THE DEVIL'S BRIDE
Episode 28: The Origin Flame
By Rapwizzy Debaron
The world held its breath.
Kael lay unconscious in the heart of the ruins, a circle of burnt stone carved into the earth around him. The mark on his wrist blazed with golden-red fire, pulsing like a beacon to forces long forgotten.
Lucien stood watch, silent.
Evelyn didn't leave Kael's side, brushing a lock of soot-streaked hair from his forehead.
"He's not just our son," she whispered. "He's a weapon."
Lucien clenched his fists. "No. He was never meant to be."
"But you knew what he was... didn't you?" she asked.
Lucien's silence was answer enough.
---
Centuries ago… in a forgotten realm between creation and death…
There was only fire.
Not hellfire.
Not divine flame.
Something older.
The Origin Flame.
It didn't burn for destruction.
It burned for balance.
And it was alive.
It whispered to gods and demons alike. It offered power in exchange for promise. Most feared it. Some sought it.
One tried to possess it.
Lucien.
---
He hadn't always been the Devil.
Once, he was a celestial general—noble, pure.
But the war between Heaven and Chaos changed him. He believed balance could only be achieved through power.
So he sought the Origin Flame.
He found it.
He touched it.
And it marked him.
Not as its master…
But its servant.
The mark faded from Lucien's flesh when he fell from grace.
But it passed on—hidden, dormant—until now.
In Kael.
---
Back in the present, Kael awoke.
But his eyes were no longer just Kael's.
They were ancient.
"Where am I?" he asked, voice layered.
Lucien stepped forward. "You're home. You're safe."
Kael sat up, shaking. "I saw things… a throne of light, and fire that spoke. It said… I was chosen. It showed me you."
Evelyn gripped his arm. "What else did it show?"
Kael hesitated. "That I will have to choose between saving the world… or saving you both."
Lucien's face paled.
The prophecy had returned.
---
Elsewhere, Seraphina walked through her temple of blood, smirking.
"Let them remember the flame," she said. "Let them tremble."
A hooded figure followed behind her.
"They'll come for us."
Seraphina turned, eyes glowing. "Good. Let them try."
She opened her hand—revealing a second mark.
Just like Kael's.
But inverted.
Corrupted.
Twisted by her own blood.
---
Back in the camp, Kael stood, looking at the stars.
He felt everything.
The wind, the world, the fire in his veins.
"I'm scared," he whispered.
Evelyn hugged him from behind. "So am I."
Lucien stood apart, torn between protector and destroyer.
Because deep down…
He knew the Flame didn't just choose Kael.
It tested him.
And if Kael failed…
There would be no Heaven.
No Hell.
Only fire.
---
To be continued…
A past revealed.
A power rising.
And a son standing between salvation and ruin.
Vote if Kael's destiny has you breathless.
Comment: What would you choose — the world, or your parents?
Follow @RapwizzyDebaron — Episode 29 will uncover the price of prophecy.