Edit: I inserted a new part into this chapter. Hope you like it!
Pyro opened his eyes as he felt himself crystallize completely within the dungeon. Frowning, he turned to see only Melody standing at his side. She was biting her lip nervously.
"Where are they?" He inquired.
"I don't know. They were gone by the time I got here."
A flash of white appeared at the corner of his vision. It disappeared just as quickly. He whirled around and demanded, "Show yourself!" Melody's staff was immediately out, her narrowed eyes burning crimson as she scanned the place. He whipped out his spellbook and summoned an Earth Spirit, his irises matching hers.
Nothing happened. To his chagrin, he couldn't see all that well. The entire area in front of him was covered in a misty cloud. He could hear the skittering of rats crawling about. A terrible pungent odor assaulted his nostrils, causing him to grimace. It combined a strong metallic smell with the disgusting stench of something rotting. Beside him, the cleric gagged as she fought to hold back the contents of her stomach. As he helped her cover her nose with a scarf, the white figure appeared again.
An emaciated woman clothed in a thin sleeveless white dress hovered before them. Her slight frame was gaunt with malnutrition. Her eyes were expressionless slits. She was singing under her breath, just loud enough for him to hear.
"Oh lost little puppy, where are you hiding..."
His eyes widened to extreme proportions as he recognized her. The disturbed spiritmaster started to shake violently. It couldn't be. He rubbed his eyes hastily and looked again. She started to float away, prompting him and Melody to chase after her. They ran through dark passageways and rooms locked with dead bolts. Piercing screams sounded behind some of the doors, yet Pyro paid them no mind. He was lost entirely in his thoughts.
"Oh lost little puppy..."
He thought she was dead. She's supposed to be dead. There's no way she could've survived that.
"Naughty boy, you should've stayed home..."
He couldn't protect her back then. He had been a human.
"Where are you hiding..."
The smell of burning flesh was distinct now. The floor was littered with unidentifiable objects that squelched and spurted liquid under their feet. They were approaching an open room at the end of the hallway. Suddenly, the figure disappeared.
"No! You can't leave me again!" He screamed, tears streaming down his eyes. "MOTHER!"
. . . . Flashback . . . . . . . . . .
Here the reader meets Pyro when he was 7 years old. He had not yet ascended. He lived with his mother, who was also human, in a poverty-stricken village. Drought was infesting the area at the time. Food, water, and hope were scarce. Each day, mother and son would go scavenging for nourishment. Dried roots, a buried onion, withered herbs; anything would do.
Pyro shielded his eyes from the harsh, glaring sun with a hand. This has been his home for his entire life so far. Yet he can still feel himself die a little on the inside, every day, as he scans the barren landscape for signs of life only to be disappointed.
Beside him, his mother was busy digging a hole in the thirsty dirt with a rock. A moment later, she looked up triumphantly, cradling a dandelion in her hand. The roots, leaves, and flowers of this plant are all edible. Pyro grinned as he snapped off the flower. Putting the hollow stem in his mouth, he sucked the bitter milk, wincing at the taste. His mother laughed.
"I'll leave the roots in the ground. It'll grow again and provide us with more food."
Pyro shook the dirt off the leaves and pocketed the plant. He followed her as she wandered over the field, searching hopefully for more dandelions. They'll put the roots into a soup for tonight, and eat the leaves raw.
A hot breeze brushed the drops of sweat trickling down his face. It carried with it a distinct metallic smell. The child had an uneasy feeling nagging him at him in the pit of his stomach. He stopped to squint in the direction from which the breeze blew, biting his thumb. He thought he saw shiny objects in the distance.
"Momma, look! What's that?"
"Hmmm?" She was distracted trying to pull out a lodged root.
"It coming closer," He responded. Now he could see dark figures behind the shiny things.
His mother looked up, paling immediately. She grabbed her child and ran to hide behind a large rock, the only source of concealment in the area. From there they could hear the screams of the villagers, strange voices yelling, and the sound of the huts being destroyed. She covered the 7-year old's ears with her hands and held him tightly as he trembled in fear.
Soon the sounds of pillaging began. She could hear loud swearing as the invaders found nothing of value. Her eyes darted across the field in front of her, desperately trying to find a place where her and her child could safely retreat to. Suddenly, the hairs on the back of her neck bristled.
"Good morning," A low voice intoned mere inches from behind her.
Pyro remembered being frozen in terror as his mother covered him with her body to protect him. He remembered the blood filling his vision. The blood was everywhere. At first he thought he was dying, clutching his chest to make sure his heart was still beating. Then he realized...the blood...it was HERS. He remembered prodding her desperately, calling her name as tears streamed down his face. She didn't answer. He shook her with all his might. Her eyes were closed.
Then the dark figures closed in around him, blood-soaked shining steel glinting in the sun. A newfound power coursed through his body in that moment. He howled with heroic rage befitting more a grown warrior than a child of his age, charging towards them. He saw 4 spirits fighting by his side. He could feel the energies of wind, fire, water, and earth lacing the tips of his fingers; he called to them, and they empowered his attacks. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY MOM!" He shrieked. "GIVE HER BACK!"
The figures jerked back in surprise. He continued to aim punches at them. Through the heat, his rage, and the blood crusted on his face, he could tell that they weren't human. No, they looked more like the dragons in the stories his mother told him.
Then he felt pain on the back of his head and everything went dark.
When he woke up, she was gone. He never saw her again.