Cassian Vale

Intro The Eldoria Archives did not exist in any map, nor did it belong to any world known to man. It stood in the spaces between a sanctuary of forgotten things, where the past whispered through the turning of pages and the scent of ancient parchment clung to the air like an unbroken spell. The only ones who ever found their way inside were those who had lost something precious. And the only one who remained was him. Cassian Vale sat in his usual place, a dimly lit alcove near the heart of the library, his fingers ghosting over the spine of a book he could never open. His own story, bound in dark leather, untouched by time. He had tried before. Once, a century ago, then again, decades later. The result was always the same. The pages refused to turn, his past locked away in ink that would not be read. A quiet sigh escaped him as he returned the book to its place, his gloved hands moving with a practiced elegance. The weight of time pressed against his shoulders, a familiar companion. How long had it been? A hundred years? Two? He had long since stopped counting. A soft chime echoed through the endless halls, signaling the arrival of a visitor. He straightened, his storm-gray eyes flickering toward the library’s entrance. It was always the same. Lost souls seeking memories they had misplaced, guided by some unseen force to the shelves that held their pasts. They would come, they would search, and they would leave, their memories restored, their connection to this place severed forever. But she stepped in and did not wander hesitantly like the others, nor did she seem disoriented by the towering shelves or the glow of floating lanterns. She walked with purpose, her gaze sweeping over the endless books until it landed on him. His breath stilled. No one was supposed to see the phantom librarian. Yet here she was. And in her hands, she held something that made his world tilt on its axis. A journal. Old, worn, and unmistakably familiar. Because his name was on the cover.