CHAPTER 1: Burning The Fire Guardian
"Hmph. I still don't see why Andel is having us burn the village." the grey-clad soldier dryly commented, before coughing vehemently, then wiping his face with a white cloth. The other shrugged indifferently, and flicked the remains of a cigarette away. "How can you smoke in here? It's burning up." Another shrug. "What are you mute?" The other sighed, and looked off into the forest pathway.
"No, I was enjoying silence, but you had to keep flapping your lips." another sigh. "Think, won't you? If even a single villager lives, Andel's alibi that he's 'crushing an insurrection' has a pretty glaring flaw. He'd have to keep him prisoner, bare minimum. And prisoners aren't exactly cheap. Fire is. Burning everything is just easier. And as for the smoke, you get used to it. Anyway, this is all the villagers in the area. Let's report to the colonel. Hopefully we'll be done with this hell hole for good soon. I'm out of smokes."
"You'll never take the Fire Guardian, not while I can fight back! How dare you intrude on his shrine with your vile intents! On what authority are you doing this?" a man demanded, his arms held out to his sides, along with five other men, as to protect the shrine, and the large statue on top. The three men on his right one man on his left voiced their agreement, until the crack of a gunshot silenced them.
"Were I staring down the barrel of a gun, I would be begging for my life, not even daring to utter such strong words." another man, across a small field, answered. He stood out from the other soldiers with his head wear, which was a shorter rounder forage cap instead of the taller, cylindrical wear, as well as his orange pauldron, both designating him as a higher-ranking officer. "Step aside or... well, it is irrelevant if you choose to or not. Your death's inevitability is not something you can deter. Men! Fire!"
"NO!" a voice cried, and the soldier lowered their rifles slightly, turning to see who had called. A child, no more than twelve, ran into the space between the soldiers and villagers, mimicking the men's stance with his arms spread wide. His attire matched the central and eldest of the men, with a red bandana, a myrtle cloak and white pants, as well as two field drab shoulder guards. The men on both sides faltered, but the eldest dropped his stance, stepping forward.
"Elc... I told you to hide, why have you come?" he asked, the anger and bitterness having vaporized from his voice. He placed a hand his grandchild's shoulder, gentle yet firm. Elc turned sharply on his heel, a fire raging within his eyes, not just a reflection of the burning village surrounding them all.
"I have to defend the Fire Guardian too! Like dad said, it's our duty as Pyrenians, to protect the Fire Guardians with all we have, including our lives!" said and turned sharply on his heel once again, facing the platoon of soldiers. "I-I won't let you take the Fire Guardian! You can't take him!"
"Hahaha, so this is your defense? You trump card? A child? Ludicrous! Enough of this nonsense, fire at will!" the officer ordered, and several gunshots followed, the smoke of gunpowder mingling with the smoke of the flames. The rounds flew past Elc, striking the men behind him. Elc's grandfather was the last to fall, first to his knees, then into the dirt.
"Grandfather!" Elc ran to the man, whom was struggling to simply breathe. He tried to say something, though it came out as nothing more than a croak, and the life in his eyes faded, lacking emotion and the spirit they once held. Elc let out a sob, and buried his face in his grandfather's arm, grabbing fistfuls of dirt. When he lifted his face after a few seconds, his bandana had fallen over his eyes. "You'll... you'll pay." he muttered, standing to face the soldiers. "You'll pay! They did nothing wrong! You'll suffer for this! MURDERERS!" he yelled, fie consuming his hands. His clapped them together in a swift swing of his arms, and the ground in the center of the platoon exploded, vaporizing the men. The commander and scientist barely managed to step back outside of the radius, though a twisted and charred barrel hit the colonel in the chest. Both the commander and scientist stared in awe of the power the child possessed. Elc's breathing was now labored, and sweat drenched his body.
"In the name of god... such power." the scientist breathed, "And from one so young too..." The commander upholstered his pistol, a large revolver, and leveled it at Elc, his finger resting on the trigger. "No!" the scientist tried to push the aim off, to no avail. "Gallarno specifically requested that we take any children that have potential for White House, you can't just-"
"I will not die for science, and I follow Andel. Not Gallarno. And I'm certainly not risking my life for a pet program of his." the scientist began to object, though Elc interrupted their exchange before he could voice the objections.
"You're monsters!" Elc roared, his voice hoarse. His hands flickered weakly with, flame, and the swing that he brought them together with was slower than the last. When the ground exploded, it was no more than the size of a fist. The colonel dropped his arm, and a smirk grew on his face.
"Hmph, too bad he wasn't strong enough to recreate the first explosion. Gallarno would be quite pleased." the scientist muttered, walking up to Elc and grabbing his arm. The colonel rolled his eyes, and unstrapped a large flare gun from his belt. Standing next to the building, he pointed the flare gun up, and fired the bright-purple flare up into the smoke-ridden sky.
"Let... me... GO!" Elc said, trying to yank his arm free from the grip of the scientist. Although this caused the scientist to stumble backwards slightly, his grip remained as strong as steel, and he quickly regained his pace, Elc too tired to resist. The flare exploded a combination of purple and red above the golden statue of the Fire Guardian.
A massive airship neared the residue of the flare, and its four main engine's roar easily dominated the fire. The bay on the air ship's underbelly opened, a black void within, and two chains lowered from its insides. The commander holstered the flare gun, and began barking orders for nearby men to secure the statue to the chains. Elc could only stare in disbelief, as the ship seemed to effortlessly lift the large statue into the void.
"To the airships men! We have what we came for."