Each breath moved the Ether according to the [Blazeheart Way]. The sensation was akin to magma flowing independently of his veins and converging above his heart, carving pathways across his body.
Congratulations, Cultivator. By aligning yourself with the Blazeheart Way, you step onto the winding road to Immortality. Your choice bestows upon you a unique gift
Infernal Rapture
Envelop oneself in flames that cleanse and empower. The fiercer one's will, the more potent and expansive the blaze.
This message, unlike many before it, brought a sense of achievement and anticipation to Rafa.
A heat that now simmered within him. A far cry from the stifling heat of their rocky enclosure. It was a heat that invigorated rather than oppressed, reminiscent of the comforting warmth of a fireplace.
You have now taken your first step into the path of Immortality, as an inaugural boon you’re given a foundational ability
Cultivation
Ember Core
Ignites a permanent ember within the cultivator's core, steadily enhancing Ether potency and cultivating resilience.
Auxiliar
Flameheart Vigilance
Heightens sensitivity to thermal energy fluctuations, providing an innate sense for detecting hidden threats and energy disturbances.
Combat
Infernal Cascade
Unleashes a concentrated wave of Fiery Ether for offense and defense, capable of incinerating incoming threats or assailing foes.
Assorted
Searing Step
Grants short bursts of high-speed movement, leaving behind a trail of embers.
Assorted
Ashen Cloak
Conceals presence with a shroud of ash, which can be explosively dispersed if disturbed.
Rafa’s senses were assaulted by the options, and without thinking much he chose [Infernal Cascade]. The other options seemed interesting, but some sayings exist for a reason, and he was an avid believer that: The best defense is a good offense.
The knowledge that came with his selection of [Infernal Cascade] was extensive. It detailed the manipulation of Ether in ways that would enable him to release powerful waves of fire. However, Rafa quickly realized that his current Ether reserves were barely sufficient to activate this ability.
Interestingly, he noted that [Infernal Rapture], the unique gift from his alignment with the [Blazeheart Way], didn't consume his Ether. Instead, it drew upon an external source of fire or an internal 'inner fire.'
As Rafa emerged from his meditative state, he noticed Marcos was still lost in sleep. Their fire had dwindled to a mere flicker, a quiet witness to the passage of time. Rafa's gaze shifted from the fire to his own hand, where the calluses, hard-earned badges of his life's labor, had vanished. It was as if his unconscious state had reversed the physical toll of years.
The fire burned softly behind Rafa's hand, each crack and pop sounding like musical notes in his ears.
Compelled by an inexplicable urge, Rafa brought his hand closer to the fire. The warmth escalated into a bubbling heat upon his skin, a sensation teetering on the edge of discomfort, yet, it felt like a reunion, a deep-rooted part of him reaching out to the flame.
Guided by instinct rather than thought, his hand plunged into the heart of the fire.
The flames enveloped his flesh, searing hot yet miraculously leaving no trace of damage. No blisters formed, no skin charred, but the pain was undeniable, an intense sensation that seemed to etch itself into his very being, yet it paradoxically spared him physical harm.
In a reflex of shock and confusion, Rafa jerked his arm back, attempting to rid himself of the fire clinging to his hand. But the flames persisted, a stubborn, living entity that refused to be extinguished so easily. Each shake of his arm sent flickers of flame scattering in all directions. The fire, like a creature with a will of its own, seemed to dance and leap from his hand, seeking new fuel.
In a matter of seconds, the flames found their way to the furniture barrier, igniting it with an unnatural ferocity. The fire spread with alarming speed, consuming the wooden blockade as if it were kindling soaked in fuel. The once protective barrier now transformed into a rapidly growing inferno.
Realizing the imminent danger, Rafa's survival instincts kicked in. With a swift, forceful motion of his leg, he kicked Marcos awake. "GET UP! FIRE!" His voice was a mix of terror and command, cutting through the crackling of the flames.
Marcos, jolted awake by Rafa's desperate actions and the heat of the growing fire, quickly scrambled to his feet. His eyes widened at the sight of the spreading flames and Rafa's fiery hand.
As Rafa continued to shake his burning hand, the fire dimmed but stubbornly refused to be extinguished. It clung to him, a relentless entity that defied all attempts to be quashed. The heat intensified, and the air was filled with the acrid smell of burning wood and fabric.
The urgency of the moment gripped them both as the flames, fueled by an unnatural fervor, consumed their surroundings with voracious speed. Marcos's voice, tinged with panic, cut through the crackling roar of the fire, "We need to get out now!"
Rafa, still grappling with the searing sensation enveloping his spirit, cast a frantic look around. Their exit was a fiery inferno, the flames licking at the concrete with an eerie hunger. His mind raced, clouded by the overwhelming sense of his very soul ablaze, but survival instincts prevailed.
"There!" Rafa pointed towards a less engulfed section of the house, hoping for a potential escape route through a window or a weakened wall.
Rafa, with his hand still wreathed in stubborn flames, focused on moving.
They moved quickly, dodging falling debris and leaping over spreading flames. The air was thick with smoke, stinging their eyes and lungs, but they pushed through, driven by the primal need to survive. A window, now in sight, was their only hope, a slender chance to escape the fiery trap that their refuge had become.
With a final burst of energy, Rafa and Marcos hurled themselves towards the window. Glass shattered as they tumbled out into the outside world, a world fraught with danger, but at least free from the immediate threat of being consumed by fire.
The raging inferno that had once been a refuge now roared like a living beast, consuming everything in its path with an insatiable hunger. The flames, unnaturally potent, seemed to defy the very nature of fire, engulfing not just wood and fabric but also the stone itself.
Getting up from their tough roll, they scrambled to a safe distance. The heat of the blaze was palpable on their faces.
Rafa's spirit, initially overwhelmed by an intense burning sensation, began to simmer down to a more tolerable level. He glanced at his still-flaming hand, a mix of awe and trepidation in his eyes. The realization that he had somehow caused this disaster weighing heavily on him.
Marcos, his expression a mask of fear and confusion as he edged away from Rafa. "Wh-What is happening, niño?" Marcos asked, his voice trembling.
Rafa, grappling with the reality of his newfound power and its destructive consequences, struggled to find words that could offer some explanation, some reassurance. "I... I don't know exactly," he admitted, his voice laced with remorse and shock. "It's this... power, from the System. I didn't mean for this to happen."
He looked at his burning hand, feeling a bizarre disconnect between the fierce flames and the lack of pain. "I chose a path in the System, the [Blazeheart Way]. It gave me abilities... I didn't realize they would be so... uncontrollable."
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Marcos eyed the flames warily, the fire reflecting in his wide eyes. "Abilities that set fire to your hand and our shelter?" There was a hint of accusation in his tone, but it was mostly overshadowed by concern.
Rafa nodded solemnly, his gaze fixed on the destructive spectacle before them. "Yes. I thought it would help us, give us an edge to survive. But I didn't understand what it meant. I didn't know it would do this," He explained, gesturing towards the raging fire.
The two stood in silence for a moment, the only sound being the crackling and roaring of the fire as it continued its relentless spread. Rafa's mind raced with thoughts of how to control this dangerous power, and how to prevent such a disaster from happening again. He knew he had a lot to learn, and fast.
Marcos broke the silence, his voice tinged with a mix of concern and pragmatism. "Well, niño, we've got to work this out. Setting everything ablaze can't be our go-to solution," he said, eyeing Rafa warily.
Rafa responded with a solemn nod, his gaze fixed on his flame-covered hand. The intense flames began to wane as he regained a semblance of calm. It was then that he remembered that their surroundings were plunged into darkness, the only sources of light being the destructive fire and the dwindling flames on his hand.
Their makeshift torch had been consumed in the inferno, leaving them in near-total darkness. We need light. We can't move blind in this place, he mused, his mind racing for a solution. "Marcos, I'm about to try something dumb. Keep your distance," Rafa cautioned, a determined look on his face.
With a deep breath, he approached the raging fire. Marcos called out, questioning his intent, but Rafa was already in motion. I have to do this. I have to learn to control it, he thought, plunging his arm deep into the flames, immersing it up to his shoulder in a bold, reckless move.
The connection was immediate and overpowering. The flames seemed to call to him, tempting him deeper, promising a unity he could scarcely comprehend. The fire... it's alive. It's part of me now, he realized, feeling the intense sensation threaten to consume not just his arm, but his entire being. With great effort, he resisted the siren call of the inferno, withdrawing his arm now entirely cloaked in a brilliant blaze.
I did it. I controlled it, he thought, hurrying back to Marcos, his arm alight, providing a beacon brighter than any torch. The light from his arm cast long, dancing shadows as they gathered themselves to navigate through the darkness. We can move now. We can survive this.
Before something resembling a victorious smile formed on Rafa’s face, Marcos's hand connected sharply with his head, a mix of worry and exasperation coloring his voice. "Tonto, have you lost your mind? Did the flames get to your brain too?" His tone was harsh, underscored by genuine concern for Rafa's seemingly reckless actions.
"We can't travel in total darkness," he retorted, his voice firm despite the lingering sting from Marcos's reprimand.
In the dim, flickering light cast by Rafa's fiery arm and the distant blaze, Marcos's face was a canvas of emotions. Confusion, concern, and a touch of disbelief played across his features as he struggled to make sense of the situation, eventually settling in determination.
Marcos exhaled deeply, his voice laced with a mixture of reprimand and relief. "Just... use your head next time, Tonto. An old man like me can't be left alone in this madness," he said, gesturing towards Rafa to lead with their newfound source of light.
Rafa nodded, "I don’t plan on leaving you behind," he reassured, lifting his flame-wrapped arm to illuminate their path.
The constant pain in his arm had dulled from its initial, unbearable intensity to a persistent, throbbing reminder of his chosen path. "Become one with the Inferno," he mused silently, the words echoing in his mind as he led the way.
The uneasy quiet of their journey was punctuated by the rhythmic throb of pain in Rafa's arm. Familiar landmarks began to emerge from the shadows, signaling their proximity to the bakery and a semblance of safety.
However, their relief was short-lived. As they neared their destination, an unsettling sound breached the silence — a low, guttural growling akin to gravel under heavy pressure. The noise was not only alarming because of its ominous nature, but also because it shattered the eerie quiet they had become accustomed to during their trek.
Marcos and Rafa exchanged wary glances, opting to stick close together as they moved cautiously forward. Rafa's glowing arm, while potentially attracting unwanted attention, also served as their only source of light in the engulfing darkness. He raised his arm defensively, prepared to fend off any sudden threats.
Marcos, demonstrating his determination, picked up a lengthy piece of wood, testing its weight and balance with a few experimental swings before positioning himself just behind Rafa, ready to act as backup.
As the familiar silhouette of the bakery began to materialize from the shadows, they noticed an intensified red glow emanating from the meteorite lodged in its structure. The eerie luminescence cast just enough light to reveal the source of the disturbing noises.
A creature, eerily reminiscent of a rat but grotesquely altered. Its rounded body was armored with light stone platings, interspersed with sporadic tufts of fur. Between the stone segments, a faint, fiery glow pulsated with embers seeping out like blood from a wound. Its tail was particularly unsettling, resembling a segmented whip crafted from stone and flesh, moving with a life of its own.
The looming creature, standing about 1.20 meters tall—roughly at Rafa's hip—was not alone. Surrounding it were smaller beings, akin to its offspring, each roughly the size of a small dog. They blended into the landscape, their jagged rock-like appearance making them almost indistinguishable from the rubble around them.
Rafa carefully angled his arm, trying to keep its flame hidden. Stones rained from the second floor where Elena and Carlos hurled stones at the creatures.
Their efforts seemed mostly in vain against the larger rat, whose armored body deflected the stones. However, they managed to take out some of the smaller ones. The surviving younglings displayed a disturbing behavior, turning on their fallen kin with ravenous ferocity, consuming them regardless of whether they were dead or merely incapacitated.
Rafa’s attention turned to the stairs, or what remained of them. The steps now lay in ruins, collapsed under the weight of something far larger than himself and Marcos. Likely, it was the monstrous rat-like creature that now seemed content to merely snarl at Elena from its position near the meteorite.
The meteorite itself drew Rafa’s attention, resonating with him in a way that felt both familiar and profound. It called to him, much like the inferno had, but this connection was deeper, more alluring. It promised a wealth of potential that Rafa could hardly begin to fathom. Perhaps, he thought, this was part of the transformation the System had mentioned, the essence of heat and fire infusing their domain, turning these meteorites into catalysts for cultivation.
Throughout their journey to the wall and back, they encountered numerous other meteorites but had always kept their distance, fearing radioactive contamination. Now, with his new understanding of their purpose, Rafa wondered if they were missing out on valuable resources. Each meteorite might be a key to unlocking greater power and potential in their new, harsh world.
Rafa and Marcos, after scanning the bakery for any viable route to reach Elena, realized their options were limited. The collapsed structure close to the bakery hinted at the possibility of forming makeshift stairs, while the remaining unstable walls supporting the second floor could potentially offer a climbing path. However, both options carried risks, especially considering the need for silence to avoid alerting the creatures nearby.
With caution, Rafa subtly maneuvered his flame-imbued arm into view, aiming to attract Elena's attention without drawing the large rat's notice. He alternated between briefly exposing the glowing limb and swiftly concealing it, maintaining a delicate balance between visibility and discretion.
The tension was palpable with each fleeting moment his arm was visible, but his efforts eventually paid off. Elena's gaze, previously focused on fending off the creatures with stones, shifted and locked onto the spot where Rafa was signaling. Her attention now seemed entirely captivated by the entrance of the building, a silent acknowledgment of Rafa's discreet call for attention.
Great! Now what do we do? Rafa thought, turning to Marcos. Whispering urgently, "We've got her attention. What's the plan now?"
Marcos glanced at the horde of creatures and then back at Rafa. "We need a distraction, something to draw them away from the bakery. Any ideas?" he asked, his voice low but tense.
Rafa frowned, his mind racing. "Maybe we could use the fire again, but we have to be careful not to burn down the whole place," he suggested, glancing at his still-flaming arm.
Marcos nodded, considering the idea. "Good. But how do we control it? We can't risk getting Elena and Carlos caught in the flames," he said, the worry evident in his eyes.
As they whispered, brainstorming ways to either draw the rats away from the bakery or to safely extract Elena and Carlos, they became oblivious to their surroundings. Their focus on finding a solution led them to overlook two critical factors: the encompassing silence that dominated the area and the sheer number of offspring accompanying the large rat.
Caught up in their whispered discussion, they missed the urgent signals from Elena. Her frantic waving was a desperate attempt to alert them to the approaching danger. A small group of the rat's offspring, previously unnoticed, had begun to stealthily advance towards them.
Their silent approach went undetected by Rafa and Marcos. Elena, from her vantage point, grew increasingly agitated, recognizing the imminent danger. She attempted to alert them by hurling rocks at the creatures, successfully eliminating one. However, this act only intensified the peril as the other offspring descended upon their fallen kin, consuming it voraciously and advancing closer.
In a desperate bid to be heard, Elena resorted to the most direct method at her disposal: she screamed. Her voice, potent and resonant, echoed across the space, reaching Rafa and Marcos just in time.
Rafa turned, his reflexes kicking in at the sight of one of the creatures leaping towards him, its small, stone-like body with razor-sharp teeth aimed at his face.
As the airborne creature neared, Rafa’s instinctive reaction was swift and decisive. His flaming arm shot forward in a blur, intercepting the creature mid-leap. The impact of his fiery fist against the rocky body was explosive. Flames enveloped the small beast, propelling it away and directly towards the larger rat.
The collision was palpable, producing a loud crunch. The smaller rat's body created a small indentation in the larger rat's armored hide. The intense heat from Rafa's blazing hand obliterated the smaller rat's stony exterior, reducing it to a charred remnant upon impact.
The large rat-like creature, previously passive, now turned its attention towards Rafa and Marcos. Its whip-like tail, reminiscent of a cracking whip, filled the air. The sound of a whip is produced when it breaks the sound barrier, Rafa recalled. The realization that such a weapon was part of this creature's anatomy, made of solid stone, sent a wave of dread through him.
He had little time to dwell on this. More of the rat's offspring launched themselves towards them. Rafa's movements were a blur. His shoulder and arm ached under the stress of rapid, forceful punches.
Flames devoured the smaller creatures upon contact, disintegrating their rocky armor and leaving behind only scorched remains. The flames seemed to make him impervious to the pain of striking stone.
Meanwhile, Marcos, armed with a long piece of debris, swung with desperation and determination. He tried to fend off the creatures converging on them. Both found themselves fully focused on keeping from being overwhelmed by the sheer number of creatures.
The large rat, embodying calculated malice, appeared content to bide its time. It watched as Rafa and Marcos grappled with its smaller kin. Its tail continued to cut through the air with rhythmic strikes, a constant reminder of the looming threat. This predatory patience only heightened the sense of impending danger.
Rafa's heart sank as he noticed the flames on his arm beginning to wane. Simply enduring the searing pain wasn't enough to sustain the fire. The dimming flames signaled not only the dwindling of his immediate defense but also the unknown consequences when they were extinguished entirely.
The thought of being left defenseless, without the protective barrier of fire against these relentless creatures, spurred a sense of urgency. He had to act quickly, find a way to rekindle the fire or devise another strategy before the flames flickered out completely.