Chapter 102: Fire (1/2)
That monster had devoured people and other demons, gorging on their raw meats and melting their bones with the gastric juices in its stomach. The stench of the digestion of its victims enveloped Yoichi, who stiffened his arm muscles even more.
Unable to close his eyes and knowing that the snake's toothed tongue would soon attack him again, Yoichi reconsidered what he had been through during those days.
In the sacred Dojo of Goldhaven, the gatekeeper had revealed to him the greatest truth of his life. According to that old war veteran, his abilities could be crucial to Tentochu's fortunes.
Kenji was not a Nekage, nor an unknown species of fire-type demon. It was a baby dragon, ready to evolve and become a giant winged beast. Lumya's last dragon was in his hands, tied to his soul.
His chance of redemption, as the blood writings said, was just that. And Kenji was the only key.
Closing his eyes for a single moment and assuming the risk of being attacked, Yoichi returned to the desert of the Tear's Vision.
Thanks to Therion's tear, he had faced the adult Kenji, a dragon so huge and strong that he ruled over the sky and the earth. Its purifying flame was an immense power, too great to be imagined.
Suddenly, he realized that the sensations felt then, in the sand of that desert, were incredibly similar to those exploding in his chest every time he uttered the real name of his Oracle.
The burning to which his body was subjected each time, was the symptom of something: the fire he was looking for had always been there, inside him.
Opening his eyes as if he suddenly knew what to do, Yoichi focused on his heartbeat. Every pulse resounded in his rib cage, burning in his chest.
The fear, tension and the whirlwind of conflicting emotions that his body was imprisoning, were released in the form of an energy stream, synchronous with the heartbeats.
A burning stronger than the other times reached the top-centre part of his chest as if it were an invisible body under his pectoral muscles. Sensing to know how to control it properly, Yoichi let himself fall into his deepest instincts, activating the second power of his dragon Oracle.
The scales that quickly enveloped the top of his arms began to emit a strange grey smoke. Under each reptile scale, red sparks burned ardently, generating flames.
Within seconds, both of Yoichi's arms became glowing under his incredulous gaze: the scorching flames coming from the skin under the scales greatly increased Kenji's enhancement.
A thin strip of fire appeared on the back of the little dragon, reaching to the tip of its tail.
Shining under the night sky like a meteorite in contact with the atmosphere, Yoichi's arms burned the snake demon's palate. The Hebigure began to writhe, suffering loudly from burning.