Frostbound Flame: Legacy of the Forbidden Clans

Location: Ruins of Vaer'Morath – The Forbidden DesertTime: Midnight — under the Black Moon Eclipse

The wind howled over a dead empire.

Vaer'Morath, once the throne of a mighty sand-born civilization, was now a forgotten skeleton of sunken towers and crumbling statues. Beneath dunes the size of mountains, the last echo of its bloodline stirred.

A boy lay unconscious in the center of an ancient rune-circle, the cracked ground glowing faintly beneath him. He looked sixteen—with windswept black hair, sun-kissed skin, and eyes that glowed molten gold when they fluttered open.

He coughed.

Then sat up.

And froze.

"…Who am I?"

No Name. No Past. Only Flame.

The boy staggered to his feet, surrounded by half-buried ruins. He wore sand-silk robes, torn at the hem. The sigils inked on his skin—complex, celestial symbols—flickered faintly in the dark.

He stared down at his hands.

They were… burning.

Not painfully—but unnaturally. Golden sparks swirled around his fingertips like reversed ash, spiraling inward instead of out. When he exhaled, he saw time stutter—dust paused mid-air before reality corrected itself.

He reached for a name, a memory, a voice.

Nothing came.

Except…

"Rael…"

The name echoed from the air, from the ruins, from within.

"…Rael," he whispered.

It felt true.

He was Rael.He was no one.And something ancient was waking inside him.

The Clock-Eaters

Rael wandered for hours, guided by starlight and instinct. He followed the magnetic pull of a broken pillar, half-buried, that pulsed with whispers. Carvings on its base read:

Here lies the city of threads, where time was woven and unwoven.

But the moment he touched the pillar, the air snapped.

A tear in space hissed open beside him.

From it stepped three creatures — humanoid but wrong, bodies wrapped in bronze wire and blue flame. Their faces were clockwork masks, constantly rotating, whispering fragmented sentences.

"Anomaly… early bloom… incorrect flame…"

"Eliminate."

Rael's heart pounded.

He didn't know how to fight.

But his body remembered.

Instinct Awakens

The lead creature lunged, blade forged from warped seconds in hand. As it struck, Rael's hand lifted—too slow.

Or so it seemed.

Time cracked around him.

Suddenly, he was behind the creature, its blade buried where he'd just stood.

He hadn't moved.

Time had bent.

Golden fire wrapped his arms as he spun, not thinking—remembering.

"Soul Art: Chrono Burn – First Pulse!"

His fist hit the creature's chest.

It didn't explode.

It aged.

In seconds, the creature crumbled into sand, its mask shrieking in reverse.

The other two froze.

But Rael collapsed.

Unconscious again.

Elsewhere: The Flames Stir

Far across the continent, in the Temple of Harmony, Aika jolted awake in her room.

She gasped, hand clutching her chest, her breath visible despite no cold.

In her dream… she had seen a boy of gold flame.

And in her ears, a single word echoed like a roar:

"Help…"

The Council Convenes

Three days later.

Aika stood in the Circle Hall, surrounded by the elders of Elarin. Lira sat beside her. Baran, older now, grunted as he slammed his stone gauntlet onto the table.

"We cannot ignore this," Baran growled. "Time echoes are spreading from the south. One of the Sea Inferna ships reported a wave that reversed the crew's memories by five days."

Lira folded her hands. "And Aika saw it. The boy."

Yuki entered last, quiet as snowfall. She looked at her daughter.

"Aika. Are you sure it wasn't a memory?"

Aika shook her head. "It was a call."

The Mission Assigned

Lira stood.

"The Heptasoul Core projected his image for a reason. Aika will go."

Baran raised an eyebrow. "Alone?"

"No," Lira said. "She'll take Ren with her."

The door opened, and a tall boy stepped inside. Black hair tied in a loose knot, fire tattoos down one arm, smirking with all the confidence of youth.

Ren—Baran's son. A brawler. A prodigy. And a thorn in Aika's pride.

"Oh great," Aika muttered. "The sparring dummy speaks."

Ren bowed, exaggerated. "Anything for my future queen of frost."

She punched him in the gut without hesitation.

He laughed.

Aika and Ren Depart

By dawn, they were riding twin Skyfang Beasts across the desert sky. Below, the sands shimmered, and the wind carried whispers.

Ren leaned toward her.

"You sure this isn't just another crazy Core vision?"

Aika glanced ahead.

"No. It's real."

"And if he's dangerous?"

"…Then I'll burn him."