The Embers of Rebellion

The next day surprise envoy from the Fire Kingdom arrived at dusk, his carriage emblazoned with a phoenix engulfed in flames. His name was Lord Varek, Hafa's uncle and the Fire King's most venomous advisor. He strode into the throne room with the arrogance of a man who'd never been told "no," his crimson cloak trailing ashes.

Hafa watched from the shadows, her stomach churning. She hadn't seen Varek since childhood, when he'd gifted her a dagger and whispered, "A princess's best friend is the blade at her back."

Tucan sat on his obsidian throne, feigning boredom. "Speak quickly, Lord Varek. Eternity is long, but my patience isn't."

Varek bowed, shallow and mocking. "Your Eternity. The Fire Kingdom… requests Princess Hafa's return. Her mother, the queen, is gravely ill. A daughter's place is at her bedside."

Hafa stiffened. Lies. Her mother had disowned her the day she'd been sent to Tucan.

Tucan drummed his fingers on the throne. "And if I refuse?"

"The other elemental kingdoms grow restless. They whisper that the Timeless King hoards power—and heirs—like a dragon hoards gold." Varek's smile sharpened. "Return Hafa, and we might… dissuade them."

Blackmail. Hafa stepped into the light. "You'd start a war over a request?"

Varek's gaze flicked to her. "Ah, niece. Still playing servant? How… quaint."

"Better a servant here than a puppet there."

Tucan rose, his voice glacial. "The princess stays. Tell your king to send his armies. They'll make fine dust."

Varek's composure cracked. "You think yourself untouchable, Time-Wielder? Even gods can bleed."

The air shivered. Tucan appeared inches from Varek's face, his hand hovering over the man's chest. "Shall I show you how a god burns?"

Silver light pulsed. Varek's cloak began to fray, threads unraveling like snakes shedding skin.

"Enough!" Hafa grabbed Tucan's wrist. "Let him go."

Tucan froze, his eyes locking on hers. For a heartbeat, she thought he might incinerate them both. Then he released Varek, who stumbled back, gasping.

"Leave," Tucan growled. "And pray I don't unmake the road home."

Varek fled, but not before spitting at Hafa's feet. "Traitor."

Later, in the Courtyard of Frozen Flames:

Hafa found Tucan standing among statues of fire captured mid-roar, their heat suspended in time.

"You shouldn't have stopped me," he said without turning.

"You were about to turn him into a relic," she retorted. "And I'd rather not owe you for sparing my dear uncle."

Tucan's shoulders tensed. "He'll return with an army."

"Let him. My father's too proud to share glory with the other kingdoms. They'll fracture like kindling."

Tucan finally faced her, his gaze probing. "You defend this place now?"

"I defend not being a pawn." She kicked a pebble into a frozen fire. "But he wasn't wrong about one thing. The other kingdoms are plotting. The Veils Clan's spies have reports."

"And you've been snooping."

"You left the scrolls on your desk. Not my fault you're sloppy."

A grudging smile tugged at his lips. "Why warn me?"

"Because unlike you, I can die. And I'd prefer not to."

He stepped closer, the frozen flames casting fractured light on his face. "What do you want, Hafa?"

"Right now? A drink."

"Hafa."

She sighed. "I want to live. Not survive. There's a difference."

He studied her, as if seeing her for the first time. "Then help me end this."

"End what? The war? Your curse?"

"Both."

A chill swept through her. "How?"

He cupped her hand, his touch colder than the statues. "Burn it all down." 

To be continued.