Kael stood before the gate of Ember Hollow, the winds of dawn brushing embers off his cloak. Behind him, the village still slumbered under the weight of secrets. Ahead lay the wilds—uncharted lands where myths whispered and magic slept, waiting to be stirred again.
Elara tightened the strap of her satchel. "You really think other flamebearers are out there?"
"I have to believe it," Kael said. "If the phoenix fire chose me, it didn't do it out of desperation. It did it because something old is waking up—and it needs more than one voice to carry it."
They rode out in silence, past the border cliffs where the mountains burned with faded runes, and into the veil of the northern wilds. This path, Nyra had warned, was untamed and watched by more than beasts.
But Kael wasn't afraid.
He had touched fire that remembered the beginning of time.
---
Three days into their journey, they reached the village of Grellon—a shattered place on the edge of the forest, where stone homes had crumbled and blackened like burned paper.
Elara dismounted first, eyes scanning the ruins. "This happened recently."
"Raiders?" Kael asked.
"No… something worse."
Charred symbols marked the doors, but not of any known tribe. Kael traced one with his fingers and felt a chill travel down his spine. Fire didn't do this.
It was something that devoured fire.
They pressed on, and at the village's heart, they found a survivor: a boy no older than twelve, hidden beneath an overturned cart. His eyes were wide with terror.
Kael knelt beside him. "We're not here to hurt you."
The boy stared at him—then at the faint flame glowing from Kael's palm—and trembled harder.
"They came… looking for that," the boy said, pointing. "The light."
"Who?" Elara crouched beside him.
"They wore black flame. Not like yours. Cold. Hungry."
Kael felt the weight of the past pressing on him. "What did they ask?"
"They wanted to know if the 'phoenix boy' had come this way. They knew your name."
Kael's jaw clenched. "The Court."
"They're tracking you," Elara said.
"No," Kael corrected grimly. "They're hunting me."
---
That night, they camped far from Grellon, hidden beneath the canopy of frost-covered pines. Kael couldn't sleep. His dreams were filled with cities in flames and eyes in the darkness.
He stared into the fire, remembering the phoenix queen—how she fought not just with power, but with hope. How even in death, she chose to pass on her flame.
He would not waste that gift running.
"You're thinking of going to them, aren't you?" Elara said, stirring from her bedroll.
Kael nodded. "If they're looking for me, I'll stop hiding. Let them come. I'll be ready."
"We're not strong enough yet."
"Then we become stronger."
She sat beside him, firelight playing across her face. "You said something back in Grellon. That the flame didn't choose you out of desperation. I think you're right. But what if… what if it chose you to finish the war she started?"
Kael stared at the flames. "Then I'll need an army."
"And where do we find one?"
He looked to the stars—silent beacons above the broken world. "We find the forgotten. The ones like me. And we remind them what it means to burn."
Elara smiled faintly. "Then we start at the Ember Caves. If there are any legends left breathing, they'll be there."
Kael stood, determination blazing behind his eyes. "Then we ride at dawn."
And as the fire crackled and sparks rose to the sky, a new promise was forged.
He would not just carry the flame.
He would ignite the world.