"Every fire begins as warmth. But when the heart forgets its limits, warmth turns into hunger."
The morning was quiet, too quiet.No birds, no voices, only the faint crackle of something deep under the soil.Kael and Lira walked along a ridge overlooking a dying forest. The trees were gray and leafless, their bark carved with red veins that pulsed faintly like open wounds.
Lira pressed her hand to a trunk and winced. "It's spreading faster. The land's burning from the inside out."
Kael didn't answer. His jaw was tight, his eyes hollow. The warmth in his chest — once small — now felt like a second heartbeat.
thump… thump… thump.
He could almost hear it whisper:
"Feed me."
By noon, they reached a small town half-buried in ash. People ran in panic.The sky above the rooftops shimmered with heat — a living wave of fire that danced without smoke.
Lira ran forward. "We have to help them!"
Kael followed, sword in hand, but something in him trembled. The heat felt… familiar. It called to him like a voice he had missed.
A child stumbled near him, crying, his clothes catching fire. Kael reached out — and the flames died instantly, as if bowing before him.
Lira gasped. "You can control it now?"
Kael's voice was low. "I think it's listening."
He turned toward the burning sky, raised his hand — and the fire obeyed.It twisted and coiled, moving away from the houses, swirling like a red storm above the valley. The people stared, whispering in awe.
Lira's heart filled with hope. "You're doing it!"
But then something changed.The fire didn't stop. It began to spin faster, growing darker — red turning to black, heat turning to rage.
Kael's eyes widened. "I… can't hold it!"
The wind howled. The ground cracked. The black fire turned toward the village.
Lira screamed, "Kael, stop!"
He fell to his knees, clutching his head. The voice inside him roared:
"Why stop saving when you can remake?"
And for one terrible instant, Kael believed it.
The sky exploded. Flames poured down like rain.
When the smoke cleared, half the town was gone — melted into glass and ash.Kael stood in the center, unharmed but trembling, the sword in his hand glowing faintly red. His eyes were no longer human — they burned.
Lira crawled toward him, coughing, her face streaked with soot. "Kael… what have you done?"
He looked at her — and for the first time, fear filled his eyes. "I didn't mean to. I swear I didn't—"
She reached for him, but the air between them shimmered with heat. His skin radiated fire. She pulled back, tears in her eyes.
"Kael," she whispered, "you're burning."
He dropped his sword and fell to his knees. "Make it stop. Please, Lira, make it stop."
For hours, she tried everything she knew — healing runes, water charms, whispered prayers.Nothing worked. The fire in him wasn't on the surface — it was alive inside him, breathing through his veins.
At last, she remembered something: a story the elder at the Heart of the World had told her.
"There is one who heals not with water or magic, but with memory — the Echo Healer, who lives in the Valley of Silence."
Lira's hands shook. "Kael, there's someone who might help. But we have to reach her before it's too late."
He barely nodded, his voice weak. "If I hurt anyone else—"
"You won't," she said firmly. "I'll stop you before you do."
Her words were soft, but her heart broke as she said them.
They walked through the night. Kael grew worse — his skin fever-hot, his breath heavy. The flames no longer hid beneath his hands; they slipped through cracks in his skin like living threads of light.
Lira tried to guide him, whispering, "Stay with me, Kael. Just a little longer."
But in his mind, another voice answered:
"She doesn't understand. You're not sick — you're becoming."
Kael gritted his teeth. "I said stop!"
Lira froze. "Kael?"
He turned toward her — his eyes glowing faintly gold. The ground at his feet began to smoke.
"Kael, please—"
He stepped back, trembling. "Lira… I can't control it!"
And before he could finish, the fire burst out of him like a scream. Trees caught fire. The night exploded into light.
Lira raised her hands, chanting words of protection. A wall of light flared, holding back the flames just enough. But when it ended, Kael was on the ground, shaking, his clothes scorched.
He looked up at her with hollow eyes. "It's inside me. It wants to live through me."
Lira knelt beside him, tears spilling down her cheeks. "Then I'll fight it with you. Even if it means burning too."
He tried to smile, but his voice broke. "You shouldn't have to."
She pressed her forehead to his. "I chose to."
They sat there, surrounded by the quiet ashes of the forest. The stars above were faint — almost gone.
Kael's fire had saved lives and destroyed them in the same breath.And though he was alive, something in him had cracked — a fracture between the man and the flame.
Lira closed her eyes, whispering,
"Please… don't take him from me."
The night answered with silence.
"Some fires can be tamed. Others must be carried — no matter how heavy the burn."
Their path to the Valley of Silence would begin at dawn, and every step would test the line between love and destruction.