Reborn in Flames

I brought my hands together and poured the fire from both hands into a small ball.

Grinning, I made the ball swell until it was larger than my head, then rapidly condensed all of the fire down to a point smaller than the width of my pinky.

A fierce whine echoed out from the small ball. I had just enough time to tilt my head in confusion before the small ball exploded less than a foot away from my head.

I was blown backward until my body crashed painfully into a nearby bookshelf. Spilling onto the floor, there was little I could do but groan in pain.

A faraway part of me was aware of more fire covering my face and chest as it fixed the damage caused by my little experiment.

It appeared my Immortality was working as advertised as well. All that was left to test now was Wind.

The door to the library crashed open, and a woman coated in fire burst into the room.

Her golden hair stood on its end as she looked around the area before her with murder in her eyes.

It wasn't long before her gaze fell on me and the fire surrounding her was snuffed out like a smothered candle.

"Riser!" she cried, picking up the front of her red dress as she hurried over to me.

By now, the pain was gone – hax devil regeneration for the win! – allowing me to stand up and wave innocently.

"Hi, mother." I said, doing everything I could to exude cuteness. I hadn't just blown myself up. I just broke a plate.

Ignore the fact that there were no ceramic shards around me. It was an invisible plate.

My mother bent down to scoop me up, lifting me up and twisting me around to inspect my small form.

"What happened? Are you hurt? What are you doing here? You should still be in the nursery! I need to–"

Deciding to take mercy on the frantic woman, I threw my hands up again and gave her a great big smile. "I made fire! Then I blew up!" Wait, I wasn't supposed to tell her about that part, was I?

Mother's eyes widened. She slowly panned down to look at the book on the ground before her eyes found mine again.

I smiled innocently, hoping she would take this as a reason to finally start training me properly.

"You're grounded." she said, her eyes narrowed, tone firm.

I slumped in her arms as she began to carry me back to the nursery. That didn't go the way I wanted it to at all. I didn't even get to try my Wind!

XXX

Five Years Old

Dinner was a little awkward tonight, but that wasn't my fault! Okay, I may have found a new way to sneak out of the nursery, bypassing the bolted door and barred windows.

I snuck into the training room and slashed apart a few dummies with a sword I conjured with my fire after getting tired of shredding them with Wind.

How was I supposed to know that the joints in those magical dummies were lubricated with oil? Why did magic dummies need lubrication anyway? They were magic!

Few words were spoken as my family ate our meal. We sat at the same, long, rectangular table we always ate at.

Several figures stood at attention around us as we ate. Some wore servants or maid garb while others wore varying types of armor.

"Riser," a weary voice said from the head of the table. "How did you get out of the nursery this time?"

I scratched the back of my head as I looked at one of the statues lining the wall, refusing to look my father in the eye. "The door was open?"

He sighed tiredly, leaning backward and massaging his forehead. "This is the fifth time you've blown yourself up this month.

Why do you insist on experimenting with your power? I told you I would help you when you're older."

"But it's so cool!" I cried, my voice sounding far more childish than I would have liked. "Why can't I learn now?"

Chuckling, Ruval turned to our father and said, "He's not going to give this up. You know that as well as I do.

Why not have someone watch over him while he experiments instead of tracking him down by following the explosions?"

I smiled brightly at my older brother, silently thanking him for taking my side.

"It would cut down on the rampant destruction if someone was watching him." Raycal said as he cut up his steak, kind of supporting Ruval. It felt more like he just wanted me to stop burning things down.

"He was being watched." mother said sharply, turning to one of the figures standing behind the table. "Would you care to explain how he got away from you, Clarissa?"

Mother's black-haired bishop curtsied deeply. Pale hands tugged the sides of her forest-green dress up as her amber eyes fixed on the ground beneath her.

"I am sorry I failed you, my lady. I swear to you he was still in the room when the explosion shook the house."

Clarissa was nice, I didn't want her to get in too much trouble. She taught me minor control behind my parents back and snuck me cookies.

Of all the servants and peerage members, she was by far my favorite, so I grudgingly spoke up in her defense.

"S'not her fault. I left a fire clone there so she wouldn't know I was gone." I stabbed my fork down into my steak and pulled it up to my mouth, chewing on it to have something to do other than squirm under my family's questioning gazes.

"A…fire clone?" father said, looking at me skeptically.

I held out my left hand and a billowing flame expanded out from it. The flame rippled into a bipedal shape.

Bright blonde hair materialized atop the head of a slim-built young Devil with piercing blue eyes. The fire had taken a shape that was my spitting image.

All conversation and clinking of silverware stopped as the entire room turned to look at my duplicate.