The air at the altar's summit felt increasingly heavy, filled with remnants of cosmic energy still vibrating violently from the collision. Vespera drew a deep breath, trying to calm the unfamiliar pounding of her heart that kept disrupting her concentration. She maintained her distance, staring sharply at the man before her as he wiped the remaining blood from his temple.
“You still haven’t answered my question, Caelen,” Vespera said coldly, striving to reclaim her authority as a dimensional guardian. “How can a boundary-crossing prince know my name, and what does it have to do with the destruction of The Primordial Heart?”
Caelen gave a soft snort, his expression growing more serious. He slowly stepped backward to show that he had no intention of attacking, though his eyes never left Vespera’s face.
“In my homeland, your name is carved into the walls of forgotten time temples, Vespera,” Caelen replied softly. “You’re not merely a dimensional guardian. You are the last shackle restraining the greatest dark entity in the universe from tearing this reality apart.”
Vespera was stunned, though her face remained impassive. A fragment of hazy memory passed through her mind—a vision of vast blue light and boundless emptiness—but it vanished before she could grasp it. “Nonsense. I have no past. I was born from the void.”
“Because the elders of Aethelgard locked away your memories so you wouldn’t learn the truth,” Caelen cut in quickly. He pointed toward the dimensional rift behind the altar, which had begun spinning unstably and emitting a low hum that pierced the ears. “And we’re running out of time. Assassins from the Aethelgard Sky Kingdom are tracking this crystal’s energy trail. They’ll arrive before dawn.”
Before Vespera could respond, the ground beneath their feet began to tremble violently. Glowing golden-and-black cracks spread across the obsidian surface, signaling that the dimensional seal was weakening further because of Caelen’s presence.
Vespera realized one thing: no matter how much she wanted to drive this man away, his presence here had triggered a threat far greater than anything she could handle alone.
With a swift motion, Vespera extended her left hand, creating a transparent blue energy shield to stabilize the cracks in the altar. She turned toward Caelen, her gaze filled with warning.
“If you intend to betray me, this dagger will pierce your heart before those assassins ever lay a hand on you,” Vespera declared. She stepped past Caelen toward the altar’s edge. “Follow me if you want to stay alive. We have to move this energy core to the Sanctuary of Echoes before dawn.”
Caelen offered a faint smile, a spark of admiration shining behind his turquoise eyes. He followed the dimensional guardian into the dark mist that was beginning to swallow the altar ruins.