The map inked into Ashar's spellbook revealed the path to the third Vault — hidden beneath the ruins of Velaris, Seraiya's palace of light, now swallowed by the sea.
They stood at the cliff's edge by dawn.
Below them, the ocean churned around jagged black spires — the last remnants of a once-great kingdom.
"She drowned it," Ashar murmured. "To bury the vault forever."
Aelira said nothing. But her chest ached.
Velaris was once her sanctuary. Her home. And she had sunk it with her own hands.
"There's a passage beneath the cliffs," Riven pointed out. "Tide-cursed. No one dares enter it anymore."
"Then that's the way we go," Aelira said.
🐚 The Descent
They climbed down the cliff face, waves crashing below.
The passage was tight and slick with seaweed, lit only by Ashar's spells and the faint glow of the silver key around Aelira's neck.
As they reached the cavern's bottom, the world opened into a vast underground lake — at its center, a temple half-submerged in shimmering water.
"The Vault is inside that," Riven said, his voice echoing.
But as they stepped into the water, Kaelen staggered again.
"Something's wrong—" he gasped, clutching his chest.
The key pulsed.
Aelira turned to Ashar. "Why is this happening again?"
Ashar's face was pale. "Because the key is tethered to the Vault's memory magic. It's drawing energy from him — from your bond."
"Then break the bond," Riven said harshly.
Kaelen looked up, pain flickering in his eyes — but not at the suggestion. At Aelira.
"Would you?"
Her voice caught. "I… I don't know how."
But she did.
Deep down, she knew.
To unbind Kaelen from the pull of the Vault, she had to sever the heart-thread that tied their souls.
And if I do… he forgets me.
Everything. Every glance. Every laugh. Every whispered promise under starlight.
⚡ The Decision
Kaelen took her hand. "Don't let me hold you back."
"You're not holding me back," she said, tears rising. "You're keeping me human."
"And if you lose yourself to this magic… what's left of us?"
She stared at the Vault. At the temple's doors glowing faintly beneath the water. The ocean was whispering to her now.
"Queen of Flame. Daughter of Stars. Return."
She had a kingdom buried in ruin. Power locked away. And a storm coming.
She closed her eyes and whispered the words of unbinding.
The thread between them snapped — soft as breath, sharp as steel.
Kaelen gasped once, then blinked… confusion in his eyes.
"Where… where are we?" he asked, eyes distant.
"It's okay," she said, choking back a sob. "You're safe."
He didn't recognize her.
But he was alive.
Riven caught her arm as Kaelen leaned against the cave wall, dazed. "You did the right thing."
"Then why does it feel like dying?" she whispered.
The Vault's doors opened with a deep boom.
Inside waited more than just magic.
It waited for the woman unbound — queen, warrior, and flame reborn.