II - Ignis: The Knight in Blazing Armor

After the words left his mouth, Sora paused.

The name “Genesis Engine” somehow felt familiar, but at the same time, it feels foreign.

Sora tries to recall, but before his head starts drifting into thoughts, he slaps himself on his cheeks.

Sora: “Now it’s not the time, Sora Minami. You can’t let Akiha handle those zombie-like Mares alone.”

Sora let out a deep breath and gripped the sword handle firmly.

His veins experienced a warm surge of power as the air pulsed. It was the weird but similar sensation he had always envied.

For the first time… he didn't feel empty.

Sora: “Uwahhh…!!!”

Sora lifts the sword and jumps towards the group of Mares.

In the blink of an eye, he found himself standing next to Akiha, and a few Mares in the group were splitting into 2.

Sora: “Whoa…! This sword somehow made me faster and stronger! Awesome!”

Akiha turns her head, and her eyes widen.

Akiha: “Isn’t that…”

…The Genesis Engine? The one Ms. Inoue and the MHRA are looking for?

Akiha has many questions in her head right now.

I…It’s in that abandoned shrine all along? And, is Sora the vessel? But he can’t use magic…

But after glancing up at the group of Mares, Akiha decides to save the questions for later.

Akiha: “Sora… There are too many Mares, defeating and slashing them one by one might not be too good…”

Sora turns to her after cutting down one Mare.

Sora: “Then what should we do?”

Akiha hesitates for a while.

Guess we have no choice but to gamble.

Akiha pulls out a shiny gem from her pocket.

The gem is glowing fiery red, with a tinge of orange swirling inside.

Akiha: “Take this.”

Sora: “Alright… Wait… Isn’t that the Ignis Core from the legend and the books!? How did you have it?”

Akiha: “Let’s save the questions for later! Try inserting the core into the hole at the sword guard!”

Sora took the core in his palms, and the core felt really warm, as if he were holding a hot cup of tea.

He swallows some saliva.

Sora: “Alright… Insert the core into the hole…”

Sora slid the core into the slot under the sword's guard.

Set! Ignis!

The sword starts to let out a weird but cool-sounding chime.

Sora: “T… The sword talked! What should I do next uh…”

Akiha: “Try pressing the button? We don’t have much time!”

Sora lifts the sword and sees a button that looks similar to a gun trigger.

Sora: “And press!”

Sora pressed the button. Just then, a bunch of fireballs started surrounding him.

Sora: “Wha..!?”

The fireballs start fusing with him one by one, turning into armour parts as they fuse.

Sora: “Ow! Er… Henshin?”

The impact of the fireballs blasted a few Mares away. The brightness of it caused Akiha to turn away and shut her eyes tight.

Synchronization complete. Ignis mode activated.

Sora is now wearing sleek black armor with lines that resemble glowing magma. A blazing sword, half metal, half energy, radiates heat in his hand, and his crimson visor burns with firelight. Around him, ember sparks swirl like a living storm, and fiery wings flare dimly from his shoulders.

Sora: “Eh…WOAH…! I transformed, just like those in tokusatsu shows!”

Sora swings his sword chaotically and messily. Each strike creates massive slashes, cutting and burning down hordes of Mares at once.

Sora: “OOOH! Somehow… I got the feeling that I can do this!”

Strangely, his inexperienced swings had an odd rhythm, as though his hands were being guided by the blade itself.

Sora continues cutting them down, while Akiha summons a sword filled with fire, joining Sora in cutting them down, horde by horde.

But that is not enough to defeat all the Mares that are surrounding them.

One of the Mares managed to step closer and tried to land a scratch. Luckily, Sora managed to block the attack in time with his sword.

The block summoned a huge firewall, causing the Mare’s arm to be set on fire.

The Mare screamed and stepped back due to the overwhelming heat.

Akiha: “Sora! Try summoning a huge wave of fire with the sword! We can’t possibly cut them down horde by horde!”

Sora: “I know! A finishing move, just like the ones in the shows? Alright… Is it this?”

Sora pressed the trigger 3 times, and the fire on the sword started to increase its temperature and brightness.

Iginis! Finisher!

The sword starts to let out the same chime, but this time, the chime sounds more intense.

Sora: “Alright… And maybe…”

Sora slammed the core on the sword. A huge flame starts bursting on the blade.

Sora: “Take this!!!”

Sora swung his blade widely, summoning a huge wave of flames, which looked like the shape of a phoenix, which rushes at high speed and crashes into all the Mares at once.

Final Genesis: Burning Phoenix!!

The “Burning Phoenix” burns and cuts down all the remaining Mares into two. As Akiha watches the phoenix soar, she shields her face from the heat.

The Mares all shrieked, causing a huge shockwave that led Sora’s body to fly back mid-air.

Sora: “Whoa…!”

He crashes into the nearby building and falls flat onto the ground.

All the Mares start vanishing into ashes as heat shimmers in the air.

Akiha: “Sora!”

Akiha rushes towards him.

Lying down, Sora turned his body upwards and panted heavily. He gazed at Akiha, who was wearing a worried expression.

Sora: “Akiha… I finally did it…I became a Knig…”

Before he could finish, he fell into unconsciousness.

The fire's warmth turned cold. Then there was nothing, just a void that pounded softly like a dying heartbeat, with neither sound nor light.

***

Sora finds himself in pitched-black surroundings.

Sora tries calling out, wanting to know where he is and if anyone is nearby, but nothing comes out of his mouth.

He turned back and saw an old man with a long beard and his face covered with a hood.

The old man resembles the Sage’s statue.

He tried to talk again, but no words came out of his mouth. The old man raised his arm and tapped his forehead lightly.

???: “Go… Sora. Save the world, and become the world’s best knight.”

Before Sora could react, a bright light shone on his face, leading him to shut his eyes tight.

After a while, he opened them, and he found himself lying down, staring at a white ceiling.

Sora: “Where… Am I?”

???: “Sora!”

A girl with red hair sitting beside him called out and embraced him tightly.

Sora: “A..Akiha… I’m glad that you’re fine…But more importantly, where are we?”

???: “Sora Minami.”

A woman’s soft voice called out to him, the kind of voice that you will trust instinctively.

Sora turned in front, and he saw a woman with silver hair cascading down her shoulders, glimmering faintly in the bright room. Her presence feels… Oddly calming, like the surface of a still water after a storm.

???: “I’m Haruka Inoue, the commander of the Mana Hazard Response Agency, or the MHRA in short. We are a secret organization by the government that deals with Mares.”

Sora: “Oh… I see… Wait… Secret Organization? Government? Wha…”

Looking at Sora’s panicking face, Haruka smiles and nods calmly.

Haruka: “We are in the MHRA headquarters right now. And after you are done resting, we need to talk, Sora Minami. Or should I say… The vessel of the Genesis Engine?”

The room went quiet, with its sterile white walls and a faint hum of magic machinery.

Sora: “Eh…?”