Chapter 2: Into Another Time
When I opened my eyes, everything felt different—thicker somehow, like the air had a weight to it. My skin tingled, as if I had been plucked from my world and thrust into another. I blinked, trying to focus, and that’s when I saw him.
Kian.
He stood a few feet away, his posture tense, his eyes locked on mine as though he were seeing a ghost. The Kian I remembered had been calm, composed—always distant, like there was a wall between us that I could never quite scale. But this version of him, the one standing in front of me now, looked almost… vulnerable. His dark eyes were searching mine, confusion and something else flickering in them—something deeper.
“Kian?” I managed to choke out, my voice shaky. “Is it really you?”
He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he took a slow, careful step toward me, his gaze never leaving mine. My heart pounded in my chest, the air around us humming with tension. I wanted to move, to close the distance between us, but my feet felt glued to the ground, as if the shock of seeing him had paralyzed me.
“How…?” His voice was low, hoarse, like he hadn’t spoken in a long time. “How are you here, Lyra?”
I shook my head, unable to answer. I didn’t know how I was here—I didn’t even know where here was. All I knew was that Kian was standing in front of me, looking at me like he had never expected to see me again.
He took another step closer, his face softening just a little. “I thought I’d lost you,” he murmured, his voice almost a whisper.
His words sent a shiver through me. Lost me? What did he mean? We hadn’t seen each other in years, not since the Mars mission. And yet, there was something in his voice, something raw, that made my heart ache. As if time had passed for him differently—more painfully.
“I don’t understand,” I said, finally finding my voice. “Where are we? How did I—”
“Shh,” Kian interrupted, his hand reaching out to touch my arm. The warmth of his fingers against my skin sent a wave of electricity through me, and for a brief moment, the rest of the world fell away. It was just him and me, standing in this strange place, connected by a bond that time hadn’t erased. His thumb brushed lightly against my wrist, and my breath caught in my throat.
“Kian,” I whispered, my voice trembling. “What’s happening?”
He looked at me for a long moment, his hand still resting on my arm. The air between us felt thick with unsaid things—words we had never spoken, feelings we had never admitted. His eyes searched mine, and for a brief, dizzying moment, I thought he might lean in, close the distance between us in a way we never had.
But then, just as suddenly as the moment had come, it was broken.
A loud crack echoed through the air, like a bolt of thunder, and the ground beneath us trembled. Kian’s hand dropped from my arm, and his expression darkened.
“We don’t have much time,” he said, his voice urgent now. “I’ll explain everything, but we have to get out of here first.”
“Get out of where?” I asked, glancing around for the first time since I had arrived. The landscape around us was strange—vast, empty, with jagged mountains in the distance and a sky that flickered between deep purple and black, like a painting constantly being erased and redrawn. The air was thick with an unfamiliar scent, and the ground beneath us felt oddly soft, like it wasn’t fully solid.
“We’re not in your time anymore,” Kian said, his eyes scanning the horizon. “This place—it’s a rift between worlds. Between times. And it’s not safe.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could say anything, another crack split the air, louder this time. The ground shook violently beneath us, and Kian grabbed my hand, pulling me toward him.
“We have to go, now,” he said, his grip on my hand firm. “Come on.”
Without another word, he led me away from the strange, crumbling landscape, his hand never letting go of mine. I followed him without question, my mind too overwhelmed to process everything that was happening. The world around us seemed to pulse and shimmer, like it was barely holding itself together, and I could feel the ground shifting beneath my feet with every step we took.
As we ran, Kian kept glancing back at me, as if making sure I was still there. There was something fierce in his expression, something protective, and despite the chaos around us, I felt a strange sense of safety. As long as I was with him, everything would be okay.
But that feeling didn’t last.
***
We reached a clearing, and Kian abruptly stopped, pulling me close to him. His arms wrapped around me, shielding me from something I couldn’t see. I wanted to ask what was happening, but my words caught in my throat. I could feel his heartbeat against my chest, fast and uneven, as though he was scared—not just for himself, but for me.
“Kian,” I whispered, my voice barely audible. “What is this place?”
He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he tightened his hold on me, his breath warm against my ear. For a moment, we stood like that, the chaos around us fading into the background as I focused on the steady rise and fall of his chest. It felt so familiar, so right, being in his arms again, even though we had never been this close before. There was a tension between us, the kind of tension that comes from years of unspoken feelings, and in that moment, it felt like the world had stopped.
“We’re in a place between times,” Kian finally said, his voice soft but laced with urgency. “It’s where I’ve been trapped, and now you’re here too.”
I pulled back just enough to look up at him, my brow furrowing. “Trapped? But why—”
Before I could finish my question, a dark shadow flickered across the clearing, and Kian’s entire body tensed. His grip on me tightened, and I felt him shift, positioning himself between me and whatever was out there.
“We need to move,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “Now.”
The fear in his eyes sent a chill down my spine. I didn’t argue. Without hesitation, Kian pulled me deeper into the clearing, moving quickly, his hand never leaving mine.
But just as we were about to reach the edge of the strange forest, a figure appeared—a shadowy silhouette, tall and imposing. My breath caught in my throat as I recognized the presence immediately. It was the same figure I had seen in the hazy, half-formed memories that came to me in dreams—an unknown rival, someone who had always lingered at the edge of my consciousness.
“Lyra,” the figure called out, its voice echoing unnaturally in the still air. “You shouldn’t be here.”
Kian’s grip on my hand tightened, and I could feel the tension radiating from him.
The shadowy figure took a step closer, its presence looming over us like a storm cloud. “You can’t run forever, Kian,” it said, its voice cold and menacing. “You know what happens if you try.”
Kian said nothing, but I could feel his pulse racing through his fingertips.
The shadow took another step forward, and the air around us seemed to grow colder. My heart pounded in my chest as I glanced up at Kian, searching his face for answers. But before I could ask, the ground beneath us shifted again, and the world seemed to tilt.
The shadow stretched toward us, its form swirling like smoke.
“Kian!” I shouted, panic rising in my throat. “What’s happening?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he pulled me close, his hand gripping the back of my neck as he pressed his forehead to mine. “I won’t let anything happen to you, Lyra,” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion.
And then everything went black.
***
When I opened my eyes again, the shadow was gone—but so was Kian. I was standing alone in an unfamiliar place, the landscape vast and desolate. And in the distance, I saw the flicker of something—someone—watching me.