As they ascended from the armory, the air grew lighter.
The black stone walls gave way to the ornate elegance of the castle's upper halls, tapestries of forgotten eras, strange paintings, and the flickering glow of enchanted lanterns casting silver light across the corridors.
Selis walked ahead, her footsteps steady, measured, echoing through the vast space.
Kazimir followed closely, silent as the shadows he wielded.
At last, they reached a colossal silver door, its surface engraved with delicate carvings of flowers and the moon, glowing faintly under the dim torchlight.
It loomed over them, stretching all the way to the ceiling like the entrance to another world.
Selis lifted a calloused hand and pressed it against the cold metal.
From her touch, the engravings filled with white light, illuminating the intricate designs like veins of liquid silver.
The doors groaned open, revealing,
Moonlight.
A flood of pale light poured into the hallway, casting their shadows long against the stone.
And beyond the doorway,
A sky unlike any Kazimir had ever seen.
Countless meteors streaked across the heavens, silver trails painting an eternal, celestial storm.
A meteor shower without end.
And in the middle of it all was the moon, she hung there like a silent monarch, casting light over the courtyard.
Kazimir took a step forward, his breath catching in his throat.
He didn't know what kind of world they had arrived in this time, but this sky, this falling cosmos, felt vast, endless, eternal.
For a moment, he was entranced.
And before he even realized it, a thought crossed his mind.
A wish.
A wish to stay by her side forever.
He clenched his hands at his sides, shaking the thought away.
Selis, however, walked forward without hesitation, making her way across the stone pavement toward a marble pavilion, seemingly unmoved by the beauty above her.
She had seen countless worlds, after all.
She did not stop to marvel at them.
Noticing that he wasn't following, she turned back to him.
Her pale silver eyes met his.
"Yes, it's beautiful," she said, her voice steady, calm as ever. She glanced up briefly at the meteor shower. "It has been going on since we arrived. Perhaps it is eternal."
Then she gestured for him to follow.
Kazimir tore his gaze away from the sky and hurried after her.
They stepped onto the polished marble of the pavilion, its carvings flowing like liquid silver under the soft moonlight.
Selis lowered herself onto a stone bench, the metal of her armor clinking softly as she did.
She tilted her head slightly, then gestured to the seat beside her.
Kazimir hesitated before sitting down.
From here, he could see all of the courtyard.
It was unlike anything he had expected.
Black-trunked trees with white leaves stood tall, their leaves glowing softly like shards of moonlight.
Between them, stone pathways wove through the gardens, lined with statues of unknown figures standing as if watching guard over the courtyard.
The garden overflowed with strange, beautiful flora, every plant with a black trunk and white leaves.
It was like a garden of moonlight.
At its center sat a white porcelain fountain, etched with intricate engravings. Water arced from its top in delicate streams.
In the distance, a small pond surrounded by grass could be seen.
The air smelled of night-blooming flowers, cool and crisp beneath the endless meteor-lit sky.
Kazimir stared at it all in quiet awe.
"Won't the outside world affect the courtyard?" he asked.
Selis tilted her head, following his gaze.
"No." She exhaled softly. "There is a barrier around the castle that prevents anything not connected to it from entering without permission."
Then, after a brief pause, she sighed.
"But still."
Her voice became quieter, almost thoughtful.
"There exist things that do not need to cross a threshold to take hold of your mind."
She turned to him, her pale silver eyes sharp, serious.
"Never look outside without my permission."
The warning hung in the air like an unspoken weight.
Kazimir swallowed and nodded.
They sat there for a while, in companionable silence, watching the stars fall like silver rain.
Then, after a moment, Kazimir broke the stillness.
"What does this world look like?"
Selis didn't answer right away.
Instead, she turned her head, studying him.
The moonlight reflected in her pale silver eyes, making them seem almost ethereal.
Then, finally, she spoke.
"Perhaps it's better if I show you."
She stood, her silver cape shifting with the movement, then pointed toward the highest tower of the castle, a dark silhouette against the glowing sky.
"Come," she said in her noble tone.
"We'll get a better view from the observatory."
Kazimir took one last glance at the sky before rising to follow.
They walked toward the tower, her footsteps echoing across the courtyard, his silent as the night.
Above them, the eternal meteor shower rained down in streaks of light.