The voice echoed softly, almost like an interrogation.98Please respect copyright.PENANAReAFPf3ZGy
98Please respect copyright.PENANABFC9K3CWHH
"But then why… do I still feel like two people trapped in the same body?"98Please respect copyright.PENANABGX2XlHOYd
98Please respect copyright.PENANAf4lYLDOjNV
A heavy silence followed, stretched and suspended between timelines.98Please respect copyright.PENANAp3l321k7pT
Zhang Huan-An—no, perhaps it was Yu Yong-An—stood before the mirror, unable to tell who had spoken.98Please respect copyright.PENANAaTOAIqk4r2
Was it himself? A residue?98Please respect copyright.PENANAttT6uPqY2X
Or a ghost never chosen?98Please respect copyright.PENANAurjlmmzDnm
98Please respect copyright.PENANAyoa6cUxbvO
"I remember your memories," he whispered, fingertips grazing the cold mirror.98Please respect copyright.PENANAgC0TsibSef
"But they… don't belong to me. Not entirely."98Please respect copyright.PENANABGt8KVsrfg
98Please respect copyright.PENANAFrxwOrQTy9
From deep within, a voice emerged—not in words, but like a pulse echoing through his veins.98Please respect copyright.PENANAwxWS5JWXvK
98Please respect copyright.PENANAJeoP7xj0nV
"Then tell me—whose life did you live during those 281 days?"98Please respect copyright.PENANAFojr0XUc4v
98Please respect copyright.PENANAN13sstCOlJ
He gave no answer.98Please respect copyright.PENANAvU9ws6CJ8W
98Please respect copyright.PENANAzGnfUWyXhV
The reflection stared back at him—almost identical, yet not quite.98Please respect copyright.PENANAmKgpL24i4u
The posture was his, the scars too.98Please respect copyright.PENANArnGuOwpnu3
But the eyes… they carried a weight he had never known.98Please respect copyright.PENANAzJXTPdbNNO
As if from a season of dreams, shattered and reassembled deep within time.98Please respect copyright.PENANAL7ot529kwV
98Please respect copyright.PENANAiIiHpoyOT8
"Do you remember the rooftop? That rain?"98Please respect copyright.PENANAtpqduJFteC
The voice pressed closer.98Please respect copyright.PENANAnQ7ikhNnaP
"That was my fear. My ending. And now, it's become yours."98Please respect copyright.PENANAivHm8VjWG6
98Please respect copyright.PENANAPbVCqK3z81
He turned away.98Please respect copyright.PENANAVr5kmFMUtc
Behind him, the room lay dim and still, the air thick with undisturbed dust.98Please respect copyright.PENANAflOCy1Pd3x
Since his awakening, nothing here had changed—yet the world was no longer the same.98Please respect copyright.PENANARZIxRxVg5b
98Please respect copyright.PENANADP7ZYFb9xy
"They say fusion brings peace," he murmured.98Please respect copyright.PENANAZEClg0Nlfl
"But this feels more like exile. I can't go back… and I can't move forward."98Please respect copyright.PENANAfHUljKl65E
98Please respect copyright.PENANA7i4oxVmfV3
"Then—choose."98Please respect copyright.PENANAiVrlN4OjNo
98Please respect copyright.PENANA23Pjox2KFF
The voice returned. This time, not from within—but behind him.98Please respect copyright.PENANAjdew4GmPtb
He didn't look back.98Please respect copyright.PENANApbAqMCjf8R
He knew nothing would be there.98Please respect copyright.PENANAzikkznAwzv
And yet, he heard it.98Please respect copyright.PENANAui4FEJLjiO
98Please respect copyright.PENANAHALTbtWBYU
"Choose which one of you will remain."98Please respect copyright.PENANA6MWSzw13oX
98Please respect copyright.PENANAxtAloNkFGb
He clenched his fists.98Please respect copyright.PENANAlqQseO0osi
"Zhang Huan-An" and "Yu Yong-An"—names layered like truths,98Please respect copyright.PENANAY0vIPgdtPC
Too real to abandon,98Please respect copyright.PENANA7SyS4b2avI
Too entangled to claim.98Please respect copyright.PENANAnwLOxAh8Us
98Please respect copyright.PENANAu9XYVMCN9J
"What if I don't want to be either?"98Please respect copyright.PENANAjMGdJm3ONt
He asked the air, voice hoarse.98Please respect copyright.PENANA0k1jRxS2i6
98Please respect copyright.PENANAqwZj6DVOZw
"Then become—98Please respect copyright.PENANAr63sIAumu0
the memory that survived the collapse."98Please respect copyright.PENANA2pRVGmDWHp
98Please respect copyright.PENANAOzpYQosgSQ
The mirror cracked.98Please respect copyright.PENANAuCJVfWczt7
98Please respect copyright.PENANAPIqs5XLZPm
Not from pressure.98Please respect copyright.PENANAcOBKuLSLbb
Not from sound.98Please respect copyright.PENANAIH9BbIbrP1
98Please respect copyright.PENANAp3TYNPjzTn
But from time.98Please respect copyright.PENANA3ACRHkvRei
98Please respect copyright.PENANAmZTcKMJ13p
As the fissure split the reflection in two, he finally understood:98Please respect copyright.PENANAoCB1h49RaY
They had never truly been separate.98Please respect copyright.PENANAIkNVA6Edw5
And now, they could never fully merge.98Please respect copyright.PENANAznt6tX6h94
98Please respect copyright.PENANAKymZcwf7oj
They could only—98Please respect copyright.PENANA63LQADlvxs
98Please respect copyright.PENANANhKIb5c0Y5
Overlay.98Please respect copyright.PENANAla6M4BWue8
Fracture.98Please respect copyright.PENANANHvN9LtJ8w
Echo.98Please respect copyright.PENANAsiwJA82s7i
98Please respect copyright.PENANAvhqUM0qezM
98Please respect copyright.PENANAb216p1AHKO
---98Please respect copyright.PENANAuyroueF26C
98Please respect copyright.PENANAjnGgxjCbvW
Reflections That Do Not Return98Please respect copyright.PENANA9csB0yfqhI
98Please respect copyright.PENANAKNvKjowfyE
When the mirror shattered, time broke with it.98Please respect copyright.PENANA9lTkCHy3fS
98Please respect copyright.PENANA1gw3f6vlLW
Cracks spread like a spider's web, and within each one—98Please respect copyright.PENANAGrQSX7zqFy
A different version of himself emerged:98Please respect copyright.PENANAkDii4KOkmP
Some young, some aged.98Please respect copyright.PENANAhpOQAwkoAL
Some cold and distant, others brimming with unshed tears.98Please respect copyright.PENANAQyIjMCeEDb
98Please respect copyright.PENANAzClhQIY0Qt
"Are these… all me?"98Please respect copyright.PENANA2Jk4ke6NU0
98Please respect copyright.PENANAf5b02Z9l9Q
His voice trembled in the still air—was he asking the mirror,98Please respect copyright.PENANATzgcaViXob
Or questioning the soul splintered before him?98Please respect copyright.PENANAOY7burUz49
98Please respect copyright.PENANAHADniGPmi0
A shard fell, its chime like a soft wind bell.98Please respect copyright.PENANACRvjGCzlE8
But it reflected not the room—98Please respect copyright.PENANASt6rPSNc4g
98Please respect copyright.PENANAWCCQD28aJo
It reflected time:98Please respect copyright.PENANAe8VJCzxIFr
98Please respect copyright.PENANA8hXraNGTEd
A Friday dusk,98Please respect copyright.PENANA7yOyUM0xNz
A Tuesday's echo,98Please respect copyright.PENANAHCtXrLaadF
The moment the cross appeared,98Please respect copyright.PENANARsYpa30sRY
And the last turn of her figure.98Please respect copyright.PENANASHbajwExSO
98Please respect copyright.PENANAwAyF3Bnpju
"You didn't choose an identity,"98Please respect copyright.PENANATCYB3Tty2y
A voice spoke—gentle, calm.98Please respect copyright.PENANA5ful4jLzph
Neither Yang An-Ting nor Li An-Qing,98Please respect copyright.PENANAoErB5j34aM
And yet, it held the luminous tenderness of both.98Please respect copyright.PENANAtiAeLDXPXC
98Please respect copyright.PENANAhmdMy5G6Tv
"You chose the version of yourself—98Please respect copyright.PENANAGl9UGp5lzj
that could survive."98Please respect copyright.PENANAUHfabRhTAP
98Please respect copyright.PENANALV178OLm3H
He stared at the fragments.98Please respect copyright.PENANAYPgLndNJsa
Each one, a future with no return.98Please respect copyright.PENANAHiKDaBTwaJ
98Please respect copyright.PENANA6EnpRqWllK
"And what if… I choose nothing?"98Please respect copyright.PENANA1mOgOW3cd0
He asked, barely audible.98Please respect copyright.PENANA1qsXyjgBim
98Please respect copyright.PENANAv6ss2dEOOF
"Then you'll be trapped—98Please respect copyright.PENANAeHhQZLVI9G
within this fracture,98Please respect copyright.PENANAjdKJnMBGIP
until the next cycle calls you back."98Please respect copyright.PENANAnY6loiysOV
98Please respect copyright.PENANAJriaoGFVwx
Silence again.98Please respect copyright.PENANAGQT0mdRBLv
98Please respect copyright.PENANAnlNyymxZ3N
Then he whispered:98Please respect copyright.PENANAO4dSWzlEt7
98Please respect copyright.PENANAJVvxJyn2S1
"I don't want to wake up again…98Please respect copyright.PENANAF3EWZbzCa9
if waking means forgetting her."98Please respect copyright.PENANAvmkrXBuK1d
98Please respect copyright.PENANAHvD1ZyMiFj
The mirror flickered.98Please respect copyright.PENANAYvg9DK8kQO
98Please respect copyright.PENANA9yqbNB3TJJ
Memories surfaced, playing on their own—98Please respect copyright.PENANA4YsJspnn67
98Please respect copyright.PENANAbcI5SN3wUF
"You'll forget what I said,"98Please respect copyright.PENANABtIzAlzbTK
"But you'll remember the sky had dimmed…98Please respect copyright.PENANAa15OENklup
and that I never left."98Please respect copyright.PENANAIts3VCWZ7u
98Please respect copyright.PENANAP8TfU2FIQQ
It was her voice—Li An-Qing.98Please respect copyright.PENANAK9E2R5ZKrt
The eternity hidden within Friday.98Please respect copyright.PENANAVcb1aUOGmn
98Please respect copyright.PENANAS9GFPQC0X7
No ticking clock,98Please respect copyright.PENANAeOug0l7sa7
No urgency.98Please respect copyright.PENANA5seruoLpBb
98Please respect copyright.PENANAPE6ORxNHd0
Only breath—98Please respect copyright.PENANAUgKLUzrWhB
And something deeper still:98Please respect copyright.PENANAVV3RVE7Tvn
The echo of his own heartbeat,98Please respect copyright.PENANA64CR9BcC3Q
splintering across time.98Please respect copyright.PENANAE5xzBub3Ow
98Please respect copyright.PENANA3Uaj9U6amp
A single crack stretched across the floor,98Please respect copyright.PENANAww7pDfkbNb
As if time itself could no longer bear its own weight.98Please respect copyright.PENANAnNmCO75I0b
98Please respect copyright.PENANAYH2S3QIyr5
One wrong step,98Please respect copyright.PENANAYEtS296mNr
And he'd fall into a past that no longer welcomed him.98Please respect copyright.PENANAQmI1Nfk60J
98Please respect copyright.PENANAFgG6YSc89J
He knelt and picked up a shard.98Please respect copyright.PENANAvBx7km3FjM
Its surface stirred memory—98Please respect copyright.PENANAl5TCfpdzKD
Not his own, but sharp enough to wound.98Please respect copyright.PENANAW9r7QlP62m
98Please respect copyright.PENANAkkQVaDme6i
"He said he'd come back… He promised."98Please respect copyright.PENANAncmZqQkeIa
98Please respect copyright.PENANAGldBNOCW3b
It was Yang An-Ting's voice—98Please respect copyright.PENANAP1ztxG9gCX
Young, certain, full of hope.98Please respect copyright.PENANA2To1iieET8
98Please respect copyright.PENANAa1X2lUMvYF
Another shard revealed Li An-Qing,98Please respect copyright.PENANAWKRUVc7lqA
Standing at the end of an abandoned railway.98Please respect copyright.PENANAroePZDWEIp
In her eyes, a timestamp flickered:98Please respect copyright.PENANA5kYCBNxhGi
2025.2.19 // 28:0198Please respect copyright.PENANAgFbXeezpRx
98Please respect copyright.PENANAkb4wzCX0si
She whispered—98Please respect copyright.PENANAqh2xbMndwv
98Please respect copyright.PENANAyYx2ekHDU7
"Memory isn't meant for forgetting.98Please respect copyright.PENANAam3ueNE9rL
It's meant—for choosing."98Please respect copyright.PENANAKQNe7LbW6T
98Please respect copyright.PENANAWSe9xDkdb0
Something within him stirred—98Please respect copyright.PENANAtVhuhxKEF5
First gentle,98Please respect copyright.PENANAjuSY5FgysW
Then forceful,98Please respect copyright.PENANAwLushyBFVa
Almost irresistible.98Please respect copyright.PENANA8IIbB3PiHQ
98Please respect copyright.PENANAS64qdOnj7d
A pull born of her voice,98Please respect copyright.PENANABmfkBATNF6
Of her silence,98Please respect copyright.PENANAgCWidtlUEv
Of every name forgotten by time.98Please respect copyright.PENANAzNQJPOoQwN
98Please respect copyright.PENANAQ74lv8l2sI
"Then… how do I choose?"98Please respect copyright.PENANAqVyp72SFE8
He asked not the mirror now,98Please respect copyright.PENANAV3PaqlmIbu
But the entire world.98Please respect copyright.PENANAIpZuVBZOtK
98Please respect copyright.PENANAsJ32VWLwt3
"Choice," the voice replied through the glass,98Please respect copyright.PENANAxr7ciMNJbB
"was never the answer—98Please respect copyright.PENANALn8b7Qzka1
only the cost."98Please respect copyright.PENANAyGuX7mxOhx
98Please respect copyright.PENANAhkTPvkEJnJ
He opened his eyes.98Please respect copyright.PENANAOvQkG0jBzh
98Please respect copyright.PENANAyddgISgJ2T
The fractures now pushed him toward an edge—98Please respect copyright.PENANALtfgGOeoj2
An ending already written,98Please respect copyright.PENANALC1Y5kYl4F
Yet never spoken.98Please respect copyright.PENANAUO9iKB3Rjf
98Please respect copyright.PENANA8AFzJFaEI1
98Please respect copyright.PENANAQ2t38g3wRn
---98Please respect copyright.PENANAKBe1xj5gAl
98Please respect copyright.PENANAJg9UimaLVK
You Remember Too Much98Please respect copyright.PENANAUU3MYtV9uN
98Please respect copyright.PENANAyJOYsW0LNI
"You remember too much," the voice murmured,98Please respect copyright.PENANAVKp8mfkWkm
"And you've forgotten even more than you realize.98Please respect copyright.PENANAFoTUgobup4
So now, only one question remains:98Please respect copyright.PENANAvXKnebBdt7
98Please respect copyright.PENANAwdFDpMgtvz
Who will you remain for?"98Please respect copyright.PENANAbY3Tb9dY9P
98Please respect copyright.PENANApObx1eJK8q
"You've always remembered,"98Please respect copyright.PENANAQhSOHtF52R
Yang An-Ting's voice, soft yet unwavering.98Please respect copyright.PENANAbOmHwkbmwR
98Please respect copyright.PENANAtpO5sW31cA
"You just didn't want to admit it."98Please respect copyright.PENANAYjaDra7uYA
98Please respect copyright.PENANA2PHNYFxmoz
"And you've never truly let go,"98Please respect copyright.PENANAsytu2cnPrc
Li An-Qing's voice followed,98Please respect copyright.PENANAKZuC95wJym
Like light after the rain.98Please respect copyright.PENANAgCJba9XBSb
98Please respect copyright.PENANAHmglngZfb3
"Because you know—98Please respect copyright.PENANALt30xVomlq
this was never yours to end."98Please respect copyright.PENANAHV2SKX0y7G
98Please respect copyright.PENANANgBwmyNuGa
He stood between the mirror and the fracture.98Please respect copyright.PENANARmMMgzSGHX
98Please respect copyright.PENANAP7kh9cGWs8
Behind him—wreckage of the past.98Please respect copyright.PENANAtp3x9pdGBi
Before him—a nameless exit.98Please respect copyright.PENANA4yGnJC0oql
98Please respect copyright.PENANAH1LqDi73sm
"If I can't become him…98Please respect copyright.PENANAZXlE1d7aZ9
and I can't just be myself…98Please respect copyright.PENANAEBendCiHiG
what is left of me?"98Please respect copyright.PENANAHMBh0gqUpD
98Please respect copyright.PENANAvqUo0CBhtF
"Memory," they said in unison.98Please respect copyright.PENANAtLZcSHK2y0
98Please respect copyright.PENANAQJLJ8uJiXc
Not names.98Please respect copyright.PENANAHQfKQKEgl9
Not roles.98Please respect copyright.PENANA8WVtkQpkC0
But something heavier—98Please respect copyright.PENANAYOhUY1x4oy
A will strong enough to pierce time.98Please respect copyright.PENANAjyF1bwuRSj
98Please respect copyright.PENANAngNt60dap4
If names fade, let them.98Please respect copyright.PENANAx5C2MrprMn
If roles collapse, stop defining them.98Please respect copyright.PENANAOSnxmatDaq
98Please respect copyright.PENANAL4ZLDxCJPP
"You don't need a name,"98Please respect copyright.PENANA12Gh0GKfnp
Yang An-Ting whispered.98Please respect copyright.PENANAJTaI3NxxQZ
"Because now—you remember us."98Please respect copyright.PENANA6SqIuhOtgp
98Please respect copyright.PENANAgP2LAwZO8p
"You only need to keep walking,"98Please respect copyright.PENANA4Wo27hHNDQ
Li An-Qing said next.98Please respect copyright.PENANAtjEoM7DyXe
"Not for anyone. Not even for yourself."98Please respect copyright.PENANA7MM8nDjDYB
98Please respect copyright.PENANASVS2rpvssE
The fractures began to close—98Please respect copyright.PENANAGBMroKDpbH
Not as an end,98Please respect copyright.PENANAyR7Ew4cxHH
But as a silent reformation.98Please respect copyright.PENANAMRQorfvy9F
98Please respect copyright.PENANAUT61MvHysi
Shattered timelines intertwined,98Please respect copyright.PENANA8EPGUwrNTw
Forming a new path—98Please respect copyright.PENANAsQW9UrvqSO
Free of judgment,98Please respect copyright.PENANAa6qLbMv4ID
Free of labels,98Please respect copyright.PENANAFEsQiXKVKL
Free of the need to look back.98Please respect copyright.PENANAKUZFTTyQLO
98Please respect copyright.PENANAOvcRBFI3YG
It was—98Please respect copyright.PENANAHGkNGxVBo1
98Please respect copyright.PENANAGlKC2rekQT
The third way.98Please respect copyright.PENANAmOFdvNRESG
98Please respect copyright.PENANAPM3Mo2DRDx
Not return.98Please respect copyright.PENANAz3qZ5qr2zS
Not repetition.98Please respect copyright.PENANA8fGj2uhKrT
98Please respect copyright.PENANAfO2D3mO0y4
But—98Please respect copyright.PENANARNIzQcldRJ
98Please respect copyright.PENANAkJpv91SW0j
A future with no name.
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A Promise In Four Fragments
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A Promise In Four Fragments
Author:
烙燁 Luòyèh

ISSUE #41
Fractures That Remember
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