Chapter 3: Secrets of the Past
The silence was unbearable.
I stared at the dead control panel, the stars outside no longer streaking by but standing still—unmoving, as if time itself had frozen around us. Sorin slammed his fist against the controls in frustration, his jaw clenched tightly as he tried to reboot the engines. But it was no use. The ship remained suspended in the empty void, powerless.
And Kaira was coming.
I could feel the cold dread settling over me like a heavy cloak, each passing second tightening the knot of fear in my chest. My hands trembled as I gripped the edge of my seat, my mind racing through everything Sorin had just revealed to me. My past, our love, the life I had forgotten. It all seemed too much, too big to comprehend in the face of this new danger.
Sorin’s voice broke through my thoughts, low and urgent. “We don’t have much time.”
I stood up, my legs shaky beneath me. “What are we supposed to do? We can’t just sit here and wait for her to find us.”
Sorin ran a hand through his hair, his face etched with worry. “There’s one thing we can try,” he said after a pause, his voice heavy with reluctance.
“What is it?” I asked, my heart pounding.
He hesitated, then turned to face me fully, his eyes dark and serious. “The artifact,” he said. “The one that brought you here. It’s in the ship’s cargo hold.”
I blinked in surprise. “The artifact? You mean… the one that caused all of this?”
He nodded, a grim expression on his face. “It’s dangerous, Elara. But if we can activate it… it might be our only chance to get away before Kaira catches us.”
My stomach twisted at the thought. The artifact. The object that had erased my memories, that had pulled me out of my life and sent me spiraling across time and space. Could we really use it again? And even if we did… where would it take us?
“I don’t know,” I said softly, my voice trembling. “What if it makes things worse?”
Sorin stepped closer, his presence warm and grounding despite the chaos swirling around us. His eyes, filled with that same quiet intensity, locked onto mine. “I won’t let anything happen to you,” he said, his voice steady. “We’re in this together, Elara. Whatever happens, we face it together.”
His words settled over me like a warm blanket, calming the storm inside me. There was something about the way he spoke, the way he looked at me, that made me believe him—made me trust him, despite everything.
I took a deep breath, steeling myself. “Okay,” I said finally. “Let’s do it.”
Sorin nodded and led me down a narrow hallway toward the cargo hold. My footsteps echoed against the metal floor, each step carrying the weight of uncertainty. The ship creaked softly around us, its silence eerily loud in the vast emptiness of space.
When we reached the cargo hold, Sorin stopped in front of a large, locked storage container. He hesitated for just a moment before placing his hand on the biometric scanner. The lock clicked open, and the door slid aside to reveal a small, glowing object nestled inside.
It was a delicate, ornate piece of craftsmanship—an intricate sphere, its surface etched with swirling patterns and glowing faintly with an otherworldly light. I felt a strange pull toward it, a faint echo in the back of my mind, as if some part of me remembered its power.
Sorin picked it up carefully, cradling it in his hands like it was something fragile. “This is what connected us,” he said quietly. “The key to our past—and maybe our future.”
I stared at the glowing artifact, my heart pounding in my chest. “And we’re going to use it again?”
Sorin nodded, but there was a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. “It’s risky, but I don’t see another way. If we can activate it before Kaira gets here, we might be able to escape. But the thing about time travel is… it’s unpredictable.”
I swallowed hard, my hands trembling as I reached out to touch the artifact. The moment my fingers brushed against it, a surge of energy shot through me—intense, electric. Images flashed through my mind—fragments of memories I couldn’t grasp. A kiss under a moonlit sky. Laughter. Heartache. And always, Sorin’s face, watching me with that same haunted look.
I gasped, pulling my hand back. Sorin caught my wrist gently, his touch grounding me. “It’s okay,” he murmured, his voice soft. “It’s just the artifact’s way of reaching out to you.”
I nodded, though my heart was still racing. “What now?” I asked, trying to steady my breathing.
Sorin looked down at the glowing sphere, then back at me. “Now, we have to activate it together. You and me.”
I stepped closer to him, feeling the warmth of his body beside mine. His eyes met mine, and for a moment, everything else faded away—the danger, the uncertainty, the fear. It was just the two of us, standing in the quiet space between moments, connected by something deeper than time itself.
He held out the artifact between us, and I placed my hands on top of his, the soft glow illuminating our faces. The energy hummed between our palms, growing stronger, pulsing like a heartbeat.
As the light grew brighter, Sorin leaned in, his breath warm against my cheek. “No matter what happens,” he whispered, “I’ll find you. I’ll always find you.”
My chest tightened at his words, and before I could stop myself, I closed the distance between us. Our lips met again, the kiss soft but charged with emotion—like we were clinging to each other, holding on to the only thing that felt real in a world full of uncertainty.
The artifact pulsed between us, its light flaring as the energy built. The kiss deepened, and I felt a rush of warmth flood through me, like a forgotten memory surfacing, a connection that transcended time itself.
But just as the warmth reached its peak, the artifact jerked violently in our hands. The light flashed, blinding us, and I felt a sudden, disorienting pull—like the world was spinning out of control, like we were being ripped away from the present.
And then, everything went dark.
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was Sorin’s face—pale, tense, his eyes wide with shock. We were no longer in the ship. The cargo hold, the cold metal walls, the distant stars—they were all gone.
Instead, we stood in a wide, open courtyard bathed in soft moonlight. The air was cool, scented with the faint perfume of night-blooming flowers. I could hear the distant murmur of voices, laughter, and the soft clinking of glasses. Around us, tall stone pillars rose into the sky, their surfaces covered in strange, ancient symbols.
“Where… where are we?” I whispered, my voice trembling.
Sorin looked around, his face pale. “This can’t be right,” he muttered. “This isn’t where I intended for us to go.”
Before I could ask what he meant, a figure stepped out of the shadows—a tall, slender man with sharp, angular features and eyes that gleamed with a dangerous light.
“Welcome back,” the man said, his voice smooth as silk. “I’ve been waiting for you.”
My heart lurched in my chest. Sorin’s entire body tensed beside me, his hand instinctively reaching for mine.
“Who are you?” I demanded, my voice shaky.
The man smiled, but there was no warmth in it. “Oh, Elara,” he said softly, his gaze flicking to Sorin with a knowing gleam. “I think the better question is… who am I to him?”
Sorin’s grip tightened on my hand, and I could feel the tension radiating off him in waves. “Talon,” he said, his voice low and filled with warning.
The man—Talon—laughed softly, the sound sending chills down my spine. “You can run across time all you like, Sorin,” he said, his voice dripping with malice. “But you know as well as I do… you can’t escape the past.”
Sorin’s jaw clenched, but he didn’t respond.
I looked between them, my mind spinning. “What is this?” I whispered. “What’s going on?”
Talon’s smile widened, his eyes glittering with amusement. “Oh, Elara. You’re about to find out.”
***
Before I could even process his words, the ground beneath us trembled. A strange, shimmering light filled the air, and I felt a sudden, violent pull—like the world was being ripped apart at the seams.