Avalon – Inner Sanctum
The city was alive with whispers.
Lucian stood at the edge of a glowing terrace, the three-pointed crown above his brow fading to a gentle shimmer. Below, the marble streets wound like silver veins through towers of ageless wonder. Crystalline bridges crisscrossed between palaces carved into mountain faces, and luminous glyphs shimmered in the air like falling leaves.
Yena stood beside him, her expression unreadable. "You've absorbed the third shard. That makes you more than just Mythborne now."
Lucian didn't respond immediately. He touched his chest, feeling the burning weight of the shard settle beside the others. He wasn't in pain anymore. But something inside him had changed—deeply, permanently. His thoughts burned faster. His senses stretched farther. When he closed his eyes, he could almost see the world turning beneath the stars.
"I'm starting to remember," he said quietly. "Not just glimpses. Choices. People I led. People I left behind."
Yena gave him space, watching his expression. "And?"
Lucian's jaw clenched. "I destroyed them. To stop the Cinder King, I became worse than him."
Before Yena could respond, a new presence approached.
Nimue.
Her steps were silent on the polished stone, but her power rolled off her in waves—subtle, like a tide, but unmistakable.
> "Regret is the mark of a soul not yet lost," she said softly. "But you must look forward now. Avalon lives because of what you did. And because of what you must do next."
Lucian turned to her. "There are four more shards. Where are they?"
Nimue's eyes dimmed. "Scattered. Some hidden. Some… bound to others like you. Mythborne who have not yet chosen a side."
Lucian's brow furrowed. "You mean there are others like Ashira?"
"Worse," Nimue said. "Ashira still remembers. Others have been reborn, their past lives locked behind pain and fear. They might not even know what they are."
Yena stepped forward. "We need to find them before the Cinder King does."
Nimue nodded gravely. "You're not the only one collecting shards."
---
Elsewhere — Moscow Underground
A chamber of frost. Ancient symbols etched in ice. A girl—no older than sixteen—stood barefoot in the center, her breath visible even in the dark.
Her name was Vera.
The mark on her arm pulsed like frozen lightning.
Before her, the ice cracked—revealing a figure buried in glacial sleep.
A voice echoed in her mind, cold and sharp as glass:
> "He awakens. And winter will answer."
---
Avalon – Chamber of Reflections
Lucian sat before a still pool of black water in the heart of Avalon's temple. The walls around him pulsed with dormant energy. Nimue watched from behind, while Yena stood guard outside.
The moment his reflection settled, Lucian spoke:
"I need to understand what the shards truly are."
Nimue approached slowly. "Each shard is a piece of the Flame Crown—an artifact older than this world. Not made by mortals. Not even by gods. It is the will of creation… fractured."
Lucian turned to her. "Then why me? Why not someone else?"
Nimue's gaze softened. "Because you were the only one who tried to destroy it. The Crown remembers intent, not just power."
Lucian's reflection flickered.
He saw himself, armor ablaze, standing before a shattered city—his own hand driving the spear through the Crown's heart to break it.
And behind him… stood seven others.
Each one bearing a fragment. Each one turning away.
Lucian snapped out of the vision.
"They were my comrades," he whispered. "They helped me break it."
Nimue nodded. "They're out there. Reborn. Just like you."
Lucian's eyes narrowed. "Then I'm not alone."
---
Storms Brewing
As they emerged from the chamber, Yena approached quickly.
"A pulse just hit the astral lattice," she said. "Three flare signals in the past hour. One in Russia. One in Peru. And one…" she hesitated, "…in New York."
Lucian's heart skipped. "New York?"
Yena nodded. "The shard of thunder. It's awake."
Lucian clenched his fist. "Then we move. We track them down. One by one."
Nimue raised her hand. "Take this."
She offered him a ring of pure gold, inscribed with symbols that seemed to shift as he stared at them.
> "The Ring of Memory," she said. "It will protect your mind from collapsing under the weight of your past as more shards awaken."
Lucian took it, slipping it on.
Immediately, a calming sensation spread through his body—like stepping into cool rain after fire.
He turned to Yena. "Contact your people. Prep for New York."
Yena grinned. "Thought you'd never ask."
---
Far Above — The Cinder King's Throne
The fire raged higher.
The Cinder King watched the stars shift in the Realm of Ash.
> "Three shards," he muttered. "And he still breathes."
A voice behind him spoke, trembling with dark amusement. "Shall we intervene?"
The King did not turn. "Not yet. Let him gather them."
> "Let him remember everything."
> "Then… we burn it all again."