They fell through the vault's endless light, spinning amid shards of their own memories. Every image that flashed by was part of Cled's forgotten past — the tower of clouds, the mask of stars, the war that ended eternity. Each fragment whispered, remember me.
Cled's twin — the crimson echo — struck first. The impact sent ripples through the void, forming waves of pure memory that twisted into storms.
"You were born to rule!" the echo shouted. "Why do you cling to weakness?"
Cled blocked the next blow with a flash of his blue aura. "Because power without balance destroys everything — and I've seen that once before."
The echo laughed, the sound echoing like shattered bells. "Then watch it again!"
They collided, energy cascading outward. The vault's ceiling split open, revealing a sky of raw light. Mairen, watching from a floating shard below, felt tears streak her face — not from fear, but from the beauty of it. It was like watching creation fight itself.
Cled roared, summoning the fracture's power. Blue light streamed from his hands, forming runes in the air. The echo countered with red sigils, each one burning with corruption. The two sets of symbols intertwined, forming a spiral that began to tear reality itself.
Through the maelstrom, the echo shouted, "When the Shattered King returns, you will beg for the strength I offer!"
Cled's eyes flared. "Then I'll forge my own."
He clasped his hands, channeling both their powers into a single seal. Light exploded, and for a moment, everything went silent.
When the light cleared, only one figure remained — Cled, kneeling, his aura flickering between red and blue. The echo was gone, absorbed into him once more.
Mairen ran to him, helping him stand. "You did it."
He shook his head weakly. "No. He's still inside me. Waiting."
She looked around the vault — the stars now dim, the voices gone. "Then what now?"
Cled stared upward, toward the tear in the vault's ceiling. Through it, he could see the fracture's light flickering far above, and beyond that, a throne of storm clouds.
"The Shattered King has returned," he whispered. "And the heavens will soon remember their war."
The vault trembled, cracks running through its walls. Mairen grabbed his hand. "We have to leave!"
They sprinted toward the fading gate as the vault collapsed behind them.
Just before stepping through, Cled looked back once — and saw, faintly, a figure sitting upon a throne of lightning, eyes burning gold and crimson.
It smiled.
> "Welcome home, Heir of the Broken Sky."
The gate shattered as they crossed it, sealing the vault behind them.
Outside, the fracture blazed brighter than ever, casting its glow across the world.
The age of silence had ended.