Standing over the side of an active volcano looks easy, but leaping inside is the hard part for Branton. He’s pacing around the crater, focusing on nothing but Scorch Flight. This is his fourth trial where he stands at the edge surrounded by steam. All the trials he’s endured come with broken bones and internal bleeding.

At the bottom of the volcano’s vent, several spots of blood can be seen from high up. Many neytives have tried to achieve Scorch Flight, but they all end the same way.

Branton is desperate to unlock his third ability. Just like every other Inphernos neytive, three abilities become a part of their lives. At the age of 500, small pieces of ember lifted off his hands and ignited into two spheres of red fire. He wasn’t scared one bit. He knew his natural ability would settle in. This is what he’s known to call his trigger. When he turned 1’000, his second ability presented itself in an unpleasant way. The heat from his hands soon spread to his throat. He coughed up smoke and flames in front of those in his trybe. The humiliation that followed didn’t help him breathe right. They called this ability fracture. His third and last ability showed up when he turned 2’000, and it wasn’t what he expected. It came with a splitting headache, intense fever and double vision. This painful ability has earned its name, shatter.

Now that he has all three abilities, he’s going to jump off a volcano.

Branton takes in the entire island, the place he’s known as home. The air smells heavy of sulfur and other gasses. That alone would be toxic, but it doesn’t affect Inphernos neytives. He peers into the volcano for one last time, spotting a pool of lava that’s bubbling and churning in the magma chamber. He takes five steps back, turns around and breaks into a sprint. With no hesitation or fear on his face, he jumps off the edge and lets gravity pull him down.

Trigger, fracture, shatter. These three things might keep him alive.

Branton senses a burst of fire trail from his hands up his arms, trigger. He feels a mental snap and channels his flames, fracture. Swirls of fire engulf his legs and propel him faster, shatter.

He doesn’t hit the lava head on; instead, he arcs himself upright and levitates skyward. A spiral of fire keeps him up to avoid submerging to his death. He forces more energy into his shatter ability and flies out of the volcano, into the open sky.

Across a field of decaying trees and a river of cooled magma is the arena.

The arena is nothing special. There are cracked stone slabs and overgrown vegetation blocking every entrance. Patterns of scorch marks and ash paint the amphitheater with history. Nobody ever really uses it anymore except when neytives feel the need to vent.

The wide open amphitheater is the target Branton is aiming for. He gathers the last bit of energy into his shatter ability and soars over the field. His flight takes him through a few charred trees and almost makes him hit a stone pillar, but he doesn’t get a scratch on him. Behind him, there’s a path of flames mapping out his personal course.

As he gets closer to the arena, he tries to reel in his energy but there’s too much. With a sickening thud, he tumbles into the amphitheater and somehow manages to stand back up. The one bright side to these manifestations is his tolerance to pain that increased over time. His flames quickly dissipate, leaving no marks or burns on his skin. On the inside, he’s ecstatic and thrilled to achieve Scorch Flight within several dials. On the outside, there’s nothing. No expressions, no gestures. Nothing.

Branton hears footsteps descend the steps. “You have performed Scorch Flight well. Your maneuverability is still lacking. Other than that flaw, you were exceptional.”

Every trybe has one neytive who is chosen to take on a leadership role. They claimed the title of Preeminent. Augan is the Preeminent for the Inphernos trybe. He is well known for his strength and combat, but he’s also known for being impatient and ill-tempered. Augan is a little shorter than Branton, with dark skin, cropped black hair and a huge scar over the left side of his face. Nobody knows how he got the scar in the first place, but rumors spread that it happened after the rebellion. The retractable spikes on his spine are larger than Branton’s and the scales on his arms are becoming dry and chipped.

Branton knows Augan enough to recognize his dry humor. “Did you come to evaluate me or tell me something important?”

“It depends if you want the good or bad news first. Your pick.”

Branton doesn’t respond.

“Neither. Right. I forget who I am talking to,” Augan was never good at being witty. He approaches him and pulls something out of his pocket.

A holocard.

He’s only ever heard of holocards from other neytives. Rare and valuable items that can hold large amounts of information. With his own eyes, he can see the delicate object for the first time. An array of geometric shapes flicker and move across the surface. It’s flat in size and appears light in weight. Something new to the island like a holocard should peak Branton’s interest, but there’s more important matters.

Augan swipes his finger across the screen and an image illuminates above it. The image is the symbol of Myalón. Below the symbol is an inscription that Augan starts to read aloud. “Following the election of Chancellor Prime, one of her new orders is to abolish the Separation Act that was placed amongst the trybes. The Chancellor seeks to unify the trybes. She discussed the order with all the Preeminents, and it has led to a majority vote. As of this dial, the trybes will partake in the Knyghts Voyage.”

Branton is given the chance to read the details floating in front of him regarding the Knyghts Voyage. A part of him thinks the plan is worth doing, but it won’t hold up for some of the trybes. He looks back at Augan with a blank expression. “Are you going to tell me the bad news?”

The Preeminent gives him a quick sigh. “Chancellor Prime has reviewed every single trybe for one specific neytive. She carefully selected them and picked them as a ‘candidate.’”

“I refuse.”

“It is not just the Chancellor,” Augan puts away the holocard for now. “Most of the Preeminents agree you are well suited for…”

“Liar.”

Branton turns away to end their conversation, but is blocked by another neytive standing behind him. It wasn’t an Inphernos neytive he bumped into, but a neytive who’s highly respected.

Chancellor Prime.

“Branton, it is wonderful to finally meet you,” the Chancellor says this with a gentle smile and soothing tone. “I only wish it could be under better circumstances.”

Branton stays frozen for a moment before dropping to one knee. “Welcome to Inphernos.”

No neytive would ever show disrespect toward the Chancellor. Her approach may not be subtle, but she still holds absolute power over all the trybes on Myalón. One distraction to pull away from her rambling speeches is the pile of green hair tied together around the crown of her head.

“There is no need for formalities young neytive,” Chancellor Prime extends her six fingered hand and pulls Branton up to his feet. “All I ask of you is to accept the Knyghts Voyage.”

Branton wants to turn down the offer, but the Chancellor cuts him off before he can say anything. “With your acceptance, we will grant certain propositions for you and your family.”

He flinches at the sound of family.

“Once the candidates accept the Knyghts Voyage, it will be one step closer to unifying the trybes for good,” Chancellor Prime pulls out her own holocard that displays a three finger biometric scan. “Since some neytives may not approve of the unification, the Preeminents have agreed to protect the candidates’ families.”

Branton stares at the holocard, mesmerized by the floating shapes. “If I agree to this, my family will be safe. They will not be harmed?”

The Chancellor gives him a warm smile. “I swear.”

Those two words compel Branton to place his index, middle and ring finger onto the holocard. Information about him and a digital image of his face appear on the screen. He’s now registered in the holocard. “Then I accept the Knyghts Voyage.”

While the Chancellor and Augan stay behind to discuss things further, Branton takes his time walking back home. They were both happy with his decision and expected the best out of him. Augan told him to go home and gather everything he needs before leaving. They will wait for him at the docks before dusk.

On his way home, he thinks about what to tell his brothers. They would no doubt want to yell at him for leaving them behind. It’ll be hard to say goodbye to them the same dial they hear about it.

Branton reaches a small shelter made from molten igneous stone, patches of clay and dried up grass and leaves. Inphernos neytives have a high resistance to heat, so living next to an active volcano is bearable. He likes the home he built with his brothers, even if he can’t show it. They put everything they had into it when all they had was each other. Now he has to put another scar into the walls once he enters.

He pulls back the flap of the tarp and heads inside, hoping to have some time to explain everything. However, his younger brother runs at him and practically clings to him.

“Why?! Why are you… leaving?! You promised!” Heath has been crying. He refuses to look up at Branton.

They both heard the news. Augan must’ve let it slip before talking to Branton. Now he has to carry the burden of his farewell. How can he word this?

“I know I did, but the Chancellor and I made a deal,” Branton pulls his brother off and meets him at eye level. “We both made a deal that if I accepted, they would protect you and Flint in my absence. The only thing I want is to see you both safe.”

“That is not fair either. I can cry all I want and… you can not even make a sad face. I hate that you can not make a face for anything.”

It does make him sad. He hates that he’s the one making Heath cry. All he can do is muster a sigh. He pulls his brother in one last time, hugging him tight while petting his matte purple hair. “How about this? I will make another promise. This one will be just for you. When I return from the Knyghts Voyage, you, me and Flint will find a new home to build. One that will be ours and never broken. Okay?”

Heath rubs the tears off his face and pouts his lips. There’s resistance, but he nods to Branton’s promise. He wants to hug his brother a little longer, but Heath runs off to his bed.

He has trouble getting up after feeling the brunt of Heath’s emotions. He trudges to his own room and starts packing what he needs. Out of the corner of his eye, his older brother sits on his bed. “You are really leaving us.”

Branton knows where this is going and he decides to ignore Flint’s grit and finish packing. This results in his forearm being grabbed and turned to his brother. There’s a hint of anger and hostility in Flint’s eyes.

“Are you putting your trust in the neytives who did this to us? The Chancellor is the last neytive we should be dealing with,” Flint yells out the last part.

“I do not have a choice. What life do we have here if we stay? The Inphernos trybe is looking for ways to harm us. Not you, me or Heath will be safe if we stay here any longer. This is my decision, and I am putting my family first.”

“Try saying that with a smile.”

Branton stands in front of Flint with unwavering effort. He may not be able to show it, but he’s building up a lot of anger inside. Instead of countering his brother’s verbal attack, he pulls his bag over his shoulder. “Promise me you will protect him.”

Flint almost leaves, but he’s pulled back.

“Promise me.”

Branton receives a curt nod from his older brother and watches him walk out of their home. He pinches the bridge of his nose, taking in the silence that follows.

Before he heads to the docks, Branton snags a small totem hidden under his sheets and shoves it into his bag. Out of everything he needs to prepare for the Knyghts Voyage, he wants to take the totem the most.

Outside his home, most of the Inphernos neytives gather nearby and watch him walk with impassive strides to his steps and look at him as though he deserves this. He knows with no doubt that most of the neytives want him and his brothers dead. His absence will make things hard for his brother. To his relief and satisfaction, he was sworn protection for his brothers by the Chancellor herself. He hopes that she’ll be good on her promise.

The walk to the docks feels long, but he gets there right before dusk.

Branton spots the Chancellor and Augan waiting for him. He turns around to see his home hidden behind the dead boughs of trees. He turns back to the docks with the intention of completing the Knyghts Voyage and coming back to Heath and Flint.