"Dammit." I curse to myself while reaching down for a healing potion. The bag holding them around my waist has long since burned away. The skin on my legs cracks and flakes off as I grab a potion with my few remaining fingers. I can see the concoction still boiling. I pop off the lid using the few teeth that have somehow stayed intact and chug the potion. My throat burns from the heat of the liquid, but I don't care.
I look around at the wasteland I've created. The charred husks of the Gigalepus are reduced to small mounds. Not a single blade of grass has survived. Even the bodies of my friends have been burned away.
While processing my current situation, I feel the potion begin to take effect. My charred skin flakes off, but my fingers won't be growing back anytime soon. It would take another elixir to regrow those body parts, and I don't even know where I'd find one. The potion spreads through my body until it reaches my nerves, and only then do I feel the pain.
"AHHh!" Every cell in my body screams out in agony. As the high-grade healing potion works its magic, I fade in and out of consciousness. Once the pain subsides, I look down at my naked body, which is just now finishing the healing process. What's most amazing is that I managed to survive. Knowing the effects of the conflagration spell, I'd spent many hours increasing the level of my heat resistance skill. All the time I spent roasting my limbs pale compared to my current state.
"Now what?" I ask the air. "I guess I'll head back. I still need to tell the guild that I completed the mission."
"How are we supposed to confirm that you completed the mission if you didn't bring anything back with you?" A guild receptionist asks me in an accusatory tone.
"I don't know."
"And you didn't even bring anything back of your fallen comrades? What are we supposed to tell their families?"
"I don't know."
"Without proof, we'll have to fine you for failing the quest." With my right hand, I reach for the pouch of money. It's hard. I only have my ring finger and thumb left after burning off all the others. The coins clang together on the counter as I open the pouch with my index finger and pinky still attached to my left hand and the few on the right. "Hurry up."
"Sorry." I never took shit from anyone, but now I just feel tired. The remnants of the bright fire light up inside me, only to be blown out almost immediately.
"Tough mission, huh, Jezzy?" Pierce asks from behind me. I don't even look at him as I struggle to open the pouch. "You know, I talked to some of the staff, and there's a Guild Master position available if you're interested."
His voice drips like poison into my ears.
"No thanks," I reply.
"You're right. You've got everything worked out over there." He steps closer and lowers his voice. "Now that you've killed all your friends, you only have a few fingers left to lose. Call me when those last four are gone; I've always wanted to get a nub job."
Pierce cackles as he walks away. I can't even bring myself to get angry. There's nothing left inside me. I pull my hands closer to my face and look at burnt nubs lining my knuckles.
"Ma'am, if you aren't going to pay your fine, then I'm going to have to ask you to leave. You're holding up the line." I look back at the pouch in front of me and begin trying to open it again.
"Jezabel?" Lucius's voice calls out from somewhere behind me, but I ignore it. "Jezabel, I'm so glad you're alright. I came running as soon as I heard."
"…"
"I'm so sorry about what happened to your teammates."
"…"
"I want you to know that this isn't your fault."
"Shut up!" I slam my hand down on the table. A wet heat rises through my face.
"I know you did everything you could to save them."
"I said shut up!" I spin around to face the Guild Master and extend what's left of my hand. "Inferno!"
…
But nothing comes out. Even my fire has left me. The weight of my loneliness crashes down on me, and my knees buckle.
"Jezabel!" Lucius catches me before I hit the ground, and I weep into his chest. "I know. Let it all out."
My mind grows hazy. I lose track of how long I spend crying. At one point, Lucius picks me up and carries me out of the guild hall, but I don't know where we're going. I rub my eyes. The old wood of the Guild Master's office comes into focus.
"Are you feeling any better?" he asks as if leveling the question to a child. I nod. "I know this probably isn't what you want to hear, but you need to think about what comes next. Adventuring is obviously out of the question so let's think about what else could be a viable career for you."
"… Guild Master."
"What?"
"I want to be a Guild Master," I respond quietly.
"What makes you say that?"
"I still want to make it to the top. Not for them, for me."
"Hah, is that so?" Lucius smiles. "Well, a position just opened up. It's not the most prestigious position, but that's how it always goes for your first assignment."
"Mmm."
"I can have the guild look after your sister while she's living in the city. It'll be a small deduction from your pay, but I don't think you'll notice."
"Thank you."
"Think nothing of it. I just want to see you succeed." Lucius smiles. "And I think you'll need all your fingers to do that."
Again, I look down at the nubs on my knuckles.
"I'll petition the Guild Headquarters for an elixir." I lift my head and look him in the eyes. It's the first shred of hope I've found in these last several days. The long walk back to the city was the darkest time of my life. I fell to the side of the road several times from exhaustion. It took everything I had not to lie there and wait for death. "Of course, we can't have our Guild Master in less than peak condition."
"Thank you!" I shout as I jump up from my chair. Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
I run across the room and leap into his embrace. His thick arms wrap around me.
"Just promise me you won't give up, okay?"
"I promise."
"Are you talking with someone, sir?" I spin around and see Hugo standing at the door. The bright light of the morning suns illuminates his handsome face. He looks a little concerned, which is unusual.
"I was just reminiscing," I reply while turning back to the window of my office.
"Of course, sir. I have those reports you asked for."
"Just leave them on the desk." I hear his footsteps get closer and then farther away. The door closes softly as he leaves the room. I can't help but smirk. Things have gotten very interesting recently. I watch smoke rise from the forest where the Duke is fighting the fairies. A blaze boils up within me. I may not be fighting this war, but my battle is fast approaching. "Ember."
I softly speak the name of the spell, and a small blue flame appears above the palm of my hand. It's all I can do not to burst out laughing. I got my fire back. My eyes settle on the horizon where the suns begin illuminating the forest. There, I notice someone running toward town.
"Nick?"