Chapter 75 – The First Forgotten Memory
The white field trembled.
The flowers that had been swaying peacefully only moments ago slowly lowered their petals. The warm breeze disappeared, replaced by a cold wind that carried a strange feeling of emptiness.
Evetyl looked toward the dark horizon.
Something was coming.
She couldn't see it clearly yet, but every instinct told her not to look away.
The child beside her tightened its grip on her hand.
"It found us..."
Its voice shook.
For the first time since they had met...
The child was afraid.
---
Far beyond the endless flowers, a black silhouette slowly appeared.
It didn't walk.
It simply drifted closer.
Every step it took caused the white flowers beneath it to lose their color.
Within seconds, they turned gray.
Then they crumbled into dust.
Evetyl frowned.
"What is it?"
The child answered quietly.
"A forgotten memory."
"You said memories couldn't hurt people."
"They normally can't."
The child looked down.
"But this one forgot what it was."
---
The silhouette continued approaching.
As it came closer, Evetyl finally saw its shape.
It looked almost human.
Almost.
Its body was made of dark mist, constantly shifting as if it couldn't decide what it wanted to become.
Its face had no eyes.
No nose.
No mouth.
Only a smooth surface covered in cracks of faint silver light.
It stopped several meters away.
Neither side moved.
Then...
A quiet voice echoed from inside the creature.
"...Do you..."
"...remember me?"
Evetyl blinked.
It wasn't threatening.
It sounded...
Lost.
---
The child stepped in front of Evetyl.
"You shouldn't be here."
The creature tilted its head.
"I've..."
"...been looking..."
"...for home."
Its voice broke apart with every sentence.
Like someone trying to speak through a forgotten dream.
"There..."
"...isn't one anymore."
The child replied gently.
"There can be."
The creature slowly shook its head.
"No."
"They..."
"...forgot."
---
Outside the Memory Field...
The ground beneath Crosshaven shook again.
The crack running through the plaza expanded another few meters.
More golden light escaped from below.
People across the city had stopped running.
Instead...
They stared into the sky.
Memories continued falling like rain.
Some people suddenly laughed as they remembered childhood friends they hadn't thought about in decades.
Others cried after remembering family members whose faces had faded with time.
An old traveler dropped to his knees.
"I remember..."
He whispered.
"My sister..."
"I finally remember her voice..."
The entire city had become a place where forgotten memories returned.
---
Kai never looked away from Evetyl.
Her body remained perfectly still.
The mysterious traveler stood beside him.
"She's close."
Kai frowned.
"Close to what?"
"The truth."
"I wish people would stop saying that."
The traveler smiled.
"I know."
Kai sighed.
"No, seriously."
"Every ancient being we've met talks in riddles."
The First Anomaly laughed.
"He's right."
The Curator nodded.
"...We do."
Cr-Hook crossed his arms.
"I blame old age."
Even the Eye seemed to pause for a second.
---
Inside the Memory Field...
The creature slowly lifted one trembling hand.
"I..."
"...don't remember..."
"...my name."
The child looked saddened.
"I know."
"I remember..."
"...having one."
"It must have been beautiful."
The creature's body flickered.
"I just..."
"...can't find it anymore."
Evetyl took one careful step forward.
The child immediately grabbed her sleeve.
"Wait."
"It could be dangerous."
Evetyl looked at the creature again.
It wasn't attacking.
It wasn't angry.
It was crying.
Small drops of silver light fell from its face onto the flowers below.
Where they landed...
Tiny white flowers bloomed again.
Evetyl's eyes widened.
"It isn't destroying them."
The child nodded.
"No."
"It's mourning."
---
Evetyl slowly walked closer.
The creature remained motionless.
Kai's voice echoed faintly from the distant doorway.
"Evetyl!"
She glanced toward the light.
Then back at the creature.
She couldn't leave it like this.
"Hello."
The creature slowly turned toward her.
"...Hello."
"My name is Evetyl."
The creature became quiet.
After several moments...
It whispered,
"...That's..."
"...a beautiful name."
Evetyl smiled softly.
"Thank you."
"Can you tell me yours?"
The creature lowered its head.
"I've tried."
"I've searched."
"For so long."
"But every time I almost remember..."
"...it disappears."
Evetyl felt her heart ache.
Forgetting your own name...
What could be lonelier than that?
---
The child stepped beside her.
"It was once a person."
Evetyl looked surprised.
"A real person?"
The child nodded.
"A long time ago."
"When an entire world disappeared..."
"The memories left behind slowly gathered together."
"They became this."
The creature quietly listened.
It didn't deny it.
"I remember..."
"...holding someone's hand."
"...I remember laughing."
"...I remember looking at the stars."
Its voice became softer.
"But..."
"...I don't remember who I was."
---
Outside...
The First Thought suddenly gasped.
Its ancient book flew open by itself.
Page after page turned without stopping.
New words appeared faster than it could read them.
The Eye floated closer.
"What happened?"
The First Thought answered immediately.
"The records are restoring themselves."
"What?"
"Forgotten people..."
"Forgotten places..."
"They're returning to history."
The Curator's expression darkened.
"That's impossible."
The First Thought looked at him.
"It should be."
"But it's happening."
---
Back inside the Memory Field...
Evetyl slowly reached out her hand.
The child looked nervous.
"Evetyl..."
"It's alright."
She smiled gently.
"I don't think it wants to hurt anyone."
The creature stared at her hand.
It hesitated.
As if afraid to touch it.
Finally...
Its fingers met hers.
The moment they touched...
A brilliant flash of light covered the field.
Evetyl suddenly saw dozens of memories.
A boy running through green fields.
A young woman reading beneath a tree.
A family eating dinner together.
Friends watching a sunset.
Ordinary moments.
Simple moments.
Happy moments.
Then...
Darkness.
The memories shattered one by one.
The world disappeared.
The people faded.
The boy screamed for someone.
The woman reached for a child she could no longer see.
Everything became white.
Everything...
Except one voice.
"Please..."
"Don't forget us..."
The vision ended.
Evetyl fell to one knee, breathing heavily.
Tears rolled down her face before she even realized she was crying.
The creature quietly asked,
"...Did..."
"...you see them?"
Evetyl nodded.
"I did."
"They were your world."
The creature looked toward the empty sky.
"...Yes."
"It was beautiful."
A gentle smile appeared on its cracked face.
The first real smile it had shown.
"Thank you..."
"...for remembering."
At that exact moment...
The flowers surrounding them suddenly glowed with golden light.
The child's eyes widened.
"It worked."
Evetyl looked up.
"What worked?"
The child smiled through tears.
"When someone truly remembers..."
"...a forgotten memory is no longer forgotten."
The dark mist surrounding the creature slowly faded.
For the first time...
A real face appeared.
It belonged to an ordinary young man.
He smiled peacefully.
"Now..."
"...I can finally rest."
His body dissolved into countless glowing lights.
Instead of disappearing...
They flew upward.
Joining the branches of the great Memory Tree.
A brand-new golden leaf bloomed.
The child looked at it with quiet happiness.
"He's home."
Evetyl smiled.
Then...
The smile disappeared.
Far beyond the horizon...
Another shadow appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
The child slowly turned pale.
"There are..."
"...so many."
The peaceful silence of the Memory Field vanished as countless forgotten memories began walking toward the great tree.
And among them...
One enormous shadow stood taller than all the others.
Unlike the first memory...
This one still remembered something.
It slowly raised its head.
And in a deep, echoing voice, it spoke Evetyl's name.
"Evetyl Clarke."
The child grabbed Evetyl's arm.
Its voice was barely a whisper.
"...Run."
To Be Continued...