The forest seemed to pulse with a life of its own, each step Aric took deepening his sense of unease. Though the fog had lifted and the immediate danger of the shadow beast had passed, a quiet tension lingered in the air. The trees stood tall and dark, their branches reaching like twisted fingers above him, and the ground was soft underfoot, thick with the scent of damp earth. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was waiting just beyond the edge of his sight.
Lyra led the way, her movements smooth and practiced, though there was a palpable caution in her every step. She seemed different now—more alert, her posture tense, as though the forest itself was shifting around them. Aric tried to steady his breathing, but his mind kept racing. He had faced the shadow beast, something that wasn't entirely real yet still deadly, but the unknown still loomed ahead.
"So, what exactly is the Hall of Memories?" Aric asked, trying to pull his focus from the eerily quiet surroundings.
Lyra didn't immediately respond. She was watching the path ahead with narrowed eyes, her expression unreadable. When she finally spoke, her voice was low, almost reluctant. "It's a place of ancient power, a repository of lost knowledge. But it's not just memories—it's a reflection of what has been and what could be. It shows you things you might not be ready to see. The truth has a way of revealing itself in unexpected ways."
Aric felt a knot tighten in his stomach. "What do you mean by 'could be'? What if I don't like what I find?"
Lyra's eyes flicked to him, and for a moment, he saw a flicker of something—pity? Regret? It was gone as quickly as it came. "The Hall will show you what is most important for you to know. Not all truths are easy to bear, but they are necessary."
A cold wind rustled the leaves above, and Aric couldn't shake the feeling that the forest itself was listening, waiting for something. They walked for what felt like hours, the dense trees closing in tighter around them, until the path began to narrow. Aric's chest tightened as they moved deeper into the heart of the forest, where the air seemed thick and charged, as if the very essence of the land had been drawn into this place.
Suddenly, the path opened into another clearing—larger this time, the trees parting like a curtain to reveal what lay beyond. But what Aric saw made him freeze.
In the center of the clearing was a massive stone structure, ancient and imposing. It stood half-buried in the earth, with vines and roots crawling up its walls, but its sheer size was undeniable. The stone surface was covered in intricate carvings and symbols—symbols Aric didn't recognize, but that somehow seemed… familiar. As though they were etched into his very bones, waiting to be understood.
The structure itself was shaped like a giant doorway, but there was no door. Instead, the stone seemed to warp and shimmer, almost as if it were alive, reacting to their presence.
Lyra stopped at the edge of the clearing, her hand raised to signal Aric to halt. "This is where your journey truly begins. The Hall of Memories is not a place you simply walk into. It chooses those who are worthy. To enter, you must be prepared to face yourself. And you must not turn back."
Aric's pulse quickened as he took a hesitant step forward, his gaze fixed on the strange structure. He could feel the weight of its presence, pressing on him from all sides. "I thought the forest was the test," he said, his voice unsteady. "Isn't this part of it?"
"It is," Lyra said, her voice low and steady. "But it is different. This is not a physical test—it's a mental and emotional one. The Hall doesn't care about strength. It cares about your soul. If you are not ready to face what lies within, you will not survive the journey."
Aric swallowed hard. He had been ready for battle, ready for physical trials, but this was something different. The very idea of facing his own mind, of being forced to confront whatever lay hidden in the depths of his soul, filled him with dread.
"I don't know if I can do this," he muttered, more to himself than to Lyra.
"You don't have a choice," Lyra replied, her tone unwavering. "This is the only way forward. You've come this far, but the answers you seek lie inside. You must face the truth, no matter how painful."
Aric wanted to argue, to say that he wasn't ready, that he needed more time, but he knew deep down that there was no time left. The shadows were still out there, and they wouldn't stop hunting him. The Hall of Memories was his only chance to find out who he was, what he had lost.
Without another word, he took a deep breath and stepped toward the stone doorway.
The moment his foot crossed the threshold, the world seemed to shudder. The air grew colder, and the ground beneath him seemed to ripple like water. The stone itself began to glow, the symbols shifting and changing before his eyes, until the entire structure was alive with light.
Aric's heart raced as he stepped deeper into the doorway, and with each step, the light seemed to pull him in, tugging at his very soul. The further he went, the more his senses seemed to fade. The sounds of the forest outside vanished, replaced by an overwhelming silence, as if the world itself had ceased to exist.
Then, all at once, the world went dark.