The morning mist clung to the trees like reluctant ghosts, refusing to let go. Elara forged ahead through the forest, her cloak frayed and singed, yet her steps remained steady despite the weariness weighing down her bones. Each breath she took still carried a hint of smoke.
Behind her, Kai and Seren trailed quietly. The world around them felt unnaturally still. No cheerful birdsong, no whisper of the wind, just the soft drip of dew falling from charred leaves.
Finally, Kai broke the silence. "We need to take a break."
Elara kept moving. "We can't afford to stop."
"You're bleeding," he said, his voice sharp.
"You might not notice it, but I do. That fire of yours might have sealed the wound, but it hasn't healed you."
She turned to face him. "I'm okay."
He stepped closer, his jaw clenched. "Okay? You almost set the whole forest ablaze. You're trembling."
Elara's hands balled into fists. "What do you want me to do, Kai? Hide? Run until they catch us again? I can't act like I'm powerless anymore."
Seren stepped in between them, her voice calm yet firm. "That's not what he means, Elara. We just need a strategy, one that doesn't end with us dead before nightfall."
The tension faded, leaving only the sound of distant water. Somewhere ahead, a river whispered.
They continued walking until the trees parted, revealing a narrow gorge. A shattered bridge lay in ruins across the rocks below, and the remnants of a watchtower crumbled at the edge.
Elara climbed the slope, placing her hand on the cold, cracked stone. "This was one of my father's outposts," she said softly. "Before the rebellion. He used to bring me here when I was little."
Kai joined her. "What happened to it?"
She let out a hollow laugh. "The same fate as everything else …fire, betrayal, time."
They stepped into the ruined tower. Inside, moss clung to the walls, and a collapsed stairwell spiraled into darkness. Seren lit a lantern, its small flame flickering like a nervous heartbeat.
Kai knelt down to take a closer look at a bunch of old crates tucked away in the corner. As he peered inside, he discovered remnants of armor, tattered cloaks, and a half-rusted sword adorned with the royal sigil. He thoughtfully ran his thumb over the blade.
"Your father was getting ready for something," he remarked.
Elara nodded in agreement. "He believed the prophecy was coming to life, that the Crown of Ash would rise again. He thought it was a sign of hope." She paused, her gaze drifting to her hands. "But now, I think it means me."
Seren set the lantern down, her eyes wide with concern. "Elara… the prophecy said the Child of Ash could either save Eldoria or bring about its destruction. What if that choice isn't yours to make?"
The weight of her words lingered in the air.
"I can't accept that," Elara whispered. "If fate has written me into fire, then I'll rewrite it in light."
Kai studied her intently. There was something in her eyes, not madness, but a fierce conviction that could cut through anything. "If that's the case, you'll need allies," he said. "People who still stand by your bloodline."
"They were all killed," Seren said softly. "Not everyone," Kai countered. "The rebellion shattered the realm, but not everyone bowed to Vael. Some escaped east to the borderlands."
Elara's expression sharpened. "You seem to know quite a bit about where they went."
Kai hesitated, the silence stretching long enough for Seren to glance nervously between them.
Finally, he admitted, "Because I was one of them."
Elara's eyes widened. "You fought for the rebellion?"
He nodded, his jaw tight. "I did. Before I understood Vael's true intentions. Before I realized they would slaughter the royal family. I thought I was fighting to end tyranny, not to replace it with something worse."
The tension in the air thickened. Elara's voice dropped, trembling. "And when you found out?"
"I turned against them. That's why they want me dead just as much as they want you gone."
She looked at him, searching, furious, broken. Then she turned away. "So the man who swore to protect me is the same one who helped destroy my family."
He stepped forward, his voice low but filled with emotion. "I didn't know who you were when I made that promise. But I meant it then, and I still do."
Seren looked between them. "We can debate guilt later. Right now, we need to figure out our next move. East, like you suggested to the ruins?"
Elara hesitated, feeling the fire within her flare up again, both a warning and a beckoning.
"Yes," she finally replied. "The ruins of Solmar. My father always said that's where the First Flame first touched our world. If the spirit inside me truly originated there, maybe I can learn to master it before it masters me."
Kai let out a breath, the tension in his shoulders easing. "Then I'm coming with you."
Elara turned to him. "Even after everything I just revealed?"
He held her gaze steadily. "Especially after that. If I'm going to find peace with my past, it'll be by helping you fix it."
The firelight danced between them, casting their faces in a mix of gold and shadow.
Seren smiled softly. "Then it's decided. East, to the ruins."
Elara nodded, though her heart was anything but at ease. The forest beyond the tower seemed to vibrate, a deep, resonant energy that felt older than wind or magic. The First Flame stirred, restless.
That night, as they camped beneath the ruins, Elara found it hard to sleep. She sat close to the fading embers, watching them flicker like tiny hearts.
Kai approached quietly and settled down beside her. For a long moment, they sat in silence.
Finally, he spoke up, "You know they'll label you a monster now. News will spread quickly, the princess who burns."
Elara kept her eyes on the fire. "Let them. Monsters are what they've made me."
He studied her silhouette, the way the firelight danced in her hair. "You're not your father. Or your prophecy. You're so much more than what they say."
She turned to him, her voice now softer. "Then who am I, Kai?"
He paused before answering. "Someone who still has a choice."
His words settled into her like rain on smoldering coals, comforting, yet fleeting. The fire within her still curled and murmured, a reminder that both choice and fate were threads that could easily ignite.
When Kai finally slipped into slumber, Elara rose and ventured into the trees. The night air brushed against her skin, and for the first time since the blaze, she felt… at peace.
But then, a soft glow flickered ahead, not from a torch, but something more pure, pulsing from deep within the earth. She moved closer, kneeling down.
The ground beneath her hand was warm.
And beneath it, something stirred.
A voice, distant, ancient, unmistakably feminine. Child of Ash, why do you conceal your crown?
Elara's breath hitched. "Who are you?"
The light intensified, spilling up through the soil like molten gold.
I am what your blood remembers, the voice replied. And soon, I will rise again.
The glow dimmed, leaving Elara alone in the darkness , heart racing, the fire inside her resonating with something far more powerful than herself.
She was torn between awe and fear.
Perhaps both.
But as she turned back toward the camp, one truth stood out. The First Flame wasn't just beckoning her anymore.
It was awakening because of her.