The Ember Spire rose like a jagged spear against the sky, its blackened stone cracked with molten light. Smoke drifted from the fissures along its surface, coiling upward to vanish into the gray clouds. Even from a distance, Ryan felt its pull — the shard in his chest thrumming violently, almost painfully, in resonance.
Each step closer was harder, like wading into a current that wanted to drag him under. The shard whispered in his mind, voices overlapping in a chorus: Claim it. Burn it. Break what binds you.
Kaelin walked on his right, her hand never straying far from her sword. Her silver aura flickered faintly around her, a steady defiance against the Spire's oppressive heat.
Lyra walked on his left, her staff glowing with verdant energy that pulsed in rhythm with the shard. She glanced at Ryan often, her calm presence fighting against the storm clawing through him.
The three of them together — fire, calm, and chaos — stepped across the threshold.
---
The Spire's Test
The interior of the Ember Spire was nothing like the black stone outside. It was a cavern of flame and shadow, walls alive with molten cracks that pulsed like veins. The floor beneath them shifted constantly, slabs of obsidian floating above rivers of lava that roared below.
But it wasn't the heat that stole Ryan's breath. It was the visions.
The Spire whispered into his mind, pulling memories to the surface. He saw Buckeye's dusty streets, his mother's weary smile, the welding shop with sparks dancing in the air. He saw Kaelin's fierce eyes, Lyra's steady hand. And he saw darkness — himself alone, consumed by fire, his companions gone.
"Stay sharp," Kaelin muttered, scanning the shifting platforms. "This place wants to get in your head."
Lyra's gaze lingered on Ryan. "Not just his. All of ours."
The shard pulsed violently, and the trial began.
---
Trial of Bonds
The lava churned, rising into three towering figures. They were shaped like people, but made of molten flame and jagged obsidian. Their eyes glowed like burning coals.
The first figure turned to Ryan. "Choose," it rumbled, voice like cracking stone. "One to save, one to lose."
Kaelin and Lyra stiffened, both instinctively stepping closer to him.
Ryan's blood ran cold. "No. I won't—"
The figure's molten blade slammed into the ground, sending a shockwave that split the platform in two. Kaelin fell onto one side, Lyra onto the other, with Ryan caught between. Lava surged below, separating them further.
The shard in his chest screamed, voices tearing at him: Choose. Choose. Choose.
Kaelin shouted, reaching for him. "Ryan! Don't listen — fight it!"
Lyra's voice rang out from the other side, calm but urgent. "Stay centered! The trial wants to break you!"
Ryan dropped to his knees, clutching his chest. The shard's heat seared through him. The vision twisted — he saw Kaelin engulfed in fire, Lyra vanishing into shadow. Each heartbeat made the choice feel real.
---
Defiance
Ryan grit his teeth, rage bubbling up. "No!" he shouted, forcing himself to stand. "I won't choose between them!"
The shard flared violently, fire ripping from his body in chaotic bursts. The molten figures staggered, hissing in pain.
Kaelin surged forward, her aura blazing, cutting through one of the figures with a cry. Lyra's staff swept in arcs of green light, weaving roots of energy that bound another in place.
Ryan channeled everything into the artifact, blue-gold fire erupting in a storm that consumed the final figure. The cavern shook with the force of it, and then — silence.
The visions faded. The platforms steadied. The trial ended.
---
Aftermath
Ryan dropped to his knees, trembling. Kaelin rushed to his side, gripping his arm tightly. "You stubborn idiot," she whispered, half furious, half relieved. "You almost let it break you."
Lyra knelt on his other side, her hand pressing against his chest, soothing the shard's violent pulses. "But he didn't," she said softly. Her eyes met Ryan's. "Because he refused to let go of either of us."
For a moment, the three of them stayed there, bound by exhaustion, firelight, and something deeper.
Ryan realized then that Hale had been right — the Spire tested bonds, and those bonds had nearly shattered him. But instead of breaking, they had pulled tighter.
Still, the choice lingered like an unhealed wound. He couldn't keep defying it forever. One day, the shard — and his own heart — would demand an answer.