The storm above the Hollow Wastes began to die.
Lightning faded into silence, and the temple walls no longer trembled with buried rage.
Aeron's body remained slumped against the altar, the cursed dagger embedded deep in his chestplate, pulsing softly with residual power.
Kael stood over him, breathing hard. His body ached, not from wounds, but from what stirred inside him.
The throne's voice had been clear. It had taken over—spoken through him.
That terrified him more than any blade.
Selene knelt beside Aeron, pressing two fingers to his throat. "Still alive. Barely."
Kael wiped blood from his lip. "Then we need answers."
Selene looked at him warily. "What if the others don't want to talk?"
Kael didn't hesitate. "Then we'll make them."
Aeron stirred. His eyes flickered open, weak sparks of lightning still crawling beneath the skin.
"You've… changed," he rasped.
Kael crouched beside him. "What are we, Aeron? What did the throne do to us?"
Aeron gave a hollow laugh. "Marked. Bound. Chosen. I once believed it was a gift." He looked down at the dagger in his chest. "Then I watched my kingdom die because of it."
Selene crossed her arms. "Why defend this place?"
"Because if they ever wake what sleeps beneath this temple—" Aeron coughed blood, "—none of us will survive."
Kael's cursed mark burned at that.
"Then tell us what we need to know."
Aeron reached up and grasped the blade, wincing as he pulled it free. Blood hissed as it hit the cold stone.
"There are five of us."
Kael and Selene exchanged a look.
"The Marked?" Kael asked.
Aeron nodded. "Each chosen by a relic of the First Throne. Each cursed in a different way."
"Who's next?" Kael demanded.
Aeron's gaze turned westward. "The Mirror of Sins… lies in the shattered monastery of Valehart. The woman who wields it no longer knows her name."
"She's not what she seems."
Kael rose, fists clenched. Another Marked. Another test. Another chance to lose himself.
Selene helped Aeron up. He grunted but stood.
"Will you come with us?" she asked.
Aeron shook his head. "Not yet. I'll guard the Wastes. If you fail, this place must never fall."
Kael nodded once. He understood now—they weren't collecting allies.
They were gathering fragments of a broken god.
And if they succeeded, the world might not survive them.
---
End of Chapter 16
Kael learns of the other Marked. Next lies the Mirror of Sins—and the cursed woman bound to its reflection. But how do you fight someone who can turn your own guilt into a weapon?