Damien stood in the scorched remains of the street, his scream echoing into the sky like a war cry born from anguish. The earth trembled beneath him.
Then—
DING!
A sound rang in his head, as if from the depths of his very soul.
[Infernal Overdrive – Rage Form System Activated]
A voice echoed within: "System override: Flame Soul at critical threshold. Emotional capacity exceeded. Engaging Infernal Overdrive..."
Damien's eyes widened, then the fire erupted.
His entire body ignited in divine flame. His figure vanished behind a growing cyclone of red-gold inferno. The air warped, light bent, and the heat was suffocating.
"What's happening?!" Mira gasped, shielding her eyes.
Lila pulled Leo back, trembling. "It's Damien... he's changing. Inside that fire—he's not the same."
Leo clung to their side, voice shaking. "He's turning into... something else. Is that still big bro Damien?"
They dragged Garret's unconscious body away, stumbling over broken stones and scorched earth.
Meanwhile, Ruck and Dorn stared at the inferno in disbelief.
"What the hell is that?!" Ruck shouted, taking a step back.
Dorn narrowed his eyes. "Power. Ancient. Divine. Dangerous."
The flames intensified. They rose higher than the buildings. Something inside was reshaping.
Transformation Sequence – Initiated
First, Damien's pupils vanished, erased in white heat. His irises flared into molten gold, glowing like tiny suns. Then his hair ignited, no longer hair at all—just flowing flame, flickering wildly like a wrathful comet's tail.
His skin blackened, hardening into volcanic obsidian. Glowing cracks ran across his body, like fissures of lava beneath stone. They pulsed with his heartbeat—alive, furious.
Ancient runes—symbols of Ignis—etched themselves into his chest and arms, glowing hot as if carved by divine branding.
His arms transformed completely. Flame covered them, shaping into molten metal gauntlets—semi-solid, divine, and blazing. Fire hissed with each flex of his fingers.
Transformation – Complete
The flames around him exploded outward in a spiral of light and power. Then it shifted—formed.
Behind him emerged a towering, semi-transparent firebird.
A divine phoenix.
Its wings unfurled, scorching the air, cracking the sky with wave after wave of heat. The ground beneath Damien blackened and bubbled, stone melting under the presence of pure, divine rage.
Ruck and Dorn stumbled back instinctively.
"No way... this... this isn't real," Ruck muttered.
"It's evolved flame... bonded to soul," Dorn whispered. "He's ascended."
Mira fell to her knees. "That's... that's not the Damien I know. That's something else."
Lila trembled, tears in her eyes. "Is he... even human anymore?"
Leo's voice cracked. "Big bro... what happened to you...?"
Then the battlefield trembled again.
A noise.
A deep, echoing BOOM. Like something enormous—primal—was stirring.
They looked around. The sound came from nowhere.
Then they realized.
It came from Damien.
His heartbeat.
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
Like a war drum made of fire.
Each pulse echoed with a shockwave of heat. Dust lifted. The wind howled in reverse. Everyone around was pushed back, skidding slightly.
"That sound... what is it?" Leo asked.
Mira's eyes widened. "It's his heart. That's his heartbeat."
Dorn opened his mouth to speak, but before he could—
Damien opened his eyes.
The moment he did, a blast of pressure exploded outward. A wave of force and heat slammed through the street, throwing Ruck and Dorn back a few feet. Mira, Lila, and Leo braced themselves, shielding Garret.
The divine phoenix flared its wings in sync.
Damien stood unmoving.
He stared at his molten hands, flame still rippling across them. Then—
DING!
A fire-colored system screen blinked into existence before him.
As Damien stared at his molten hands, his divine flame swirling like a living storm around him, a glowing fire-red screen appeared in front of him.
[SYSTEM ALERT: INFERNAL OVERDRIVE STATUS UNLOCKED]
[CURRENT FORM: Flame Soul Ascended - Infernal Overdrive Mode]
Name: Damien Cross
Race: Human (Flame-Touched Ascendant)
Level: 35 → [Temporarily Boosted to 55 during Overdrive]
Class: Flame Mage / Infernal Phoenix Vanguard
Blessing: Divine Flame of Ignis (Amplified)
Titles: Flame Reborn, Savior of the Tavern, Wrath-Touched, Phoenix's Chosen
[Core Attributes – Enhanced in Infernal Overdrive Mode]
Health Points: 5,600 / 6,000 (+200% Regen Rate)
Magic Points: 9,200 / 10,000 (Flame-Type Boost: x3 Power Multiplier)
Strength: 265
Agility: 290
Endurance: 330
Mana Control: 510
Luck: 115
Charm: 80
[Unique Flame Form Enhancements]
Obsidian Flame Skin – Body becomes volcanic-like armor with magical resistance and physical burn retaliation.
Flame Wings of the Phoenix – Semi-ethereal wings grant temporary flight and flame manipulation.
Emotion Sync: Tier 2 – Cataclysm – Emotional state directly powers spell strength. The angrier the user, the more devastating the output.
Flame Eater – Absorbs nearby fire sources to regenerate health and magic. Increases power output with each absorption.
[Temporary Rage Form Skills]
Phoenix Wreath – Envelops user in fire, burning all who touch him. Lasts 60 seconds.
Inferno Rupture – Stomps the ground, creating fire fissures that erupt around the enemy. AOE attack.
Meteor Wing Drive – Damien dashes and slashes at high speed while flaming wings launch embers like meteors.
Lava Fang Fist – A melee strike that mimics molten volcanic eruptions on contact.
Ashen Rebirth (Passive) – If Damien falls below 1 HP in this form, he revives once with 25% HP, causing a burst of flame.
Emberstep – Short-range teleport that leaves behind a trail of explosive embers.
Pyrokinetic Control – Grants total manipulation of flame in the surrounding area; allows shaping weapons, barriers, and creatures.
Wrathflame Chains – Conjures fiery chains that ensnare and burn enemies over time.
Phoenix Breaker – An aerial dive attack that explodes into a flaming phoenix-shaped blast.
Ashstorm Surge – Summons a burning sandstorm that reduces enemy accuracy and causes fire damage over time.
Scream of the Pyre King – Damien unleashes a soul-wrenching roar, shaking enemy morale and stunning all enemies in range.
Flame Reaper Dance – A rapid series of slashes, dashes, and flame bursts—a finishing combo that scorches everything in a 20-meter radius.
[Weapon – Temporarily Manifested]
Scorchfang – A greatsword of pure living fire, forged from Damien's wrath. Can change shape mid-swing. Scales with Emotion Sync.
[Note: This mode is time-limited. If overused, it may cause magical exhaustion, soul instability, or unconsciousness.]
Damien looked up slowly toward Ruck and Dorn.
For the first time, the twin brutes felt something they hadn't in years: fear.
Sweat beaded down their brows. Their hands tightened on their weapons. They looked at each other, breathing hard.
"Something's wrong," Ruck muttered.
"He's... changed," Dorn added. "Too fast. Too powerful."
Still, they nodded to one another.
"We can take him," Ruck hissed. "Power-up or not, he's just one guy."
Leo, trembling behind a pile of rubble, stuttered, "B-big brother...?"
Ruck turned back to Damien with a mocking sneer. "Oh look at that... he's all fired up now, huh? Real scary. Like that's gonna change anything. I killed your old man friend—he dropped like a sack of coal. And now I'm gonna kill the rest of 'em too."
He pointed toward Mira, Lila, and Leo. "Your little family? They're next. Maybe we take our time with them, eh? Make 'em suffer. Make you watch."
Damien's flames flared wildly.
Steam hissed from the cracks in the street around him.
The ground splintered beneath his feet. His hair flared like a burning crown.
His fists trembled at his sides.
"...You hurt them... You hurt all of them... and now you threaten more?"
The heat rose. The entire battlefield grew hotter.
Then Damien's voice twisted.
A deeper voice rose beneath his own, ancient and resonant.
His body trembled, and then—
"YOU WILL PAY!!!"
[Skill Activated: Scream of the Pyre King]
Damien reared back and let out a soul-piercing roar.
The scream echoed like a divine war cry, carrying not just flame—but fury, grief, and divine judgment.
A cone-shaped wave of fire burst from his mouth, spiraling forward with the roar, cracking the air as it advanced. The shockwave blasted buildings apart, shattered nearby windows, and tore the air like a storm of lava and wind.
Ruck and Dorn tried to brace.
Too late.
The scream hit them like a cannon blast.
BOOOOOOM!!!
They flew through the street, slammed into walls, rolled through debris, groaning.
Damien appeared in front of them in a flash of embers.
Ruck raised his hand to say something, but before words could form—
CRACK!
A punch launched him across the battlefield.
Dorn, tethered by the chain anchored to their upper backs, was yanked with him.
They tore through four houses.
Smoke and wood splinters filled the air.
Mira gasped, holding her children. "That speed...! That power—it's not even human!"
Lila whispered, shocked, "He's not just fighting... he's punishing them."
Leo shouted, eyes wide, "Big bro's unstoppable!! They're not even touching him anymore!"
Out of the rubble, Ruck and Dorn stumbled out—bleeding, burned, shaking.
"W-what... what is he?!" Ruck groaned.
"His power... is unnatural," Dorn said, coughing.
Heavy footsteps echoed.
They turned.
Damien was walking toward them, each step cracking stone.
His voice boomed: "You think you can take lives... and walk away with no consequences?"
The ground trembled with each syllable.
Still, the twins raised their weapons.
"Let's finish this, brother!" Ruck shouted.
"Now or never," Dorn added.
They charged.
"ANVIL SMASH!"
"BONEHOWLER CLEAVE!"
Both weapons swung.
"EMBERSTEP!"
Damien vanished.
His embers exploded beneath them, lifting them mid-air in a fiery blast.
BOOOOM!
They hit the ground hard, coughing blood in a deep crater.
"The pain... is worse... when we're connected," Ruck groaned.
"Everything he does... we both feel," Dorn winced.
They got up, weapons shaking in their hands.
Damien appeared again.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
He launched into a blinding combo—kicking, punching, striking with flame-empowered limbs.
40 STRIKES.
Every hit echoed with fury.
Then:
"LAVA FANG FIST!"
His molten punch collided.
KA-THOOM!
They flew again—through the air, into buildings, bounced off stone and finally slammed into a massive tree.
They dropped, coughing and bleeding.
"He's... a monster..." Ruck wheezed.
"We can't stop him..." Dorn whispered.
They staggered up.
Then they heard it:
"Had enough?"
Damien stood behind them.
Ruck turned, blood in his mouth. "I'M NOT SCARED! I'LL KILL YOU!"
Dorn growled, "We don't run!"
Damien's eyes narrowed.
"Very well. Weapon to weapon."
He slammed his foot into the ground.
RUMBLE.
The earth cracked in a wide ring around him.
Flames spiraled upward as the ground split open.
From the glowing fissure, a massive, radiant blade rose—its form pulsing with living flame.
SCORCHFANG.
The sword's hilt was jagged obsidian, veins of lava twisting through it. The blade itself glowed with divine fire, its edges licking with living embers.
Damien reached for it.
As he grasped the hilt, the sword ignited.
He spun it once, the air whooshing violently with each pass.
The flames roared.
Mira's eyes widened. "That sword... it came out of the earth itself. Like it was born from the world's fire."
Lila took a step back. "That's not just magic... it's alive. It's HIM."
Leo trembled, wide-eyed. "Big bro Damien... he's like a flame god..."
The twins charged.
"TWIN CYCLONE SMASH!"
Damien raised his sword.
"FANGFLAME SLASH!"
With one devastating swing, the flaming blade arced through the air.
SHHHHRRRAAAAANG!
It collided not with flesh—but the massive iron chain strapped to both of their upper backs.
The chain glowed red, cracked... and shattered.
Molten shards fell to the ground.
CLANG! CLINK! TSSSSSSS...
Ruck and Dorn stumbled apart.
They looked at each other, gasping.
"The chain... he... he broke it..." Ruck muttered.
"The Bloodbound Sentinel... it's gone..." Dorn whispered.
They clutched their backs where the chain had been fused for years.
The connection. The bond. Severed.
They felt it. The emptiness.
Ruck fell to his knees. "I don't feel you... I don't feel my brother..."
"The voice in my head... the strength we shared... it's all gone," Dorn mumbled, almost in a daze.
They looked up.
Damien stood silently.
Cloaked in fire.
His eyes glowing molten gold.
Scorchfang resting at his side.
The divine phoenix behind him, wings open.
They shook.
They were not just wounded—they were broken.
Let it be continued...