"When fire dies, does it truly end — or does it live on in the warmth we remember?"
Many years had passed since the world changed.People said the sky once burned with golden light. They said a man named Aric, the Keeper of the Flame, gave his life to save everything.
Now, the world was peaceful again. Too peaceful.
Lira woke up early that morning, before the sun had risen.She dreamed of fire — not the kind that hurts, but one that whispered softly, as if calling her name.She sat up and looked out the window.
The valley below her home glowed with morning mist. The rivers shone like silver threads, and the fields were quiet.
"It's strange," she whispered. "When life feels perfect, it starts to feel empty too."
She walked to her balcony and watched the first light appear on the horizon. Her long black hair blew in the wind.
The city below, Elandra, was full of life.Children played near fountains. Merchants shouted joyfully in the marketplace. People prayed before statues of Aric, the man who once carried the flame.
But Lira didn't pray. She only watched.
"They've turned him into a god," she murmured. "But he was human. He wanted us to think for ourselves."
She sighed. Sometimes, peace made her sad. It felt like the world had forgotten what the flame truly meant.
Kael joined her on the balcony.He was older now — strong, kind, but tired. His eyes had once burned with courage, but now they were calm, like dying coals.
"You had the dream again," he said.
Lira nodded. "The same one. A voice in the dark, asking me to remember."
"Maybe it's nothing," Kael said.
"Or maybe," Lira replied quietly, "it's a warning."
That morning, a messenger arrived from the southern coast.His face was pale, and his hands trembled as he spoke.
"The sea," he said, "the sea is burning."
Everyone stared.
Lira frowned. "That's impossible. Water can't burn."
The man shook his head. "These flames don't destroy. They whisper. People who look into them… hear voices."
A cold feeling crept into Lira's heart.
That night, she couldn't sleep. The messenger's words echoed in her mind."They whisper. The sea is burning."
She lit a small candle on her desk. Its light danced gently on the walls.
"Maybe the world never truly healed," she whispered. "Maybe we just stopped listening."
She looked up at Aric's old symbol carved above her bed — a circle with three lines inside.It glowed faintly, like it was alive.
Suddenly, she felt something — a pulse in the air, like the heartbeat of the world.The candle flickered, and the room grew warmer.
Kael burst through the door. "You feel it too?"
Lira nodded. "Something's waking."
They ran outside.
The sky above Elandra shimmered with strange lights — golden threads twisting like rivers of fire through the air. The stars seemed to move, forming new shapes.
Kael stared upward. "It's starting again."
Lira whispered, "No. It's remembering."
He turned to her. "What do you mean?"
She said softly, "Fire doesn't only burn the future. It burns the past too — to make sure we never forget."
As dawn broke, a new pattern appeared in the sky.The old symbol of the Keeper — wings, sword, and eye — began to fade.In its place, a new constellation glowed: a spiral with one bright ember at its heart.
Kael frowned. "What does it mean?"
Lira's voice trembled. "It means the story isn't over."
The wind rose. The candle flame in her hand flickered wildly.Somewhere deep inside her, she heard a voice — quiet and calm.
"The fire is not gone… it only changed its shape."
She looked at Kael, her heart pounding. "The Flame remembers us."
And as the first morning light touched their faces, both of them felt it — a warmth spreading through the air, gentle but powerful.
The Age of Embers had begun.