The Reluctant Guardian

Elias, realizing that Liora's memories are surfacing too quickly, attempts to distance himself. He warns her to stop playing the song, but his evasiveness only frustrates her further. Liora begins actively seeking out more clues, determined to uncover what he is hiding. Meanwhile, Dante reports back to the Warden, who grows increasingly concerned about Elias' interference.

The flickering glow of Liora's bedside lamp barely cut through the lingering shadows of her room. She sat at the edge of her bed, fingers gripping the fabric of her nightshirt as she tried to steady her breathing. The vision still pulsed at the edges of her mind, vivid and raw, as if she had stepped through a crack in time and lived an entire moment in another existence.

The man in the vision Elias?, but not Elias, his voice echoed in her head. You found me. But she hadn't been searching. Had she?

A sharp knock at her door jolted her from her thoughts.

She hesitated, heart pounding. It was too late for visitors. Rising slowly, she padded across the room and cracked the door open just enough to see who it was.

Elias stood in the dimly lit hallway, his face unreadable, eyes dark with something unspoken. He didn't wait for an invitation. Pushing the door open, he stepped inside and shut it behind him.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," he murmured.

Liora folded her arms, willing herself to steady. "Maybe I have."

Elias's gaze flicked to her shaking hands before he exhaled softly. "You played the song again."

It wasn't a question. She swallowed. "I didn't need to."

His expression tightened. "You remembered."

A beat of silence passed between them before she nodded. "Not everything. Just… flashes. A room filled with lanterns. A man" She hesitated, then added, "You. But not you."

Elias moved toward the window, bracing one hand against the sill. His profile was cast in shadow, his usual guarded demeanor slipping into something closer to exhaustion. "You weren't supposed to remember this soon."

Liora frowned. "Supposed to? What does that mean? You knew this would happen?"

His fingers curled against the windowsill. "I hoped it wouldn't."

The weight of his words settled deep in her chest. She stepped closer. "Tell me the truth, Elias. Who are we?"

He turned to her then, his gaze sharp, cutting through the dim light like the edge of a blade. "I told you before, some doors, once opened, can't be closed."

She squared her shoulders. "Then stop keeping them shut."

For a long moment, he said nothing. Then, with a quiet sigh, he reached into his coat and pulled out something small, something wrapped in faded silk. Carefully, he unraveled the fabric, revealing a delicate, antique locket.

Liora's breath caught. It was beautiful, intricately designed with an engraving so worn it was barely readable. But it wasn't just the locket that sent a shiver through her.

It was the feeling that she had held it before.

Elias extended it to her. "Open it."

Her fingers trembled as she took the locket and clicked it open. Inside, two miniature portraits stared back at her.

One of them was unmistakably Elias.

The other was her.

A strangled breath escaped her lips. "This… this isn't possible."

Elias watched her, his expression unreadable. "It is."

Liora shook her head. "That would mean"

"That we've done this before." His voice was quiet, but firm. "Many times."

A shudder rippled through her. She closed the locket with a snap and clenched it in her palm. "Then why don't I remember? Why do you?"

His jaw tightened. "Because I've always remembered."

The words settled in the space between them, heavy with meaning she wasn't sure she was ready for. She wanted to deny it, to rationalize it away. But the song, the vision, the locket all fit together too perfectly to be a coincidence.

Her voice was barely above a muttered. "What happens next?"

Elias's golden-amber eyes darkened. "That's what I'm afraid of."