The tunnel grew narrower as they ran, stone walls pressing close, the air thick with old dust and fear.
Seren's words echoed in Lina's mind like a ringing bell she couldn't silence.
"You're connected to the prophecy… the Seventh Flame."
Lina stumbled slightly.Kai caught her arm immediately.
"Careful," he murmured.
His fingers lingered longer than necessary.Enough for her heart to flip once—twice—before she pulled herself together.
She looked at Seren."The Seventh Flame? What does that even mean?"
Seren swallowed hard. "It's one of the oldest prophecies in Aetherion. Older than the academy. Older than the council."
Reyon shot her a surprised look. "You know about that? I thought only archivists had access."
Seren shook her head. "I saw it by accident while doing volunteer work in the restricted library."
Kai stiffened.
Lina noticed.Kai never stiffened.
"What is it?" she asked.
Kai didn't answer.Not immediately.
Instead, Reyon stepped in.
"The Seventh Flame isn't a person," he said. "It's a… sign. A symbol. A warning."
Seren shook her head violently. "No. It changed. Someone edited the prophecy years ago. It used to be symbolic. Now it names a person."
Lina's pulse jolted."A person? Who?"
Seren's voice trembled."Someone born with a unique flame signature… someone whose magic reacts when the academy is in danger."
Lina stared. "My magic doesn't react to anything. I can barely light a candle in class."
Reyon chuckled softly. "That's what everyone thinks: that powerful magic must be loud. But the rare ones? They're quiet until triggered."
Kai finally spoke, voice low."The academy attack could've triggered you."
Lina blinked at him."You're saying I'm some chosen flame destined to do something? Kai, that sounds insane."
He didn't look away."It fits."
She hated how serious he looked.How certain.
Before Lina could argue, Seren continued in a whisper:
"The prophecy says: When the Seventh Flame awakens, the academy's greatest enemy will rise to claim it."
Lina froze.
Reyon exhaled slowly. "So the enemy… wants her."
Kai's jaw flexed, and Lina felt something fierce, protective, burning beneath his calm exterior.
"But who?" Lina demanded. "Who would want me—?"
BOOM.
The tunnel shook violently, dust raining down.The ceiling cracked.
Kai grabbed Lina and pulled her back as a chunk of stone crashed beside them.
"They're collapsing the tunnels," he said sharply. "To trap us."
Reyon cursed. "No choice — we go deeper!"
They sprinted further down the narrow passage as the ground trembled behind them. The air thinned. The lantern sigils flickered.
Then—
The tunnel split.
Left path: dripping with water, slanting downward.Right path: glowing faintly with old runes.
Kai's gaze sharpened. "Right path."
Reyon shook his head. "Left is safer. Right leads to the old spell vaults."
"Exactly," Kai replied.
Lina stared between them. "Whichever leads away from being crushed!"
But before they chose, the entire passage behind them exploded in a cloud of dust and collapsing stone.
A wave of force rushed toward them like a rolling beast.
Lina didn't think.She felt.
Something hot surged through her—fast, wild, terrifying.
Her rune flared on her wrist.Blue.Then gold.Then blinding white.
Kai's eyes widened. "Lina—!"
The explosion reached them.
Instinctively, Lina threw her hands forward.
A burst of light erupted from her palms—flame, but not fire.
It was like condensed starlight, roaring outward in a swirling shield that met the shockwave head-on.
The blast split around them.
Heat flooded her veins.Her heart thundered.Her vision blurred with bright sparks.
Then—It was over.
The tunnel settled. Dust drifted down like snow.
Kai stared at her in stunned silence.
Reyon blinked. "Well… that wasn't normal."
Seren looked at Lina like she was witnessing a miracle. "The Seventh Flame… awakened."
Lina collapsed to her knees, trembling."I… I didn't mean to. I don't even know what I did."
Kai crouched, gripping her shoulders gently, voice soft but intense."You protected us."
Reyon knelt beside her, eyes gleaming with something unreadable. "And you proved the prophecy real."
Lina shook her head. "I'm just a normal student—"
"No," Seren whispered. "You're the reason they attacked the core."
Lina froze.
Seren's voice broke into a whisper of dread.
"They weren't sabotaging the academy…"
Kai's eyes widened. "They were trying to provoke the Seventh Flame."
Seren nodded.
"To awaken you, Lina."
Lina felt her world tilt.
Everything that had happened—the framing,the accusations,the danger—wasn't random.
She wasn't a victim of bad luck.
She was the target.
To be Continued© Kishtika., 2025All rights reserved.