2.First Memories

Not long after the encounter with the statue, at the foot of the hill

"Is that... a cathedral? Finally! I was starting to lose hope."

As he approaches it, strange things begin to happen. The large building stands in the very center: a semi-illusory cathedral, as if it were a specter floating between reality and the unreal. The streets are paved with white stone, carefully chiseled and polished, resembling the floor of a palace.

The sky surrounding it is vastly different from that of the hills he had been walking through; it feels heavy with something indescribable, an unsettling atmosphere. There isn't a single sound except for the whisper of the wind sweeping through the deserted streets.

"What happened here? " he wonders as he sees the doors of the semi-transparent "cathedral" slowly creaking open, almost as if inviting him in.

"Is it inviting me to enter?" After a few moments of hesitation and analyzing the situation, he decides he has no other option but to step into the strange cathedral.

"It's been a very long time since anyone has passed through these lands—let alone a human. Tell me, how has someone like you ended up in this village, a place even the gods cannot find?"

The boy feels a shiver run down his spine upon hearing those words. Slowly, he turns to discern the source of the voice and sees an elderly cleric. His face bears the marks of age, his features worn and eroded, yet his expression is a solemn mix of superiority and benevolence, as if he exists on a plane above mortals.

His stature is short, but the long cleriman he wears gives him an air of grandeur, making him appear taller than he is. Upon his head rests a silver tiara adorned with thorns, crafted from the same semi-transparent material as the cathedral itself. His eyes, entirely black, are matched by his slicked-back hair, adding to the aura of mysticism that surrounds him. The great distance between them only amplifies his intimidating presence.

"Have you seen a ghost, child? What's with that expression?"

The elder's voice snaps the boy out of his initial shock. Summoning his courage, he prepares to respond carefully, measuring his tone as he addresses the imposing figure before him:

"I am a traveler. I'm searching for a way to return home, to discover who I am and how I've ended up here. I was hoping you could help me."

The mysterious cleric takes a step forward, his stoic expression remaining unchanged.

"To discover how you ended up here? Child, could you tell me where you come from?"

Hearing these words, the boy's mind begins to unravel. His head trembles uncontrollably, his vision blurs, and his ears are filled with the sound of desperate screams. Blood starts to stream from his eyes as his body collapses under the strain, falling to the ground.

"Child...!" That is the last thing he hears before falling unconscious.

-???-

The boy opens his eyes, confused and dizzy, his vision blurry as he glances around until he finally opens them completely. He realizes he is in the "sky," above what seem to be clouds. Nothing else can be seen, no matter which direction he looks. Suddenly, a slightly high-pitched voice whispers in his ear:

"Fri..."

"That is your name..."

"You are where you wanted to be…"

"Good luck."

Upon hearing these words, images flash in his mind. They are memories of all kinds: his first steps as a child, his first day of school, playing, laughing, crying. Then, he sees himself growing older, fragments of memories showing him as a teenager. At that point, there's a significant shift: his appearance is the same as it is now, except for one small detail—his wide-open eyes have lost all "fire." He seems emotionless, like an empty puppet, a marionette. In this final fragment, he stands before a row of thrones, though the faces of those seated upon them remain hidden in the shadows. For the first time in the "dream" a voice is heard—his own—saying:

"I will be the one to judge all who deserve it, starting with you... 'Constellations.'"

After this flood of information from his memories, he wakes from the dream. The sky, completely blue, surrounds him. Clouds of asymmetrical shapes drift by. Nothing can be heard except the breeze. He stares at the sky, dumbfounded, reflecting on what he just experienced. Before long, his vision blurs again. Suddenly, he's looking at the ceiling of a bizarre cathedral, the crown of semi-transparent thorns... and its bearer.

"Boy! Wake up! What happened to you?"

After waking from that strange "dream," the first thing he sees is the priest, his hair naturally swept back and his stoic expression—an expression that once seemed terrifying, but now felt strangely comforting.

"I think I fainted. It's been happening to me quite a lot lately."

The priest raises an eyebrow upon hearing the last part, but keeping his distance, he asks:

"Are you sure you're okay? You've been unconscious for no more than a minute, boy. By the way, my name is Torth."

The boy smiles at the cleric's kindness, but when he's about to respond, he reflects on his own name and what he had just seen with his own eyes: "Fri." Although that voice had clearly said it was his name, his memories told a completely different story: "Adón." In fact, he had no idea where the name "Fri" even came from. Still, he decided to use it as an extra layer of security, to prevent unwanted people from discovering his true identity. Since realizing he was in a place completely different from where he should be, his safety and anonymity had become top priorities.

"I'm Fri. Nice to meet you, Torth."

The cleric's smile fades, replaced by a serious expression, rekindling a sense of fear in Fri.

"Back to the matter at hand—how did a human like you end up here? You're in the Cathedral of Dreams. As you must have seen on your way here, it's the only thing you'll find in this desolate wasteland, along with the statue of 'Keros.' This is the last cathedral built in honor of that 'myth.' After the ancient wars and 'his' defeat, the remaining demigods decided to banish his followers from any habitable reality. In the end, after offering them the chance to renounce their beliefs, I was the only one who remained here—the last believer in a dead god."