The confrontation with his double left an indelible mark in the air. Every word spoken echoed through the ruins, reverberating with a future Eryndal had never imagined. His double, this distorted reflection of himself, was not just a broken mirror of the fate he had chosen—it was an entirely separate entity, a parallel existence woven from shadows and sacrifices.
Darek was on high alert, his hand firmly gripping the hilt of his sword, ready to strike. Alessia had taken a step back, fear flickering in her eyes—but also a piercing curiosity, as if she understood that they couldn't afford to run. Elion, however, watched the other Eryndal with a particular intensity, as if he were trying to decipher the invisible threads weaving this strange encounter.
The air was heavy, saturated with an energy both oppressive and electrifying, as if merely existing in this altered dimension warped their perception of time and space. Eryndal felt his heart pounding, cold sweat beading on his forehead, but he couldn't look away from his double. He was a spectator in his own life, an actor trapped in a play whose script he no longer recognized.
The other Eryndal smiled—a smile that never reached his eyes. A smile that seemed to say he knew something the others did not. Something that would upend their world once more.
— You don't understand, do you? he murmured. This division… it's more than a fracture. It's a tear in reality.
Eryndal clenched his fists, his nails digging into his skin. He didn't want to admit it, but somewhere deep inside, he could feel the truth cutting into his soul like a blade. Every choice he had made, every decision, every sacrifice had led him to this inevitable encounter. And now, he had to face it.
— Why… he finally said, his voice raw, broken by emotion and confusion. Why was I the one to make this choice?
His double let out a laugh, but it was hollow, devoid of warmth. Bitter mockery filled the air.
— Because you wanted to understand. Because you crave answers too much. But some truths cannot be possessed—they must be lived. You think there's an end to this quest. That a single answer will allow you to fix everything.
He shook his head.
— No. That's not how this works.
Darek stepped forward, his gaze defiant.
— I'm not letting him waste our time with his speeches, he growled, ready to strike. If this guy wants to fight, then let him.
But Elion calmly placed a hand on Darek's shoulder, stopping him from moving further.
— No, Darek. This isn't about strength. This isn't the battle we need to fight.
His eyes locked onto the other Eryndal.
— What you're saying is that the cost of this choice, this tear you speak of, doesn't end here. What do you really want?
The double of Eryndal seemed to consider the question for a moment before letting out a long sigh, as if an immense truth weighed upon him.
— I want what you're not ready to accept.
He gestured broadly, as if to encompass the broken horizon before them.
— A world without boundaries between choices. Where every path is open, where every reality exists simultaneously.
He turned to Eryndal, his piercing red eyes gleaming.
— A world where sacrifices are no longer necessary. Where decisions have no weight. A world where anything is possible.
A chilling cold spread through Eryndal. This vision was seductive—and dangerous. A world where everything flowed, with no end and no return. A world without burdens. But was that truly what he wanted? Would such an existence not erase everything that made him human? Everything that gave his life meaning?
— What you're proposing, he murmured, is the end of everything we've known.
He clenched his jaw.
— And I don't know if I can accept that.
His double observed him for a long moment, then slowly nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips.
— You'll understand eventually.
He turned his gaze to the darkened sky.
— You can't go back, Eryndal. We are bound together, more than you can imagine.
The tension between the two Eryndals rose, an invisible force seeming to draw them toward each other. Reality itself seemed to distort around them, as if the clash of their wills was creating fractures in the fabric of the world.
A shiver of dread ran down Eryndal's spine. He knew this wasn't just about choices. This wasn't merely a duel between them. He stood at a crossroads, a junction where every decision would have unimaginable consequences.
And in this confrontation, there would be no turning back.
— What you want, Eryndal said, standing taller, is for me to follow you into your shattered world. But I am not you.
His double smiled again, darker this time, like a predator sensing its prey within reach.
— Ah, but you don't really have a choice, do you?
He spoke softly.
— You're already here. With me.
At that moment, a flash of light split the darkness. The ruins trembled. A deep rumble, like the growl of the earth itself, echoed through the valley.
Something was coming.
Something far greater than this confrontation.
And Eryndal knew—this was not the end of his journey.
It was only the beginning of a new trial.