The stars weren't supposed to fall. But that night, they did.
The boy stood on the ridge overlooking Ashmoor Crater, where the land sank like a forgotten bowl and the sky seemed to tremble. Dark pines whispered in the wind, warning him to turn back. But the orb—now glowing with two pulses—pulled him forward.
Ava's map had shown this place, etched between myth and memory. It was once a mountain, long ago, until something fell from the heavens and hollowed it out with a scream that no one remembered hearing—but everyone feared.
He descended slowly, boots crunching over frost-laced moss. The silence here was ancient. He could feel it press against his ribs.
At the crater's center, a ring of stones circled a blackened pit. Not smoke. Not fire. Just darkness—pure, unmoving, and deep enough to drink stars.
Someone sat at the edge of the pit.
They wore a cloak that shimmered like oil in moonlight, head bowed, fingers tracing runes into the dirt with a charred stick. Without looking up, they spoke:
"You brought the orb. And her echo. I felt it wake me."
The boy approached cautiously. "You're one of them, aren't you? One of the four."
A soft laugh. "I was the second. Before we chose to forget. Before you asked us to."
The words struck like thunder. "I asked you to forget?"
The figure lifted their head.
Their eyes mirrored the sky above—swirling, distant, infi
nite. "You held the memory too long. It nearly broke you. So you gave us the choice. And we gave it away."
The pit pulsed once. A deep hum rose through the ground.
The second stood, rising like smoke, and reached into their cloak. From it, they drew a shard—glass, maybe, or crystal—and pressed it to the orb. A third light sparked within it, soft and violet.
"You must find the third before the storm does. She walks where mirrors lie."
The wind shifted. The stars overhead snapped into silence.
The boy looked up—every light in the sky had gone out.
Next stop: a realm of mirrors, reflections, and hidden truths. Want to dive straight into Chapter 5, or shall we take a detour to explore why he chose to make everyone forget? This is your world too now—let's shape it together ✨🪞