Chapter 32 – The Broken Sky
The lava plains beyond the temple shimmered like a bleeding sea. Kael and Lys stood at the edge of the cliffside, the Ember Sigil half-core secured in Kael's pack, its faint warmth pulsing like a second heartbeat. Silence stretched between them, save for the crackling hiss of the molten rivers below.
Lys tilted her head toward the horizon. "We're being followed."
Kael didn't ask how she knew—he felt it too. A pull in the aether, subtle but undeniable. Not like Ashthane's presence, but colder. Calculated. Watching. A shadow that didn't move with the light.
They didn't speak again until they reached the obsidian ridge where their skimmer awaited—half-buried in soot and slag, its surface scarred from the descent. Kael ran a hand across its hull, fingers brushing the carved glyphs powering its engine.
He climbed aboard and tapped the ignition core. Fire surged beneath the chassis, and the machine growled to life. Flame hissed through the vents like dragon's breath.
Lys climbed in behind him, scanning the sky. "Back to the surface, then?"
He nodded. "And after that, we find the other half."
As the skimmer lifted, breaking through the heavy ash curtain cloaking the Emberwind Wastes, Kael felt something twist in his chest. Not emotion. Not pain. Something deeper. A resistance.
Like the temple was trying to hold onto him.
Then the sky cracked.
---
A soundless boom rippled across the horizon. The clouds twisted violently, opening in a swirling vortex of red lightning and golden flame. The world turned sideways.
The skimmer rocked violently mid-air. Kael gripped the controls hard. "Hold on!"
Lys braced herself, eyes narrowed against the wind. The storm roared around them—too sudden, too unnatural.
Then something descended.
A shape of wings and bone and void-light, wrapped in armor of smoke and heat. Not dragon. Not man. Not alive. A memory forged of power and wrath.
> Gracebound System Alert Anomaly Encountered: Skywrought Echo
Class: Forbidden Manifestation
Threat Level: ???
Combat Advised: No
Kael's jaw tightened. "It's not real. It's an echo."
"It looks real enough!" Lys shouted, blades half-drawn.
The being didn't strike. It watched them. Hovering.
And then it spoke.
"You bear the mark of the Betrayer."
Kael flinched. The voice wasn't sound—it was presence. Each word sank into his bones.
"What did you say?"
"You wear the fire of Emberwind. But you are not the heir. Not yet."
Kael's voice was ice. "I'm not looking for your approval."
The figure shifted, smoke flaring. "Then earn what you claim. Before I return."
With a shriek that shook the clouds, the entity scattered into ash and flame. The vortex closed.
Silence returned.
---
Lys exhaled slowly. "That... was new."
Kael didn't reply immediately. The skimmer stabilized and they flew in silence for a long time. When they broke through the haze and reached solid terrain, the tension between them hadn't lifted.
Their rendezvous point was an ancient altar half-buried in rock and memory. Carvings older than the continent's wars marked its base.
From the shadows of the ruins, a figure stepped forward.
Dark robes. White eyes. A black sun tattoo etched across his chest. Calm as the grave.
Kael raised a brow. "Didn't expect you."
The man inclined his head. "I go where fate howls loudest. Lately, it's been screaming your name."
Lys stepped forward, hand on her dagger. "Friend of yours?"
Kael sighed. "He's not my enemy. Yet."
The man smiled without warmth. "Sareth. Still calling myself that. For now."
"Still working with the Veilborn?" Kael asked.
Sareth shrugged. "Only when it serves the story."
Kael wasn't in the mood for riddles. "Why are you here?"
"I come with information." Sareth's eyes flicked to the Ember Sigil core. "The second half has surfaced."
Kael's expression sharpened. "Where?"
Sareth pointed northeast. "In the ruins of Vael'Tor—the City of Silence."
Lys frowned. "That place was leveled during the Obsidian War."
"Exactly," Sareth said. "Which makes it the perfect place to hide the other half."
"Who's digging it up?" Kael asked.
Sareth met his gaze. "The ones who follow Icarion."
The name struck like a dagger through memory. Kael's body tensed. He turned away, fists clenched.
> Gracebound System Update
Quest Triggered: Vault of Silence
Objective: Retrieve the Second Ember Sigil Core
Location: Vael'Tor – Restricted Zone
Time Limit: None
Reward: Emberwind Legacy Access (Full)
Kael stared at the horizon. The sky might have broken. The echoes of old powers might have returned. But his fire burned hotter than ever.
"Then we head to Vael'Tor."
Sareth tilted his head. "You'll need more than fire to survive there."
Kael didn't turn. "Then I'll burn brighter."
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