The Fire

Fire

Fire is considered to be the match that lit up human civilization.

But what is fire to you?

To scientists, fire is a chemical chain reaction in which oxygen is combined with fuel in the presence of heat which produces heat and light.

To romanticists, fire is a feeling that they equate to love. Oh show me the fire of thy love, my love.

To the woke generation, fire means something amazing, something dope. Man… that's fire.

To the firefighters, fire is what they kill.

To a family of four, fire is what gives them cooked food.

To a family who had their house burned, fire is something they loathe.

To those living in the tropics, fire is something that adds heat to the already hot weather, a nuisance.

To those living in the cold, fire is an essential element to avoid frostbite or worse, dying. A rope of rescue for those in need.

Fire can be many different things. It can be an annoyance to some, a killer for the few, or it can be a lifeline to many. Such is the case for a child living in a tattered house.

His house is a simple one-room shack. Holes punctuate its walls, webs drape the nooks of the ceiling, and the winds and moonlight sneak in, causing a deadly chill across the room. 

In the middle of the room/house, a single fire burns softly and slowly, amidst the ashes of the charred and blacked firewood. Miraculously, the fire still burns amidst the winds.

In one corner of the room/house, a single straw bed can be found. Atop this bed is a small boy who's curled up with his arms around his legs. His body is shivering violently as the cold seeps in through the gaps of the walls.

His body seeked the heat coming from the fire, yet he didn't move closer.

This went on for hours until the first sunlight seeped in into the holes.

As morning arrives, his body gradually stops trembling, though beads of sweat remain.

The fire in the middle of the room continued to burn slowly. Swaying amidst the cold dew of the morning. The moisture that was aiming to come inside the house was pushed back by the fire, leaving the kid and the room moist-free.

The kid remained asleep for a few more hours before slowly opening his eyes.

He tried to remove the eye gunk from his eyes but found out that his arms were hurting…. Well… his whole body is hurting.

After a few more efforts, he manages to clear his eyes and look around the room. Something feels… different….

He was a bit surprised to see that his room was different from the room he had slept yesternight. 

Confused, he gazes around at the unfamiliar space. The place looks nothing like the one he'd gone to sleep in last night, but as he tries to think further, a sharp ache in his head pulls him back. For now, he can't remember.

The boy then looked at the soft fire flaming in the middle of his room. 

He does not know how it still survives despite the ashes of firewood and lack of it, but his attention is soon drawn elsewhere.

He slowly placed his two small feet on the dirt ground beneath him. 

He breathed in the heat coming from the fire, and repeated it for a minute or two to clear his mind.

Afterwards, the boy looked around the room he is currently in and wondered how this happened.

Where am I? I remember... I can't remember…. I only know that this is different from the room I was in yesternight…. 

The boy thought more to himself for many minutes before he slowly stood up and slowly walked across the room, leaving the soft fire burning behind him.

It took him a minute to go towards his door. 

Before opening the door, he breathed deeply while wondering what lies behind this door. 

He had already thought about his situation earlier and is already at peace. 

You have no idea how hard he wished for this situation of his to come true. How hard he wished to escape his former reality and adapt the motto; fuck-it-all.

Yes, he knew that he had already been transferred to another world…. Or…. he might just be kidnapped.... Either way, fuck-it-all.

He pressed his forehead to the door's rough wooden surface, feeling a sliver of morning wind slipping through. yet it still gives him hope, hope that on the other side of this door is a whole new world. He breathes deeply, holding tight to this hope

Please…

He pushes open the door and lifts an arm to shield his eyes from the sudden flood of sunlight. Heat and hope pour in with the morning rays, bathing him in an exhilarating view: rolling hills and trees in every direction, dotted with farmers busy with their work, harvesting fields of green and gold under the open sky.

These farmers use old farming materials as their equipment. No machinery can be seen…

His mind is halfway into the idea that this is another world rather than him being kidnapped.

He admired the view before he heard a female shouting something which was slowly coming towards him. He didn't pay it any attention and still admired the view.

"Bjorn! Bjorn! Are you awake?!"

He still didn't pay any attention since he didn't know who the person the female was calling.

Suddenly, his shoulders were grabbed and he was quickly forced to face the female.

"Oh, Bjorn. It's good to see that you are alright! How's your fever? Is it gone now? Have you eaten yet? Why did you insist on staying in this shack of yours?!"

"U-um…"

"Oh I forgot! There are adventurers in our town! They also have their goddess with them! Come! Quickly, you must want to see them right?!"

The person immediately let go of the boy's shoulders and dragged him on his arm. 

It was clearly hurting the boy but… he paid it no heed.

Bjorn…. So… Bjorn's my name in this world.... I like it!

Bjorn smiled softly, oblivious to the term 'goddess'.........

Looking at the smile of the boy, the female also showed a soft smile.

The female that was dragging Bjorn is an adult female that was close to her late 20s. She was one of the people taking care of Bjorn since his parents died a few years back… So he takes care of Bjorn like he was one of her sons….

After a grueling five minutes of being dragged around, Bjorn and the female arrived at the village center.

There's already a crowd surrounding the adventurers in the middle. 

Despite the people packed tightly around, the female, who is carrying him on her shoulders to his great embarrassment, pushes her way to the front.

In the middle of it all, there is a group of adventurers waving towards the people. They wore their adventurer outfits, with different weapons and armaments on their back or waist. 

Some of these people have swords or knives in their waists, while others have staffs laid on their back.

They are currently in front of the village chief, talking about something about quests, success, etc..

Honestly, Bjorn did not give any attention to the village chief. His sole focus is only on the adventurers. He found them familiar….

Though draped with cloaks, he can still see the yellow, blond, brown, jade, black, and gray colors of their hair. It is a variety… which unironically gives the essence of being an adventurer….

One of these adventurers is small enough to be called a hobbit from the Tolkien books….

One has gray ears atop his head… and one is so stout....... and one… has long ears..

They're a wild mix of beings, each exuding a presence that feels somehow… known to him.

To be honest, Bjorn is already 99 percent sure that he is now in another world….

He was thinking deeply that he didn't notice that one of the adventurers was already in front of him…

"What are you thinking deeply about, boy?"

Bjorn was startled. He almost jumped and made a ruckus, but… his body ache kept him aground.

"Um… hi?"

The adventurer in front of Bjorn is a person draped in a cloak… However, despite the hiddenness of the cloak, the person's red hair can still be seen… The eyes of this person are slitted…. Yet…. he recognizes it.

Red hair…. Slitted eyes.... Red hair...... Slitted eyes.......... Red hair…. Slitted Eyes.......

Bjorn suddenly showed a surprised look.

The person in front of him also showed a sly smile.

"Looks like you recognize me."

Yes, the person in front of Bjorn right now is the goddess Loki, the goddess of Trickery.

You see, Bjorn, in his past life, digs more into those tomboyish girls…. and one of these girls is…. Loki, although in anime.

Bjorn was quickly flustered… so he quickly came up with something.

"M-m-my former parents told me to not trust strangers, especially those with s-slitted eyes...….."

She chuckles softly, her laugh a little sharper than he expected.

"Pfft, don't joke with me boy, or do you want to be the subject of my trickeries?"

Yes, the goddess in front of Bjorn right now, is the goddess of Trickeries…. Being subjected to her trickery…. will definitely be… awful… I think. He shivered.

"Um…. no goddess. Please have mercy on me, Oh benevolent one."

"You are amusing. Tell me your name and age."

"Goddess… I'm Bjorn… and I am 12 years old."

"12 years old? You are not 8 years old?"

Bjorn's current stature is like an 8 years old due to malnutrition and his recent sickness.

Loki then grabbed something from her bag. After a while, she retrieved it from her bag and showed it to Bjorn.

"Give me your hand."

Without further ado, Loki grabbed Bjorn's left hand. She then put the thing she retrieved on Bjorn's left arm…

"Hmm… You need more growing to do."

The thing that Loki placed on Bjorn's upper left arm is a viking arm ring. This viking arm ring is composed of metal intertwined with each other to form a twine. On each end of the ring is a serpent head.

"Listen… If this arm ring can snugly fit properly on your upper arm, then come find me in Orario."

Loki walked away and returned to the group of adventurers, presumably from the Loki Familia. 

Bjorn just stood there and looked at the arm ring dangling in his upper arm. He lowered it down first to his wrist, and made it as a bracelet for the time being.

He then looked around him and noticed that the people around him didn't notice that he just talked to the goddess of one of Orario's best familias. Loki probably did something to trick the others' eyes, so they didn't see their conversation…

Bjorn then looked towards the group, most particularly to Loki…

Honestly, he still didn't know his purpose or why he was sent into this world. He just recently knew that the world he is in right now is the Danmachi world….

He didn't know his purpose in this world, or what he would do in this world… Maybe Loki had seen through that… A purposeless kid being given a purpose by a goddess… from Loki, nonetheless, is such a far cry… but… this is what Bjorn interpreted it. 

Being shown kindness (his interpretation) from his previous life's full of unkindness is a blue moon for Bjorn… so he swore.

I swore. I would grow. I would train. I would hone my skills. I would be strong and skillful to be one of Loki's adventurers…. I would be her fire..... I will be her fire…

The fire inside Bjorn's home quickly flickered strongly and wildly. It grew and It threaten to swallow Bjorn's house but it quickly disappeared. It disappeared leaving black soot and white ashes in the middle of his house…

Back to the crowd, Bjorn watched as the group of adventurers and their goddess left the village.

Now that he had his purpose, his fire, he quickly composed himself to grow…. and thus… Five years had passed.

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Alright people, new FF since I have gotten into a slump on my previous one…. I'm still writing its chapters but…. I find my ideas..... Bland. My previous ideas were also flushed out by the fucking typhoon haha.

So yeah, this new FF is about Danmachi hehe.

I would mostly focus on the action scenes on this FF hehe, but I'll give you slices of life here and there.

I hope you like it! 

So yeah, 

Peace out my dudes!