The road from the river curved upward through silver grass.The air smelled different now — lighter, thinner, as if the world itself was holding its breath.The sky stretched wide and endless, painted in soft shades of violet.
Kael, Lira, and Seren climbed quietly. They hadn't spoken much since the river. Each step felt heavier, like memory itself pressed against their shoulders.
By dusk, they reached a cliff that overlooked a vast, empty canyon.Across the canyon hung a single bridge — long, floating, and made of light.Its surface shimmered like woven moonbeams, but the strange thing was that it had no beginning and no end. It simply hung there, suspended in silence.
Lira's voice trembled. "That… doesn't look real."
Seren tapped the air with his staff — it rippled like water. "It's magic. Old magic."
A soft hum filled the air, and a figure appeared at the start of the bridge.It was cloaked in white, with no face — only a glowing outline of eyes.
"Who are you?" Kael asked carefully.
The figure's voice was like wind over snow.
"I am the Keeper of the Bridge. To cross, you must leave behind a name — one memory too heavy to carry forward."
Lira frowned. "A name? You mean… forget someone?"
"Not just someone," said the Keeper. "Something. A moment, a pain, a promise. Anything that still binds your heart to what was."
Kael felt a cold shiver run through him.Forget something? After all he had lost already?
Seren crossed his arms. "Sounds like a trick. What if we forget too much?"
The Keeper tilted its head.
"Then you will walk lighter… but emptier."
They stood in silence. The bridge shimmered softly, waiting.Kael stared into the canyon — deep, endless, glowing faintly with mist.A single question echoed in his heart:What would I give up to move forward?
Lira stepped first. "I'll go."
Kael reached out. "Wait—"
But she had already touched the bridge.The light wrapped around her, lifting strands of her hair like a gentle breeze.
The Keeper's voice echoed,
"Speak the name of what you will forget."
Lira hesitated. Then she whispered, "My mother's voice."
Kael's eyes widened. "Lira, no—"
Her voice cracked, but she smiled through her tears. "It's the only thing that keeps me looking back. If I keep hearing her, I'll never move ahead."
The light pulsed once, and the sound of a soft laugh — like a mother's lullaby — faded into the wind.Lira shivered, then stepped forward.The bridge held her.
She turned, smiling faintly. "It's okay. It doesn't hurt. It's just… quiet."
Seren sighed deeply. "Guess it's my turn."He looked down at his hands, old and scarred. "I'll forget my brother's last words."
Kael frowned. "Why that?"
Seren's gaze hardened. "Because they were the words that broke me. 'Don't come back.' I've carried them too long."
He stepped forward. The bridge accepted him.A faint whisper of sorrow filled the air — and then, nothing.
Seren looked back once. His face was calm, lighter somehow."Feels strange," he said softly. "Like a wound that finally stopped bleeding."
Now it was Kael's turn.He stood before the Keeper, heart racing.
"What will you forget, traveler?"
Kael hesitated. His life was already full of missing pieces — the faces of those he failed, the promises broken in battle, the home that no longer existed.What was left to forget?
He closed his eyes and whispered, "I'll forget my fear."
The Keeper tilted its head. "Fear has protected you. Without it, you may fall."
Kael looked at the endless canyon below. "Then I'll learn to fly."
The light embraced him gently. For a moment, he felt the weight of every fear he'd carried — the fear of failing again, of losing everyone, of being unworthy.Then, like dust, it lifted away.
He stepped onto the bridge. His feet felt lighter. His heart, steadier.
Lira smiled when he joined them. "You look different."
Kael shrugged, a small grin forming. "Maybe I finally left the ghosts behind."
As they crossed, the bridge glowed brighter, as if their courage fed its light.Beneath them, the canyon began to hum — not with danger, but with memories fading gently, like stars dimming at dawn.
Lira looked back once. "Do you think we'll ever remember what we gave up?"
Seren said quietly, "Maybe in another life."
Kael added softly, "Or maybe forgetting is just another kind of remembering — one that doesn't hurt anymore."
Halfway across, the bridge changed. The surface rippled like a mirror, showing them reflections — not of who they were, but who they might become.
Lira saw herself healing people in a golden city.Seren saw himself teaching children to fight with honor.Kael saw himself standing beneath a tree of stars, smiling, peaceful at last.
The reflections faded as the Keeper's voice whispered one last time:
"The forgotten are not lost. They are simply resting."
When they stepped onto the other side, the bridge dissolved into silver dust, carried away by the wind.
For a long time, none of them spoke.Then Lira said softly, "It's strange… I feel lighter, but also sad."
Seren nodded. "That's how healing feels, I think."
Kael looked up at the stars rising above them. "Every step forward asks for something in return. Maybe that's the world's way of keeping balance."
Lira smiled faintly. "Then I'll walk carefully."
They stood together for a moment, listening to the wind hum through the empty sky.The night was peaceful — almost too peaceful.
Then, from far ahead, came a soft, haunting sound — like bells ringing underwater.
Kael turned. "Do you hear that?"
Seren nodded grimly. "It's coming from the valley beyond."
Kael looked toward the sound, eyes narrowing with quiet resolve."Then that's where we're going next."
And as they walked into the silver night, the last spark of the bridge's light followed them — faint, like memory itself, but still there.