The air inside the ruins was dense with age thick with the scent of time itself. Every footstep echoed like whispers from the dead. Moss crept along shattered marble columns, and the remnants of an ancient throne sat buried beneath layers of stone and dust.
Leon descended into the forgotten temple beneath Thalor's central mountain, guided by an old map extracted from the Dominion's stolen ledger and deciphered by Elara. Beside him stood Seren, torchlight flickering in her eyes, and Master Vaelor, whose expression was unreadable even as the weight of fate coiled tighter around them.
"This place predates the current era," Vaelor whispered. "Even the System fears what lies beneath."
Leon paused at the edge of a crumbling stairwell. "Good. Then we're exactly where we need to be."
The Temple of the First Flame
They passed murals depicting empires long erased from memory rulers with halos of fire and swords made from the bones of stars. At the heart of the chamber, they found it: a sarcophagus shaped like a clawed hand clutching a sword, sealed with golden chains and ancient sigils.
Above it, the inscription read:
"Here lies Arcanos the Bound, Flameborn Tyrant of the Primordial Age. May no system awaken his wrath again."
Elara arrived moments later, breathless from navigating the arcane wards outside.
"You shouldn't open it," she said quickly. "The energy signatures alone Leon, this entity burned civilizations from history."
Leon stepped forward. "And we're fighting an empire that would burn the world again. If this holds a key, we need it."
Vaelor's voice was somber. "But every key can become a weapon. Or a lock."
Leon raised his hand, touching the center sigil.
System Notification
[WARNING: You are accessing a Forbidden Zone]
[This location is not registered in current System parameters]
[Do you wish to override and synchronize?]
Yes
No
Leon didn't hesitate.
Yes
The sigils ignited in gold and red, then shattered.
The sarcophagus opened with a low growl, like the yawning maw of a sleeping god. A wave of heat and memory crashed over them all. Flames danced along the ground, revealing a figure inside.
Not bones. Not ashes.
But a man preserved, silver-haired, with ember-like eyes slowly flickering open.
Arcanos Awakes
Leon met the ancient emperor's gaze. "Who are you?"
The being smiled with cracked lips. "I… was once like you. A Conqueror. But even the stars could not contain my ambition."
Arcanos sat up, the chains falling away like paper. "Tell me… what Empire do I serve now?"
"You serve none," Leon replied calmly. "You were sealed for a reason. But I need your strength."
The flames flared.
"You would dare command me?"
Leon's aura surged, golden and absolute.
"I don't command. I offer purpose. Fight with me… and we rewrite this broken world."
The chamber trembled. Arcanos tilted his head, intrigued.
"…Very well, young Emperor. But know this if you falter, I will devour everything you've built."
System Notification
[Forbidden Entity: Arcanos the Flameborn has been unsealed]
[New Path Unlocked: Emperor of the Forgotten Flame]
[Warning: Alignment Shift Detected – Influence of Primordial Power Increasing]
[Skill Gained: Worldfire Domain – Temporarily engulf a battlefield in purging flame]
Back at the Dominion
Tyren knelt once again before the hooded figure.
But this time, the shadows trembled.
"My scouts report a surge of ancient power. Something has awakened beneath Thalor."
The hooded figure removed their mask.
It wasn't a man. Nor woman. It was something else obsidian skin, eyes of molten gold.
"The Flameborn returns…" it hissed. "We must accelerate the ritual."
Tyren frowned. "You promised me control."
"You shall have it. But first we summon the Herald."
Outside the obsidian gates, a beast of impossible size stirred in the deep.
Herald of the Void
Thunder cracked across a sky that bled shadows.
Darkness pulsed at the edge of the Dominion's borders, warping the very essence of the land. Trees twisted into mockeries of their former selves, and the winds carried whispers fragments of forgotten languages and promises of annihilation.
On a high tower of black obsidian, the Herald descended.
Not walked descended.
Reality seemed to peel back like paper as the creature stepped through. Ten feet tall, draped in a cloak made from the night sky itself, and crowned with horns that flickered like dying stars. Its face was a void, yet its gaze burned through stone.
Dominion Ritual Grounds
The hooded figure and Tyren knelt as the Herald approached.
"You summon me too early," the Herald's voice echoed like the death of suns. "The Flameborn has returned. The scales are no longer balanced."
The hooded figure lifted its face, revealing runes carved into flesh.
"We act not from confidence, but necessity. The boy, Leon… he is no longer bound by the current System. If he merges with Arcanos, the Void's grip will weaken."
The Herald tilted its head. "Then we shall shatter the grip."
From beneath its robes, it revealed a sphere. Pitch black. Pulsating.
[Void Seed: Origin Core]
"Plant this in the heart of the First Flame Temple. Let the old world burn."
Tyren's face twisted with concern. "But what of my command? What of my empire?"
The Herald turned its head toward him.
"You were never promised an empire, mortal. Only survival."
Thalor's Fortress: The Testing Ground
Arcanos walked alone toward the edge of a fortress once abandoned, now manned by Thalorian rebels. Behind him, Leon, Seren, and Elara watched from atop a nearby ridge.
"I gave you power," Arcanos said without turning. "Now I'll see if you're worthy of it."
Flames gathered around his feet. The ground blackened.
"No!" Leon hissed, stepping forward. "They're our allies"
Arcanos raised a single hand. The fire halted.
"I will not burn them unless they raise steel against me. But power, Emperor, must always test loyalty."
He disappeared in a flash of flame.
Seconds later, alarms blared through the fortress.
The Confrontation
Leon teleported inside the fortress courtyard with Seren and Elara.
Chaos had erupted some soldiers dropped their weapons in awe of the flaming figure standing on their battlements. Others drew swords. One fired a bolt that bounced harmlessly off Arcanos' cloak of heat.
Seren stepped in front of Arcanos, her sword drawn. "Enough!"
Arcanos laughed. "Still sharp, this one."
Leon raised a hand, golden aura surging.
"Arcanos. Stand down."
And for a moment, the Flameborn hesitated. Not in fear, but in… recognition.
"You remind me of myself," he said softly. "The day I challenged the gods."
He vanished in a swirl of heat.
System Notification
[Your authority over Arcanos has been tested]
[Bond Strengthened: Dominance over the Flameborn has increased]
[New Trait Acquired: Flame Pact – Your allies cannot be harmed by Arcanos unless you permit it]
In the Shadows of the Dominion
Far away, deep within a ritual sanctum, the Void Seed pulsed ominously.
A group of cloaked mages surrounded it, chanting as veins of darkness spread across the marble floor.
"The Herald has given us his blessing," one said.
"And soon, the Emperor will face the end of all systems," another whispered.
Outside, the sky darkened. The sun... flickered.