The night after the temple trial was unusually quiet. No laughter. No sparring. Only silence, and the distant hum of wind against the academy's stone walls.
Inside their shared training hall, the six sat in a circle, the glowing jade map they unlocked floating before them.
"We passed something… but I don't think it's over," Lara murmured, her voice unusually soft.
Kevin poked at the map's shimmer. "This thing gives me goosebumps. I'm not joking—what if it explodes? Or summons a ghost grandpa?"
Mira half-laughed, still shaken. "I think we're already haunted... by our own memories."
Then it happened.
Nisa's jade pulsed.
So did Bihoo's.
A strand of light shot out from each and connected mid-air. The whole room stilled.
"What the—?" Teaha stood instinctively.
The glow swirled, revealing a flash of a shared past—
A battlefield.
Two figures—Nisa and Bihoo—back-to-back. Fighting together in another time. Another world.
And then… a scream.
Someone separating them.
A seal.
A broken oath.
And the vision shattered.
Everyone gasped. Nisa fell forward, breathing hard. Bihoo caught her without thinking.
"You okay?" he whispered, voice lower than usual.
"I… I saw it," she said, eyes wide. "Us."
Lara looked serious. "There's something—or someone—who sealed our memories. Split us apart. On purpose."
Kevin stepped forward. "Then why are we together now?"
Teaha crossed his arms. "Because whatever is coming… it needs all of us."
Suddenly, the map shifted again—new markings appeared.
A location glowed red:
The Forgotten Fields.
A message appeared beneath in old script:
> "Only those whose bonds are true can enter. One must break. One must bleed. One must choose."
The room froze.
"One must break?" Mira echoed.
"Break what?" Kevin frowned. "A bone? A heart? My patience?"
Bihoo was dead serious now. "Whatever it is… we're being tested again."
Outside, in the trees, an unknown figure watched them from the shadows, a glowing scar over his left eye.
"They're awakening," he whispered. "Soon… she'll remember everything."
To be continued…