Fire doesn't scream.
It just burns—
Quietly.
As if everything is still normal…
Even when everything inside is already destroyed.
I step through the Spiral gate.
Into the Heartfire Temple.
And the moment I enter—
Everything changes.
---
Tomo (whispering, in awe):
"Bro… this isn't a temple…
It feels like the Spiral's heart…"
---
Every wall… was burning.
But it wasn't fire alone.
They were memories.
Real memories.
A mother.
A sister.
A forgotten scream.
All looping endlessly in flame.
The fire wasn't just burning—
It was crying.
---
Me (quietly, to myself):
"…What is this, Spiral?
You've turned memories… into fuel?"
---
I stopped near one wall—
And saw her face.
My mother.
Smiling gently.
That same scene—
Where I was crying as a child, and she whispered:
> "It's okay to cry, beta…
But never lose yourself for someone else."
---
Tears welled in my eyes.
But the Spiral wasn't finished yet.
Suddenly, the entire wall began to glow—
And a Spiral mark formed across it.
Blood-red.
---
Cindros (his voice echoing):
"Welcome, Aren.
This is the Heartfire Temple.
Now… you will make a choice."
---
The entire ground shook—
And three memories rose from the flames before me:
1. My mother's face — smiling through her pain
2. Aika's voice, calling me home
3. Tomo's first reboot laugh
---
Cindros:
> "You may protect only one.
The other two… will burn.
Choose, Timekeeper."
---
Tomo (panicked):
"BRO! Spiral Rod is overloading!
You need to lock one memory—
Or they'll all be lost!"
---
I stood frozen.
How could I choose?
My mother's face…
Aika's voice…
Tomo's smile…
Each of them… is me.
---
I trembled.
The Spiral Rod was shifting—
Gold turning to red.
Smoke rising from my body.
And then—
One line echoed in my mind:
> "Don't run from pain, beta…
Let it shape you."
---
I closed my eyes.
And slowly—
I set aside Aika's voice.
And Tomo's laughter.
And I placed my hand—
On the most painful memory of all:
My mother's face.
Tears in her eyes.
Looking back at me—
As I walked away…
Reaching for the Time Core.
---
Me (teeth clenched):
"I'll protect the memory that broke me—
Because it's the only one…
That can rebuild me."
---
The Spiral Rod flared—
And a shockwave burst across the temple.
The flames paused.
The wall split open.
---
Cindros (after a moment of silence):
"…You didn't choose, Aren.
You accepted everything.
…Interesting."
---
Tomo (softly):
"Bro…
You burned.
But you survived."
---
Me (low, steady):
"Time forgot me once…
Now I'll remind it—
Who I am."
---
To be continued…