Absolutely. Here's Chapter Two of BLACK ASHES — the mystery deepens.
BLACK ASHES
Chapter Two: The Child of Flame
Nara stumbled backward, heart hammering. The figure remained still—watching, listening, speaking in her mind.
"What are you?" she whispered aloud, her voice barely a breath.
The wind hissed through the broken buildings, carrying the scent of smoke—fresh smoke
"You know what I am," the voice answered. "Or you will."
Suddenly, the glowing eyes blinked out. When Nara blinked, the figure was gone.
She turned and ran—tripping over cracked stone and twisted metal. The flashlight flew from her hand, flickering wildly before dying. Darkness swallowed her. Only the moon offered a pale, cold light.
Her hands trembled as she grabbed her phone and turned on its flashlight. She was about to sprint back to the path she came from when she heard it—a low chant, carried on the wind. Faint. Repeating. Echoing.
"Ashes remain, ashes remember..."
Nara followed the sound, though her instincts screamed to flee. It led her to the edge of the town, near the remains of what once was her grandmother's house—the only place she ever felt safe as a child.
There, on the ground, drawn in black ash, was a strange symbol—a burning eye surrounded by flame-shaped runes.
And at the center of the symbol lay a box. Old. Wooden. Singed around the edges, but untouched by time.
Her fingers hovered above it.
Then, a memory struck her like lightning.
She had seen this box before. Ten years ago, the night of the fire. She was only six. She remembered her grandmother screaming for her to run… clutching that very box… before the flames swallowed everything.
With trembling hands, Nara opened it.
Inside, wrapped in scorched cloth, was a journal.
Her grandmother's.
On the first page, in rushed handwriting, were the words:
"The fire was never an accident. They're coming back. And Nara… you are the last ember.
End of Chapter two