Splinterlands Fantasy Story and Music Contest // Week 28 - Fiery explosions

At each passing day, the elder grew worried.

It had been almost three weeks since the boy was found, lying in the outskirts of the village, covered in bloody clothes and passed out. It took almost two days for him to regain conscience, and when the villagers where finally hoping to find out who he was... he couldn't help. Who he was, how did he ended up there, it was as his memory had been erased.

Maybe from a blow to the head, given his injuries; or a very traumatizing experience, sugested the Healer. Nevertheless, he added, helping him remember is beyond my knowledge; we have to help him recover, and hope that his memories come back.

Days passed, and the boy slowly recovered. He was gaining strenght, eating twice a boy his age, but his memory remained the same.

But the lack of memory wasn't what concerned the elder. For more than once, he watched how the boy's eyes glowed with excitment every time he saw fire. All ferexians enjoyed fire, but there was something strange about the boy's reaccion... and he couldn't discover what. He did heard thow, of some incidents on the other side of the mountain, how strange fires and explosions almost completely destroyed two villages, shortly before the boy appeared. Following his gut, messages had been sent to those villages, but no answer had arrived yet.

The next day thow, some light was shed on who the boy was... or what.

It had been raining on the past two days, and as the sun came out in a clear morning, both boy and his carer went for a walk.

"Fresh air always does wonders to calm the mind", the old man said; "maybe it will help your memory come back."

The boy nodded. He rarely spoke, but there was gratitude in his eyes; he knew he owed the villagers his life.

---

After a couple of hours, they reached a small clearing. A small amount of wood had been piled up, probably to make a bonfire; but no one was around.

"Aha, probably someone tried to get some warm; difficult with wet wood. Too bad, the morning is chilly, we could use some warmth, right?"

As he heard the elder's words, the boy agreed. And in a quick gesture, a small fireball flew in the wood's direction, causing it to start burning immediatly with a small bang.

The elder stepped back, shocked with surprise.

"How on the Torch's name did you do that??"

"I … I don't know!"

The boy's eyes were fixed on the fire, but his face had as much surprise as amazement; he was being honest.

"That's what Pyromaniacs do... they set things on fire."

---

The deep voice made them both turn back.

A cloaked figure appeared from the trees, and it wasn't alone. A floating elemental, with glowing eyes, stood at its side.

"We have been looking for this boy, elder. Thank you for taking care of him, we heard he was almost dead when you found him. We'll bring him back home."

"Thank you, sir... but who are you, if I may as..."

"...You!!!"

The boy's scream made the old man look back.

"You know him?"

The boy's body was shaking, as he stared at both man and elemental. A mix of fear and rage were in his voice, as he answered.

“I … I remember him!”

A loud sigh was heard from the cloaked newcomer.

“That is unfortunate... that means you both have to die.”

Two other beasts materialised.

And before any other word was spoken, the boy striked with rage. Flames flew in the attackers direction and exploding on contact, sending them to the ground.

The boy stepped forward, but felt the old man's hand on his arm.

"You can't fight them all, boy. Run to the village, hurry!"

Boy and elder ran as fast as hey could. The elder knew there were good fighters in the village... if they were able to reach it. Then they would have a chance of fighting back.The explosions bought them some time, but would it be enough?

The elemental that materialised further down the road, blocking their passage, told them it wasn't.

Boy and elder stood where they stopped, watching helpless as their attackers surrounded them. The boy clenched his fists, ready to strike back.

He wasn't fast enough thow. A ball of flames striked the elemental blocking the road... but it didn't came from the boy: it came from above.

"A fire bird!" The boy exclaimed, as the huge Phoenix roared from above.

---

"You can call it that, yes... but a Phoenix is much more than a mere fire bird."

The sound of that voice made the elder rejoice. It had been years since he heard that voice, but he knew what it meant: hope.

“Malric!”

The fire summoner appeared, all his body ablaze. And he wasn't alone. Serpentine soldiers came in their aid, and rushed to the two monstruosities summoned minutes ago; the fight ended quick, thow, as the phoenix came to their aid.

Not a sign of the mysterious cloaked summoner by then. It was as if it vanished in thin air, taking advantage of the fight to escape.

---

The boy couldn't take his eyes off Malric, watching as the flames surrounding him slowly faded away, as he aproached the two of them. He gave the elder a heartfelt hug. and then turned to the boy.

“I'm glad to see you're unharmed, Marcus.”

The boy stood in silent, still staring at their savior as if he was seeing a miracle. It was the elder that broke the silence.

“You know who he is?”

“I do. And he is not to blame for the fires on the other villagers... Pyromaniacs can be incredible fighters, but also cause insane destruction. That's why Marcus was kidnapped a few months ago. and used by someone with evil intentions, to do their bidding. Fortunately for us, his strong will helped him break loose.”

The boy finally spoke.

“I … I remembered that man tried to hurt me. But not much more.”

Malric place his hand on the boy's shoulder.

“You've passed a struggle no one should have to endure. But it's over now. I'll will take to a place where you will be able to remember, and will help you control your powers. Come, I'll go to the village with you. You both have to rest, and tomorrow will start our jouney.”

"But what place is that?" The boy asked.

Malric smiled.

“Home, Marcus; you're going home.”

Still haven't joined Steemmonsters? In what planet do you live in? Click the banner below and join the fun! (It has my referral link; you can go directly to the website if you don't want to use it; either way... join in! 😎 )

---

@steemitportugal, a supporter of the portuguese community, is now also a witness! If you would like to give your support to this project, please click on the banner below to cast your vote: