The ember had not left him since that night.Even after the sect's halls settled back into silence, Kaelen could still feel it — a faint warmth pulsing in the hollow of his spirit, flickering like the heartbeat of something ancient that refused to die.
He sat cross-legged within his chamber, the world outside muted. Only the dim glow of the moonlight filtered through the paper window, tracing pale patterns over his face. In his palm rested that ember — no larger than a teardrop — hovering just above his skin.
It didn't burn. Not in the way fire should. It breathed instead, inhaling and exhaling faint wisps of crimson energy like a creature half asleep.
Kaelen watched it in silence.
For days, he had ignored it. He had buried himself in scrolls, tried to train, tried to meditate — but it always returned. Each time he entered his Soul Palace, he'd see it floating between the shadowed corridors of his mind, whispering through the cracks of his will.
Now, he had stopped pretending.
"You're not supposed to exist," he murmured.
The ember pulsed once, as if amused.
Kaelen's hand trembled slightly, but he didn't pull back. He could feel the resonance of Joren's power within it — that same furious flame that had once scorched the training grounds. But here, in his hand, the rage was gone. What lingered was something more… insidious. Quiet. Patient.
He exhaled slowly, releasing the seals around his spiritual perception. The room dimmed, the world fading until all that remained was him — and the flicker.
A breath. Then another.
He sent a thread of spirit energy into it.
The ember shivered, and a surge of heat crawled up his arm. His veins burned with invisible fire as the warmth spread to his chest. Behind closed eyes, Kaelen saw flashes — not memories, but echoes: a figure wreathed in flame, roaring defiance against the heavens… then falling, consumed by the very fire he'd wielded.
Joren.
Or perhaps something older.
Kaelen snapped his eyes open, his breathing sharp. Sweat trickled down his jaw. The ember floated placidly once more, as if nothing had happened.
"You want to be used," he whispered, realization dawning.
And maybe that was what made it dangerous.Not the power itself, but the way it waited — promising strength, offering warmth, whispering that he could control it if only he dared.
He should have destroyed it then. He knew that. Every warning carved into sect scripture screamed that no spirit should meddle with corrupted flame. But Kaelen wasn't born to obey.
He reached for it again.
This time, he didn't resist. He guided the ember toward his chest. The instant it touched his core, a soundless tremor ran through his Soul Palace — walls of obsidian rippling as the ember dissolved into streams of red light that sank deep into his foundation.
And then, for the first time, Kaelen heard the whisper clearly.
"Fire and shadow are not so different, little spirit. Both hunger. Both consume. The only question is… what will you feed me?"
He didn't answer. His focus was razor-thin, teeth gritted as the heat licked at his soul. The pain was sharp but precise, not wild like Joren's. This was control — dangerous, fragile control — and Kaelen held on with everything he had.
Minutes stretched into hours.
When the last spark faded, the chamber lay cold again. Kaelen sat trembling, his breath shallow, but alive. Within his soul, the ember now rested beside his Devouring Core — faint, dormant, but there.
He felt stronger. Not in the way that strength could be measured, but sharper — like a blade that had just tasted flame.
Still, a trace of unease gnawed at him.
For every whisper he silenced, two more seemed to wake.
By dawn, Kaelen stood by the window, watching the mist roll down the mountains. The sect was already stirring — bells echoing softly, disciples gathering for morning drills.
He flexed his fingers once, feeling the faint warmth beneath his skin.
He could hide it. He had hidden worse.
But as the first rays of sunlight touched the peaks, Kaelen realized something that made his pulse slow.
The ember didn't fade in daylight anymore.
It gleamed.