Chapter 40: "Revelation of the Flame"
As always, the Phoenix's presence was overwhelming, crushing and liberating all at once. The very air around Thrain felt heavy with its aura, yet it also seemed to lift him, as though he floated on a divine current. The glow radiating from its form was almost too brilliant to look at, but Thrain couldn't turn away. He had felt this sensation once before, yet it struck him with the same awe, the same trembling reverence.
The Phoenix stood tall and majestic, its fiery wings unfurling with grace, each feather shimmering like molten gold. Its voice, when it spoke, was both commanding and ethereal, resonating in the air and within his very soul.
"If you do not intend to speak, mortal, then my time here is wasted," it said, its tone laced with regal impatience. "You summoned me, and I have answered. Yet you sit in silence. Do you falter before my presence?"
