The Fire Seal did not open.
It waited.
The massive stone door at the heart of Ashfall glowed like a dying star, its surface covered in shifting runes that pulsed in time with Kael's heartbeat. The cultists were gone, swallowed by the forest of twisted, ember-leafed trees, but the air still vibrated with their presence—as if the island itself remembered their voices.
Kael stood inches from the seal, heat radiating across his skin. His reflection shimmered in the molten patterns carved into the stone. For a moment, he thought he saw another version of himself staring back—older, eyes burning like twin suns.
He stepped back, shaken.
Lira placed a gentle hand on his arm. "It's responding to you. But it's not ready."
"Or I'm not," Kael whispered.
Brakka surveyed the ruins, his jaw tight. "Whatever this place is, it's a beacon. We linger, more of them will come."
Rowan leaned against a cracked pillar, twirling a dagger. "So, we poke the ancient fire door and run?"
Brakka shot him a look. "We leave. Now."
Reluctantly, Kael turned away from the seal. Each step felt like tearing himself from a part of his soul. The warmth in his chest dulled as he followed the others back through the glowing forest.
But the island was not finished with him.
As they descended toward the shoreline, the ground trembled beneath their feet. The red veins in the cliffs flared, spreading like cracks in heated glass. A deep, distant rumble echoed from the island's core.
Lira froze. "The seal is reacting."
Before anyone could answer, the earth split open behind them.
From the chasm rose a creature of living magma and stone, its body dripping fire like molten tears. Its eyes burned with the same crimson glow as the Fire Seal.
Rowan's face went pale. "That is not on the welcome brochure."
Brakka drew his sword. "Guardian."
The creature roared, the sound vibrating through Kael's bones. Flames erupted around it, scorching the trees to ash.
Kael felt the fire inside him surge in response—wild, desperate, calling to its kin.
"No," he breathed, gripping his chest. "Not again."
The guardian charged.
Brakka slammed his blade into the ground, stone walls rising to slow the creature's advance. Lira summoned torrents of water, hissing into steam as they struck the molten body. Rowan darted through the chaos, wind swirling around his blades as he struck at glowing cracks in the creature's armor.
It wasn't enough.
The guardian smashed through the stone, sending Brakka flying. A wave of heat knocked Rowan to the ground.
Lira cried out as the steam burned her hands.
Kael stood trembling.
If he lost control, he could destroy them.
If he did nothing, they would die.
He closed his eyes.
This time, he didn't push the fire away.
He listened to it.
He felt its rhythm—its hunger, its pain, its longing to burn but also to protect.
Kael opened his eyes, and the flames within him changed.
They no longer roared.
They sang.
A ring of crimson light formed around him, spinning slowly. He raised his hands, guiding the fire like a living thing. The heat did not scorch him—it flowed through him.
He stepped forward.
The guardian hesitated, as if sensing something it had not felt in centuries.
Kael extended his palm.
"Go back to sleep," he whispered.
A beam of pure flame shot forward—not destructive, but cleansing. It struck the guardian's chest, where the Fire Seal's symbol glowed faintly.
The creature froze.
Cracks of light spread across its body. With a final, echoing roar, it shattered into fragments of cooling stone and fading embers.
Silence fell.
Kael collapsed, breath ragged.
Lira rushed to his side. "Kael, look at me. You're okay."
He nodded weakly. "I didn't lose myself."
Brakka stared at the remains of the guardian. "You commanded it."
Kael shook his head. "I understood it."
The Fire Seal pulsed once more—then dimmed.
They fled the island as the ground continued to tremble, barely reaching the Ember Tide before Ashfall vanished behind a wall of steam and falling ash.
As the sails filled with wind, Kael watched the island fade into the mist.
He knew he would return.
Night fell heavy and silent.
Kael sat alone in the cabin, staring at his hands. The warmth inside him felt different now—less like a curse, more like a burden he could choose to carry.
A soft knock.
Rowan leaned against the doorframe. "So… fire messiah."
Kael huffed. "Don't."
Rowan's smile faded. "You scared me back there."
"Me too."
They stood in silence.
Brakka's voice echoed from the deck. "Land ahead. Port of Caelum."
Kael felt a strange pull again—faint, distant, like a second ember calling from far away.
Another seal.
Another choice.
The flames had not finished with him.
They never would.