Part 6: The Third Feather
The light beyond the doorway felt different.
It wasn't warm, but it wasn't cold either. It shimmered between colors Kael couldn't name like the boundary of a dream just before waking. He stepped through with Lireen, her arm steadying against his. Behind them, the city of Salvaria groaned softly as it shifted.
The air felt sacred.
They had arrived at the heart of the Temple of Stars.
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The chamber was vast pillars reaching beyond sight, their tops lost in an endless celestial dome. Above them, a swirling galaxy moved slowly, casting gentle light upon three altars arranged in a triangle.
Two altars glowed faintly.
Feathers rested on each pure white, pulsing with memories.
The third altar stood empty.
Until it wasn't.
A feather descended from the void, darker than night, wreathed in faint violet flame.
The Third Feather.
It landed with a hiss. The chamber darkened.
Kael staggered. Lireen held her breath.
A voice spoke not loud, but deep enough to rattle the soul.
"The Mirror is awake."
"And it remembers you, Kael Althir."
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Kael turned.
A being stood across the altar cloaked in mist, wearing no face.
It wasn't threatening.
It was curious.
"You broke the ritual," it said. "You denied sacrifice. You chose both. That has not happened before."
Kael stepped forward. "I'm not here to follow what's written."
"Then why do you carry the Crown?"
Kael hesitated. "Because I want to understand."
The being raised an arm. A reflection shimmered into view behind it a mirror, tall and cracked, pulsing with black veins.
Inside it, Kael saw not one… but many versions of himself.
Some noble. Some monstrous. Some bleeding. Some crowned.
"You are not the first Kael," the being said. "Nor the last."
"But you may be the only one who dares to refuse destiny."
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The feather on the third altar pulsed brighter.
It spoke to him in thoughts, in regrets, in hopes.
Kael reached toward it.
Lireen cried out—"Wait!"
But he touched it.
Pain lanced through his body.
Visions exploded:
Lireen holding a child beneath a ruined sun
A crown shattered beside a field of stars
Kael standing alone at the edge of the world, whispering a name he had forgotten
Then silence.
He collapsed.
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Lireen caught him.
The feather floated beside them, no longer black, but silver. The flame was gone.
The being bowed.
"You have awakened the final key."
"Three feathers. Three choices. Three paths."
"But only one Architect."
The being vanished.
The altars disappeared.
The Temple shifted.
They stood once more at the gates of Salvaria reborn. The city behind them now pulsed with green and gold.
And before them, a road stretched far.
To the east: the Kingdom of Elaryth.
To the west: the Sea of Broken Time.
Above: a falling star.
Kael looked at Lireen.
"We're not done."
She smiled.
"We've only just begun."
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🌌 End of Chapter 15 🌌
📣 Chapter 16 Teaser – "The Kingdom That Forgot Its Name"
Kael and Lireen head toward Elaryth, a kingdom lost in eternal memory fog
A child who knows Kael's name appears, though they've never met
A new enemy arises not to destroy Kael, but to crown him
The world starts bending… as if time is looping in Kael's wake
📢 Support our journey by leaving a ❤️ vote, 💬 comment, or share! Volume 2 begins with questions no one dared ask... and answers that might break the sky.
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📌 Highlight :
Kael and Lireen reach the Temple of Stars, the true heart of Salvaria
The Third Feather appears wreathed in cursed violet flame
Kael is confronted by a being of reflection: "The Mirror remembers you."
Kael touches the feather and unlocks memories across timelines
Salvaria is reborn… and the road ahead splits in three directions
Kael chooses neither fate nor rebellion but a path of his own
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