The halls of the Castle stretched endlessly before them, silent and vast.
Kazimir followed closely behind Selis, still struggling to grasp the castle's layout. No matter how many corridors he walked, the paths always seemed to shift, as if the castle itself were a living thing, rearranging its halls to suit its own will.
Yet Selis walked with purpose, unwavering, as if she had memorized its every turn.
They moved past towering archways, beneath chandeliers that burned with cold silver flames, and through corridors lined with paintings, some depicting moons he did not recognize, others lands that he could not even begin to describe.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity of walking, they stopped.
Before them stood a grand door, carved with intricate depictions of stars and constellations, their patterns etched into the silver surface.
Selis stepped forward, placing a calloused hand against the cold metal.
At her touch, light erupted from the engravings, white light filling the celestial carvings like flowing moonlight.
The door groaned as it unlocked and slowly swung open, revealing a spiralling stone staircase.
The air beyond was cool and quiet, untouched by time.
Selis stepped forward without hesitation, her boots echoing loudly against the stone as she began to ascend.
Kazimir followed, his footsteps soundless.
They climbed for what felt like forever, winding higher and higher, until at last, they reached the top.
At the top of the stairs was a dark, circular chamber, its walls concealed by heavy, flowing curtains.
Selis walked forward, gripping the thick fabric, and with one swift motion, she pulled the curtains wide open.
Moonlight poured in, flooding the chamber in silver radiance.
Kazimir's breath caught in his throat.
Through the massive glassless windows, he saw the castle.
For the first time, he saw all of it, stretching beneath them in its full, opulent grandeur.
Silver towers spiralled toward the heavens. Massive stained-glass windows shimmered across the fortress, depicting stories of forgotten worlds, glowing as if lit from within.
Gargoyle-like statues stood watch atop parapets, their hollow eyes glowing faintly, as if aware.
Beyond the castle walls, the land dissolved into infinity.
A vast black ocean stretched endlessly in all directions, its surface like polished glass, reflecting the meteor storm above.
A sea of stars.
The reflection was only broken by reefs of crystalline rock, glowing in shifting hues of blue, violet, and silver.
Between them, fish of impossible shapes and colors swam, their scales shimmering like fallen stardust, leaving behind trails of light.
It was as if the universe itself had been inverted, the sky and ocean indistinguishable, creating an infinite loop of celestial wonder.
Kazimir stood frozen, his mind struggling to process the sheer madness and beauty of it all.
This was not a world meant for humans.
This was something beyond logic.
He tore his gaze away from the endless ocean to glance at Selis.
She stood at the edge of the observatory, her silver eyes reflecting the cosmos, her expression unreadable.
After a long moment, he finally spoke.
"Have you ever seen anything like this?"
For a while, she said nothing, simply watching the waves of black starlit water shifting below.
Then, at last, she answered.
"Yes."
Her voice was quieter than usual.
"At first, I was amazed by worlds like this, endless, abstract, beautiful."
She exhaled, a slow, measured sigh.
"But after a while, you grow tired of it."
Kazimir glanced at her, surprised by the hint of regret in her tone.
"You miss civilization. The warmth of a city. The noise of markets. The scent of fresh food. The sound of music."
Her hand clenched slightly at her side.
"These places... They are not made for us."
"We are strangers to them. Just passing ghosts in worlds that do not belong to us."
A long silence stretched between them, filled only by the distant sound of the ocean's slow, rhythmic pulse against the distant reefs.
For the first time, Kazimir saw something in Selis beyond her stoic, unshakable presence.
A quiet, deep loneliness.
Then, softly, she spoke again.
"Thank you."
Kazimir blinked, startled.
"For what?"
She turned to face him fully, and for the first time since he had met her, her expression was not just unreadable, but vulnerable.
Her gaze met his, steady and unwavering.
"For choosing to live."
Kazimir felt something shift inside him at her words.
He had spent so long surviving, without ever thinking about why.
Now, standing beneath an eternal meteor rain, surrounded by a castle that wandered between worlds, he realized,
For the first time in his life,
He was no longer alone.
And perhaps,
Neither was she.