---
The tomb of Orran pulsed with energy.
Even the air felt strange now—like time didn't know what to do. Sometimes it moved fast, then slow, then still. Siya stepped closer to Chirag, her hand resting on his arm. Kael's sword was halfway drawn, though he knew it wouldn't help much against a god.
Orran stood before them, tall and cold, his body glowing softly. His long robe flowed like mist, and strange clockwork symbols shimmered across his skin. Time bent around him with every breath he took.
"You came to awaken me," Orran said. "But for what purpose?"
Chirag stepped forward, feeling the heat of his own power rise inside him.
"The gods are preparing for war," he said. "They've already sent their beasts to the Demon Realm. Next, they will come themselves. I've come to ask for your help."
Orran's eyes narrowed. "The gods fear many things. But they fear prophecy most of all."
Chirag nodded. "I know. I am that prophecy."
For a moment, Orran said nothing. He simply looked at Chirag—deeply, as if watching every second of his life unfold at once. His childhood. His pain. His rise.
"You burn with power that was never meant to exist," Orran finally said. "Power born not from divinity, but from love… from rebellion."
Chirag felt Siya move closer. Her warmth kept him steady.
Orran continued, "If I join you, I will break the laws of time again. The gods will come for me, and for you. But if I refuse, they will still destroy your world."
"Then what are you waiting for?" Kael said sharply. "Join us."
Orran raised a hand and time froze.
Literally.
Kael's mouth hung open mid-word. The flames on Chirag's hands stopped flickering. Even Siya's hair, caught in the wind, was frozen in place.
But Chirag could still move.
He looked around in shock. "What is this?"
"A test," Orran said.
The world around them turned gray, and the walls of the tomb melted into mist. Chirag suddenly stood alone—in a memory.
---
He was a child again.
Cold. Hungry. Sitting in the rain outside the gates of his old village.
His mother's voice echoed, "We cannot keep him. He has no power. He's useless."
Then came the laughter of the other children. The pain of being unwanted.
"Why are you showing me this?" Chirag asked, heart pounding.
"To remind you who you are," Orran's voice echoed from nowhere. "And what you must never forget."
The scene shifted.
Now Chirag stood at the moment Siya gave him her power—when he first felt true strength and true love. Her eyes had glowed with warmth. Her voice was soft.
"You are not powerless. You are mine."
Another shift.
Now he stood alone, facing a burning world. Demons and humans both screamed in pain. The gods descended from the skies, and Chirag stood in the middle—alone, helpless.
Orran's voice returned. "This is what the future may become… if you fail."
Chirag clenched his fists.
"I won't let that happen."
"Then prove it," Orran said.
---
The tomb snapped back into view. Time began to move again.
Kael blinked, confused. "What just happened?"
"Only a moment passed," Siya said, sensing the shift in Chirag's expression. "But it felt longer, didn't it?"
Chirag nodded. "Much longer."
Orran stepped forward. "I will help you."
Kael let out a breath. "Finally."
"But my help comes with a cost," Orran added. "You must let me guide your steps from here on. The scroll Lunara gave you is only the beginning. To win this war, you will need to find the other forgotten gods—and not all of them will be willing to help."
"I'll convince them," Chirag said.
Orran looked at him one last time. "Then you carry not only your flame… but the weight of fate itself."
With a sweep of his hand, Orran summoned a golden compass into the air. It glowed with moving stars, its needle pointing toward a distant direction.
"This will guide you to the next one," he said. "Her name is Elira, the Stormmother. She controls the winds that once shaped the oceans. But she is trapped… in the Sea of Chains."
Siya frowned. "That's far. And dangerous."
"Nothing worth doing is ever safe," Chirag replied, taking the compass.
Orran's form began to fade, his body turning into glowing sand. "I will return when the final battle draws near. Until then, follow the path. Do not stray."
The tomb crumbled behind them as they left, but Chirag felt stronger. Not just in power, but in purpose.
One god had joined him.
Now it was time to find the next.
---
Back at the Demon Castle, war preparations continued. More clans arrived every day. Blacksmiths worked through the night, and scouts reported strange activity near the human borders—more signs that the gods were moving.
Siya stood with Chirag at the balcony, watching the moon rise.
"You looked different when you came back," she said gently.
"I saw my past. My fears. My possible future," he replied. "And I realized something."
"What?"
"I used to think I was fighting to prove myself. Now I'm fighting to protect the people I love."
Siya smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder. "That's the Chirag I fell in love with."
Kael shouted from below, "We leave at sunrise! Get some rest while you can!"
But neither of them moved. The night was calm. For now.
Chirag held the golden compass in his hand, the stars inside it turning slowly.
The Sea of Chains awaited.
And the next god was calling.
---