The morning sun barely touched the sky when Mira was summoned. The knock on her door was firm, precise. She knew who it was before even opening it.
Kai stood there, his golden eyes steady, filled with a quiet intensity. No greeting, no unnecessary words.
"Come with me."
Mira hesitated, the weight of last night's conversation lingering in her mind. Tomorrow, we begin unlocking the truth of your fire. His words had burned into her thoughts, leaving her restless.
Now, it was time.
She followed him through the silent halls of the White House, the lingering chill of dawn making the marble floors feel even colder beneath her bare feet. They didn't take the usual path toward the training grounds. Instead, Kai led her through a series of winding corridors, descending deeper into the structure until they reached a massive set of doors, darker than anything she had seen before.
Intricate silver engravings covered the surface—arcane symbols pulsing faintly, sealing whatever lay behind them. Mira swallowed. The air itself felt heavier here, thick with an ancient power that coiled around her like unseen chains.
Kai pressed his palm against the doors. A wave of golden light rippled outward, and the metal groaned as it parted.
The chamber inside was vast, its ceiling lost in darkness. Massive pillars lined the edges, each carved with runes that pulsed with containment magic. At the center stood a circular platform of pure obsidian, its surface cracked with deep veins of silver energy.
Mira stepped inside, her pulse quickening. "Where are we?"
Kai turned to face her, his expression unreadable. "This place is called the Abyssal Vault. It's where unstable magic is tested—and contained."
The door sealed behind them with a resounding thud. Mira's throat tightened.
"This is a trial," Kai continued, stepping onto the platform with her. "I'm going to push your magic past its limits. Whatever is binding your fire—we'll try to break through it."
Mira clenched her fists, her heart pounding against her ribs. Part of her had been waiting for this moment, desperate to grasp the power that always felt just out of reach.
But another part of her, a whisper buried deep in her bones, was afraid.
She forced a smirk. "Sounds fun."
Kai didn't return the expression. Instead, he raised his hand, summoning a small sphere of light that hovered between them. The moment it appeared, Mira felt something inside her react—like a caged beast sensing an opening.
"Summon your flames," Kai commanded.
Mira exhaled slowly, stretching out her hand. The blue fire flickered to life at her fingertips, dancing softly, casting eerie shadows across the dark chamber.
"More."
The flame grew, spreading up her arms, the familiar warmth seeping into her bones. But just as she tried to pull more power, it stopped.
A sharp pain flared in her chest.
Something inside her refused to let go, a wall slamming down the moment she reached for more. Her fingers curled, frustration mounting.
"It's there," she gritted out, "but I can't—"
Kai stepped closer, his presence suffocating. "Then break it."
Mira clenched her jaw. Break it? The barrier inside her wasn't something she could just push through—it was suffocating, like chains wrapped around her soul.
Kai raised a hand, and in an instant, a pulse of golden light shot toward her.
The force struck her like a hammer, sending her skidding back. Pain flared across her ribs, but the fire in her hand barely flickered.
Mira staggered. "What the hell—"
Another blast came. Stronger.
She barely managed to brace herself before impact. It wasn't enough to injure her, but it was enough to provoke something deep inside.
Kai didn't relent. He was forcing her to retaliate, to push past the barrier.
Mira, fight back.
Gritting her teeth, she dug into the fire, pushing harder. The blue flames roared higher, licking at her skin, but they remained contained. It wasn't enough. The barrier inside her held firm, unyielding, like shackles locked around her very existence.
Kai's voice came again, sharp and commanding.
"Break it."
Something inside her snapped.
A rush of heat exploded through her body. The pain in her chest twisted into something deeper, something primal. For a single moment, she felt it—the fire unbound, wild and limitless.
Then—
Darkness.
A void swallowed her whole.
She was no longer in the chamber. She was nowhere. A black abyss stretched endlessly around her, cold and empty.
And then she saw them.
Chains.
They wrapped around her arms, her legs, her throat—thick, obsidian links glowing with ancient inscriptions.
She tried to move. The chains pulled tighter.
And then—
A voice.
Soft. Familiar.
Do not break the chains.
Mira gasped, twisting against the restraints, her mind spinning.
The voice belonged to a woman, distant yet close, like an echo from a forgotten memory.
The darkness trembled, and suddenly, she saw her.
A figure standing ahead, wreathed in blue flames.
A woman—her back turned, her presence suffocating.
Mira tried to call out, but the moment she did, the woman turned just enough for Mira to see—
Eyes. Her eyes.
The same shade of violet. The same intensity.
Mira's breath hitched.
The flames around the woman flared violently.
The voice came again, colder this time.
Do not break the chains.
Pain lanced through Mira's body, and the abyss shattered around her.
She gasped awake, her body collapsing onto the obsidian platform.
The chamber's torches flickered wildly, her flames still burning in erratic bursts. The air crackled with unstable energy, and she barely registered the strong hands gripping her shoulders, shaking her.
Kai's voice cut through the haze. "Mira! Breathe!"
Her lungs felt like they were burning from the inside. She coughed, her body trembling as she grasped at her surroundings.
Kai's face hovered above hers, sharp with concern. "What did you see?"
Mira opened her mouth, but the words refused to come.
Because the truth was—
She didn't know what she saw.
Or worse—
She did.
And the answer terrified her.