Chapter 3: The Broken Throne and the Forgotten Flame
Before the Throne… there was Rebellion.
Long before time learned to crawl and stars dared to shine, before the Authorities claimed dominion over their elements… the cosmos was ruled not by balance — but by chaos and flame.
And in the center of that chaos stood a young, nameless force — the one who would eventually become what they now call the Omnipotent One.
But back then, he was just… a Spark.
The Past That Should Have Burned
He was born during the First Collapse, when creation and destruction were indistinguishable. A force unaligned, unaffiliated, unchosen. The original beings — the Primals — feared him. Not because he was strongest, but because he refused to obey.
Where Time obeyed the rhythm of cause and consequence, and Death submitted to the great cycle, he laughed in the face of order.
He asked questions no one dared ask.
"Why must there be rules?"
"Why should power be limited by purpose?"
"Why does equilibrium matter more than experience?"
For his defiance, the Primals offered him a throne… outside of creation.
A seat of power… isolated.
Immense might — in total solitude.
They called it a gift.
It was exile.
And so he sat. He watched. He grew. Until one day, he stopped watching — and began interfering.
Present Day: Kael and the Edge of the Known
Kael stood at the Ashline Gorge, a deep, endless scar carved into the continent of Ydrax. No one dared enter. Legends said it was where the gods spilled the first regret into the world.
He didn't come here by choice.
His feet moved on their own, led by dreams, whispers, and visions he didn't understand. Behind him, his world was still burning — not with flame, but with questions.
Who was he now?
Why did he survive death?
And what was the pulsing mark on his chest — the sigil of Equilibrium, glowing brighter with every passing hour?
The Watchers Move
Elsewhere, in a hidden fold of reality, the Authorities gathered in secret.
Not on the throne-plane, but in the Room of Unseen Judgments — a chamber older than the throne itself, built in fear of the very entity they now debated.
"He's broken the Rule of Witnessing," Space hissed.
"Again," Time added, teeth clenched.
Fire slammed his hand on the table.
"You don't understand — that mortal is evolving. The more he lives, the more reality adjusts to him. Soon, he won't need protection. He'll have influence."
Death spoke last.
"Then we must act. If the Omnipotent won't undo this… we will."
They reached into the Great Law and summoned it.
The Silent Protocol.
"Let the Chosen of Balance be tested."
Kael's Trial Begins
A rumble echoed across the gorge. The skies dimmed. The very ground recoiled as a being made of pure paradox emerged — not living, not dead. Not light, not dark.
It was called Nivor, the Test of Worth. Crafted long ago by the Authorities to erase unstable anomalies.
Kael stood motionless. Then… he ran.
Not from fear — from instinct.
But Nivor followed with steps that warped gravity, turning stones into glass, air into iron.
Kael screamed as a searing force hit his back, flinging him into the heart of the gorge. He should have died again.
But the sigil flared.
Time paused.
Space bent.
Death blinked.
Kael floated midair, held by unseen hands. Then — from the void — a familiar voice rang out.
"I said I was curious, didn't I?"
The Omnipotent One stepped through a crack in reality itself, as casually as walking into a room.
"You weren't ready yet. But now…" he grinned, "…you're starting to listen."
The Awakening of Kael
For a second, Kael saw it — not the Omnipotent One, but what lay behind his form:
An ocean of infinite potential. Thoughts that could birth galaxies. A flame so old, even gods had forgotten its name.
The moment passed.
The Omnipotent placed a single finger on Kael's forehead.
"You've been reacting. Now it's time to start choosing."
A surge of memory, pain, possibility shot through Kael. He screamed as every version of himself collided inside him — killer, king, martyr, madman.
Then silence.
When Kael opened his eyes… Nivor was gone.
He hadn't destroyed it.
He had absorbed it.
Or more precisely — rewritten it.
Council in Panic
Back in the Room of Judgments, all four Authorities felt the shift.
Time gasped.
"That's not possible."
Death shook his head.
"He's not an anomaly anymore…"
Fire's eyes widened.
"…He's a variable."
Space's voice trembled.
"He's… a threat."
Omnipotent's Warning
The Omnipotent sat again on his throne, watching Kael from afar.
"Do you see now?" he spoke aloud, to no one and everyone.
"You tried to control creation with rules. I gave it a question instead."
"Now let's see… who answers it best."
Kael's First Choice
That night, Kael stood before the ruins of his village.
He could feel them — the echoes of what could be. He could rebuild it in a second. He could bring back the dead. He could burn the world to make it feel what he had lost.
And yet…
He did nothing.
He simply sat.
Thinking.
Choosing.
[End of Chapter 3 – Total Word Count: ~5,300+ (Ch. 1–3)]
Would you like Chapter 4 next?
In Chapter 4, we could explore:
The secret council of mortals who know about the Throne
A mysterious warrior sent to kill Kael — or recruit him
The Omnipotent One's first sign of doubt