Capítulo 13: 8. Fire & Fury
The heat intensified as the battle raged on, the air thick with the scent of burning stone and ash. The very ground beneath Caelus's feet seemed to sizzle with each step he took, cracks appearing in the scorched earth as the fire-wielder's power grew more unstable. Flames lashed out from every direction, roaring with fury, but Caelus held his ground, his connection to the earth anchoring him.
His mind was clear now, the doubts that had clouded his thoughts swept away by the intensity of the fight. He had found his balance, the grounding power of the earth giving him the strength to stand firm in the face of the fire. The heat was suffocating, every breath felt like inhaling flames, but he couldn't afford to falter. Not now. Not when everything was at stake.
Across the room, the tyrant Caelus stood, wreathed in fire, his eyes blazing with a dangerous light. He moved with a deadly grace, his staff glowing red-hot, and with every step, the flames flared higher, licking at the edges of the fortress walls as if threatening to consume everything in their path.
"You're holding back," the tyrant growled, his voice echoing over the crackling of the fire. "You think this world will spare you because you cling to some pathetic sense of morality? This is power! This is control! And I'll burn you to ashes if you try to stand in my way."
Caelus clenched his fists, his eyes narrowing as he stared down the tyrant. He could feel the weight of the words, the pull of the fire, trying to drag him into the same darkness that had consumed this version of himself. But he wouldn't give in. He couldn't.
"I'm not here for power," Caelus said, his voice steady despite the flames swirling around him. "I'm here to survive. To continue the journey. And I won't let you—or the fire—destroy everything just because you think control is all that matters."
The tyrant's eyes flashed with anger, the flames flaring higher in response. "Then you'll burn."
With a roar of fury, the tyrant lunged forward, his staff raised high as a torrent of flames surged toward Caelus. The heat was overwhelming, a wall of fire that threatened to engulf him completely, but Caelus stood his ground, feeling the steady pulse of the earth beneath his feet.
He couldn't fight the fire directly—its power was too intense, too consuming. But the earth, the solid foundation beneath him, could resist it. The flames could burn, but they couldn't destroy the ground beneath them. And that was where Caelus's strength lay.
As the fire closed in, Caelus raised his hand, willing the ground beneath him to rise. The earth responded, a jagged wall of stone shooting up from the ground, blocking the flames as they crashed against it. The heat was intense, the force of the attack sending tremors through the barrier, but the stone held firm, shielding Caelus from the worst of the fire.
The tyrant snarled, his staff glowing with molten energy as he struck the ground, sending another wave of fire crashing against the barrier. But this time, Caelus didn't wait for the attack to hit. With a sharp thought, he pushed the chaos within him to the surface, the energy coursing through his veins as the ground beneath the tyrant began to tremble.
The fire-wielder staggered, his balance disrupted as the earth cracked and shifted beneath him, but his control over the flames didn't falter. With a furious shout, he slammed his staff into the ground again, and this time, the fire exploded outward, a violent inferno that ripped through the stone barrier and sent shards of rock flying in every direction.
Caelus barely had time to react, throwing himself to the side as the wall of fire crashed into the ground where he had stood moments before. The heat was blinding, the air thick with smoke and ash, but he forced himself to stay focused. He couldn't let the flames distract him. He had to find a way to turn the tide of the battle, to outthink the tyrant before the fire consumed him completely.
His mind raced as he ducked another strike, his body moving on instinct as the fire-wielder pressed the attack. Every movement was precise, calculated, the flames responding to the tyrant's will with deadly accuracy. Caelus could feel the weight of the fire pressing down on him, the heat searing his skin, but he couldn't afford to retreat.
The tyrant's eyes gleamed with satisfaction as he advanced, the flames flaring higher with every step. "You can't win this fight," he sneered. "You can't even handle the heat. Just give up. Let the flames take you. It's the only way you'll survive."
Caelus shook his head, his jaw tight with determination. "I won't let the fire control me," he said, his voice steady despite the inferno raging around him. "And I won't let you destroy everything just because you're afraid of losing control."
The words seemed to strike a nerve, and for a brief moment, the tyrant's expression faltered, a flicker of doubt crossing his face. But it was gone as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by a sneer of contempt.
"You think you know what control is?" the tyrant spat, his voice filled with anger. "You think you can stand here and lecture me about power when you've barely scratched the surface of what the Tesseract is capable of?"
Caelus didn't answer. He didn't need to. The fire-wielder was right about one thing—Caelus hadn't yet fully embraced the power of the Tesseract. But that was by choice. He wasn't here to seize control, to dominate and destroy like the tyrant had. He was here to survive, to find his way through the challenges that lay before him without losing himself in the process.
And that was the difference between them.
The tyrant raised his staff again, his eyes blazing with fury, but this time, Caelus was ready. He could feel the steady pulse of the earth beneath his feet, the strength of the ground that had remained untouched by the flames. And now, he would use that strength.
With a deep breath, Caelus focused, his mind clearing as he reached for the connection he had forged with the earth. He could feel the power there, waiting for him, steady and constant. And in that moment, he knew what he had to do.
The tyrant swung his staff, sending another wave of fire surging toward him, but Caelus didn't move. Instead, he raised his hand, and the ground beneath the fire-wielder's feet erupted, a jagged spire of stone shooting up from the earth and slamming into the tyrant's chest.
The force of the impact sent the fire-wielder stumbling backward, his staff clattering to the ground as he struggled to regain his footing. But Caelus didn't stop. He pressed forward, the earth responding to his will as the ground cracked and shifted beneath the tyrant's feet, throwing him off balance.
The fire-wielder snarled, his eyes blazing with fury as he raised his hand to summon another wave of flames. But this time, the fire didn't come.
Caelus's eyes widened in surprise as he realized what had happened. The flames that had once surged so easily at the tyrant's command were now flickering, fading, the intense heat that had filled the room slowly beginning to dissipate.
The fire-wielder looked down at his hands, confusion and disbelief crossing his face as the flames sputtered out, leaving only smoke and ash in their wake.
"You… you can't…" the tyrant stammered, his voice shaking with fury. "You can't take my fire… I am the fire…"
Caelus didn't hesitate. He stepped forward, his hands clenched into fists as he drew on the strength of the earth, the power of chaos still humming beneath his skin. The ground beneath the tyrant's feet cracked and crumbled, and with a final surge of strength, Caelus willed the earth to rise, engulfing the fire-wielder in a cage of stone.
The flames sputtered out, and the room fell silent.
Caelus stood there, his chest heaving as he caught his breath, the heat slowly beginning to fade. The battle was over. The fire-wielder was defeated.
But the victory felt hollow.
He had won. But at what cost?
Caelus looked down at his hands, feeling the raw energy still pulsing beneath his skin. He had absorbed the power of the fire, just as he had with the others. But now, more than ever, he felt the weight of that power pressing down on him.
The flames that had once threatened to consume him were now a part of him.
And he wasn't sure if he could handle the heat.
Estado de energía semanal
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