Kael walked.
Through forests that no longer welcomed him, along forgotten paths choked by roots and ruin. The blade at his side no longer felt broken. It pulsed now, faintly, like it was breathing. Like it was alive.
The whisper had stopped.
But something else had begun.
A feeling in his chest. A warmth that spread slowly, rising from somewhere deep beneath the skin. Not pain. Not Qi. It was... different.
Like embers beneath wet wood.
Waiting to ignite.
---
He arrived at a village by dusk. Or what remained of it.
The place was in ruins. Burned homes, shattered wells, smoke clinging to the soil like ghosts of the past. And yet—there were no bodies. No signs of battle. Just absence.
Kael stepped carefully, eyes sharp.
Then he heard it.
A cough. Weak.
He followed the sound to a collapsed building. Beneath the broken timbers, a boy—no older than ten—lay trapped, blood on his forehead and fear in his eyes.
Kael dropped to his knees and gripped the beam. It groaned under pressure—but Kael wasn't the same weak disciple anymore. With a grunt and a crack of bone, he lifted.
The beam rolled aside.
The boy gasped, crawling free.
"You… you're not with them?" the boy asked.
Kael shook his head. "Who?"
The boy pointed toward the horizon, where a strange red light pulsed beyond the mountains.
> "The ones who came from the sky… riding flames. They spoke of judgment."
Kael's breath caught.
He'd heard legends, of course—of ancient clans that wielded divine fire. But skyfire? Judgment?
Something ancient was moving again.
And he was caught in its path.
---
Kael built a small fire for the boy as night fell. He sat silently, watching the flames dance. The child slept beside him, shivering, whispering in dreams.
"Don't burn... please don't burn me..."
Kael stared at the fire.
He opened his palm and held it near the flame. The warmth kissed his skin, and suddenly—
A flicker of red light burst from his hand.
Not from the fire.
From within.
His heart raced.
He clenched his fist—and the ember vanished.
What had that altar done to him?
No...
What had it awakened?
---
By morning, Kael stood at the edge of the ruined village, the child safe behind him.
The path ahead led to the mountains. Toward the red light. Toward answers.
He glanced down at his blade, its cracked edge gleaming faintly under the sun.
He tightened his grip.
And stepped forward.
Not to escape the heavens.
But to defy them.
---