A Symphony of Blades and Broken Stars

The world seemed different with Lys beside them.

Her presence was quiet fire, barely contained. She didn't walk. She glided, and the ground behind her still smoked slightly wherever her boots touched it. Though she rarely spoke, Elion could feel her eyes on him constantly, studying him, weighing who he had become against the man she once knew.

They traveled along the Ash Road, a forgotten path carved through blackened hills. The air was dry, filled with dust and silence. No birds. No wind. Only the soft sound of footsteps and the occasional flicker of Lys's flame.

Elion finally broke the silence.

"Did I really leave you behind?"

Lys looked at him. "You didn't just leave. You erased me. Like I never mattered."

"I don't remember doing that."

"I know. That's what hurts more."

Kaela walked ahead, letting the two talk. The tension between them was a thin thread stretched tight.

Elion slowed his steps. "I want to remember. I want to fix this."

"You can't fix the past," Lys said. "But you can choose what to become now."

They continued walking.

Later that night, they made camp near the ruins of a bridge swallowed by time. Lys sat apart, feeding small twigs to her flame, which danced in her palm like a living creature. Kaela sharpened her blade, always alert.

Elion looked at the stars above. They were dim tonight, veiled by thin clouds.

"Do you know where we are headed?" he asked Kaela.

She nodded. "To the Temple of Broken Vows. It is the last place your name was spoken without hatred."

Lys glanced over. "That place is cursed."

Kaela replied calmly. "So is he."

Elion sighed. "And what exactly am I supposed to find there?"

"A choice," Kaela answered. "A memory. A truth you cannot run from."

Elion stared into the fire Lys had built. It was warm, gentle. Not the kind of flame he expected from someone so angry.

He looked at her.

"You said you would follow me. Does that mean you believe in me?"

Lys didn't look up. "No. It means I want to see who you are when all your memories come back. And if I don't like who you become…"

She let the fire grow for a moment, then closed her hand around it until it vanished.

"I will burn that version of you myself."