The next day, the road led them into a plain where the grass glowed faintly blue at night.At first, Kael thought it was some kind of magic reflection — but as the sun fell and the stars refused to appear, he realized something strange.
The sky did not darken.It stayed a pale silver, dim but never night.
Seren frowned. "Where are the stars?"
Lira looked up, her voice soft. "It's like the sky forgot how to sleep."
Kael felt a quiet unease settle in his chest.The world was wrong again — beautiful, but wrong.
As they entered a nearby town, they saw people walking, working, laughing — all with wide, tired eyes.Shops were open, bells rang, children played, but no one rested.
When Kael asked an old fruit seller about it, the man chuckled weakly."Sleep? Ah, no one here has slept in fifty years. Not since the sky changed."
Lira gasped. "Fifty years? How do you survive?"
The man shrugged. "We don't. We just keep moving until our hearts forget to stop."
He smiled — but his smile trembled like glass.
They found an inn with soft lights and strange warmth. The innkeeper, a woman with grey hair and calm eyes, welcomed them.Her voice was gentle but distant, as if her mind wandered elsewhere.
Kael asked, "Do you ever dream?"
She paused. "Dream? I used to. Now dreams come whether we want them or not."
When Kael looked confused, she added, "They walk here. The dreams. You'll see them tonight."
That night, as they rested in their rooms, Kael lay awake, staring at the silver sky outside his window.He wasn't tired, yet his body longed for rest. His thoughts drifted between the breathing mountain and the words it had whispered — "You are the spark that remembers."
He wondered what that truly meant.How could a flame remember? Could it dream?
Then he heard a whisper — a child's voice.
"Kael…"
He sat up. The room was empty, yet the air shimmered.A small figure appeared at the edge of his bed — a boy made of light and mist. His eyes were endless.
Kael whispered, "Who are you?"
The boy smiled faintly. "You called me when you touched the mountain's heart."
Kael's breath caught. "You're… one of them?"
The boy shook his head. "No. I'm you. Or what's left of you from before."
Kael froze. "What do you mean?"
The boy pointed toward the window. "Look."
Outside, the streets were no longer empty.Hundreds of glowing shapes wandered through the town — dreams in the form of people, animals, and shadows.They drifted like fog, touching buildings, whispering to the sleepless.
Some wept softly. Others sang songs without words.
"They come from the sky," the boy said. "They are the dreams this world lost when it forgot to rest."
Kael stared. "Why can't they return?"
The boy's eyes turned sad. "Because the one who could open the sky — forgot how to sleep too."
Lira burst into the room, eyes wide. "Kael! There are people outside made of light!"
Kael nodded. "I see them."
Seren followed, sword half-drawn, though the sight made him hesitate."They're not attacking. Just… wandering."
As they stepped outside, one of the light figures floated close. It looked like a woman holding a lantern, her face peaceful but hollow.
When she spoke, her voice echoed through Kael's mind:
"You once promised us dawn. Why did you leave before it came?"
Kael felt his heart clench. "I don't know what you mean."
"You burned the stars to light the way. Then forgot why you did it."
Her form flickered and vanished.
Lira touched Kael's arm. "Kael… are they talking to you?"
He didn't answer. He couldn't. His chest ached like something deep within him had cracked open.
As the hours passed, more dream-shapes gathered around them.Each one whispered fragments — memories, promises, warnings.Kael couldn't tell if they were real or echoes of his own lost self.
Finally, the boy made of light spoke again."The Sleepless Sky was your doing. You sealed the stars so the world would never forget your fire."
Kael shook his head violently. "No… that can't be true!"
The boy only smiled sadly. "You wanted to save them. But you feared that if they slept, they'd forget you."
Kael fell to his knees. The truth hit like cold rain — the mountain's memory, the fire, the guilt.Had he once destroyed the balance just to keep his light alive?
Lira knelt beside him. "Kael, whatever you did before… that's not who you are now."
He looked up, eyes burning. "What if it's not about who I am — but what I'll become again?"
She shook her head. "Then change the ending this time."
The dream-boy reached out, touching Kael's forehead.Instantly, visions flooded in — stars bursting, people crying out, fire falling like rain.And then silence.A single voice echoed:
"To heal the sky, one must first learn to dream again."
When Kael opened his eyes, the boy was gone.The dream shapes slowly began to fade, returning to the clouds above.
For the first time in fifty years, a single star blinked in the sky.
Lira gasped. "Look!"
Kael smiled faintly, tears glinting. "It remembered."
The innkeeper came out, weeping softly."It's been so long… I thought I'd never see them again."
Kael looked up at the single star, its light trembling against the silver sky.He whispered to himself, "Maybe the world is ready to sleep again."
Seren chuckled quietly. "And maybe we'll finally get some rest too."
Lira laughed, wiping her eyes. "Don't jinx it."
Kael smiled. But deep inside, a thought lingered:If one star could wake, perhaps others would follow.And when all of them returned — maybe so would the truth about who he really was.