Not even being able to reflect on what I had just done, my mind twisted itself with dread.

How did I not notice?! Someone must be trapped in one of these houses but which one? I do not have time to look through all of them!

I sprinted past the burning buildings to the center of town where I stopped right next to the chapel. The flames were getting even higher now as I could see the heat waves gushing all around, yet it did not seem to faze me.

Find them!

Whatever it takes, find them!

I dropped to the ground with my palms flat on the earth then closed my eyes to focus.

They must have given up calling for help, or worse, the flames burned them to death, as I could no longer hear them.

No! They have to be alive!

Focus!

The crackling fire kept overpowering my senses. No matter how hard I tried, how hard I forced myself, I could not locate them.

No. No. No.

All this power, and I still let an innocent life slip through the cracks.

My anger just cost someone their life...

I started to imagine how afraid the person must have felt. Helpless, waiting for a Hero that would never come.

Just like that scared little boy, being beaten by his father.

I felt the malice press against the wall that is my heart.

Unlike before, it was almost as if it was asking permission… Permission to help me.

A memory passed through my mind: “I offer you everything…”

Everything… Thinking back now I really did not understand what I was giving away.

Still...

I have never felt this alive in my entire life. It also allowed me to save Henry and to some degree, avenge this town.

My mind flashed back to what I said to the prior just before he died: “I am going to purge you all from this world.”

No matter how hard I try, I cannot hide the fact that those words were mine. Deep down that was how I felt. At that moment I could have burned the world if I felt it would amount to anything. My hatred and resentment baring its fangs.

Purge them all? Could I truly do it? Purge the land from their corruption? Could I do what is necessary? Give up my humanity to save this kingdom?

Yes...

As if something awoke inside me, I came to the realization: This power... I have tried to hide it, tried to suppress it, and lied to myself about who I am. If I am to be able to save anyone from heroes, I would need to accept what I am now.

No longer can I hold back.

If you cannot find the innocent soul trapped here.

THEN I WILL HUNT THEM!

The wall broke and I let it all flood in. I did not just let the current take me, this time I moved with it. No restrictions. No restraints. Only a monster would be able to save them now, if it is not already too late.

The change felt so natural and even somewhat relieving. Like a headache suddenly subsiding.

My bones twisted and popped out of place to make way for a large muscular physique. My claws were now talons, elongated further than ever before. My teeth resembled that of a bear which could bite a man’s arm clean off. My senses amplified to the point where I could hear a single heartbeat coming from the outskirts of town.

THERE!

In one fluent motion, I leapt and ran towards the sound. It led me to a small house that was starting to buckle from the damage caused by the blaze. Trying to get inside, I kicked down the wooden door which seemed to be the only entrance, aside from the windows. As the door shattered beneath my heel, a large flame emerged and swallowed my body.

This new state seemed to have numbed my emotions as I was calm even though the fire had engulfed me. I watched as the flames reduced my clothes to ash but, my skin was untouched. The heat caressed my skin as if I had just plunged my body into a hot, relaxing bath.

I stilled my thoughts and started to move through the flame to find where the victim could be. I could see more and more of the building giving way whilst I waded through to what seemed to be a small living area. As I stood inside the creeping flames, I looked around to find two burnt corpses lying inside the raging fire, reaching out to a small girl trapped in the far corner under some debris. The flames were only moments away from reaching her.

The burnt corpses resembled a man and woman trying to help what I could only assume to be their daughter. She was still awake as I could see her fighting for air. She must have watched her parents burn to death, not being able to do anything. Suddenly the girl noticed me as I could see her hand reach out to me. Could she see what I looked like through the red-hot fire? If she could, she would not have reached out to me. If I am to save her now, I would need to relax myself to appear normal before emerging. No longer fighting the malice I simply willed it away.

Now the big question… would my immunity to the heat remain? As my body shrunk and my features became more appealing, I noticed no change in my tolerance. I then leaped over some of the wreckage and landed right next to her. She immediately tried to speak but, I could hear she had no breath left. I shook my head as if to say she should save her strength then shoved my left hand under the debris. With a scream, I began to lift it from her body, and with my right hand grabbing her arm, I pulled her out from underneath. Releasing the debris, I picked her up off the ground. She felt as light as a feather and I could see her shock as she realized the ease with which I had done so.

“Hold your head down!” I shouted.

I then pressed her close to my chest and ran shoulder first, through the sidewall. I made sure to protect her body from the impact and falling rubble. The flames reacted in the same manner as they did when I kicked the door down. Luckily, I anticipated it and used my speed to outmaneuver it. Not realizing I was now top-heavy, I stumbled into the middle of the city street with her in my arms. The building, now with a gaping hole in it, started to crumble to the ground behind us. I immediately established a route out of the city and taking care as not to shake the girl too much, got us out as fast as possible. I kept glancing down to see if she was okay only to find her staring up at me with her deep blue eyes. Her golden blond hair, even though a bit singed, was flowing over my arm.

We finally reached the outside where I had left my bag. I needed to put on new clothes as I am sure she would notice I was almost completely naked soon. I gently put her down on the green grass and grabbed some clothes from my bag.

"You're safe now." I said as I was changing with my back to her, trying my best not to make it awkward.

I heard her soft voice behind me: "My parents..." Then a small thud followed. I swung around to see she had fainted. I ran to her and placed my ear on her chest to find her heart still beating fine. Her breathing was a bit rough but still sounded okay.

She must have passed out from fatigue or maybe even shock? I need to find someone that can help her.

The next town on my path was six days of travel but I remembered Henry made note of a few surrounding towns. I could take her there and ask someone to help her. Maybe they even know who she is. I finished dressing then rummaged through my bag to find the map.

Okay so just east of here, there should be a town called Wayspring. The map shows it Is roughly a day’s worth of travel through the forest and two if I follow the laid path. I do not have time to waste and in her condition, I will not be able to run with her in my arms. I will have to take my chance with the forest then.

I strapped my bag to my back and picked her up once again. This time taking care to make sure she was as comfortable as my arms would allow and then set off. I maintained my posture throughout the trip as she was of no burden to my supernatural strength. I did however take small breaks to place her down and make sure her breathing and heart rate stayed constant. I even made sure I wasn’t bruising her in any way as she was extremely soft and prolonged travel might cause her great pain. Her green dress had multiple holes scorched into it and not knowing if it was cold or hot left me unable to determine if I should cover her up. Even with all these inconveniences, I pressed on.

The sun was starting to go down and then I noticed her shivering.

Ah! So! It is cold!

I looked for a clearing and placed her softly on the ground right next to a large tree. I then took off my shirt and wrapped her torso in it. It did not seem to help as the shivering did not subside.

I need to find some wood to start a fire. An ironic thought considering what we just went through.

I took some dried branches that lay around on the ground and stacked them in one large pile in the middle of the clearing. Then I grabbed two of the remaining branches and began to strike them up against one another. It was not long until they started to smoke and create a small ember which I placed underneath the pile. I was never strong enough to help, but I had seen my father doing this to light the fireplace in winter. The smoke grew and then Just like that we had a fire providing an abundance of warmth. I proceeded to pull the girl to what I believed the right distance would be to warm up. It was working as her shivering seemed to die down.

I stockpiled more wood to last us the night then sat up against a tree to spoil myself with food. I wonder if she is hungry? I will have to wait for her to wake up to find out. I will put aside some rations just in case.

Shoving the food in my mouth I began to lose myself in thought. I wonder if being on the ground is safe? Usually, I would sleep inside the treetops but, she might fall out, and how would I get the warmth up there? No. We will have to stay down here tonight. I will just have to forgo my sleep, something that I have been fighting not to do every night. I will have to deal with anything that happens on the spot but, hopefully we get to have a peaceful night.

I began to stare into the flickering fire. I wonder why I am immune? Is this something all abyssal shared or just me? Mmm... Even the part where I somehow took the khubaza’s power. Is that normal too or am I just special in some way? It does not help that I wrap my head around this now. Maybe I should still travel to the capital after I have made sure she is okay. If there are answers, then the capital libraries will have them and… If I am to keep my promise and fix this world, starting at the heart of it all might not be a bad idea. Henry would be disappointed to know that I am going against his warning but, I have to at least try and the option to cure myself would still be on the table, provided I don’t get caught.

Suddenly the girl started to squirm and mumble as if she was having a bad dream. I got up to move closer only for her to start crying. I rushed to her side to see if she was waking up, but no such luck. She started to roll to her side and grab her knees into her chest. The nightmare must have been horrible for her to react this way.

I began to try and calm her: “Shh. It's okay. It's okay, you are safe now.” I said as I respectfully stroked her back.

She must have heard me somehow as she stopped sobbing and relaxed herself.

“What is this?” I asked out loud as I noticed a golden necklace glistening from her shoulder.

It must have revealed itself when she rolled to her side as I would not have missed something like this. It was large and filled with small delicate jewels wrapping around an unknown symbol.

I tried to get a closer look by moving it, but it somehow reacted to the skin on my hand. Like a hot iron pressing against flesh, it burned me so bad I let go in an instant. I looked at my pain-ridden hand, only to find it had left an unsettlingly large blister. Is this some kind of magic or something more? I moved in to memorize what the symbol looked like.

If this can hurt me this badly then I need to find out more about it. Yet another question I need answers for…

She seemed to now have completely calmed down as she rolled back to her original position. I gave a loud sigh then returned to my spot at the tree. As soon as I sat down, I realized there was a growl coming from my stomach.

I was just full two seconds ago! How is this even possible?

I shook my head and opened my bag again only to see my hand had healed. The horrendous wound was now gone…

I wonder if rapidly healing the wound caused me to get hungry. After all, the body needs energy to heal and I seemed to be no exception. I took a deep breath and carried on looking for more food.

Could this evening get any stranger?