đź“– Chapter 11
Part 2: The Feather Burns
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The altar pulsed.
As Kael's fingertips brushed the obsidian surface, a soft heat radiated from the carved letters of his name as though the stone recognized him.
Lireen stood frozen. "This… this is impossible."
Kael didn't move. "I've never been here before."
"But it knows you," she whispered.
The feather in his other hand flared suddenly blinding gold.
The flame didn't burn… but it sang. A strange, echoing hum that resonated in Kael's chest, like it was tuning itself to his heartbeat.
Then…
> "Blood of the Heir, awaken."
"Flame of Origin, respond."
Kael gasped as pain exploded through his arm. His veins lit up again, but this time in crimson and gold. The symbol on the back of his hand split open—like a second eye—and light spilled out.
Lireen cried, "Kael—stop! Whatever this is, it's feeding off you!"
But he couldn't stop now.
He fell to his knees, clutching his chest. The flame had entered him. Not metaphorically it literally pierced his skin and began to fuse with him.
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Inside his mind, he saw another world.
Deserts of ash. Towers shattered. Oceans that burned instead of flowed.
A mirror floating in the sky... and in it, a reflection of himself without a face.
> "You are not born, Kael. You are reclaimed."
"You are a second chance."
And then the reflection whispered…
> "The Feather was never meant to fly. It was a blade."
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Kael's eyes snapped open.
He was lying on the floor. Lireen was beside him, panting.
"You blacked out!" she sobbed. "You weren't breathing—your body was—was glowing like fire!"
Kael sat up slowly.
His skin no longer bore the golden lines but now, across his chest, a faint circular burn mark glowed just beneath the collar of his shirt. A seal. Or maybe... a brand.
"I saw something," he muttered. "Another world. A mirror. My reflection it had no face."
Lireen grabbed his shoulder. "Kael… your voice changed."
He blinked. "What?"
"You're speaking in Old Tongue." Her voice trembled. "You've never learned that. No one has, not in centuries."
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Kael stood.
The room had shifted. What was once an empty vault now had marks etched across the walls fiery lines that pulsed with low light.
And in the back corner… a pedestal.
On it sat a second feather.
But this one was black.
Not dark grey. Pitch black.
"Two feathers," Kael whispered. "Light and shadow."
He reached for it.
Lireen stepped forward in panic. "Wait—Kael, please! This could be"
But the moment his fingers touched the dark feather…
The entire chamber screamed.
A wind rushed in from nowhere. The pedestal cracked. The walls rippled with runes of flame. A shadow leapt from the feather and wrapped around Kael's wrist like a shackle.
And then... everything went still.
> "Second seal… broken."
> "Curse of Duality… accepted."
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Kael fell backwards, coughing. His hand now bore two sigils one golden, one black. They overlapped, pulsing.
Lireen kneeled beside him, eyes wide. "I… I don't know what's happening to you."
He swallowed, voice dry. "I think I'm becoming what I was… before."
"…Before you were born?"
He nodded.
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Later, back in his room, Kael stared into the mirror.
This time… it didn't show his reflection.
Just an empty space.
Not darkness. Not light. Just… nothing.
The mirror cracked.
Kael whispered, "…I'm erasing."
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Suddenly a knock. Sharp. Urgent.
Lireen flinched. "The Council."
Indeed.
Three robed figures stood at the door. Their eyes burned with suspicion.
"Kael Rivenhart," one of them said, "You are summoned. Immediately."
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🕯️ To be continued in Part 3 – Echoes in the Blood...
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đź“Ł Teaser & CTA:
> đź“– Part 2: The Feather Burns
Kael has touched the second feather.
The seal has burned into him and now, the Council wants answers.
But what happens when the answers… are buried in blood?
đź’¬ Like, comment, and vote to help Kael's truth reach more hearts!
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