The Silence She Left Behind

"Some losses don’t hit like a storm. They settle in like an echo, repeating long after the moment has passed."

Viraj had always believed that time was something he could control. He had bent it, broken it, and even rewritten it when necessary.

But now, as he stood in the ruined graveyard of discarded realities, he had never felt more powerless.

The golden rupture in the sky had vanished. The last trace of Aditi had disappeared with it.

And for the first time, Viraj realized what true silence felt like.

Aditi was gone.

Lucius stood a few feet away, unmoving, staring at the empty space where she had been just moments ago. His fingers twitched slightly, like he wanted to say something but didn’t know what. Then, finally, he let out a slow, shaky breath.

“Did that... actually just happen?” His voice was barely above a whisper.

Viraj didn’t answer.

Because saying it aloud would make it real.

And he wasn’t ready for that.

His mind kept replaying the moment in excruciating detail—the way Aditi had looked at him, the quiet acceptance in her eyes, the way she had whispered that he had to let her go.

The way she had stepped into the light and disappeared.

Viraj clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles turned white.

Lucius exhaled harshly and rubbed his temples. “I don’t want to sound heartless, but—what the hell are we supposed to do now?”

Silence stretched between them.

The answer should have been simple. Nothing. There was nothing left to do.

Aditi had been an anomaly in time. A paradox. The universe had been trying to erase her from the beginning, and now it had succeeded.

That should have been the end of it.

So why did it feel so... wrong?

His alternate self finally spoke.

“She’s not lost.”

Viraj turned sharply. “What did you just say?”

The other Viraj met his gaze steadily. “She’s not lost,” he repeated. “Not in the way you think.”

Viraj’s heart pounded. “She was taken by the Timeborne.”

“And?” His alternate self raised an eyebrow. “You think that means she’s gone forever?”

Viraj’s breath hitched. He hadn’t even considered the possibility. Could she still be out there?

Lucius groaned. “Oh, no. No, no, no. I know that look.” He pointed at Viraj accusingly. “That’s the ‘I’m about to do something really, really stupid’ look.”

Viraj ignored him. His mind was racing now. If Aditi was still out there, if there was even the slightest chance she could be saved—then he wasn’t done yet.

The Timeborne thought it had won.

It was wrong.

He turned fully towArd his alternate self. “Tell me everything you know.”

A small smirk played on the other Viraj’s lips. “Now you’re thinking like me.”

Viraj took a slow, steady breath.

The battle wasn’t over.

Aditi was still out there.

And he was going to bring her back.

"The story isn’t over just because the page has turned. Some endings are just disguised beginnings."

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