Fire and Fools

The day was as hot as ever in the ashlands. The ground was a mix of grey ash, burnt grass, and black rock. Even in the long hollowed out lava tunnels, the flame that had made this land the way it was was never far away. That was the reason Ignis had made his home here- among the broken and the burnt, he ruled as king with the power of flame. And now, it was time to pass down his knowledge- or at least a part of it. Once a secret was uttered, it was no more. 

By his port flew Jay, the blue-grey tropeoganthus oddly quiet as she thought quietly to herself. Good. Ignis had no need to know what was going on in her insane mind. The flyer was a chatterbox- Ignis would take any moment of quiet he could get, especially now. Starboard flew Ebon, his head similarly lowered with a look of fear and dread as they flew over the land. The flora and fauna was rapidly vanishing with each motion they made, even the long dead and burnt remains of trees being left behind as the heat in the air grew stronger. Jay coughed to his side- a natural response, Ignis supposed. The air here was dusty with ashes that never seemed to cease. The tapejara was long used to it- many visits to this area had left his thick feathers permanently matted and covered with a coating of ashes. Ignis quite enjoyed the fact- he would often go out of his way to return to the ashlands, to roll in the piles of fire and death before returning to spread more to the rest of the island. But he supposed it made sense such weaker flyers had an adverse reaction to it.

“Down there.” Ignis snapped his beak, pointing downwards as he hovered midair. The siblings copied his motions awkwardly, looking down towards the area he had pointed out. It was a small pile of black rubble, unremarkable compared to the surrounding area.

“There?” Ebon tilted his head in confusion. “Nothing's down there.” He spiraled down none the less, landing onto the uncomfortably hot rock. 

Jay landed beside him, her bold nature clear in the way she instantly started ignoring the red flags and poking her nose (in this case, beak…) around. “What even is this place?” She called up to Ignis, coughing as a burst of steam and smoke shot up from the hole. The tropgenathus squawked in alarm, the heat from the rush uncomfortable enough to cause her to peel back. It was like getting too close to a fires burning hunger- but there was no sign of a fire anywhere. What?

Ignis suddenly landed beside them, a long and sturdy stick clamped in his beak. “Woah, where’d you get that from?” Ebon squawked. He was certain Ignis did not have that on their way over… right?

The tapejara dropped the branch, quickly placing his claws over it so it wouldn't roll away. “I have a stash of them nearby.” Early on, Ignis had found this place and spent days bringing piles of good, sturdy branches back and forth. He had carefully coated each one in mud to protect them from the elements, and made sure to bring at least one more back whenever he returned. “Now. Watch carefully.”

Grabbing the branch again, Ignis rubbed at the end until some of the mud scrapped off and revealed more of the wood. Once that was done, the tapejara quickly grabbed the opposite end in his beak, tilting his head like a dog with a comically oversized bone as he dragged it towards the hole. Jay snicked as she watched their ‘boss’ handle the large stick, only cut off with a yelp when Ebon nipped at her wing. The black and white flyer sent a nervous look towards Ignis- thankfully, he was too preoccupied with his task to notice Jays mockery. 

With flourish the tapejara carefully lowered the stick into the hole, using his wings to balance and keep himself from toppling. The far end of the stick vanished, only Ignis’s grip keeping the rest from plumaging. Ebon and Jay watched in confusion, sending each other quizzical looks. While they were used to Ignis doing… lets say ‘odd’ things, this was a step above.

Just as the silence became uncomfortable, Ignis jolted back as he dragged the stick out. The submerged end was blacked and smoking, a few tiny embers flaring off of it. Ignis quickly pulled the twig closer, carefully bringing it to life as it consumed the wood. Ebon and Jay watched in awe as the embers flourished, a steady glow emerging as the fire emerged.

“And thats how you do it!” Ignis puffed out his chest, holding out the fire towards the siblings. “And now- take it. Feel the power- the heat, the rage, the destruction and power.” A dark expression of glee took over the tapejaras face as the two inched closer- he was closer than ever to convincing them.

And of course thats when things went wrong. Jay, always over-eager, reached out too fast. Instead of grabbing back towards the end, she grabbed far too close to the fire- and it was quick to notice. Like the strike of a snake, the fire caught along her feathers- sending the tropeghangus’s plumage ablaze.

Jay shrieked, dropping the branch- which landed far too close to Ebon, several embers jumping to singe his own feathers. The two screeched, quickly jumped off into the air- so fast Ignis couldnt even tell what direction they went. The tapejara was left alone, left with the quickly fading fire. “Idiots.” He shook his head, sadly gazing at the dropped branch. Why would you play with fire if you were scared to get burned?