***
Calienne burned.
Her scream wasn't one of pain—it was song. A haunting melody sung in a language older than gods, older than blood.
Golden fire surged from her tiny frame, spiraling into the Heartflame like a key sliding into a lock. The chains snapped one by one with a deep, resonating clang. Cracks split the temple walls as tremors rippled through the stone.
And then... she opened her eyes.
They were not her own anymore.
Gone was the wide-eyed child who had braided blood-petals. In her place stood a queen born from fury and fire.
She descended slowly, floating like ash caught in a rising wind. The flames didn't burn her—they wore her like a crown. Her small hands flexed, and the flames obeyed, coiling around her arms like sentient serpents.
Kael stumbled backward, shielding Kray with a ward.
Seraphine didn't move. Her fingers tightened around her blades, but I saw it—the tremble.
She wasn't afraid of Calienne.
She was afraid of what we'd have to do to stop her.
***
"I told you," Calista said behind us, her voice as calm as death. "She was made for this."
I turned toward her slowly.
"You're insane," I spat. "She's just a child!"
"She was," Calista agreed, brushing ash from her shoulder. "Now, she's a god."
The Heartflame pulsed again, and I felt it—something pulling on me.
My rune blazed across my chest and spine. Fire licked at my skin.
And Calienne—my daughter—looked at me like she knew me completely.
"Father," she said softly.
I tried to speak. Failed.
Then she walked to me.
The fire parted for her.
And when she reached up, touching my rune, it lit up like a supernova.
Every memory I had—every trial, every pain, every death—rushed through my veins like wildfire.
And in that single, burning moment, I saw her memories too.
Calista holding her in the void.
Feeding her lies and half-truths.
Teaching her to hate Seraphine.
Teaching her to crave me.
To see me as king, not father.
To see Seraphine as rival, not mother.
My knees buckled.
***
"I see now," Calienne said, stepping back. "Why she feared you. Why she hated her."
She turned to Seraphine.
"You stole him."
Seraphine's daggers flashed in her hands. "I didn't steal anything."
"You broke him," Calienne hissed, flames curling around her wrists. "You made him weak. Mortal. Flesh and heart and—"
"I made him human," Seraphine snapped. "And I'd do it again."
"ENOUGH!"
My voice boomed like a commandment.
The flames stilled.
Everyone froze.
I rose to my feet, chest heaving, power blazing beneath my skin.
"Calienne," I said, stepping toward her. "You are not a weapon. You are not her pawn. You are my blood. And I won't let you be turned into a throne."
Tears welled in her eyes—but the fire did not fade.
"Then love me," she whispered. "More than her."
My heart shattered.
"I can't," I said, voice cracking. "Because I love you both. But Seraphine is my soul."
And in that second—Calienne chose.
***
The fire exploded from her like a supernova.
Kael's shield broke. Kray was thrown against the wall. Seraphine lunged—but not fast enough.
A single, burning whip struck her across the ribs.
She cried out, crashing into the pillar behind her.
"NO!" I roared, running to her side.
Blood. So much blood. Her tunic sizzled, torn open to reveal scorched flesh.
She winced, lips trembling. "I'm okay," she lied.
"You're not."
"Desmond…" she reached for my face. "Don't let her fall."
***
I turned back to Calienne, rage and heartbreak fusing into something... ancient.
The Third Flame inside me roared to life.
And suddenly I wasn't standing.
I was hovering.
My skin cracked with glowing runes. My eyes blazed gold. My voice became the voice of kings and monsters.
"Calienne," I said. "I gave you a chance."
She narrowed her eyes.
"And I gave you a choice."
She raised both hands.
And our flames collided.
***
Father vs daughter. Flame vs flame. Destiny vs defiance.
The temple became a battlefield of blinding light and soul-fire.
Every strike we exchanged carried pieces of us—memories, grief, love, pain.
She struck me with the image of her curled alone in the void, whispering lullabies to herself.
I struck back with the memory of holding Seraphine, shaking with joy and terror.
Back and forth.
Until—
I saw it.
The truth.
Calista wasn't controlling her anymore.
She was possessing her.
Hidden deep behind Calienne's fury was Calista's soul—anchored by blood magic.
She wasn't just using Calienne.
She was Calienne.
***
I broke off the attack, mid-strike.
Kael shouted, "What are you doing? Finish it!"
"I can't!"
"She'll kill you!"
"She's not the one I'm fighting!" I screamed.
I surged forward, ignoring her fire. Her fists. Her rage.
I caught her by the wrists—forcing the flames to stop.
She screamed and fought me, twisting, crying.
And then I pressed my forehead to hers.
"I know you're in there," I whispered. "Fight her."
"I—can't—" she whimpered.
"You're stronger than her."
"No. She is me."
"No," I said. "She's in you. But she's not all of you."
And then I did what no king, no warrior, no god ever did in the middle of battle.
I hugged her.
I held her like she wasn't a weapon.
Like she was mine.
***
She screamed.
Her fire went white-hot—then vanished.
She collapsed into my arms, sobbing.
Behind me, Calista's true form shattered from the last tether. Her soul shrieked, torn from the girl's body, wailing into the void as she was cast out.
Banished.
For the last time.
***
Silence fell.
The Heartflame dimmed.
The temple trembled—but did not fall.
And I… fell to my knees.
Holding my daughter.
Broken. But free.
***
Later that night, Seraphine woke in the infirmary.
I was already there, holding her hand.
She blinked through the pain.
"Is it over?"
I smiled faintly. "For now."
"Is she okay?"
I nodded. "She's... asleep. Dreaming. Like a normal child."
Seraphine sighed. "I still don't know if I can be her mother."
"You don't have to be," I whispered. "Just be her protector. That's enough for now."
She leaned up, pain flashing through her, and kissed me.
Soft.
Exhausted.
True.
"I love you, Desmond," she said. "Even if fate doesn't make it easy."
I touched her cheek.
"Then let's burn fate down… together."