Night fell over the monastery like a blanket of pitch. The Keepers' chants ceased, replaced by the steady sound of the patrols.
No one would ever dare violate the altar. No one, except Duncan.
Sitting beside the straw bed, Duncan watched Elias and the girl. Her name was Selene: dark eyes, a voice as sharp as a blade. She was there not out of faith, but out of revenge.
"I grew up within these walls," she explained softly. "I know every hidden passage. If you want the meteorite, follow me."
Elias hesitated. "What if it's a trap?"
Selene glared at him with contempt. "If it were a trap, you'd already be dead."
Duncan nodded. They had no choice.
They set out in the dead of night, their hoods down. Selene led them through a damp tunnel, behind a false wall of the dormitory. The torches there burned not with fire, but with a greenish flame that produced no heat. The air smelled of sulfur and rusty iron.
They passed through tunnels, stone stairs, and rusted grates. Selene knew the patrols' blind spots, and with every step, Elias's heartbeat quickened.
Duncan, however, felt only his inner flame vibrating: the meteorite was near, he sensed it like a call.
Finally, they reached the altar room.
The meteorite shone in the center, suspended on black iron chains. Around it, four Keepers knelt asleep, immersed in a ritual trance.
"There's the problem," Selene whispered. "The chains aren't common. They're forged with binding runes. Only a true fire... or a divine force... can break them."
Duncan's eyes flashed.
"That's no problem," he said, his fist glowing red.
He approached, slowly. Each step made the stones crunch beneath his feet. Elias held his breath, Selene stared at the Keepers, fearing they would wake.
Duncan placed his hand on the chain.
A hiss: the metal resisted, sparks flying. But the Divine Fire burned even more fiercely, melting the runes like wax. One by one, the chains gave way.
The meteorite fell gently into his hands. It was cold, yet it vibrated as if it contained a living heart.
"Finally…" Duncan whispered.
But at that moment, a roar shattered the silence.
One of the Keepers awoke, his green eyes glowing like embers.
"Thief…" he growled. "You dared to touch the Descended Flame…"
All the torches lit at once, and the entire monastery trembled.