak. "You saw something in there, didn't you? Before everything started glowing like that."
I hesitated. The memory of my mother's voice still trembled inside my chest. "Yes," I said quietly. "It spoke to me. It said futatsu no sekai o tsunaida mono, erabe. That means 'You who joined two worlds, choose.'"
"Choose what?" Kael asked.
"I don't know yet," I said, my eyes lifting to the brightening sky. "But I think the Rift is forcing me to find out."
We walked until the ruins disappeared behind us, swallowed by the haze. Ahead lay the plains of Ardent Vale. Once, this place had been green and alive. Now it was a wasteland covered in dust and blue motes that drifted through the air like lost fireflies.
Kael stopped and pointed. "Look over there."
In the distance, I saw a caravan half buried in the dust, its wagons broken and people stumbling beside them. Refugees. The closer we came, the clearer it was that they were running from something.
A woman saw us and cried out. "Please help us! The Rift beasts came from the sky!"
Kael ran toward her, drawing his sword in one smooth motion. I followed close behind, feeling the small shard of energy I had taken from the Gate Heart growing warm in my pocket.
The sky above us cracked open.
Light poured down in jagged waves, brighter than lightning. From that rip descended shapes that looked like birds made of glass and metal, their wings dripping liquid light. Their cries tore through the air, sharp enough to shake the ground.
Kael met the first creature head on, his sword flashing in a clean arc. Sparks burst in every direction. He moved with perfect rhythm, like he had fought this kind of nightmare before and had already decided not to lose.
I reached for the shard in my pocket. The moment I touched it, everything changed.
Lines of light appeared across the world, like code written into the air itself. It was the same kind of data I used to study in the lab back home. But this time, it was alive.
"Guide me," I whispered.
The shard pulsed once in answer.
A wave of blue light erupted from my hand and cut through the swarm. The creatures froze in midair. For a single heartbeat, time itself seemed to stop. Then, one by one, they shattered into mist.
When the last one vanished, only silence remained.
Kael turned to me, breathing hard. "You did that?"
I nodded slowly. "I think so. Or maybe it did it through me."
He sheathed his sword but kept staring. "You're changing, Akiya."
"I know."
The woman from the caravan approached us and bowed deeply. "Arigatou, stranger. You saved us." She smiled faintly through her tears. "Thank you."
Kael looked toward the horizon. "They can't stay here. The Rift storms will reach this valley by nightfall."
I knelt beside a child clinging to the woman's leg. His eyes glowed faintly silver, like the Riftlight. My chest tightened. That glow did not belong to this world.
"Where are you heading?" I asked softly.
"To the Skyforge," the woman said. "They say the monks there can protect those who still believe."
The word stirred something in me, a faint memory like a door unlocking.
"Skyforge," I repeated. "Where is it?"
Kael looked at me sharply. "You know that place?"
"Not really," I said. "But I think that's where the next Gate might be."
He sighed and wiped the dust from his face. "Then that's where we're going."
The refugees joined us on the road. We moved slowly toward the distant mountains, where the sky burned faintly blue. Each night, the Riftlight grew brighter. It no longer looked like distant stars but veins spreading across the heavens.
I could feel it inside me too. Its rhythm matched my heartbeat, its voice whispering just below thought.
That night, we camped beside a river of glowing crystal. The air was warm, the water shimmering like liquid glass. Kael sat beside me, his expression thoughtful.
"When you touched that sphere in Miralith," he said quietly, "you looked afraid. But not surprised."
"I wasn't," I admitted. "It felt like remembering something I'd forgotten."
He turned to me. "And what are you remembering now?"
"That the Rift isn't a doorway," I said. "It's a reflection. It shows each world what it fears most."
He nodded slowly, watching the crystal river. "And what do you see when you look into it?"
"Myself."
For a long moment, neither of us spoke. The fire crackled softly between us. Above, the Rift clouds twisted into a spiral that glowed with cold light. Far away, thunder rolled like the heartbeat of some sleeping god.
Kael glanced upward and said quietly, "It's calling you again, isn't it?"
"Yes," I said. "And this time, I think it wants me to answer."
.... to be continued...