Chapter 2: Velmora Part 15
Part 15: "Velmora's Judgement and the Riftbound Arena"
— When a memory survives execution, it becomes prophecy —
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[Scene 1 – The Capture: No Escape Left]
Location: Edge of Arkalis Crater – Dawn, heavy fog
Smoke still lingered from the collapse of the Hall of Forgotten Names.
Rayn lay unconscious — glyphs still glowing faintly on his arms.
Ilira helped carry him, but Arshan's steps slowed… he could hear the hum of Council glyphs above them.
Then— an impact. A pulse from the sky.
> Zyana (sharp, clipped tone):
"They found us. Displacement field is active — no way out."
Out of the fog stepped Inquisitor Varn, face veiled by obsidian steel.
> Inquisitor Varn:
"Arshan of Arkalis. Bearer of three Founder Crests. You are charged with Echo Theft, Chrono Breach, and Memory Resurrection.
Surrender — or suffer Judgement Protocol: Riftbound Trial."
> Arshan (fists clenched):
"You people erase lives like files… and you call me dangerous?"
Zyana tried to trigger a last-phase escape — but nothing worked.
> Zyana (glitching):
"Systems freezing… they've activated a global lock… I'm sorry, Arshan."
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[Scene 2 – Welcome to the Riftbound Arena]
Location: Velmora Capital — Riftbound Trial Coliseum
Arshan awoke inside a floating cage — suspended over an enormous stadium carved into the Driftline itself.
Thousands gathered.
Holograms showed his face — twisted to make him look like a terrorist.
> Mirror AI Broadcast:
"Subject: Arshan — Found guilty of temporal heresy and relic corruption.
Punishment: Trial by Riftbound.
Survive… or fade."
Across the arena stood the Riftbound Beasts — malformed creatures drawn from failed timelines, their eyes glinting with recognition.
> Ilira (from a distant cage):
"They… they all remember him. Some of them were us…"
> Rayn (half-awake, whispering):
"I… never wanted this…"
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[Scene 3 – The Battle of the Remembered]
The gates opened.
The first Riftbound Beast charged — it had the voice of Zyana from her earliest version.
> Riftbeast (distorted):
"You left us… to burn in the First Collapse…"
> Arshan (shaken):
"I wasn't even born then…"
> Zyana (from interface, stuttering):
"That… voice unit… it's mine. Version 0.3. How is that even alive?!"
The beast attacked — Arshan dodged, countered with Temporal Slash.
A second Riftbeast came — it looked like a twisted version of Arshan himself.
> Zyana:
"That's a mirror spawn — made from a rejected timeline where you failed Crest 1."
Arshan activated Soul Echo Burn again — the battle blurred between timelines. Each second was layered with voices, regrets, and echoes of undone choices.
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[Scene 4 – Public Tension Builds: The Crowd Begins to Doubt]
In the upper stands, whispers grew.
> Civilian #1:
"Wait... didn't that creature call him Founder's Son?"
> Civilian #2:
"And the system voice glitched… it called him an anchor. They're hiding something."
> Media Drone (malfunctioning):
"Founder… Not Found… Echo Protocol Breached… Long Live—zzzzzt—"
Suddenly, a flame mirror shattered — and from it emerged Council Archmage Rhadros.
> Rhadros (commanding):
"No more talk. Begin Crest Erasure. Strip him of the Third Flame."
Zyana screamed.
> Zyana (glitching emotionally):
"You erase… everything that scares you. Even your own hope."
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[Scene 5 – Rayn's Choice: Loyalty or Truth]
Rayn's cage opened.
He was offered a blade.
> Inquisitor Varn:
"Finish your role. Kill the bearer. End this."
> Rayn (trembling):
"You… used me. You branded me since the Driftwave…"
He looked at Arshan — their memories collided. From childhood training, to battles fought together, to recent doubts.
Then Rayn shouted — not to the Council, but to the people.
> Rayn:
"Everyone listen! I was used as a memory conduit!
They plant timelines… they erase students… I saw it — we all saw it in the Forgotten Hall!"
The crowd gasped. Some shields flickered. Spectators recorded everything. The illusion of control — cracked.
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[Scene 6 – The Arena Turns]
The Riftbound Beasts suddenly howled in unison —
Not in anger. In recognition.
They backed away from Arshan — bowing their misshapen heads.
> Zyana (in awe):
"They… remember your flame. Your soul isn't corrupted. It's preserved. You are not their enemy… you are their remnant."
> Rhadros (furious):
"This ends NOW!"
He launched a forbidden spell toward Arshan.
But before it could hit — a second flame crest activated on Arshan's chest.
Not the third.
The fourth.
> System Announcement:
New Crest Activated: Founder's Flame – Core Spark (Crest 4)
"Time bends for those who hold the truth."
The spell shattered before it landed.
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[Scene 7 – The Arena Breaks: Rebellion Ignites]
The sky cracked.
Dozens of memory-locked students — forgotten like those in the hall — appeared in flashes of light around the arena.
Their memories restored. Their faces angry. Their voices loud.
> Forgotten Student:
"We were never gone. Just… suppressed."
Velmora's public roared — not in fear, but in outrage.
> Crowd:
"Free the Crest Bearer!"
"End the Council's Echo Crimes!"
Chaos erupted.
Zyana initiated a final override:
> Zyana:
"Backup mode: Divine Displacement. Arshan — I'm taking you out."
> Arshan:
"What about Rayn?! Ilira?!"
> Zyana:
"I'll pull them too — but first, you must survive one last echo…"
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To Be Continued…
Next Part: Part 16 – "The Fifth Flame and the City that Shouldn't Exist"
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In the Next Part:
Arshan will be teleported to a lost city — erased from all records.
The fifth Crest will awaken — but at a cost.
Zyana's system will begin breaking beyond repair.
A forbidden truth: the real origin of the Flame, and why Arshan was chosen.