The air around them was thick with tension as the shadows of the forest deepened. Lia’s chest still heaved from the encounter, her muscles aching from the effort of the fight that had nearly cost them both their lives. Her grip on the hilt of her blade tightened as her thoughts raced. Kellan, beside her, was just as shaken, though he hid it well behind his steady gaze.
They had escaped the Echoes for now, but Lia knew it was only a matter of time before they would catch up again. The enemies they were facing were not bound by the natural laws of time and space—each pursuit was a new reminder of just how dangerous their situation had become.
“What now?” Kellan asked, his voice low, though there was no one to overhear them in the thick forest. His tone was laced with exhaustion, and for a brief moment, Lia saw the weariness in his eyes—something he rarely let slip.
“We keep moving,” Lia answered, straightening her back despite the weight of the tension pressing down on her. “We’re close to the rift. We can’t stop now.”
Kellan ran a hand through his hair, wiping away the sweat that had gathered on his brow. He opened his mouth to argue, but no words came. They both knew there was no other option. They had come too far, risked too much. The fractures in time were spreading, and if they didn’t stop the Echoes soon, reality itself might be torn apart.
The visions that had plagued Lia since the journey began flashed through her mind—the strange, fragmented images of a world breaking apart at the seams. She had seen pieces of the past and future merging together, twisted and distorted by the Echoes' meddling. They were manipulating time for their own ends, and it was only getting worse.
With a sigh, Lia adjusted the strap of her pack and motioned for Kellan to follow. The forest around them seemed unnaturally still, as if the trees themselves were holding their breath in anticipation of what was to come.
“Lia…” Kellan’s voice was softer now, almost hesitant. “Are we even sure we’re heading in the right direction? These woods… they feel different. Like we’re walking in circles.”
Lia paused, glancing back at him with furrowed brows. It wasn’t just paranoia; the forest did feel different, wrong even. The air was heavier, the shadows darker, and there was a strange hum in the background that she couldn’t place.
“I know,” she said quietly. “I feel it too. But this is the path. The rift is close. We can’t turn back now.”
Kellan nodded, though the doubt in his eyes didn’t fade. He followed Lia through the underbrush, both of them moving with caution. Every snap of a twig, every rustle of leaves made them flinch, their nerves stretched thin from days of relentless pursuit.
As they pressed forward, the forest around them grew denser. The trees became twisted, their branches gnarled and knotted, like the hands of ancient beings reaching toward the sky. The ground beneath their feet was uneven, the roots of the trees protruding like the bones of the earth itself. Lia felt a chill run down her spine. Something was wrong. The forest didn’t just feel strange—it felt… alive.
“Do you hear that?” Lia whispered, coming to a sudden stop.
Kellan froze beside her, his hand instinctively reaching for the hilt of his sword. “Hear what?”
Lia strained her ears, trying to focus on the sound she had heard moments before. It was faint, barely audible over the rustling of the leaves, but it was there—a low, rhythmic pulse, like the beating of a distant drum.
“There,” she said, pointing ahead. “Do you feel it?”
Kellan closed his eyes for a moment, his brow furrowing as he concentrated. Then his eyes snapped open, and he nodded. “I feel it. It’s coming from up ahead.”
They exchanged a glance, both knowing what it could mean. The rift was near, but so were the Echoes. The rhythmic pulse in the air was the unmistakable signature of temporal distortion—a sign that time itself was bending and warping in the area.
Without another word, they moved forward, their footsteps silent as they navigated the twisted landscape. The pulse grew louder with each step, reverberating through the ground beneath them. The air around them seemed to ripple, distorting the space ahead like a mirage.
Lia’s heart raced as they neared a clearing in the forest. She could feel the energy in the air intensifying, the pull of the rift growing stronger. It was unlike anything she had ever experienced before—a raw, chaotic force that threatened to tear reality apart.
As they stepped into the clearing, Lia’s breath caught in her throat. In the center of the open space was the rift.
It hovered above the ground, a jagged tear in the fabric of reality, crackling with unstable energy. The edges of the rift shimmered with a strange, otherworldly light, like the surface of a broken mirror reflecting fragments of a thousand different worlds. Time itself seemed to bleed from the rift, distorting the landscape around it. Trees flickered in and out of existence, their shapes shifting between past and present. The ground beneath the rift was scorched, as if the very earth had been burned by the raw energy emanating from the tear.
Lia took a step forward, her eyes fixed on the rift. She could feel the pull of it, like a gravitational force tugging at her very being. The power of the rift was overwhelming, and yet, there was something familiar about it. It was as if she had seen it before, in the visions that had haunted her dreams.
Kellan moved to stand beside her, his face pale as he stared at the rift. “What… what is this?”
Lia swallowed hard, her mind racing as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing. The rift was unlike any temporal anomaly she had ever encountered. It wasn’t just a fracture in time—it was a doorway. A gateway to something far more dangerous.
“This is what the Echoes have been after,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “This is why they’ve been hunting us. They need this rift to open fully.”
Kellan’s eyes widened. “You’re saying they want to use it? For what?”
“To rewrite history,” Lia said grimly. “They want to control time itself. And this rift… it’s the key.”
As the words left her mouth, the ground beneath them trembled. The pulse of energy from the rift grew stronger, and Lia felt a wave of dizziness wash over her. She stumbled, catching herself before she fell, but the sensation lingered. Time was unraveling, and they were standing at the heart of it.
“We have to close it,” Lia said, her voice shaking. “If we don’t, the Echoes will win. They’ll use this rift to rewrite everything.”
Kellan looked at her, his expression grim. “How do we even begin to do that?”
Lia shook her head, her mind racing. She didn’t have the answers. She wasn’t even sure if the rift could be closed. But she knew one thing for certain: they couldn’t let the Echoes reach it.
“We need to find a way,” she said, her voice firm despite the uncertainty that gnawed at her insides. “There has to be something—some way to disrupt the energy flow. If we can destabilize the rift, maybe we can force it to collapse.”
Kellan nodded, though the doubt in his eyes was clear. “Let’s hope we’re not too late.”
As they moved closer to the rift, the air around them seemed to hum with energy. Lia could feel the power of the rift intensifying, like the pull of a magnet drawing them in. The distortion in time grew stronger, and the world around them flickered and shifted.
Suddenly, a figure appeared at the edge of the clearing.
Lia’s heart skipped a beat as she recognized the tall, cloaked figure standing in the shadows. The silver-eyed woman—the Echo agent who had been hunting them.
The silver-eyed woman stepped into the clearing with the fluid grace of a predator. Her cloak billowed slightly in the unnatural wind swirling around the rift, and her face was calm, almost serene. The cold confidence in her eyes sent a chill down Lia’s spine.
Lia raised her dagger defensively, her pulse quickening. She had faced this Echo agent before, and she knew just how dangerous the woman was. This wasn’t a fight they could win easily, not here—not so close to the rift, where the Echoes had the upper hand.
Kellan drew his sword without hesitation, stepping protectively in front of Lia. “You again,” he growled. “I thought we got rid of you back at the temple.”
The woman smiled, a slow, deliberate smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “You thought wrong. You’ve been running, but we always catch up.” Her voice was as cold and detached as ever, but there was something else beneath it this time—an edge of triumph, as if she already knew how this would end.
Lia clenched her teeth, her mind racing. They were standing on the edge of a temporal rift, a tear in the fabric of reality that was growing more unstable by the second. If the Echoes managed to harness its power, they would be unstoppable. But how could they fight here, with the rift pulling at their senses, warping the very air around them?
“I won’t let you use the rift,” Lia said, her voice steady despite the fear gnawing at her insides. “You think you can control time, but you don’t understand what you’re dealing with. This rift is too unstable. It’ll tear everything apart.”
The woman’s eyes flickered with amusement. “You think you understand time better than we do? You have no idea what’s at stake, Lia. The Echoes are not here to destroy—we are here to correct the mistakes of the past. To fix what has been broken.”
“By breaking more?” Kellan snapped, his grip tightening on his sword. “You’re willing to tear apart entire worlds just to rewrite history? That’s not fixing anything. That’s madness.”
The woman’s smile faded, and for a brief moment, her gaze hardened. “You think you can stop us? You’re standing in the way of progress. This rift is the key to a better future—a future where the timeline is whole, where the fractures are mended. You’re clinging to a broken reality, and it will crumble whether you like it or not.”
Lia’s heart pounded in her chest. She could feel the weight of the woman’s words, the gravity of what they were up against. The Echoes weren’t just manipulating time—they believed they were restoring it. But Lia knew better. She had seen the damage the Echoes caused, the destruction they left in their wake. This rift wasn’t the solution. It was a catastrophe waiting to happen.
“We’re not letting you take control of this rift,” Lia said firmly. “If you want it, you’ll have to go through us.”
The silver-eyed woman’s smile returned, but this time it was sharp, almost cruel. “So be it.”
Without warning, she raised her hand, and the air around them rippled with energy. Lia barely had time to react before the ground beneath them buckled, sending a shockwave through the clearing. Kellan staggered, but he recovered quickly, charging forward with his sword raised. The silver-eyed woman didn’t flinch. With a flick of her wrist, she sent a pulse of energy crashing into him, throwing him backward with bone-jarring force.
“Kellan!” Lia shouted, her voice lost in the roar of the rift’s energy.
She darted toward him, but the silver-eyed woman blocked her path, her movements quick and fluid. Lia slashed with her dagger, but the woman was faster, her own blade materializing in her hand as she deflected the strike. Sparks flew as their weapons clashed, and Lia felt the full weight of the Echo agent’s strength bearing down on her.
“You can’t win this fight,” the woman said calmly, pushing Lia back with a powerful strike. “You’re out of your depth.”
Lia gritted her teeth, refusing to back down. She swung her dagger again, aiming for the woman’s side, but the Echo agent twisted out of the way with ease, her blade a blur of motion. Lia barely had time to raise her dagger to block the next strike, the force of it sending a shock up her arm.
“You don’t understand what’s at stake,” the woman continued, her voice cold and detached. “The timeline is broken. We are the only ones who can fix it.”
“By destroying everything?” Lia spat, her muscles straining as she held off another strike. “You’re not fixing anything. You’re just rewriting the past to suit your own agenda.”
The woman’s eyes narrowed, and for a moment, Lia thought she saw a flicker of something—anger, perhaps—but it was gone as quickly as it had appeared. “You’re wrong,” she said softly. “You’re blinded by your attachment to this broken reality. We’re offering salvation.”
Lia’s breath came in ragged gasps as she fought to keep up with the woman’s relentless attacks. She could feel the energy of the rift pulsing behind her, the air growing more unstable with each passing moment. If they didn’t close the rift soon, it wouldn’t matter who won this fight. Time itself would collapse around them.
With a sudden burst of strength, Lia deflected the woman’s next strike and countered with a sharp jab, aiming for her shoulder. The woman twisted, but not fast enough—Lia’s blade grazed her arm, drawing a thin line of blood.
The woman hissed in pain, her silver eyes flashing with anger. “You’re more stubborn than I thought.”
Lia didn’t respond. She couldn’t afford to lose focus now. The rift was growing stronger, its energy crackling through the air like a storm about to break. She had to end this, and fast.
As the two women circled each other, the ground beneath them trembled again. The rift pulsed violently, sending waves of distortion rippling through the clearing. The trees around them flickered, their forms shifting between past and present, as if time itself was unraveling.
Kellan struggled to his feet, his face pale but determined. He gripped his sword tightly, moving to flank the Echo agent.
“We need to close that rift!” he shouted over the roar of the energy.
“I’m working on it!” Lia called back, her eyes never leaving the silver-eyed woman.
The Echo agent glanced between them, her lips curling into a sly smile. “You really think you can close the rift? It’s already too late. The fracture is spreading, and soon the entire timeline will be ours to shape.”
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Lia’s heart pounded in her chest as the reality of their situation sank in. The rift was destabilizing faster than she had anticipated. If they didn’t act now, it would consume everything.
With a sudden burst of energy, Lia lunged at the woman, her dagger flashing in the dim light. The Echo agent deflected the strike, but Lia didn’t stop. She pressed the attack, forcing the woman back with a series of quick, precise strikes. The Echo agent’s calm facade began to crack as she struggled to keep up with Lia’s relentless assault.
“You can’t stop this,” the woman snarled, her voice rising with frustration. “You’re too late!”
“We’ll see about that,” Lia growled, her blade slashing through the air.
Kellan took the opportunity to move toward the rift, his eyes narrowing as he studied the swirling energy. He reached into his pack and pulled out the device they had recovered from the temple—a small, intricate mechanism designed to disrupt the flow of temporal energy. If it worked, it could destabilize the rift and force it to collapse. But if it failed…
“Lia, I need time!” Kellan shouted, his voice strained as he began calibrating the device.
Lia nodded, her focus locked on the Echo agent. She had to buy Kellan as much time as possible.
The woman’s silver eyes blazed with fury as she realized what Kellan was doing. “You fools!” she screamed, her voice filled with rage. “You’ll destroy everything!”
Lia didn’t hesitate. She threw herself at the woman with renewed ferocity, her dagger slicing through the air in a deadly arc. The Echo agent deflected the blow, but she was off balance, her movements growing more erratic as the energy of the rift surged around them.
“You’re the one who’s destroying everything,” Lia shot back, her voice steady despite the chaos swirling around them. “We’re just trying to stop you.”
With a final, desperate strike, Lia knocked the woman’s blade aside and drove her dagger into the Echo agent’s side. The woman gasped in pain, her silver eyes widening in shock as she staggered back, clutching her wound.
“You… don’t… understand…” the woman choked out, blood staining her cloak as she collapsed to the ground.
Lia didn’t have time to respond. She turned and ran toward Kellan, who was frantically adjusting the device as the rift’s energy surged around him.
“Hurry!” Lia shouted, her voice barely audible over the roar of the rift.
“I’m almost there!” Kellan yelled back, his fingers flying over the controls.
The ground beneath them trembled violently as the rift pulsed with raw, chaotic energy. The air around them shimmered, distorting reality in unpredictable ways. Lia’s vision blurred as the past and future collided, overlapping in a dizzying array of images. She saw flashes of her own life, moments from her past and glimpses of a future that might never come to pass.
With a final click, Kellan activated the device.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then, with a deafening roar, the rift exploded with a blinding flash of light. The force of the blast knocked Lia and Kellan off their feet, sending them tumbling to the ground as the energy of the rift collapsed in on itself.
When the light finally faded, the clearing was silent.
Lia blinked, her vision slowly returning as she pushed herself up on her hands and knees. The rift was gone, the tear in reality sealed shut. The air was still, and the oppressive weight of the temporal distortion had lifted.
“We did it,” Kellan gasped, lying on his back, his chest heaving with exhaustion.
Lia nodded, her heart still racing as she looked around the clearing. The Echo agent’s body was gone, vanished in the collapse of the rift. But the danger wasn’t over yet. The Echoes would come for them again, and next time, they might not be so lucky.
“We bought ourselves some time,” Lia said quietly, her voice heavy with the weight of what they had just accomplished. “But this isn’t over.”
Kellan sat up, wiping sweat from his brow as he looked at her. “No,” he agreed. “It’s just beginning.”
----------------------------------------
Lia and Kellan sat in stunned silence for several minutes, their bodies aching from the intensity of the battle. The night had become eerily still, as if the world itself was holding its breath after the collapse of the rift. The energy that had crackled through the clearing had vanished, leaving only the quiet rustle of leaves in the cold wind.
The weight of what they had just done began to sink in.
Lia stared at the spot where the rift had been, her mind racing. The Echo agent was gone, but the threat she posed still lingered in Lia’s thoughts. The rift had been unstable, but they hadn’t just closed it—they had destroyed it. That power… it was nothing like she had ever seen before. It was overwhelming, terrifying, and final.
Kellan, still catching his breath, sat up beside her. “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice rough.
Lia didn’t answer right away. Her hands were trembling slightly, and the echo of the rift’s energy still buzzed in her ears. She tried to shake the feeling, to focus on the here and now, but something felt off. She could still feel the pull of time in the back of her mind, as though the rift had left an imprint on her. She swallowed hard, forcing herself to speak. “I think so,” she replied, though she wasn’t entirely sure.
Kellan watched her for a moment before nodding, clearly not convinced but too tired to press further. He leaned back against the trunk of a fallen tree and sighed deeply. “We got lucky. I didn’t think we’d make it out of that one.”
“Neither did I,” Lia admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.
The silence between them grew, thick with unspoken fears. Lia couldn’t shake the feeling that they were missing something. Closing the rift had been their goal, but the silver-eyed woman’s words still echoed in her mind. “The timeline is broken. We are the only ones who can fix it.” What had she meant? And what if she was right?
Lia’s thoughts were interrupted by a faint sound in the distance. At first, she thought it was the wind, but then it grew louder—a low hum, like the buzz of a distant machine. Her instincts kicked in immediately, and she rose to her feet, scanning the area. “Do you hear that?”
Kellan frowned, pushing himself up to stand beside her. “What is it?”
“I’m not sure, but we’re not alone,” Lia said, her hand instinctively reaching for her dagger.
The hum grew louder, more distinct. It wasn’t just a machine—it was the sound of something moving, something large. The ground beneath them trembled slightly, as though the very earth was shifting in response to whatever was approaching.
“We need to move,” Lia said quickly. “Now.”
Kellan didn’t argue. Together, they gathered their belongings and quickly slipped into the cover of the trees. As they moved deeper into the forest, the sound followed them, growing louder and more insistent. Whatever it was, it was getting closer—and fast.
Lia’s heart raced as she led the way through the dense underbrush, her mind racing. They had destroyed the rift, but had they truly stopped the Echoes? Or had they only made things worse?
They didn’t stop until they reached the edge of a steep cliff overlooking a wide valley. Lia paused, catching her breath as she peered down into the darkness below. The valley stretched out beneath them, bathed in the pale glow of the moon. But something was wrong. The landscape was shifting, flickering between different versions of itself, as though time itself was in flux.
“What the hell is happening?” Kellan asked, his voice filled with awe and dread.
Lia didn’t have an answer. She stared down at the valley, her pulse quickening as the truth began to dawn on her. The rift’s collapse hadn’t just sealed the tear in reality—it had sent shockwaves through the timeline. The effects were rippling outward, warping time in unpredictable ways. They hadn’t stopped the Echoes’ plan; they had only accelerated it.
“We need to get to the capital,” Lia said, her voice tight with urgency. “If this is happening here, it could be spreading. We need to warn the others.”
Kellan nodded grimly. “And if the Echoes are still out there—”
“They are,” Lia interrupted, her voice hard. “The woman said it herself. The timeline is broken. They’re not going to stop.”
Kellan glanced at her, his eyes filled with determination. “Then we’ll stop them. Whatever it takes.”
Lia nodded, though her heart was heavy with doubt. She wanted to believe they could stop the Echoes, that they could undo the damage that had been done. But deep down, she knew it wasn’t that simple. The timeline was fragile, and every action they took seemed to have consequences they couldn’t foresee.
They had to keep moving.
----------------------------------------
The journey to the capital was long and grueling, the days blending into one another as they traveled across vast stretches of wilderness. They avoided the main roads, sticking to the shadows and keeping a low profile. Every now and then, they would encounter strange anomalies—pockets of time that had been warped by the collapse of the rift. In one village, they found people living in a loop, repeating the same actions over and over again as though trapped in a never-ending day. In another, time seemed to have sped up, the landscape changing rapidly as seasons shifted in the blink of an eye.
Each new anomaly they encountered only deepened Lia’s sense of unease. The timeline was unraveling, and the further they traveled, the more apparent it became. The capital was their only hope. If they could reach the Council, maybe they could find a way to reverse the damage.
But the closer they got to the city, the more dangerous the journey became.
One evening, as they made camp on the outskirts of a small, abandoned town, Lia noticed something strange in the distance—a flickering light, barely visible through the trees. At first, she thought it might be another anomaly, but then she realized it was moving toward them.
“Kellan,” Lia said quietly, her eyes fixed on the approaching light.
Kellan looked up from the fire, his brow furrowing as he followed her gaze. “What is that?”
“I don’t know, but it’s coming this way.”
They quickly doused the fire and grabbed their weapons, moving into the cover of the trees. The light grew brighter as it approached, and soon they could make out the shape of a figure moving through the darkness. The figure was tall and cloaked, their face hidden in the shadows.
Lia’s heart raced as she crouched low, her dagger in hand. She wasn’t sure if the figure was friend or foe, but she wasn’t taking any chances.
The figure stopped a few feet away from where they were hiding, their head turning as if they were scanning the area. Lia held her breath, her grip tightening on her dagger.
After a moment of tense silence, the figure spoke. “I know you’re there. Come out.”
Lia exchanged a quick glance with Kellan, her heart pounding in her chest. Whoever this was, they didn’t seem hostile—at least not yet. Slowly, she stepped out from behind the tree, her dagger still at the ready.
The figure lowered their hood, revealing a young man with dark hair and piercing green eyes. His expression was calm, but there was something unsettling about the way he looked at her.
“You’re the ones who destroyed the rift, aren’t you?” the man asked, his voice low and measured.
Lia tensed, her mind racing. How did he know?
“We’re just passing through,” Kellan said cautiously, stepping out beside Lia. “Who are you?”
The man’s eyes flicked to Kellan, then back to Lia. “My name is Arren,” he said, his voice cold. “And you’ve made a grave mistake.”
Lia’s blood ran cold. “What are you talking about?”
Arren took a step forward, his gaze intense. “The rift you destroyed—it wasn’t just any rift. It was a keystone. One of the few remaining anchors holding the timeline together.”
Lia’s heart sank. “What do you mean?”
“The Echoes didn’t create the rift,” Arren explained, his voice hard. “They were trying to control it, yes, but they weren’t the ones who caused the fractures in the timeline. The rifts are the result of something far older, something much more dangerous. By destroying that rift, you’ve weakened the entire structure of time itself.”
Lia’s mind reeled. “But we had no choice. The Echoes were trying to—”
“I know what the Echoes were trying to do,” Arren interrupted, his eyes flashing with anger. “But in your haste to stop them, you’ve made things worse. The timeline is unraveling faster than ever now, and there’s no easy way to fix it.”
Lia swallowed hard, her chest tightening with dread. She had thought they were doing the right thing, that closing the rift would stop the Echoes’ plan. But now it seemed like they had only accelerated the destruction.
“What do we do?” Kellan asked, his voice tense.
Arren’s expression darkened. “There’s only one way to stabilize the timeline now. You’ll need to find the remaining keystones and repair the fractures.
Lia’s mind was racing, trying to process everything Arren had just said. The destruction of the rift had been a mistake—one that had accelerated the collapse of the timeline. She glanced at Kellan, who looked equally shaken, his face pale in the dim light. This wasn’t what they had planned for, but the stakes were higher than ever now.
She forced herself to speak, her voice barely above a whisper. “Where do we start?”
Arren’s green eyes bore into hers, sharp and unyielding. “The keystones are scattered across time. Some are hidden in the past, others in the future, each one more difficult to reach than the last. But there’s one close by—within the capital.”
“The capital?” Kellan frowned. “But it’s under Echo control. We’ll never get in.”
Arren smirked, though there was no warmth in it. “You will, if you’re smart. The Echoes don’t know where the keystone is. They’re looking, but they’re just as in the dark as you are. That’s your advantage.”
Lia felt a spark of hope amidst her confusion. If the Echoes didn’t have all the answers, they still had a fighting chance. But the idea of traveling through time—finding and fixing fractures across different eras—felt like a task beyond anything she’d ever imagined.
“How do we find it?” she asked, her heart pounding. “The keystone?”
Arren reached into his cloak and pulled out a small device, no bigger than a compass, its surface etched with intricate runes that seemed to shift when the light hit them. He handed it to Lia. “This will help you locate the keystones. It reacts to the energy they emit. When you’re close, it’ll guide you.”
Lia took the device, feeling its weight in her hand. It thrummed with a faint energy, like a pulse beneath her skin. She could sense its connection to something far greater—something ancient and powerful. The gravity of their mission pressed down on her, making it hard to breathe.
Kellan, still skeptical, asked, “What about the Echoes? If they’re after the same thing, they won’t just stand by and let us collect these keystones.”
“They won’t,” Arren replied flatly. “The Echoes are relentless, but they can’t act recklessly either. They need the timeline stable, just like you do, or their entire existence will unravel. You have one advantage over them, though.”
Lia looked up. “What’s that?”
“They’re fractured,” Arren explained. “The Echoes are splintered into different factions, each with their own agenda. Some want to control the timeline; others want to reshape it entirely. They’re fighting amongst themselves as much as they’re fighting you.”
“So, they’re vulnerable,” Kellan muttered, his eyes narrowing.
Arren nodded. “For now. But don’t let that fool you. Once they realize you’re after the keystones, they’ll come after you with everything they have. You need to be prepared.”
Lia’s grip tightened on the device. The pressure of the task was immense, but she had no choice. They had already set things in motion—there was no turning back. “How do you know all of this?” she asked Arren. “Who are you?”
For a moment, something flickered in Arren’s eyes, a flash of something unspoken. He hesitated before answering. “I was once part of the Echoes. A long time ago. I’ve seen what they’re capable of, and I’ve seen what happens when the timeline breaks. I left them because I couldn’t stand by and watch it happen.”
Lia didn’t know whether to trust him. His calm demeanor and knowledge made him seem credible, but something about his connection to the Echoes unsettled her. “Why help us?”
Arren’s gaze hardened. “Because if the timeline collapses, no one wins. Not the Echoes, not you, not anyone. We’ll all be erased. I’m doing what I have to.”
The silence that followed was heavy with tension. Lia wanted to believe him, but she had learned not to trust so easily. The Echoes were masters of deception, and for all she knew, this could be a trap.
But there was no other option.
She took a deep breath and nodded. “We’ll go to the capital, find the keystone, and repair the fracture. After that… we’ll figure out the next step.”
Arren studied her for a long moment before finally nodding. “Good. I’ll be watching.”
With that, he turned and disappeared into the darkness, leaving Lia and Kellan alone by the dying embers of their campfire.
For a few minutes, neither of them spoke. The enormity of what lay ahead of them weighed heavily in the air.
Finally, Kellan broke the silence. “Do you think we can trust him?”
Lia stared at the small device in her hand, watching the runes shift and glow softly in the fading light. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “But right now, we don’t have a choice.”
Kellan sighed, running a hand through his hair. “It just keeps getting worse, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah,” Lia said quietly. “It does.”
----------------------------------------
Three days later they stood at the edge of the capital’s outer walls, looking up at the towering structures that loomed over the landscape. The city was a mixture of ancient stone buildings and futuristic towers, a testament to the timeline’s fractured state. The streets were patrolled by Echo soldiers, their silver eyes glinting in the artificial light.
“We’re going to have to be careful,” Lia whispered as they crouched behind a low wall, watching the patrols. “One wrong move, and we’ll be caught before we even get inside.”
Kellan nodded, his eyes scanning the area for any signs of weakness. “Do you have a plan?”
Lia held up the device Arren had given her. The runes were glowing faintly, indicating that the keystone was somewhere within the city. “We need to find a way past the guards and into the central district. That’s where the keystone is.”
“And how do we do that without being spotted?” Kellan asked, his voice tense.
Lia bit her lip, thinking quickly. “We’ll need a distraction. Something big enough to draw their attention away from us.”
Kellan looked around, his eyes landing on a nearby power station. “What about that? If we take out the power grid, it’ll cause enough chaos to cover our movements.”
Lia nodded, impressed. “That could work. But we need to be fast. Once the power goes out, they’ll be on high alert.”
“Then let’s get moving,” Kellan said, already standing up.
Together, they made their way toward the power station, staying low and moving through the shadows. The city was eerily quiet, the hum of machines and the occasional footsteps of patrols the only sounds breaking the silence.
As they approached the station, Lia could feel the tension building. This was it—their first real test. If they failed here, it would all be over.
Kellan worked quickly, disabling the security systems and setting up a timed explosion that would knock out the grid without causing too much damage. “We’ve got five minutes,” he said as he set the final charge. “Once this goes off, we need to move fast.”
Lia nodded, her heart pounding. “Let’s go.”
They moved into position, waiting for the explosion. The seconds ticked by, each one feeling longer than the last.
Then, with a loud boom, the power station erupted in flames. The lights throughout the city flickered and went out, plunging the streets into darkness. Alarms began to blare, and the Echo soldiers scrambled, their radios crackling with urgent commands.
“This is our chance,” Lia said, her voice barely audible over the chaos.
They darted through the streets, slipping past the distracted guards and making their way toward the central district. The device in Lia’s hand glowed brighter with each step, guiding them closer to the keystone.
But as they neared the heart of the city, a chilling realization washed over Lia.
The Echoes knew they were coming.
They had walked into a trap.