Location: Womb of Flame – Inner Sanctum
POV: Ashren Vale
Ashren's body trembled—not from fear or exhaustion, but from sheer containment.
He wasn't holding back for strategy anymore.
He was holding back because something ancient inside him was waking up.
---
The Price of Power
Vauryx hurled him against the obsidian wall for the third time. It cracked on impact, sending a fissure of fire snaking through the cavern. Ashren coughed, tasting blood and cinder.
"You bleed like a man," Vauryx taunted. "You scream like a god. But you break like all of them."
Ashren pushed himself up, eyes glowing. "Then break me again. See what's left."
The First Flame answered. Not with words—but with release.
Ashren's body ignited.
But not like before.
This time, the fire bled silver.
---
The Forgotten Form
His skin shimmered with ancestral glyphs, long buried in his bloodline. Flames lifted from his shoulders like wings, and when he stepped forward, the stone melted beneath his feet.
Vauryx paused.
Not in fear.
In recognition.
"You've awakened the Inheritance," the ancient tyrant whispered.
Ashren's voice split the air like thunder.
"No. I've become it."
He lunged.
Faster than light.
And struck.
---
Clash of Legacies
The chamber became chaos.
Silver flame collided with crimson inferno, and the echoes of their battle shattered the ruins far above. The temple collapsed further as molten ceilings caved in, and magma rose in waves.
Ashren struck Vauryx in the chest with both fists, channeling not just flame—but remembrance.
And for the first time…
Vauryx staggered.
---
The Memory Flame
The impact unleashed something beyond fire.
It tore open a vision—flashing into Ashren's mind:
A young Vauryx kneeling before an altar, begging for salvation.
A pact sealed in divine betrayal.
A line of Flamebearers, slaughtered generation by generation, each bearing the mark Ashren now wore.
He gasped as it faded.
"You were one of us."
Vauryx snarled. "I was better."
Ashren's eyes narrowed. "No. You were afraid."
---
Final Scene – The Earth Cracks
Above, Caelis and Seris reached the temple ruins—only to watch the land split wide open.
From the depths, a roar erupted.
Then a column of silver flame exploded into the sky.
Seris fell to her knees, eyes wide with awe.
"He's... changing."
Caelis drew his sword.
"Then so are we."