Chapter 16
The stairwell behind her sealed with a hollow thud, cutting her off from Kael. From the world above. From safety.
Eliendara stood in the dark heart of Dravencourt's forgotten chamber, facing not one, but two of the Seven Sealing Lords.
Her breath was steady, her magic pulsing under her skin like a second heartbeat. But the air was thick—twisting around her, poisoned with ancient whispers and the weight of betrayal.
"You came to watch me?" she asked, her voice cold. "Then watch."
The first Sealing Lord raised a hand and the chamber responded—walls pulsing with runes, closing in like a tightening noose. The second stepped forward, voice silked in venom.
"We sealed you once. You should not have awakened."
"You didn't seal me," Eliendara said, eyes blazing silver. "You sealed a broken piece."
Her arms flared outward.
The runes that tried to bind her shattered.
Light erupted from her body—blue and black flames twisted together, licking at the stone, burning symbols into the very air.
The two Lords staggered.
But not for long.
They split—one vanished into shadow, the other hurled a spear of pure darkness at her chest.
She caught it.
It burned her palm to the bone—but she caught it.
Then she whispered the words she wasn't supposed to remember.
"Ashira'el Vex'turra."
The chamber exploded with fire.
Not natural fire—soulfire—the forbidden magic of the Vexley bloodline, erased from every grimoire. Fire that did not consume matter… but consumed identity.
The cloaked figures shrieked, the walls howled, and the runes screamed as they were ripped from their bindings.
Eliendara was burning—and not alone.
Above, the manor trembled.
Kael burst into the east corridor just in time to see a portion of the stone wall crack, then erupt in flame. Servants screamed. Soldiers ran toward the wing.
He didn't stop.
He ran into the smoke.
"ELIRA!"
The stone gave way.
Kael descended through broken stairways and choked fire until he found her—
Kneeling in a blackened crater, covered in blood, her eyes wide and unfocused.
Around her, the remnants of the chamber flickered like dying embers.
The Lords were gone.
But the price had been paid.
The east wing of the manor—destroyed.
And lying in the rubble, unconscious and bleeding, was a body Kael recognized instantly.
General Ryven, his most trusted knight.
The man who had trained Elira to fight.
The man who had taught her loyalty.
And the man who, only days ago, had touched her shoulder with a sealing rune.
Eliendara's voice shook as she looked at Kael.
"I didn't know… I didn't know he was one of them."
Kael knelt beside Ryven's body.
He was still breathing.
But only just.
And burned into his back—glowing faint and sickening red—was the mark of the Seven.
🔮 Next Chapter Preview – Chapter 17: The Betrayer's Blood
Ryven wakes—but he remembers nothing.
Or so he says.
As Kael questions his loyalty and Eliendara searches for the truth, a new memory surfaces:The betrayal wasn't his choice…It was a command from a name she never expected.A name still carved into her heart.Thorne.