Heat rippled through my lungs like I'd swallowed molten steel. Every breath burned, scorching my throat and setting my chest on fire. Sweat erupted instantly across my skin, turning my clothes damp within seconds. The transition from the frigid mountain air to this inferno was so abrupt that my body couldn't process it.
"What the hell is this place?" I gasped, instinctively reaching for Frostbite. The dagger materialized in my palm, but something was wrong. Instead of the familiar cold pulse, I felt... nothing. The blade looked dull, its usual blue-white sheen replaced by a matte gray.
"Something's wrong with Frostbite," I muttered, staring at the weapon. I'd grown accustomed to its weight, its constant chill—a reassuring presence that had kept me alive through the frozen wasteland. Now it felt dead in my hand, just an ordinary piece of metal.
Behind me, Laina stumbled forward, her face already flushed red from the heat. Her black hair clung to her temples in damp tendrils, and she quickly stripped off her outer fur layer.
"It's like a furnace," she said, her violet eyes narrowing as she surveyed our surroundings.
Joran appeared last, his lean frame immediately tensing as he took in the sea of fire below us. His scout's instincts had him instantly scanning for threats, one hand already on his knife.
"The path narrows ahead," he observed, nodding toward where the stone walkway thinned to barely the width of a foot. "And there appear to be... fluctuations in the fire."
He wasn't wrong. The liquid fire below us wasn't static—it moved in waves, occasionally surging upward as if reaching for us. The heat was almost unbearable, making the air shimmer and distort our vision.
I concentrated on Frostbite again, willing it to activate, to provide even a hint of its usual cooling protection. Nothing happened.
"Damn it," I growled, frustration building. "It's like it's gone dormant."
Laina moved to stand beside me, peering at the dagger. "Maybe it can't function here. This is the Chamber of Flames, after all. Its opposite element."
I hadn't considered that. The daggers had seemed so powerful, so beyond the normal rules of this world. But perhaps even they had limitations. I dismissed Frostbite and summoned Heartseeker instead. The blade appeared with its usual crimson glint deep within the metal, but it felt different too—almost eager, pulsing with heat that matched our surroundings.
"At least one of them works," I said, testing the blade's edge with my thumb. "Though I'm not sure how useful it'll be against fire."
"We need to keep moving," Joran said, already inching forward along the path. "The trial isn't going to complete itself."
I nodded. "Let's go."
The stone beneath our feet was hot enough to feel through the soles of our boots. Each step required careful placement; the path was barely wide enough for single file movement, with no railings or supports to prevent a deadly fall into the fire below.
I took the lead, with Laina following and Joran bringing up the rear. The heat grew more intense as we progressed, the air so hot it hurt to breathe. My eyes stung, and my throat felt parched despite the sweat pouring down my face.
"Look there," Laina called, pointing ahead. "The path splits."
She was right. About thirty paces ahead, the stone walkway divided into three separate paths, each heading in a different direction. One continued straight ahead, another veered sharply left, and the third curved gently to the right.
"Which way?" I asked, pausing at the junction.
Joran studied each option with narrowed eyes. "The left path climbs higher, away from the fire. Might be cooler."
"The right one seems to descend closer to the surface," Laina observed. "That can't be good."
I weighed our options. The straight path maintained our current elevation, neither rising above the heat nor sinking closer to it. The left path, as Joran had noted, climbed upward—potentially offering relief from the worst of the heat. The right path dipped downward, bringing us dangerously close to the fire's surface.
Logic dictated we take the left path. But something about it felt too obvious, too convenient.
"What do you think this trial is testing?" I asked, turning to face my companions. "Each trial must have a purpose, something it's designed to challenge."
Laina wiped sweat from her brow, leaving a smudge of soot across her forehead. "Endurance, maybe? Seeing how long we can withstand the heat?"
Joran shook his head. "No, that would be too simple. These trials are supposed to test character, not just physical limits."
I stared at the three paths, thinking about what fire represented. Destruction? Power? Transformation?
"Courage," I said suddenly. "Fire represents courage—the willingness to face danger, to be burned."
"So... we take the right path?" Laina asked, eyeing the downward slope with apprehension. "The one that leads us closer to the fire?"
It was the most dangerous option, the one that every instinct warned against. But that was exactly why it felt right.
"Yes," I decided. "We go right."
Joran's expression tightened, but he nodded. "Your call."
We proceeded along the right-hand path, which gradually descended toward the fire's surface. The heat intensified with each step, becoming nearly unbearable. My skin felt tight, as if it might crack and peel away. My lungs struggled to extract oxygen from the scorching air.
About halfway down the path, a wall of flame suddenly erupted directly in front of us, blocking our way. I stumbled backward, nearly losing my balance on the narrow walkway.
"Now what?" Laina gasped, shielding her face from the intense heat.
I tried Frostbite again, summoning the dagger and willing it to activate, to push back against the flames. Still nothing—just dead metal in my hand.
"We have to go through it," I said, dismissing the useless blade.
"Through it?" Joran looked at me like I'd lost my mind. "That's suicide."
"It's a test of courage," I insisted. "We have to be willing to face the fire, not run from it."
Laina stared at the wall of flame, her violet eyes reflecting the dancing orange light. "There has to be another way. Maybe we chose the wrong path."
I shook my head. "No, this is the right path. I'm sure of it."
"How can you be so certain?" Joran demanded, sweat dripping from his chin. "This isn't just about courage—it's about survival."
I didn't have a good answer. It was just a feeling, an instinct. But I'd learned to trust those instincts, especially in the Domain.
"Wait," Laina said suddenly, her eyes widening. "Look at the fire. Really look at it."
I forced myself to focus on the wall of flame blocking our path. At first, all I saw was a chaotic mass of orange and red, shifting and dancing in the superheated air. But as I continued to stare, I noticed something strange—patterns within the flames, almost like...
"Words," I breathed. "There are words written in the fire."
Squinting through the heat haze, I could just make out glowing symbols etched within the flame itself. They weren't in any language I recognized, yet somehow I understood their meaning:
What burns but does not consume?
"It's a riddle," Laina said, excitement cutting through her exhaustion. "The trial isn't just about courage—it's about understanding."
Joran frowned. "What burns but doesn't consume? Fire always consumes."
"Not always," I said, thinking hard. "The sun burns but doesn't consume itself. At least not in human timescales."
"The stars," Joran suggested. "They burn for billions of years."
Laina shook her head. "Too literal. It must be something metaphorical. Passion burns but doesn't consume. Love, maybe?"
As they debated, I stared at the flames, watching how they moved. There was something almost liquid about their motion, like they were flowing rather than flickering. And then it hit me.
"It's not about what burns externally," I said slowly. "It's about what burns inside us."
Laina's eyes met mine, understanding dawning. "The spirit. The soul."
"Exactly. What burns within us but doesn't consume us? Our inner fire. Our will."
The moment the words left my mouth, the wall of flame parted like a curtain, revealing the continuation of the path beyond. A rush of slightly cooler air washed over us, bringing momentary relief.
"You did it," Joran said, genuine surprise in his voice.
"Come on, let's keep moving before it changes its mind."
We continued down the path, which now began to curve upward again, gradually rising above the sea of fire. The heat remained intense but no longer felt like it might cook us alive at any moment.
After what seemed like an eternity of careful steps and labored breathing, we reached a circular platform. In its center stood a pedestal of black stone, upon which rested a small, crystalline flame that burned without fuel.
"Is this the end of the trial?" Joran asked, eyeing the flame with suspicion.
I approached the pedestal cautiously. The crystalline flame didn't radiate heat like the sea of fire below—instead, it emitted a gentle warmth that felt almost soothing after the inferno we'd endured.
"I think we're supposed to take it," I said, reaching toward the flame.
"Wait," Laina grabbed my wrist. "Are you sure that's wise? It could be a trap."
I paused, considering. "The trial tested our courage and our understanding. Now it's testing our trust."
"Trust in what?" Joran asked.
"In ourselves. In the process." I gently pulled my hand free from Laina's grip. "Sometimes you have to embrace the fire to move forward."
Before either of them could object further, I closed my hand around the crystalline flame. Instead of burning me, it dissolved into my palm, sending a surge of warmth through my entire body. The sensation wasn't painful—it felt like drinking hot tea on a cold day, the heat spreading from my core to my extremities.
"Isaiah?" Laina asked, concern evident in her voice. "Are you alright?"
I nodded, flexing my fingers. "Better than alright. I feel... renewed."
As the words left my mouth, the platform beneath our feet began to shimmer. The sea of fire surrounding us faded, the heat dissipating like mist in the morning sun. In a matter of seconds, we found ourselves standing once again in the central chamber of the Temple, the column of blue light still extending upward into infinity.
"We did it," Laina breathed, checking herself for burns or injuries and finding none. "We completed the first trial."
I glanced at the doorway we'd just passed through, noting that the flame carvings now glowed with a soft orange light as the door slowly closed.
One down, five to go.