The spiral staircase beneath the desert opened into a void lit by flickering torches—torches that hadn't been touched in centuries but burned now as though awaiting their return.
Amina stood at the edge, heart racing, the boy's hand still wrapped in hers.
Kai peered over her shoulder. "Are we really doing this?"
Ashar drew his blade. "There's no turning back now."
Lumeah stepped forward, voice solemn. "You cross this threshold, and the Flame within you will never rest again."
Amina took a deep breath. "Then let it burn."
Descent into the Forgotten
They descended in silence.
The walls were carved with moving glyphs—symbols that shimmered when touched. The closer they got to the tomb's heart, the warmer the air became. Not stifling heat—but the warmth of life, memory, and pain.
As they reached the final step, the path split in three.
Three doors.
Three flames.
Lumeah's eyes widened. "A trial."
Ashar scowled. "Of course it's a trial. What's the catch?"
Amina moved toward the middle door. The flame above it turned blue.
"The Flame recognizes her," whispered the boy.
Each door responded to a different presence. Kai's flame turned silver. Ashar's turned black.
Lumeah stayed still. Her flame didn't react at all.
"I don't belong here," she said. "Only the chosen may walk forward."
Ashar's Path: Echo of the Warrior
Ashar stepped into the black-lit door. The moment he crossed, the door vanished behind him.
Inside was a chamber of war.
His childhood home.
He stood before his younger self, blade in hand, face streaked with tears.
"You left her," the boy whispered. "You always leave."
"No," Ashar breathed. "I protected her—"
"You protect yourself," the echo spat back. "That's why you can never be her shield."
A flaming blade dropped from the ceiling.
"You must earn your right to stand beside the Flamebearer."
Ashar gritted his teeth. "Then come and test me."
Kai's Path: The Lie of Blood
Kai's silver-lit door led him into a mirror chamber.
Reflections stared at him—dozens of versions of himself, each one with a different past, a different path.
In the center stood one reflection—taller, cloaked in shadows.
"You never told her the truth."
Kai's hand trembled. "Truth about what?"
The reflection smirked. "About why you joined the mission. About who sent you."
Kai's face hardened. "I chose this path."
"No," said the reflection. "You were bought."
Blades formed in each mirror. "Now prove you're worthy to walk it."
Amina's Path: The Flame Remembers
Amina stepped through the blue-lit door—and the world shifted.
She was no longer underground.
She stood in a field of flame-flowers under a burning sky. At the center was a tree made of crystal and molten root.
And beneath it sat her.
Not Valec.
Not an enemy.
But herself.
Draped in golden robes. Hair braided with fire. Eyes that burned through lifetimes.
"Amariel."
Amina's breath caught.
"You are me," she whispered.
The other smiled. "No. You are what I once was. And what you must become."
"Why me?"
"Because I was weak when he needed me. You must not be."
Amina knelt. "Then show me how to stop him."
Amariel held out her hand.
"You don't stop Valec. You understand him. Only then can you choose to end him… or save him."
The Awakening Flame
Outside the chambers, Lumeah waited, standing vigil with the boy.
"Will they survive?" she asked.
The boy said nothing.
He pointed to the flame atop each door.
Ashar's flickered… then burned brighter.
Kai's danced like a star.
And Amina's?
It exploded—a blue inferno that surged up the walls, setting the sigils alight.
The tomb trembled.
Stone cracked.
And a voice echoed from deep below—
"The seals are broken. The past returns."
From the ground, ancient chains snapped.
And beneath them...
Valec opened his eyes.