The roar rolled through the forest like thunder trapped beneath the earth.
Aria felt it in her bones before she heard it again, a deep, resonant sound that vibrated through her ribs and set the embers in her chest blazing hot. The ground shuddered beneath her feet, loose soil sliding into the glowing cracks around the shattered altar.
She staggered, barely steadying herself.
"That wasn't imagination, was it?" she asked hoarsely.
Kael was already moving.
"Run," he said.
"What?"
"Now."
He seized her wrist and pulled her forward just as the trees at the far edge of the clearing exploded inward. Wood splintered. Stone cracked. A massive shape tore through the undergrowth, snapping ancient trunks like brittle twigs.
Aria screamed.
The creature burst into view, taller than the trees themselves, its body a grotesque fusion of muscle and shadow. Blackened scales armored its shoulders, glowing faintly with veins of crimson light. Horns curved back from its skull, jagged and cracked, as if forged in fire and broken by time.
Its eyes locked onto her.
Not Kael.
Her.
The embers surged violently.
"That thing is looking at me," she gasped.
"Yes," Kael said grimly. "It's called a Veilbound."
The beast roared again, the sound ripping through the air. Heat washed over them as its maw opened, revealing rows of molten fangs.
Aria's legs refused to move.
Kael swore under his breath. "Aria, if you don't run, it will tear the fire out of you piece by piece."
That broke through the terror.
She twisted from his grip and ran.
Branches whipped past her as they tore through the forest, the ground trembling with every thunderous step of the Veilbound behind them. The air burned. Smoke curled through the trees, choking and thick.
"Why is it here?" Aria shouted over the chaos.
"Because you awakened," Kael replied, vaulting over a fallen trunk. "Because the embers sent a signal across realms!"
"That's not an answer!"
"It's the only one that matters!"
The beast crashed through the trees behind them, closer now, too close. Aria stumbled, panic clawing at her throat as her foot caught on a root. She hit the ground hard, the breath knocked from her lungs.
Kael spun back instantly.
"Aria!"
The Veilbound lunged.
Instinct took over.
The embers exploded.
Fire erupted from Aria's body in a blinding surge, golden flames slamming into the creature's chest with a force that shook the forest. The impact sent it skidding backward, roaring in fury as its scales blackened and cracked.
Aria screamed, not in fear, but in pain.
The fire burned her from the inside out.
She felt it consuming something vital, something hers. Her vision blurred as the flames spiraled out of control, tearing through the clearing in wild arcs.
Kael reached her side, gripping her shoulders.
"Stop!" he shouted. "You're burning too much!"
"I can't!" she cried. "It won't listen!"
The fire roared louder, responding to her desperation with savage intensity. Trees ignited. The ground melted into glowing glass beneath her feet.
The Veilbound charged again, undeterred, its body regenerating where the fire had struck.
Kael made a decision.
"Forgive me," he murmured.
He slammed his palm against her chest.
A sharp, freezing shock tore through Aria's body. The fire screamed, yes, screamed, as Kael's power collided with the embers, forcing them inward.
Aria collapsed, gasping.
The flames vanished.
So did the warmth.
She lay there, shaking, an unbearable cold settling into her bones where the fire had been moments before.
"What did you do?" she whispered.
Kael hauled her to her feet. His face was pale.
"I sealed part of the embers."
Her heart stuttered painfully.
"You… what?"
"Temporarily," he said quickly. "If I hadn't, the fire would have consumed you. Or worse, broken you open completely."
The Veilbound roared again, furious now, wounded pride turning lethal.
"But sealing them has a cost," Kael added quietly.
The beast lunged.
Kael grabbed Aria and twisted sharply. The world lurched.
Then shattered.
The forest vanished.
They slammed onto cold stone, Aria's body skidding across a smooth surface before Kael caught her. She lay there, stunned, staring up at a vaulted ceiling etched with glowing runes.
Silence.
No roar.
No heat.
Just the echo of her ragged breathing.
"Where… where are we?" she whispered.
Kael exhaled shakily.
"Safe," he said. "For now."
She pushed herself upright slowly, her body aching in ways she had never felt before. The warmth that had always lived beneath her skin, the strange comfort she had never understood, was gone.
Panic flared instantly.
"I can't feel it," she said, clutching her chest. "The fire, I can't feel it!"
Kael met her gaze.
"I know."
Fear twisted sharply into anger.
"You took it from me!"
"I suppressed it," he corrected. "There's a difference."
"You had no right!"
"And you had no control," he snapped, then immediately softened his tone. "Aria… the embers are not just power. They are a beacon. As long as they burn freely, creatures like that will keep coming."
Her hands trembled.
"So what now?" she asked. "Am I just… empty?"
"No," Kael said. "You're alive. Which is more than many Ember Bearers can say."
That phrase made her freeze.
"Many?" she echoed slowly.
Kael's silence was answer enough.
She swallowed hard. "How many like me have there been?"
"Enough to fill graveyards across realms."
The words hit harder than any blow.
Aria wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly cold in a way that had nothing to do with temperature.
"You said sealing the embers has a cost," she said quietly. "What did it take?"
Kael hesitated.
Then spoke.
"You won't be able to use your power freely," he said. "Not without consequences. Every time you call the fire now, it will take something in return."
Her throat tightened. "What kind of something?"
His silver eyes darkened.
"Memories. Time. Pieces of yourself."
The chamber seemed to close in around her.
"So if I use the fire…" she whispered.
"You lose something you may never get back."
Silence stretched between them.
Then Aria lifted her head.
"Unseal it."
Kael stiffened. "What?"
"I said unseal it," she repeated, her voice steady despite the fear clawing at her chest. "I won't run forever. I won't hide while things like that hunt me."
"This isn't bravery," Kael said sharply. "It's suicide."
"No," she replied. "It's choice."
The embers stirred faintly, as if hearing her.
Kael stared at her for a long moment really stared then let out a slow breath.
"You have no idea what you're agreeing to."
"Then teach me," Aria said. "Before the fire takes everything without asking."
Something unreadable crossed Kael's face.
"Very well," he said quietly. "But understand this, Aria Vale once the embers are unsealed again…"
He stepped closer, voice dropping.
"There is no going back to the girl you were."
The fire pulsed.
Aria closed her eyes.
"I already left her behind."
Far away, beyond stone and shadow, the Veilbound lifted its scorched head and roared—answered by something far larger, far older.
The hunt had only just begun.