Part 3: The City Beyond Time
The grass beyond the lake shimmered, like strands of starlight weaved into soil.
Kael and Lireen stepped onto the plain, their boots sinking slightly into the soft earth. For the first time in hours, no shadows chased them. The sky above remained fractured golden cracks still glimmered across clouds but here, there was peace. Almost too much peace.
At the center of the meadow, the gates of Salvaria stood.
They weren't grand or towering like the gates of Arcanhelm. These were humble stone arches carved with vines, runes, and seven feather symbols glowing faintly. The wind sang through the open arch, like a distant hymn with no source.
Lireen stepped closer. "I read about Salvaria once. A city that vanished when the world changed. They said it only appears when the balance of fate tips."
Kael traced a rune on the stone. "Then fate must be breaking."
The gates opened without a sound.
---
Salvaria was quiet.
Buildings of crystalline stone lined curved roads. No two structures were alike, yet they flowed together like music round towers with glass domes, bridges that floated, trees that glowed gently without flame. There were no birds. No insects. Just a soft, eternal twilight.
"Where is everyone?" Kael whispered.
Lireen pointed.
A figure waited at the end of the path.
He was tall, slender, with silver wings folded behind his back. His eyes shone like molten pearl, and his robes were woven with threads of light. He held a staff crowned with three feathers each black, white, and gold.
"I am the Warden of Wings," he said without moving his lips. His voice rang inside their minds. "And you have arrived at the edge of the world."
Kael hesitated. "We're looking for answers."
"And they are looking for you."
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They followed the Warden through the silent city. He spoke without sound, showing them murals along the walls of temples. Ancient stories were etched in gold and violet:
A crown forged from sorrow
A city swallowed by time
A child born from two worlds, neither accepted
And a gate that would open when three feathers were gathered…
Kael froze.
One of the murals depicted a man standing alone, facing a sea of shadows.
The man wore his face.
Lireen turned pale. "That can't be you."
Kael stepped closer.
The mural was thousands of years old.
"I think I've been here before," he whispered.
The Warden nodded. "You were always meant to return."
---
They reached the heart of Salvaria: a round chamber built into the city's central tower. A single altar stood at its center, marked with three crowns, seven feathers, and a name.
Kael Althir.
His name.
Written in ancient script.
"I don't understand," Kael said.
The Warden answered, "The Architect did not create the crown. You did. Or you will. Time folds here. Past and future blur."
Lireen staggered back. "You're saying Kael is the origin of all this?"
The Warden raised his staff. "No. I am saying he is the mirror. He reflects what the world fears and hopes."
The ground trembled.
Dust fell from the crystal ceiling.
"Something's coming," Lireen said.
"No," Kael replied. "Something is waking up."
---
Suddenly, a shriek pierced the air not from outside, but beneath them. The ground beneath the altar glowed. The air grew heavy.
Kael felt it. The crown pulsed in his pack.
"Get back!"
Lireen moved, but too slowly.
The altar cracked.
A black mist erupted, forming a swirling shape half-bird, half-shadow, with no face, only the glimmer of red eyes.
The Warden stepped forward. "The Sleeper has stirred."
"What is it?!" Kael shouted.
The Warden looked at him calmly. "The first soul who wore your face. The first to defy fate. And now, it remembers."
The black mist lunged.
Kael raised his hand not to fight, but to feel.
The mist paused.
It whispered.
"You are not him. But you could be."
Then it vanished.
---
Silence returned.
The altar was cracked. The name still glowed faintly.
Kael sat on the edge of the chamber, shaken.
Lireen came beside him. "Are you okay?"
He didn't answer. Instead, he stared at the cracked altar.
"I think I broke something I don't even understand."
Lireen took his hand. "Then let's understand it together."
Above them, the golden sky dimmed.
Salvaria was no longer still.
It had begun to breathe.
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📣 Chapter 15 – Part 4 Teaser:
Lireen begins to act strangely dreams, memories, voices that aren't hers
Kael finds a secret archive that might contain the truth about the Architect's origin
Someone has followed them into Salvaria… wearing a familiar red mask
And a message awaits Kael, left by a future version of himself
📢 Don't forget to vote ♥, comment 💬, and follow for more mysteries because Salvaria is just beginning to wake up. 🌌🕊️
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📌 Highlight Chapter 15 – Part 3: The City Beyond Time
Kael and Lireen finally enter Salvaria, a forgotten city that only appears when fate begins to fracture
They meet the Warden of Wings, a silent guardian who speaks directly into their minds
Inside ancient temples, they find murals one of which shows Kael's face, painted centuries before his birth
At the city's heart lies an altar marked with Kael's name: Kael Althir
A black mist awakens from below, calling itself the first soul to challenge fate
Salvaria begins to breathe its long sleep is over, and the truth is no longer hiding
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