The sky burned orange as dawn broke over the ridge.
Kael adjusted the straps of his travel cloak, the wind tugging at the edges as if trying to pull him back. Behind him, Lira packed the last of her scrolls, while their mother kissed a worn pendant before tucking it under Kael's shirt.
"Keep it close," she whispered. "Your father wore it when he crossed into the northern passes."
Kael met her eyes. "Did he ever return from the Scarlands?"
"No," she replied. "But he left so you wouldn't have to." Her fingers tightened. "Now you do. So live."
A quiet nod passed between them.
---
The Journey Begins
Kael, Lira, and Arin rode through the eastern marshes, their path marked by broken stone monoliths and whispering trees. According to the Vault's glyphs, the Scarlands held remnants of the Firstborn's legacy—a forgotten temple called The Hollow Crown. But no maps showed its location. Only Lira's deciphering and Kael's dreams guided them now.
Ever since touching the relic, Kael had visions—glimpses of war, fire, and towering kings with eyes like stars. Some nights he heard voices calling him Heir. Others… he felt something watching him. Not enemy. Not friend. Something ancient.
"They say the Scarlands eat memories," Arin muttered as they entered a rocky canyon, dark vines clinging to the cliffs. "That they twist time."
"They're not wrong," Lira added. "Old magic scars the land. If the Firstborn hid anything here, it won't want to be found."
Kael narrowed his eyes. "Then we'll remind it who's knocking."
---
Ambush in the Hollow Ridge
Three days in, just as the ridge path narrowed, a shadow fell across the cliffs. Kael froze.
"Something's wrong," he muttered.
Then came the scream—not human, not beast. It echoed across the rocks like a knife through bone. From the crags above dropped three pale figures—draped in robes made of sewn skin and bone masks carved with runes.
The Pale Hand had found them.
One of them hissed, drawing a blade of black glass. "Son of the Vault… We return you to silence."
Kael stepped forward. "Try."
The first attacker lunged. Time slowed.
Kael's feet slid into stance, eyes glowing blue. His glyphs burst into light.
"Gravemark."
The ground beneath the assassin caved, gravity crushing in a pinpoint. The masked figure shrieked, bones snapping as the force pinned him down. Kael spun and ducked as the second enemy hurled a bolt of cursed flame.
Lira chanted from behind, runes spiraling around her as she redirected the flame midair with "Rune Mirror."
The third Pale Hand acolyte lunged at Arin—but the boy, quicker than he looked, unsheathed a dagger and stabbed upward, right through the attacker's jaw.
Blood sprayed.
Kael turned back to the last standing enemy—his arms raised, summoning something vile, something wrong. A shadow gate opened behind him.
Kael snarled. He wasn't letting it finish.
"Ashrend!" His punch landed before the gate even bloomed.
The masked figure exploded into a mist of bones and black robes.
Silence returned.
---
Aftermath
They dragged the bodies into the gorge, burning the remains with Lira's cleansing flame. Kael leaned against a stone, arms still glowing faintly.
"They weren't scouts," Arin said. "They were executioners."
"They knew where we were," Kael muttered. "Someone's feeding them information."
Lira wiped blood from her cheek. "Then we'll just have to move faster."
Kael stared toward the horizon.
He didn't know what waited in the Hollow Crown—but something inside him did. It whispered in moments of quiet. It pulled him forward with purpose that wasn't his own. Each fight made the glyphs respond faster. Each mile they crossed made the dreams more vivid.
And the relic pulsed, like a heartbeat.
---
Somewhere Far Away…
Deep beneath the surface, inside an obsidian chamber, a tall man in silver robes knelt before a throne of bone. His eyes were missing—replaced with runes burned into his skull.
"They have reached the Scarlands."
A woman on the throne leaned forward, her voice like velvet soaked in poison. "Then let him awaken it. Let him find the Hollow Crown."
The chamber darkened.
"And when he does, we will bury him inside it."
---