As the sun rose over Idolith, Aliana had finished preparing a small travel bag. She packed lightly—some clothes, a small notebook, a finely crafted dagger, and, of course, the black crystal that had never left her side since the world was reshaped.
She stood before the mirror for a moment, studying her reflection. In the five years since the Great Remembrance Day (before the reshaping of the world), she had changed significantly from the hesitant girl who first met Cairn in the Archive of Memories. She was no longer that rule-bound, uncertain girl.
Her wavy brown hair had grown longer, now reaching the middle of her back, and she usually left it loose, with two small braids framing her face. Her hazel eyes had deepened, holding both wisdom and pain, as if she had witnessed more than she could ever express. The small scar on her left eyebrow—a remnant of an old battle in the Temple of Pain—was barely visible now. She wore practical clothing, a mix of dark blue and silver, the traditional colors of Idolith, along with a light leather jacket to shield her from the chill of the road.
A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. "Aliana? Are you ready?"
It was Selene's voice, the voice that had accompanied her through journeys its owner could no longer remember.
"Yes, I'm coming," she replied, casting one last glance around the room before closing the door behind her.
At Idolith's eastern gate, Limon was waiting for them. A tall, broad-shouldered figure with a neatly trimmed short brown beard. His signature sword, with its red leather-wrapped hilt, hung on his back, and his eyes scanned the horizon with the familiar focus Aliana knew well.
"Commander of the Guard," Aliana greeted him with a knowing smile. "Thank you for agreeing to join us."
Limon turned to her with a curious expression. "Your request was unexpected, my lady. It's rare for council members to request my personal escort."
"I'm not a council member," Aliana reminded him. "I'm just a researcher."
"A researcher carrying the legendary Crystal of Balance," Limon added with a tone of respect. "Rumors travel fast in Idolith."
The three of them stood at the gate—Aliana, Selene in her traditional blue council attire, and Limon in his guard commander uniform. There were also four horses—three for riding and a fourth to carry supplies and equipment.
"We'll take the northern route first," Limon said, pointing to a small map he had spread out. "Then head east through the Waving Forest, and from there to Teralith. A three-day journey if all goes well."
Aliana nodded, recalling the path she had once taken with Cairn and the others in the previous world. It was different now, safer in the reshaped world. There were no longer "pockets of oblivion," those dangerous zones where reality distorted, and the routes between cities were more stable.
"Any new updates from Teralith since yesterday?" Aliana asked Selene.
Selene shook her head. "Nothing. The silence continues. The last reports before communication was cut mentioned disturbances in sleep among the population and strange dreams haunting people."
"Strange dreams?" Aliana inquired.
"Yes, recurring nightmares—black shapes chasing people, and a sense of something creeping from the dream world into the waking one."
Aliana nodded. This aligned with what Cairn had told her in the dream—a being attempting to open a passage from the dream world, the Echo of Shadow.
"Let's move," Limon said as he mounted his black horse. "We should make the most of the daylight."
They passed through Idolith's gate as the sun began its ascent into the sky. The white city looked enchanting in the morning light, its towers gleaming and its crystal domes reflecting faint rainbow hues. Aliana cast one final glance at the city before turning her focus to the road ahead.
The first day of the journey was relatively calm. The trio traveled through open plains covered in tall grasses swaying with the wind. The sky was clear, and the weather was mild—perfect for traveling.
Selene led an active conversation, asking Limon about his duties as guard commander and the regions he had visited during his patrols. Aliana, for her part, remained mostly silent, observing the scenery around her, searching for any differences from the world she once knew.
"You're very quiet," Selene remarked after a while, riding her horse closer to Aliana's.
Aliana smiled. "Sorry, I was lost in thought."
"Thinking about the sender of the message? This… Nayari?"
"Yes, partly," Aliana replied cautiously. She had learned long ago to be careful about what she shared from her true memories. Not everyone was ready to hear the truth about the previous world.
"Who is this woman?" Limon asked, his curiosity piqued. "The one who sent the message addressed specifically to you?"
"She's… a researcher of dreams and memories, somewhat like me. We met years ago during one of my research visits to Teralith."
Half-truths were easier than outright lies. In the new world, Aliana had indeed visited Teralith several times to search its libraries for information about the crystals and the seven cities. But the Nayari she knew—the bearer of the Dream Crystal, her companion in the epic journey to save the world—existed only in Aliana's memories.
"And what's her connection to the crystal you carry?" Limon asked, his eyes glancing toward the black crystal around Aliana's neck.
Aliana tensed slightly. "Why do you ask?"
"Because the message was addressed to the 'Bearer of the Eighth Crystal'… a strange and ancient title. Most people think the seven crystals are mere legends, and the eighth crystal… well, it's even more mysterious than all the myths."
"They're not all myths," Aliana said quietly. "The crystals are real. They exist in the seven cities."
Selene looked at her friend in surprise. "You speak as if you're absolutely certain."
"Because I am," Aliana replied simply.
The conversation ended there, each of them retreating into their own thoughts. Limon observed Aliana with growing curiosity, while Selene seemed slightly uneasy.
By noon, they stopped to rest near a small stream shaded by tall trees with silvery leaves. They ate a simple meal that Selene had brought from the council's provisions—fresh bread, cheese, and fruit.
"The weather seems perfect so far," Limon remarked, glancing at the sky. "We'll reach the edge of the Waving Forest by evening. We can camp there and cross the forest tomorrow."
"The Waving Forest is safe these days?" Selene asked.
"Generally safe," Limon replied. "But caution is always wise. The Whispering Trees sometimes stir at night."
This was different from the old world, Aliana thought. In the previous world, the Waving Forest had been a highly dangerous area, filled with pockets of oblivion and memory-twisted wanderers—those whose minds had been warped by excessive exposure to imposed oblivion. "The Whispering Trees?" Aliana asked, uncertain of what he meant.
"Yes, those large silver trees," Lemon explained. "They're said to whisper memories of those who pass beneath them. Sometimes... they whisper memories one doesn't even recall, or things that haven't happened yet."
A shiver ran through Aliana's body. It was another sign of the previous world, of lost and recovered memories, of the fractures in the reshaped reality.
After an hour of rest, they resumed their journey. The path began to incline slightly as they approached the hills separating the Idolith plains from the undulating forest. In the distance, tall trees with silver leaves shimmering in the sunlight started to appear.
Silence hung over the group, each lost in their own thoughts, until Selene broke it with a sudden question: "Aliana, do you truly believe in all these legends... about the crystals, the seven cities, and the eternal shadow?"
Aliana looked at her, surprised by the directness of the question. "I believe in what I can see and touch, Selene. The crystal I carry is real—I feel it, and sometimes, I hear it speak to me."
"It speaks to you?" Lemon asked, raising his eyebrows.
"Not in words... but through impressions, emotions, knowledge that suddenly flows into my mind."
"And what does it tell you?" Selene pressed.
"It tells me that something is wrong in Tiralith... something concerning the second crystal, the Crystal of Dreams."
Lemon and Selene exchanged worried glances. In this new world, relatively logical and stable, talk of crystals that spoke and revealed things seemed utterly strange.
"The council doesn't truly know who you are, do they?" Lemon asked finally. "They see you as a historian of the old world, but you're more than that."
Aliana sighed. "It's hard to explain who I really am. Sometimes, even I don't know. All I know is that I carry a responsibility... a responsibility to preserve the balance of something much greater than myself."
Suddenly, Lemon stopped, raising his hand to signal silence. His trained warrior senses had picked up something. "There's something moving among the trees ahead."
The three halted, their hands instinctively reaching for their weapons. Lemon slowly drew his sword and stepped forward, his eyes scanning the shadows among the first trees of the forest they were nearing.
From between the silver branches, a figure emerged—not human, nor an animal in the usual sense. It seemed made of mist itself, partially transparent, with a silvery glow running through it. It moved lightly, gliding rather than walking, slowly approaching the group.
"A dream entity..." Aliana whispered, recognizing the creature immediately. "It shouldn't be here... not in the waking world."
"What is that thing?" Lemon asked, holding his sword defensively in front of him.
"It's... a being from the dream realm. It has no physical presence in the ordinary reality."
The dream entity stopped a few meters away from them, rippling like air over a hot road. Then, to their astonishment, it began to take shape, gradually forming into a more human-like figure—a small girl, translucent, with silver hair floating around her as if she were underwater.
"Anna..." the entity whispered, its voice like a distant echo. "Anna..."
"It knows your name!" Selene exclaimed in surprise.
"Not exactly," Aliana said, dismounting her horse and stepping cautiously toward the dream entity. "It's saying 'Anna'... half of my name."
"Don't go near it!" Lemon warned.
But Aliana continued forward slowly, her eyes fixed on the ghostly girl's innocent, otherworldly gaze.
"Who are you?" Aliana asked softly.
"A dream... I am a dream of Nai..." the girl whispered. "Sent... to find you..."
"Nai... Naiari?" Aliana asked, her heart pounding now. "Did Naiari send you?"
The ghostly girl nodded, the motion rippling like a wave in a pond. "Lady Nai... is trapped... the palace is sinking into shadows..."
"Where is she? Where is Naiari?" Aliana asked urgently.
"The Tower of Dreams... at the heart of Tiralith... shadows surround her... the crystal... is weakening..."
The girl's words were fragmented, her spectral form beginning to fade, as though she were losing the ability to remain in the physical world.
"How do we help her?" Aliana asked quickly, realizing time was running out.
"The crystal... the eighth..." the girl whispered, gesturing toward the black crystal around Aliana's neck. "Only... balance... can stop... the echo..."
With those final words, the dream entity vanished completely, dissolving into silver mist that drifted away on a light breeze, disappearing into the air.
Aliana stood frozen in place, staring at the empty space where the dream girl had been moments before. There was now no doubt—Naiari was in danger, the second crystal was threatened, and the shadow's echo was real.
"What did we just witness?" Lemon asked, his voice a mix of awe and concern.
"A message," Aliana replied, turning to face him and Selene. "A message from Naiari, carried through a dream she sent to find us."
"Is that even possible?" Selene asked, her eyes wide with astonishment.
"In Tiralith, the City of Dreams... yes, it's possible. Especially for someone like Naiari."
"Who is this woman, really?" Lemon asked.
"In the old world, she was the guardian of the Crystal of Dreams... the bearer of the second crystal." Aliana paused, realizing she had said more than she intended. "At least, that's what the legends say."
Lemon stared at her for a long moment, as if trying to read something in her eyes. "And in this world?"
"I don't fully know. We'll find out when we reach her... if we reach her in time."
Aliana adjusted her saddle and mounted her horse again with practiced ease. "We need to hurry. It seems the situation in Tiralith is worse than we anticipated."
Selene and Lemon exchanged worried glances before following Aliana, who urged her horse forward, heading toward the undulating forest at a faster pace.
As the sun set, they reached the edge of the silver forest. The trees there were unnaturally tall, with white trunks and silver leaves that rippled with even the slightest breeze, reflecting the twilight with an eerie glow, as if they were made of liquid silver.
"We'll make camp here," Lemon decided, pointing to a small clearing just outside the forest's boundary. "It's better not to enter the forest at night."
Aliana didn't argue, though she felt an urgency to press on. Night was falling, and the shadows were growing longer.
While Lemon lit a small fire and Selene unpacked some provisions, Aliana sat on a nearby rock, facing the forest. The black crystal on her chest was unusually warm, and she could feel its pulse, like a tiny heartbeat.
"Why now?" she whispered to herself. "After three months of quiet... why are the problems surfacing now?"
But deep down, she already knew the answer. The new world, reshaped, was fragile in certain places. The balance Cairn had created was not perfect. And as he had warned, there were cracks—places where the shadows could seep through.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Lemon's voice as he approached her. "The fire's ready, and the food will be soon."
"Thank you, Lemon," Aliana said with a tired smile. Lemon sat beside her on the rock, his eyes gazing at the forest before them. "Have you ever entered this forest before?"
"Yes, once... a long time ago."
"Are you afraid of it?"
Alyana smiled. "No, not fear... but respect. The Winding Forest is sacred in a way. A place where memories and dreams meet."
"You speak strangely sometimes... as if you've lived far longer than you appear."
Alyana looked directly at him. "Perhaps I have, in a way. We all carry more memories than we realize, Lemon."
"That reminds me..." Lemon said, hesitating slightly. "Since you asked me to join this journey, I've started having... strange dreams."
"Dreams? About what?"
"About a long journey... mountains, deserts, strange cities I've never visited. And you were there, along with Selene... and others I don't know, but who seem familiar."
"Do you remember any other details? Any... names?" Alyana asked, trying to hide her eagerness.
Lemon furrowed his brows in deep thought. "There was a girl... with dark purple-tinged hair and unusual eyes... her name was... Na... Nay... I can't recall her full name."
"Nayari?" Alyana said softly.
Lemon flinched as if struck by a jolt of electricity. "Yes! That's it. Nayari. How did you know?"
Alyana smiled a sad smile. "Because she's real, Lemon. What you're seeing aren't just dreams... they're memories. Memories of a previous world."
Before Lemon could respond, Selene joined them, carrying a small bowl of food. "The soup is ready. Not great, but it will keep us strong for tomorrow."
The three of them ate in silence, each lost in their thoughts. As the night wore on, the silver trees before them glowed brighter, especially as a gentle breeze caused their leaves to dance softly.
"Do you hear that?" Selene suddenly whispered, lifting her head.
Alyana and Lemon stopped eating and listened intently. There, barely audible, was a whisper—faint, overlapping voices emanating from the trees.
"The Whispering Trees are active now," Lemon said quietly. "We should take turns staying awake; someone must always keep watch."
"I'll take the first watch," Alyana volunteered. She was curious about the voices.
After finishing their meal, Lemon and Selene lay down to sleep while Alyana sat by the fire, watching the flames flicker. As time passed, the sounds from the forest grew clearer, though they remained interwoven whispers, their meanings elusive.
Once she was sure her companions were asleep, Alyana rose slowly and walked toward the edge of the forest. The nearest tree was only twenty meters from their camp—a tall silver tree with a white trunk rippling like frozen waves.
The closer she got, the clearer the whispers became. Many voices, speaking in different languages, intertwined and overlapped—some loud, some as soft as a breeze. When she stood directly beneath the tree, one voice emerged distinctly above the rest.
"Alyana... the light is fading... time is running out..."
It was Kairn's voice—not as she had heard it in her dreams, but his old voice, before merging with the Eternal Shadow. Her heart pounded as she looked up at the dancing silver leaves above her.
"Kairn?" she whispered.
But the voice shifted, becoming that of a woman she had never heard before.
"Seven cycles we have failed... but the eighth will be the last..."
Then it changed again, this time to the voice of Cyril, the hermit.
"The key is not in the Seven Cities, but in the lost eighth..."
Suddenly, all the voices stopped, and an eerie, oppressive silence fell. Even the rustling of the leaves ceased. Then one voice spoke, clear and strong, as if addressing her mind directly.
"The Guardian is not lost, but sleeping. Awaken him before the nightmares awaken..."
The indistinct murmurs resumed, and the leaves swayed once more.
Alyana stepped back slowly, her heart racing. She wasn't sure what she had heard or who had spoken to her, but she felt an increasing urgency—a need to reach Teralith as quickly as possible.
When she returned to the camp, she found Lemon awake, sitting by the fire.
"You heard the voices, didn't you?" he asked quietly.
Alyana nodded. "Yes. Did they wake you?"
"I wasn't really asleep," Lemon admitted. "I can't sleep when the trees are this active."
Alyana sat beside him, her gaze fixed on the fire. "What do you really know about these trees, Lemon?"
Lemon sighed. "Legends say they grow from the seeds of forgotten memories. That their roots stretch deep, touching a hidden river of memories flowing beneath the ground, connecting the Seven Cities."
"Do you believe that?"
"I used to think it was just myths... until I started hearing voices from my own memories, speaking of things I never lived through." He looked at her directly, his eyes glinting in the firelight. "Or so I thought."
"What do you mean?"
"The dreams, Alyana. The memories you mentioned. I've started seeing faces... scenes... battles... as if they were another life I lived and forgot." He paused. "And you're always there. So is Selene. And others... and someone named Kairn."
Alyana's heart raced again. "You remember Kairn?"
"Not clearly... just flashes. A man with mismatched eyes, speaking of shadow and light, of memories and forgetting." He looked at her with questioning eyes. "Who is he, Alyana? Who is Kairn really?"
Alyana hesitated. How much should she tell him? Was he ready for the full truth?
"Kairn was... still is... the most important person in my life," she finally said. "The savior of the world, the mender of reality, the creator of the balance we now live in."
Lemon closed his eyes, as if trying to recall a distant memory. "I see him sometimes, in dreams, standing on a threshold between two worlds, his body half shadow and half light. And he says... he says he's waiting for the right time to return."
Alyana was stunned by what she heard. Kairn was reaching out to Lemon as well, not just her. Why?
"In some dreams," Lemon continued, "he asks me to protect you. He says you hold the key to his return."
Alyana instinctively raised her hand to the black crystal around her neck. "The Eighth Crystal..."
"What is it really, this crystal?"
"A part of his soul... of his heart. The part he was able to leave in this world when he reshaped it and went to become the Guardian of Balance."
They sat in silence for a while, both staring into the fire. Then, slowly, Lemon reached into his jacket and pulled out a small pendant with a piece of dark red crystal.
"Does this have anything to do with it?" he asked, showing her the piece. "I found it three months ago, on the day... the day I felt like the world had shifted."
Alyana looked at the shard in astonishment, then slowly extended her hand to touch it. It was warm, pulsing in rhythm with the black crystal around her neck.
"It's... a fragment of the Crystal of Pain," Alyana said, amazed. "How did you come by it?" "As I said, I found it three months ago. I was on patrol near the borders of Edolith when I suddenly felt a severe headache and collapsed unconscious. When I woke up, this shard was in my hand. Since then, the dreams began… the memories."
"That was the day the world was reshaped," Aliana explained. "The day Cairn altered the very fabric of reality. The seven crystals scattered, returning to the seven cities, but it seems that some small fragments remained… and this is one of them."
"And what does it mean?"
"It means that a part of you remembers, Lemon. A part of your soul has reconnected with your past life, with your role in the old world."
At that moment, they heard Selene stirring awake, yawning softly before sitting up.
"You're both still awake?" she asked, surprised to see them together.
"We were just talking," Lemon replied, quickly tucking the crystal shard back under his jacket.
"Talking about what?" Selene asked curiously.
Aliana glanced at Lemon, wondering what they should share with Selene. Before they could answer, a cold breeze swept through the forest, carrying strange whispers that made Aliana's heart race.
"Hurry… Teralith is falling…"
"Did you hear that?" Aliana asked Selene, who looked confused.
"I just heard the wind…"
"We need to move at dawn," Lemon said firmly. "We'll cross the forest tomorrow and reach Teralith the day after."
Aliana nodded silently. There was an increasing sense of urgency, a feeling that time was running out and that the fate of Teralith—and perhaps the entire world—depended on their timely arrival.
By the first light of dawn, the three were awake, their gear packed, and the fire extinguished. None of them had slept well. Even Lemon, accustomed to sleeping in the wilderness, looked weary, his eyes bloodshot.
"The dreams haunted me all night," he admitted while saddling his horse. "All about Teralith… a tall tower, a room full of mirrors, and something black moving between the reflections."
Selene shook her head. "I didn't sleep well either. I kept hearing a voice… calling to me. A voice that felt familiar."
Aliana looked at them, concern etched on her face. What was happening in Teralith seemed to be affecting them more deeply than she had anticipated. If even Selene and Lemon could feel it, the situation was indeed dire.
"We can't ride through the forest," Lemon said, eyeing the dense trees ahead. "The path is too narrow. We'll have to lead the horses on foot."
They began their journey into the undulating forest. The light here was different, filtered through silvery leaves that reflected and refracted the sunlight, creating a constantly shifting pattern of light and shadow on the ground beneath them.
The path was as narrow as Lemon had predicted, winding between massive trees, rising and falling with the uneven terrain. Along the way, the whispers persisted—soft but ever-present, like the voices of countless overlapping memories.
After hours of walking, they paused to rest in a small clearing. Selene seemed increasingly uneasy with each step they took deeper into the forest.
"The whispers…" she said softly, "they're becoming clearer. I'm starting to understand some of the words."
Lemon nodded. "Me too. It's talking about… a city, a guardian, and something called the Echo of Shadow."
"This forest reveals buried memories," Aliana explained. "Its trees feed on the hidden river of memory flowing beneath the ground. They broadcast what they absorb… including memories you've forgotten."
"Why did we forget these things in the first place?" Selene asked. "Why don't I remember this person… Cairn… even though he sometimes appears in my dreams?"
Aliana sighed. "Because the world was reshaped, Selene. Three months ago, everything was different. There was a great threat to existence itself, and Cairn… made a tremendous sacrifice to save us. He reshaped reality, creating a new balance. But the price of that was forgetting him and much of what was tied to him."
"How can one person reshape reality?" Lemon asked skeptically.
"Because he wasn't just an ordinary person," Aliana replied. "He was a unique being… half-human, half-eternal entity. The son of shadow and light together."
Selene and Lemon looked puzzled, half-believing, half-skeptical. But before they could ask more questions, the ground beneath their feet trembled slightly, and the trees around them shifted unnaturally—not from the wind, but as if responding to something.
"What's happening?" Selene asked anxiously.
Lemon placed a hand on the hilt of his sword, his eyes scanning the shadows between the trees warily. "Something's coming."
The whispers grew louder, more urgent, more chaotic. Suddenly, a shape emerged from between the trees—different from the dreamlike figure they had seen before. This was a darker entity, a shifting form of shadow with no defined features, moving unnaturally smoothly between the trunks.
"The Echo of Shadow…" Aliana whispered, clutching the black crystal tightly.
The shadowy figure stopped a few meters away, its form rippling and constantly changing, as if struggling to hold a stable shape.
"Anna…" a hollow, eerie voice emanated from the figure. "The crystal… give me the crystal…"
Lemon drew his sword swiftly, stepping in front of Aliana and Selene in a defensive stance. "Stay back!"
But the entity ignored him, its eyes—two dim, crimson points of light in a featureless face—fixed on Aliana.
"Give me… what is… mine…" it whispered, its voice sounding as if it came from the depths of an endless well.
Aliana raised the black crystal before her, which began to glow faintly in response to the entity's presence. "You are not the true Echo of Shadow… You're just an image, a reflection, a message."
The entity quivered, its form shifting again, trying to become more human-like. For a brief moment, a faintly familiar face appeared—a face resembling Cairn, but distorted, altered.
"I came… from Teralith… to warn you…" the entity said, its voice less distorted now. "Do not come… trap… waiting…"
"A trap?" Aliana asked. "Who's setting the trap?"
"The Echo of Shadow… t-takes… the form… of Nayari…"
Before it could finish its sentence, the entity began to dissolve, evaporating like smoke in the wind. "Do not trust… the dreams… do not trust…"
And with that, it vanished entirely, leaving the three of them staring at the empty space where it had been.
"What was that?" Selene asked, her voice trembling slightly.
"Either a messenger trying to warn us… or a deception meant to keep us away from Teralith," Aliana said, thinking quickly. "But it appeared in the undulating forest, not in the dream world… and that's unusual."
"How do we know what to trust?" Lemon asked uneasily.
Aliana looked at the crystal in her hand, which had now quieted, returning to its usual deep black hue. "We trust the eighth crystal. It's the only truth we have."
They resumed their journey with heightened caution. The whispers grew more disorienting, the echoes of the shadowy entity mingling with the murmurs of the trees, creating an atmosphere of unease and uncertainty. By midday, the trees had begun to thin, and more light seeped through. They were nearing the edge of the undulating forest, and beyond it, Teralith, the City of Dreams, would be waiting for them.
"We hadn't heard of any real threat to Teralith before the message," said Lemon, thinking aloud. "The city is known for its stability and strong defenses. How could any entity infiltrate and threaten the crystal?"
"Because this entity isn't external," Aliana replied. "The Echo of Shadow, if what Cairn said is true, is part of the Eternal Shadow itself—the part that couldn't merge. It belongs to the same power that originally created the crystals."
"And how will reaching Teralith help us?" Selene asked. "If this entity is that powerful, what can the three of us possibly do?"
Aliana touched the black crystal with confidence. "The Eighth Crystal is the key. It holds the power of balance itself. And if we can reach Nayari—the real Nayari, not whatever might take her form—we can restore stability to the Dream Crystal together and close the door the Echo of Shadow is trying to open."
"And if the entity is the one taking Nayari's form? How will we tell the difference?"
"I'll know," Aliana said confidently. "Reading memory patterns is my ability. True memories can't be imitated, not even by a powerful entity like the Echo of Shadow."
As the sun set, they finally emerged from the undulating forest, finding themselves atop a small hill overlooking a vast valley. In the distance, the lights of Teralith, the City of Dreams, shimmered—a blend of blue and silver illuminating the growing darkness.
But something was amiss—a dark cloud loomed over the city, glowing with an eerie red flicker, like lightning but darker.
"This isn't natural," Lemon said, pointing at the cloud. "Something's already happening."
"It seems the message was truthful. Teralith is in danger," Aliana said. "We'll descend into the valley and reach the city by morning."
As they set up their final camp before reaching Teralith, Aliana's mind raced, trying to piece together the conflicting information. The dreamlike girl had sent Nayari asking for help. The shadow entity claimed that Nayari herself might be a deception, that the Echo of Shadow was taking her form.
Who was telling the truth? And who was trying to deceive them?
"Aliana," Lemon said, interrupting her thoughts. "Look."
He pointed toward the city. The dark cloud had expanded, descending closer to the ground, rippling like an inverted sea above the city. With every ominous red flash, a faint blue light flickered from the heart of the city, as if trying to repel something.
"The crystal is resisting," Aliana whispered. "The Dream Crystal is fighting back against the Echo of Shadow."
"So the first message was real," Lemon said. "Nayari and the crystal are in danger."
"Most likely... but we must be prepared for all possibilities."
Aliana thought of Cairn's words in her dream: "Beware of memories. Not all returning memories are true. Some… may mislead." Was he referring to this very situation?
"Lemon," Aliana said suddenly, "may I see the crystal shard you're carrying again?"
Lemon pulled the dark red fragment from beneath his jacket and handed it to Aliana. She took it in her hands and brought it close to the black crystal she carried. For a moment, the two crystals reacted, exchanging a faint shimmer of light.
"This is indeed a shard of the Pain Crystal," Aliana said. "And it's real. It responds to the Eighth Crystal."
"And what does that mean?" Lemon asked.
"It means we may need it when we reach Teralith. Keep it safe."
Lemon returned the shard to his pendant and looked toward the city with concern. "I think we should take turns keeping watch tonight. I don't feel comfortable with that cloud."
They agreed on a watch schedule—Lemon would take the first shift, followed by Selene, and then Aliana. Aliana lay down to sleep, but her mind was too preoccupied with thoughts of the next day and what they might face in Teralith.
When she finally closed her eyes, her sleep was restless with dreams. She saw Cairn standing at the edge of a black abyss, reaching out to her, but the closer she got, the more his form changed, becoming shadowy, until there was nothing left but a man of darkness, his red eyes gleaming, smiling a cruel smile.
"The bridge is collapsing..." the shadow whispered. "The guardian is weak... and the crystals are fracturing..."
She woke with a start, finding Selene gently shaking her.
"Aliana, are you alright? You were talking in your sleep."
"I... yes, I was just dreaming," Aliana said, sitting up. The sky was still dark, but faint threads of dawn were beginning to appear on the horizon. "Is it my turn for watch?"
"Yes, I woke you a little early, but you seemed... troubled."
Aliana nodded in understanding. "Thank you. Did anything happen during the night?"
"Nothing noticeable. But that cloud... it keeps growing, and the red lightning is becoming more frequent."
Aliana looked toward the city. Selene was right—the dark cloud had grown larger, and smaller clouds were now detaching from it, moving in strange, deliberate ways, as if they were independent, searching.
"I think it's looking for us," Aliana whispered.
"Who?"
"The Echo of Shadow. It seems to know we're coming."
By full sunrise, they were already making their way toward Teralith, leading their horses down the long slope into the city. The closer they got, the more the city's details became clear—the slender towers with their pointed spires, the blue domes reflecting the sunlight, the low walls adorned with intricate carvings depicting constellations and celestial bodies.
Dominating it all was the central tower—the Tower of Dreams, crafted from pure blue crystal, rising toward the sky like a beacon. Its summit was shrouded in the dark cloud, as if ensnared by it.
"The gates are open," Lemon observed with unease. "No guards at the entrance."
He was right. The city gates stood wide open, with no sign of guards or sentries. This was unusual for a city as large as Teralith.
"Do you think everyone..." Selene began to ask but couldn't finish her sentence.
"I don't know," Aliana replied. "Let's proceed cautiously."
They entered the city, their hearts pounding. The streets were eerily empty, with no signs of life. The fountains still flowed, and the lamps remained lit, but there was no one there to witness it.
"Where is everyone?" Selene whispered, edging closer to Aliana in unease.
"It's as if they've... vanished," Lemon said, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword.
They reached the central square, the heart of Teralith. In the middle of the square stood a large fountain, its water glowing with a faint blue hue. From there, they could see the Tower of Dreams clearly, rising directly before them, its summit wrapped in the dark cloud. Suddenly, Aliana noticed movement—a figure emerging from one of the buildings surrounding the square. A young woman, with dark, violet-tinged hair, wearing a long blue dress. Her eyes—deep violet—were wide with fear.
"Nayari?" Aliana whispered, her heart pounding.
The woman stopped when she saw them, as if unsure whether they were friends or foes. Then, upon seeing Aliana's face, her expression shifted, recognition and relief softening her features.
"Anna… Aliana!" she cried, running toward them. "You've come! You're here!"
Before Aliana could respond, another voice echoed from a different side of the square. "Don't believe her! She's not me!"
Aliana turned in shock to see another woman stepping out from a different corner. She was identical to the first—same violet hair, same eyes, same blue dress.
Another Nayari.
Lemon immediately drew his sword, positioning himself defensively between Aliana, Selene, and the two identical women.
"What's happening here?" he asked tensely.
"It's a trick!" the second Nayari shouted. "The Shadow Echo has taken my form!"
"Don't believe her!" the first Nayari cried. "She's the Shadow Echo, not me!"
Aliana stood frozen for a moment. The warnings had come true—one Nayari was real, and the other was a fake. But which one was the real one?
"Aliana!" the first Nayari pleaded. "I sent you the dream girl! I sent the message! I'm the real Nayari!"
"Don't listen to her!" the second Nayari shouted. "The Shadow Echo infiltrated the dream realm—it can send messages too! I'm the one who journeyed with you, who gathered the crystals with you!"
Aliana looked between the two women, trying to use her ability. She opened her mind, attempting to read memory patterns, searching for the true threads connecting the soul to its memories. But to her astonishment, both women had intricate memory patterns, identical to one another.
"I can't tell…" she whispered to herself in disbelief. "This is impossible."
"Let me test them," Lemon said, stepping forward. "Nayari, in the old world, which crystal did you bear?"
"The Dream Crystal," the first Nayari answered immediately.
"The Dream Crystal, the second crystal," the second Nayari replied.
Both answered correctly. Lemon glanced at Aliana with concern. "That doesn't help us."
"We need to think differently," Aliana said. Then she addressed the two women: "Where is the second crystal now? Where is the Dream Crystal?"
The first Nayari pointed to the Tower of Dreams. "In the Room of Mirrors, at the top of the tower. It's surrounded by shadows, and I couldn't reach it."
The second Nayari also pointed to the tower. "In the upper room, the Room of Mirrors, but the Shadow Echo surrounds it. I tried to save it, but I failed."
Aliana felt frustrated. Both knew the details, spoke the same way, remembered the same things. How could she tell them apart?
Then she remembered something—the black crystal she carried, and the shard of the Crystal of Pain that Lemon had. Perhaps the crystals themselves could reveal the truth.
"Lemon, the crystal shard," she said quickly. "Show it to me."
Lemon retrieved the red shard from under his jacket and handed it to Aliana. She held the black crystal in one hand and the red shard in the other, raising them before her.
"The true crystal bearer will respond to the genuine crystal," Aliana said, looking from one woman to the other. "Show me the mark, Nayari."
The first Nayari looked confused. "What mark?"
But the second Nayari extended her hand, revealing a small mark on her left wrist—a pattern resembling a star, the same pattern that had appeared on Aliana's hand when she touched the silver flower.
"This is the mark," the second Nayari said calmly. "The crystal's mark."
Aliana knew instantly. All true crystal bearers carried the mark, which appeared when they connected with their crystals. The second Nayari was the real one.
As if realizing her cover had been blown, the first Nayari began to change, her face distorting, her eyes shifting from deep violet to blood red.
"I should have known you'd figure it out…" she said in a voice no longer Nayari's, but deeper, hollow, the voice of the Shadow Echo.
Her body transformed, losing its human shape, stretching and rippling until it became a mass of pure shadow, rising before them like a column of swirling black smoke, with glowing red eyes at its core.
"I had hoped you'd never make it here…" the Shadow Echo said, its voice reverberating as if from an abyssal depth. "But it doesn't matter now. The Dream Crystal will be mine, and I will open the gate between worlds."
Lemon stepped in front of Aliana and Selene, his sword raised in a defensive stance. But Aliana moved to stand beside him, lifting the black crystal toward the shadowy entity.
"I won't let you do that," she said confidently. "Kyren reshaped this world to be balanced, and I won't let you destroy it."
The Shadow Echo laughed, a sound that made the air itself tremble. "Kyren… the half-being, balanced between two worlds… He cannot protect you now. He is trapped between realms, weak, powerless."
"I'm not alone," Aliana said. "I have the eighth crystal, and with me is the bearer of the Dream Crystal."
"And you'll need far more than that," the Shadow Echo said, rising higher, stretching until it covered much of the sky above the square. "Because I am not just an echo… I am his reflection, the other face of eternal shadow… and I am regaining my strength."
With those words, it surged upward, merging with the black cloud surrounding the top of the Tower of Dreams. Red lightning intensified, striking the tower repeatedly, and the wind began to howl fiercely around the square.
"We have to reach the tower," the true Nayari said urgently. "The crystal is weakening—it won't hold him off for much longer."
"Where are the townsfolk?" Selene asked, her gaze on the empty streets.
"Asleep," Nayari answered. "When the Shadow Echo began its attack, it cast the entire city into a deep slumber. They're trapped in their dreams, unable to wake."
"And how did you escape?" Lemon asked skeptically.
"Because of my connection to the Dream Crystal. I am its guardian, a role passed down through my family. When the Shadow Echo attacked, I was in the Room of Mirrors with the crystal. I tried to stop him, but I wasn't strong enough. So, I sent a message to Aliana and fled."
"Why Aliana specifically?"
"Because she is the bearer of the eighth crystal," Nayari said, as if it were obvious. "The only crystal that can restore balance."
Aliana didn't have time to wonder how Nayari knew this. "We need to move. How do we reach the top of the tower?"
"There's a side entrance, a hidden one. It's been used by the crystal's guardians since ancient times. But… the Shadow Echo's followers are watching the main paths."
"His followers?" Lemon asked.
"Entities from the dream realm… under his control. They are… nightmares made flesh." As if to confirm her words, strange shapes emerged, creeping out from the shadows around the square. Creatures that resembled humans, but were distorted, moving unnaturally, irregularly, in a twisted manner. Their eyes were hollow, black, and their faces devoid of expression.
"Dreambearers..." Nayari whispered in terror. "They are the bodies of sleepers overtaken by the Echo of Shadow, turned into living nightmares."
The strange creatures encircled the square, advancing slowly toward them, cutting off escape routes.
"We have a fight ahead before we reach the tower," said Lemon, his sword at the ready. "Are these... are they still human? Can they be saved?"
"Only their bodies," Nayari replied. "Their minds are trapped in the dream world. If we can defeat the Echo of Shadow, they will return to their normal state."
"Then let's avoid killing them if we can," Lemon said, taking a defensive stance. "We need to carve a path to the tower."
The Dreambearers advanced toward them, their arms outstretched, their jerky movements both frightening and unsettling. Aliana, Selene, Lemon, and Nayari stood back-to-back, now surrounded by the nightmarish creatures.
"Are you ready?" Aliana asked, the black crystal on her chest glowing intensely.
And the battle began.