The crown lay broken on the obsidian floor, its once-living thorns now brittle ash. The eerie silence that followed felt unnatural like the world itself was holding its breath.
Kael stood over the shattered relic, still panting, his veins pulsing with residual power. The dark fire that had erupted from within him had not only destroyed the chains it had carved a symbol into the stone beneath his feet: a flame wreathed in thorns.
Lira approached slowly. "Kael… what was that?"
He shook his head. "I don't know. But it wasn't just rage. It was something deeper. Something ancient."
She crouched beside the symbol, her fingers tracing the edges. "This wasn't just magic. This was legacy. Bloodline magic."
Kael's jaw clenched. "That woman said the crown wanted me. That I'm the key to something. I thought breaking it would be the end... but it feels like something just woke up."
Behind them, the walls of the temple pulsed faintly, revealing engravings that hadn't been visible before. Lira's eyes widened. "It's reacting to you."
As the light deepened, a mural emerged, one showing a warrior cloaked in shadows, his body covered in fire, standing over a field of broken thrones. Around him, winged figures knelt in submission. Above his head, the same broken crown hovered.
Kael's voice dropped. "That's not a prophecy. That's a warning."
Suddenly, footsteps echoed behind them.
Kael turned fast, blade drawn, but it was not a monster. It was a man in blood-red robes, face covered in ceremonial markings.
"You shouldn't have come here," the stranger said, bowing slightly. "But now that you have, there's no turning back."
Lira stepped forward. "Who are you?"
"I am the Keeper of Flame," the man replied. "And you've just awakened the Burning Line. The last pure inheritance of the First Throne."
Kael narrowed his eyes. "What does that mean?"
The Keeper smiled faintly. "It means your enemies will no longer just hunt you… they'll kneel or die. Because the blood in your veins is no longer dormant. It burns."
Kael took a step closer. "And if I refuse it?"
The Keeper's smile faded. "Then the world will burn anyway. With or without you."
A gust of wind blew through the chamber. The flames flickered back to life. The path behind them was gone-sealed.
Ahead, a corridor opened, etched with ancient runes glowing red.
Kael looked at Lira. She nodded once. No turning back.
He stepped into the corridor.
The Inheritance of Fire had begun.