Three days later.
The military complex at Fort Vaelstrom was unlike anything Elian had seen. Nestled deep within the innermost circle of the Runestone Barrier, it was both a prison and a training facility. Runes glowed along the walls, designed to suppress ancient energy. It was here that the most dangerous soldiers—those with unstable gifts—were kept on a short leash.
Elian stood in the training yard, wearing a modified uniform: black armored vest, silver-threaded bracers, and rune-sealed shackles still on his wrists. Across from him stood Lyra Deve, arms behind her back, expression unreadable.
"I'm to be your watcher," she said without emotion. "If you lose control, I put you down. That clear?"
He scowled. "Crystal."
Lyra stepped closer. "I read your file. Quiet. Soft-hearted. Not cut out for war. But now look at you—half-monster with glowing eyes."
Elian's fists clenched. "I didn't want this."
"No one does," she said flatly. "But you have it. So either learn to control it, or be eaten alive—by the Ancients, or by us."
He looked away.
They stood in silence for a long moment before Lyra added, quieter this time, "Your sister's alive. She asked for you."
That broke his mask. His voice cracked. "Is she okay?"
"She'll recover." Lyra studied him. "But you won't. Not really. That thing inside you... it's going to eat away at who you were."
Elian looked down at his shackled hands, veins still faintly pulsing with foreign power.
"Then I'll become someone else," he said. "Someone who can protect her."
Lyra turned away. "That's what all monsters say before they lose their soul."
---
Up in the control tower, Sheane Heath watched the two recruits on the training field, arms folded.
"Fyre has the potential to become a weapon beyond anything we've had in centuries," he said to the old general beside him. "We just have to make sure he never thinks he's free."
The general nodded. "And the girl, Lyra?"
"She's colder than ice. Perfect leash."
Sheane's eyes narrowed on Elian.
"And when the time comes... we'll point him at the real threat."
---
Far beyond the Barrier, deep in the black forests outside human reach, a figure stood. Eleven of the Guardian Ancients had already fallen—drained, fed to others. Only one had gone rogue and escaped.
The figure, cloaked in red and shadow, looked at the darkened sky.
"We're nearly ready," he whispered.
Behind him, eleven monstrous figures—humanoid, regal, and horrifying—bowed in silence.
"General, we discovered a group yesterday. They surprisingly captured the other 11 guardian ancients. But one escaped. I'm sure their the ones that breched the barrier." Sheane said, "well seems that we're going to need that new weapon of your's captain." The general said, "trust me general, he'll be a warden machine in a few months."