The Real And Borrowed Power

As the flames danced around him, Karyan slowly began to stir. 

His consciousness fluttered like the fire that encased him, uncertain if he was awakening from a nightmare or stepping into a new reality. 

The intense heat that should have scorched his flesh seemed to energise him instead. 

With a forceful gasp, he opened his eyes to find the fire receding, like a tide pulling away from the shore.

Standing before him was an old man, but no ordinary elder. 

His face was etched with fine, scale-like patterns that shimmered in the light. Two small but unmistakable horns protruded from his forehead, curving back into his wild mane of hair. 

The space around him was alive with flames that moved as if acknowledging his presence, not threatening to consume but rather paying homage to their master.

The old man's eyes were the most striking feature—deep and vibrant, they held a draconic intensity. 

They were like molten gold, swirling with the power of fire itself, burning with ancient wisdom and an untamed spirit. 

Those eyes seemed to see right through Karyan, piercing into the depths of his soul.

His voice, when he spoke, was commanding and with avarice, as if he was used to taking what he wanted and brooked no argument. "You have been chosen, young fire wielder," he said, his tone left no room for questions.

Karyan, still disoriented, tried to grasp his bearings. 

He looked around in confusion but could not recognize his surroundings. 

The world around him seemed to be a blend of shadow and flame, it looked like a place that defied the laws of the mundane world he knew.

Despite his confusion, the old man seemed to accept him without hesitation—as if Karyan's emergence from the flames had been a rite of passage, a ceremony that confirmed his new identity as a fire wielder.

"You will learn," the old man continued, his greedy tone was suggesting that Karyan's new power was something to be easily controlled. 

"The flames have chosen you, and you will harness them. You will be powerful, but you will also serve."

Karyan could only nod, his throat fele tight and his mind raced. 

He did not understand how he had come to this place or why the flames had spared him. But the old man, with his dragon-like appearance and his fiery domain, was clearly at the heart of this mystery. 

And for better or worse, Karyan knew that his life had been irreversibly changed.

"But why…?" Confusion clouded Karyan's mind as he stood before the old man.

Memories that were long gone began to appear, and he recalled a time when he was but a child of five years. 

Back then, he had felt a similar warmth, an ember of potential that seemed to flow within him, only to be extinguished—or so he had believed. 

He remembered how his ability had vanished, leaving him cold and hollow, as if an integral part of him had been ripped away.

Barbara disappeared just for that reason…to help him get it back.

"But... but I thought this element was taken from me when I was just a child," Karyan stammered.

The old man's lips twisted into a knowing smile, his dragon-like eyes glowed with a depth of ancient lore. "Elements cannot be stripped away from their souls," he said with certainty. "Once awakened or bestowed by the element masters, they will always remain with you and pass on to your progeny. The fire within you may have been subdued, but it could never be truly taken. It has merely awaited the right moment to reignite."

"What…?" Karyan felt the weight of the man's words. 

 It was a revelation that turned his understanding of himself and his past upside down. 

The idea that the fire had been with him all along, lying dormant yet unprovoked, sparked emotions within him—anger for the years lost, wonder at the power he held, and an underlying fear of trying to use it. 

The old man, observing Karyan's internal struggle, continued, "The elements are patient and will endure through trials and silence. Your fire awaited the call to awaken once more, and now that it has, you must learn to wield it, to embrace it as a part of your very essence."

Karyan took a deep breath, feeling the heat of his element coursing through him, a current that had been muted but never truly absent. 

"I see…" As the reality sank in, he began to accept the truth that had been revealed. 

"But how can I wield two elements?" 

"A few can," the old man stated, "but not everyone knows about it."

"How is that physically possible? I mean, two elements at once?" 

The old man looked at the fire in his palm, "have you ever wondered how demons can wield so many elements and yet have no master at all?" 

"Sometimes, but isn't it because of dark magic?" 

"Yes, but also because the elements come from the natural sources of life…even if they seem to be so strong at times, their powers don't come directly from the spirit: our never-ending power source." 

Karyan's eyes closed and then reopened again, "so because their elements and magic comes from natural sources like ocean, plants, animals…" he paused, "it means their powers could end as soon as the source is gone." 

"Correct." 

"But how do I stop the demon then?" 

"You must kill its source, and in this case-" 

"Nedeira…" Karyan completed the old man's sentence.