to look alive. The ground cracked in long, jagged lines, and the trees stood like petrified bones, hollowed out

yra said, tightening her clo

el said, po

ly man-made. A single stone tower, leaning at an unnatural

him-a deep chill that settled not in his bones, but behind

d soot had nearly devoured the stone. A gatehouse stood ajar, creak

, scorched metal, and somethi

, running her fingers across a shattered sigil

m, half-collapsed, its top sheared clean off by something violent. As they climbed the steps, Kael saw signs of

dragons li

d, kneeling beside a bloodstaine

" Kael asked, not wantin

idn't

ew their weapons, eyes scanning the shadows. The

Kael said, a

reached the landing. A single room remained intact, its do

was left

k. His eyes, cloudy with pain, locked onto Kae

him," the man r

l f

a stepped in quickly

Months ago... no, weeks? I've lost time. He was...

stepping forward. "W

en. It found him. He fought. But the fire-it's wrong now. It burn

breath

Nyra asked gently.

. To the Mirror of Flame. The tr

ody went limp, the

Flame. He'd heard of it once-a relic, deep in the ancient m

" Nyra ask

tered window at the hori