Chapter 5: Echoes of the Forgotten

Orion awoke to a strange sensation—his body felt weightless, suspended between reality and something beyond. The air around him shimmered with astral energy, threads of light weaving patterns that pulsed like a heartbeat. He was no longer in the ruins of the Celestial Archive. This place felt... ancient. Forgotten.

As he stepped forward, the ground beneath him rippled like liquid glass. The sky overhead was neither night nor day, but an endless swirling cosmos, stars bursting and fading in patterns that felt eerily familiar. A voice echoed through the void.

"You should not be here."

Orion spun around. A figure stood before him, cloaked in shadows, yet their presence was immense. Their eyes burned with violet fire, mirroring his own.

"Who are you?" Orion demanded, gripping the hilt of Eos, his celestial blade.

The figure tilted their head. "I am the Echo, a remnant of what was lost. And you, Orion Valerian, stand at the crossroads of fate."

A chill ran through him. The Echo's words felt weighted, as if they carried the knowledge of a thousand lifetimes.

"You carry the Astral Paradox within you," the Echo continued. "You are the key to its unraveling—or its continuation. The cycle has played out for eons, and each time, the choice remains the same."

Orion's pulse quickened. The visions, the shifting memories, the overwhelming sense of déjà vu—it all made sense now. He wasn't just another player in this cosmic game. He was the center of it.

"Then tell me how to break the cycle," Orion said, stepping closer. "How do I end this once and for all?"

The Echo exhaled slowly, and the stars in the sky flickered in response. "To break the paradox, you must find the Forgotten One. Only they hold the answers you seek. But beware, for their prison lies within the folds of reality itself. To free them is to challenge the very fabric of existence."

Orion clenched his fists. He had come too far to turn back now. If the Forgotten One held the key to ending this endless cycle, he would find them. No matter the cost.

The Echo lifted a hand, and the space around them trembled. A portal of pure astral energy tore open before Orion, leading into the unknown.

"Step through," the Echo said. "And prepare for the truth."

With one last glance at the ever-shifting cosmos, Orion took a deep breath and stepped forward.

The void swallowed him whole.