Chapter 6

Learning the Basics

The next morning, Blazorus talked to Scoria about his "quest". She listened to him without interrupting him once, however, she couldn't help but feel worried about what might happen to him during his "quest".

- "But, Blazorus, you belong here… the kids will miss you if you go… and so will I…" – she quickly hugs Blazorus from behind, leaning her head on his back.

- "I'm truly sorry, Ms. Scoria, but I must go. I need to do this to find out who I really am, why I have this power and what my purpose is. But, don't worry. I won't be gone forever. I will be back… eventually."

- "I hope so…" – Scoria let go of Blazorus. – "If this is what you believe you must do, I won't stop you. That is, if you promise to come back." – She looked at him in those bright orange eyes of his, and couldn't help but smile. Blazorus looked at her in the eyes too and smiled back.

- "I promise, Ms. Scoria." – Scoria quickly hugged him afterwards. – "I'm going to say goodbye to the kids, and then, I'll be on my way."

The kids were happily playing in the garden, as Blazorus saw out the window of his room. He walked out of his room, towards the garden. He stopped after exiting through the back door and looked at the kids. He didn't want to tell them he was leaving. Scoria saw him standing there by the door, looking down at the floor. Concerned, she went near him.

- "What wrong, Blazorus?" – Scoria asked, as she put her hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see his teacher's concerned look on her face.

- "I… I'm not sure I can tell them…" – Blazorus said, turning his look back to the kids.

- "It's alright. I'll tell them." – Scoria said. Blazorus turned to Scoria again. – "You be on your way, and do what you must do." – she smiled. – "Go."

- "I will, thank you." – Blazorus hugged Scoria, but it didn't last 5 seconds. He quickly went on his way out of the village, waving to Scoria out in the distance. Scoria waved him back, and only went back to the orphanage after she lost sight of Blazorus.

On his way out of Basani, Blazorus faced many monsters, but none as strong as the Lava Golem. Most of them were mere Sulfur Imps, easy to defeat.

- "I need to go to the Ruins of Shurpu, if I am to learn the basics of Pyromancy." – Blazorus quickly made haste there. It took him about half an hour by foot to get to the entrance of the ruins.

- "Whoa…" – He gazed upon the majestic entrance of the ruins and took his first step into them with a little hesitation. But the moment he set foot inside this sanctuary of the Fireborn…

*HEARTBEAT*

Blazorus gulped to this feeling, as if he sensed something very dangerous inside these ruins, but made his way inside nonetheless. He looked around to see lava mages and goblins everywhere he looked.

- "Strange… I thought this place was deserted…" – He continued walking inside the ruins carefully. Eventually, the lava mages and goblins noticed him and all looked in his direction, as if gazing upon him. He noticed the glares, but none of them were hostile.

Meanwhile, in the Guardian's Chamber…

- "I sense it. He's here…" – The evil Pyromancer made his way after the visitor of the ruins. Unbeknownst to Blazorus, this was the dangerous enemy he was warned to avoid, however, he was unable to sense him, due to his lack of Pyromancy proficiency.

While Blazorus was exploring the ruins, he stumbled upon a door made of metal. He opened it, and went inside. It was the door to an ancient library. He was stunned by his surroundings: hundreds of shelves with thousands of books about the ancient Pyromancers of Shurpu. He saw his chance there to learn the basics of his power, and eventually become a Pyromancer himself. He walked towards the nearest shelf and grabbed the first book he saw. The cover said "Secrets of the Ancient Shurpu Arts of Pyromancy". Intrigued by the title, he opened the book and flipped a few pages.

- "Wow… this is amazing…" – Blazorus couldn't stop being amazed by the information in the book he was reading. He read on, and on. Most of it was history about Shurpu and how he became a Pyromancer. The arts of Pyromancy came right after. He read the first page of that part out loud.

- "Hmm… "To harness the arts of a Pyromancer, one needs great focus and hours of mental training in order to let their magical essence flow through their soul." Sounds complicated…" – Blazorus kept reading. – "To channel a flame and use it as an attack, one must concentrate their magical essence into his hands." Mhm…" – He dropped the book on the floor and proceeded to do the channeling exercise and closed his eyes.

He remembered the battle with the lava golem. He remembered the Orbital Flames he used to attack the golem. He remembered the surge of energy he felt back then, and tried to channel it again. He opened his eyes to see his hands burning with Fire. He smiled to his success. But he didn't want to stop there.

- "Let's see…" – Blazorus aimed at the floor and began throwing fireballs. However, they didn't feel like the Orbital Flames. They felt weaker. He was a little disappointed with them, but accepted that fact, anyways, because he knew that he still had a long way to go. Amazed at his success, he grabbed the book and flipped over a few more pages. He learned about different spells, attacks and powerful ultimate moves.

- "Wow… this is amazing…" – Blazorus said, looking at his hand. – "I can channel Fire and use it like a Pyromancer… Does that mean… I'm a Pyromancer myself…?"

- "Blazorus!" – A voice echoed through his head.

- "That voice sounds familiar…"

- "You have only tried something you read in a book. You can't call yourself a Pyromancer after that."

- "Right…" – Blazorus said, looking at the book in disappointment. – "Please, help me learn the basics, so I can call myself one, then."

- "Patience… I can feel your power flowing through me. That means you have already learned how to channel fire."

- "So, what should I do next?"

- "Now, you must learn the basic spells. A Pyromancer is not known for just channeling fire. They can use it to cast many offensive and defensive spells."

- "How do I learn them?"

- "Because you've learned how to channel fire by yourself, I will give you two of my most basic spells: Fireball and Fire Shield. Practice these two spells long enough, and you will learn more spells by yourself and cast them."

Suddenly, Blazorus found himself surrounded in an aura of flames. Then, a circle of Fire was formed around him, engulfing him in flames. This was Ssikari's spirit giving new spells to Blazorus. It didn't take long before the aura and circle of flames disappeared. Blazorus was born anew, his old clothes are gone, in exchange for a red Pyromancer's robe.

- "You are now a Pyromancer, which makes you able to effortlessly cast any Fire spell, like the ones I have given you."

- "Wow…" – Blazorus was amazed at his transformation. He noticed his new clothes and his hands burning with channeled fire. – "Thank you."

- "Now, I suggest you make your way to the Guardian's Chamber in these ruins. There, you will meet the Shurpu Ring Guardian."

- "Am I going to have to battle him?" – Blazorus asked, a little scared.

- "No, no. I want you to simply meet him. You are a Fireborn, correct? It is your duty to meet the Guardian of the Ring."

- "Alright, then."

Blazorus put the book back in the shelf it belonged to and left the library, eager to see the Guardian of the Ring for himself.