The Sanctuary Of Echoes

Dawn greeted us with a sky of icy gray. After two exhausting days of marching, we finally caught sight of the ruins atop the mountain. The Sanctuary of the Heart of Aeterion loomed like a sleeping giant: crumbled columns, cracked walls, and statues draped in moss. Even in abandonment, it radiated an imposing presence, as if the gods had left behind a warning.
We stopped at the foot of the main staircase. The air was heavy, soaked with an aura that raised the hairs on our skin.
—So this is where we’ll find the relic, —Rei murmured softly. —Doesn’t look very welcoming.
Nara arched a brow. —What did you expect? A door decorated with flowers and a sign that says “Welcome”?
Lysbeth didn’t smile. Her eyes were fixed on the temple gates, two massive stone blocks covered in ancient inscriptions. —These runes are a seal. Not just anyone can pass through.
I stepped forward, placing my hand over the inscriptions. A tingling ran up my arm, as if something unseen were trying to read my soul.
—Well? —Aria asked, her voice taut with tension.
Before I could answer, the doors slowly opened with a deep rumble, as though they had been waiting for our arrival. A frigid wind rushed out from within, snuffing out the torches Nara had lit.
—That’s not a good sign, —Nara muttered, but she still advanced.
We entered together, weapons and magic ready. The interior was lit by crystals embedded in the walls, glowing with a bluish light. The echo of our footsteps multiplied in the corridors, creating the sense that someone else was walking beside us.
We reached a circular chamber. At its center stood an empty pedestal, surrounded by glowing inscriptions.
—The Heart of Aeterion should be here, —said Cicilia, who had insisted on joining us as a guide. —But it seems it’s protected by trials.
Suddenly, the ground shook, and the chamber darkened. A voice boomed in our minds, deep and ownerless.
"To claim the impossible, you must first face yourselves."
The crystal lights went out. When I opened my eyes again, I was no longer in the chamber. I was alone.
The world around me became a twisted reflection of Azurath Castle, blackened and in ruins. I walked a few steps, and then I saw her: Piko, floating before me, her light extinguished.
—Kaoru… —she whispered, her voice heavy with reproach—. Why did you let me die?
My heart stopped. —No! You’re not real!
She drifted closer, her eyes accusing. —You promised you’d protect me, and yet you turned me to ashes. If you couldn’t protect me, how will you protect Aria? How will you save Kiseki?
I fell to my knees, covering my face. Her words cut into me like blades.
—Stop! —I shouted, my voice breaking—. I’m not perfect, but I’ll do everything in my power to never fail again!
The illusion of Piko shattered into fragments of light, and the world around me fell back into darkness.
When my vision returned, I was once again in the circular chamber. My companions were there too, each of them gasping for breath, trapped in their own trials.
Aria trembled, tears streaming down her cheeks. I rushed to her side.
—What did you see? —I asked gently.
She looked at me, her face wet. —I saw Kiseki… I saw her and me merging into one, as if we were the same soul. And I felt that if you saved her… I would disappear.
My eyes widened. That vision matched what we suspected, but hearing it in Aria’s voice made it real.
Lysbeth stepped closer, breathing heavily. —I saw my worst fear: a field full of my soldiers’ corpses, all dead because I wasn’t strong enough to protect them.
Rei was pale. —I saw my mother… asking me to abandon my vengeance, to let her death go unavenged. It was… unbearable.
Nara was uncharacteristically quiet. When she finally spoke, her voice trembled. —I saw all of you… dead, and me alone again. That emptiness… I don’t ever want to feel it again.
The entire chamber vibrated. The disembodied voice returned.
"You have faced a part of your truth, but you are still not worthy."
The pedestal began to sink, revealing a stairway descending into the depths of the sanctuary. The air that rose from below was heavier, thick with an ancient power.
Cicilia swallowed hard. —That was only the first trial.
I stood, helping Aria back to her feet. My hands clasped hers tightly.
—No matter how many trials await, —I said firmly—, we won’t turn back.
My companions nodded, one by one. Fear still lingered in our eyes, but now there was something stronger: the will to press on.
We descended the stairs, each step echoing in the darkness. The deeper we went, the further we felt from the outside world, as if we were entering the very heart of the mountain.
At the end of the passage, a great gate rose before us, covered in symbols that glowed like liquid fire. Beyond it, I could sense the force of the Heart of Aeterion, pulsing as though alive.
—The next trial awaits, —Lysbeth murmured, tightening her grip on her sword.
I looked at Aria, at my friends, and drew a deep breath. Piko, wherever she was, had to be watching us.
—And we will overcome it, —I declared, more to myself than to them. —Because I refuse to lose anyone else.
The gate opened slowly, flooding us with a blinding light.