Auren jolted upright, gasping for air. His chest rose and fell rapidly, his eyes wide, darting around the cliffside.
"What… what did he just say?"Who was that man in the mist?"That forest… what was that place?" Updates are released by noᴠelfire
His voice trembled, full of confusion and dread.
"What's my mistake?"What did he an… 'I could've saved them?"
His breathing grew heavier. He looked to his side — Sunny and Rose were still fast asleep, curled up peacefully in the early morning breeze.
Auren slowly stood up, the cold wind brushing against his sweat-covered face. His hands gripped his hair tightly as he tried to make sense of the voice, the forest, and the pain that had crawled into his soul.
"Why does my heart feel hollow…?"Why does it hurt so much?"
He stepped back from the cliff's edge, shaking, the cold air swirling around him like whispers of the dream he couldn't understand.
Fusssshh…The wind howled gently — but in his ears, it sounded like that voice again.
Suddenly… the wind shifted.
The world around Auren began to change.
The calm cliffside faded into mist — thick, ghostly white fog creeping in from every direction. The sa mist from his dream. It swirled around his legs, coiling like snakes through the grass, a stranger waterfall sowhere, and water dripping from tree bark, many stone debris land. Auren was covered by myst like clouds.
His throat clenched.
Auren (trembling): "Wh-Where am I…?"
He looked down — a stream of water gently flowed past his feet. Trees surrounded him, tall and dark, but everything was veiled in smoke. A strange citric wood scent filled the air, burning faintly in his lungs.
Then—A voice.
???: "How much longer will you take, Ash?"
Auren froze. His eyes widened in fear.
Auren (breathless): "Who… who are you?"
From the mist, a figure erged — a man standing silently, his form blurry, unreal. His voice echoed like a ghost, layered and cold.
Man: "You are Ash. Have you forgotten?"How much longer will you wander around, hiding in peace, while others fight… and die?"This is your story, Ash."
Auren's body wouldn't move. His mind tried to reject the words, but his soul… felt them. Deeply.
Man (voice rising): "Shaless. Worthless. You laugh with your friends while the world bleeds. You forget your goal? Or have you simply run from it?"
The mist thickened, wrapping tighter around him.
Auren's legs shook.
"Ash…? I'm… Ash…?"
The man in the mist exhaled slowly.
His voice, calm but cutting, echoed around Auren like falling ash.
Mysterious Man: "I think… You are not Ash."
Auren's eyes widened.
"The Ash I know would never speak like this."The Ash I know is already fulfilled."The Ash I know… always smiles."He's the one who shook the heavens."He is the hope of humanity."
The fog thickened. The scent of citric wood turned bitter.
Man (lowered voice): "He would never beg for power. He never asked if he was special… he simply was."Now I don't know why I thought it was you."
Auren stood frozen, breath shallow, heart breaking.
Man: "The date, the ti… the place — everything matched. The signs of the prophecy were exact."And yet, looking at you… I think it was wrong."
"Maybe Ash Phantom will co… later."
"For now, we… the Dream Settlers… owe you an apology."We disturbed your sleep. We mistook your soul for soone else's."
The voice began to fade. The mist started to retreat, swirling away into the trees like smoke in the wind.
Man (faintly):" Sleep peacefully, Auren Ryuki…You are… not him."
Auren stood there, hollow. The world returned to silence.
Auren stood motionless, staring into the fading mist.
His hands trembled by his sides. His voice didn't co… only a thought.
Auren (inner voice ):"So there's still… no chance for ?"
Tears welled in his eyes, trailing silently down his cheeks.
"No hope…? Not even a spark?"
He looked up toward the thinning fog, toward the vanishing silhouette of the man who had mistaken him for soone greater.
"That old man… the dream… and now this voice…"
"They all thought I was soone else."
"Just a mistake."
The wind moved softly through the trees, brushing his hair like a cruel comfort.
"They thought I was Ash Phantom. But I'm not."I'm just… Auren."
"Auren rembered- when he was tortured by kids of my age … while the people looked away."The sa Auren who cried for help, while even his father turned his back."
His fists clenched. The pain in his chest rose with every breath.
"Even now… I have friends. Strong ones. Talented ones."They might not say it, but deep down… maybe they look down on too."
"I'm the weakest."
"The most useless one."
The tears flowed freely now, dripping onto the moss beneath him.
"I can't even help in the war ahead…"
"What am I worth… if I can't even protect the ones I care about?"
The mist was gone. But the ache it left behind remained like a scar on his soul.
As the man in the mist began to fade into the fog, his voice lingered.
Mysterious Man: "I can see what's going on in your mind… I know your pain, Auren."
But before he could finish—
Auren (anxiously, cutting him off): "Listen! Listen, please!"
He raised both hands, as if trying to grab hold of the mont, stop the judgnt from slipping away.
"What if I am Ash Phantom?"
"Maybe you're the one who's mistaken."
His voice shook, but his eyes burned with sothing more than doubt—sothing new.
"People change. People grow through pain. Maybe the Ash you rember isn't in right now… but he can be."
"I'm going to Hollow Mountain."An old man is waiting there—.I believe I'll learn sothing there. I will."
"What if… I am Ash Phantom? Just not yet?"
The fog stirred gently.
The man in the mist chuckled—low and almost warm.
Mysterious Man: "Ha h… you're still desperate for it."
"But what I said… ca from experience. I've seen him. Felt his presence.
There was a pause.
"But… if you're truly ready to learn—""Then don't take your friends with you."
"Hollow Mountain is not a place for bonds. It's a place for silence."
Auren's chest tightened. He nodded slowly, eyes heavy but determined.
Auren (quietly): "Alright. I'll go alone."
The mist curled one last ti and faded fully, leaving only silence and morning dew.
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