The tremor didn't stop—it deepened.
The Temple of Cinders groaned around them, as though something massive was shifting beneath the foundation. Dust rained from the ceiling, and the temperature dropped—not with cold, but with an ancient dread that wrapped around Emberlynn's spine like a noose.
Malphas stepped in front of her, his shadows rising again.
"Stay behind me."
"What is that?" Emberlynn asked, pulse pounding.
"The seal. Or rather… what's chained to it."
Another rumble. The floor beneath the pedestal cracked, splitting open like dry skin. From within, a sickly green glow pulsed upward, spilling shadows across the walls.
Then came the sound.
A low, rasping breath—as if something long asleep was inhaling for the first time in centuries.
Emberlynn clutched her stomach. Pain twisted through her—an echo from the orb's touch still lingering in her bones. The mark on her shoulder throbbed.
"It's calling to me," she whispered.
Malphas turned sharply. "Don't answer it."
"I'm not trying to!" But the connection was there—thick, invisible threads pulling at her soul.
From the split stone, a hand rose.
Or what used to be a hand.
It was skeletal, twisted with black veins that pulsed like they were filled with liquid fire. Long claws scraped the edge of the opening, and with a shudder, a creature began to pull itself from the depths.
It had no eyes, no flesh—just charred bone and shadows coiled tight around it like armor. But it smiled.
Malphas raised his hand, summoning a lance of obsidian fire and hurling it at the creature's chest.
The blast hit. For a second, silence.
Then the creature laughed.
The sound was horrible. Like rusted metal dragged across stone.
"Ah, Malphas. Still hiding behind borrowed magic."
"Still alive, Azroth?" Malphas replied coolly. "Pity."
The creature—Azroth—dragged itself fully into the chamber. Its body was ten feet tall, shaped like a malformed giant, but fluid, constantly shifting.
"You should not have brought her here," Azroth hissed. "She is still unripe."
"She is stronger than you think."
"I was there when her ancestor burned," Azroth said, eyes fixing on Emberlynn—or rather, the space where her soul shimmered. "I watched Elari bleed for centuries. This one will scream the same."
Emberlynn stepped forward before Malphas could stop her. "Elari didn't scream. She fought. And I'm not her."
"No," Azroth murmured. "You're less."
Malphas snapped. A wall of flame surged between Azroth and Emberlynn, but the creature didn't flinch.
Instead, it lunged.
Malphas tackled Emberlynn to the ground just as claws slashed through the fire, grazing the side of his chest. Blood—black and silver—splattered the stones.
"Malphas!"
"I'm fine," he growled.
The temple shuddered again.
Emberlynn reached for the mark on her shoulder. It pulsed, burning beneath her fingertips. Her heartbeat synced with it.
"Give me your hand," she said.
Malphas blinked. "What?"
"Just trust me!"
He took her hand, and the moment their skin touched, light erupted from her mark.
A dome of flame shot outward, slamming into Azroth and pinning him to the far wall. The demon howled, his shadows peeling back like burnt paper.
"How?" he screamed.
Emberlynn's voice was different now—stronger, older. "She marked me. And through her… I mark you."
Azroth writhed, then vanished in a blast of ash.
Silence.
The flames around them dimmed. Emberlynn collapsed to her knees, chest heaving. Her skin glowed faintly.
Malphas crouched beside her, watching her with a strange look.
"What?" she asked breathlessly.
"That was a sealing spell."
"I don't know any sealing spells."
"You do now."
He touched her cheek. "You're starting to awaken. The temple recognized you. And now… so do the enemies buried in its bones."
She shivered. "He said I was unripe."
"You are. But ripening fast."
Emberlynn frowned. "What was he? Another demon?"
Malphas shook his head. "Azroth was once a guardian. Twisted by the seal's poison. He was meant to protect the Key… not destroy it."
She closed her eyes. "Everything about this world is upside down."
"Not everything," Malphas said, rising. "You're still standing."
"Barely."
He offered her his hand again.
She took it.
As they stepped out of the chamber, the temple groaned once more. Emberlynn looked back one last time.
The orb was gone.
But something had changed inside her.
She wasn't just the Key anymore.
She was a fuse, lit and burning.
And something in the darkness was waiting for her to explode.