It wasn't grand or opulent. The fortress was small, confined, hidden by a smile. Room enough for one person to survive was all the walls offered. It wasn't constructed of stone. Invisible walls, built brick by brick after battles past, provided shelter. Each memory a scar that fortified the barrier. A form of solitary confinement, the fortress offered retreat. It kept the world around it at bay. A stable presence in the harsh trials of existence. And the fortress's only treasure, a heart battered by life, took shelter alone.