The Exiled Princess
663 Words
The Fire Kingdom's border was marked by a wall of blackened stone that stretched across the valley like a scar. Once, Thorne explained, it had been
white marble, gleaming and proud. The Ashfall had changed everything. Now the wall stood as a monument to a kingdom's slow death.
"Beyond that wall is Ignaros, the capital," Thorne said. "Or what's left of it. The Eternal Flame's fade has hit the Fire Kingdom hardest. Crops fail. Rivers dry up. People are desperate."
"Will they help us?"
"They'll try to arrest you. The Fire King outlawed unsanctioned magic after the Fall. Anyone showing Keeper abilities is considered a threat to the crown."
"Then why are we going there?"
"Because there's someone inside the city who can teach you what I can't. Someone who knows the old lore." Thorne checked his weapons. "And because the king has something we need. A relic from the First Age. The Ignarion Crown."
They approached the gate disguised as merchants, Thorne leading a borrowed donkey loaded with sacks of grain. The guards were too tired, too hungry, to search thoroughly. They waved the travelers through with barely a glance.
Ignaros was a city dying in slow motion. Once-grand avenues were choked with refugees huddled in makeshift tents. Fountains that had flowed with liquid fire now ran with muddy water. The palace loomed at the city's heart, its golden spires tarnished black.
"It used to be beautiful," a voice said beside them.
Kaelen turned. A young woman stood at the mouth of an alley, watching them with sharp green eyes. She wore practical leather armor over a faded tunic, and her dark hair was braided with strips of red cloth that might once have been silk. A sword hung at her hip. Its blade was unlike any Kaelen had seen, shimmering with a faint silver light.
"Who are you?" Thorne asked, hand drifting toward his dagger.
"Someone who recognize a Keeper when she sees one." The woman nodded at Kaelen's arm, where the Ember Mark had begun to glow faintly through his sleeve. "You're either brave or stupid, walking through Ignaros with that showing."
"We're looking for someone," Kaelen said. "Someone who knows the old ways."
The woman laughed. It was a bitter sound. "There's no one left who knows the old ways. The Fire King burned all the lore-keepers. He called it purging corruption." She studied Kaelen with calculating eyes. "But there is someone who hid her books. Who kept the secrets alive. If you have the right price."
"We don't have money," Thorne said.
"I don't want money." The woman stepped closer. "I want a promise. When the time comes, you take me with you. Away from this dying kingdom. To wherever the Last Ember leads."
"Why?" Kaelen asked.
Her expression hardened. "Because I am Miraen Solborne. Third in line to a throne that no longer exists. Daughter of a king who sold his soul to stay alive. And I will not die in his shadow." She drew her sword, and the blade sang with
starlight. "This is Stellarion, forged from a fallen star by the First Keepers. It has been in my family for a thousand years. I will use it to help you, if you swear on your flame to help me in return."
Kaelen felt the golden fire stir in his chest. It recognized the blade. It recognized her.
"I swear," Kaelen said.
Miraen sheathed her sword and smiled. Not the bitter smile from before.
Something real.
"Good. Then we have work to do. The king's men are hunting someone matching your description. Vexara has put a price on your head."
"How much?" Thorne asked.
"A kingdom's ransom." Miraen's eyes met Kaelen's. "She wants you very badly, Flame Keeper. And she's not the only one."
A horn sounded in the distance. The city guard, mobilizing.
"Follow me," Miraen said, disappearing into the alley. "And try to keep up." Kaelen and Thorne exchanged a look. Then they ran.
- Writer
