The entrance to the forbidden archives groaned as Professor Elain pushed it open. Dust motes danced in the dim light like restless spirits, and ancient scrolls lined the walls, humming faintly with suppressed magic.
Kael and Liora stepped inside slowly, their hands still intertwined. Professor Elain's silver eyes watched them closely, her face unreadable.
"So," she said softly, "you've felt the Aetherbond."
Kael nodded. "What is it?"
Elain turned to the massive crystal globe in the center of the room. "It's rare. Dangerous. Beautiful. Aetherbonds happen when two souls are woven from the same source of magic. You two aren't just linked—you were meant to find each other. But…"
"But?" Liora asked, heart thudding.
Professor Elain placed her palm on the globe. Images flickered inside—two figures standing back-to-back as the world crumbled around them. "Aetherbonds are a double-edged sword. Together, you can awaken ancient magic, shatter spells, even rewrite fate. But if the bond fractures…"
Kael's brow furrowed. "What happens?"
"You'll consume each other. Emotionally. Magically. Completely."
Silence fell over the room like a heavy cloak.
"But the choice isn't made yet," Elain added. "There's still time."
She turned, pulling a scroll wrapped in crimson ribbon from the highest shelf. "This prophecy was sealed nearly three hundred years ago. It speaks of a pair born of dusk and flame. A forbidden connection. A war that will rise if they fall in love."
Kael took a step back. "This prophecy is about us?"
Liora's fingers tightened around his. "We haven't fallen in love…"
Her voice trailed off.
Hadn't they?
Professor Elain placed the scroll on the table between them. "Read it. Then decide: fight it or embrace it. But you can't run from it."
Kael glanced at Liora, eyes conflicted. "Do you believe in fate?"
"I believe we make our own," she said, though her voice trembled.
Outside, the storm that had been brewing all night cracked open the sky. Thunder echoed across the hills of Aetherfall.
Inside the archives, two hearts beat as one—slow, powerful, and destined.
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