CHAPTER 1: THE GOLDEN KEY
The golden key trembled in the elegant woman's hand, casting a faint blue glow across the storm-soaked road.
Elena stared at it in horror.
"What is that?" she whispered.
The woman smiled.
"The truth."
The youngest baby suddenly reached out with a tiny hand and touched the key.
The moment skin met gold, lightning exploded across the sky.
A deafening crack shook the earth.
The SUV's headlights shattered.
The wealthy family stumbled backward.
And the key began to float.
Elena screamed and pulled her child close, but it was too late.
A brilliant blue circle appeared beneath the babies.
Symbols formed inside the mud.
Ancient symbols.
Symbols Elena had seen only once before.
Many years ago.
On the night her grandmother died.
Her grandmother had grabbed Elena's wrist with surprising strength and whispered:
"One day three children will come. Protect them from the House of Aurelian."
At the time Elena had thought the old woman was delirious.
Now she wasn't so sure.
The elegant woman's smile disappeared.
"You know the prophecy," she said quietly.
Elena's blood ran cold.
"Who are you?"
The man in the suit stepped forward.
"We are the last guardians of Aurelian."
The name struck Elena like a hammer.
Aurelian.
The forbidden family.
The family whispered about in forgotten stories.
A dynasty older than kingdoms.
A bloodline said to possess impossible gifts.
The woman pointed at the children.
"They belong to us."
"No!"
"They carry the Three Flames."
The babies suddenly opened their eyes.
All three pairs glowed blue.
The storm stopped instantly.
No wind.
No rain.
Nothing.
The world became silent.
Then a voice echoed from nowhere.
A voice that did not belong to any human being.
"The heirs have awakened."
The ground cracked.
Blue light erupted from beneath the road.
The wealthy family immediately knelt.
Every one of them.
Including the cold-hearted woman.
Elena stood frozen.
For the first time, fear appeared in the woman's eyes.
"They awakened too early," she whispered.
Then something enormous moved beneath the earth.
Something ancient.
May you like
Something alive.
And it was coming for the children.
