Melania stood at the edge of a chasm where the air itself seemed to tremble with an unseen force. Before her stretched a fissure that was not merely a void, but a crack in the very fabric of reality. Time here appeared frozen and fluid all at once. Rocks at the bottom of the chasm did not fall but hung suspended in midair, glowing with a faint golden light.
“This path reveals itself only to those who are ready,” came a voice behind her.
Melania turned to see a figure draped in a long cloak. His attire resembled the uniform of the Guardians of Time, but it shimmered with a deep silvery hue, and the fabric seemed to pulse, reflecting the glimmers of worlds long lost. His face was open, yet curiously unmemorable, as if time itself had erased any distinguishing features.
“You are one of those who seek to change eternity,” he said. “And yet you search for answers here, in the very heart of reality.”
“What is this place?” she asked, suppressing the mixture of wonder and unease swelling within her.
“This is the Wedge of Time. A nexus where all possibilities intertwine. A point where past and future become one. But the path to this place opens only to those unafraid to leave a part of themselves behind for the sake of change.”
“And you? Who are you?” Melania narrowed her eyes, trying to discern whether he was ally or foe.
“My name holds no meaning,” he replied. “But I am the one who guards these nexuses. I am called the Keeper of Balance. My duty is to observe, and sometimes to guide those who arrive but have yet to decide.”
His voice was calm yet piercing, like the chime of an ancient mirror that reflected not just the appearance but the thoughts of those who gazed into it.
“If you protect balance, why let me through?” she asked, seeking a weakness in his resolve.
“Because it is your right. But you must know this: what you find here will become a part of you. And it will change not just you but everything you touch.”
She glanced back at the fissure. Deep within, flashes of light called to her, beckoning her forward.
“What will I find there?”
“Answers to your questions, and that which you fear to admit to yourself. But with it will come a choice: to hold it within yourself or to wield it against those who seek to shatter the balance.”
Melania took a deeper breath and stepped forward. Her body was immediately enveloped in golden mist that filled the space. Time and space ceased to exist, leaving only her consciousness adrift in this strange realm. Visions unfolded before her one after another: her childhood, the faces of loved ones, battles against the Guardians, Naia in his final moment holding her hand. Then new images appeared—an inferno engulfing a tower, a world split in two, and a shadowed figure watching it all from the darkness.
“These are your fears and your possibilities,” the Keeper’s voice now echoed from within her mind. “But they will become your burden unless you learn to master them.”
The Wedge of Time began to shift. The visions grew faster, brighter. Everything she saw seemed to merge into a singular whole, making her heart race faster and faster.
Melania extended her hand, and the images around her froze. Now she stood at the center of the fissure, where a thin dagger floated, glowing with a soft silvery light.
“This is the Blade of Choice,” said the voice. “It grants the power to alter the flow of time, but each strike fractures not just the fabric of space, but yourself as well.”
“And I must choose?” she asked, her gaze fixed on the dagger.
“You have already made your choice, Melania,” the voice replied with a new resonance. “But now you must understand that in changing the world, you will always change yourself.”
She reached out to the dagger, feeling its energy meld with her essence. In that instant, the world around her shifted, and her face was bathed in a radiant light. Melania felt power coalescing in her hands, a force capable of overturning the fate of the world. But with it came the realization: this gift would also be her burden, and its price would be greater than she ever expected.