I slept in a surprisingly comfortable bed the night before. I had minor concerns about Ruby, but I knew that Taury could defend her.

“Wake up, William, we’re about to head out.”

“Alright.”

Rob was holding a walkie.

“Alright, checking, Danny you can hear us.”

“Yep, Maddie’s already at the truck.”

“Nice.”

I followed Rob, who led me to a garage.

“There we go, our truck.”

It showed only a few signs of rust. It’s paint was scratched off, and it was made to look like dust.

Maddie poked her head out, her brown hair, matched by her green eyes and winning smile, flowed.

“Are you ready?”

“Maddie, is that it?”

Rob looked her up and down with an annoyed look.

“Listen, it’s hot outside, I’m not going in my camo coat.”

“Fine…”

Rob was in a dirt-like coat which blended with his black hair; meanwhile, Maddie wore a tank top and shorts.

We entered the truck and Maddie smiled at me moving to the backseat.

“So, newbie, you ready for the most dangerous mission of your life?”

Luring my own daughter out of a city… yippee.

“Yep.”

We moved out, the truck passing in a small opening in the rocks. We drove to the perimeter of the city.

“So, how do we draw their attention?”

Maddie snickered.

“Oh, it’s easy, just look appetizing to them.”

“What does that mean?”

Rob sighed.

“Show up.”

“Oh.”

We got to the perimeter and saw a bunch of them.

“Wow, that’s a horde. Danny, you seeing this?”

{Yeah, it’s weird.}

Then, the group took notice.

“Oh crap.”

We stepped on it.

“Danny, how do we get to the kid?!”

{Turn left, now!}

“Got it!”

{Look out behind you! Speed up!}

But it was a little too late.

A massive maw broke through the ceiling and grabbed Maddie, who was screaming.

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“Maddie!”

“William, she’s gone, in the mouth is dead!”

He grabbed my arm, but I saw it, she was still wriggling, she wasn’t dead.

“I’m not just gonna let her go!”

I leapt out of his grip and I heard him curse before saying.

“Danny, Maddie’s eaten and Newbie’s going after her.”

Then he drove.

I ran up to the beast.

“HEY!”

It looked at me, one of Maddie’s legs dangling and kicking in fear.

“Let her go.”

It seemed to be amused by me. It licked it’s chops, putting Maddie entirely in it.

“I warned you.”

I rushed and punched it’s gut, causing it to roar and spit out Maddie.

She was coughing, her body, soaking.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah… how?”

“Let me deal with this…”

She saw me walk up to the approaching hoard.

Then I heard the truck.

“-ing me. He actually saved her?!”

Rob pulled up.

“Get on! They’re approaching.”

Maddie hobbled over, but I stayed put.

“Flame eaters huh?”

The duo looked at me with confusion.

Then I smiled.

“I wonder how much flame you can truly eat.”

The eaters immediately recognized that I wasn’t an ordinary human, and they began to back up.

I took a step forward, and they took another step back.

“Boo.”

They screeched and ran, bouncing and rushing around.

“Wow, that was easy.”

Rob and Maddie looked at me in absolute shock.

{What the **** did I just wit… ROB, YOU NEED TO GET OUT OF THERE! NOW!!!}

“What? Why?”

{He’s coming straight for you!}

“****! Get on, we need to move.”

He pulled me onto the truck and sped away, and then he blanched and drove into and alley before cutting power, turning off the walkie and putting a finger to his mouth.

We peeked out and saw Roman.

“Hm… a pack of them… Why do they keep entering the city every time I leave?”

Then he sniffed the air.

“Odd… I smell something familiar… what is it?”

Then Ruby walked out with Taury.

“Hello, Roman.”

“Ah, Taurael, odd to see you without that human pet of yours… who’s the atronach?”

“That would be… my and his daughter.”

“Daughter?!”

Rob whispered.

“Who’s he talking to? Obviously not the kid… though… human pet… interesting.”

He looked at me with minor suspicion. Then Roman looked at Ruby with curiosity.

“Hm.. to think that you two would have a daughter…”

Maddie whispered.

“So… it’s not his… who are the parents?”

“I’m more concerned about this human pet, because when I found William, he was right next to it, not panicking.”

“Odd.”

They looked at me, then back at the atronachs.

Ruby smiled.

“You flame… I part flame.”

“Indeed… what’s the other part?”

“Light.”

“Interesting.”

Taury nodded, then Ruby began to walk off… in my direction.

“Oh crap, it saw us, what do we do!”

I tilted my head.

“Get in the truck?”

“No, cause then, he’ll hear us.”

Maddie looked around.

“We run.”

She looked back and froze.

I looked and saw a flame eater.

“Well, crap.”

“Papa?”

We turned and Ruby stood there.

“HOLY ****.”

“Papa, what’s that thing? Mama killed one.”

Maddie was confused.

“Who the heck is it calling papa?!”

Ruby answered with a smile.

“Papa is papa.”

I patted her head.

“Well, these people call it a flame eater.”

The duo looked at me, blinked…

“YOUR IT’S PAPA?!”

“Yes…”

“Uh… how… what?”

Then Roman approached.

“What’s with this com- …”

He looked at Rob and Maddie who were petrified with fear.

“Hello, Roman.”

“What is this?”

“Ah, so… um… it turns out humans do still exist in your realm.”

Then a tear made of mana fell from his eye.

“They… humans… they… live…?”

He reached out a hand, and Rob flipped out a knife and moved Maddie back.

Roman moved back…

“I see…”

Then he walked away.

I knelt down in front of Ruby.

“Go back to mama, okay?”

“Okay, papa.”

She skipped off.

I turned to the duo who looked at me in shock and confusion.

“How…?”

“Yeah, there’s a bit you don’t know about me.”

“Yeah, but… why did it react like that?”

“Roman… has been looking for life for his whole life… some way for him to forgive himself.”

Maddie looked at me.

“Why?”

I looked in the direction of where Roman went.

“Atronachs are a type of fey… an odd type… after they form, they are light minded, not really thinking things through. Roman, in his youthful state, thought that everyone wanted to play with him… the weaponry shot at him… he thought it was an attempt to play, so… he played back and shot fire.”

Rob had turned on the walkie on again already, so I knew that others were hearing it.

“After a certain point, the atronachs will gain full sentience, so Roman… he suddenly realized that no one was playing. They were scared. Trying to escape. The games he did… he realized they were killing… but at that point, it was too late. Life was almost annihilated. He… grew bitter… and sad…”

Maddie looked at me.

“This doesn’t seem like the story of a monster…”

“Because he’s not… he’s just another being… one who didn’t have anything to guide him… not until it was too late.”

I sat down.

“And… that kid one… what is it… it called you papa.”

“Yeah, because that kid was formed with my and another’s magic.”

“Magic?”

“Yeah.”

I knew that flame would scare them, so I used light instead.

Pixie dust fell off of my hand.

“What…?”

“Yep, I have magic.”

“Woah…”

Rob looked at my hand.

{That story… about the thing… is that real?}

“That’s what I was told by the other person whose magic made that child.”

“Wow…”

“Yeah…”

Rob sighed.

“I feel like you can explain more when we get back.”

“Yeah.”