The chamber was enormous — a circular arena made of cooled obsidian, surrounded by floating embers that drifted like fireflies. The air felt ancient. Heavy. Alive.
Aeron walked in slowly, staring at the stone throne ahead of him. It was cracked down the middle, as if something powerful had once split it open from the inside.
Riko whispered, "I don't like this."
"No one asked you to," Maera replied.
"That makes it worse!"
Halik stepped beside Aeron, golden scales shimmering along his jawline. "This place… it remembers you."
Aeron swallowed hard. "I've never been here before."
"Your blood has," Halik said quietly.
Before Aeron could respond, the embers around the hall suddenly spiraled upward, forming a ring of glowing fire in the air.
Soryn raised her spear. "Be ready. Something is coming."
A deep hum echoed from the walls.
The symbols carved into the stone began to pulse.
Aeron's chest burned — not painfully, but with pressure, like something inside him was trying to awaken.
The fire ring in the air condensed into a shape: a floating crystal, dark red and crackling with flame.
Lyria's eyes widened. "A Heartstone…"
Garron whistled. "Looks angry."
"That is not an object to anger," Soryn warned. "If legends are true, a Heartstone is a fragment of a god's power."
Aeron stepped back. "Then why… why is it coming toward me?"
The Heartstone hovered in front of him.
It pulsed in rhythm with his breathing.
Then a whisper — faint but unmistakable — echoed around the hall.
"You were chosen."
Aeron shook his head violently. "Chosen for what?! I don't want this!"
The Heartstone flared, heat rolling over the room.
Lyria grabbed Aeron by the shoulders. "Listen to me. You're not alone. Whatever this power wants, you can choose how it shapes you."
Aeron stared at her, breathing fast but steadying.
The Heartstone floated closer.
Everyone braced.
Then—
It shattered.
The explosion of heat sent everyone flying. Flames erupted around the room like a storm.
Aeron sank to his knees, gasping.
Maera coughed. "Did… did anyone else see that Heartstone explode? Or was that just me passing out?"
Halik looked at Aeron, eyes narrowing. "It didn't explode. It merged."
Aeron stared at his hands.
They were glowing.