> "Every fallen voice leaves an echo,
whispering secrets through time's shadowed halls.
To listen is to remember — and to remember is to resist."
---
Ashmarch — After the Whispering Shadows
The dawn broke over a war-weary Ashmarch. The soft pink light filtered through the remnants of smoke, casting long shadows over the scarred earth.
The battle had been won, but the cost weighed heavily on the survivors. Bodies lay scattered, faces pale and eyes closed, their voices stolen in the silence of death.
Aralyndra walked through the camp, her boots crunching over broken arrows and shattered shields. Her gaze lingered on the fallen soldiers — each one a story cut short, a vow left unfulfilled.
Beside her, Karna moved with measured steps, his expression grave.
> "They didn't just take their lives," he said quietly. "They took their stories."
Saelira stood apart, her Fragment cradled close to her chest. Her eyes shimmered with tears she refused to shed.
---
The Ritual of Remembrance
As the survivors gathered around a great fire, Aralyndra raised her voice, strong and clear.
> "We must remember."
> "Not just the names, but the truths they carried."
The vow-bearers began the Ritual of Remembrance — a sacred song passed down through generations.
Voices intertwined, weaving a tapestry of memory that stretched beyond the living.
Saelira closed her eyes, letting the melody wash over her. The Fragment pulsed in time with the song, its glow steady and warm.
> "This is how we keep them alive," she whispered. "Through memory."
---
The Whisper of the Bound King
Far beyond Ashmarch, in the prison beyond the Ninth Heaven, the Bound King stirred once more.
Chains of screams rattled as the ancient deity flexed his ethereal limbs.
> "They remember," he murmured.
> "The world remembers."
His voice was like thunder rolling over distant mountains.
> "And the time of chains is ending."
---
Secrets in the Shadows
Back in the camp, Thorne approached Aralyndra with a grim expression.
> "There's something you need to see."
He led her to the edge of the camp, where a hidden cave yawned like a wound in the earth.
Inside, ancient runes glowed faintly, pulsing with an eerie light.
> "These runes," Thorne explained, "are older than the gods themselves. They tell of a forgotten war—one that explains why the Usurper fears us."
Aralyndra traced the carvings, feeling a surge of power.
> "This is our history," she said. "Our truth."
---
The Rise of a New Hope
The survivors set to work, rebuilding what had been broken.
Runes were reforged, vows renewed.
New alliances formed as old grudges faded in the face of a greater threat.
Saelira stood at the forefront, her Fragment shining like a beacon.
> "We are the echoes of the fallen," she declared.
> "And our voices will not be silenced."
---
The Usurper's Fury
In the void beyond realms, the Usurper's rage burned hotter than ever.
> "They remember," he hissed. "They remember too much."
He summoned dark storms, twisting shadows that writhed like living things.
> "If they will not forget," he vowed, "then I will drown them in chaos."
---
The Dawn of the Next Battle
As the sun rose, the camp prepared for what lay ahead.
Aralyndra looked to her companions — Karna, Saelira, Thorne — their faces set with determination.
> "The war is far from over," she said.
> "But as long as we remember, we have a chance."
Karna lifted Truthbreak, its flame flickering fiercely.
> "For the fallen," he said.
> "For the future."