The name Rin remained suspended beneath the white tree.
Beside it, Lucien's name flickered like a candle threatened by wind.
Kaelith did not move.
For countless lives, he had searched for Rin. He had crossed the boundaries between worlds, challenged the Gods, and torn apart every answer that led nowhere. Yet now the World itself had spoken Rin's name, as though it had known him long before their paths crossed.
And Lucien—
Lucien was supposed to be dead.
"Explain," Kaelith said.
The World's tears continued falling, each one dissolving into a fragment of someone's forgotten history.
"THESE NAMES WERE NOT MEANT TO SURVIVE."
"That is not an explanation."
"THEIR EXISTENCE CONTRADICTS THE RECORD."
Kaelith stepped closer. "Then your record is wrong."
The rings surrounding the World shuddered.
Rin watched Kaelith carefully. He recognized the expression on his face: the terrible stillness that appeared whenever hope and anger became impossible to distinguish.
