Chapter 7 - Ashes

Urgh… my head feels fuzzy…

 𐰍 𐰸 𐱄 𐰃 𐰃 𐰍 𐰃 𐱅 𐰍 𐰸 𐱄 𐰃 𐰃 𐰍 𐰃 𐱅 𐰍 𐰸 𐱄

𐰃 𐰃 𐰍 𐰃 𐱅 𐰍 𐰸 𐱄 𐱄 𐰃 𐰃 𐰍 𐰃 𐱅 𐰍 𐰸 𐱄 𐰃

Ah? What's that? There is a voice in my head, and I don't understand what it means! Could you stop talking, please!

 𐱁 𐰴 𐰀 𐰆 𐰸 𐰍 𐱅 𐰍 𐱃 𐰃 𐰏 𐰀 𐰖 𐰃 𐰍 𐰸 𐰃 𐰀 𐰔 𐰀 𐱅 𐱄 𐰃 𐰃 𐰉 𐱅 𐱄

Urgh, how do I turn it off?

𐰸 … 𐱂 ….. 𐱁 𐰸 𐱅 𐱁 … 𐰀 𐰞 … 𐱁 𐰸 𐰃 ….. 𐰶 𐰀 … 𐰔 𐰸 …. 𐱄 ….. 𐰃 𐰍 …. 

Oh? It starts to dissipate. Good thing, I didn't want this to constantly scream into my head. It was really starting to make me angry. 

Anyway, that's not important! God has given me a task, and I would prefer diving into an ice bath than disappoint him. 

First things first, I need to open my eyes! 

I open them with great difficulty, but at last I was able to do it, and there I saw it, colors. Diverse and multiple colors! Ah, it's so beautiful. After spending one year in complete white, it's pleasant to see some more color, even more when these colors are coming from the lava just in front of me! 

…AH! THERE IS LAVA IN FRONT OF ME!!! I need to run, or else it will burn me… wait… I want the fire to burn me! Yes, I suppose that a little burn wouldn't be a problem. I deserve to be burned a little bit… right?

I decided to approach the lava, and then I touched it… fully expecting my hand to burn immediately… but it didn't, my hand didn't burn, there was no fire. I looked at it for a long time; the lava continued to flow, and it captured my feet, but I didn't notice because I didn't burn. The fire… didn't burn me.

''NOOOOOOO!!! BURN ME! BURN ME! YOU CAN'T JUST IGNORE ME LIKE THAT!'' I screamed at the lava, expecting it to burn me… but it didn't. ''BURN ME!''

''…Please… I beg you… burn me,'' I pleaded with the lava, but the fire did not respond to my tear.

I looked at myself and saw only gray, my whole skin was the color gray. I even had a tail with a pointed end! Sadly, I couldn't sense my horns, so I couldn't tell how they looked. Ah, I will find out why I can't burn later; now, I need to look at how I look first and then decide what to do. I just need to move out of there…

…I just need to move…

*stuck*

I'm stuck… the lava as solidifying, my feet are trapped…

Well, at least it can't get worse than this…

*grrr*

… I turn my head just to see a big lizard behind me, but it was not a normal animal because this one possessed only one eye placed just above its crocodile mouth, but it did not possess any teeth. It must mean only one thing: it's a monster, a baby at that.

…I think I'm in trouble?

I didn't have the chance to think more when the lizard suddenly jumped at me, trying to bite off my face, but I positioned my hand and grabbed it in mid-air. He seemed surprised that he suddenly stopped when he started to shriek out of pain.

''Gogogogogo!''

It was twisting itself, trying to get out of my grasp, but I held him hard, I will not let him escape.

But I was wondering why he was in so much pain when I saw that some smoke was being emitted where my hands were. Oh, so my body must be really hot. That's good to know.

I was waiting for the monster to be carbonized when he suddenly stopped moving. I was wondering why when he abruptly opened his mouth and spit on my face a little amber.

I was so surprised that I accidentally dropped him on the ground, and he took this opportunity to retreat, but he was staying close to me, waiting for an opportunity to attack again.

But I was still surprised that a monster was able to spit fire. How was it able to do that? Were they always able to do that? Am I able to do that? I could do it before being a monster; I should still be able to, no? I might as well, or else, this monster will simply spit ember on me until I die of boredom.

Alright, remember, to cast a spell, you must first channel the mana inside of you and bring it outside, then with this mana, visualize the form you want it to take, in this case, a ball, and finally, put your essence in it, and ta-da, you have your spell! Ready to wreak havoc!

I opened my eye, fully expecting to see a glorious fireball in front of me, that's what usually happens when I did it.

But this time, I was met not with a bright red flame ready to burn everything in its path, no, I was meet with a ball of gray! I was disgusted that I threw it far from me.

*Boom! *

''GOGOGOGO!!!''

…oh… I think I got the monster… yeah, It's not moving anymore… I think my spell burned him completely.

''I'M THE BEST!!!'' I screamed with a smile. ''Hahaha… now I just need to leave this trap… how do I leave actually?''

…I was wondering what to do when I suddenly feel… hunger… I was feeling hungry for something… not food, I don't know how to describe it, but it's like my body craved to be more… complete. I looked around to see what could cause this feeling when my eye set on the dead body of the lizard, it was already burned, and it slowly started to become ash… ash… THAT'S IT! My body needs ash!

In fact, now that I looked closely, I noticed that my whole body wasn't made of flesh and skin but composed of ash.

Then it explains why my spell wasn't of fire, my new essence is now the element of ash. It must have changed when I become a monster… I suppose ash isn't that bad, it not as colourful as fire, but at least it still burns thing… but I suppose it also prevent me from burning…

*sigh*

Alright! Now that I know my element, I can form a plan to escape this trap and eat these juicy ashes over there!

Mmm, if my whole body is made of ashes, could I control every part of it, which mean I could cut separate from every part of my body, which would let me escape? Well, only one way to find out!

I once again focused of my mana, but this time, instead of making it take the form of a ball, I made it circulate inside of my body and imagine it cut off my leg… 

*Jouig* *Slam*

''…I'm the best!'' 

Yeah, it worked! I'm free from the magma! I can now eat that good ash!

…right, I almost forgot, I don't have leg anymore… how I'm supposed to walk?

Mmm… well, let just ramp for now, then I will ask questions.

*drag* *drag* *drag*

I was now in front of body, my spell seemed to burn it even more, making even more ashes! Yipee! More for me… how am I supposed to eat this actually? Do I just pick it up and eat it? No, that wouldn't make sense, ash aren't very nutritious after all. Mmm, maybe I could try to connect to it with my mana? 

Oh? It seems to work, I feel a connection with the ash, let try it.

Just after I connected my mana, the ash immediately started flying toward me, then they stuck themselves on my body, before being absorbed by it.

Oh? I feel like I have more mana now, that nice, I could probably create bigger spell with it. I looked back, and I could see that my leg has regenerate. That convenient, regaining some ash let me regenerates my body. That the advantage of being made of ash… but it disadvantages completely overshadow it, I will take being able to be burn every single time if I was given the choice!

Orion did tell me that if I wanted to burn again, I need to deserve it! Well, then, let's not wait any longer. Each second without progress is one more second without the possibility of burning alive.