Irwin stared hard at the Ruby Portal, counting in his mind.

Seven, eight, nine-

A bright burst of red lightning rippled around the edges of the portal, and a figure came tumbling through. Irwin jumped forward, barely catching Ignalia. Her bare arms were warm against his, and she took a deep, shuddering breath.

Irwin wanted to ask what was up, but she rose, pushing him aside.

"We have to go right away," she said as she looked at the other Ignitzion. "Find your way to Gebladir, tell him where the portal is, and make sure he brings an army here."

Then she turned to Irwin, who was looking at her, feeling the hairs on his arms stand on end.

"Hurry," she said, moving back to the portal.

"What is-

"No time, the portal is clear, but not for long! Come on!" Ignalia said as she jumped back into the portal.

Irwin gritted his teeth and checked on Ambraz, who was nestled on his shoulder. The Anvil's lips were a pursed line.

Great. Let's see what's going on then, Irwin thought as he jumped in after her.

A dark tunnel enveloped him, with distant bursts of light illuminating clouds and nebulas. Irwin looked around, and his heart nearly skipped a beat as he saw a massive figure moving through the space far to the left. Shadowy and hard to discern, it was vaguely familiar.

Before he could even think about it anymore, he was forced out of the portal and stumbled across a dark gray stone. Tiny bits of debris, dust, and sand covered tables, benches, and a partially aflame fire. A kettle or something a lot like one hung above it while empty cells lined the walls. Whoever had been here, however, wasn't in sight.

Instead, the sounds of a massive battle raging nearby nearly deafened him. A wide staircase led down from where he stood into a room with four hallways leading out. The battle seemed to come from the two leading to the left.

Who is fighting? Is it Greldo and the others? Irwin thought as he gazed at the hallways.

Ignalia grabbed his arm and pulled him along toward the corridors leading to the right. Realizing what she wanted to do, Irwin pulled himself free, following after her. They jumped down the staircase, any sound it might have made lost in the explosions and screams that rang out.

Ignalia rushed to the hallway that seemed opposite of the battle, but Irwin hesitated. From all they knew, the only ones here were the Imps and Greldo and the others. That meant they were battling it out… right?

Ignalia grabbed his shoulder, and Irwin saw her shake her head as she pointed towards the corridor from which the sounds of the battle came. She mouthed something, but Irwin couldn't hear her. Seeming frustrated, she pointed at the tunnel and shouted something.

"Not - ave! -dled!"

Irwin shook his head, not sure what she meant. Ignalia tried to pull him away, and he hesitated. Taking a final look at the direction of the battle, Irwin finally let her pull him away. Ignalia ran forward, stopping at the first crossing they arrived at. All directions looked the same, with the corridors made of gray stone, with small debris and dust everywhere. After some hesitation, Irwin took the lead, pulling Ignalia to the right. He didn't have any reason for it other than it felt right, and Ignalia seemed fine with it.

They ran forward, passing a few more crossings, but Irwin kept running ahead, counting the crosses they passed. He had plenty of experience with labyrinthian places by now, though as he ran, he did wonder why so many of the worldshards he reached were consistent or ruins or cavernous systems.

The sound became distant, though the rumbling continued.

When the sound was muted enough for Irwin to talk without shouting, he stopped at another cross.

"What did you say before?" he asked, staring at Ignalia and realizing she was breathing heavily while her eyes were fluttering open and closed.

"There was a battle between Imps and Addled back there," she said, rubbing her head. "I recognized the screams. If we had gone there, we would have been in major trouble."

"Addled…" Irwin muttered as he looked back in the direction they had come from. "Do you think it's the Imps that turned?"

"Probably," Ignalia muttered. She took a step and stumbled.

Irwin quickly reached out to stabilize her. "What is wrong?"

"I… don't know," Ignalia muttered. "I feel tired, weary. It's like-" She shook her head as if to say something, and Irwin saw her eyes roll up. He grabbed her around the waist, holding her up.

Staring at the knocked-out Ignitzion, he looked around.

"Great. Now what?"

"Now we need to find a spot to rest so you can summon some of that steam to help her," Ambraz said before flying from Irwin's shoulder. The Anvil zipped to the wall they had come from, grazing past it and creating a rough arrow back.

"There, now we can find the way back."

Irwin nodded as Ambraz landed back on his shoulder. Turning around, he began walking further in the same direction.

"Do you have any ideas?" he asked.

"What? Now you ask me? After you run in here without thinking?" Ambraz asked.

Irwin sighed. "I did think about it. The Imps are weak to my fire. Greldo and the others are stuck in here and need help, and this is the only way to get in. Besides, how were we supposed to know that Ignalia would… well, that whatever happened would?"

"Yeah, yeah," Ambraz snorted. "Whatever. At least there's a good chance to find some special cards in here."

"Why?" Irwin asked as he kept walking ahead.

"Because-" Ambraz began before falling silent.

"Quiet. There's Imps ahead," he whispered.

Irwin frowned as he looked ahead. He didn't see anything besides gray corridors.

"Keep going," Ambraz whispered.

Irwin frowned but did as asked. At the next intersection, Ambraz flew to the wall and created another arrow before heading left. Irwin followed after him, and halfway through, he heard familiar giggling.

Ambraz landed on his shoulder. "There's ten normal Imps ahead," he whispered. "But there's something… weird about them."

Fine, let's clear those out and see what's going on, Irwin thought as he continued ahead.

At the end of the hallway, there was finally an end to the monotony of the odd corridors that seemed to branch out indefinitely. To the left was a room with the glow of fire, while to the right were the remains of a small metal with holes through which bright light poured.

The exit? Irwin thought. Then he looked to the left, from which the sound of giggling came. With a minor hesitation, he headed that way, ready to summon his flame if needed. As he closed in on the room, he sped up as he noticed cells along the back. Cells meant prisoners, and he suddenly felt hope. Perhaps he would find Balarn or some of the others?

His hope turned to confused surprise as he stepped into the room and saw dozens, if not more, Imps inside some of the cells.

"What the…" he whispered, looking around. Besides the dozens of cells, many with Imps inside, the room had a single exit on the opposite end. As he quickly examined it for potential threats, he saw it lead to another room with more cells partially visible.

A high-pitched screech made him look at the cells, and he saw two things that barely resembled Imps standing with their arms through the bars, reaching for him. Their dull red skin was matted with long wounds, and their faces were warped beyond anything a regular Imp could do. The corners of their lips were pulled almost beside their eyes, which were pupil-less masses of gray and black.

"Addled…" Ambraz whispered. "This means the Imps don't have much time left- it always starts with the weakest ones."

Irwin walked closer to the cells, keeping an eye out to make sure nobody would sneak up on him. As he stood before the raging and screaming Addled, he saw the thin wounds on their bodies were rapidly closing and healing. He had never seen one this close, but as he stared at them, he realized there wasn't that much to see. They were roughly the same as Imps, with just their eyes, face, and skin changed.

After a moment, he moved to the Imps, noting they were all either sitting still, staring at their hands, or giggling in bursts of insanity.

"Why… Why don't they just go to another world? Why do they stay in shardworlds if this is the result?" Irwin asked as he stared at the doomed beings before him, thinking about the people in his own world.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"Most do, but…," Ambraz sighed, and to Irwin's surprise, his usually annoyed undertone was gone.

Instead, he seemed sad. It took Irwin a few moments before he recalled what Ambraz had told him about his own homeworld that had been shattered. With all that had been going on, he had completely forgotten that Ambraz had been searching for a part of it, a shardworld that might have portals leading back to it.

"Sometimes beings are stuck, as many times the exit portal to the Portal Galleries vanishes upon the world's shattering. There's also those too stubborn to let go of what remains of their world, trying desperately to find a way to stitch it back together, while-"

"Is that even possible?" Irwin whispered, interrupting him.

"I have never heard of it happening," Ambraz said. "Who knows. Perhaps somewhere across the seemingly infinite Portal Galery, there's a way to do it."

Irwin nodded. "What other way were you going to say?" he asked.

"Finding a world that is habitable and not yet inhabited is very, very hard," Ambraz said, letting out a snort. "Far harder than you can imagine. And even if you find one, how are you supposed to bring an entire world of people to the new world? Teleporters that can move between worlds are another thing I've never heard about… Bah-"

Ambraz grunted, then made a sound that sounded like he spat something out.

Irwin sighed.

"Are there any beings that don't become Addled?" he asked.

"Worldanvils," Ambraz said softly. "And there's rumors that anyone with an Ammolite card lasts longer."

Right, the mysterious rank above diamond, Irwin thought. As he thought about that, he wondered again how he could get that, and his mind automatically drifted to his growth card.

He blinked and turned to Ambraz.

"What happened to my first card? You told me to wait…"

Ambraz was quiet for a bit before sighing. "Let's find a quiet place to lay low so you can rest."

Irwin nodded and turned to look at the corridor that led to the other cell blocks. He hesitated, then turned and walked out. If there were captive Imps here, there would be those that put them there and might put more there. Instead, he headed toward the door with the light and peeked through the cracks.

Behind it was a burning red sky, with clouds of yellow and orange drifting by. A vast dark expanse lay beyond, with towering black trees that seemed burned but still had black leaves on them. They were swaying softly, and Irwin saw no movements.

Either we find a room, or we go inside here, he thought. After hesitating, he tried the door and, with some effort, pulled it open. It wasn't locked, just stuck slightly. Stepping outside, he saw the ruins continue left and right, towering black buildings that seemed covered in a thin film of ash. Walking a few steps away and turning back, he saw the door set in a building that was only a single-story angular thing.

Behind it, an enormous volcano belched out plumes of crimson and black gas like an enormous monster.

"Let's circle around and search for a place to hide," he whispered.

Ambraz didn't reply, so he continued walking around the building, keeping an eye on the forest.

Fifteen minutes later, he sat with his back against a dark, scorched section of wall. He was in a small alcove between two partially connected buildings. Ignalia was lying next to him, and a small area of steam covered her. She was still unconscious but breathing much easier.

"So…" he said as he turned to Ambraz, who was sitting on his knee.

"Impatient," the Anvil muttered before sighing. "Yes, your assumption is correct. Your card did grow and become a diamond card."

"How! Didn't you tell me the cards couldn't be reforged?" Irwin whispered as a wave of joy filled him. That meant he was ready to get his final card and become a heartcarded!

"It didn't get reforged, now did it? I told you that parts of the cards merge when you combine them, and in your case, that means the growth path. In the case of your cards, the growth element," Ambraz said with a snort. "Now, instead of asking me all these difficult questions, hold up your hand so I can inspect it!"

Irwin blinked, then did as asked. With his hand combined, he couldn't summon the cards to inspect them individually, but Ambraz could? He waited, and seconds slowly passed. After a minute, he wanted to ask something, and Ambraz growled.

"Don't move!"

Wondering what was going on, Irwin held his hand up and calmly waited. At some point, his gaze drifted to the forest, and he zoned out as he stared at it. He had no idea how long it lasted, but finally, Ambraz let out a startled sigh.

"Impressive," he muttered. "It's a Diamond card, alright, although only at a low percentage so far. I guess you are going to have to drain more Imps, which, luckily, there are many of here."

Irwin blinked, then cocked his head. "So, what changed?"

"A lot, one of them being that we can see why your fire is so weird now," Ambraz said. "Here, let me show you."

Irwin was about to ask how when Ambraz whisked to the open area before him and grew to his larger working shape. A dim light appeared atop, and Irwin blinked as he got up.

"What…"

"Take a look instead of standing around mumbling," Ambraz said.

Walking over, Irwin looked down at the surface. On it were silvery letters that showed the details of his card, similar to what his Eyes of Blaze showed him when examining a card.

Name: Partial body of devouring flame

Type: Diamond, Growth, Impersonate, [Devouring Flame]

An incredibly rare diamond card that allows the holder to wield devouring-flame and changes parts of its body to that of a devouring-fire-elemental. The wielder will heal significantly faster when near a source of fire-element of any kind. This healing is significantly reduced in any cold or airless environment.

Active: Create a devouring flame large enough to cover twenty feet around the wielder that can be intricately controlled

Passive: Greatly increased resistance to fire, decreased resistance to cold

Passive two: Night vision (Can see dimly in complete darkness)

"How can you do this?" Irwin hissed in surprise.

"It's one of the things I learned after ranking up," Ambraz said.

"That's… fantastic," Irwin whispered while his gaze drifted across the text. It had been a long time since he'd last seen his card, but he knew most of it by heart. "The cold weakness is different!"

"Yeah, it's much better than it was," Ambraz said with a snort.

"I've never heard of devouring-flame," Irwin muttered. "And what does it mean, partial body of devouring-flame? I didn't change that much... right?"

Ambraz snorted. "Are you asking me? It's your body!"

Irwin frowned, then focused back on the card. As he read the active ability, he gasped.

Twenty feet around me? he thought as he stared at it.

"The intricately controlled bit," he whispered. "That must be why it didn't harm some people… perhaps I was controlling it?"

"Could be," Ambraz said. "There's a lot of cards that give abilities that work based on the wielder's intent."

Irwin nodded, re-reading the card again, getting the sense he was missing something. It took him a few moments to figure out what.

"It lost the weakness," he said, smiling.

"Yeah, sometimes good things happen," Ambraz said.

Irwin gazed at it, about to say something, when a weary voice interrupted him.

"Can you do that with any card?"

Irwin looked back to see Ignalia watching them through heavily lidded eyes.

"I… yes, I think he can," Irwin said.

"Not bad," she muttered. "More convenient than going to the Mission Centers."

Irwin nodded as he moved to sit beside her.

"Are you alright? What happened?"

Ignalia sighed as she put her head against the wall. "Fatigue and jumping through a portal three times in a row. Where are we?"

"Outside of the building, hidden," Irwin said.

"Good. I need some more rest, then I'll be ready to go. Can you keep the steam up? Perhaps a bit hotter?"

Irwin nodded as he focused on his card. As the steam density increased, he returned to the entrance and sat down, thinking about his new card. He was technically ready to find a final card and become a heartcarded. But there was something nagging at him, and it didn't take him too long to figure it out.

What if I try to grow the flame card more…" he thought. Would that turn it into an Ammolite card?

He continued thinking quietly, staring at the forest. Time slipped away as he thought about what it meant that he finally had a Diamond card. It had been something that had seemed so far away for so long, and now... it felt as it had just happened. Was that how life went? You ran after something only to stumble across it in the end?

--

What was that?

Irwin snapped back awake, trying to determine what had woke him up. He blinked, realizing he'd been staring unblinkingly ahead. He was about to ask Ambraz when a soft tremor ran through the ground. A moment later, there was another that lasted longer while a distant rumbling sounded out.

He scrambled to his feet, walking out of the narrow alcove and looking around. There was no sight of anything.

"What's going on?"

Ignalia's voice called out from behind, and a moment later, she moved beside him. A quick look showed her face was less wan, and there was a sense of energy from her.

"I don't know," Irwin replied, just as another tremor caused the ground below them to shake. Another rumbling came from far away.

"It's behind the city, near the volcano," Irwin hissed as he ran forward, turning around to look across the city. Just as he looked, a bright flash of green light exploded halfway up the volcano, moments later followed by a rumbling.

"Either they are fighting with Addled, or…" Irwin muttered before turning to Ignalia. "Are you ready to run again?"

Ignalia grimaced but nodded. "Let's go."

"Shouldn't we go across?" Ignalia asked from behind him.

Irwin continued forward, staring at the building to the side. It wasn't too high, and he knew he could climb up if he had to. Thinking for a few moments, he turned, sprinting straight at the wall. Reaching it, he jumped forward against the wall, propelling himself up, grabbing the ledge, and clearing it. Ahead of him was a dark gray slab with a few gaps.

Far in the distance, a stream of tiny red figures were rushing up the mountain, seemingly heading toward the location of the explosion. Focusing on his Eyes of Blaze, he suddenly saw them as if he were only a dozen feet away. Slowly moving his gaze around, he noticed three enormous onyx-skinned Brutal Imps and a dozen Pale ones running beside them.

"Whatever is going on, the Imps are going there," he said as Ignalia moved beside him. "And there's three of the big ones.

Ignalia grunted, and a moment later, they were sprinting at full speed across the roof.

I wish I could have brought the entire swarm of Emberions, Irwin thought as he wondered what the single tiny one was doing.

--

"Coal, the entrance," Greldo whispered, knowing that his friend would hear him even with all the racket going on.

The massive hound snapped the neck of another Addled Imp, then turned and jumped to block the cave opening. A moment later, it let out a deafening growl, darting forward and eviscerating another few Addled Imps.

By Gelwin's nuts, it's good they don't have the brains left to attack in a group, Greldo thought.

Releasing a weary sigh, he looked back. Over a thousand wounded figures stood behind him, Carded weapons ready and donned in ragged-looking armor. Seeing that Coal was still taking care of the entrance, they slowly lowered them, and he saw looks of relief on dozens of faces.

Nodding to himself, Greldo let his gaze drift around the cavern. Narrow passages, some barely large enough to crawl through, led to other caverns while a foul-smelling yellow gas rose from fissures in the back wall and ground. The only light came from those same fissures, creating a gloomy, ruddy atmosphere.

Come on, Scintilla, he thought as he stared back at the entrance.

Coal was jumping around, ripping Imps apart as he kept them from entering the cave. Loud explosions came from far to the left, showing Scintilla had arrived at her goal.

Now let's hope that thing focuses on the Imps, Greldo thought as he gritted his teeth.

"Get ready," he said as he turned to the others.

The mass of people behind him raised their weapons. Most of them are Viridians but with a few humans and Ignitzions mixed in. Only half of those he had brought inside were still with them, the rest having died. If it wasn't for the forces of Gebladir that they had saved, they would have long since been whittled down.

Footsteps rang out, probably inaudible to everyone but him, and he turned his head to one of the narrow corridors. A moment later, an armored, hammer and shield-wielding light figure ran towards him. Emerald earrings sat in her ears, swaying as she ran towards him.

"That blood monster is following her towards us, and Balarn and others are ready at the other exit," Lady Relinda whispered as she grinned at him.

"Good, then prepare the other smiths," Greldo said. Relinda nodded before walking back to the others. As she did, Greldo couldn't help but stare at her curvy figure, even visible in the armor she was wearing.

A noble… Irwin's never going to believe this, he thought, allowing himself a moment of joy before turning back to where Coal was still keeping the wandering Addled at bay.

"Get ready," he grunted, loud enough for all to hear. "As soon as the Addled leave, we are rushing out."

And let's hope that thing can keep those bloody Imps occupied enough for us to reach the portals.