Full Chapter – The Rewrite of Flame
Location: Underground Archive Vault – Below Velthar's catacombs. What lies hidden here was never meant to be read. Especially not by them.
The Vault of Forbidden Flames
The mural of Grim and his siblings split open — revealing a stairway of molten black stone, pulsing with a steady hum. Old magic. Sealed magic.
Max stepped in first. Shadows recoiled.
"Whatever they hid here… it knows us."
Seris gripped Rael's arm. "I shouldn't be here."
"Too late," Tristan said from behind, frost curling around his shoulders. "If we're rewriting destiny, you might as well watch."
At the bottom, a vault door loomed—smooth obsidian, marked with one symbol:
The Crest of the Flameborn.
Not the modern sigil.
The original one.
Twisting flame across a mirrored blade, surrounded by five stars.
"There were five," Hadi whispered. "Not four."
Max traced the symbol. It pulsed under his fingers. The door opened.
Truth in Flame
Inside, a glowing orb spun — woven of tethered light and fragments of ancient memory.
A memory core. But massive. Alive.
When Max touched it, his eyes went blank. Seris grabbed his arm, and the rest followed into the memory projection—
The Past, Rewritten
They saw a young Grim — barely a teen — stepping into a burning citadel.
Not alone.
His siblings.
And a fifth child — face blurred by magic. Voice distorted. But present. Real.
They fought monsters of ash and silence. Not for power. Not for survival.
For freedom.
And when the final beast fell… the Guardians of Flame were born.
But then the Court came.
Ripped them apart.
Sealed their memories.
Burned the fifth from all records.
And planted a false truth.
"They feared you," the orb whispered into their minds. "Because you weren't just Flameborn… you were flamebreakers. The ones who could ignite or end it all."
The Fifth Flame
Hadi stood frozen.
"We were five," she whispered. "But I don't remember…"
"Neither do I," Tristan said. "But I feel it."
Max looked hollowed out. "They didn't erase a name. They erased a soul."
The mural flickered — now with a fifth figure: Sparks. Her current form flickered — not fully drawn, but etched there, whispering in violet lines.
"Could it be…" Seris whispered. "That she's…?"
"Reconstructed. Incomplete. But born of flame," Max muttered. "She's not just code or glitch. She's what's left of… her."
The Final Message
As the memory faded, one last sentence echoed:
"Grim must reach the Memory Root. Or Oruin dies in silence."
The orb cracked. Light vanished.
Silence returned.
Back Above
The siblings sat outside the catacombs beneath a fractured moon.
No one spoke for a long time.
"They lied to the world," Max said.
"And to us," Tristan added.
"We change that now," Hadi muttered. "We bring her back. And burn down the Court's lies."
Rael stepped forward. "We'll help you."
"You sure?" Max asked. "This isn't royal business anymore."
"It is now," Seris said. "Because you didn't just save my life… you gave us truth."
Tristan gave her a half smile. "Careful. I like rebels."
She smiled back. "Careful. I'm worse than that."