Serida never smiled.
Not in the way most people did.
But Kael had started to notice the little things: the way she didn't correct him when he modified her flame stances, the way she paused before delivering a scolding, the fact that she started letting him ask questions instead of only answering hers.
On the tenth day of training, she brought him to the edge of the cliff where the shrine kissed the clouds.
Beneath them, mist rolled like oceans.
"Balance," she said quietly. "That's what they always preach. But they only fear what they don't understand."
Kael looked up. "You were part of the Cradle, weren't you?"
She didn't deny it.
"I trained as one of their Scorch Blades," she said. "We were taught that Echoes were broken. That they needed to be erased to protect the world."
Kael's fingers clenched. "So why help me?"
"Because I saw what they did to a child who couldn't control his flame."
Kael's breath caught.
"They burned him alive," she said flatly. "Said it was mercy."
The wind howled around them.
"You're not broken, Kael. You're just incomplete. And that can still be shaped."
He turned toward her. "Then shape me."
That night, Kael dreamed again — but this time the Devourer did not speak.
Instead, he saw Serida. Standing at his side. Holding back the dark.
---
Meanwhile, at Cradle headquarters…
Beneath the earth, under vaulted blackstone halls and flickering spell-fire, Matron Vohr met with five figures draped in voidsilk cloaks.
"The boy has stabilized," she said. "Which means he's gaining control. We must strike before he masters the Devourer."
A man with ash-pale skin and golden tattoos stepped forward. "Let me lead it."
This was Riven, a former Echo-turned-loyalist. One of their most lethal assets.
"He won't see me coming," Riven whispered. "I remember how they think."
"Take the Woken," Vohr ordered. "And bring him back breathing. If he's dead… burn the shrine."
Riven smiled.
"No place is sacred," he said, turning.
---
Back at the shrine, Kael sat by the old flame pit Serida had re-lit.
She handed him a carved stone.
"What is it?" he asked.
"A memory anchor," she said. "If you lose yourself… this might help bring you back."
Kael held it tight. "Why are you helping me this much?"
Serida didn't answer right away.
But this time, she did smile.
"Because I believe you're going to be the one to tear them down."
The fire between them sparked.
But far off, the wind began to carry a new scent.
Smoke.