Chapter 2

The night before the trial, the air in our shared cabin felt heavy.

Ashlyn was restless, pacing.

"Something feels off, Sarah," she said, her usual fiery spirit muted.

I tried to soothe her, "It's just nerves, Ash. Tomorrow is a big day."

A knock on the door shattered the quiet.

It was Clay, but not alone.

Crystal Thorne stood beside him, a smug look on her face.

Crystal, always climbing, always wanting more.

"Ashley," Clay started, his voice cold, devoid of any warmth he once showed her.

"We need to talk."

Ashlyn tensed, "What is it, Clay? What' s she doing here?"

Crystal stepped forward, "He' s with me now, dear. And we need something from you."

My blood ran cold. I sensed the shift, the betrayal.

Clay looked away from Ashlyn, unable to meet her eyes.

"Crystal needs your Spirit-Spark, Ashley. Her own abilities aren't enough for the Haven."

Ashlyn stared at him, her face a mask of disbelief.

"My... Spirit-Spark? You want my life essence for her?"

"It' s for the best," Clay muttered, "For our Ascension."

Then Crystal added, her voice like ice, "Oh, and we already took care of that little pet of yours. Whisper had a spark too, though much smaller. Every bit helps."

Ashlyn' s breath hitched.

Whisper. Our gentle Whisper.

A raw scream tore from Ashlyn' s throat, a sound of pure agony and rage.

"You KILLED him?"

Flames, true Soulflame, erupted around her, not the playful sparks she sometimes showed, but a torrent of untamed fire.

Clay and Crystal recoiled, fear finally in their eyes.

"It was just an animal," Crystal stammered.

"He was family!" Ashlyn roared, the fire intensifying.

She looked at Clay, her eyes burning with a grief so profound it shook the room.

"I loved you. I tried to see the good in you."

The flames consumed her human guise.

"This mortal shell is shed," she declared, her voice echoing with power. "I am Ashlyn, Cinderheart!"

With a final, devastating pulse of fire, she was gone, her essence rocketing away, not to death, but to a place I knew well, a space connected to the Haven.

Clay stared at the empty space, dumbfounded.

Crystal just looked annoyed her prize had vanished.

My own heart shattered. For Ashlyn, for Whisper.

But a cold resolve began to form. My turn was coming.