The air on the plateau had shifted. Ember could feel it—not just a change in temperature or pressure, but a deeper resonance. The Flame had accepted her, and in doing so, it had marked a turning point in her journey.
She descended from the altar with measured steps, the ancient power within her now steadier, calmer. Kaelen and Lysra exchanged glances, both sensing the transformation. Ember's eyes glowed faintly—not just with magic, but with purpose.
"What now?" Kaelen asked.
Ember paused. "We follow the Flame's path."
Lysra pointed toward the east, where the jagged cliffs dipped into a sunken valley. "The map led here for a reason. Beyond that canyon lies Iralith—the city of veiled flame. And if the stories are true, the Phoenix Heart lies sealed within its ruins."
At the name, the Flame stirred within Ember's core. The Phoenix Heart—a crystal said to contain the primal essence of the first Flameborn. With it, Ember could not only mend the fracturing ley lines of the realm, but perhaps restore the balance lost in the War of Ashes.
But it would not come without cost.
They traveled for days through rugged terrain, following forgotten trails marked only by the subtle pulse of Ember's inner flame. Along the way, they encountered the shattered remnants of a once-thriving world: scorched villages, frozen lakes turned to glass, and arcane scars in the earth where flame and void had once collided.
Each step drew them closer to Iralith—and closer to those who sought to stop them.
---
In the shadows beyond the canyon, a figure cloaked in silence observed the trio's passage. His eyes, pale as moonlight, marked Ember's every movement. He was known only by whispers: the Shadeborn Monk, last of the Timeless Assassins, bound to the Ashen Oath.
He had been sent to kill her.
Not out of hatred or malice—but to preserve balance. The Flame, if wielded by one unworthy, could unravel what little remained of the world's structure. And the Order of the Shadow Sun, ancient and hidden, had determined Ember's fire burned too hot.
But he watched longer than he should have. He saw not chaos in her steps, but resolve.
He hesitated.
---
That night, Ember sat apart from the fire, her gaze cast to the stars. They shimmered faintly above—a reminder of the forgotten sky that once watched over a world at peace.
"I've changed," she said aloud.
Kaelen, sharpening his blade nearby, nodded. "You're no longer running from your fire. You're becoming it."
Lysra added, "But you're not alone, Ember. That matters."
Ember nodded slowly. "Tomorrow, we reach Iralith. And everything changes again."
From the shadows beyond the camp, the assassin lingered a moment longer.
Then vanished into the wind.