200 years ago, the world burst into flame.

No-one was really sure why, and no-one was able to stop it before most of the world had burned to a crisp, but the face of the earth was forever changed by the inferno. Continents shrunk as they were overrun by the rising oceans, brought about by the ice caps melting from the fires.

Ever since that day, seemingly at random, people would spontaneously combust, losing their humanity to the flames that consumed them, becoming something else. These creatures were called 'Infernals.'

And as the threat of these infernals arrived, another phenomenon started springing up. People were starting to be born with the ability to control the flames that became oh so common in the world.

There were the '2nd-Generation Pyrokinetics' who could manipulate the fire around them in various ways, ranging from simply controlling their movements, their intensity, to a multitude of other uses.

Then there were the '3rd-Generation Pyrokinetics', who could create their own flames, all of them having different powers and abilities because of this. Each of these abilities were unique, the users own super-power.

This is the story of a 3rd-Generation user named Shinra Kusakabe.

And his search for his twin brother Sho.

"Infernal sighted on Train Car 9! Please evacuate swiftly!"

The sound of fire crackling erupted suddenly through the train station, the emergency warnings and sirens going off as loud as they could, the message to run away so loud he could literally feel it in his bones.

A smile forming on his face against his will, he stared at the train car and crouched down, getting into a fighting stance, feeling the chill wind start to hit his back as he prepared to use his ability.

"Alright, everyone, get ready!"

Shinra whipped his head around when he heard that, the cool air blowing off of him as he relaxed slightly, his ability dropping away at the sight of the fire soldiers in the doorway. They cut an imposing figure, but Shinra had been trained around them, that he didn't feel anxious around them.

He felt confident and safe now that the Fire Force was here. There was a roar behind him, causing him to flinch as the door to the train car was ripped off its rails and thrown into a metal pillar nearby.

His smile forced its way back onto his face as the infernal stumbled out of the car, screaming bloody murder, the heat of its flames buffeting Shinra. But before he could do anything, he heard a loud 'clunk' and a man shouting, "Sister! Start the Prayer! Maki, Hinawa! Cover me!"

The man at the front of the group then roared, a device on his arm as he rushed towards the Infernal at full speed, all but ignoring Shinra, who was off to the side. Shinra watched as the Sister, a blonde girl with blue eyes, put her hands together and began to pray.

But Shinra wasn't listening to the prayer; He had heard that exact prayer hundreds of times while at the academy. No, his focus was on the fighters.

There was the taller figure: a man in glasses with ashy-grey hair, who was literally shooting at the Infernal, though oddly, it didn't seem to be doing as much as he expected it to. Was the gun a lower calibre than he thought it was?

Then, there was the figure running behind the man with the axe, a woman whose protective headgear was in the shape of an old witch's hat. She was waving her hands back and forth towards the fire that the infernal was shooting at them as they approached being redirected.

A second-generation then.

Then, there was the man with the axe himself. Shinra could only think of one person who fit the bill for this man: this was Captain Obi, renowned as one of the strongest and most skilled non-powered people in the entire Fire Force.

"May your soul return to the great flame of fire!"

Shinra watched with sparkling eyes as Captain Obi slammed the device onto the Infernals chest, before suddenly there was a 'BOOM!' A metal spike had shot out of the device and pierced the infernal's chest, punching right through its core.

"Latom."

Shinra put his hands together and joined the Sister at the end of her prayer, as he had been taught to do at the academy. That was when he saw it. The light above the Sister had been damaged, and it was about to fall!

On instinct, Shinra started sprinting immediately, the chill winds of his ability hitting him at full force as the world around him greyed slightly, as if he was looking at it through a camera's filter.

He continued to sprint towards the Sister, her eyes widening slowly as she saw him approach. Or at least, it was slow to him. He looked back up at the light again to see that he still had a bit of time, as it was falling slowly, almost as if sinking in water.

This was his ability. To others, it might look like some form of Super Speed, but he knew what it truly was, as did his instructors at the academy, and Captain Obi. His ability was known as Temporal Friction.

It allowed him to cool the surrounding area around him, slowing the expansion of the universe by around 50% for everything for himself, essentially slowing the flow of time itself.

He reached the Sister and picked her up, making sure to avoid any inappropriate parts, and moved her out of the way, before turning to the light, which was now just above head height, and kicking it to the side, for safe measure.

He shivered as the cold jabbed at him, telling him that his limit was getting closer. Seeing that the Sister was now safe, he nodded to himself and let time resume at normal speed, the world around him gaining colour again as noise rushed into his ears at its usual level.

"Woah there kiddo! That was mighty impressive!"

Shinra turned as he heard the voice of Captain Obi, saluting the man, a smile forcing itself onto his face. "Thank you, sir! But it was nothing, truly! A hero should always attempt to help!"

Obi laughed, clapping the boy on the shoulder, dragging him over to the rest of the group. "A hero, huh. You gotta be Shinra Kusakabe then. Guess as Infernal outbursts go, this one was pretty fortunate. Now you get to ride back in the matchbox with us instead of taking the train."

Shinra nodded, looking over the rest of the squad, waving to the girl in the witch hat when she gave him a two-fingered salute and a smile. The man beside her just pushed his glasses up, a glint forming in a very anime-esq move.

He followed Captain Obi up the stairs of the station and came face to face with 'the matchbox', Company 8's Fire Vehicle. It was a large, grey, absolute beast of a car, almost looking like a tank.

"Everybody! Pile in! The firefighters have the rest covered, we need to get back to the station!"

"Yes sir!"

"Shinra Kusakabe, 3rd-generation. Ability: Temporal Friction."

The man with the glasses read the paper aloud, humming to himself, before turning to Shinra. "Quite an impressive ability, Mr. Kusakabe."

Shinra smiled at him, saluting, enjoying the feeling of the Fire Force uniform on him. "Please, call me Shinra, Lieutenant…"

"Hinawa. Lieutenant Hinawa."

Captain Obi then spoke up, smiling and clapping Hinawa on the shoulder. "I've had my eye on Shinra here since the end of his first year at the academy! A powerful ability, and a will to do good wherever you go, I know you'll fit in very well at the 8th."

Shinra smiled, nodding. "It's my honour, sir! You're one of the most well-respected captains the Fire Force has! The fact that you accepted me is amazing! Thank you, sir!"

Obi just raised his hands and chuckled. "Don't worry kiddo. And drop the sir, would ya? Just call me Obi, or captain. I felt like I would be able to help you the most, due to the nature of your ability."

Shinra nodded, slamming a fist into his palm. "That's right! You don't have an ability! So you fight with gear and martial arts and stuff! Even if my ability can help with speed in a fight, I'm still essentially a normal person! Your training and techniques will be very helpful!"

Obi laughed, pulling Shinra into a side hug. "Exactly right, kiddo! I'm gonna put you through the wringer, so that you can be at your absolute best! But first, let's get you all acquainted with your new squadmates!"

He reached over to his desk and grabbed the intercom. "Maki, Iris, come greet our newbie!"

Shinra turned as he heard the door open, smiling as the two girls entered the office, one dressed in their nun clothing, the other in their standard-issue orange jumpsuit.

He smiled at the pair, putting his hands together into a prayer, bowing to each of them. "It's good to see you both again! My name is Shinra Kusakabe. Pleasure to meet you!"

"I can't wait to work with you all!"