The journey through Foldspace was long and strangely quiet. Elyra spent most of it replaying Kael's message in her mind, his words echoing like a melody she didn't want to forget. Outside, streaks of light danced as The Seraphine's Echo raced toward the coordinates the newborn star had transmitted—a sector long forgotten by star maps.
When the ship finally emerged, they were greeted not by stars, but by darkness. A planet hung before them, shrouded in a pale blue mist. Its surface looked like glass, frozen mid-motion—as if time itself had been sealed.
Elyra leaned closer to the viewport. "That's Mirath, isn't it? The world that stopped spinning during the Old Collapse."
The Marauder's voice was low. "Yes. Legends said the planet's heart froze because something powerful slumbered beneath it. I believe that something is one of the fragments."
Elyra's sensors pinged faintly. "I'm reading no atmosphere movement, no thermal signatures—nothing. It's like the entire planet is paused."
"Not paused," the Marauder corrected. "Trapped."
Elyra's eyes hardened. "Then let's break the lock."
They descended through the icy fog, The Seraphine's Echo humming softly as its shield glowed against the cold. The moment they breached the atmosphere, the sound vanished. The engines, the hum of the ship, even Elyra's breathing—all silence.
She tried to speak, but her words made no sound. The Marauder's form rippled beside her, communicating through thought.
"Be careful. The fragment is altering reality itself. It thrives in stillness—in halted time."
Elyra nodded, activating her suit. The airlock opened, revealing a landscape that looked carved from crystal. Frozen waves, motionless winds, and entire cities locked mid-fall stretched beneath a motionless sky.
They moved through the ruins, their footsteps leaving faint trails of energy on the frozen ground. Eventually, they reached what looked like a temple—its spire piercing the still clouds.
Elyra approached the entrance, brushing ice off an inscription written in the old celestial language. "Here sleeps the Keeper of Moments," she read. "Disturb not the pulse of eternity."
The Marauder's eyes glowed faintly. "This is where the fragment resides. It's not just sleeping—it's controlling the flow of time across this sector. That's why the planet is frozen."
Elyra frowned. "Then how do we wake it without destroying everything?"
"We don't wake it," the Marauder said. "We trap it again—this time under our terms."
Before Elyra could respond, the temple doors split open with a silent flash. Inside, a soft golden light pulsed—slowly, steadily, like a heartbeat trapped in ice.
Elyra stepped forward, her voice barely a whisper in her mind. "Kael… if you can hear me, guide me now."
As she crossed the threshold, time itself rippled. The frozen city began to tremble. From within the temple, a figure began to form—its eyes glowing with both light and shadow.
The Marauder tensed. "Elyra… it's awake.