The sky never calmed.
Even after the sixth seal broke, the flames of the Realm of the Forsaken Flame refused to die out. Kael sat alone near the shattered altar, breathing heavily, staring into the ember-filled void.
Azrion had gone quiet again.
Too quiet.
> "Azrion?" Kael called out, gently tapping his chest where the darkened symbol pulsed.
"You there…?"
A long silence followed.
Then, softly—
> "Do you know what hurts more than death, Kael?"
"It's betrayal."
Kael's breath hitched. Azrion's voice wasn't cold like usual. It was broken. Hollow.
A Memory Not Meant for Kael
Without warning, Kael was pulled into the Inner World again. But this time, it wasn't just crimson ruins and silence. This time, there were voices.
He stood in a field of white flowers under a twilight sky. Two figures stood in the distance—one was Azrion, younger, smiling.
The other…
A radiant figure cloaked in gold and blue. A god. Yet… not like the others.
> "You'll be the death of the heavens, Azrion," the god laughed, his tone warm.
"And I'll be the one to drag you back when you lose yourself."
Azrion smiled.
> "Then stay beside me forever. If the gods turn on me, I need to know… you won't."
The god didn't answer. He just looked away.
Kael felt something rise in his chest.
Grief. Confusion. Rage.
> "Who is he?" Kael asked.
Azrion appeared beside him, older now, silent as the memory faded into ash.
> "His name… was Zephyr."
> "He was the only god I ever trusted. The only one who ever believed in me."
> "And in the end… he was the one who sealed me."
The Voice Returns
Back in reality, Kael jolted awake, sweat running down his face. He looked around—but now something was different.
Someone stood in the distance.
A man in golden robes, silver hair flowing like starlight. He wasn't hostile.
He wasn't even armed.
His eyes met Kael's.
And Kael froze.
Because those were the same eyes from the memory.
> "Kael," the man said gently, "My name is Zephyr. I was once… Azrion's closest friend."
> "And I've come to warn you… he isn't telling you the whole truth."
Kael's heart twisted.
> "You sealed him…" Kael whispered.
Zephyr nodded.
> "Yes. And I cried for a thousand years because of it."
"But you don't understand what Azrion truly is."
"He wasn't just born powerful… He was created. Forged by chaos. He was never supposed to exist."
Kael clenched his fists.
> "Liar."
Zephyr's eyes filled with sadness.
> "Ask him, Kael. Ask him what happened to his mother."
Before Kael could speak again, Zephyr vanished like mist.
Azrion Awakens
> "Kael…" Azrion's voice returned, this time dark and shaking with fury.
> "Stay away from him."
> "What happened to your mother?" Kael asked, voice low.
Silence.
Then, Azrion whispered:
> "I'll tell you… when the seventh seal breaks."
"Until then, don't trust Zephyr. He may wear the face of a friend… but his blade was the first to taste my blood."
End of Chapter 9