Five years have passed since the Day of the Great Remembrance, and the world is no longer the same.
Alyana stood on the edge of the rooftop of the Seventh Resonance Tower, the tallest structure in New Idoleth. Her dark red hair was now longer, braided with fine threads of blue crystal that glowed faintly in the darkness. She wore a long gray gown adorned with symbols of ancient memory, and around her neck, hanging from a silver chain, was the Cairn Crystal, pulsing with light like a small star.
"Keeper of Memory." Thorin's voice came from behind her, stronger than it had been five years ago. He had lost his artificial eye and replaced it with a real one, one of the gifts of the Great Remembrance.
Alyana turned to face him, a faint smile on her lips. "I still don't like that title."
"But it's yours," Thorin said, stepping beside her to gaze at the majestic view of the seven interconnected cities, linked by bridges of light. "You were the one who took on the responsibility of interpreting the will of Cairn the Shadow. You are the world's connection to him."
Alyana sighed. Thorin's words were true. Over the past five years, she had become the mediator between people's restored memories and the new system of remembrance. The crystal Cairn had left her was more than just a keepsake; it was a tool, a channel for communicating with his consciousness, now woven into the fabric of reality itself.
"The ship has arrived from the Fifth City of Dreams," Thorin informed her, gesturing toward the massive vessel suspended in the space between the cities, gliding slowly along currents of golden light. "They're bringing five members of the former Oblivion Council."
"Are they ready for the final trial?" Alyana asked.
"Not a trial, a confrontation," Thorin corrected her. "As Cairn intended. A confrontation with the memories of those they erased."
This was the method Cairn the Shadow had chosen to deal with the leaders of the Oblivion System—not through revenge or traditional punishment, but by forcing them to face the memories they had erased, to witness the damage they had caused, and to work toward its restoration.
"I'll be there," Alyana said. "After my visit to the central library."
"Is there progress in the research?" Thorin asked.
Alyana was silent for a moment, her eyes gazing toward the point where the seven cities converged, the center of the vast network of light connecting them—the void where the eighth city was supposed to appear, according to the prophecies of the ancient remembrance texts.
"Yes and no," she finally replied. "We've found more texts, but the references are vague. They speak of 'the lock and its key,' of 'the missing link in the chain of memory.'"
She touched the crystal on her chest. "Sometimes, when I'm alone and the crystal glows brightly, I hear his voice... Cairn's voice. Speaking of 'the final city' and 'the complete truth.'"
"Don't you think it's time to share these visions with the council?" Thorin asked with concern.
Alyana shook her head. "They're not clear visions, just fragments, echoes. The council is still divided on many issues. Adding more uncertainty won't help."
The council she referred to was the Unified Memory Council, formed after the fall of the Oblivion Keepers. It included representatives from the seven cities and external communities to manage the world's transition into the new era of remembrance.
"Let me show you something," Thorin said suddenly, pulling a small piece of black Oblivion glass from his pocket. "I found it in the ruins of the old Oblivion Temple."
Alyana took the piece, and suddenly she felt a tingling in her fingers. The crystal on her chest began to glow more brightly.
"It's reacting to Cairn's crystal," she noted with surprise.
In that moment, a mysterious image appeared within the piece of glass: a massive structure, towers reaching toward the sky, an architectural design she had never seen before. There were inscriptions... ancient symbols resembling those found in the First Memory Library.
"What is this place?" she whispered.
"I don't know," Thorin admitted. "But it only appears when touched by someone connected to Cairn's crystal."
She handed the piece back to him, her decision made. "We need to go to the library now. There's something we need to find."
The First Memory Library was no longer just a hall atop an ancient tower; it had expanded to encompass the entire tower, with multiple rooms spiraling upward around the central column. The library was now teeming with researchers from all the cities, studying ancient texts and recovering forgotten knowledge.
Alyana and Thorin arrived at the restricted section, reserved for the most obscure and ancient texts. Serena was there, bent over an old manuscript, her white hair gleaming under the blue light of the lamps.
"You've come at the right time," Serena said without looking up. "We've found something."
Alyana approached and leaned down to see the manuscript. It was written in a strange language, with intertwined symbols and intricate lines.
"This isn't a human language," Alyana observed.
"No, it's the language of the Eternal Shadow itself," Serena confirmed. "The oldest known language. Our team has only been able to translate parts of it."
"And what does it say?"
Serena pointed to a row of glowing symbols. "It speaks of 'the great cycle,' of how the current world was created, and the worlds that came before it."
"Previous worlds?" Thorin repeated in astonishment.
"Yes," Serena confirmed. "According to this text, the world we live in is the seventh in a series of worlds, each formed after the collapse of the one before."
"And what does this have to do with the missing eighth city?" Alyana asked.
"Everything." Serena leaned closer, lowering her voice. "Because the eighth city isn't just a city—it's a gateway to the next cycle."
She picked up another manuscript and opened it to an illustration: a circle of seven cities surrounding a central void, above which hung a mysterious shape, like a key.
"The Eternal Shadow wasn't just a keeper of memory but of this cycle of existence itself. Its merging with Cairn was part of... a larger plan."
Alyana felt a shiver run through her. "What exactly do you mean?"
"It seems the Shadow was waiting... for something. A specific event. And when the Keepers of Oblivion stole Cairn's invention and turned it into the Oblivion System, it was a deviation from the intended path."
Serena pointed to another section of the manuscript. "But what Cairn the Shadow did after the merging wasn't just a correction of the path—it was the beginning of an entirely new phase. A great transformation."
"From the seven cities to... the eighth?" Alyana wondered aloud.
"Perhaps. But we still don't understand what the eighth city truly is, or where it's located."
Thorin, who had been listening intently, presented the piece of Oblivion glass. "This might help."
Serena took it cautiously, studying it with her expert eye. "Where did you find this?"
"At the site of the old Oblivion Temple. It revealed an image when Alyana touched it."
"I can try to activate it again," Alyana offered, but Serena shook her head.
"Not here. We need somewhere more... stable. The Hall of Remembrance."
The Memorization Hall was a vast, circular space located directly beneath the library, encircling the central column that represented the heart of the memory system. The floor was adorned with intricate engravings forming a map of the seven cities, while the walls were inlaid with panels of blue crystal, reflecting light in a hypnotically shifting pattern.
Here, the Unified Memory Council held its monthly meetings, and here, too, the ceremonial confrontations of the former Keepers took place.
At the center of the hall, in front of the crystal column, Serena placed the Fragment of Forgetfulness. Aliana and Thorin stood around her, watching intently.
"Hold the crystal and place your other hand on the fragment," Serena instructed.
Aliana did as she was told and closed her eyes. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, the crystal began to glow with increasing intensity, and the fragment responded, radiating a deep crimson light.
Aliana felt a wave of dizziness and a flood of images surged into her mind:
A vast plain under an alien sky… towering crystalline spires… a massive hall filled with complex devices…
Then, Cairn's face appeared, but it was different—calmer, wiser—as he spoke directly to her:
"Aliana… I knew you would find the way. The eighth city is not a place, but a moment. A moment of completion, when the circle returns to its point of origin."
"The key has always been with you. The crystal I left for you is not merely a means of communication but a part of the key to the next cycle."
"You need the seven to complete the eighth. Seven Keepers, seven crystals, seven cities."
"Time is running out. The cycle is nearing its end. You must find the others before the Great Eclipse…"
Aliana's eyes flew open as she gasped. "I saw him! Cairn… he spoke to me!"
"What did he say?" Serena asked eagerly.
"He spoke of… seven Keepers, seven crystals. He said the crystal he gave me is one of them, and that we need all seven to complete the eighth city."
"And what is the eighth city?" Thorin asked.
"He said it's not a place… but a moment. A moment of completion."
Serena approached one of the crystal panels on the wall and touched it gently. "The Cycle of Remembrance… the ancient texts speak of it. We always thought it was just a metaphor, but what if it's real?"
"Where do we find the other Keepers?" Thorin asked.
"I think they're in the other cities," Aliana said, her mind racing. "Just as Cairn appointed me Keeper of Eidolith, perhaps he appointed others to the six remaining cities."
"That makes sense," Serena agreed. "But the Great Eclipse… according to astronomical calculations, it will occur in only one month."
"One month to gather seven Keepers from seven cities?" Thorin muttered. "That's going to be a challenge."
"But it's our mission," Aliana said firmly, her gaze fixed on the crystal, which now glowed in a way she had never seen before. "Cairn trusted us to finish what he started."
At that moment, the space around them trembled—not a violent shake, but a gentle pulse, as if the world itself was breathing. The beams of light connecting the seven cities began to glow in a new, harmonious rhythm, as though responding to Aliana's resolve.
"It seems Cairn the Shadow approves of your plan," Serena said with a smile.
Aliana looked out through the massive crystal window at the sky, where strange clouds began to form in a circular pattern, as if signaling her.
"So, this is how the journey to the eighth city begins," she said with determination. "Let's gather the Keepers before the eclipse."
As she prepared for the new mission, she had no idea of the challenges that awaited her, nor the depth of the conspiracy Cairn the Shadow had orchestrated over centuries. The full truth was far greater than any human mind could comprehend… unless that mind was ready to transform.