The Crown of Ashes hovered before Alexander, suspended in the fracture of the Hourglass. Every grain of golden sand swirled around it like a storm of suns collapsing into themselves. It pulsed in rhythm with his heartbeat, calling to him.
His hand trembled as fire licked his skin, drawn to the impossible weight of the crown. It wasn't a question of whether he could take it—he was meant to.
The Hourglass whispered.
"One flame to rule eternity. One fire to devour the dark."
Alexander's chest heaved, sweat dripping down his brow despite the void's freezing air. He could feel Isabella's voice echoing in his soul, desperate, pleading.
Don't take it. That's not freedom—it's another prison.
His fist hovered inches away, his fire clawing toward it like a starving beast.
---
Isabella's Defiance
Chains still clung to her wrists, but Isabella wrenched against them, the cuts burning as shadow and fire carved into her skin. The Endless King towered above her, his crown of shadows unraveling into jagged blades that reached for her throat.
"Stay back," he thundered, his voice shaking the chamber. "If he wears the Crown of Ashes, then he becomes me. And there will be no end to the fire."
Her voice broke as she screamed back. "I'd rather burn beside him than bow to you!"
With a final desperate surge, the chains cracked and snapped, scattering black fragments across the floor. Blood ran down her arms, but she didn't stop. She hurled herself toward the glowing fracture where Alexander reached for the crown.
---
The Crown Reacts
The Hourglass cracked wider as Isabella neared, the Crown blazing brighter than before. Flames and shadows entwined into a spiral, reaching outward to both of them.
The whisper shifted.
"One flame is not enough. The fire was never meant for one. Two must burn, or all will end."
Alexander froze, his breath ragged. He turned toward her, his fire wavering like a dying star. "Isabella… what if this is the only way?"
Her steps faltered, but she forced herself forward. Tears streaked her face, glistening in the fractured light. "Then take it with me. Not alone. Never alone."
The Crown pulsed. For the first time, it hesitated, as if listening.
---
The Endless King's Rage
The Endless King roared, his shadow crown splitting into countless black spears that hurled themselves at the both of them. "NO! The throne is mine! The fire is mine! You cannot share eternity—it devours all!"
Alexander's flames surged in defiance, forming a wall of burning gold that shattered the first wave of spears. But it wasn't enough. More came, endless, sharper, faster.
Isabella reached him, pressing her bloodied hand over his. Their flames collided—not just fire and shadow, not just man and woman, but something older, something forbidden.
The Crown responded instantly.
It blazed with fire so bright the void itself screamed.
---
The Unstoppable Moment
The Hourglass split down the center with a sound like a world cracking apart. Golden sands cascaded outward, dissolving everything they touched.
And in the midst of it all, the Crown of Ashes descended onto both their hands. Fire seared flesh and soul alike, branding them with its eternal mark.
Alexander and Isabella cried out together—not in pain, but in something larger, something that shook the Endless King to his core.
The shadows recoiled. The throne cracked. The King fell back, eyes wide with terror.
"No… no! It was never meant to be shared! You'll unmake everything!"
But it was too late. The Crown had chosen.
Two flames now burned as one.