Darkness engulfed them, and the world dissolved.
Emiren felt his body lose all weight, as if he had been swallowed by time itself. He was neither falling nor flying—he was dissolving into a current that had neither a beginning nor an end.
Suddenly, the space around them began to take shape. At first, there were only shadows flickering at the edges of their consciousness, then blurry outlines of colossal structures, and finally, they felt solid ground beneath their feet once more.
They stood on a stone bridge suspended in an infinite void.
The Eternal Garden had revealed its heart to them.
A World That Breathes Time
Beneath the seemingly endless bridge, a grand sight unfolded.
Colossal mechanisms, resembling enormous clockwork gears, slowly turned in the abyss. Massive cogs made of a metal that seemed alive interlocked in intricate patterns. Each movement sent waves of time rippling outward in all directions.
Among these mechanisms grew strange trees—their branches were not made of wood but of pure light, shifting colors as an unseen wind passed through them. Instead of leaves, crystalline structures pulsed with golden energy.
— This is the Heart of the Eternal Garden, — whispered the Empty One.
Emiren felt something inside him resonate with this world.
— This place… it’s alive.
Flamen stepped forward and touched one of the stone pillars supporting the bridge.
— This is more than just a world, — he said. — This is something primordial. This is the essence of time itself.
But they were not alone.
The Guardians of the Heart
Suddenly, the air trembled, and figures emerged before them.
Four beings, unlike anything they had ever seen. Their forms seemed to be part of the vast mechanism spinning below. Their eyes glowed with the same light as the crystals on the trees.
— You have come to the place where all paths are born, — the first Guardian spoke. His voice was deep, as if resonating through the very fabric of time.
— And you have come without permission, — added the second.
Flamen clenched his fists, flames igniting around him.
— We seek the truth. We want to understand how all of this works.
The third Guardian slowly raised a hand, and time around them froze. Even Flamen’s fire hung motionless in the air.
— Truth is not granted to those who seek it. It is revealed only to those who are willing to pay the price.
Emiren felt something inside him tighten.
— What is the price?
The fourth Guardian pointed toward the center of the mechanism below, where a massive structure resembling a beating heart pulsed with slow, rhythmic energy.
— You must enter the Heart of the Garden and make a choice.
Three Trials
Before them, three passageways opened, leading deep into the Eternal Garden.
— Each of you must face a trial, — said the first Guardian. — Only then will you reach the Heart.
Emiren’s Path
He had to navigate a labyrinth that changed with every step he took. Corridors twisted, and it seemed as if time itself was trying to lead him astray. At the labyrinth’s center, he found his own reflection—but it was not a mere copy.
— If you wish to shape time, you must first understand who you are, — the reflection said.
Flamen’s Path
Flamen had to confront flames that did not obey his will. They devoured everything around him, and he had to make a choice: to fight the fire or to accept it as a part of himself.
The Empty One’s Path
The Empty One found himself in a world where time did not exist. There was no future, no past—only an eternal present. And he had to find a way to escape.
The trials had begun.