All Chapters of Heir Of The Fallen Flame : Chapter 11
- Chapter 20
33 chapters
Chapter 11: The New Supreme Mage
Rain fell over Astra like ash from a dying fire. The bells had not stopped ringing since dawn.Black banners hung from every tower of the academy, swaying violently in the cold wind while thousands gathered beneath the stone steps leading to the Hall of Mages. Servants moved silently through the crowd with lowered heads, relighting candles that refused to stay lit beneath the storm.At the center of the courtyard stood a massive pyre.Pelson’s body rested atop it wrapped in silver ceremonial cloth, the crest of Astra stitched across his chest in gold thread. The once feared Grand Mage Supreme looked smaller somehow.Dead.No one spoke above a whisper. Not after what happened.The cracked courtyard still carried scars from the battle. Entire sections of stone had been destroyed and several towers remained blackened from dragonfire-like flames no mage had been able to extinguish completely.People stared at the damage with unease and fear. The Flame Boy. The Devil of Astra. The name ha
Chapter 12: Lafey
The road east disappeared beneath fog by dawn.Kael kept his head lowered as he followed Lyra through the crowded lower district beneath Zen’s mountain academy. The dark cloak hanging over his shoulders scratched against his neck and the hood shadowed most of his face, and a black mask covered his nose down to his mouth but it still wasn’t enough to calm the unease twisting inside him.The city beneath the mountains was already awake despite the early hour. Merchants dragged open wooden stalls while smoke rose from shops and lanterns flickered weakly against the pale morning mist.Kael noticed the way conversations kept dropping into whispers around them. People watching in sheer wonder of who they might be. A sharp wind swept through the street, rustling parchment nailed to a nearby wall. Kael’s steps slowed slightly when he saw it.His face stared back at him.WANTED FOR THE MURDER OF THE SUPREME MAGE.The rough charcoal sketch wasn’t perfect, but it was close enough. Beneath it sa
Chapter 13: The Bounty Hunter
The forest seemed awfully quiet after Lafey stepped out of it.Even the wind seemed to hesitate, caught somewhere between moving forward and turning back. His boots pressed into damp earth with deliberate weight, as though he wanted the ground to remember him. Silver hair tied loosely behind his head moved as he tilted his head, studying Kael with an expression that was almost amused.“Well,” Lafey said again, voice calmer this time, “you’re even easier to find than the posters said.”Kael didn’t answer.His body had already reacted before his thoughts caught up, shoulders tensing, feet moving slightly backward toward Lyra. The stranger’s blade rested lazily across his shoulder, but Kael didn’t miss the way his grip never loosened on the hilt.Lyra stepped forward first. “Move,” she said flatly.Lafey glanced at her like she was something mildly inconvenient. “And you are?”“That doesn’t matter.”A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “It usually does right before people di
Chapter 14: This Was It
The ride felt longer than it should have.Kael could no longer tell how much time had passed since Lafey dragged him away from Lyra. The forest had long given way to uneven roads carved through hills and stone, and then to open stretches of land where distant villages flickered like dying embers under a grey sky.He did not struggle anymore.The ropes around his wrists had already bitten deep enough to leave burning lines against his skin. Each time the creature beneath Lafey moved, Kael was jerked forward like a discarded thing tied to a moving cart.The beast itself was not natural.It moved on four thick, jointed limbs, each ending in broad padded feet that sank slightly into the earth with every step. Its skin was dark, almost charcoal in color, but layered with faint ridges. Along its neck ran a strip of pale fur that shimmered whenever it breathed.Its head was long and narrow, almost horse-like in shape, but wrong in its proportions. The mouth stretched wider than it should h
Chapter 15: New Enemy
Kael sat very still.The shadow in the far corner of the cage did not move again, but he knew for a fact that he'd seen it earlier. Even the ten guards outside seemed unaware of it. They seemed occupied with other discussions, their voices drifting through the wooden walls.But Kael didn’t look away. His eyes stayed locked on the dark shape between the straw and iron, his body tensed as he tried to make as little noise as possible. Someone in the inn screamed on the ground floor. The sound of metal breaking wood and a sudden crash of footsteps thundered up through the floorboards.One of the guards outside the cage frowned. “What is that noise?”Another shrugged. “Drunk men fighting again.”But the first guard didn’t sound convinced. “Doesn’t sound like drunken men.”Kael barely heard them, his eyes fixed on the shadow that has now stopped moving and pulled a stop as a human would to sudden noise. His eyes narrowed slightly as his heart thundered, could that be a person? An animal
Chapter 16: Master Liam
It was already dawn when Kael and Lyra slipped into the backstreets of Purple village.Mist clung low to the ground, curling around their ankles as they moved quickly between narrow lanes of stone and timber houses.Smoke drifted from cooking areas, carrying the scent of burning wood and morning porridge. Most of the village was still half-asleep, doors shut. They kept to the shadows.“This way,” Lyra said softly.Kael followed her gaze and saw it, clotheslines stretched between two brick homes behind a small courtyard. Shirts, trousers, cloaks swayed gently in the morning breeze. Someone had already hung them out for the day.Lyra moves in quickly, fingers already reaching up. Kael blinked before he understood what she was doing.“You’re…” he started.Lyra yanked down a bundle of clothes and Kael stopped speaking. Within seconds, she had gathered enough for both of them; plain, rough-spun fabric, likely belonging to farmers or workers. She turned and shoved a set into his arms.Kael
Chapter 17: The Tree Nymphs.
Kael groaned for the hundredth time that evening. By midday, the open fields had disappeared entirely behind them, replaced by towering trees that stretched endlessly toward the heavens. Their branches twisted together high above like clawed fingers, swallowing most of the sunlight and casting the forest beneath into a green shadow.The horses moved along the uneven trail, their hooves crunching softly over roots and damp leaves.Kael hated every second of it.“This saddle was designed by demons,” he muttered for what was likely the twentieth time that day.Lyra did not even glance back at him. “You sure have a lot to complain about.”“I am not complaining.” He said rather quickly, “I wanted to ask if we can settle in a spit for some time and...” “No.” Kael wanted to whine, “My legs have stopped belonging to me.”They'd been at this for two days straight, no rest. Kael was a tad bit closer to losing his damned mind at this rate. “You still speak. That means you are alive.”Kael s
Chapter 19: Bride's Of The Nymph King
Kael woke to the sound of drums.Each strike rolled through the ground beneath him like a second heartbeat. His eyes opened slowly and for one confused moment, all he saw was leaves.Leaves above him and beneath him. Leaves woven together so tightly they formed walls. Thick vines twisted around wooden pillars, glowing faintly with silver light. The air smelled of wet bark, flowers, and something older, like rain trapped inside ancient trees.Kael groaned softly and tried to move. The branches tightened instantly around his wrists.He froze.The memory returned in pieces; the forest, the vines bursting from the ground, Lyra shouting at him to run before both of them were dragged beneath the trees like prey caught in roots.Boom; the drums sounded again.Kael turned his head sharply. He was inside a cage, though cage hardly felt like the right word. Massive roots curved upward from the earth itself, twisting together like ribs around him. Tiny glowing insects drifted lazily through the
Chapter 20: The Wedding
The forest was in full celebration mode by moonrise. Silver lanterns hung from twisting branches overhead while glowing flowers bloomed along every wooden bridge in the village. Drums echoed endlessly through the trees and golden dust drifted through the air like floating fireflies.The tree nymphs moved everywhere at once. Some carried bowls of glowing nectar, others braided vines together into enormous arches near the center platform where the ceremony would take place.Music filled the forest now and lord was it enticing. If it hadn't been Lyra's forced wedding, Kael might have just enjoyed this ceremony a bit more. He gripped the bars of his cage tightly as he watched them prepare. He hated how peaceful it all looked.A pair of nymph guards stood nearby speaking softly in their strange language while several others sharpened spears beside the roots below. There were too many guards now, too many eyes and too many damn trees.Kael exhaled slowly and rested his forehead briefly ag
Chapter 21: The One Who Cannot Be Named.
The forest trembled even though there was no feel of wind in this part of the forest. The forest seemed to be engulfed in daylight, something no one would miss for miles and miles to come. Golden fire rolled across the shattered platform in violent waves, crawling through broken roots and splintered wood like living creatures searching for something to devour. Heat pressed against every tree in the clearing until bark blackened and glowing leaves curled inward.The drums had stopped. No one dared to move.The tree nymphs stood frozen beneath the silver lanterns, their golden eyes wide with fear as they stared at the boy standing in the center of the ruined ceremony.Only he did not look like a boy anymore. The flames wrapping around Kael’s body pulsed slowly beneath cracked skin glowing molten gold. Thin streams of smoke rose from his shoulders while the air around him warped from heat.Even the roots beneath his feet recoiled.Kael lifted his head, his eyes no longer looked human.