The Wraithling drifted in the void above the ruins of the moon, its hull thrumming with low, harmonic pulses—like a creature breathing in its sleep. The stars watched in silence, casting soft reflections across the glassy deck.
Ethan stood at the edge of the observation bay, the endless night wrapped around him like a cloak. He didn't notice her approach—he felt it, the subtle gravity Aelira now held in his world.
"I thought I'd find you brooding," she said, voice a gentle tease.
"I was," he replied. "Then I saw this place. Couldn't tell if it was beautiful… or broken."
She stepped beside him, her shoulder brushing his, and for a moment neither said anything. The shattered moon below spun slowly, its fragments orbiting each other like forgotten promises.
"We survived the trial," she said quietly. "We became something more. But I still don't know what it means. For us."
Ethan turned to her, searching her face—not the battle-hardened warrior, but the woman behind the steel. The one who'd believed in him when even he hadn't.
"It means," he said, "that I don't have to pretend anymore. I'm not Kaelen. And you… you never needed him."
Aelira's breath caught as his hand slid up her arm, tracing the glowing sigil of the Twinheart Bond just beneath her skin. She reached up, fingers threading through his hair, pulling him closer.
The kiss was not soft. It was fire and gravity, a meeting of storms. Their connection deepened with each heartbeat, the bond between them sparking like starfire.
Then—The System pulsed.
[Emotive Sync: Overclock Threshold Exceeded.][Warning: Core Instability Detected—Heartline Drift Imminent.][New ability acquired: Soulflame Resonance — Dual-casting enabled.]
Ethan pulled back, gasping. Aelira's pupils were dilated, a glow flickering deep in her irises.
"Did we just…" she began.
"Trigger a system anomaly," Ethan muttered. "While kissing."
The Wraithling's lights flickered.
And then, a voice—not quite the System, not quite foreign—whispered directly into Ethan's mind.
"One heart. One flame. But beware… not all reflections are yours to keep."
He froze. Aelira's expression shifted—concern, then fear.
"You heard it too, didn't you?"
He nodded slowly. "The System's… changing. And something else is waking with it."
How's that? Want to push it further—maybe hint at a jealous echo of Kaelen trying to force its way back, or keep it at this level and move into a quiet aftermath next?