Kaelen and the Spore Cleft of Kelboran

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The path disappeared long before it reached the cleft. Moss covered the stones, the ground became soft, the air heavy. And then there was nothing—except fog. Kelboran, the Drowned One, as it was called in the old maps. A place that could not be measured. An abyss filled with spores that touched not only the flesh, but the mind. Kaelen held Varaan by the reins. The dragon slowly raised its head, as if to taste the fog. And then it sat down. Waiting. "I'll go alone," Kaelen said softly. Varaan just blinked. She stepped into the Spore Cleft. The fog wasn't just steam. It was alive. Every molecule of air seemed saturated with memories, not her own—but alien, ancient, forgotten ones. Spores glowed within it like faint fireflies, some fast, others slow, like falling ash. Kaelen pulled the cloth over her mouth and nose, but it was no use. With every breath, her mind filled with images that weren't hers. A boy searching for a melody in a sunken tower. A girl crying a song underwater into the depths. An old man growing from the roots of his own house. A woman imprisoning her own heart in a lantern and hanging it from the sky. Kaelen staggered. The ground beneath her boots pulsed. Not rhythmically—but rememberingly. Every step was an echo, every glance a story. Then she saw him. Not really—more like sensed him: a shadow in the mist that wasn't a shadow. A silhouette with glowing eyes. No threat. Just... presence. "Kelboran?" she whispered. Or had she thought that? The figure nodded—slowly, dignified. Then it raised a finger and touched Kaelen's forehead. And suddenly, all was silent. No strange memories. No voices. Only one clarity: What you seek is not behind you. But without what lies behind you, you will not know it. Kaelen felt her own memories again. Her childhood. Her first journey. The look with which she had met Varaan. And a future that rose within her like a path of light. The fog began to recede. Slowly, hesitantly. Kaelen stepped back, step by step, until the chasm was behind her. The spores slid off her like dust in the wind. Varaan still waited. He had not moved. "I know now what the next step is," Kaelen said. The dragon rose. And as she mounted, she looked back once more. The Spore Chasm was impenetrable again. But something inside her knew: The chasm had not merely penetrated her. It had given her something back.