Tobias took a deep breath and set his feet. He placed a palm on the onyx hilt and drew his sword. The fire demon cackled in the light. The wild mana ran rampant, burning the air around Enzo. In moments, his entire body was charred and he was cloaked in raging flames.

I have to put a stop to this or it will burn the world down, Tobias thought grimly. He’s not my boy anymore. I’ve failed. The least I can do is put his body to rest.

The old smith glanced around the area and spotted Lazarus. The sword was a few feet away from where the demon had destroyed the woman.

If I can just get to Lazarus, I can put an end to this and stop the wildfire from burning down the whole countryside.

The old smith sheathed his sword, but kept a hand on the hilt and pulled as much energy as he could from the gem. He formed a ball of iron in his hand, building it until it had enough mass to cause the demon to notice.

It’ll just melt the metal, but not instantly. Hopefully it’ll buy me enough time to grab Lazarus.

With a grunt, Tobias hurled the ball of iron in the direction of the demon. The monster caught sight of the motion and instantly reached out with a tendril of fire to burn the target. Tobias darted to the side as quickly as he could, and dove through the molten battlefield toward Lazarus.

The demon quickly shredded the iron ball and turned back to Tobias. It cackled as it raised the warhammer above its head and began a downward strike. Tobias pulled for the metal in the sword and it responded to his Affinity. He caught the weapon as he crashed into the lava.

The second he touched the blade, the ground around him solidified and cooled. Six spears of stone pierced the demon through the chest as it was midway through its downstroke. The monster let loose a high, horrific screech that pulsed through the mountainside. Tobias slowly rose to his feet.

“If you’re still in there somewhere boy, now’s the time to show it,” Tobias shouted over the demon’s screams. It writhed against the stone pillars but couldn’t break free.

With the power of Lazarus at his fingertips, Tobias regenerated the stone quicker than the demon could melt it away. He stared at the demon for a long moment, praying for any sign of Enzo but none came.

“Then I will do what must be done,” Tobias said sadly, tears slowly rolling from his eyes. “Good bye, my boy.”

He raised Lazarus high above his head in one hand and firmly rested his other on the onyx hilt. He drew all of the power stored within both swords and closed his eyes. He felt the rhythms of Chenrel. The power that thrummed deep within the planet that gave life to all living things. Tobias pulled on the power and it responded to him without hesitation.

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The wild mana stopped channeling to the demon. The raging fires that surrounded them dimmed, and the pools of magma began to cool. Overhead, the miraculous happened. The mana, under the control of a master equipped with a metallic Affinity and Lazarus, began to coalesce.

Dust clouds gathered overhead, intermingling with the humidity of the area. Droplets of mud formed in the cloud as more mass gathered. When critical mass was reached, the cloud dropped a thick, muddy shower across the fields. The mud smothered the fires, and cooled the lava. Steam rose as the water evaporated away the heat and continued the condensed cycle.

In moments, Tobias had returned the field to its natural state. The hellscape of moments before was now gone. The demon still writhed against its constraints, but without any additional heat sources, it began to lose strength. The cloak of fire surrounding Enzo dissipated, and with a last lash of fire toward the village, the demon crumpled against the stone pillars.

Tobias allowed the muddy rain to fall for another few minutes. He stood before Enzo’s remains and wept. Little was left of the boy’s body. The harsh temperatures of the wild fire mana had burned him completely. The warhammer stood in the ground next to the stone, its head fully uncharged and dim. Tobias swung the sword to wipe away the last of the muddy rain. He released the stone pillars and the last charred remains of Enzo fell to the ground.

Tobias stepped forward and took the hammer. With Lazarus in one hand, he pulled forth marble stone from deep in the ground. He shaped the stone with the sword into a simple pillar as high as his waist, then drove the head of the hammer into the stone. The head smashed into the rock and was absorbed into it through the power of Lazarus.

His monument completed, Tobias slowly returned to the village.

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Far off in the mountains, Talwen felt the battle. Waves of mana collided against a city, destroying the great walls that had stood for centuries. In retaliation, the ground struck out deep in the ocean and speared through a great ship.

Talwen shuddered. I’m glad we are here. Titans like those would be a challenge for me to face alone. At least here I am close with my own mana.

She spent the evening sitting with Rantenza, telling stories of the world and explaining what the fluctuations in mana meant. As she was preparing for bed, Talwen felt the emergence of a third opponent in the battle.

It embraced the fire, the passion of the fight. Of protecting what was important, and burning down all those that opposed them. The mana felt familiar, in a strange way. There was something unique to them. They were clearly a Geschmolzen Red, but also something more.

The warrior let loose a stream of dragon’s breath and Talwen remembered where she’d felt this presence before. Back in the cave, when her baby hatched. That night… Enzo had been the one to match her flame. She felt the power behind the attack he’d let loose just now.

He has grown so much in such a short time…

She paid attention to the fight now, every tremble of ambient mana was critical information to her now.

Surely none stand before him after that…

As she thought the words, she felt it again. The unmistakable loss of control. Just like her Ranta. The wild mana ran rampant, and threatened to burn through the whole world. His enemy’s power disappeared, but in its place was a raging demon. A single tear rolled down Talwen’s cheek.

She let loose a mournful roar, then returned to her newborn and watched as another of her kin lost the battle of control with the wild power of fire.