The first light of dawn crept through the smoke-choked sky, painting Varkon's streets in dull red.Talon tightened the straps on his pack, the forge behind him still glowing faintly from the night's embers. "We leave before the guards start asking questions," he said. "If anyone saw the firestorm in the lower quarter, they'll come looking."
Kael adjusted his sword belt. "Then let's move. The longer we stay, the more attention we draw."
Jack stood by the doorway, his eyes flicking between Talon and Lyra. "You're sure this apprentice of yours will talk?"
Talon shook his head. "No. But if he's alive, he's hiding in Ash Canyon—and that's where we'll find our answers."
Lyra stepped forward, her cloak hood drawn low. "Then we go. The truth is worth the risk."
They left the forge behind. The sound of hammering faded with every step, replaced by the distant rumble of the volcano and the hiss of molten streams that cut across the black earth.
The journey was harsh and silent.Heat shimmered on the horizon, and the ash-laden wind stung their eyes. Jack's boots sank into soot with every step.
"Doesn't this place ever cool off?" he muttered.
Talon smirked. "If it did, it wouldn't be Varkon."
Kael walked at the rear, always scanning the cliffs above. "This trail feels wrong. Too quiet."
Lyra's light glowed faintly under her cloak, but her face had paled. "The air here… it weakens me. The Fire Vein resists my presence."
Jack slowed beside her. "You should rest."
She shook her head. "Not until we find what we came for."
Talon pointed ahead. "There. The canyon mouth."
The ground sloped downward into a wide ravine. Molten rivers wound between jagged rocks, lighting the canyon from below with an eerie red glow.
Jack peered down. "Remind me again why your friend thought this was a good hiding place?"
"Because," Talon said, "no one sane would follow him here."
They entered single file, following a narrow ledge along the canyon wall.The air grew heavier, pressing against them like a living thing. Even the sound of their footsteps seemed swallowed by the heat.
Then—
A whisper of metal scraped from above. Kael's instincts flared. "Cover—now!"
Too late.
Eight men dropped from the cliffs, armor scorched black, faces hidden by cracked half-masks. Their blades gleamed with molten red runes.
Bounty hunters.
The leader, a broad-shouldered man with burn scars across his face, grinned. "The princess of Schiera. Alive, you'll make us rich."
Kael drew his sword. "You won't live long enough to spend it."
The leader raised his hand. "Kill the guards. Leave the girl breathing."
They attacked.
Kael met two at once, his blade flashing in tight arcs. Sparks flew as steel met steel.Talon swung his forge hammer like a war weapon, shattering a spear clean in half. "Get behind me!" he shouted to Jack and Lyra.
But another group circled from the ridge above—archers.
An arrow hissed through the air. Jack turned too late. Lyra cried out as it struck her shoulder, the impact knocking her to her knees. Her light dimmed instantly.
"Lyra!" Jack lunged toward her, grabbing her before she fell. Her blood stained his sleeve, hot and bright against the soot.
The leader smirked. "Pretty. Shame it won't last."
Jack's pulse pounded in his ears. The world around him warped—the heat, the noise, the panic twisting into something sharp.
The ground cracked beneath his feet.
Flames erupted in a storm of crimson and gold. The canyon itself seemed to roar in answer.
Kael stumbled back, shielding his face. "Jack—control it!"
Talon swore. "He's not listening!"
Fire spiraled upward around Jack, swirling in violent arcs. His eyes glowed molten red, the mark on his hand burning like a second sun.
The bounty hunters faltered, shouting in panic as the heat rose. One rushed forward, swinging his blade—only for it to melt mid-strike. Another tried to run, but the ground burst beneath him in a column of fire.
Jack moved through the inferno as though it were air. Every motion left trails of flame. His hand clenched, and a wave of fire surged forward, slamming into three hunters and hurling them against the canyon wall.
Talon smashed another to the ground before the flames could reach him. "Jack! You'll burn the whole canyon down!"
But Jack didn't hear him. His world had narrowed to one thing—Lyra bleeding, barely breathing.
A sudden chill cut through the heat.The fire dimmed, flickering as darkness spread across the ground.
The last of the bounty hunters stepped forward—a figure cloaked entirely in shadow, his presence distorting the light around him. He moved like smoke given shape.
Jack's flames recoiled instinctively.
The man spoke softly, his voice calm and cold. "Such reckless power. You are no child of fire… but something far older."
He lifted his hand, and tendrils of darkness lashed outward, colliding with Jack's flames. The explosion of red and black light shook the canyon walls, sending shards of rock tumbling.
Kael was thrown aside. Talon barely stayed on his feet. Lyra reached out weakly, light flickering from her palm. "Jack… stop!"
Jack staggered forward through the smoke. His mark pulsed, fire swirling again—but the shadowed man vanished, melting into the darkness like mist.
The only trace he left was a faint scar of black flame burned into the stone.
Silence. Only the hiss of cooling lava remained.
Jack dropped to his knees beside Lyra. "Stay with me," he said, his voice breaking.
She smiled faintly, pale but breathing. "You… protected me."
Kael limped over, wiping blood from his cheek. "They're all dead. Every one of them."
Talon stared at the black mark on the rock. "Except the one who wasn't truly here."
Kael frowned. "Shadow magic. That shouldn't exist anymore."
Lyra looked away, shivering despite the heat. "Then we're chasing something far beyond bounty hunters."
Jack clenched his fists. "Whoever they were, they wanted you. And they knew about me."
Talon nodded grimly. "And if they know, others will too. You lit up half the kingdom tonight."
Jack looked down at his hand. The golden mark was now laced with red veins of fire, pulsing gently. He whispered, "I couldn't stop it."
Lyra touched his wrist, her voice soft. "You did what you had to. Just… don't let the fire decide for you again."
He met her gaze and nodded slowly. "I won't."
They camped near a narrow stream of cooling magma that night. The glow painted their faces in shades of orange and gold.
Talon sat sharpening his hammer's edge. "You handle yourself better than most warriors," he said to Jack. "When you're not setting the world on fire."
Jack managed a tired laugh. "I'll try to make it a habit."
Kael cleaned his blade in silence, then muttered, "You two nearly got us killed."
Lyra smiled faintly, leaning against the rock wall. "And yet, here we are."
For a while, no one spoke. The night was strangely peaceful, the canyon alive only with the faint hum of molten rivers.
Jack watched the flame dance on his hand and whispered, "I don't know what's happening to me, but it feels like the fire knows me."
Lyra looked up at the stars barely visible through the ash. "Then maybe it's time you learn what it's trying to say."
The heat around them softened as the night deepened. And far beyond the canyon, unseen eyes watched from the dark — the shadow's gaze still lingering on the boy who carried fire in his veins.