The Ruined Observatory wasn't on any map.
It wasn't a place mortals stumbled upon — it called only to those the stars remembered.
And that night, as Elliot climbed the broken stone steps toward the summit, he knew he hadn't chosen this place.
It had chosen him.
---
Kaelith didn't speak as they arrived.
Not because her anger had faded, but because the air was too still.
She didn't look at Liora either — hadn't since the kiss.
Elliot felt it hanging between them. A silence louder than fire.
But the stars above didn't care.
They blinked coldly behind a film of cloud, disinterested gods with no heart left.
---
The observatory itself was more ruin than structure — half a dome, shattered walls, sky above open and vast. In the center, a Starstone sat buried in vines and dust, pulsing faintly with forgotten light.
Elliot approached it slowly.
> "This is where the stars fell," Liora murmured.
> "Where the gods tried to hide their regrets."
Kaelith stayed near the edge, arms crossed. Silent.
Elliot knelt before the Starstone.
He didn't cast a spell. Didn't call fire.
He just touched it.
And the world split open.
---
✴️ The Vision ✴️
Elliot stood above the world, in the cold void of space, stars screaming like dying birds.
He saw himself — not one, but two versions.
One blazing with power, light, hope — the flame reborn.
The other shadowed, hollow-eyed, lips stitched shut, carrying flame like a weapon, not a gift.
Behind them both stood a third figure.
Liora.
Crowned in voidfire. A goddess of ash.
And the gods?
Kneeling to her.
---
Elliot screamed.
The vision vanished — but the echo remained.
---
He stumbled back from the Starstone, breath ragged.
Kaelith rushed to him this time, despite everything.
> "What did you see?"
His voice was hoarse:
> "They're not trying to stop me…"
He looked at Liora, who stared calmly at him.
> "They're trying to replace me."
---
Liora didn't deny it.
She walked forward, bare feet crunching ancient dust.
> "I was made in case you broke. In case you grew soft. In case…"
"You fell in love."
Kaelith stiffened.
Elliot's voice cracked. "So they crown you?"
> "If you fail. If you hesitate. If you bleed too often."
> "That's not a prophecy," Kaelith snapped. "That's a threat."
> "It's insurance," Liora said, stepping closer to Elliot.
> "You were chosen. I was engineered. And guess what, Elliot?"
She leaned in.
> "I don't hesitate."
---
For the first time, Elliot felt small.
Not powerless — but played.
He wasn't just carrying fate anymore.
He was competing with it.
---
That night, under the cold, silent stars, he sat alone on the broken wall and whispered to himself:
> "Then let them crown her."
He stared down at the faint glow in his palm — the Mark.
> "I'll unmake the throne."
---