The castle was quiet again, but the silence didn't soothe Olivia's mind. Her hands still tingled from the fire. Not pain exactly—but power. A relentless thrum under her skin, like something trying to escape. Something ancient. Something hungry.
She stood on the tower balcony, staring down at the charred edges of the training yard below, where Maeva had vanished in smoke and screams.
Aiden joined her quietly, his hoodie thrown on over his torn T-shirt, blood still crusted on one sleeve. "You didn't sleep."
"I couldn't," Olivia said without turning. "Every time I close my eyes, I see her face. The way she looked at me… like I was already hers."
"You're not," he said. "You're not hers. You're not anyone's."
She glanced at him, grateful. "Thanks for jumping in back there."
"I'd say 'anytime', but I prefer situations where shadows don't try to impale me."
She cracked a smile, small and fleeting.
Aiden leaned on the balcony beside her, his gaze distant. "You scared me, Liv. When you collapsed."
"I scared myself," she admitted. "But I think I understand the fire better now. It listens—if I focus."
He looked at her like she was the sun. "You were brilliant."
"I was lucky."
"No." His voice turned firm. "What you did… no one else could've done that. Not Kael. Not Elara. Just you."
There was a beat of silence between them before Olivia said, "Kael wants me to train harder. He says what's coming will be worse than Maeva."
"He's not wrong," Aiden said. "But you don't have to face it alone."
Her eyes found his. There it was again—that terrifying, steady warmth. Aiden didn't burn like Kael. He glowed—safe, constant. Olivia leaned into it, just for a second, letting her shoulder brush his.
Then she pulled away. "I need to talk to Kael."
Aiden nodded slowly. "You want me to come with you?"
She hesitated. "No. I think I need to do this alone."
Kael was in the northern hall, surrounded by ancient tomes and old scrolls. He looked up when she entered, his bronze eyes unreadable.
"You controlled it," he said without preamble.
"I think so," she replied. "But I need more than guesswork."
He gestured to a wooden bench. "Sit."
She obeyed, and Kael paced in front of her like a commander before battle.
"You need to know something about the fire," he began. "It's not just a weapon. It's a spirit. Elemental. Alive. It chooses its host—and it chose you."
"So I'm… possessed?"
"No," he said. "You're linked. Bound. The flame doesn't want destruction. It wants balance. But when wielded by someone driven by rage, or heartbreak…" His voice faded. "It can be corrupted."
"Like Seraphina."
Kael nodded. "Exactly like her."
She studied him. "You knew her, didn't you?"
His jaw clenched. "I did."
"How well?"
He paused, then said, "Well enough to know what she became wasn't who she was meant to be."
"Did you love her?"
The question surprised him—and maybe surprised Olivia, too.
"I thought I did," Kael said. "But love without truth is just a shadow."
Olivia looked away. "Do you think that's what will happen to me?"
"No," he said softly. "Because you're not alone. You still have people who'll hold you back if you get too close to the edge."
She thought of Aiden. Elara. Even Kael himself.
"I want to learn," she said. "Whatever it takes."
Kael met her eyes. "Then we begin now."
For the next few days, Olivia trained harder than she ever had in her life. Kael drilled her in the art of restraint—channeling heat without losing herself. Elara taught her protective wards, ancient runes of shielding and silence. Aiden helped her practise balance, reminding her to stay grounded, human.
But the fire… it never slept. At night it whispered, flickering at the edge of her thoughts, showing her glimpses of things she didn't understand—burning cities, winged creatures in chains, a throne made of bone.
By the fourth night, Olivia snapped awake in a cold sweat.
Someone was watching her.
She turned—and found Kael standing at the door of her chamber, his face grim.
"Get up," he said. "They're here."
Her heart stuttered. "Who?"
"Seraphina's sent another."
They met in the lower vaults—a place built of iron and stone, beneath even the castle's deepest chambers. The walls glowed faintly with runes, ancient magic humming through the air.
A mirror stood in the centre of the room. It was tall, framed in silver that pulsed with its own heartbeat. The surface rippled like water.
"She's using a conduit," Elara explained. "Not a full summoning. A message."
The mirror shimmered—and then Seraphina appeared.
Olivia gasped.
She was beautiful. Terrifying. Her hair was long and white, her face ageless. Her eyes glowed with violet fire.
"Hello, little spark," Seraphina said, voice like a lullaby soaked in poison.
Olivia stepped forward. "What do you want?"
"To offer you mercy," Seraphina said, smiling. "You're like me. Why fight it? Why suffer when you could rule?"
"I don't want your power."
Seraphina's smile widened. "Oh, darling. You already have it."
The mirror darkened—and then shattered, exploding into silver shards that evaporated in the air.
The silence that followed was worse than any scream.
Elara turned to Olivia. "She's coming. She's ready for war."
Kael added, "And she'll do anything to break you before she burns the rest of the world."
Olivia looked at her hands, flames flickering beneath her skin.
"Then let her come."