As soon as Aeren emerged from the depths of Jal Lok—the Water Realm—
He looked up…
And saw the sky was no longer blue.
It burned red.
But it wasn't heat that clung to the air—
It was rage.
A deep, ancient fury drifted like ash across the wind.
Veera stepped beside him, her voice low, serious.
"The Fire Realm doesn't just stand for power,"
"It stands for hatred, ego… and pride."
"Here, every action is judged. Not by intent, but by karma."
"By sin and virtue."
Aeren closed his eyes.
"Then I must face judgment… for the actions I can no longer remember."
He stepped forward.
As Aeren crossed through the Flame Gate,
Pillars of fire erupted on either side of him.
The earth beneath was scorched red, cracked and glowing.
The trees were not green—they stood like blackened coal, hollow and still.
And the sun above… it never stopped burning.
Soon, he entered a massive chamber, grand and circular—
An arena built of flame and obsidian.
At the center sat the Fire Judges.
And among them, the eldest and fiercest: High Judge Ravion.
His voice thundered across the hall.
"So you have returned, Crackborn…"
"The one whose birth sparked a war across the four realms."
Aeren flinched.
"A war? Because of me?"
Veera, standing in the shadows, whispered softly—
"When the fifth element was lost…"
"…balance shattered."
"And some believe… that you were the one who hid it."
Ravion raised his hand.
"Ignite the Flame of Memory!"
A burning column of fire spiraled around Aeren.
He gasped—his body glowed with the fire's truth.
And suddenly—his mind opened.
A memory.
Not one he had remembered.
But one he had buried.
Flashback.
Aeren wasn't as he was now.
He wore garments of crimson flame—regal, powerful, prideful.
He stood tall in a hall of delegates.
Representatives from all four realms had gathered before him.
"The Fifth Element will no longer be found,"
Aeren declared.
"I will hide it… so that no realm can misuse it."
A delegate from the Sky Realm stood up, furious—
"Who are you to decide that?!"
Aeren's voice echoed with unwavering conviction—
"I am the Master of Elements."
The chamber erupted in chaos. But Aeren did not flinch.
Present.
Aeren's eyes snapped open.
He was breathing heavily.
His hands trembled.
"I… I did that?"
"I hid the Fifth Element…?"
His gaze dropped to the burning floor.
He couldn't look at himself.
Ravion's voice sliced the silence—
"Then speak, Aeren. Are you guilty?"
A moment passed.
Aeren looked up.
There was no fear in his eyes.
Only truth.
"Yes… if that memory is true, then I am guilty."
"But I am no longer the same as I was then."
"Today, I will search for the truth I once buried—"
"Not hide it from others."
A long silence followed.
Even the flames seemed to still.
Ravion rose from his seat.
"You have spoken the truth without denial…"
"That is your first rebirth."
"The trial of the Fire Realm… is complete."
Suddenly, the flames around Aeren changed.
They no longer burned his skin.
They enveloped him gently—like old friends.
Granting strength, not punishment.
A fire-shadow that once clung to him dissolved.
In its place, a new flame was lit within his spirit.
Veera stepped forward.
"Now only one realm remains…"
"Prithvi Lok—the Earth Realm."
Aeren turned to her, still shaken.
"Why does it feel like the hardest one?"
Veera's eyes softened, but there was a quiet intensity in them.
"Because there… you will not find forgotten memories…"
"You will find forgotten love."