“But why me? Wouldn’t Zollin be a better choice? He’s a wizard and I’m just a girl.”
“You’re so much more than that,” Zollin said.
“You’re a fire spirt,” said Hammert.
“I’m a girl,” she said, half-heartedly. “Just a girl.”
They said their goodbyes and resumed their journey. Zollin could tell that Brianna wasn’t comfortable with her new celebrity status in the Jaq clan. The dwarves who had traveled with them from the Oliad clan had great affection for Brianna and Zollin, but this new revelation didn’t seem to surprise them. They treated her the same as always, and Zollin gave her time to think about what had happened. He instinctively knew that she was struggling to accept the power the ruby gave her. He also knew that she wasn’t wearing the white alzerstone ring. He had tucked it safely away in his pack so that he wouldn’t lose it. At some point Zollin had been planning on giving it back to her, but he wasn’t sure if that was a good idea anymore. He didn’t know a lot about magical objects, but it seemed unlikely that she would be able to wield fire with the ring on. He wanted her to at least get used to the idea and perhaps even experiment a little to see what she could do, before taking up the ring again.
They made camp in a small cavern, and Brianna sat a little apart from the others. She practiced making fire and controlling the flames. She liked what she was able to do, but she felt like a little girl playing dress-up. She could make fire appear from nowhere, and the flames could lick across her skin while she hardly felt anything. There was no damage to her hands, but even so her power was nothing compared to what Zollin could do. She didn’t know if the flames were a weapon or just a tool. She could start a campfire, she was certain of that, but she didn’t know if she could do anything else. She needed time to think and explore her gift, but time was the one thing they didn’t have. They had not planned to stay with the Jaq clan, but the virus had held them up two whole days.
Brianna slept fitfully. Her body was still sore from being so violently sick to her stomach, and she had trouble getting comfortable on the stone floor of the cavern. The next day they came to the last Stepping Stone. Zollin rebuilt the bridge rather quickly, his skill at levitating and transmuting the molten rock having grown. When he was finished, Brianna went into the cavern. Like the others it had a pool of molten rock at the center, casting an orange glow around the stone walls. This particular cavern had a domed ceiling with no stalactites hanging down. She walked down the sloping floor of the cavern toward the pool of magma. Normally the heat would have seemed unbearable. She remembered how she felt in the first Stepping Stone cavern. It had been so hot she could hardly breathe, the hot air seeming to cook her lungs. But this time things were different. She didn’t just tolerate the heat, she soaked it up like a sponge. It seemed invigorating to her, and she wanted to get closer and closer to the source of it.
“Brianna, what are you doing?” Zollin called. “You’re getting too close.”
“No, I’m not,” she said.
She was mesmerized by the heat. It was calling to her and washing through her body in a way that made her feel strong and confident.
“Brianna!” Zollin shouted.
She heard him, but she ignored his shouting. She knew what she was doing. She knew that the heat should be overwhelming, but it wasn’t. It felt like getting into a hot bath, when the water feels so good you just want to submerge as much of your body in it as possible and never come out. And there was a change happening inside her, as if some hidden side of her nature was waking up for the first time. She was curious and happy. The long days and nights in the tunnels and caverns had bothered her, making her feel suffocated and claustrophobic. She had fought that feeling for days and longed for wide open spaces. But now, in the intense heat of the Stepping Stone cavern, she felt free. She breathed in the searing heat and then blew it out in a long, scorching blast.
“Brianna!” Zollin screamed. “Your clothes are smoking!”
He ran forward but even with his magical shield raised he simply couldn’t get close enough to her. Then he realized that she wasn’t wearing the white alzerstone ring. He could levitate her back from the molten pool. But he remembered that he had promised never to use his magic on her against her will. He had manipulated her emotions once, in an effort to help her train with her bow, but she had resented and feared him for it. Would stopping her now do the same thing, he wondered?
In that moment of hesitation everything changed. To Zollin’s horror Brianna burst into flames. It wasn’t just her clothes, her entire body was engulfed.
“Brianna!” he screamed.
“What’s happening?” Bahbaz cried.
The other dwarves were gathered around Zollin, who was now sobbing uncontrollably. He knew in that moment it had been a mistake not to give her back the white alzerstone ring. He knew the magic of the ruby firestone was powerful, but now he was afraid it had lured her to her doom. He had seen the fire on her hands and how it didn’t hurt her, but that was fire she had conjured. He didn’t know if she was burning alive or not. The heat from the molten rock was overwhelming, and she wasn’t responding to him.
Brianna felt light as a feather. Her body, although strong, seemed somehow lighter and more maneuverable. She jumped up into the air and flipped several times before coming back down to land on her feet. Her clothes had completely burned away, but the flames covered her now, wrapping around her body like a living second skin. She took a deep breath and blew hard. Flames billowed from her mouth just like the dragon.
“Oh my God,” Zollin said.
“She’s truly a Fire Spirit now,” Bahbaz said.
“What does that mean?” Zollin asked.
“I don’t know,” Bahbaz replied. “I’ve never seen or heard of anything like this.”
“I have,” said the gruff-voiced dwarf. “I heard that the Fire Spirits of old birthed dragons from the molten rock of the mountains.”
“That’s just a myth,” Bahbaz said angrily. “And I don’t recall anything about seeing a woman burst into flames or fly around.”
“She’s coming back,” Zollin said.
He picked up a blanket from his pack and held it out to her, closing his eyes so that he didn’t see her naked. The flames still covered her body, but her face, arms, and legs were bare. Her skin, which had always been pale, was now a golden tan. Her raven black hair was now streaked with deep auburn. And her eyes seemed to shine brighter than ever.
“Did you see it, Zollin?” she asked with wonder. “Did you see me?”
“Yes,” Zollin said. He had his face turned away from her, and his eyes were squeezed so tight they were nothing but wrinkles of skin.
She took the blanket and wrapped it around her body.
“Thanks,” she said.
“What was that?” Zollin asked, looking at her for the first time since she had come walking out of the flames.
“I don’t know,” she said honestly. “It felt so good to be in the heat and then suddenly, everything changed.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean I’m different,” she said, laughing. “Didn’t you see me? I must be part dragon or something. I breathed fire.”
“Do you think that’s normal?” Zollin asked.
“No,” she said firmly, “of course it isn’t. I’ve never heard of anything like it.”
“I mean do you think you’re okay?”
“I’m better than I’ve ever been in my life,” she said confidently. “Except I lost my clothes. Excuse me.”
She picked up her pack and went back into the cavern. Zollin and the dwarves, all speechless for once in their lives, stood in the tunnel not knowing what to say. When Brianna came back they continued their journey. Zollin decided not to press Brianna for answers. She seemed happy and, for now, that was all that mattered.