"The past is never dead. It waits, buried in silence, until flame or truth awakens it." Oracle proverb from the Hills of Doro
The embers of war still lingered in the wind.
In the days that followed the battle, Dakira and Oremi buzzed with a rare, uncertain hope. The Field of Crows had been cleared, bodies buried, banners folded. But even in peace, the soil beneath felt scorched with the echo of betrayal.
Adiro moved slowly through the royal gardens, one hand pressed against the healing wound in his side. The scent of sage and jasmine masked the pungency of blood that still haunted his nostrils. Every flower seemed to bloom for the dead.
He paused near the fountain carved by his mother years ago, Queen Zina's favorite place.
"I wish you could see us now," he murmured. "We stood together, finally. Niko and I. But at what cost?"
Behind him, footsteps crunched the gravel. Niko approached, holding a sealed scroll.
"From the Temple of the First Crown," he said. "The High Priest wants to meet tonight. Alone."
Adiro raised an eyebrow. "Alone?"
Niko nodded. "He said there's something we must see. Something about our parents... and a letter they left behind."
Adiro's breath caught in his throat. He looked at the scroll, then the sky.
"Then we ride tonight."
The Temple of the First Crown stood atop Mount Jebora, where legend claimed the founding kings of Oremi and Dakira had once sworn their brotherhood under the stars.
Its high pillars cast long shadows in the moonlight. Torches flickered like watchful eyes as Adiro approached the outer gates alone, his cloak wrapped tightly against the wind.
But something felt wrong.
The air was too still. No priest awaited him at the entrance. The ceremonial drums that usually greeted royal guests were silent.
Then, the acrid scent of smoke.
Adiro's eyes widened.
Flames erupted from within the sanctuary.
He rushed forward, bursting through the temple doors.
The Hall of Ancestors was ablaze, tapestries melting, wooden beams cracking under the heat. Statues of the old kings stood weeping fire as the flames consumed their faces.
"Is anyone here?!" Adiro shouted.
A muffled groan answered him. Through the thick smoke, he spotted the High Priest, Elder Taban collapsed at the foot of the altar, a parchment clutched in his burning hands.
Adiro dashed forward, ignoring the blistering heat. He grabbed the priest, pulling him free of the flames.
The parchment fell.
Half-burned, the scroll bore the royal seal of Queen Zina unmistakable.
As Adiro turned to flee, he caught a shadow moving swiftly at the far end of the temple.
A figure cloaked in black, slipping through a secret archway.
"Who are you?!" he cried, but the figure vanished into darkness.
Outside, guards rushed in to douse the fire. Niko arrived moments later, panting.
"What happened?" he shouted.
Adiro held up the scorched scroll.
"They tried to burn the past."
Back in the palace, Adiro and Niko sat by candlelight. The scroll was laid between them, its edges blackened, but its core still readable.
It was addressed to "Our sons, when the day of reckoning comes."
Adiro's hands trembled as he read aloud:
"To Adiro and Niko, the twin hearts of a broken kingdom..."
"If this letter finds you, then it means the curse we feared has reached its end or its beginning."
"You were born of love, not only between Zina of Dakira and Akin of Oremi, but of a vision. A dream that our people might one day see past blood and borderlines."
"But dreams are dangerous when they threaten the power of those who profit from hate."
"There was a council, one hidden deep within both kingdoms. They called themselves the Circle of Ember. They opposed our union, whispered lies into the ears of our fathers, and fanned the flames of the feud to keep themselves rich, influential, untouchable."
"It was they who caused the separation. They who stole you from each other."
"And if Zuberi ever rises, know this: he, too, was a pawn in their design."
"Seek the Tomb of the Unseen King. There lies the truth."
Adiro fell silent.
Niko whispered, "The Circle of Ember... I thought it was a myth."
"So did I," Adiro said grimly. "But someone tried to destroy this. That figure in the temple, they didn't want us to read this letter."
"Then we must go to the tomb."
"And burn the myth into truth."
In the dungeon beneath the palace, Zuberi sat in chains. His cell was cold, barely lit, and yet he smiled when the guard brought news.
"The Temple burned?" he said with a chuckle. "Interesting."
The guard said nothing, only tossed bread onto the floor.
Zuberi leaned forward. "Tell your king this: the fire is only the beginning. If he wants answers, he'll have to look deeper. Much deeper. The flames run through your blood."
He laughed again, echoing through the stone halls.
And far above him, a secret messenger slipped into the night.
Later that evening, Adiro summoned the new Royal Unity Council, a blend of former Dakira nobles and Oremi elders.
He recounted the fire, the letter, and the emergence of the Circle of Ember.
The room burst into argument.
"The Circle is ancient myth," scoffed Lord Kwame of Dakira. "You cannot chase ghosts!"
"But if the queen herself warned us," countered Lady Amari, "shouldn't we at least investigate?"
Elder Bakari of Oremi stood slowly. "My father once spoke of a chamber beneath the southern hills; a place where kings once went alone. He called it the Tomb of the Unseen."
Adiro met Niko's eyes.
"It's real," Niko said. "And we must go."
A murmur passed through the room.
Lord Kwame banged the table. "You would abandon your throne for legend?"
Adiro rose. "I would abandon nothing. But if the truth lies hidden, then it is my duty as your king and as their son to uncover it."
The next day, Adiro and Niko rode with a small escort toward the Southern Hills of Orun where the tomb supposedly lay beneath a ruined shrine.
As they passed through border villages, people greeted them with cautious hope. Children ran alongside their horses, chanting songs of peace. Elders whispered blessings.
Yet all the while, Adiro could not shake the shadow in his mind, the cloaked figure in the flames, the words in the letter, and Zuberi's cryptic smile.
That night, they camped beneath the stars.
Niko stared into the fire. "What if we uncover something we're not ready for?"
Adiro looked at the flames. "Then we face it. Together. As we always should have."
Above them, a shooting star split the sky.
By morning, they reached the shrine, a broken circle of ancient stone half-buried in moss. At the center stood a statue worn by centuries, a faceless king, arms outstretched.
They searched the base until Niko found the symbol; a crown with a serpent beneath.
He pressed it.
With a rumble, the ground shifted.
A stairway appeared, spiraling into darkness.
Torches lit, swords drawn, they descended.
Below was a vast chamber, carved from black stone, the walls painted with scenes lost to time. Kings embracing. Villages burning. A woman; Zina weeping before a masked council.
At the chamber's heart lay a sarcophagus.
On its lid: "Here lies the Unseen King. He who chose silence to preserve the truth."
Adiro knelt. "Who was he?"
Beside the tomb, they found a scroll sealed in wax.
Adiro opened it.
Inside were names. Dozens.
"Members of the Circle," he whispered. "Including... elders still in power."
Niko clenched his fist. "This is why they feared us. Why they killed our parents. The Circle still lives."
From behind them, a sudden click.
They turned.
A dagger whistled through the air grazing Adiro's arm.
A cloaked figure emerged from the shadows.
"Step away," the voice snarled. "You were never meant to know."
Adiro gritted his teeth. "We were always meant to know."