CHAPTER SIXTEEN: The Vault of Origins
The wind howled as Jayden and Veyna stood at the edge of the great ridge known as Ashfang's Spine — a jagged cliff that curved like the back of a beast, overlooking the forbidden mountain drawn on the map.
Far below them: a stone temple half-swallowed by the earth, wrapped in dead vines and frost.
The Vault of Origins.
"Looks abandoned," Jayden muttered.
Veyna shook her head. "The mountain's never truly abandoned. It sleeps. It watches. It waits."
Jayden touched the scroll again. That strange line echoed in his mind:
> "Only the bleeding flame shall open the vault."
---
A Trial of Flesh and Fire
The entrance was sealed with no keyhole or door — just a flat slab of obsidian, covered in glyphs that shimmered under moonlight. At the center was a symbol: a flame split in two.
Jayden stepped closer, hesitated, then pressed his palm to the symbol.
Nothing.
Veyna frowned. "The flame… and the bleeding."
He took a breath and unsheathed Blackroot, slicing lightly across his hand. The blade sizzled as it drank the blood — and this time, when he touched the glyph again, the stone shuddered.
Flames raced through the carvings like veins igniting.
The slab split apart with a sound like cracking bone.
> Welcome, Bloodborn, a voice whispered in the air.
---
Inside the Vault
Inside, the air changed. Heavier. Older. Like stepping into the lungs of a buried god.
The walls pulsed faintly — not with torchlight, but with some inner glow, like the vault itself was alive.
Glyphs hovered in the air, whispering languages Jayden didn't understand. Some tried to crawl into his mind.
"Don't read them aloud," Veyna warned. "These glyphs are living memories. If you open the wrong one, it might rewrite you."
Jayden shivered.
Then, they reached a wide hall — at the end of it stood a monolith, half-cracked and humming.
In front of it: a circle of stone pedestals — each holding something different:
A small dagger, black and curved.
A chain made of bone links.
A vial filled with glowing red mist.
And an old book bound in skin.
> "A test," Veyna whispered.
---
The Voice of the Vault
Suddenly, the voice returned — louder now, ancient and deep.
> "Four paths. Four truths. Choose one to remember… or lose yourself forever."
Jayden blinked. "What does that mean?"
> "It's a memory trial," Veyna said. "Each object represents a buried part of you — or your bloodline. The one you choose will determine what the Vault reveals."
Jayden stared at the objects. Each one pulled at him differently. The dagger thrummed with rage. The chain… with loss. The vial… temptation. But the book…
He reached for it.
The moment he touched the book, the Vault shattered open into a storm of light — and Jayden was pulled inside a memory not his own.
---
The First Bloodborn
He stood in a golden field, watching a man with burning red eyes raise a blade of fire against a horde of dark creatures.
The man turned.
He looked exactly like Jayden — only older. Harder.
> "The Hollow was made to contain us," the man said. "But they feared us because we were the only ones who could kill what came before."
Jayden gasped. "Who are you?"
> "Your ancestor. The first Bloodborn. The flame in you isn't vampire. It's Reaper fire."
Behind the man, Jayden saw a great door of bone — and something trying to break out of it.
> "You're not their weapon, Jayden. You're their shield. Against it."
Jayden looked up. "What is it?"
But the memory shattered.
---
Back to the Present
Jayden collapsed to his knees. Veyna rushed to his side. "What happened?"
He looked up, eyes glowing faintly.
"I saw… him. My ancestor. The one who first held the Bloodstone. And I saw the Vault's purpose. It wasn't made to hide power. It was made to hide a prison."
Veyna's face paled. "The Hunter?"
Jayden shook his head.
> "No. Worse."
He turned toward the now open monolith. Inside it was an orb — black and swirling like a storm cloud.
He picked it up — and in that moment, he saw a city burning, vampires kneeling to a crown of thorns, and a name etched into the sky:
> "Ashkarin the Devourer."
Jayden closed his eyes.
The Vault was not a safe.
It was a warning.
---