Theme: "If you kill your emotions to control time… you'll control nothing."
---
Spiral Zone — Layer Unknown
This Spiral layer was… silent.
But not in the way silence feels heavy.
This was clean. Almost pure.
There were no memory echoes.
No cracks. No distortion.
Just one long, endless marble path.
At the end: a white light, humming softly.
> Tomo (narrowing his eyes):
"Brooo… Spiral ne kabhi itna shant welcome nahi diya…"
"Either it's a trap… or something big is waiting."
Aren didn't respond.
His footsteps grew slower.
He could feel something calling him — not in sound… but in memory.
His name, being whispered from the future.
---
The Light Opens — The Temple of Still Time
The path ended in a wide-open hall.
Pristine white, infinite ceiling.
No sky. No sound.
A giant circular gate stood at the center — glowing with Spiral runes.
And in front of it stood… him.
Same hair. Same eyes. Same presence.
Except this version had a golden line running across his left hand — glowing with immense stability.
He was dressed in pure black and white robes — sharp, tailored, divine.
> Tomo (stunned):
"Ye… tum hi ho?"
> Aren (low):
"No...
This is who I became…
when I let go of everything but time."
---
Future Aren — The "Perfect" Timekeeper
> Future Aren:
"Welcome to the Temple of Still Time."
"You've come seeking the Mark..."
"But I've already earned it."
His voice wasn't aggressive.
It was… empty.
Like a script recited too many times.
> Tomo (softly):
"Uski aankhon mein kuch bhi nahi hai, brooo…"
"Zinda hai... par jaise andar se mar chuka ho."
Current Aren looked up — studying his future self.
So composed. So… powerful.
But…
> Aren:
"You look complete."
"But you feel erased."
---
The Philosophy Clash
Future Aren walked forward — graceful, emotionless — and stood beside a glass wall.
Behind it: moving images.
Tomo's broken shell.
Eira screaming in silence.
Aika standing alone.
A mother's fading smile.
All blurred and twisted… like old footage degrading.
> Future Aren:
"Time… is not meant to feel."
"It exists to be structured. Controlled. Obeyed."
"I saw what emotions did — regret, guilt, love… they fracture timelines."
> "So I erased them."
Current Aren clenched his fists.
> Aren:
"You erased who we are… for what?"
"To become Spiral's favorite?"
> Future Aren:
"To become Spiral's only equal."
---
The Painful Truth
Future Aren stepped closer.
> Future Aren:
"You're weak because you still care."
"You want to protect people?"
"Then break yourself first."
> "Because you can't guard time…
if you're busy feeling it."
A moment of silence.
> Aren (quietly):
"I'm not here to guard time."
> "I'm here to understand why it hurts."
---
The Emotional Clash Begins
Suddenly —
The white temple shakes slightly.
A low rumble rises from below. Spiral's pulse.
> Tomo (nervously):
"Spiral's listening. Broo, this is real."
Future Aren raised a hand, and the rumble vanished instantly.
> Future Aren:
"You will not survive with that heart."
"You'll fracture. You'll fall."
> Aren (steady):
"Maybe."
"But I'd rather break with feeling…
than survive without a soul."
He turned his back to leave.
---
A Tiny Flicker of Doubt
Future Aren didn't stop him.
But for a split second…
His perfect expression cracked.
A flicker in the eye.
A flash in the fingers.
As if somewhere deep inside — a version of him remembered regret.
> Future Aren (almost inaudible):
"…I used to say the same thing."
---
The Whisper Returns
As Aren stepped out into the hallway again,
Spiral's voice crept through the walls.
> Spiral (taunting, low):
"You saw what victory looks like…"
"Still want to lose?"
> Aren (calm, firm):
"I don't want to win Spiral…"
"I want to remember why I started fighting."
---
Final Scene: The First Crack in the Mark
Suddenly, Aren's left hand glowed.
A soft symbol of time — incomplete, unstable, but alive — pulsed across his palm.
Tomo gasped.
> Tomo (awed):
"Broooo… that's it."
"You've taken the real first step."
"Not by removing your emotions…
but by choosing them."
Aren looked down at the mark.
It wasn't perfect.
It wasn't polished.
But it was his.
---
Chapter Ends With:
> Aren (thinking):
"Power can control Spiral…"
"But only emotion… can rewrite it."
---
Chapter 5 Done,