Steven took in a breath and then go, with the raging red vale that covered his eyes gone allowing him to see the burning flaming embers before. Casting his gaze out to flames as they raged on, his eyes widened with terror and shock as it dawned on him that he was the cause of the inferno that stood before.

  Flaming aura that surrounded him then faded as he watched the flamed continue to burn. James, seeing the distressed look on his son’s face as he saw what he had done, just let out a sigh before saying, “This why you can join the join the guard Steven”.

  “What?” Steven asked as turned to his father.

  James then took in a deep breath before continue, “Strength isn’t just about power but also control and that’s what you lack. Your flames can burn as bright as the sun but if you lack control it will just burn and consume everything including you”.

  James then placed his on his son’s shoulders.

  “Steven please stop this, your mom, Susan, I, we’re all worried. Please, just come home”, James begged his son.

  Meanwhile, unbeknownst to both the father and son, hidden behind the raging flames lurked a creature of the forest, awakened and drawn in by Steven’s fiery outburst with its beastly red eyes fixed on the father and son.

  “Steven please”, his father pleaded once more but Steven just remain silent, looking at his father. Recalling all the many wounds, scraps, bruises and scars he hidden away underneath his clothes. Looking at him recalling each day he watched him leave with his mother to face those monsters, sometimes not even returning him for days. Looking at his father, the man he looked up, the bravest man he knew, and then bowed down his head.

  All he wanted was the strength to make that he and his mom would always come back home to him and Susan, the strength to keep them, the strength to keep their family safe, that was all he wanted .

  “STEVEN!!!!!”, he heard his father call out his name before pushing him out of the way. He then the roar of beast followed by the sound his father made after being flung away by a swipe from a massive beastly pawn.

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  Steven, now on the floor, looked with widened eyes filled with fear, at the monster looming before him, with big bulking body all black coal on all four legs with claws sharp enough to tear through the thickest of trees, a mouth filled with razor sharp teeth designed to tear through flesh and crash bone, with blood pair red eyes.

  The monster seemed to be solely focused on James who it flung after as he tried protecting Steven by pushing him out of his way. Steven watched the monster slowly approached his father who just laid on the ground, seeming hurt by the beasts attack. The beast slowly made its James but before it reach a fire ball struck it from behind.

  “Stay away from my father you beast”, Steven yell before hurling fire ball after fire ball at the beast.

  Steven, out of breath and strength after putting everything he had in to those attacks, panted out of exhaustion, hoping that those his fire balls would be enough to deal with the beast only for his hopes to be dashed by the sounds growl from within the cloud of smoke formed by his flames.

  “It can’t be?!” Steven question as he watched with eyes filled with both shock and dread as the beast walked out of the smoke, seemly unscathed and look more enraged than harmed.

  The monster then looked at him, his crimson red eyes glowing with rage and blood lust, before charging straight for him. Eventually reaching him and raised one of its massive pawns with its claws out and ready to tear through him with a single swipe but just it was about strike Steven with its claws, a torrent of flames seemingly emerged out nowhere and consumed the beast, reducing it to cinders and causing its roasted body to fall. And as the burning body of the monster fall, Steven found none other than his father, with his eyes having turned in to blazing red dragon eyes and palm out stretched with smoke leaving, standing behind it.

  “Dad”, Steven spoke as he ran straight to and embraced him in tight embrace, thankful that was okay but his father didn’t embrace him back, instead he looked out at the burning trees and roasting carcass of the beast before letting out a sigh. He then pulled away from his son’s embrace, and then stretched out his hands to the blazing trees and took in a breath and then let go, he then slowly and gentle brought down his hands, and the flames, seemingly flowing his command died down, even the flames on the beast.

  James then looked at the shard and burnt remains of the trees and beast before letting out breath.

  “Come on son, let go home”, he spoke before making his way in to the forest with Steven following with his head bowed, stealing a glance at the shard forest he created with his flames with words of his father echoing in his head;

  “Your flames can burn as bright as the sun but if you lack control it will just burn and consume everything including you”

  Steven just let out as he followed his father back home.