What else can I do without using fire?
Think, Sienna. Think.
I can't get close — my dagger is useless. My archery won't work either; they're too fast, too small, multiplying everywhere. Aron can handle them, I know he can, but even if he kills them all, others will just come back.
What if I trap them?
I summoned a wall of thorns. Vines burst from the soil, crawling, twisting, thickening — boxing the rats in. I layered lavender over the barrier, sealing every gap. The thorns kept growing, weaving tighter and tighter around the swarming pests until they had nowhere to run.
Their claws scraped. Their teeth gnawed.
Nothing worked.
I am so tired of these rats destroying every community they touch.
It's time to find the one responsible.
Aron stepped forward, face hard, voice cutting through the chaos.
"What made you attack our fields? Where is your leader?"
Silence.
The rats trembled, chittering quietly — but none spoke.
Aron wasn't having it. He struck without hesitation, killing one, then another.
"Whoever answers," he said coolly, "will be the only one I show mercy to."
His intent broke them. Eventually, a few squeaked out:
"We give up! We'll talk! We'll take you to Rommel — our leader. He's the one behind everything!"
Aron wasted no time. He bound the thorn prison together, wrapping the rats inside, and dragged them. His aura shifted — calmer than rage, colder than fury.
A reminder that beneath everything…
He is still a beast.
We crossed the plains and reached a barren stretch of land carved with tunnels. Rats poured from every hole — their numbers endless, their stench suffocating.
"Bring out your leader!" Aron commanded. "Rommel!"
The rats didn't answer.
They attacked instead.
Steel flashed. Limbs flew. Aron and his troops slaughtered them — but the rats swelled like a tide, tearing through men, beasts, everything.
Then I saw him.
A monstrous rat stood atop a mound — huge, commanding, his presence rotten and cruel. A dark shadow wrapped around him, whispering through the swarm like poison.
This would never end unless I acted.
I summoned fire — carefully, controlled — and hurled fireballs upward. They lit the sky and forced the coward back into his tunnel.
You want to hide?
Fine. Burn from below.
Heat shot through the earth, pushing rats screaming out into the open. Flames circled them like a living serpent. The battle stalled; fear took over, the air thick with heat and terror.
"ROMMEL!" Aron roared. "Come out!"
He emerged.
Calm. Arrogant. Unafraid.
"King of Bolivé," he sneered, bowing slightly, "I concede. Let me go and show mercy. You halted my plan — that should be enough."
Aron's guard dipped — just slightly.
But I saw it. The shadow coiling behind him.
Ready to strike.
"Aron!" I shoved him back, shielding him, forcing the shadow away. My anger ignited. No more restraint. No more mercy.
I burned brighter. Hotter. Deadlier.
The shadow dissolved, shrieking.
Rommel trembled.
Aron froze, stunned by the overwhelming power flowing through me. I walked toward Rommel. "You and your wretched kind didn't heed my warning! I granted that bat his life to warn you, and you never listened. You come for what's mine. I will come for yours," I said coldly.
"P-please, Goddess," he stuttered. "I—I beg you—!"
"You worship the wrong one," I said, voice cold. "I'll return you to her myself."
I burned him alive.
His screams split the air.
When nothing remained but ash, I manifested his corpse and sent it straight to Vera.
Rage still coursed through me — heavy, poisonous, not entirely my own. My head spun. My hands shook.
Then darkness swallowed me.
—
When I came to, my mouth was dry, my body empty — and I was in Aron's arms.
I clung to him instinctively. His hands traced my skin gently, as he breathed me in, slow and deep, like he was memorizing me. Heat surged through me, my body arching into his touch. I gasped as his nose softly brushed my nape, shoulders, up to my chest. He was moving as if memorizing every curve of mine. I let my hands roam his whole, and he moaned as I reached his very weakness.
I needed this.
I needed him.
His breath grazed my neck; my fingers curled, my legs tangled with his. The sensation washed through me — dizzying, titillating — filling the hollow inside until I was whole again.
He finally collapsed beside me, still inhaling me softly.
My strength returned in a rush.
Then I remembered.
The rats.
"Aron — what happened to them?"
He stroked my back. "Rest. I handled it. They won't devastate anyone anymore. I exiled them — somewhere they'll never return."
I trusted him.
Sleep took me again.
—
When I woke the second time, we were alone.
I sat up, heart pounding. I had to be honest with him fully — about Eriu, the kings, and Talon.
"Sienna," he said before I could speak, his thumb brushing my cheek, "whatever you tell me — nothing changes."
I swallowed. "Aren't you afraid of me? Of the goddess's power? I can never belong to one person. My heart stretches endlessly. And I don't think I deserve love — not when I'm the reason you and Talon drifted apart."
He cupped my face gently.
"I don't think you understand how much I love you. I will endure everything, as long as I can stay beside you. If, one day, you choose someone else, I will accept it. Until then, let me fight for my place in your heart. Talon and I are rivals now — but we respect each other. Our people are safe. This —" he gestured between us, "— is our burden, not theirs. And one day, I believe we'll reconcile."
There was no way I could turn that love away.
All I could do was be honest — and let him choose.
He held me close. And I realized how impossibly blessed I was.
For now…
I will stay by his side.
It's the best I can do.