They walked in silence.
The trees grew darker the farther they went. Thicker. Older. The sun barely reached through the leaves.
Birds didn't sing here.
Even the wind seemed afraid.
Coker had a hundred questions in his head, but only one came out:
"…Why me?"
Elira didn't answer right away.
She stepped over a log, glanced around, and said, "We'll stop soon. Then I'll tell you everything."
A few minutes later, they reached a hidden cave beneath a hill, half-covered in vines. It looked like a place no one had touched in centuries.
Elira brushed the vines aside and pulled out a small silver crystal. It glowed softly when she touched it to the stone wall.
Click.
The rock shifted, revealing a narrow opening.
"Inside," she said.
Coker hesitated. "You sure this isn't where you murder me and hide the body?"
Elira gave a small smile for the first time. "If I wanted to kill you, I would've done it before the first Hellbound."
"…Fair."
Inside, the cave was dry and lit by floating lights—tiny blue flames hanging in the air like fireflies. The air smelled of old dust and something sharp, like burned herbs.
They sat near a fire pit in the middle. Elira dropped her pack, tossed Coker a wrapped bread roll, and sat down across from him.
Coker didn't touch the food.
He stared at her.
Waiting.
Finally, she said, "You've heard of the gods, right?"
Coker nodded slowly. "Sure. Stories. Myths. Light and dark, order and chaos... all that."
"They weren't myths," Elira said. "They were real. But not what people think."
He frowned. "How do you mean?"
She leaned forward.
"They weren't all kind.
And they didn't disappear.
They were sealed."
She unwrapped a small scroll from her bag and opened it. It showed a strange map—old and worn, with markings in red ink.
"Long ago, during the Demon War, the gods fought among themselves. Some sided with humans. Some... with demons. To stop the war from tearing the world apart, the gods were locked away."
"Locked where?"
Elira tapped the map. "In living vessels. Humans chosen to carry their essence. Power too strong to control."
Coker's eyes narrowed. "You mean people like me."
"Yes," she said. "Exactly like you."
Coker stood up, pacing now.
"So I'm some walking jar for a god that's been sleeping for centuries?!"
"More or less."
He ran a hand through his messy hair. "That's insane. I've never even used magic. I couldn't pass the Awakening Stone. I'm a nobody."
"Not anymore."
Elira looked up at him.
"You think the Magic Stone failed you because you had no power? No. It rejected you because your power is too old. Too dangerous. Not from this world."
Coker sat back down, slower this time.
The fire crackled between them.
"So what happens now?"
She stared into the flames. Her voice softened.
"Now… we find the others."
He blinked. "Others?"
"There were once seven vessels. You're the last known one to awaken. Which means…"
Her voice dropped.
"…the seals are failing."
Coker leaned back against the wall. His mind raced.
Seven vessels. Sealed gods. Power too ancient to be ranked.
It sounded like a fairy tale… but the red mark on his hand said otherwise.
"…And the demons?" he asked.
Elira looked up. "They want to break the seals. Free the gods inside. Control them. Use their power to burn this world down and rebuild it in shadow."
Coker swallowed hard.
"So I'm not just a weapon. I'm a target."
Elira nodded. "Every demon that senses your mark will come for you. Some will try to kill you. Others… might try to control you."
Coker gave a weak laugh. "Great. So I'm basically walking bait with an ancient nuke in my chest."
"Pretty much."
They sat in silence for a while.
The fire popped and cracked. Coker finally took a bite of the bread. It was stale but warm.
"…Why are you helping me?" he asked.
Elira looked at him, thoughtful.
"Because when I was six," she said quietly, "a demon destroyed my village. Killed everyone. I survived because a stranger with glowing red eyes fought it off… and vanished."
Coker listened quietly.
"I've been chasing the truth ever since. The Shadowguard took me in, trained me. I swore I'd protect the next vessel."
"Even if they're annoying and stubborn?"
"Especially then," she said, smirking slightly.
Then her face grew serious again.
"Tomorrow, we head north. To a place called the Sanctum of Sealed Light. The other vessels were studied there—before the old world burned."
Coker nodded slowly.
"I don't know what I'm doing."
Elira stood, hand on her dagger. "None of us did at first. But the gods chose you for a reason."
Suddenly, the cave lights flickered.
The blue flames dimmed.
Both of them stood at the same time.
Coker felt it again—that deep, ancient pressure.
Something was close.
Very close.
Elira grabbed her crystal. "We've been found."
Coker's hand glowed red on its own.
He stepped toward the cave entrance.
"…Then let them come."