“I will take you to the place that belongs to your ancestors. Don't walk away, the forest only appears to be safe.” He starts to move without saying another word.

Ezer follows him through the woods and across streams. From time to time thought he heard whispers and cries as well.

“Magic is very dense in these places and whatever happened in this place, it kept the memories.” He says it when notices Ezer's anxiety.

“The forest is darker than it seems.” He's glad to know it's not his mind playing tricks on him.

“It is because you don't understand. When you do, it will be beautiful.” The rock falls back into silence.

Ezer can't understand his character, he shows indifference, but he didn't ignore him either. So he follows him safely knowing that at least he has no bad intentions.

Crossing the last line of trees, Ezer finds himself in full view of what he had seen the day before on the mountain.

A massive stone structure set with walls and towers of unique and detailed designs that Ezer had only seen in books. A fortress loomed, though overshadowed by the passage of time, before him.

“I'm sure this place teemed with life in the past. I think that before my duty was to protect this place.” His voice softens like a person talking about their native home.

“Believe?” That word didn't fit.

“I have no memory. I lost it, or it was deleted.” His voice, so far calm, shakes showing his emotions.

Ezer looks away towards the fortress, thinking about the possible cause of the memory loss, as they approach. At that moment, he notices something that he couldn't see because of the angle they were at.

“What's that?” Ezer couldn't stop the question from slipping out.

“That is, perhaps, one of the most intriguing things about this fortress.” The rock says it acknowledging the source of the boy's intrigue.

Ezer can't help the thrill of wanting to enter and perhaps be the first in decades to explore this place. He advanced through long, wide corridors, as well as halls and rooms until he could not continue through the void in front of him, kicking a small stone and watching it lose itself in free fall, dozens of meters below. Ahead of him stretched the landscape across the huge gap in the fortress that encompassed almost the entire eastern side of it, the stone bricks cut in a curved shape as if cut by a huge blade capable of cutting through half a fortress.

Ezer caresses the cut surface of the stones and at that moment, he notices the crystals that were melted on the surface being found throughout the cut. He thinks that he could have been the cause of this, but his companion interrupts him by giving him the answer.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Heat is the only thing that can do this to stones, I know that better than anyone, I am made of rock after all." Feel the edges just like Ezer

“It seems as if someone had heated a knife red hot and cut the stones like butter…” He stands up and looks up, seeing how the cut recedes and creates a crescent whose points point to the East. “A very, very large knife.”

“Whatever happened here was powerful enough to melt stones.” The rock turns indifferently in the same landscape it saw for hundreds of years. “There's nothing else to show, just ruins and cracks.”

The fortress was divided into two exact and symmetrical halves which, if wasn’t for the deplorable state and a section almost completely destroyed, gave an incredible impression. Each could be sealed and act independently of the other, although now almost nothing remains of the Eastern section.

“The West armory is empty, and the East one is completely gone. Only the rotten woods of some shapeless furniture remain.” They reach the gap that was once the front door. “But it still serves as the best refuge in this place. If you decide to leave, do it. If you don't, be careful with the forest... it's deeper than it seems.”

"How long have you guarded the fortress?"

“My memories begin in this place remembered by no one…before that? I don't know, the only thing I'm sure of is that I saw the snow fall and melt countless times.”

Before he leaves, Ezer asks him one last question.

"Why did you lead me here?"

"You said you were half-breed, maybe you'll find something I couldn't. Maybe that something has to do with my memories.” He answers without looking back.

"I see, I promise to tell you if I find anything."

“I don't know why he stays guarding a forgotten place... The passage of time is different for both of us, a hundred years is a lifetime for me, but I don't know what it means for him.”

Ezer enters the fortress thinking about the differences between the first non-human creature capable of speech that he meets.

He chooses one of the countless rooms to spend the night and sleeps on the floor, but sheltered from the outside, his emotion had faded when he had not discovered any magical treasure like in the stories his mother read. In any case, he decided to explore the place thoroughly the next morning.

At the top of the fortress was a small open-air artificial pond, surrounding it were walls with relief paintings engraved on them. A mural in perfect condition despite the years showed a man with slightly pointed ears moving through it.

It was the only thing that stood out in that imposing structure, each room or hall had nothing more than rubble and dust. The architecture was very different from what Ezer was used to, but it was nothing that interested or was useful to him.

Ezer could easily make out that the mural was divided into three sections. In the first, a man clearly stood out dancing following what seemed to be the trails of the wind. In the second, a woman with a sword defending herself from the wind. Finally, in the third, a different man from the first, cutting the wind with his sword.

Ezer watches every detail of the mural in astonishment, without noticing it, two hours pass until he engraves every inch of the reliefs in his memory. He sits on the floor and eats a few servings of meat when his stomach won't let him concentrate on anything but hunger.

He continues to visualize them until he finishes his meal and stands in front of the man dancing with the wind. His long hair moved with the breeze and his steps followed suit.

Energy emanated from the painting or that's what Ezer thought he felt, follows the example and begins to imitate the steps of the mural. Whatever it wants to convey, Ezer is sure that they are not just folklore steps.