> Location: Ruins of Veyra, Coordinates Reconstructed from Flame-Memory Glyph
Atmosphere: High Resonance Zone | Thread Instability: Minimal (Protected Zone)
The sky above the basin was unnaturally quiet.
No wind.
No birds.
Only the faint hum of ancient soundstone—structures shaped by tone, not tool—shimmering faintly in the dusk.
Tian Xue and Jiang Han stood on the edge of a cliff overlooking the ruins of Veyra.
"It shouldn't be here," Tian Xue said.
Jiang didn't answer.
Because deep within him, the flame was singing.
---
The City That Remembered Itself
As they descended into the heart of Veyra, Jiang noticed something strange: the structures were still intact.
No rubble. No erosion.
But everything was frozen in stillness.
Stone arches that defied geometry. Roads etched in spiraling glyph-loops. Pools of soundwater—liquid used to store flame resonance—still glowed softly.
"Why isn't it broken?" Tian Xue murmured.
Jiang closed his eyes.
> "Because someone still remembers it."
He knelt beside a glyph-etched plinth.
His flame responded instantly, lighting the inscription in faint blue.
Words rose from it—spoken in a voice not of this time:
> "Here lies the resonance of those who burned with sorrow, but never screamed."
---
The Guardian Awakes
Then they heard it.
A low growl—not beast, not machine.
Something in between.
From the courtyard beyond, a shape emerged from beneath the temple's shadow:
> A soulpet.
Taller than any Jiang had seen—sleek and feline, with antlers etched in harmonized flame thread. Its eyes shimmered with mirrored runes.
But what struck Jiang most was its emotion.
Not hunger.
Not hostility.
Hope.
It stared at him. Took a step closer. Its threads surged with sudden recognition.
Then it bowed its head.
Tian Xue's eyes widened. "It thinks you're…"
Jiang whispered: "Its master."
---
The Echo of Master Veyren
Memories struck like thunder.
Jiang staggered as not his life played behind his eyes:
> A man, cloaked in sonic flame, taming the soulpet in a symphony chamber.
A war. A sacrifice.
"You'll guard the city if I fall," the man had said.
"But if a flame ever sings like mine… protect it."
The beast—the Lamereon—growled again, lowering itself fully to one knee.
Jiang stepped forward, brushing its antler.
"I'm not Veyren," he said aloud.
"But I remember him."
---
The Temple Core
Guided by the Lamereon, they entered the innermost sanctuary.
There, floating in still air, was an orb of crystalized toneflame—the last stored memory of Veyra.
It pulsed at Jiang's approach.
Then spoke in Veyren's voice:
> "If you've come this far, then the Sovereigns have not succeeded."
> "And you… flamebearer… are the final verse."
Tian Xue whispered, "It's another anchor."
Jiang reached out, palm trembling.
> "Then let the world remember."
The orb cracked open.
Flame surged—
And far away, Emberveil's Monolith flared in answer.