At that moment, a faint blue light shimmered around him, like the light of an old screen, and luminous squares lit up beneath him, one after another, like an old gaming platform redrawing the boundaries of the world. A huge hourglass appeared behind him, its sands flowing slowly.
backwards, as if turning back the hands of time or freezing it completely.
The space around them shifted, and the air grew thinner, before a mysterious flash swallowed them. In a fraction of a second, the smoke, the blood, the sounds of war dissipated... and Elios found himself holding his father in a completely different place — a wide corridor lit with warm light, its walls adorned with slowly moving abstract patterns, its floor smooth with no trace of battle.
But before the transition was complete, Darkis reached out his hand and hurled a huge shadow like a spear to pierce the space between them. However, the boundaries of "The Lobby" closed at the last moment, and the spear pierced only fading air, leaving Darkis standing amidst the battlefield, staring into the void where Elios and his father had been, a deadly silence covering the scene.
Elios sat on the ground, still cradling his father's head, his heart pounding fiercely, realizing that the time he had gained... might not be enough.
Elios sat on the ground, still holding his father's head tightly, his tears falling on Orestos's face, mixing with the blood and dust on it.
"Please, Father... don't speak... just rest..." His voice trembled,pleading as if the words themselves were stumbling on his lips.
But Orestos smiled a pale smile, one that held within its folds a thousand memories, and said in a hoarse voice:
· "Elios... this might be... the last time I speak with you."
Elios's heart shuddered upon hearing those words, as if an arrow had pierced his chest. He tried to shake his head in refusal, to rebel against what he was hearing, but his tear-filled eyes betrayed him, and he found nothing inside but heavy silence.
He swallowed with difficulty, and his voice came out cracked:
· "I know... but... I won't let you die alone."
He looked at his father for seconds, then closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and wiped his tears with his sleeve. He lifted his head and said sternly, as if issuing a military order:
· "Convert."
Suddenly, "The Lobby" shimmered around them, and the smooth walls dissolved in a wave of faint light, replaced in their place by familiar trees, their green leaves rustling gently in a soft breeze, interspersed with golden sunbeams filtering through the branches. The ground was covered with soft grass, and the scent of wildflowers hung in the air. A few steps away, a clear, calm stream flowed quietly, reflecting the blue sky like a mirror.
The temporary paradise was complete... but it was a paradise born of Elios's imagination, a blend of his memories and wishes.
Orestos slowly opened his eyes, gazing at the scene around him with wonder and nostalgia. He looked at his son and said in a hoarse voice, a glint in his eyes that Elios hadn't seen in a long time:
"This place..."
Elios smiled and knelt beside him:
· "You always said the countryside was the most beautiful place in your life... so I thought we could talk here... even if it's the last time."
Orestos kept staring at him, as if trying to etch the features of his son and the place together into his memory forever, while the gentle breeze passed between them, carrying the scent of the past and the bitterness of the present.
Elios carefully held his father, helping him slowly to his feet, until they reached together an old wooden bench overlooking a calm lake, its waters shimmering under the golden sunlight. Small fish moved beneath the surface in slow circles, and a soft breeze carried the scent of wildflowers.
Orestos sat on the bench, breathing slowly as if trying to store every breath of air in his chest. Elios took a piece of soft bread from a bag and placed it in his father's hand. Orestos smiled faintly and began to crumble the pieces onto the water's surface, where the fish rushed in a small frenzy to get it.
After moments of silence, Orestos said in a hoarse voice: "Elios...you are king now, but you are still a boy. Your days should be filled with games and laughter, not wars and death. I'm sorry... sorry I couldn't let you grow up in peace."
Elios shook his head, but his father continued: "Whatever happens, I want you to take care of your mother.. she is strong, but her heart is fragile. Try to make her laugh every day, even if she doesn't feel like it. And Neva.. she is still young, and the world is cruel.. don't let her see what we have seen."
He smiled faintly, drifting back in memory:
· "Remember.. the day Neva tried to catch up with you in the garden, but she tripped and fell? You cried instead of her, and said it was your fault. Your mother took you both in her arms and we all laughed. You always took the blame for others, even as a child."
Elios let out a short laugh that ended in a sob, and said:
· "And you.. you used to lift me onto your shoulders and say I was taller than all the trees."
"You were, in my eyes," replied Orestos with a pure smile, then looked away toward the lake, as other images began to seep into his memory. "Remember the winter when the river froze?You insisted on sitting by it to fish, even though the water was frozen. I sat with you for hours, just because you said we were a team... until we went home and your mother started yelling at us while we shivered from the cold." The two burst into short laughter,followed by a quiet silence, as if these small moments were trying to pull them from the weight of the situation.
But Orestos put his hands back in his lap, and his voice became serious: "Hold on for just five minutes..."— "by The Lobby" He looked directly into Elios's eyes and took out a small pendant from his pocket,a dark metal pendant engraved with a complex symbol, with small beads of light swirling at its center. He placed it in his son's hand.
"This... is all you will need. You will know its value when the time comes."
"How?" asked Elios, turning the pendant over in his fingers.
· "When we reach the location of Telmar... you will understand everything."
Elios gave a half-confused smile, but Orestos continued in a decisive voice:
· "When we return... you must flee."
· "Impossible!" Elios interrupted, his voice carrying clear rebellion, "I can't leave you here!"
Orestos's face darkened, and he shouted with suppressed anger:
· "Why must you always be like this? Why do you refuse to listen to me?"
He took a heavy breath, then continued in a quieter but more forceful voice:
· "I've made many mistakes in my life, but having you was not one of them. I love you, so please... listen to me this time."
Elios fell silent, clenching his fist to prevent his tears from falling.
"Now I must pay for my mistake and accompany it by saving you... this will make me happy." Orestos closed his eyes for a moment before opening them and continuing:
· "When you were born, I felt my first real happiness... when I touched your hair, and saw your eyes that resemble your mother's. I want the last thing I do... to be saving you and knowing you are safe."
Elios could no longer resist; he rushed to hug his father tightly, tears streaming down his face.
· "Forgive me... if I was sometimes terrible." Orestos said in a faint voice.
Elios shook his head and said:
· "No..." then fell silent, as if all other words had vanished from his dictionary at that moment.