Collide: The Memory of Stars

The village lay in an uneasy silence, the kind that wrapped around them like a warning.

Despite the shelter offered by the wary villagers, none had spoken much beyond hushed whispers, their gazes flickering toward the mountains with barely concealed fear. Selene, unable to see, relied on the shifts in the air, the unspoken tension pressing against her skin.

She could sense it—something beyond the village, beyond the reach of firelight, watching.

The footsteps came first. Slow. Measured. Following.

Axel tensed beside her. He could hear them, too. His fingers twitched at his side, reaching for a weapon that wasn't there. A muscle in his jaw tightened, his breaths measured but ready.

Khael was the first to speak. "We're being followed."

No one replied, but they all knew. The dirt path beneath their feet crunched with every step, but the sound was never alone.

Something else matched their pace, just beyond sight, lingering at the edges of their awareness. Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, it stopped.

Selene turned slightly, head tilting toward the unseen presence.

"It's still there."

No attack came. No shadow leapt from the darkness. Instead, a whisper drifted through the wind, its voice neither kind nor cruel, but heavy with meaning.

"Vintheros lethorin dos varos. Nathor ven Eldoria."

Axel stiffened. The words meant nothing to him, but the weight of them sent something cold down his spine.

"The past does not sleep," Khael murmured,

translating softly. "Return to Eldoria."

Selene swallowed hard, her fingers clenching into the fabric of her sleeve. She could hear her own heartbeat now, could feel the weight of something pressing on her chest.

"What does that mean?"

No one answered.

The silence stretched, thick and suffocating. Then, suddenly, the air snapped with movement.

A loud thwack rang through the night.

A screech followed, high and shrill, before the unseen entity dispersed into nothingness like smoke scattered by the wind.

"Well, well! Pests these days have no respect for weary travelers, do they?" came an amused voice, followed by the rhythmic tapping of wood against stone.

They turned sharply toward the sound, eyes landing on an old man standing atop a large rock. He had a long, wild beard, and despite the aged lines on his face, his grin was wide and full of mirth. He leaned on a wooden staff, tapping it twice against the ground before sighing dramatically.

Khael frowned. "Who—?"

"Who am I? By the stars, have I really been forgotten so quickly?" The man wagged a finger at Axel.

"Boy, you owe me an introduction at the very least!" Axel's tension didn't fade entirely, but recognition flickered in his eyes.

"…Aldric." The old man grinned. "Ah! So you do remember! And here I thought my legacy had been reduced to nothing more than dusty old books." He huffed, stepping down from the rock with a surprisingly nimble motion.

"You lot really know how to get yourselves into trouble. I expected at least a little more caution, but alas! Fate does as it pleases."

Selene was still catching up, trying to place the name.

"You… know us?"Aldric chuckled as he began walking, motioning for them to follow.

"Oh, not in the way you're thinking, my dear! But I knew someone would come. The signs were all there, written in the echoes of a past long buried." He tapped his temple.

"And you, my dear, are right in the middle of it." Selene's stomach twisted at his words. She didn't understand why, but the certainty in his tone made her uneasy.

"Come, come!" Aldric waved them along as he led them away from the village.

"I have a far more comfortable place to chat. And I promise it's ghost-free! Well… mostly."

His hideout was nothing like they expected. Hidden beneath the ruins of an old watchtower, the entrance was tucked away behind what appeared to be an overgrown path of twisted roots and moss-covered stones. Aldric moved through it with ease, tapping his staff against the ground as he hummed an off-key tune.

Inside, the underground shelter was lined with shelves filled with old books and scrolls. A small fire crackled in the center, the scent of dried herbs lingering in the air.

Aldric busied himself preparing tea, humming all the while.

"Ah, it's been a while since I've had guests! Do forgive the mess. The dust and I have reached a rather agreeable coexistence."

Axel, still wary, crossed his arms.

"You said you knew we'd come. What did you mean by that?"Aldric didn't look up as he stirred the tea.

"I may be old, but I am not blind to the signs of change.

" His gaze flickered briefly to Selene before returning to his work.

"There are things in this world that do not rest. And some paths were always meant to cross." He handed them each a cup, his smile never quite reaching his eyes.

"You're looking for answers, yes? Then let's talk about the past that refuses to stay dead."

He tapped his wooden stick against the floor, his eyes twinkling with a knowing light.

"But before you flood me with all those burning questions, let me tell you a tale. One that must be heard first."

Selene stiffened. Even without sight, she could feel the shift in the air, the way the silence stretched, thick with something unspoken.

"A tale?" Khael murmured, his voice small, wary.

Aldric nodded.

"Aye, boy. The tale of the Sealed One. Of a girl cursed by fate, swallowed by the void itself." His voice dropped, almost a whisper.

"And the ruler who was destined to meet her."

He took a slow breath, eyes distant, as if seeing something only he could recall.

"Long before the world as we know it began to fracture, there was a girl. A girl whose name has long been forgotten, erased by the passing centuries. She was not born a monster. No, she was born like any other—fragile, hopeful, filled with the dreams that youth often carries. But the world has never been kind to those who shine too brightly."

The firelight flickered, casting eerie shapes against the walls as his voice lowered. "She was gifted, you see. Gifted beyond what was natural, beyond what mortals should possess. Some say she was a child of the stars, others that she was touched by the gods. But with power comes hunger—the hunger of those who wish to claim what is not theirs."

Khael's breath hitched. "Greed." Aldric nodded.

"Aye, lad. Greed. Those who once called her friend turned on her, those who once praised her name whispered poison behind closed doors. They sought her power, craved it.

Coveted it." He spat the last words, his hands tightening over his staff.

"And so, they betrayed her. They did not kill her—no, death would have been mercy. Instead, they cursed her. Twisted her power into something unnatural. And slowly, she became what they feared most. A void. A darkness that could not be undone."

Selene swallowed hard. Though she could not see, she felt the weight of the story pressing against her chest, curling around her ribs like invisible chains.

"She was no longer human," Aldric continued.

"No longer flesh and soul. She was hunger, she was emptiness. And when she could no longer bear the torment, she sought to end the suffering the only way she knew how. By swallowing everything whole." A heavy silence fell over them.

Axel's voice was barely above a whisper. "And she was sealed?"

"Aye." Aldric exhaled slowly. "By the one destined to do so. The golden queen, Eltharia Solmira." At the name, the firelight seemed to flicker strangely, the air growing colder.

"She was beloved by her people," Aldric said softly.

"Eltharia was the kind of ruler poets still sing of, though most have forgotten her name. A queen of wisdom and grace, of strength and kindness. The people adored her, not because she demanded it, but because she gave them something no ruler had before—hope. She did not seek power, yet power found her. And with it, a terrible responsibility."

Selene's hands tightened in her lap. The name—why did it feel familiar?

"She was the only one strong enough to stop the Sealed One. And she did. At great cost. The battle between them was unlike any before or since, a clash of light and void. But sealing something like that… it requires more than magic. It requires sacrifice."

Khael whispered, "What did she sacrifice?"

Aldric's expression darkened. "Herself."

A hush fell over them, the weight of the revelation suffocating.

"The seal upon the void was bound to Eltharia's very essence," Aldric continued.

"As long as her soul remained unbroken, the darkness would stay locked away. She gave everything to keep the world safe. But…"

Axel tensed. "But what?"

Aldric sighed, his voice carrying the sorrow of centuries.

"She succeeded. And when her duty was done, she left without regret, entrusting everything to the one she loved most—her sister."

Selene's heart pounded. There was something pulling at the edges of her mind, something just out of reach.

"Eldoria did not fall because of the Sealed One," Aldric continued.

"It stood long after. But the seal… it was never meant to last forever. It held as long as time itself remained still. But time has begun to move again. And now, the cracks have formed." The fire crackled, but it no longer felt warm.

"The past does not sleep," Aldric murmured. "And now, it is waking."

To be continued.