Chapter Summary:
As the Council closes in with their schemes, Echo is forced to confront Kael about the arranged marriage contract bearing both their names. The secrets Kael has kept—and those Echo still hides—bubble to the surface, while sparks of rebellion begin flickering beneath Emberhold's polished floors. But the most dangerous threat may not be the Council… it may be the very power inside her.
Chapter 79: Bloodlines and Bargains
The war room felt colder now.
Echo sat alone, the marriage contract Soren had laid before her still spread across the table like a blade. The parchment shimmered with Council seals—magic woven into every line. Binding magic. Old magic. The kind that couldn't be undone once signed.
And at the bottom:
Kael Ashryn.
Echo Vale.
Her hand curled into a fist.
There was only one person who could explain this.
She found Kael in the East Wing training yard, shirt damp with sweat, sword glinting in the torchlight. His strikes were precise, sharp, and brutal—like a man trying to slash something out of himself.
Echo didn't wait.
She stepped into the ring, her voice like flint. "There's a contract."
Kael stilled.
He didn't have to ask.
"You saw it."
She nodded.
"Did you know?" Her voice cracked—not with weakness, but betrayal.
He lowered the blade.
"I knew they'd try. I didn't know they'd use me."
"You didn't tell me."
"I didn't want to drag you into my past."
Echo stepped closer. "We're already there, Kael. I'm already in it."
Silence stretched between them.
Only the quiet hum of the training grounds remained.
Finally, Kael dropped his sword.
"I was ten when they burned my name," he said, voice quiet. "I spent the next decade trying to be someone else. Kael Vane. Cold, composed. Just another CEO. It worked. Until you."
She swallowed. "What do you mean?"
"I came to Emberhold to protect what was left of my family's legacy. But you…" He met her gaze. "You made me want something more."
The words struck her like lightning.
But she wasn't ready to melt yet.
Echo pulled the parchment from her coat and slammed it onto the bench beside them.
"They want us to marry. For control. Not for us."
"I won't sign it," Kael said instantly.
Echo studied him. "Even if it could save Emberhold?"
"Not if it costs you."
Her chest twisted painfully.
Because even now, she didn't know what scared her more—losing control, or letting someone love her for who she was.
She nodded slowly. "Good. Because if you had agreed, I would've set the Council Hall on fire."
He smirked. "That's why I love you."
Her breath caught.
"What?"
Kael blinked, then froze.
His mouth opened.
Closed.
Then: "I—"
"Say it again," Echo whispered.
He swallowed. "I love you."
The world went silent.
And then Echo kissed him.
Hard. Fierce. Fire meeting frost.
Later, under the stone arches of her quarters, Echo paced.
The ember crystal pulsed on her desk, glowing in time with her heartbeat. Every time she touched it now, the power flared brighter.
Faster.
Hotter.
Wilder.
And she was starting to hear it.
Whispers.
Not voices. Not exactly. Just… impressions. Emotion. Flame-made thought.
It spoke of hunger. Of legacy. Of dominion.
A knock broke the trance.
Nerya entered, face pale. "You need to see this."
Echo followed her down to the crypt vaults—now turned rebel cells.
Inside: nearly a dozen people, kneeling. Fireborn, Cold-marked, halfbloods. Wearing no symbols. Carrying no weapons.
But all with the same expression: desperation.
One stood. "Lady Echo. We heard what you did. The Void didn't take you."
"No," Echo said. "It didn't."
"That means you're the one."
Echo frowned. "The one what?"
The woman smiled faintly. "The Flame Queen reborn."
Echo staggered back a step.
"This is madness," she said, but her voice wavered.
Nerya looked at her, uncertain. "They're not lying. There've been rumors. You survived the unmaking. The old texts say only one bound to the True Flame could do that."
"I'm not a queen," Echo whispered.
"No," the woman replied. "But you will be."
Echo's breath caught.
Because deep inside her chest, the ember pulsed—
Like it agreed.
That night, Echo stood atop Emberhold's tallest tower, staring at the stars. Her hair whipped in the wind, her thoughts in chaos.
She could feel the world shifting.
The Council wanted her controlled.
The rebels wanted her crowned.
Kael wanted her free.
And she…
She wasn't sure what she wanted anymore.
But she knew one thing:
No one would decide for her.
Far below, in the Council's temporary embassy wing, Soren met with a cloaked figure.
"She's changing," he said grimly. "The Void made her something else."
The figure nodded. "The Ashryn boy is awakening too. That's a problem."
"Then we remove him."
"And Echo?"
Soren hesitated.
Then:
"We let her burn. And when she does… we'll claim the ashes."