With a sharp in take of breath Blaze sat bolt upright. His amber eyes shot open as he woke for the thousandth time. His nimble fingers rose to his eyes, which he rubbed. On his right hand – a simple tattoo of a black snake eating its own tail in a perfect circle. It was the only clue to what had just happened, the magic an old friend had cursed him with. With a slight groan he stretched his arms out to each side and arched his back to stretch out the long sleep.

With his freshly rubbed eyes the scene didn’t improve. Above him, maybe thirty feet was a crack in the fabric of reality. The realisation of what he had done came over him like a delayed hangover. He’d come through that portal.

The elf looked around himself, it seemed he had only made it through with the bare minimum of his gear. His old but trusty leather armour, black in colour and expertly made nearly one hundred and sixty years ago – and an efficient elven war bow. Blaze picked himself up and wiped down the dust and took a moment to take in his surroundings. Mostly rocks, it was hilly and there were tall trees spotted around. There was the slight stink of rotten eggs – but not quite. It was familiar that smell, he was by a volcano.

A while later the elf had found wrapped himself in a hooded black cloak, he had made his way up the mountain and found a trail; he followed it and came to a cave. His keen eyes studied the sky, dusk was approaching. A grin nearly formed on his face, how opportune. The elf took a few silent steps into the cave and realised it was in fact a tunnel – a tunnel that lead to a plateau of blackened rock some fifty feet above the bubbling lava of the volcano.

Blaze dropped his bow when he saw the person standing there, in the middle of the volcano.

“How, what gods could do this?” He asked himself as the wooden bow hit the stone floor and revealed his presence. The elf didn’t hesitate to lower his hood and take a few steps forwards. “I first met your father in a place like this.” Blaze said warmly to his nephew. A wide grin across his face.

The young man needed time to think.  He'd set himself off to heal his heart from losing his parents.  Lady Dalanesca had killed his father, Sabishii, herself.  His mother, Seraphia, she was either dead or just . . . gone.  His father sealed her when she was affected by the curse of the Seven Deadly Sins, and when all was said and done, Hiro went to release his mother, the bonds were broken, and she was just gone in a pool of blood.  There's a tombstone for both of them.  He tried not to let himself be consumed by anger and sorrow.  Lady Angela offered him a place to recover and mend himself in her shrine.

But then Lady Angela herself was struck down by Lady Dalanesca, or something wearing her skin.  It didn't really matter whether she was being controlled, or it was Dalanesca herself.  Angela was in a bad place, she was hurt really badly.  So Hiro took himself to the volcano to clear his mind, to meditate and train.  His father and mother's blood allowed him to stand in the middle of a pool of lava without harm.

Hiro wasn't even sure how long he had been there when he heard a voice call out to him.  A familiar voice he hadn't heard in a long, long time.  Hiro turned around, for he was facing away from the entrance of the tunnel.  His eyes had an irritated and tired look to them, as if he had spent a long time crying, not sleeping, and suffering alone, especially in this volcano.  He had his crimson armor on, but it looked like it hadn't been polished or maintained in awhile.  It was covered in soot and dirt.

"Wha . . . who?"  Hiro rubbed the dirt from his eyes until he could see more clearly.  "Y-you can't be . . .  you can't be real, you must be a figment of my imagination.  You can't be my Uncle Blaze, can you?  From DaeLuin?"  Hiro started moving wearily through the lava pool, climbing himself out of it, and tripping right at the end.  "Y-you can't be Uncle Blaze.  My family's gone.  Mother's gone, Father's dead, Lady Angela got stabbed by that bitch Dalanesca.  S-She's trying to take everything from me!  She got rid of my mother, my father, Angela's next, oh God . . . "  Hiro was crying, tearing running from his eyes.  "I've been crying so long, I didn't think I had any tears left.  But they're still coming!"

A few tears rolled down his cheeks as the elf rushed over to the young man his nephew had become. Blaze dropped to a knee beside Hiro and pulled him into a hug. “It is me Hiro.” He said reassuringly. Subconsciously Blaze ran a hand through Hiro’s hair as the boy told him of the tragedies that had befallen his family. Hiro’s tears cleaned the soot from his face – two pale lines in black soot. Blaze released Hiro slightly so that he could look into his eyes as he spoke.

“How long have you been here Hiro? In this mountain?” By the looks of it, the answer was a while. Hiro’s armour was covered in a layer of soot and smoke. Blaze rubbed the shoulder of the boys armour in a small circle. The ruby red colour shone through again. Blaze gave his nephew an encouraging smile. “Come, stand up.” Blaze helped him up, and kept his arm around Hiro’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry that I was too late to help them.” Blaze said simply. He was, deeply sorry. Sabishii was one of his oldest friends – one that had been loyal to a fault. He’d been a just man, pious and unyielding. The elf considered a moment, but then spoke again. “I am here now Hiro, and I will always be here for you.” Blaze wondered how much Hiro remembered of his uncle; and the accidental curse a former god had put on him. Now wasn’t the time to go on about that though, now he had to get his nephew somewhere safe. “Come, lets get out of here.”

“Do you have a house? Or maybe there is a tavern nearby?” Blaze picked up his bow and put it over his shoulder. “Do you have any money? I came through a portal with what I’m stood in.”

Hiro came face to face with his Uncle Blaze, he remembered this man trained him on how to use a bow.  He remembered he was a tailor, Blaze was always making clothing for his father, Sabishii, so he was dressed nicely.  He couldn't remember about a curse thing.  His Uncle embraced him in a hug, helping him up, and wiping some of the shoot from his armor.

"Oh god, Uncle, I've missed you so much," he hugged Blaze back, feeling the warmth he radiated, it reminded him of his father.  He was back on his feet, with Blaze supporting him.  "I've lost track of what day it is.  I went here after I saw what happened to Lady Angela.  Lady Dalanesca stabbed her in the heart.  They say she was possessed.  They hugged, then Dalanesca stabbed her when Lady Angela trusted her the most."   Hiro and Blaze started walking through the tunnel.  "Thank you.  Thank you, Uncle Blaze."

Blaze asked him if he had a house, or if there was a tavern nearby.  He asked if there was any money in his possession too.  "I have a house that belonged to Father, his old smithy shop and home.  It's in Sularia, another continent over.  I haven't been visiting there much, because it hurts to go there.  But I've been paying the money to keep the building.  I've been staying in Elsiya, Lady Angela's temple.  She opened her home to me.  There's taverns in Iria, the closest city.  This continent, Pavrora, doesn't believe in the Gods.  I have money, if you need anything.  I imagine you only have the clothes and equipment on your back."  They managed to get outside, the sun burned Hiro's dry eyes, causing him to squint.  It hurt to look in the daylight, considering how long he'd been down in there.

“I’m pleased that he managed to open a shop – I remember him talking about doing it someday. I think I remember him having a forge in his temple when he was avatar. I’m not sure now, it was so long ago.” Blaze continued to hold his nephew as they walked, truth be told he wasn’t feeling to steady either having just dropped through a portal in the sky and all.

Hiro told him about his own house, and where he had been staying. Not many of the names made sense to him, but he still followed well enough. “I’ll need to see a few maps, get my bearings and that.” As they talked, they made it down the mountain and then to the nearest town.

As they walked Blaze had time to scan the landscape, he had seen animals like deer, birds like sparrows and even a few people in the distance. He killed a deer with his bow as they made their way through the forest, after preparing it for the journey the pair made it into town, then immediately towards the market. Things didn’t seem much different around here than back home. A slight grin creased his otherwise creaseless elven face. Blaze sold the carcass – (save for a leg) picked up a few things at the market; a map of the known world, a simple needle and thread and a roll of hardwearing black fabric.

He smiled at his nephew. (Whom had ended up carrying both a large bolt of fabric and the full, meaty back leg of a deer.) “Lets pop into this tavern then, see what passes for beer here.” Blaze held open the door for his nephew(donkey) and gestured towards the leg of venison. “See if we can’t get that cooked up, I’m starving, are you?” It had been a busy morning though.

Hiro could feel that Blaze wasn't so steady on his feet either, considering he just dropped from a portal from another world.  So they supported each other.  That was what family was for.

"He did have a forge.  I know he forged his prized weapon Temenos with the forge in his temple.  He was able to bring back a part of that weapon to this world, though it was broken.  I did manage to get it reforged, by Lady Angela's grand-niece or whatever, Tempest.  She's an eccentric young blacksmith.  If only Father could've met her.  I named it Empyrean, I have it on me, but now's not the time to show you my weapons, of course."

Hiro and Blaze managed to get into the forest, and even hunt down a deer.  Uncle Blaze was as skilled a hunter as any he'd seen.  They arrived at town, and Hiro ended up carrying the materials that Blaze bought with the money he earned from selling the deer carcass.  The weight didn't bother him, considering he was used to wearing armor and such.  They arrived at the local tavern, Blaze asked if he was hungry, because they could get the leftover leg of venison cooked up.  He heard an audible growl from his stomach.

"Ah . . .  yes, I'm starving.  I can't remember when I last ate something decent.  Or anything at all.  While you go do that, I'll arrange a room for us to stay in here."  Hiro said with a smile.  He separated from Blaze so he could make the arrangements for an inn room for the two of them.  Once the arrangements were done, he walked back to Blaze who was sitting at a table.  "So.  How are you feeling, Uncle Blaze?  I know you just got dropped out of the sky from another world.  I hope you are feeling all right.  Not feeling sick or anything, are you?"