The Hidden Wolves led them to an ancient hollow, hidden beneath the roots of a dead mountain. The entrance was a tunnel carved from stone and shadow, lit only by the pulsing glow of the ember around Raine's neck. The woman who had spoken the night before—Maelin—walked ahead without fear.
Xavier stayed close to Raine as they descended. He hadn't said much since the meeting, but his gaze never left her. The deeper they went, the tighter his jaw clenched.
"I don't trust them," he whispered.
"I know," she murmured. "But I have to see this through."
At the end of the tunnel, they emerged into a chamber of firelight and silence. Braziers burned with cold blue flame, and in the center of the room stood a wide stone circle etched with runes. Maelin turned to Raine.
"The ember recognizes your blood. But to carry its full strength, you must pass the Test of Flame."
Raine stepped forward. "What kind of test?"
Maelin gestured toward the circle. "You will enter alone. The flame will show you your truth. If you survive it, the ember will be yours to command."
"Okay then let's begin " Raine said confidently
Xavier grabbed Raine's wrist. "You don't have to do this now. Not like this."
But Raine's gaze was steady. "I do."
She stepped into the circle. The moment her foot touched the center rune, the flames flared—and everything went black.
She stood in a field of ash.
The sky above was blood-red, the ground cracked and scorched. She could hear screams in the distance—wolves howling, fire roaring, the clash of steel.
A figure stepped out of the smoke.
Xavier.
But not her Xavier. This one had golden eyes like a predator, and blood stained his hands. He smiled at her, cruel and hollow.
"I told you power would cost everything," he said. "You just didn't want to believe it."
She backed away. "You're not real."
"I'm the part of him that wonders if you'll choose power over love. Over him."
Another voice rose behind her—softer, colder.
"Or maybe," it whispered, "you'll fail them all."
Her mother stood there now, but her eyes were white, empty. Her face twisted with grief. "You opened the ember. You woke the Devourer. How many more will die because of you?"
"No—no, I'm doing this to protect them!"
Flames curled around her feet. The sky cracked open above, and black shapes fell from it—winged, snarling creatures made of smoke and fire.
Raine dropped to her knees, shaking. "Please… I don't know what I'm doing."
Then the ember around her neck flared, and a voice—not hers—rose from within.
"Then learn. Let the fire remake you."
She screamed as the flames surged through her. Her body burned—but not with pain. It was power. Pure, wild power. Not destructive. Transformative.
She saw her mother's face soften. Xavier's smile returned—gentle this time. The screaming stopped.
The world turned white.
Raine woke gasping on the stone floor, sweat pouring down her face. Blue fire still flickered in the braziers, and Maelin knelt beside her with quiet awe.
"You survived," she whispered. "And you are changed."
Xavier was at her side in a second, pulling her into his arms. "Raine—what happened?"
Raine touched the ember. It no longer pulsed. It glowed.
"I saw what I could become," she said quietly. "And I chose to be more."