The Invasion (2)

He managed to quell his disbelief and swallow a gulp of saliva, all the while the White Flame's narrative carried forward, "As these occurrences burgeoned worldwide, humanity perceived it as an opportunity—a chance to strike back, to reclaim the lands that had been wrested from their grasp. And strike.... they did." 

Orion saw men whose trousers shredded as they morphed into beastly forms, and witnessed others conjuring ice seemingly out of thin air, flames dancing at their command, steel bending to their will. 

Among them were those whose skin seemed to transmute, becoming as solid as stone. Orion was struck by a sudden realization as the true reason behind his awakened gift began to dawn on him.