The air in the tomb was thick with the smell of smoke and molten stone. The ground trembled beneath Amina's feet as the rumble of Valec's approach grew louder, his presence pressing in from all sides. The flame, once a guiding light, now felt like a warning—blazing hot, yet cold at its core, flickering with an intensity that matched the chaos unfolding around them.
Amina stood motionless, her eyes fixed on the entrance to the tomb. The door had begun to crack, small splinters of stone falling away as if the very building was trying to hold back the inevitable.
"We don't have much time," Lumeah said quietly, stepping closer. Her eyes were hard, unwavering. "Whatever you decide, Amina, you must do it now."
Amina nodded, her throat dry, heart racing. She had felt Valec's power from the moment the chains snapped, but now, it was different. It wasn't just his strength that reverberated through the air—it was something else, something primal, something that made the world seem small and fragile in comparison to the dark force he had become.
I have to choose, Amina thought, her mind a whirlwind of conflicting emotions. To understand him... or to end him?
Her hands clenched around the flame. She could feel the heat intensifying, a call to something deeper within her. The path before her was clear—she had to face Valec, confront the truth of what he had done, and decide whether she was strong enough to make the hardest choice of all.
But the flame, the one that had been guiding her, was now fading, flickering dangerously low. Something was wrong.
Lumeah noticed it too. "The flame," she whispered. "It's weakening."
Amina's breath caught in her throat. She couldn't afford for the flame to die now. It was her only way to understand Valec, to learn the truth of his past, his motives. Without it, she would be blind—unable to see the full picture, unable to make the right choice.
Before Amina could speak, the ground shook violently, sending them both stumbling. A deafening roar echoed through the tomb, the sound of chains rattling, of stone grinding against stone. The door, already cracked, splintered under the force, sending shards of stone flying through the air.
Then, as if summoned by the destruction, Valec appeared.
He stepped through the broken door, his eyes glowing with an ethereal light, his presence filling the chamber with an oppressive weight. His body was no longer the form of a man—it was something far darker, something ancient and far more dangerous.
Amina's heart pounded in her chest as she looked at him. The flame in her hands flickered violently, threatening to die out completely. She could feel the heat of it against her skin, but the fire was losing its strength, unable to keep up with the sheer force of Valec's power.
"Amariel's echo," Valec's voice was like the sound of thunder, deep and resonant. "You think you can stop me? You think you can understand me? I am the flame. I am the darkness. And now, you will either join me or burn."
Amina's grip tightened around the fading flame. She could feel the power of Valec's words trying to drown her, to break her resolve. But she couldn't give in—not now, not when she was so close.
"You are not the flame," Amina said, her voice steady, though the fear gnawed at her insides. "You are a shadow of what you once were. But you are not beyond saving."
Valec let out a dark laugh, the sound filling the tomb like a storm. "Save me? There is no saving me. Not anymore. You should have learned that truth sooner."
The flame in Amina's hands flared up one last time, its light so bright it threatened to blind her. But as quickly as it ignited, it flickered out, leaving her in complete darkness.
No…
Amina's breath caught in her throat. The flame was gone.
She glanced desperately at Lumeah, but her companion's expression was grim. "It's over," Lumeah said softly, her voice filled with resignation. "Valec is too strong. We can't fight him without the flame."
But Amina's heart refused to accept it. There had to be another way. There had to be something she could do.
A strange pull tugged at her chest—a force, a presence, reaching out from the very core of the earth. It was faint, but unmistakable. A whisper in her mind, a voice that had once been her own.
You are the flame, Amina. Not the fire. Not the heat. But the spark that burns from within. You must ignite what was lost.
Amina's eyes widened as the realization hit her. The flame was not a thing she could hold, a power to wield. It was within her all along. She had been the one to keep the fire alive. She was the flame.
With a sudden surge of energy, Amina lifted her arms, her hands outstretched toward Valec. The air around her crackled, electricity dancing across the stone, her heart pounding as the ground beneath her feet began to tremble once again. This time, it wasn't Valec's power that caused the rumbling. It was hers.
The flame ignited once more—only this time, it wasn't the weak flicker of before. It was a roaring inferno, burning with the intensity of a thousand suns, filling the room with blinding light.
Valec's eyes narrowed, his expression darkening. "Impossible."
But Amina didn't stop. She felt the power surging within her, felt the flame coursing through her veins. This wasn't just the fire that had guided her. This was her. She was the flame.