The sky hung heavy with a swirling gray mist as Kael and Saerin approached the jagged silhouette of the Ruins of Eldros. The air was thick with an eerie stillness, broken only by the distant echo of shifting stones and whispers that seemed to come from nowhere.
Kael tightened his grip on the pendant around his neck, feeling the faint hum of its power resonate with the fractured magic of this place. "Remember what the figure said — we need to confront our past here. Whatever that means, we can't let it break us."
Saerin nodded, her eyes scanning the desolate landscape. "Let's stay close. These ruins are said to trap souls in time loops. If we get separated, it could be endless."
As they stepped over cracked stones and through archways twisted by time, the world around them began to shimmer. The ruins pulsed with a strange energy, and shadows shifted unnaturally in the corners of their vision.
Suddenly, a spectral figure materialized before them — an echo of Kael's younger self, eyes wide with fear and uncertainty.
Kael froze. "This is it... my past."
The younger Kael stepped forward, trembling. "You can't do this. You'll fail. You're not strong enough."
A wave of old doubts crashed over Kael, threatening to pull him under. But Saerin's steady voice cut through the fog. "You are not alone. Face him."
Kael squared his shoulders, meeting the gaze of his younger self. "I was scared then. But I've grown. I won't let fear define me anymore."
As the words left his lips, the ruins trembled, and the spectral figure faded. The world around them shifted once again — the first shard of the Pattern glowing faintly at the heart of the ruins.
Saerin moved forward, extending her hand toward the shard. "One down. Many more to go."
Kael smiled faintly. "One step closer to mending this broken realm... and ourselves."