The sanctuary was buried beneath a mountain.
Carved from obsidian and moonstone, the hidden stronghold of Kaelith's old order had long been abandoned, left to rot beneath layers of history, sealed by spells that even gods once respected. The doors whispered as they opened for Mia. Hope touched the runes with her fingers, and they pulsed—not with warning, but with welcome.
"She's been here before," Mia murmured.
"No," Sarive said, scanning the darkened hallways with narrowed eyes. "Not her. Her blood."
The team entered cautiously. Their boots echoed in the silence, the only light coming from flickering braziers that ignited with their passing. Shadows danced across mosaics depicting battles from a time even the gods had tried to forget—wars between titans and mortals, betrayals carved in gold.
As they moved deeper, Diana fell into step beside Mia.
"You didn't tell me the girl was that powerful."
Mia didn't respond.
"She's not just a demigod," Diana continued, eyes fixed on Hope. "She's something else. Something new."
Mia's voice was low, but steady. "She's a blend of what they all feared. Goddess and Ascendant."
They found the central chamber at the base of the sanctuary. Crystal domes hovered overhead, humming with dormant magic. A long-forgotten council table stretched before them.
Sarive stood at its head, tracing his hand over its cold surface. "This place... it belonged to Valen's old team, didn't it?"
Mia nodded. "The Ascendants met here. Trained here. Planned the wars here."
Sarive frowned. "He really walked away from all this. From us."
Diana placed a hand on his arm. "He had his reasons."
"Did he?" Sarive snapped, pulling away. "He vanished. Faked his death. Left me with nothing. I was ten."
Hope's voice cut through the air, soft and unexpected.
"He didn't want to go."
They turned to the girl. She stood in the center of the floor, runes lighting beneath her feet in a perfect circle.
Hope looked up at Sarive, her voice almost too old for her body.
"My mother said the world would never forgive them. That's why they ran."
Mia stepped closer. "Hope, how do you know this?"
The girl's hand reached out toward the center of the crystal dome—and images appeared in light and smoke.
Aurelia, glowing and fierce, kissing Valen beneath twin moons.
A younger Chris, yelling in frustration.
Aurelia's father, the Celestial King, raising his sword and declaring the law: "No god shall ever love a mortal again."
And then—Aurelia, chained. Valen, bloodied. And a baby, wrapped in white light, crying as the stars fell silent.
Sarive stumbled back from the vision, his face pale.
Diana whispered, "She's seeing memories that aren't hers."
"No," Mia said grimly. "She's carrying them. Through blood, through spirit. Hope is remembering the forbidden history that lives inside her."
Jorin crossed his arms. "Then that's why the gods want her. She's not just a threat. She's a reminder."
Far away, in the Golden City of the Skyforge Realm, the Supreme Celestial King stood at his balcony, watching the stars.
A voice echoed behind him.
"She's awakened more than power."
It was Aurelia's brother—blade in hand, eyes full of fire. He had returned from hunting the rebels, from chasing whispers of Valen and Chris's alliance.
"She's stirred memories," he growled. "The people talk. The lower gods murmur. And now… demons are crawling from the dark like flies to a wound."
The King's voice was tired. "I warned her. I warned them both."
"She made her choice," Aurelia's brother said. "Now let me make mine."
The King turned slowly, his eyes like dying stars.
"Then kill the mortal boy."
"Valen?"
"No," the King said.
"Sarive."
Back in the sanctuary, Sarive sat alone in a side chamber lit only by dim crystals. His thoughts were a storm.
Valen was alive. A traitor. A father.
And Hope… Hope was something the world had no words for.
Mia entered, wordless, and sat beside him. The silence stretched.
Then she placed a hand on his.
"She's just a child," Mia said softly. "But she carries the grief of gods."
Sarive looked down. "And we're supposed to protect her."
"You were born to," Mia said. "Just like Valen was."
Sarive's eyes flashed. "Don't compare us."
"I wasn't," she said. "I was saying you're better."
They stared at each other for a long moment. Then a new voice interrupted them.
"Are you done brooding?"
It was Diana—smirking, but hiding concern behind her eyes. "We've got movement outside. Something big. You'll want to see this."
Sarive rose, and so did Mia. But his glance lingered on her, and for the first time, Mia noticed.
Diana noticed too.
The tension between them shimmered like heat above a fire.
And somewhere deep beneath the surface of the world, something ancient stirred—watching, waiting.