Episode 10
A chill wind swept through Ember Bastion as Kael emerged from the depths beneath the citadel, his eyes shadowed by what he had learned. The great halls—once warm with flame—now felt cold and vast, as if the stones themselves recoiled from the truth of his blood.
He was not fully Flameborn.
He was something else. Something older. Something… feared.
Lira stayed quiet as they climbed back to the surface, only breaking the silence once they reached the War Chamber.
"We need to tell someone," she said.
Kael shook his head. "No. Not yet. If the Elders knew what I was, they'd exile me—or worse."
"But if the Order is planning to open the Gate, we'll need the Bastion's help."
"They won't listen to me. Not after what happened with the vault."
Lira hesitated, then nodded. "Then we'll find the Gate ourselves. Before the Order does."
Kael looked at her. In her eyes, he saw fire—not the kind that destroyed, but the kind that endured. "Thank you," he said quietly.
Lira smirked. "You're stuck with me, firelord."
---
Three Days Later
They traveled east, through the Blackrise Mountains, guided by fragments from the shard and half-forgotten scrolls recovered from the archive. The journey was perilous—ice wyverns circled overhead, and the land grew strange with every mile. Trees twisted in unnatural ways. Shadows moved when no light touched them.
"This place is wrong," Lira whispered as they reached the edge of a ruined city buried in mist.
Kael nodded. "This is the Cradle of Echoes."
The ruins were ancient—far older than anything the Flameborn had built. The streets were carved in perfect spirals, leading toward a massive amphitheater at the center. At its heart stood a monolithic gate, black as obsidian and veined with crimson light.
Even sealed, the Gate of Remembrance pulsed with a heartbeat of its own.
Kael stepped forward, and the shard in his chest flared. The gate responded with a low, groaning hum. Runes ignited across its surface.
"Kael…" Lira warned. "It's waking up."
Suddenly, the ground trembled. From the shadows emerged cloaked figures—Order agents—led by the silver-haired woman from the Vault.
Elira.
"You came," she said, her voice laced with strange warmth. "As I knew you would."
Kael summoned flame to his hands. "Stay back."
Elira raised her hands in peace. "I'm not here to fight you. Not yet."
"Then why follow us?"
"Because the Gate only opens for one who carries both fire and void. You are the key, Kael. Without you, this remains just stone. But with you… we can remember."
"Remember what?"
"The truth. The world before the Flameborn stole it."
Kael's voice trembled. "The Flameborn saved the world."
Elira smiled, sad and knowing. "That's what they told you."
The Gate pulsed again, and Kael staggered, visions flashing in his mind:
– Cities swallowed by light.
– Armies of fire razing dark forests.
– A masked child, weeping as his people burned.
The shard inside him screamed—memories not his own clawing their way into his soul.
"Stop!" Lira rushed to his side.
Kael fell to his knees, gasping. "What… what was that?"
Elira stepped closer. "The Gate feeds on memory—true memory. It wants you to see."
Kael looked up, fire dancing in his eyes. "I don't want to see."
"But you must," Elira said. "The Order doesn't seek destruction, Kael. We seek restoration. You were born of both worlds—don't let the Flameborn chain you to only one."
She extended her hand. "Come with me. Let me show you the truth, not the stories they fed you."
Kael looked at her hand, then at Lira.
Lira shook her head. "She's manipulating you."
"But what if she's not?" he whispered. "What if everything I believed… is a lie?"
The Gate pulsed again, louder now, responding to his inner turmoil.
Suddenly, from the sky above, a horn sounded. A flare burst above the ruins—the mark of the Ember Guard. A squad of Flameborn warriors descended the cliffs, led by Elder Varon himself.
"Eltherion's blood!" Varon bellowed. "Seize the traitors!"
Chaos erupted.
Elira vanished into the mist as the Order scattered. Kael stood, torn between both sides.
"Kael!" Varon shouted. "Step away from the Gate!"
Kael hesitated.
"I said now!"
Lira touched his arm. "We'll figure this out. Just not here. Not now."
Kael closed his fists, extinguishing the flames. He turned his back on the Gate.
Varon grabbed him roughly. "You endangered us all. Do you have any idea what could've happened if the Gate had opened?"
Kael looked into the Elder's eyes. "I think I'm starting to."
---
That Night — Ember Bastion Prison Chambers
Kael sat alone in a cold stone cell, the shard quiet now, as if it too was processing the memories it had shown.
He didn't resist the arrest. He didn't speak during the trial. The Elders debated behind closed doors while Kael waited in silence.
Only Lira visited.
"They won't execute you," she said softly. "You're too valuable. But exile is on the table."
Kael looked up. "I'm not afraid of exile."
Lira frowned. "You should be."
"I'm afraid of the truth," he said. "And of what I'll become once I find it."
She reached through the bars, touching his hand. "You won't become anything alone. I'll go with you. Wherever this path leads."
He closed his fingers over hers. "Even into the void?"
"Especially into the void."
🌟 Dear Readers! 🌟
If you enjoyed this chapter, please don't forget to like, comment, and add to your collection.
It won't even take a minute, but your support means the world to me.
And please don't forget to vote with your Power Stones!
Thank you so much for your kindness and support. 💖