The silence in the Hall of Time Cartographers resembled a dream no one dared to awaken from. The space was bathed in dim, pearlescent light, weightless and untouched by the rules of physics. Where fierce battles had once raged, there now remained only a profound void. The Spheres had vanished, their traces dissolved in the whirlpool of time, yet the weight of Melania’s choice lingered, altering the fabric of existence.
Archon, the silent observer and seasoned manipulator, stood at the center of the hall, his gaze fixed on ancient maps. His expression remained unreadable, but his fingers gripped the staff tightly. Hundreds of lines representing the flows of time had tangled and disappeared as if they had never existed.
He whispered to himself, “She chose what I never could.”
Beside him stood Lea, a young historian who had always been his shadow. Her eyes sparkled with undisguised anxiety. She knew the current stability was only an illusion. Melania’s decision had torn through the eternal laws of balance, and its consequences were already unraveling in countless realities.
“We have to act,” she said, her voice trembling with determined urgency. “If the balance isn’t restored… everything will cease to exist.”
Archon remained silent. He had glimpsed the future—and it was chaotic, filled with uncertainty. But was that truly worse than eternal submission to the Laws?
Meanwhile, in a distant corner of the world where time seemed to have slowed, a young girl awoke amidst the ruins of an ancient fortress. Her name was Avella, and she was a newcomer to this grand game. Her emerald eyes absorbed the surrounding world, and her hands carefully cradled a shard of crystal—something she had found among the rubble.
“This is a key,” whispered a familiar yet unseen voice.
Avella didn’t know that this very crystal would entwine her life irreversibly with Melania’s fate. She couldn’t imagine that her steps echoed in the labyrinth of time, creating new paths that would intersect with the choices of others.
“What is this place?” she asked. Her voice was carried away by the wind.
“This place is the remnant of destruction that was never meant to happen,” the voice replied.
Avella pondered the words. Her life had been filled with loss and pain. But now, with this crystal in her hands, she felt something new: a power capable of changing everything.
At that very moment, Melania stood before a mirror that did not reflect her face. It showed an endless number of her reflections—each one different. One smiled, another wept, a third held a weapon, and a fourth begged for forgiveness.
“Who are you?” she asked. Her voice was calm, but it carried an undertone of weariness.
The mirror began to shift, and within its depths appeared something new—a face she hadn’t expected to see. It was Archon. His eyes glowed with a mixture of regret and determination.
“You’ve created a new world, but do you know what you’ll do in it?” he asked. His voice wasn’t accusatory but challenging.
Melania averted her gaze. She knew her choice had changed everything, but it had also shattered the boundaries that held this world together. She also knew she would now face new faces, new battles—and her own fears.
“I’ve changed myself,” she whispered as if answering her own question. “And now I’ll change this world.”
The mirror dimmed, and Melania felt something within her begin to shift. Her steps now belonged to a new path leading toward the unknown.