No one knew how the great lanterns worked — only that they had always burned above the city of Darrien.
Well. Almost no one.
Kira tightened her gloves as she ascended the final rung of the tower's ladder. The wind caught at her cloak, threatening to fling her from the narrow metal bridge suspended beneath the largest of the sky-lanterns.
Atop the bridge, leaning casually against a rusted beam, stood Ren — the last known Lantern Keeper. Tall, silver-eyed, smile like a secret.
"You're late," he said, voice carried thin through the wind.
Kira caught her breath. "The gate guards weren't exactly thrilled about me sneaking into the Sky Quarter."
He tilted his head. "And yet, here you are."
She frowned. "You sent for me."
"That I did."
Ren reached into a worn satchel and pulled out a crystal — cracked, dim. "This is the last heart-stone. When it fades, the lanterns go dark. The city falls." He met her gaze. "Unless we relight them."
Kira stared. "I'm not a Keeper."
"No." His smile softened. "But you're a mage. And the only one who still believes."
A long silence passed between them, filled only by the groan of ancient chains.
Finally, Kira reached for the crystal. Her fingers brushed his — a spark jumped between them, not of magic, but of something quieter.
Hope.
Together, they knelt beneath the lantern's core. Ren guided her hands, voice low. "Breathe. Listen. The light is still in you."
Eyes closed, heart steady, Kira summoned the old magic — not the forceful kind of battle, but the weaving kind of creation. Threads of power slipped from her fingertips into the stone.
It pulsed. Once. Twice.
Then with a sound like a heartbeat, the lantern blazed to life — golden light cascading across the rooftops, driving back the dark.
Kira opened her eyes, breathless. Ren was watching her, something unspoken in his gaze.
"You did it," he said quietly.
"We did," she replied, smile tugging at her lips.
Far below, the city stirred. Lanterns that had flickered now burned bright. The people of Darrien looked to the skies — and saw stars return.
And beneath that first rekindled light, a Keeper and a mage remained — two sparks in the endless dark, ready to light the rest of the world.