Amina's hands trembled.
Nytheris stood unshaken, the Blade of Frozen Flame humming with power that pulsed deep into the earth. It was the kind of silence that silenced everything else—extinguishing even the rage within Valec, the fear in Kai, the wisdom in Lumeah.
Fire—once their weapon, their identity—now recoiled.
"Back," Valec growled, shielding the child behind him. "You won't touch her."
Nytheris tilted their head. "You misunderstand, Valec. I have no desire to harm her. I have come to free her."
"Free her?" Amina stepped forward, heart pounding. "From what?"
"From you. All of you." Nytheris gestured around. "The ancient flames, the cycle of war, rebirth, destruction. She was never meant to inherit your burden."
"She is the balance!" Amina snapped. "She is what ends this war!"
Nytheris' expression darkened. "No… she is what restarts it. She carries both light and shadow within her. A paradox that cannot be contained. If left unchecked, she becomes the inferno that ends everything."
Kai stepped forward, eyes glowing faintly. "And your solution is what? Kill her?"
"No." Nytheris raised the Shard-blade. "Seal her essence. Bury the flame. Let the world breathe without fire for once."
A storm of wind and snow spiraled around them, blinding. In the chaos, chains made of glass-like ice erupted from the mist—racing toward the child.
Amina reacted first. She hurled herself in front, summoning her last surge of flame.
But nothing came.
Only smoke.
Then—crack!
A chain struck her shoulder, sending her crashing to the ground. Blood stained the snow-mist.
Valec roared, his flames burning white. He lunged at Nytheris, blade drawn.
But with a single swipe, the Flamebreaker deflected his strike. Valec's sword shattered.
Nytheris whispered, "Even the proudest fire must kneel."
Kai clenched his fists, his eyes darting across the battlefield. "We can't win like this. Not with fire."
Lumeah reached for the ground, whispering an old prayer to the earth. "Then we use what they don't expect. We fight with legacy."
Suddenly, the crystal tree from Amina's trial shimmered into view behind them—an echo, not real, but powerful.
Amina, bleeding, looked up at it.
"Amariel… show me how," she whispered.
And from the tree, a soft light flowed.
It entered her wounds.
It entered her mind.
And a voice echoed from deep within—
"Let them seal your flame… and awaken your true fire."