The path ended at a cliff.
Aiden stood before it in silence, the wind biting at his cloak. Below, nestled in the ribs of the mountain, lay Kaldrith Hollow—a city of stone and shadow, carved directly into the cliffs like scars.
It was quiet.
Too quiet.
Torran caught up to him, panting from the climb. "Why does it feel like... we're too late?"
Aiden didn't answer right away.
Because he knew.
The Weave was already pulsing. Threadlines shimmered faintly around the city—like veins about to burst.
---
> [Kaldrith Hollow Detected – Leyline Disturbance: Critical]
Fracture Threat: Tier B – Inversion Incoming
Quest Trigger: "Last Light"
Objective: Reach the Gate Below. Survive.
Bonus: Prevent Full Collapse
Timeline Risk: Major
---
They descended quickly.
The outer ring of Kaldrith was abandoned. Doors swung open in the wind. Ash coated the walkways, too fresh to be old. Aiden's boots left the only footprints.
The scent of burnt magic lingered like regret.
They passed murals carved into the stone walls—depictions of stars, of veiled gods, of ancient wars that never happened.
"This city wasn't built to last," Aiden murmured. "It was built to remember."
"Remember what?"
"Something the Weave didn't want it to."
---
The Gate
It wasn't a door.
It was a wound.
In the depths of the Hollow, through a chamber where time bent sideways, Aiden found it: a gash in the rock, surrounded by hovering fragments of old memory. They spun slowly—glowing, humming, whispering.
The Shardgate.
Only Shardbound could open it.
He placed a hand against the fragments.
They didn't resist.
They welcomed him.
> [System Alert – Legacy Gate Recognized]
Shardbinder Sync: Confirmed
Gate Activation – 5 Seconds
Torran stepped back. "What's on the other side?"
"I don't know," Aiden said.
"But I think I left something there."
---
The gate opened.
And the light it released was wrong.
Cold, golden, burning like memory itself.
---
Echo-Class Entity Detected
The gate pulsed.
A shape stepped through.
Aiden staggered back, eyes wide.
It was him.
But this version wore a mantle of starlight and wielded a blade of mirrored flame. His face was unreadable. Eyes gleamed like galaxies.
Not the tyrant.
Not the coward.
Something in between.
The One Who Stayed.
---
> [BOSS FIGHT: Echo Aiden – Thread Variant #12-A "The Last Light"]
Class: Shardkeeper
Status: Defensive / Conflicted
Ability Detected: Starbind | Gate Lockdown | Timeline Freeze
---
The fight was brutal.
Echoforge clashed with Starbind. Flame against echo. Memory against memory.
Aiden faltered.
Then adapted.
He let go of trying to win with strength. And fought with what made him different:
Choice.
He used Fracture Memory mid-fight, invoked a moment where he had once saved someone instead of killing them.
And that ripple, that small divergence, hit his echo like a storm.
---
The Last Light fell to one knee.
"You… chose less power," the echo gasped. "And still stand."
"I'm not standing alone," Aiden said.
He reached out.
The echo's weapon shattered.
The echo smiled—
And faded.
---
> [Boss Defeated: Echo Aiden – The Last Light]
+350 XP | +3 Sync | +Skill: Starbind – Flicker (T2)
Total Sync: 27%
---
The gate remained open.
But Aiden didn't pass through.
Not yet.
He sat on the stone as the light died.
And wondered how many more versions of himself he would have to face—
Before he could finally become just one.