Chapter 20: Caden

　　The vagrants had pillaged, looted, destroyed, and killed. Twelve grueling hours passed before the Crusaders stepped in to put a stop to it. Caden had been there. He`d seen them. They pulled weapons out of thin air, and the vagrants were too scared to fight them. Even he knew a single Crusader could tear down the whole Order single-handedly.

　　The morale of the knights was destroyed. It was forbidden to kill vagrants; everyone knew you`d be kicked from the Order for that, or worse. But they had killed knights in the riot; was that justice? No. Justice would be ending the life of every knight in the Order. Burning them all alive with his own bare hands. That was justice.

　　He was still burning. It was like his Defiant Flame had exploded in his mind, whispering sweet nothings into his ear. Burn them. It spoke. Kill them. Every day that passed, he was getting worse. It was like a sickness, a disease of rage and fury. Yet, half the time, he didn`t even know what he was mad at. He felt like a tempest of destruction was brewing within, reaching out and telling him to kill anything and everything in sight.

　　His attention turned to his potatoes. He sat in the mess hall of quadrant four, and everyone was silent. His squad sat around him, all mindlessly numb from the riot.

　　The journal his father had given him was useful, and he began to write in it every day. Even now, he opened it and wrote something to remember.

　　Six days have passed since the riot. Patrols have stopped. He wrote. The Knights seem shaken, and Vance has been taunted but not hurt. It seems the vagrants are waiting for me to kill him. He closed the book.

　　He glanced up at his squad, and he hated them. They were all either blind to the world or content with it. Kieran was the worst; she was an Elite yet chose to allow the Sanctuary to exist. If given the choice, he`d face every Elite in that arena and kill them all.

　　He thought of the Emberward powers and the red lines. In a moment of serenity, everyone in his squad had red lines pointing at them. As soon as he thought about it, they appeared. He could compel them. He recalled the same lines that he could see protruding from Elena into many people during the speech.

　　"You should get going," Kaelea broke the silence, "your time with Felisha starts soon."

　　Caden rose without a word.

　　"Before you go," Kieran said, "you should really consider not missing our lessons together."

　　"Yeah."

　　"Arkell," she snapped, "watch your tone."

　　He turned back and opened his mouth to speak. He almost threatened her. Did she even know what he was capable of? He could tear her apart before she even knew what hit her. He imagined it, his sword piercing her heart for simply speaking against him.

　　Burn her. Kill her. The Defiant Flame spoke once more. Why? How could he possibly still be burning? He was supposed to be better. By the Crown, he really was turning into an Elite.

　　"Sorry."

　　"You kindled a month ago," she snapped, rising, "I`ve cut you slack, but you can`t keep flaking. Show up tomorrow, or I`ll forfeit your training."

　　"Whatever," he said.

　　Kieran stepped forward and grabbed his shoulder. Her eyes flashed with a hot rage, "Show some respect."

　　Caden met her eyes. In a moment of unbridled fury, he felt himself explode. He kept the anger tight and felt it boil underneath his skin. This madness was too much. It was too powerful. He needed to hurt something; he needed to kill something.

　　"Let go," he said, pulling on the thin red line. He compelled her.

　　Kieran let him go and looked at him with big, wide eyes.

　　She was afraid. Good.

　　He stormed off without saying another word.

　　* * *

　　Caden found himself stumbling into Quadrant One. He didn`t feel like himself. It was like his Defiant Flame had reached into his mind and forced his muscles to do its bidding. Was this Elena`s compulsion? He couldn`t even comprehend that right now. He only had one desire, one he feared was not his own. Kill.

　　Four knights scuttled down the alleyway. They were ones from the Sanctuary. Or were they? Caden didn`t know. He didn`t care.

　　He stood off to the side with his hood up and his back against the wall.

　　"That girl in Quadrant Four has forbidden magic," one of them said, "I heard she had this spell book. Gera told me."

　　"What was her name again? The short one, right?"

　　"I don`t remember."

　　Caden put on his Aberrant mask. He`d gotten it back from Solaris after completing an earlier mission. He tried to distract himself by recalling each task vividly. He fought back with every ounce of strength but failed and finally broke.

　　He stepped out in front of the four knights.

　　"Hey! Get out of our way."

　　He did not let them pass.

　　"Who does this guy think he is? God?"

　　"Move, or we`ll make you!"

　　Caden`s vision bled. All color transformed into shades of red; he shattered, and the Defiant Flame erupted, screaming in his mind. He drew his sword, and the Knights retaliated by drawing their maces. They were no longer human to him; they were targets, ones to kill.

　　He attacked; they never stood a chance.

　　When his vision stopped bleeding, he was surrounded by four corpses. The worst part was that Caden didn`t feel any better. He wanted to kill again. But the burning had subsided long enough for him to clear his head.

　　He had killed them for absolutely no reason other than they were there. What the hell was wrong with him?

　　He tumbled as he exited the alleyway, falling to his knees. He vanished into flames, appearing on a nearby rooftop. He vomited all over the pavement, and this horrendous awful guilt now ate at him. He felt this eternal bloodlust, this mindless need to kill. It was like if he didn`t, he would shatter. Something was terribly, terribly wrong.

　　* * *

　　Caden had nowhere else to go. He fell through the doors of Goran`s Tavern, catching himself on the door before he fell to his knees.

　　The place was full of patrons, and many turned their heads or whispered as he entered. The loud sounds of glasses clattering and people drinking and talking aggravated him immensely. Everything was blurry.

　　"Caden," Elena said. She bent down to him and whispered, "Why have you come? You should be with Felisha by now."

　　"I need help," he said, panicking. Everyone around him looked like targets. The Defiant Flame roared in his mind, begging him to kill everyone in this room. His vision began to bleed again. "I`m burning. It hurts, Elena, please. . ."

　　"Shh, shh," she cooed, "come now, let`s talk."

　　She led him into the back room of the tavern, and he sat on the stairs that led up to Luna`s room. He placed his hands on his head and tried to calm down.

　　"Tell me what`s the matter," Elena asked, bending down to see him.

　　He looked up at her, his vision bleeding red. He wanted to kill her; he could kill her. She can`t compel him. She`s weak. He`s- "It`s burning," he said softly, "It`s so hot, I`m on fire. What is wrong with me?"

　　She touched his arm, and he retaliated by grabbing her wrist and pouring heat into it. She cried out as he seared her flesh. She blasted a puff of flames into his eyes and backed away. Caden let her go and covered his face. "I`m sorry!" he cried, "please, help me!"

　　"Damn it!" she called, "You stupid boy!" she rubbed her arm, "You`re suffering from a serious case of Burnout. Let me fix you."

　　"How?" Caden asked, his lip quivering.

　　"I can drain you of all your Heat. You`ll be powerless until you gather more," she relaxed her grip on her wrist, "So sit down, relax, and don`t burn me again."

　　He just nodded; no words could form in his mouth.

　　Elena bent down and grabbed both his shoulders tightly. "Let me in," she said, "you must let me in."

　　He didn`t trust her, but he listened. His Defiant Flame was searing hot, ripping at his mind like a drug. Another presence entered his mind, a much smaller flame. It attached to him; that was Elena. He let his walls down.

　　Elena grunted and tore away his entire Defiant Flame. It had been snuffed out before but never gone like this. For a moment, he was wondering if it would ever come back.

　　Serenity. A cooling sensation washed over his entire body. He was calm. His mind was his own again. The flame within was no longer screaming. He could feel himself once more.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

　　She stumbled backward and put a hand to her head. "By the Crown, your flame is unlike any other."

　　"You took it?" Caden asked.

　　"Of course I did. That`s how it works. Have you never transferred Heat between Pyromancers before?"

　　"Yes, but -"

　　"This is the same thing. If you want it back, just gather it from an outside source or another Pyromancer. But stay away from it for at least a few days. Burnout is terrible." Elena stood tall, collecting herself.

　　"Burnout?"

　　She raised an eyebrow. "Have you learned nothing in your lessons?"

　　"I`ve been skipping them."

　　She sighed. "Then listen. Burnout is common among Pyromancers. We must be pushing you too hard. You suffer from side effects if you continuously use Heat like you are. Like madness or bloodlust. Normally, you don`t train this fast and should never use that much Heat."

　　"How do I prevent this? I need my flame; I can`t live like this."

　　"You need to train in precision, harness your flame as a tool, not a drug. You drain Heat constantly, at all times. That won`t work for you." She rolled down her sleeves. Her burn had nearly healed. "You must learn to drain Heat at will instead of constantly. You use it to see, jump, fight, or just to exist. You`re using it like it`s infinite, and it`s breaking you."

　　"But it is! When I`m with Luna-"

　　"That doesn`t matter. Your boon has its consequences. Learn to use your magic," she said. "God, Caden, you`re such a stupid boy, you`re just like her. . ." her expression softened.

　　"You mean Isabel," Caden said.

　　Elena recoiled in pain, something he had never seen her do before, "Yes. She would always exasperate her Moonlight and return to me a bleeding, dying mess. I guess it`s only fair I put you back together, too."

　　Caden stood, his legs wobbling as if he`d forgotten how to walk. He instinctively drained Heat, but nothing happened. He was powerless but sane. "Thank you," he said, "for fixing me."

　　She nodded, "You should get going. Felisha is expecting you."

　　"Won`t Luna just. . . refill my Heat?"

　　"She doesn`t refill it," Elena said. "She just takes the small amount of it that exists within you and allows you to use it forever. I must return to my shift, so please take care of yourself, Caden Arkell." Her eyes were full of compassion, something she`d never seen Elena hold before. The monster Luna told her about was nowhere in sight, and all he saw was a sad, lonely girl who had lost her best friend.

　　"Wait."

　　She glanced back.

　　"I need to know why you treat Luna the way you do."

　　She released a deep sigh, and her shoulders fell. "She isn`t using Isabel`s gifts to help us."

　　"So you decide to force her into madness?"

　　Elena grimaced, "No. She`s the Tigress, Caden. A legendary figure of the past. She is the most important and powerful thing on this planet. She could destroy the whole world if she simply knew what she was doing. There are tons of Heliomancers and thousands of Pyromancers, but only one of her. She refuses to learn her abilities, refuses to help me save this world, and refuses to follow the reason for her existence." She crossed her arms over her chest. "I`m aware my treatment of her is unfair sometimes. But she doesn`t get a choice. She has those powers, so she gets the responsibility."

　　"No," Caden said, "you`re wrong." He stepped forward. "She should always have a choice. I don`t care if she is a flaming goddess. She can do as she likes."

　　"You don`t understand, Caden. We need to bring the Sun back."

　　"And we will. We don`t need her to do that."

　　Elena bit her lip, "We do."

　　"Then let her make that choice. As long as I`m around, she will get one."

　　She laughed, "Are you threatening me? After I snuffed you of Pyromancy?"

　　He thought for a moment; he imagined those red lines again, and there was not one going into him from Elena. He had thought this at the speech, but now he was sure of it: whatever magic Elena had, she could not use it on him.

　　These next words were more powerful than anything else he`d ever said in his entire life. "You can not possibly justify forcing her to cut her arms open. You did something horrible, and you treated her like a toy. She is a person." He took a step forward. "That was not a threat, but this is," he leaned in, speaking quietly into her ear, "If you hurt her again, I will kill you." He pulled away.

　　Elena`s expression dropped, not into fear but sadness. She adjusted her tie, then turned away, "I suffer from Burnout too. . ." she said quietly, "You know exactly how it feels now. If you had someone trying to stop you from completing your goals at every moment, and you saw red like you did today, would you be able to hold yourself back from killing them?" She didn`t meet his gaze and put her hands in her pockets. "Well, I did. I held back. She still lives. Why do you think I hardly use Pyromancy as it is?"

　　Caden`s eyes went wide. He said no words, but at that moment, after burning for the last few days, he knew that he would not have been able to.

　　"I know my actions were heinous. I`m content playing your villain. This is not about Luna. This is about Isabel, her dream. Saving the world. I`ll pull any and all cards to make sure that comes first," Elena said, "You wouldn`t want to make me your enemy. . . We are allies. Please, keep it that way."

　　"My word still stands."

　　"Very well," Elena said. "But if you fall victim to my magic one day, do not be surprised."

　　He smirked, "If you say so."

　　Caden turned to go.

　　"And don`t take her to that festival. She has work to do," Elena called.

　　"We will multitask," he snapped back. "Besides, nobody will know it`s her if you let her take off her mask."

　　She scoffed, "I don`t force her to do that."

　　That puzzled him, but he didn`t say anything more.

　　"You`re much smarter than you look," Elena said.

　　He turned back, smiled at her, and strode from the tavern with renewed vigor.

　　* * *

　　Walking was impossible. Caden had been so used to transporting himself with flames or at least draining Heat into his muscles to run quickly. But walking? Normal walking? He`d not done that in weeks.

　　His feet dragged along the pavement as he entered the Fourth Quadrant Barracks. The torches on the wall taunted him, calling out to him like a drug. He ignored it; he had to ignore it. He couldn`t just feed into the insanity of Burnout directly after fixing it.

　　He walked through the gate and down toward the palace. He was surprised that the place was packed with many people. Knights, Squires, Elite, servants, and many others occupied the grounds outside the palace. Why?

　　Inside was the exact opposite. Nobody was there. It was completely vacant. He entered the royal dining hall, the place only Felisha would go to. She immediately gave him a terrible look, as if she was a scolding mother.

　　"You`re late," Felisha snapped, tugging her glove back on. She`d finished eating already and was simply waiting for him to arrive.

　　"I had a problem," Caden said, taking his seat.

　　"That is no excuse."

　　"You`re right, I`m sorry," he spoke softly, "I had a Pyromancer problem. A bad one."

　　She gave him a look of disgust, "You set some people on fire?"

　　He sighed, "Yeah."

　　"Well, I was just being daft. I don`t need to know your business. You`re here now. Thank you for showing up. The girl is here too. She explained a lot since our last hasty meeting."

　　"So, you know about Elena?"

　　"Oh yes, I know all about her. Luna told me plenty."

　　Caden looked around, trying to find Luna, but he couldn`t see her anymore. "How do you know where she is?"

　　"I`m right here," she whispered from his left.

　　He nearly jumped out of his seat. He looked; nobody and nothing was there.

　　"Can you not see me anymore?"

　　He shook his head. "No. Pyromancy problem, remember? We`ll talk later."

　　"Okay."

　　A few days prior, Elena had scolded Luna for taking off with him so much. He was there, he had to be there, or she might get hurt again. Every mission Luna went on, he went too. In the last three, he`d killed knights, framed vagrants for crimes, and put up posters, all things Luna would be doing.

　　"I can do this," she had said, "I`m not incapable."

　　"It`s not that I don`t think you can. It`s that I know you don`t want to."

　　She paused. "And you do? Want to, I mean."

　　"Yes."

　　He had killed four knights that day. She had killed none.

　　Felisha sighed, "It`s impossible to know where that girl is half the time. I swear she`s quite lovely to have as company, though, and to think you made me scared of that tiny little thing. Please," Felisha sighed, "Now then, down to business. How am I going to go to this next meeting you have planned? It seems near impossible with the fact I can`t leave the palace after the riots."

　　"What`s she having you do for us if you`re stuck in here?"

　　"Oh, all sorts of mundane activities. I`m mapping out the perfect plan. I have the palace memorized like the back of my hand, and still no forlorn library. Part of me thinks Elena is lying."

　　"Could be," Caden said. He glanced at the two guards at the front of the room. "How many are on duty in here?"

　　"Twelve total, so not many. But nobody is expecting a raid on the palace," she said, "I swear this place is going to hell. If it gets any worse, they might send me home."

　　"We can`t have that."

　　"Now, the meeting, however, will I get there? Will you escort me? Convince them to allow me out of this palace?" She smiled hopefully.

　　Caden put a hand to his chin, "No, that won`t work. I don`t have authority, and I`m nowhere near becoming an Elite. . . the meeting will have to be held here."

　　Felisha laughed, "Hardly. That`s a cute offer but quite impossible."

　　"It`ll be just before the festival. Practically everyone will be there, so we will have a good amount of time with the palace nearly empty. I could act as your guard. I`m sure Elena can find a way in, but Erodan will be the most difficult target to get here."

　　"We`ll drag him through the sewers," Felisha said, "it`ll be quite fun."

　　"I can let everyone else in through different entrances. I`ll be sure to tell everyone the change of plans after I leave today."

　　"Oh my, so responsible," she laughed, "perhaps you`re growing up little knight."

　　"I`m not a knight."

　　"What should I call you then?"

　　He sighed, "I don`t care."

　　"Very well, I don`t care,`" she mocked.

　　A moment later, the scream stopped all conversation. Two guards rushed down the corridor toward it. Felisha got to her feet, and Caden sluggishly ran to follow.

　　"What`s going on?" Felisha asked as one of the knights came running back.

　　"Knight Arkell," he said, approaching Caden, "there`s been a. . ." he paused, unsure of what to say, "Please, we need to get the Princess to safety."

　　He cursed under his breath, "Go. Take her. I`ll investigate."

　　"I demand to know what has happened!" Felisha exclaimed.

　　"You`ll know soon. I`ll come see you right after, okay?" Caden said. He tried to look as calm as possible, but something terrible must have happened if the knights wanted to get her to safety.

　　Felisha bickered and complained to both knights, who escorted her away and back to her quarters.

　　At the end of the hallway, just before the entrance to the blacktop, was a body. The gloves and red overcoat gave away who it was, and the Aberrant dagger planted in the small of her back gave away how. Jasmine, the Shrine Cleric, the one who had given Caden his book on forbidden Pyromancy, was dead. Blood from a second wound on her neck pooled on the ground.

　　Damn it, Caden thought. This must have been his fault.

　　An incredibly frightened squire stood with teary eyes and a horrified expression to the left of the body. Caden paused, glancing at him up and down; there`s no way he did this. Despite his boyish figure, he could not have been much older than Caden.

　　"I& I just- I can`t I-"

　　"Relax," Caden said calmly. He placed a hand on his shoulder and turned him away. Two more knights approached from behind them. He looked the boy in the eye and saw himself. This was what he was just over a month ago: a scared squire. "Breathe in, then out, five times, with me."

　　He took him through the steps, over and over, calming him down. "Look," Caden spoke, "I need to know what happened."

　　"Knight Arkell, the Princess is safe. We`re here to help you investigate."

　　Caden looked around. This had to be Elena, right? But he was just with her. She was busy as hell in the tavern. There`s no way it could have been her.

　　"Tell no one of this. Deal with the body. The murder of a Shrine Cleric is not something to take lightly."

　　"I don`t remember. . ." the squire said.

　　Those three words were the most horrifying thing in the world, and he knew if he had his Pyromancy, he would be burning with fear. His face twisted, "What did you say?"

　　"I said I don`t remember. . ." he paused, "I was out in the courtyard. I was there, I was. . . then here. It was like I just showed up here. I remember being there, with everyone, following Jasmine. Then. . . I was here."

　　"A ripped memory," Caden said. They were absolutely screwed now. How could Elena have possibly been here? It didn`t make any sense at all.

　　He turned to the two guards. "Check the entire palace. This was targeted. If you feel that you forgot anything, write it down. Tell only the Palace Guard to do this."

　　"What?" the knight said, "What is it? What`s going on?"

　　"We`re dealing with someone extremely dangerous," Caden said, "I`ll explain it all later. Just do as I say!" he shouted, and the knights jumped into action.

　　He glanced around, moving away from the squire and toward the body. "Luna," he whispered. "You still there?"

　　"Yes," she spoke from his left again.

　　He nearly jumped. "By the Crown, don`t scare me like that!"

　　"Sorry," she whispered.

　　"Tell Felisha there`s been a murder. Protect her."

　　"Okay."

　　Caden assumed she had left, so he walked back over to the squire, who was still shaking. He had not moved from the spot he had been put in.

　　"Squire, what`s your name?" he asked.

　　"Shane, sir."

　　"Shane, come with me. We`re going to have a little meeting with the Crusaders. Someone is using forbidden magic, and we need to tell them about it. Now."

　　"Are you an Elite? You`re not wearing a scarf." The boy looked terrified at the mention of the Crusaders. Caden couldn`t help but feel a pang of pity for him. Despite the boy probably being older than Caden, he looked innocent and held little to no power in his eyes. He was like Mia.

　　"No," he said, "but I will be."