The grove was still, quiet in the golden wash of late afternoon light. Leaves rustled softly overhead, and a warm breeze stirred the edges of Ezra's coat.
Beside him, Adam stood unmoving, watching the sky with a knowing glint in his eye. Then came the faintest shift in the air, like a ripple passing through water, or the pause between heartbeats.
Adam held out a hand, palm open. Ezra hesitated a moment, then placed his hand in Adam's. The moment their fingers touched, the world around them twisted.
Colors bent. Sound ceased.
And time… stopped.
Ezra blinked in shock as the world fell away, replaced by a space of impossibility.
The air shimmered like liquid glass, warping and shifting in subtle undulations. The ground beneath them was not solid, nor sky above. Everything was a plane of endless shimmer, like standing inside a memory. There was no wind, no light source, but visibility remained perfect.
