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—
/BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!/
""!!!""
'The whole city suddenly lit up, becoming a large pyre.'
/BUUURN!!/
'Twisting red flames crawled to the skies, bursting from the ground below like magma in an active volcano.'
'Houses were consumed in the blink of an eye, trees ignited like matches, the ground bubbled as it melted under the extreme heat.'
'Fiery embers flew around like flower petals in the wind, a beautiful yet horrifying scene…'
/Screams!/
'Even from this distance, kilometers from the shore, they could all hear the pained cries of desperation and misery as chaos unfolded in the distorting haze.'
"N-No!"
'Hestia was still in disbelief as she leaned over the edge of the boat, her eyes wide open as they trembled with her overwhelming emotions.'
'Silver held onto her to prevent her from falling over, but his expression was tense just the same. His eyes showed his seriousness, this was no time to joke around.'
'A strange sensation was rising within him, but he couldn't quite tell what it was.'
"S-Silver!"
"On it. Hold tight."
/Fuom!/
'Silver immediately teleported the boat to the coast, jumping into the burning pier as he clenched his fists, reading himself for trouble.'
I don't know what's going on, but that can wait.
Both Hestia and Artemis seem to know what's going on, but now is not the time to ask questions.
The ground is smoking due to the heat, this is utterly insane... Could anyone even survive this?
'But he knew better than to deny such a possibility, so he put his hand forward, erecting a shield around them:'
"Stay close to me! We're going to save as many people as we can." Silver declared as he raised his right arm high
"Please!"
"I'll help you."
'Hestia tried her best to stay composed, not to distract him, but she couldn't; something was weighing on her, something… Heavy.'
'Artemis had a similar expression, but her sense of justice was higher. Even if she felt something, saving others and ensuring they were okay came first.'
'Even in this burning world, as a Goddess with little strength, even if she were to be burned to ashes, if it came to one more life saved, she'd willingly throw herself into the fire.'
'This was just the kind of Goddess she was.'
/Snap!/
/Cling!/
'Silver snapped his fingers, causing a wave of wind and sound to spread around the entire pier, faintly blowing away the flames in their immediate visinity.'
'But as he closed his eyes to focus, his expression slowly changed as he noticed something odd. Something that shouldn't be true…'
/Snap!/
/Cling!/
'He snapped his fingers again to confirm his suspicions. And as the seconds came to be and he did nothing, both Artemis and Hestia began to grow restless.'
"What are you doing? We need to save them!"
"..."
'Silver did not answer, his expression cold as he bit his lips momentarily.'
'It was a rare show of helplessness, something Silver never had shown before while working. He had been helpless before, knowing his limits to help others, but it usually came with his cold, understanding gaze.'
'This time, however, he could not take it, the truth far too heavy to convey.'
"Silver… We need to…"
'Artemis grew even more restless, but knew something was wrong as she looked at him.'
'She held onto his shoulder, shaking it, but with each movement, she grew a little weaker…'
"... Let's keep going." He said after a while, threading into the flames
""...""
'The goddesses did not complain, following him in silence. They already knew the answer. That if Silver had not acted… Was because in this place…'
'There was not a single Soul left to save.'
…
/BURN!/
'The whole city burned in ember flames. The sky was covered in ash and smoke, a reddish gleam in every nook and cranny his eyes fell upon.'
'Sand was turned to glass, rocks were melted into puddles. Cracks on the ground ran across whole street blocks, pressurized flames bursting out from within.'
/Sizzle.../
"Urg..."
'Being careful as he used his abilities to protect them, Silver would often neglect himself, letting the extreme heat kiss his skin, burning it like meat in a pan.'
"Be careful!"
"This much is fine, we don't have the time to be gentle."
It's hot, exceptionally so. Even with my resistance, I can't even approach a dozen meters from those fountains.
Heated Plasma is forming at the entrance of those fissures, they all lead somewhere... The same source... Could this be the holy fire?
But why is this holy flame so... Chaotic?
/BURN!/
'It was an intense heat, not merely physical. It was hard to explain, but Silvet felt his skin, muscles, and bones burn.'
'Not only that, even his Magic and Spirit seemed to heat up before this chaotic flame in a twisted resonance.'
'A fire that transcended mortal boundaries, it burned with seemingly no fuel, spreading everywhere without air as if having a will of its own.'
'The Magic in the air was dissipating with any signs of life this land ever had. The Ichor of the Goddess of Fire within him shook, welcoming yet dreading the existence around him.'
'There was a connection between them, faint yet solid. A line he couldn't quite grasp but knew of its existence…'
'A spiritual connection… A primordial fear… This fire was burning his very emotions, feeding off of them, growing stronger with his every step.'
'As the fire raged, this connection grew stronger, but so did his sense of dread.'
'The fire moved erratically but with a strange pattern, almost as if the flames... Wanted to swallow him!'
/Roaarr!/
""!""
'As Silver parted the flames in search of survivors, protecting the Goddesses behind him. They arrived at an open patch of land with ruined buildings around them.'
'It was a plaza of some sort, the fountain in its middle dry as it smoked under a flaming pillar.'
'Pieces of wooden stalls and cloth hang around the place, it was scary to think that maybe, moments before their arrival, this place had been bursting with activity.'
'Yet now, only the crackling of fire and the smell of burning charcoal remained.'
/Rooaaarr!/
'From the flames consuming a building next to them, a group of creatures stepped out like dancing tongues of fire.'
"W…What is that?" Artemis asked as she reached for a sword at her waist, her expression tense
'She had an inkling about those, but didn't dare say what she had in mind.'
'Silver didn't notice her expression; otherwise, he wouldn't have kept quiet.'
"... I don't know, but it's not friendly."
"ROAAAR!"
'It was a humanoid creature vaguely resembling a person. Thin limbs and a head wider than its shoulders where a twisting mass of flames gathered like a burning torch.'
'Its body was made of flames and just that.'
"A walking fire?!"
/DASH!/
'When one appeared, a dozen others followed suit like zombies crawling out from their tombs. They had been surrounded before they could even process what was going on.'
"Stay back!"
Things are getting stranger and stranger... If I was suspicious before, now I'm certain.
But I still have a glaring question... Even with such intense heat, there should've been hints of the people it devoured.
Screams, flesh melting, burning meat, charred bones... Yet nothing remains...
Only dead ruins and these beasts remain.
/THROW!/
'Silver was the first to act. He pushed Hestia between him and Artemis, shielding her from the strange creatures.'
'He then tested one of them by throwing a rock at high speeds with telekinesis, precisely hitting the swirling mass of flames where he thought was their head.'
/Sha!/
'The creature burst into cinders, but soon enough, three more took its place, stretching in a strange tone as they ran without fear.'
'The beasts moved just as one would've expected. They acted as a moving bonfire, blending in with each other like waves in the ocean, acting like one continuous stream.'
'The only way to differentiate them was by checking their burning cores, or so Silver deemed those to be.'
"..."
'But as he looked at those swirling masses of fire, something seemed to stir inside him as well...'
/BLAST!/
'Silver found this property of theirs odd but did not dwell in it. Instead, he focused on dealing with this issue, pushing them all back with a powerful airwave.'
/Screetch!/
'The impact pushed back all of the flaming creatures before him, causing some to dissipate, but not all.'
'At the same time, he noticed that more were coming from the flames around him, and with a decisive thought, he held onto Artemis and Hestia, jumping into the sky.'
"They're endless, we need to find a safer place!"
Until I figure out what these are and how to deal with them!
I've already spent too much energy just being here, this place isn't safe.
"Kyaa!!"
"..."
'Hestia screamed as she was dragged into the skies. Meanwhile, Artemis looked around her, seeing the flames of destruction but not a single plea for help.'
'The silence… It was like a knife digging deep into her chest.'
/Clang!/
""!""
"Silver! There are people!"
"I heard that."
'Echoes of battle coming from somewhere deeper in the city, closer to the center of this metropolis.'
'A tall temple above a mountain, the only place not overtaken in flames!'
That's likely where the survivors gathered, and if a resistance has been formed, it's likely at its edges.
Although...
'Silver looked around the city, noticing how the fire only spread to the inner sections of the city.'
It looks like the fire hasn't spread to the rest of the island, we'll have to check those places later... Maybe prevent the fire from going there.
We'll get our answers soon, regardless.
"!"
'Seeing people still struggling, a glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes. And he flew them closer…'
/ROAR!/
"What?!"
/SMACK!/
'Suddenly, a large flaming bird swooped in from the skies, almost knocking them down!'
"Tsk! They can fly too?"
"Get me a bow!" Artemis exclaimed as she scouted her surroundings
'Silver avoided easily, but like before, when one appeared, a dozen more followed!'
'Simultaneously, he pulled a bow and a quiver from his pocket space, handing them to Artemis, who immediately proceeded to shoot.'
/BURN!/
"!!"
'However, her arrows burned before they could heat the creatures, and those that did not burn on time only managed to knock the birds for a moment before they recovered.'
/Fwoosh!/
'Even so, she kept shooting with incredible skill!'
"Dammit!"
These are stronger than the ones below. They take the shape of monsters and are vicious. Unrelenting.
Compared to these, the others are tame!
/Swoop!/
"Get away!"
/Blast!/
… They aren't weak either. Their bodies may look frail, but the flames are solid. They're like Second Class monsters.
This entire place… It's like being thrown back at the lower floors of the Dungeon.
/ROAAR!!/
/Clang!/
/Chatter!/
"We're almost there!"
"My head's spinning… I don't feel so good…"
"Please hold it in, Hestia!"
'Silver knew his movements weren't being kind to the girls, but at the same time, he felt it was too dangerous to teleport around without knowing what was around him.'
'If that wasn't enough, some strange force seemed to be meddling with his Plasmids, or rather, the Magical power in the atmosphere, causing his strength to wane and waver.'
'He wasn't confident in ensuring their safety while those were in effect!'
/Land!/
/Bam!/
""!!""
/Clang!/
"There are more on the left! Reinforce the rear! Mages! Take out the Flammagons in the sky!"
""UNDERSTOOD!""
"We're going to carve a path through the city! Follow…?!"
'In the middle of the ruins of a street block, dozens of soldiers clad in red metallic armor fought side by side as they pushed through the swarm of flaming beasts.'
'Around them were dozens of priestesses with veils on their faces, they helped everyone around with supreme fighting skills and a strange control of fire!'
"That is…"
These people, they're incredibly skillful… Too much even. Enough to put even most… No… Maybe all adventurers except a few to shame.
They're coordinated like a hive mind, knowing each other's movements to a 'T'. Their leader is also extremely competent, and all her orders are flawless… They're really carving their way through fire…
That's not all, what is this strange magic they're controlling? Is it even magic? They aren't chanting at all!
'This was Silver's first time experiencing what others felt when they looked at him. Someone able to invoke magic without any gesture at all. A power that broke common sense.'
'If he were to explain what he saw, these people were no less powerful than an army of First Class adventurers!'
So this is Olympia… I should've expected no less than the birthplace of Ancient Heroes.
'Their leader looked at Philip with open eyes, ecstatic yet tense at the same time, "Wait! You are… Q-Quickly! There is no time to explain! We need to reach the Grand Temple!".'
"What's going on?" Silver asked as he looked at them warily
"We'll explain everything, so please, follow us! We've been expecting you!"
"?"
Expecting us? But we just arrived… Something's wrong.
I can feel it deep down. My instincts are telling me that something is deeply wrong…
'Silver trusted his instincts, but he knew he couldn't just turn back without an answer. It wouldn't leave a good taste in his mouth, the same could be said for his companions.'
'He looked at Hestia and Artemis, and they nodded.'
'He pulled back his sleeves, helping the Olympians return to the temple, taking out everything on their way. However, they were so efficient that he quickly found himself without work.
'So instead, he took a more passive role, focusing on helping the injured and assisting where possible; paying deep attention to their every movement and actions, their gestures and words as they climbed the mountain.'
'They spoke in the same dialect, but it was ancient and heavy. Their words had a deep accent, but the language was the same.'
'It didn't seem like they held any ill intent towards them, but the more he looked around and fought with them, the greater his restlessness became.'
'Something was coming, something big… Maybe the biggest one… The hardest challenge he had yet to face.'
'His heart beat with strength and anxiety, he didn't like this… He hated the feeling of being in the dark.'
'What could be coming? How was he meant to prevent it? Did the others know? Were they thinking of solving it? How were they going to do it?'
'And better yet, what did this mean to him and those he cared about? Were they in danger?'
'He hated this feeling but kept fighting. He would get some answers, one way… Or another.'
/SMACK!/
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Notes