CHAPTER TEN:The Gods Remember

Thorne

He had seen many awakenings.

Many heroes rise.

Many destinies burn bright… and then dim.

But what he witnessed in that circle shook even his immortal bones.

Elianah had not just forgiven Kael's shadow.

She had embraced it.

And in doing so, she had bent the rules of the Throne itself.

> "She has done what even the Ancients failed to do," whispered the Oracle from the high steps.

"She has loved the fracture — not just the light."

The heavens above the Chamber cracked like glass.

The circle pulsed once… then stilled.

The trial was over.

But the air did not feel victorious.

It felt watched.

From far beyond the veil, something stirred — something older than prophecy.

Thorne narrowed his eyes toward the heavens.

"Now they remember," he muttered.

"The Gods."

Elianah

She hadn't expected to survive.

But as she knelt beside Kael, breathing in his warmth and the quiet of his soul, she felt more alive than ever.

The Throne of Flame behind her faded into a gentle crown of embers around her brow.

She was whole.

Kael, now unburdened, kissed her palm — not as a prince, but as a man finally free.

But the peace was short-lived.

The Circle Masters bowed to them… then parted.

From the hallway beyond came a sound that made even the walls shiver:

Footsteps.

Soft. Rhythmic.

Divine.

A woman entered.

She wore no crown, but needed none.

Skin dark as the void between stars.

Hair silver-white, braided with runes that moved.

Eyes gold — and angry.

She stopped before them and said:

> "Alarienne.

Kaelen.

You awaken ancient thrones like children playing with fire.

But do you remember why your souls were split?"

Elianah rose slowly. "Who are you?"

The woman smiled with no warmth.

> "I am Nyelith, Keeper of the Forgotten Pact.

The Gods banished you both for a reason.

And now… you've broken the seal."

The chamber trembled.

From her sleeves fell scrolls — each glowing with the names of lives unlived.

Nyelith looked at Kael.

Then at Elianah.

Then at the sky as thunder rolled above them.

> "The war your love tried to end," she whispered,

"will now begin again."