Whiiiiirrrr… Boom!
Flames still danced around Rivan's body as they exited the Fire Spire. The world looked different now—brighter, louder, sharper. Every heartbeat throbbed with power. The Ember Core's essence pulsed inside him like a second soul.
Seris watched him cautiously. "Are you… still you?"
Rivan turned, a flicker of gold in his gaze. Then he smirked.
"Haha… who else would I be?"
Kael exhaled, shoulders dropping. "Good. Because if you'd turned into some flaming godzilla, I was ready to shoot you in the knee."
"Tsk tsk," Seris muttered. "Such confidence from someone who can't aim straight."
"I heard that!"
Rivan smiled faintly. But inside, something churned. His visions were getting stronger—snippets of the past, of the future. The Ember Core hadn't just given him power. It had given him purpose… and burden.
They reached the ridge overlooking the Emberhold, the capital of the ruined Fire Kingdom.
A city once made of golden towers and flame-kissed stone now lay in blackened ruin. The Ash King's forces had long since turned it into a fortress of decay.
Smoke curled upward like claws scratching the sky.
Rivan clenched his fists. "We take it back."
The Resistance
Inside a hidden cavern west of the city, the resistance huddled like dying embers. Worn warriors, old priests, fire mages with cracked palms—they all turned when the trio arrived.
A grizzled woman with a scorched eye stepped forward. Her armor bore the sigil of the Phoenix.
"You… you're the Heir."
Rivan nodded. "Rivan Ignis. Son of Queen Althera. Bearer of the Ember Core."
She dropped to one knee. "Then hope returns to Emberhold."
The others followed, kneeling in silence.
Kael leaned close and whispered, "Well, damn. You got a fan club now."
Rivan raised a hand. "Stand. I don't need worship. I need fighters."
The woman stood. "I'm Commander Elda. We have maybe three dozen who still remember how to fight."
"We'll need more," Seris muttered.
Elda led them to a war table. "The Ash King left Emberhold under the control of his general, Skarn—half-giant, all monster. He guards the Void Gate. That's where the corruption spreads from."
Rivan's eyes narrowed. "Then we kill him. We destroy the Gate. And we light the city again."
Kael raised his brow. "Simple plan. You forget we're outnumbered fifty to one?"
Rivan's ember crown flared faintly.
"Then we make every flame count."
Battle Plans and Bonded Flame
That night, they prepared.
Kael fletched arrows tipped with volcanic glass.
Seris inscribed flame runes onto the walls.
Rivan stood atop the ridge alone, looking at the stars.
A warm presence stirred behind him.
Seris approached, her voice soft. "You're afraid."
"Haha…" Rivan chuckled bitterly. "Is it that obvious?"
She stood beside him. "You carry too much. You think fire solves everything. But sometimes, it just… burns."
He looked at her. "If I fail, thousands die. If I succeed, I still lose part of myself. How do you carry that?"
"You don't," she said. "You let others carry it with you."
He paused, then nodded slowly.
"Thank you."
Their hands brushed. A flicker passed between them—soft, but real.
The Siege of Emberhold
BOOOOOOM!!!
The gate exploded as molten arrows soared over the wall. Screams and steel echoed across the ash-stained courtyards.
"CHAAAAAARGE!!!"
Rivan led the resistance through the breach, his twin swords glowing like sunrise.
Ashborn soldiers rushed forward—fanged beasts in armor made of bone and shadow.
"FOR THE PHOENIX!"
Elda plunged her spear through the first beast's neck.
Kael leapt from a rooftop, loosing arrow after arrow. "Eat hot rock, ugly!"
Seris floated mid-air, channeling flame orbs like twin suns. "Back to the dark with you!"
RAAAAHHHH!!!
Skarn thundered into the courtyard—towering, armored, his fists wreathed in black fire.
"LITTLE PRINCE!!!" he bellowed. "COME TO DIE?!"
Rivan leapt forward, blades drawn. "No. I came to kill you."
They clashed.
CLAAAANG!
Sword met axe, shockwaves shaking the ground.
Skarn grinned. "Tsk tsk… You're still weak!"
Rivan's flames flared. "You haven't seen my strength."
He twisted, slid under Skarn's swing, and slashed the giant's leg.
The general roared.
But suddenly—FLASH!
The Void Gate behind Skarn pulsed… and cracked.
Dark tendrils burst out, striking down warriors from both sides.
A corrupted scream echoed.
Seris gasped. "It's awakening! The Gate—it's feeding off the battle!"
Rivan's eyes widened. "We need to end this. Now!"
Final Clash: Flame vs Corruption
Skarn charged.
Rivan met him head-on, their powers colliding in a storm of flame and shadow.
"HAHAHAHA! You think you're a god? You're just a spark!" Skarn roared.
"I am the inferno," Rivan growled.
He ducked, slashed, then leapt high—fire wings bursting from his back.
From the sky, he shouted:
"EMBER STRIKE!"
He plunged down, a comet of flame.
BOOOOOOOM!
Skarn screamed, his armor cracking.
Kael fired a final arrow—right into Skarn's heart.
The general fell, flames bursting from within.
Silence fell.
Then, the Void Gate screeched.
SHRRRRRIIIIIEEEEEKKKK!!!
The ground split. Corrupted tendrils grabbed Rivan's leg, trying to pull him in.
"No!" Seris reached out.
Rivan looked at her, smiled, and raised his sword.
"Not today."
He stabbed the blade into the Gate's center.
FWWWWWWOOOOOMMM!!!
A wave of fire blasted outward.
The Gate shattered.
The tendrils burned away.
Then—peace.
Ash settled. The city stopped burning.
Emberhold was silent.
Then a cry rose.
"THE PRINCE HAS RETURNED!"
Cheers. Laughter. Tears.
Kael limped over. "So… we win?"
Rivan, covered in ash, nodded.
"For now."
A Message from the Void
Later that night, as fires were rekindled and the people sang, Rivan stood at the highest tower of Emberhold.
The stars watched silently.
Then, the wind shifted.
Whispers… dark… ancient…
A shadow formed behind him.
A voice that chilled the soul hissed, "You delay the inevitable… child of flame."
Rivan turned. His blade was out instantly.
"Who are you?"
The shadow smiled.
"I am the end of your world… the one your mother feared… the one who waits."
"Show yourself!"
The figure vanished.
Only a whisper remained.
"The true war has not begun… The Ash King was but the first candle. Soon, the Dark Sun rises."
Rivan stood alone, the wind cold now.
He whispered, "Then I'll burn the darkness too."
To be continued...