Episode 8
The morning of Kael's departure dawned gray and solemn. Emberhollow stood quiet for the first time in years—not out of peace, but respect. Word had spread like wildfire: the heir of Valis had claimed the echoes. The Flamebearer was ready.
Kael stood at the gates of the Ember Bastion, draped in a cloak stitched with fire-thread. At his side hung the blade he forged from the Vault's flame—a sword that shimmered with shifting runes along its length. The ancestral sparks pulsed quietly in his chest, offering comfort… and warning.
Solenya stood before him, holding a scroll sealed with crimson wax.
"This is your map," she said. "But do not trust it blindly. The Flame Path is ancient. It shifts."
Kael raised a brow. "A map that lies. That's reassuring."
She smiled faintly. "It lies to those who seek shortcuts. To those who walk with purpose—it guides."
Behind her stood Lira, arms folded, eyes as piercing as ever.
"You'll need allies," she said. "You won't survive Vorthal alone."
Kael looked around. "And where exactly do I find these so-called allies?"
Lira gestured to the courtyard. Three figures stepped forward.
First was a towering man in silver armor with blue flame marks etched across his skin. "Thorne," he said simply. "Knight of the Azure Blaze."
Next came a girl not much older than Kael, wrapped in a cloak of living shadows. Her eyes glowed violet. "Nyra. Shadowbinder of Velhallow."
And last—a boy, younger than Kael, with a staff made of bone and emberwood. "Tov. Spirit Whisperer. I… talk to ghosts. Sometimes they answer."
Kael blinked. "You're serious?"
Tov shrugged. "Usually."
Solenya nodded. "Each of them passed their own trials. All bear a spark of the ancient flame."
Kael looked at them, then to Lira and Solenya. "I guess this is happening."
"It is," Lira said. "Your first stop is Emberfall Keep. Beneath it lies the Ember Gate—a portal to the outer path. But the keep… is not empty."
Kael turned. "What's guarding it?"
"Not what," Solenya said. "Who."
They began their journey that afternoon, descending from the mountain city into the dense firethorn woods that bordered Emberhollow. The Flame Path shimmered faintly beneath their feet—old stones carved with runes that only glowed when touched by a bearer.
Kael kept his hand on his sword as they moved. Nyra walked with ghostlike silence, her eyes scanning the shadows. Thorne marched ahead, grumbling about the damp air. Tov floated in and out of reality, mumbling to unseen spirits.
As night fell, they made camp near an abandoned shrine. Kael took the first watch, eyes scanning the trees. Emberhollow already felt like a dream, distant and fading. Ahead lay the Tower of Vorthal… and whatever legacy his father had left hidden.
As he stared into the flickering flames of their campfire, a whisper brushed his mind.
"Kael…"
He jumped. "Who's there?"
No reply.
He turned to Tov, who sat nearby, carving glyphs into a stone.
"Did you hear that?"
Tov nodded slowly. "One of the echoes. Not from the Vault. From the Path."
Kael swallowed. "What does it want?"
Tov looked up. "To be remembered."
The next morning, they reached Emberfall Keep.
Or what was left of it.
The stone walls had crumbled in places, overtaken by black vines that hissed when touched. The front gates stood open, but the air around them shimmered like heat haze.
Thorne cursed. "Aether wards. Old magic."
Kael stepped forward. "This is where the map ends."
Nyra placed a hand on the vines. "Something inside watches. Waiting."
They stepped through the gate, weapons drawn. Inside, the keep was deathly still. Statues of old Flamebearers lined the hall, their eyes glowing faintly.
Then they moved.
Stone cracking, fire flaring—one by one, the statues came to life.
Kael shouted, "Get ready!"
Thorne charged, smashing one apart with his shield. Nyra vanished into shadows and reappeared behind another, striking with ghoststeel daggers. Tov summoned a burning wraith from the walls that screamed and tore through stone.
Kael faced the largest—modeled after Auren Valis.
It raised a massive sword and swung.
Kael blocked it, flames bursting from his blade. "I am not your shadow!" he roared.
With a cry, he drove his sword into the statue's chest, runes igniting. The stone cracked… then exploded.
Silence returned.
The gate to the lower level opened on its own.
At the bottom of a spiral stair lay a massive door inscribed with ancient fire language.
Solenya's voice echoed from Kael's memory: "The Flame Path begins at the Ember Gate."
Kael placed his palm on the door. The rune on his arm pulsed.
The gate opened.
Behind it—a swirling vortex of fire and stars.
Kael turned to the others. "No going back."
Thorne grinned. "Wouldn't dream of it."
Nyra said nothing—but stepped through first.
Tov whispered to the air. "They say… we'll be tested."
Kael stepped into the portal.
And the true journey began.
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