The Rust Sparrow drifted through the Grave of Skygods, its sails sagging in the still air. Broken ships floated around them, their splintered masts like tombstones. Some wrecks glowed with cold blue flames; others pulsed with faint, eerie Embera light. The silence pressed down, broken only by the creak of the Sparrow's timbers.
Talli clutched the railing, her Echo Embera flickering. "This is where the Lost Guild died. No survivors. No tales."
Cragg snorted, his stone gauntlets scraping the deck. "They hid the truth."
Kael felt his Chaos sigil burn under his shirt—not a warning, but a pull. "Veylan sent us here. This place is his message."
Jinro's hands moved: It's alive.
A low hum rippled through the air, like a scream trapped in time.
The Dreadnought's Vision
Kael jumped onto a nearby wreck—a Guild dreadnought, its hull split, deck charred black. As his boots hit the wood, the world shattered.
A vision gripped him.
Skies flashed with silver lightning. Ships clashed, cannons thundering. Veylan stood at the center, black fire swirling, tearing the air apart. Guild Catalysts screamed as their Embera turned against them—one burst into flames, consumed by his own power.
Veylan's gaze pierced Kael through the chaos. "Find the Grave's heart," he said, voice sharp as a blade. "You'll know what to do."
Kael stumbled back to reality, Lyra's hand steadying him. "Another vision?" she asked, her voice tense.
"He wasn't just fighting," Kael said, breathing hard. "He was protecting something."
Cragg growled. "Protecting what?"
Talli pointed to a hatch belowdecks, her face pale. "Something's down there. It's… awake."
The Heart's Pulse
The hatch opened to a vault sealed with ancient runes—older than the Guilds, untouched by Flame or Tide. Kael touched the door. His Chaos sigil flared red, and the metal crumbled to dust.
Inside, a crystal shard floated, its fractured light pulsing like a heartbeat. The air hummed, just beyond hearing.
Cragg stepped back. "That's no relic. It's alive."
Talli whispered, "It sees us."
Kael reached for the shard—
—and the vault screamed.
Ghosts poured from the walls—soldiers, children, Guild masters—burning as their Embera poisoned them. A chained figure with glowing Chaos eyes chanted: "The Ninth Flame must fall… The Ninth Flame must fall…"
Silence slammed down.
The shard shot into Kael's hand, piercing his skin. Pain blazed, then power—Echo, a stolen Catalyst—surged through him. His Chaos sigil twisted, adapting to the new strength.
The dreadnought trembled. Something woke.
The Shadow's Test
A shadow dropped from the rafters—faceless, its chest scarred with a burned sigil. It moved like mist, silent and wrong.
Cragg's hammer swung, hitting air. Lyra's vines slashed through nothing. Jinro collapsed, blood dripping from his mouth.
Kael's Echo power buzzed. "It's not real," he said. "It's a trap."
The shard guided him. His body split—one Kael moved left, another charged right. The shadow hesitated, confused.
Kael struck, his fist glowing with Echo's light. The creature wailed—a silent scream—and dissolved.
The air cleared.
Above, clouds parted, revealing a burning eye in the sky. Watching.
Kael muttered, "Veylan's not done with me."
The Guild's Approach
Back on the Rust Sparrow, Lyra bandaged Jinro's wounds, her hands steady but her eyes fierce. "That shadow wasn't Guild," she said. "But they're near. I feel their runes."
Cragg hefted his hammer. "Good. I'm ready."
Talli sat cross-legged, her Echo Embera glowing. "The whispers are back. They say, 'The heart is the key, but the blade is the price.'"
Kael turned the crystal shard in his hand, its light fading. "The Grave's heart. This is Veylan's plan. But why me?"
Jinro, pale but sitting up, signed: To force a choice.
Kael's sigil pulsed, the Echo power raw in his chest. "Choose what?"
A blue flare lit the sky—Guild. Nine airships broke through the mist, their hulls sharp as blades. A skyskiff descended, bearing Ashera Vale's crest.
Lyra's vines tightened. "She's here."
Kael gripped the shard, its pulse matching his sigil. "We face her. On our terms."
Cragg grinned, cracking his knuckles. "Finally."
Talli stood, her voice firm. "The whispers warn: 'Beware the blade that cuts twice.'"
Kael nodded, eyes on the skyskiff. "Stay ready. It's not just Ashera."
The Watcher's Plan
On a distant, shattered island, Veylan stood beside a woman cloaked in violet fire, her gold mask gleaming. The air crackled with their power.
"He took the heart," Veylan said, his voice low.
The woman tilted her head, her voice sharp. "He's not strong enough. The blade will destroy him."
Veylan's eyes burned black. "Or make him."
He gazed into the flames, Kael's reflection flickering. "Choose wisely, spark," he whispered. "The Grave is just the start."