Location: Velthar Royal Chambers – Midbattle. Smoke and silence twisting between life and death.
Final Phase – The Truth in the Ash
The assassin rose from the cracked marble, her mask shattered.
Her eyes blazed—not with flame, but with voidfire. Her core pulsed dark purple, veins webbed with Court sigils.
"Do you know why they sent me, Flameborn?" she rasped, blood trailing down her lip. "Because I am what you were meant to become."
She raised her arms. Magic surged.
Twin specters of flame and shadow twisted above her—flame stolen from the king's dying ether.
"They've been feeding off his core," Sparks whispered from above. "Twisting it into fuel for a mirror flame."
Seris screamed as the king arched, a burning glyph forming on his chest.
"If that completes," Grim said, eyes narrowing, "he dies—and becomes hers."
The Fight Reignites
Grim surged forward. No tricks. Just raw, forged fury.
His sword flared—his Kindle core pushing past its natural limit. It hurt.
"She's stronger than us," Sparks said. "But she's not tethered."
"Then anchor me," Grim growled.
Sparks expanded—her glitching form syncing with his core.
A glow burst from his back. Not wings. Not fire.
A burning crest—resembling five stars woven into a crown.
The assassin screamed as her mirror flames flickered.
Sparks Unleashed
In a blur, Sparks descended. Her form glitched—flickered—then sharpened.
Her voice layered with two tones—hers… and the forgotten soul buried within her.
"You tried to erase me once. I remember now."
She summoned her energy beast—a glowing lion made of golden lightning and fragmented code.
It roared, slammed into the assassin—knocking her back against the throne wall.
Seris gasped. The king's body was twitching—his core pulsing erratically.
Split Decisions
"He's dying," Seris cried. "If we don't stabilize the flame within—he won't come back as himself."
Grim moved toward him, hand glowing.
The assassin rose again.
"Touch him—and you'll die with him."
Max, Hadi, and Ayesha burst into the room just in time. Hadi launched a beam of chaotic pink light, slamming the assassin across the chamber.
Max threw down a shadow ward to shield the king.
But it wasn't enough.
The king's flame flickered—seconds away from collapse.
The Final Act
Grim kneeled. Placed a hand on the king's chest.
"His flame is too corrupted," Sparks said. "If you try to bind him with your core, it'll drain you."
"And?" Grim said.
"You'll lose the progress you made," Sparks snapped. "Back to Flicker. Maybe worse."
He didn't hesitate.
"Better me than another kingdom gone."
He channeled.
The king gasped. Flame surged. Sparks formed a seal around them both—stabilizing. Burning. Binding.
The glyph shattered.
The assassin screamed—light blasting from her own chest. Her connection severed.
Max darted forward—shadow blade finding its mark.
"Play with flame… get burned."
She collapsed.
Aftermath
Grim collapsed, coughing smoke. His eyes dimmed. Core... faded.
Sparks hovered beside him, exhausted.
"You idiot," she said quietly. "You really did it."
"Wasn't going to let her win," he muttered. "Besides..."
"What?"
"You were watching."
Sparks glitched again—this time like a hiccup of laughter.
The King Lives
Hours later, the king rose in bed—slowly, groggily. Seris and Rael stood guard.
"I remember the fire," he whispered. "And the boy who walked into it."
Grim stirred nearby. Max stepped beside him.
"Rest, brother. We've won. For now."
Outside the palace, Velthar guards hunted traitorous nobles by torchlight.
And above it all, a banner of silver and flame unfurled again—the old crest of Velthar… now protected by fire once more.