The Deep Dark Abyss

Child of Fire

No Luck

House after house after house, they were all empty, well, not Empty but there really wasn't a scene that didn't look gruesome, so what if I want to forget them?

It was nearing dawn, the sky was already glowing in bright Indigos as we saw the sun peak over the horizon, I caught myself lost in its majesty, it was mesmerizing- but I had a job to do

I scanned the few cabins one by one, there was one in particular that stuck out like a sore thumb - a collapsed wooded cottage, the inside hadn't been completely frozen over, so how much trouble could it possibly be

I entered this now less than savory shack, and... just like any other home here, carnage- there were even a few parts sticking out of the rubble, but... there was another - A young boy, no older than seven, with Crimson red hair? No, that was....

Blood?

He was pressed against the wall, knocked out, but, unlike the rest of people here, he wasn't in pieces, we could get Seika to heal him, and he'd be in tip top shape by tomorrow, atleast we wouldn't be returning empty handed.

I picked him up, he was warm? He must have been in the freezing cold for days before we even arrived, so he has gotta be some sort of Magic user - I met up with Salve at the Carriage, he hadn't had any luck, but... I swear, for the faintest moment, at the sight of a survivor, I saw his eyes... glimmer?
I can't blame him, this kid brought hope atleast.

This Kid might end up being more trouble for me in the end

The Carriage ride was long and uneventful, he just, laid there. Salve was making conversation the while time, it was the fist time I saw him sp excited, it was like he and I had swapped souls, because I was feeling more disheartened than ever.

We brought the Child to, Seika, she possessesed the "Holy Grail" Technique, that made her blood act as a healing potion - I felt sorry for her, being used like this, nothing but a portable healing kit - her feelings came second.

We had known each other for years, I remembered when we would dream of being adventurers, of slaying dragons, and... neither of us expected what we get, When I look behind her exhaustion, I can't imagine her being the same wide eyed, troublemaker that I used to know - we barely even talk these days

"So..Altar.... how are you? We haven't spoken in so long"

"I'm doing fine, Seika"

It has been so, so so long, I can't even remember how to speak to her, I don't know anything about her, this war has took a dreamer, and chewed them through, She shares the same dull eyes that Salve has - I never liked seeing my friends like this

"The Boy can't be helped, he's got the heart of a golem, a realistic one at that, look at these organs. But he doesn't have a soul"

"What? What do you mean he 'doesn't have a soul'?".

"I mean, this kids a blank slate, no technique, no identifying Lineage, no Diety has claimed him, and his body rejects healing magic, It reject ALL magic applied to it" - He's truly something special, he's.. like you

"To fix him up, we'd have to use some serious, non magic means, maybe needs some stitching up, but he's got a serious brain injury, so, don't expect too much of him, kay? I know how you get"

"Just... just fix him up, me and Fox would take care of the rest"

"Your apprentice? Are you talking about Kanna? How is she? I heard she is advancing fast, she may be coming for your title soon enough, y'know"

Kanna Cyrella, er.. Foxglove, was my apprentice - dumped on my by the higher ups, cuz she was too brash - but, we got close

"She is... well, a little stubborn, and we still have some things to iron out, but, all in all, she's a good kid"

"And, what about this one? , the little red head, now fallen into your arms, what will become of him? Are you gonna put him in an orphanage? Dump him on someone else, like what happened to Kanna?"b

Seika's interjection caught me off gaurd a little, was she warning me about something? I hadn't questioned it before, but, if she was really, really right, if he had "no soul" then, can he even survive? A magic less child in a world of Dominions? He'd be eaten up easily

I'd promised myself, that I would think about it, and, the young one was healed by Seika. She piped up a second time

"You know, I myself have a young one myself, Sinew? Remember? She just turned three?"

That...that's right, I had forgotten, Seika already had her hands full, I didn't even ask, or, maybe she just didn't tell me - are we not close anymore?

She cut off my thoughts again

"I'm just saying, That kid isn't going to last long, if he doesn't get help, and, who better to receive it from, than the legend herself, right? Atleast consider it, because, hey, maybe he'll be some great hero, one , Born from fire"

The one that holds our world up
A child of Ivory
A Child born of Fire
Whose soul is just as empty
As his heart is full

An Angel reborn,  Atlas