Across Eternities

Etria's grove was a haven, bursting with green, golden light seeping through the canopy in scattered dapples. She stood in the heart of her land, where Aluren had first stepped through, her hands clasped before her as she debated the wisdom of their meeting. But there was no mistaking it—she wanted him there, even if her mind whispered that she should not.

A sudden ripple of golden light announced his arrival. Aluren stepped into the clearing as though he belonged there, confident and unyielding. His presence was less like an intruder and more like a force of nature asserting itself.

"You waited for me," he said, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. He had not doubted she would.

Etria straightened, tilting her chin as she regarded him. "Your kind does not listen to warnings, do you?"

"I heard them loud and clear. I simply choose not to care," he replied, stepping closer with the practiced ease of a man who knew he was welcome even when uninvited. "And neither do you, or I wouldn't be here."

She let out a quiet sigh, but her lips curved upward despite herself. "You're insufferable."

"Determined," he corrected. His golden eyes shone like sunlight on the water, steady and unwavering as they found hers. "I know what I want, and I'm not afraid to burn for it."

Etria flushed at his words, turning away to hide the reaction he no doubt noticed anyway. She gestured toward the grove. "This is not just for you to trample, Aluren. The balance must be respected."

He followed her gaze toward the grove, his light blending with her verdant green. "And yet the grove thrives like never before. Balance isn't something that comes naturally—it must be created. That's why we need each other, Etria."

His words made her pause. Was he right? The grove had indeed become more vibrant since his presence had interwoven with hers. The golden flower that stood as a testament to their first meeting gleamed in the center of it all, vibrant and untamed.

But before she could respond, the air grew oppressive, as though the grove itself held its breath. The ground trembled beneath them.

"What is this?" Etria asked, panic threading her voice.

"Cosmos interference," Aluren muttered, his demeanor turning sharp, his senses keen. "A message—or a warning. They won't make this easy for us."

Then, without warning, a blast of celestial fire struck the edge of the grove. The ground erupted in chaos as flames licked their way toward her sanctuary. Etria immediately fell to her knees, hands pressed against the soil as she tried to call on her power to contain it.

But this fire was not natural. It was destruction forged by the will of the Cosmos itself, intent on swallowing all it touched. Her power could slow it but not extinguish it.

Aluren acted without hesitation. Light erupted from his body, an arc of brilliance that rushed across the grove. It smothered the fire in a sweeping wave but left a trail of blackened earth in its wake. Trees turned to ash; grasses shriveled beneath the brilliance.

Etria gasped, her connection to the land screaming in pain. "What have you done?"

"I stopped it!" Aluren's voice was as unshakable as his presence. "They wanted to destroy this place, and I stopped them!"

"At what cost?" Etria's voice trembled, her hands touching the scorched ground. "This land—it breathes, it lives, Aluren. Your light has smothered it!"

His confidence wavered, replaced by confusion and the first sting of regret. "You wanted me to stand by? Watch it burn to nothing? I did what needed to be done!"

"Your power destroys where it should heal," she said, her voice soft yet cutting.

"And yours refuses to acknowledge what can't survive!" Aluren snapped, stepping closer. His aura flared, frustration boiling beneath the surface. "You can't shelter everything, Etria! Sometimes you must let the old die to make way for the new."

"You don't understand this place. It is my realm. My responsibility," she countered, her gaze searing.

"And what about you?" he said, his tone lowering into something more intense. "Do you ever wonder why I came here, why I keep coming back? Your forest may grow, but you… you keep hiding. What's so terrible about letting someone share the burden?"

His words stunned her, the truth in them cutting to a place she had carefully ignored. But she couldn't let him see her falter. Not now.

Etria rose, shaking her head as she turned from him. "Leave. Before you destroy something else."

For the first time, Aluren's pride cracked. The intensity drained from him, though his golden light remained steady. "Is that truly what you want?" he asked, his voice softer now.

"I don't know what I want," she admitted, her back to him. "But I know what this forest needs, and it's not more destruction."

He hesitated only a moment longer before retreating. When he disappeared into the ether, the grove felt emptier than it had before.

Etria sank to her knees, her hands trembling over the charred ground. She touched the glowing pendant at her neck, the faint warmth a stubborn reminder of the man she had just pushed away. No matter how hard she tried, her heart whispered the truth she couldn't deny: Aluren wasn't her enemy.

But perhaps he would be her undoing.