The sky wept fire.
Aria and Kael took refuge within the shattered temple at Velrath's center, once a sanctuary for the Flamebound. Now it stood silent, its stone walls scorched but intact, its ancient runes still humming with forgotten magic.
They hadn't spoken since the Devourer's cry had ripped through the heavens. Words seemed too fragile for the weight hanging between them.
Kael sat near the remnants of a fire pit, staring into nothing. Aria approached quietly, the heat of her presence more grounding than the dying embers.
"You've barely looked at me," she said softly.
"I'm afraid to," he admitted, voice rough. "What if I see him—the Devourer—in my own eyes?"
She crouched in front of him, placing her hand gently against his cheek. "Then I'll look until I see you again."
Kael met her gaze finally, and in the flickering light, all the distance melted. "You don't understand, Aria. The bond—it's more than connection. It's fusion. If I fall, I'll take you with me."
Aria leaned closer. "Then don't fall. Fight. For me. For us."
The silence stretched. And then he kissed her.
It wasn't desperate—it was deliberate. A claiming of what little light they had left in a world unraveling around them. The prophecy had drawn them together, but this was no longer about fate. This was choiceWhen they parted, Kael rested his forehead against hers, breathing her in like a memory he never wanted to lose. "I would burn this world before I let it take you from me."
"No," Aria whispered. "We save it together. Or not at all."
Just then, the walls of the temple groaned, and the runes across the stone ignited with gold flame. The bond had awakened something ancient, something watching.
Aria turned, wide-eyed. "The bond… it just answered us."
Kael stood, his hand still locked in hers. "Then let's see what it wants to show us."
Together, hand in hand, they stepped into the golden light, hearts tethered by more than prophecy now—by love forged in fire.
The golden light wrapped around them, warm and blinding, pulling Aria and Kael into something beyond time. When the brilliance faded, they were no longer in Velrath's ruined temple.
They stood on a floating platform suspended in a sky of glowing stars and fire-veined clouds—the Soulforge—a plane forged by the gods of fate, meant only for bonded pairs. It pulsed in rhythm with their hearts.
Aria took a shaky breath. "Where are we?"
Kael turned slowly, awe in his voice. "Inside the bond itself. This is… us."
A massive archway rose before them, and within it floated two ethereal figures—blurry at first, then sharpening into form. A woman with Aria's eyes. A man with Kael's stance, but fire curling from his hands. The First Seer. The First Protector.
They were watching.
The echo of the Seer spoke first, her voice like a river wrapped in wind:
> "We bound our souls to save a kingdom… and lost ourselves in the fire."
The Protector stepped forward, sorrow in his fiery gaze:
> "You carry our legacy. But you are not us. You still have a choice."
Kael reached for Aria's hand again. "What choice?"
A wall of flame erupted behind the visions, revealing two paths.
One shimmered with light—safety, separation, peace. The bond would fade. The Devourer would sleep again… but so would Kael's connection to Aria.
The other path descended into flame and shadow—danger, war, truth. If they followed it, they would face the Devourer in full. But if they survived, they could rewrite the fate of bonded souls forever.
Aria's voice was steady. "You know which one I'll choose."
Kael looked at her—really looked—and in her, he saw not just a Seer or a destiny. He saw home. "Even if it costs us everything?"
She smiled softly. "Especially then. Love is only real when it chooses the fire."
The Seer and Protector echoes nodded. The path of flame shimmered brighter.
As Aria and Kael stepped forward, the Soulforge reacted—embers lifting, surrounding them like stars. The bond glowed between them, not as a curse… but a living force.
And in that light, Kael whispered:
> "If I ever lose myself… will you still love me?"
Aria didn't hesitate.
> "Especially then."
Together, they crossed into fire.