Chapter 135: Erased Past

Every Lock opened.

Dillan stared at the darkness beyond them.

The paper in his hand trembled.

I REMEMBER NOW.

AND I REMEMBER WHO ERASED ME.

Sasha moved closer.

"Where is Elara?"

Dillan looked at the empty space.

"I don’t know."

Mara suddenly turned toward the ceiling.

"She isn’t gone."

Dillan looked at her.

"How do you know?"

"Because the Locks opened."

Aurelia frowned.

"What does that mean?"

Mara pointed toward the First Lock.

"Elara didn’t escape the memory."

She swallowed.

"She entered it."

The chamber trembled.

Then the First Lock began displaying images.

A little girl.

An oak tree.

A young Dillan.

And another figure standing behind them.

Someone wearing a white mask.

Dillan’s eyes narrowed.

"Who is that?"

Celia stepped backward.

"No."

The masked figure raised one hand.

The image distorted.

A voice emerged.

"You were never supposed to remember her."

Dillan stepped toward the Lock.

"Show me your face."

The figure remained still.

"Why?"

"Because you erased Elara."

The figure laughed.

"I didn’t erase Elara."

The image shifted.

Elara was standing beneath the oak tree.

Crying.

The masked figure stood in front of her.

"You have two choices."

Elara shook her head.

"No."

"Remember him and destroy him."

Elara froze.

"Or forget him and preserve him."

Dillan’s expression hardened.

"That wasn’t a choice."

The masked figure tilted its head.

"It was the only one she could survive."

Elara screamed.

"I don’t want either!"

The image froze.

Then another memory appeared.

Young Dillan running toward the oak tree.

"Elara!"

She wasn’t there.

He searched everywhere.

He couldn’t find her.

Then the masked figure appeared behind him.

"You wanted to save her."

Young Dillan turned.

"Where is she?"

"She chose to leave."

Dillan’s younger face collapsed.

"That’s a lie."

The masked figure said nothing.

Young Dillan clenched his fists.

"I’ll find her."

The figure smiled.

"No."

The memory shattered.

Dillan staggered.

"That was you."

The System appeared.

[MEMORY SOURCE IDENTIFIED.]

[MASKED ENTITY: UNKNOWN.]

[INTERFERENCE WITH ELARA: CONFIRMED.]

[INTERFERENCE WITH DILLAN: CONFIRMED.]

Dillan stared at the notification.

"Who are you?"

The masked figure finally turned toward the memory.

Toward him.

And slowly removed the mask.

Dillan’s breath stopped.

The face beneath it was familiar.

Not because he had seen it recently.

Because he had seen it every time he looked into a mirror.

It was Dillan.

But older.

Colder.

Completely emotionless.

Sasha whispered:

"No..."

The older Dillan smiled.

"I told you."

The Lock shattered.

The voice echoed through the chamber.

"You were the one who erased Elara."

Dillan froze.

The older version continued:

"And you did it because you believed forgetting her was the only way to save everyone else."

Dillan’s hands began shaking.

Mara stared at the broken Lock.

"That isn’t possible."

The Retained Self whispered:

"It is."

Everyone turned toward her.

She looked at Dillan.

"He wasn’t lying."

Dillan’s voice cracked.

"You knew?"

"I remembered."

"How?"

The girl pointed toward the darkness.

"Because I was created from the memory of what he did."

Dillan looked toward the broken Lock.

The older version of himself appeared one final time.

His eyes were empty.

His voice was calm.

"You wanted a world where nobody would ever leave."

A pause.

"So you erased the person who proved that leaving was possible."

The image vanished.

Dillan stood frozen.

Sasha slowly approached him.

"Dillan..."

He didn’t respond.

She touched his hand.

He looked at her.

His eyes were filled with something she had never seen before.

Not fear.

Not anger.

Regret.

Then the System appeared.

[MAJOR MEMORY RESTORATION AVAILABLE.]

[SUBJECT: ELARA.]

[EVENT: ORIGINAL ERASURE.]

[RESPONSIBLE PARTY: DILLAN RUREN.]

[MOTIVE: CLASSIFIED.]

The final line appeared.

[WARNING: RESTORING THIS MEMORY MAY REVEAL WHY DILLAN CHOSE TO ERASE HER.]

Dillan stared at it.

Then he whispered:

"Open it."

The System responded.

[CONFIRMATION REQUIRED.]

Dillan closed his eyes.

"Open it."

Every Lock slammed shut.

And Elara’s voice whispered from behind him:

"Are you sure you want to remember what you did to me?"

Dillan stood completely still.

Elara’s voice came from behind him.

"Are you sure you want to remember what you did to me?"

He turned.

She was standing beneath the oak tree.

No wounds.

No black mark.

No distortion.

Just Elara.

Her silver hair moved gently in the wind.

Dillan stared at her.

"Yes."

Elara studied his face.

"You don’t know what you’re asking for."

"I know."

"You might hate yourself afterward."

"I know."

"You might hate me."

Dillan shook his head.

"I won’t."

"You don’t know that."

"No."

He took a breath.

"But I want the truth anyway."

Elara closed her eyes.

"Then remember."

The world disappeared.

A younger Dillan stood inside a white room.

Elara was sitting across from him.

Celia stood behind them.

Sasha was nowhere.

Neither were the others.

Only the three of them existed.

Dillan looked terrified.

"What happens if I remember?"

Elara answered:

"You’ll remember everything."

"Everything about you?"

"Everything."

Dillan looked at Celia.

"And them?"

Celia nodded.

"Everyone."

Dillan’s hands trembled.

"What did I do?"

Elara leaned forward.

"You asked me to erase myself."

Dillan’s eyes widened.

"No."

"Yes."

"You asked me to forget you."

"No."

She shook her head.

"You asked me to erase you from yourself."

Dillan stared.

Elara continued.

"You were trying to destroy the system."

The memory shifted.

Dillan stood before a massive structure of white light.

The System was collapsing.

The Locks were breaking.

Sasha was trapped inside the Preservation Core.

Aurelia was disappearing.

Alina was fading.

The others were being pulled into different memories.

Dillan screamed:

"Stop!"

The System responded.

[SYSTEM FAILURE.]

[ANCHOR NETWORK COLLAPSING.]

[HOST MEMORY INTEGRITY: 8%.]

Dillan looked at Elara.

"There’s no way to save them."

Elara shook her head.

"There is."

"How?"

"Someone has to become the missing memory."

Dillan stared.

"What does that mean?"

Elara stepped toward him.

"If everyone remembers me..."

She touched his chest.

"...the System will use me as the final Anchor."

Dillan froze.

"You’ll die."

"Yes."

"No."

"You can’t stop it."

"I’ll find another way."

"There isn’t one."

Dillan shook his head.

"There has to be."

Elara smiled sadly.

"There wasn’t."

The memory shifted again.

Dillan was crying.

Elara was standing before the First Lock.

She held out her hand.

"Erase me."

Dillan stared at her.

"I can’t."

"You can."

"I won’t."

"You promised me something."

Dillan’s expression broke.

"What?"

"That you would let me choose."

Elara smiled.

"So let me."

Dillan’s hands trembled.

"You’ll disappear."

"Yes."

"I’ll forget you."

"Yes."

"I’ll hate myself."

"Probably."

"I’ll try to bring you back."

"I know."

"Then why?"

Elara stepped closer.

"Because if you don’t..."

She looked toward the collapsing System.

"...everyone else disappears with me."

Dillan closed his eyes.

The choice was unbearable.

Then he whispered:

"I’m sorry."

Elara smiled.

"I know."

Dillan raised his hand.

The System appeared.

[ERASURE PROTOCOL AVAILABLE.]

[TARGET: ELARA.]

[EFFECT: REMOVE EXISTENCE FROM HOST MEMORY.]

[SECONDARY EFFECT: TARGET BECOMES UNRECOGNIZABLE TO ALL ANCHORS.]

[CONFIRM?]

Dillan couldn’t speak.

Elara took his hand.

"I choose this."

Dillan looked at her.

"You’re sure?"

"Yes."

The System waited.

Dillan whispered:

"Confirm."

White light consumed Elara.

Her body began disappearing.

But before the final fragment vanished, she whispered:

"Don’t remember me because you feel guilty."

Dillan’s tears fell.

"Then why should I remember you?"

Elara smiled.

"Remember me because I chose you once."

Then she disappeared.

Dillan returned beneath the oak tree.

He dropped to his knees.

Sasha immediately rushed toward him.

"Dillan!"

He didn’t respond.

Elara stood several steps away.

He looked at her.

"You chose it."

She nodded.

"I did."

"I erased you."

"Yes."

"But you asked me to."

"Yes."

Dillan lowered his head.

"I still feel like I killed you."

Elara walked toward him.

"You didn’t."

"You disappeared."

"I left."

"You were erased."

"I chose to be."

Dillan looked up.

"Why did I forget the choice?"

Elara’s expression softened.

"Because that was part of the deal."

"What deal?"

"You weren’t allowed to remember me until you could accept that I had chosen to leave."

The System appeared.

[ELARA MEMORY RESTORATION: COMPLETE.]

[ORIGINAL ERASURE: VOLUNTARY.]

[DILLAN RUREN: COMPLIANT.]

[MOTIVE: PRESERVE REMAINING ANCHORS.]

Dillan stared at the final line.

Then another appeared.

[CONTRACT CONDITION: FULFILLED.]

Dillan frowned.

"What contract?"

Elara looked toward the sky.

"The one you made before the System."

Dillan’s blood ran cold.

"What did I promise?"

Elara smiled.

"You promised that if someone chose to leave..."

She stepped closer.

"...you would never rewrite their choice."

Dillan looked at Sasha.

Then Aurelia.

Alina.

Dana.

Lyra.

Evelyn.

The Retained Self.

Everyone he had tried to protect.

Everyone he had tried to preserve.

Everything suddenly made sense.

The Locks.

The System.

The Anchors.

The First Choice.

They weren’t created because Dillan wanted to control people.

They were created because he had once made the opposite promise.

Never rewrite another person’s choice.

And then he had spent years forgetting how difficult that promise was to keep.

Elara reached toward him.

Dillan took her hand.

For the first time, he didn’t try to keep her.

He simply held it.

Then Elara whispered:

"There is one final part you haven’t remembered."

Dillan looked at her.

"What?"

Her eyes shifted toward Sasha.

"The reason Sasha was chosen as your Second Anchor."

Sasha froze.

The System appeared.

[NEXT MEMORY: UNLOCKED.]

[SUBJECT: SASHA RUREN.]

[EVENT: SECOND ANCHOR SELECTION.]

[WARNING: SASHA DID NOT VOLUNTEER.]

Sasha’s face went pale.

Then the System displayed the final line.

[SASHA WAS SELECTED BY SOMEONE ELSE.]