Chapter 19 - Embers of War

"If you don't mind, I'd like to ask you a few things." Elder Aira said to Aaron.

"This might be the person N told me to open up to once I woke up." Aaron thought. "I don't know how much I should trust that guy, but if he really can see the future then maybe I should consider his advice."

"You're one of the Elders right?" Aaron asked as he walked over to the entrance.

"That is correct. My name is Maleah Aira."

"Okay Ms. Aira, was there something else you wanted to know from me?" Aaron questioned.

"A few things actually, how close are you with Kaden?"

"...I've known him since we were kids. Our moms were friends in the past and we were born only one year apart from each other, so it was only natural that we became close."

"We're you two still close when... you both died?"

"Yeah, we actually both got killed together, I think. That's actually a pretty morbid thing to say." Aaron replied with a chuckle. "He's changed through the years and I feel like I'm the only one who fully understands him and the way he thinks."

"Is that so?"

"Kaden has a bit of a rough past, and it heavily influences who he is now, although he would never admit that. He procrastinated a lot and always took the easiest route out of any situation. I think he's scared of failure more than anything else."

"You're quite an honest person aren't you?" Aira asked.

"...You seem trustworthy. How did Kaden end up here?"

"We found him inside of a cave near the summit of one of the surrounding mountains. Unlike you, Kaden made it to this world by chance. It was a natural occurrence that we nor him had any say in. In your case, you were summoned here by her."

They both looked over to Via who was still fast asleep.

"It seems she's taken quite a liking to you in the short time you've been together." Aira stated.

"She desperately needs someone by her side. Her mom, dad and older brother all died, leaving her all alone in that forest. Using the lake of Lazarus was just a final desperate attempt to cling onto the only thing she finds comfort in. Family."

"You came to that conclusionon on your own?"

"It's clear to see, even in the short time I've spent with her. I promised her that I'd never leave her alone, of course that was before I knew there was a problem with me being here. So before I leave, I would like to ask Kaden to watch over her for me."

"Hmm. Honest and kind..." She said as her eyes wandered over to some rustling bushes. "Give me just a second Aaron, I actually very much enjoy conversing with you."

"Um, okay."

After sealing the doorway once again, Elder Aira began to casually walk back down the path she arrived on.

"...Now, who's watching."

"She's leaving already?" Kumori thought as she secretly spied on Elder Aira. "What even is this place? It's kind of far from everything else... hmm?"

Kumori peeked over her shoulder and found a rather large sphere of water that was being gathered from the ground behind her.

"Huh?"

Before she could've reacted, the water blasted her through the bushes and into the open just before Elder Aira.

"Owww!!!" Kumori exclaimed as she slowly pushed herself up onto her hands and knees.

"I believe I've warned you before about spying on people Kumori." Aira stated as she walked up to her.

"I-I'm so sorry Elder Aira, I was just walking around when I saw you and I thought, um, I thought..."

Elder Aira gently patted her head as she struggled to find an excuse for sneaking around.

"Are you hurt anywhere? Sorry for being a bit rough, I actually didn't know it was you who was watching me."

"Uhh, I'm fine! I'm fine!" She replied as she quickly bounced back onto her feet. "Sorry for spying on you Elder Aira, but um, what is this place?"

"This... is a prison."

"Prison?"

"It's a place where bad people are held to atone for their crimes."

"So, is there a bad person in their right now?" Kumori questioned.

"...No, not necessarily."

.....

"Maaaan I was expecting more from them." Guren said as him and his partner trekked through the Redwoods.

Thunder echoed through the forest, vibrating the bark on every tree and sending most of the area's creatures into hiding.

"It looked like you were having fun with that swordsman though."

"Did you only join me today because you thought you'd get a good fight?"

"Yhup." Guren swiftly replied.

"So you wasn't intending on following orders from the start."

"C'mon Mateo, even you could admit that it's been pretty boring for a while now. That kid didn't even beat the first gate, so now where back to waiting."

"Are you forgetting that I was once living in Aestus? What if one of them had recognized who I am." Mateo said as he took off his mask.

"You'll be fine, I was careful not to call you by your name like you said. Besides, didn't you say you left like over ten years ago. You're probably not even on their minds."

"It would bother me more if I wasn't." Mateo replied softly.

"What was that?"

"Nothing. Let's make haste so we could rendezvous with Kiri as soon as possible."

"Ai ai captain."

.....

"If it's the last thing I do, I will get you all out of here. A warzone isn't a place for children." Said an unknown woman to a group of six kids. "It won't be long before they expand their search area to this district. Dammit Jay where are you?"

"Um, Mother Merina..." The youngest kid said as she tugged on the woman's blouse.

"Yes Sayu?"

"Where are we going?"

"Someplace better than here." Merina replied. "Once Jay is here we can-"

She was interrupted by the sound of the door on the floor below them creeking open. Merina placed her index finger over her lips, gesturing to the kids to remain quiet. She held onto Sayu as the sound of multiple footsteps crept through the building beneath them.

"Why does it sound like more than one person?" Merina thought. "Jayson should've been alone, unless this isn't him."

After a short moment of silence, whoever was downstairs began to quietly maneuver their way through the building and over to the staircase. This old and decrepit building produced numerous unsettling noises, but they were all drowned underneath the echoes of the creeking staircase. As she held Sayu, Merina dug into her pocket and pulled out a single match stick. She struck the match against the bottom of her shoe, which ignited it and illuminated the room around her. Merina's shaky hands lifted the lit match towards the door to enter the room they were in and waited. As if they had just became aware that others were in the building, the footsteps of the unknown people became inaudible. The silence was even more unnerving for Merina than the oncoming footsteps. Finally the door of their room slowly pushed open, as Merina took in a large breath of air.

"Hey, sorry I'm late." A teenage boy said quietly as he poked his head into the room.

"It's Jay!" One of the other kids said as he ran over to him.

Merina released the breath she was holding in along with the tight grip she had on Sayu.

"Are you okay Mother Merina?" Sayu asked.

Sigh. "I'm fine Sayu. What took you so long?" She asked Jayson.

"I was held up by him." Jayson replied as he walked further into the room, allowing another man to follow in behind him.

"Lanier?" Merina questioned.

"I told you I would assist you if you needed me to." He replied.

"And I told you, you getting involved with this would only draw attention to us."

"Well I couldn't just sit by and wait to hear if things went well or not."

"I think we should all walk and talk, the sun is starting to set." Jayson stated.

"...Yeah you're right Jay." Merina replied. "Alright kids, everyone hold onto someone else's hand. Never get separated from the group alright?"

"Yes Mother Merina." The kids replied as they began to pair up.

Jayson led the way out of the building as he was the only one not accompanied by a partner. Black smoke occupied the air around them as it was being blown in from nearby fires. All of the modern, well constructed buildings in the vicinity were abandoned and had been damaged to an extent where living in them wasn't possible. Small pieces of ember also drifted through the air like glowing red snowflakes, while beams of sunlight penetrated the smoke clouds which filled the streets. This was just a small portion of the devestating and hellish scene inside Ignus, the capital of the fire continent.

"Pull up your face masks." Merina said to the children as she pulled up her own.

All of the children including Jayson wore a face mask that covered their mouths and noses to prevent overexposure to the toxic air around them. Jayson exited the building on his own and checked their surroundings before signaling to the others to follow behind him.

"You think this kid is ready to carry out a task like this?" Lanier asked Merina. "He's probably already under a ton of stress with everything that's happened already."

"He'll be fine." Merina assertively answered. "Jayson's an extraordinary kid with great leadership qualities. I've never felt the need to worry about him because time and time again he's proven himself."

"I'm not doubting his abilities in the slightest, what I'm saying is he's still human. And up to this point there hasn't been many people who've treated him like one."

"...I know that, but I just need him to endure a little longer. I believe he can."

Jayson continued to monitor their surroundings as the group moved forward towards a street intersection. As they crossed the intersection, Jayson noticed a few unrecognizable figures sprawled out in the street. Upon further investigation he realized that they were human corpses, burnt to the point that they were almost no more than piles of ash. Merina noticed it immediately after Jayson did and was visibly disturbed by the grotesque sight.

"Alright children let's cross the road." Merina said as she directed them to the opposite side of the street.

They all continued along for another ten minutes until they approached the edge of the city. There was just one more obstacle between them and the outside world and that was the Aegis. A seemingly unbreakable wall made entirely of quartzite which reached over one hundred and eighty feet into the sky. This colossal barrier which confined the entire city of Ignus was said to be built by the deities of this land a long time ago. There are only six tunnels which provides a route through the Aegis, and Jayson and the others were closing in on one of those possible exits. A harbor which was built by the easternmost tunnel that allowed passage into the city by boat.

"I see four guards in the area." Lanier said as peeked around the corner investigating the harbor.

"On the end of the dock, there's a suitable size boat that can carry all of us." Jayson stated.

"Alright." Merina replied. "Kajar's forces are moving west right now in an attempt to takeover more ground."

"How do you know that?" Lanier questioned.

"Doesn't matter, what does matter is this area has less patrol for the time being. This is the time to get these kids out of here."

"If you knew about this why didn't you inform me? We could've evacuated much more innocent civilians who aren't apart of the fight."

"If we told more people we were risking getting found out Lanier. My main priority was getting these kids out of harm's way."

"What about all of the other kids in the city Merina?"

"These are the ones within my reach!"

One of the guards just barely overheard Merina's outburst and began to walk over in their direction to investigate the noise.

"One approaching." Jayson whispered.

"...I'm sorry but I've made my decision and I'm standing on top of it." Merina quietly but firmly said to Lanier. "Here Jayson, take this with you."

She placed a light blue lighter in the palm of his hand then closed his hand around it.

"You must ensure that this lighter finds its way to one of the Elders of Aestus. It doesn't matter which one just make sure it gets to one of them. Okay?"

"Yes ma'am, I will." Jayson replied.

Merina paused and stared at Jayson for a few seconds before embracing him with a hug.

"If anyone is there, come out now." The guard stated.

"Take them that way." Merina whispered to Jayson.

"What're you-" Lanier began to say as Merina walked out into the open.

"Come on." Jayson said to the others as he lifted Sayu into his arms and ran around the opposite side of the building.

"Leave now." The guard ordered. "Anyone found in this area is to be either captured or killed. I'm giving you one chance to leave."

The next closest guard became aware of the situation and also began to approach them.

"Is it because I'm a woman you think that you could approach me unarmed?" Merina questioned with a grin.

The guard immediately stepped back as Merina pulled another match stick from her pocket. She quickly struck the match along the bottom of her shoe which ignited it. In one motion she stepped forward and turned the tiny flame from a match into a wave of flames which she directed towards the guard. He dove out of its way, but Merina curved the flames and trapped him in a ring of fire. The other three guards noticed the commotion and moved into action, arming themsel⁷ves with metal poles which they were carrying on their backs and sprinting over.

"Follow me." Merina said to herself as she turned and ran towards one of the nearby buildings.

"You alright?" One of the other guards asked to the one caught in the fire.

"She's only holding the fire in place, so I'll be fine. Go after her!"

They other guards then proceeded to pursue after Merina, which opened the opportunity for Jayson and the other kids to reach the boat. Lanier stayed hidden and watched on as the children loaded onto the boat. Jayson turned to face Lanier who was watching them, and confidently nodded his head as if to say "I'll take care of this." Lanier nodded back at him then ran to go assist Merina.

"Jay, are we really leaving?" Sayu questioned.

"Yeah Sayu, we're really leaving."

FWOOM!!!

The ring of fire that surrounded the one guard was extinguished at the same moment the building which Merina ran into exploded into flames.

"MOTHER MERINA!!!" A few of the kids cried out.

Jayson spun around to take in the sight of the intense blaze that proceeded the blast. Without hesitation, he dropped onto one knee and struck a pose with his left hand on the dock and his other outstretched behind him. The boats in the harbor all began to sway back and forth as the waves became rough and unstable. Water then began to rise from the harbor in multiple different streams and gather in the air above, forming a massive swell of sea water.

"Wh-What's a water essence user doing here?" The guard questioned as he watched on in shock.

Jayson stood to his feet and glared over at the guard with an intense gaze of anger plastered on his face. He then directed the entire sphere of water towards the fire and dispersed the sphere as it got close, so the water would fall like rain.

"That kid... he must be Jayson Hillinger. The mixed blood."

"...He really is an anomaly." Lanier said to himself after witnessing that.

"JAYSON!" Merina yelled from further down the harbor. "GO! AND THANK YOU!"

"Mother Merina's alright." One of the other kids stated.

Jayson cracked a smile before jumping onto the boat and joining the other kids.

"Jay I started the pull engine." One of the kids exclaimed.

"Thanks Tanner."

The rain which Jayson had created blended in with the tears that began to roll down Merina's cheeks as she watched the boat make its way through the tunnel.

"You're a natural born leader and protector Jayson. I can rest easy knowing you're guiding them to better shores."