The common room of the inn was filled with a tense silence as Aran's words lingered in the air. They had a plan, but the weight of the task ahead was crushing. The Void wasn't just an external threat; it had already taken root within Aran and the starstone. Time was slipping through their fingers, and with every moment, the starstone's corruption spread further through the web of realms.
Seraphina, always calm and composed, broke the silence first. "We need to act quickly. The longer we wait, the more entrenched the Void becomes. If it takes complete control of the starstone, the consequences could be irreversible."
Edward, still seated with his fingers tapping the table, nodded in agreement. "The ancient orders I mentioned are our best bet. But they are reclusive, hidden away in places that have long since been forgotten by most of the world. Finding them will be no small feat."
Lyssa folded her arms across her chest, her eyes scanning the room as if deep in thought. "We need to divide our efforts. Some of us should stay close to the starstone to monitor its state, while the rest search for these ancient orders. That way, we can move quickly in both directions."
Aran appreciated Lyssa's sharp tactical thinking, but a new unease gripped him. **What if the Void isn't something we can fight with knowledge alone?** His visions had warned him not just of its external spread but of its entanglement with his very being. Facing the Void meant confronting the darkness inside him, and that was something knowledge alone wouldn't solve.
"The question is," Aran said slowly, "where do we start looking? The Void isn't exactly a common topic of conversation, and ancient orders that have tangled with it aren't going to advertise their existence."
Edward's eyes glinted with a rare spark of excitement. "There's one place I know where we can start: The Astral Archives, an ancient repository of knowledge that exists between the realms. If there's any information on these orders, it will be there. It's said to hold records of every secret ever whispered, including those of the Void."
Seraphina raised an eyebrow. "The Astral Archives? I've heard of them, but I assumed they were a myth."
Edward smiled faintly. "Most people think so, but I've uncovered a few clues over the years. The archives exist, and I think I know how to reach them."
Aran's curiosity piqued at this. "How?"
"The Archives are hidden within a pocket dimension," Edward explained. "They can only be accessed through an ancient portal located on the outskirts of the Veil Plains, a desolate region not far from here. The journey is treacherous, but it's the only place where we might find clues about these ancient orders."
Aran exchanged glances with Lyssa and Seraphina. The Veil Plains were notorious, a place where the boundary between worlds was thin, and travelers often found themselves lost in time or space. But if the Astral Archives held the key to stopping the Void, it was a risk they had to take.
"We'll head for the Veil Plains, then," Aran decided. "But we can't all go. Like Lyssa said, we need someone to stay behind and keep an eye on the starstone."
Seraphina spoke up, her voice steady. "I'll stay. My skills will be more useful here, monitoring any changes to the starstone's condition. I'll also make sure no one else comes sniffing around the collapsed cavern."
Lyssa nodded. "And I'll go with Aran and Edward. The Veil Plains are dangerous. If anything goes wrong, we'll need all the strength we can muster."
The plan was solid, but Aran felt a growing sense of dread. Every step they took toward confronting the Void felt like walking deeper into the unknown. But there was no turning back now. The starstone's corruption had to be stopped, and they were the only ones who could do it.
"We leave at first light," Aran said, standing from the table. "Get some rest. We'll need it."
---
The following morning, the trio stood on the outskirts of the village, their packs filled with supplies and weapons at the ready. Seraphina stayed behind, her presence both reassuring and a reminder of the dangers that still loomed. She gave them a curt nod as they set out, her posture calm and poised.
The journey to the Veil Plains was long and arduous. The landscape grew more desolate as they traveled, the rolling hills giving way to cracked earth and jagged cliffs. The sky above seemed to darken the closer they got to their destination, the air thick with a sense of foreboding.
It wasn't long before they reached the edge of the Veil Plains, a barren expanse that stretched out endlessly before them. The ground was dry and cracked, with occasional wisps of mist rising from the earth. Strange, shifting shadows moved in the distance, their forms indistinct and unsettling.
Edward led the way, his eyes scanning the horizon. "The portal should be just ahead, hidden in a rock formation. But be on guard—this place is known to play tricks on the mind."
As they moved deeper into the Veil Plains, Aran felt an unsettling pressure in the air. The very fabric of reality seemed to bend and twist around them. His vision blurred, and for a brief moment, he thought he saw strange figures standing in the distance, watching them.
"Do you feel that?" Lyssa whispered, her voice low and tense. "Something's wrong."
Edward nodded grimly. "It's the influence of the Veil. Time and space don't function normally here. We need to stay focused, or we risk getting lost."
They pressed on, keeping their eyes forward and their senses sharp. After what felt like hours of walking, they finally reached a series of tall, jagged rocks jutting out of the ground like ancient sentinels. At the center of the formation, a faint shimmering light flickered, barely visible to the naked eye.
"That's it," Edward said, stepping forward. "The portal to the Astral Archives."
Aran stared at the shimmering light, a sense of both awe and apprehension washing over him. This was their gateway to the knowledge they needed, but he couldn't shake the feeling that the Archives held more than just answers. There would be secrets in that place—dark, dangerous secrets that could either save them or destroy them.
"We're going in," Aran said, gripping the hilt of his sword tightly. "Stay close. We don't know what we'll find on the other side."
With a deep breath, the three of them stepped into the shimmering portal.
---
The world around them shifted in an instant, and they found themselves standing in a vast, infinite space filled with towering shelves of books and scrolls. The air was heavy with the weight of untold knowledge, and a strange, ethereal light bathed the room in a soft glow.
"The Astral Archives," Edward whispered, his voice filled with wonder.
But as they took their first steps into the hallowed halls, a deep, rumbling voice echoed through the space, sending a chill down Aran's spine.
"Who dares disturb the knowledge of the infinite?"
Aran's heart raced as he realized they were not alone. Something ancient and powerful watched them from the shadows, and whatever it was, it didn't seem pleased with their presence.