Let It Rain Down Hellfire

General Weller has a good head start on me. But that was his plan! He didn't want to stick around for very long. He just wanted to ensure I was in a good spot for him to throw something big at me. Well, he messed up. I've been continually underestimated because I'm trying to be political about this. I don't want people to get hurt. I don't want to show that magic is a power solely used for violence.

That doesn't mean that I'm above using it for such means.

Anne begins her journey to the others leaving me in the middle of the smoldering pile of what was our tent. I'm still feeling good. I can feel the leftovers in my body from the snap reaction I had. It would be a shame to waste it.

I hop in place a few times to try and get my timing right. I've only been able to quick-step short distances but I'm feeling adventurous. I pick up my paws as the world around me blurs. I come to a stop looking behind me at the dust trail I left behind all the way to the cloud of dust that's still hovering where the tent used to stand. Whatever they hit us with was heavy.

I look forward to see the cloud of the vehicle still hanging in the air. One more jump forward and I passed them. They're cruising along at a good pace but that comes to a stop when the driver notices me. I hear them slam on the breaks. The tires grind on the dirt before they come to a stop. I spread my arms out with a bloody smile on my face, "Want to try again?"

All three doors open. His guards move out first with him behind them, clapping and laughing. : I should have known better, shouldn't I?"

"Yea! You really should of! But I would like to know what you hit me with."

"Regular ol' predator drone."

He hit me with a missile! And I walked away! "What do we do now, General? I'll have to admit that I've never been in a situation like this." He steps around the vehicle and leans on the hood, "I guess you just die here instead." He didn't have to give more of an order. His guards started spinning up something but I'm not in the mood to play with them. I wave a paw at both of them. They're stopped in their tracks before they crumble to the dirt.

I'm not here to play around. Now the General seems to understand this. "Maybe we can work something out."

"You should have tried that before. What you don't know is that the world has seen what you just tried to do. And! You tried to get a civilian involved in it! That's a war crime."

"You've already been marked as a terrorist leader of a terrorist organization. Anyone who associates with you is considered an enemy."

"Right, because I've done so much to induce fear. Or is that because you're scared now?"

He was reliant on his guards. Without them, he's started moving away from me to try and put distance between us. I quick-step behind him putting my arm around him, "But what do you have to be scared of? It's not like you tried to kill me. That would give me justification to fight back." Every muscle in his shoulder tensed when I touched him. He knows he's been beaten. I wonder if he'll break down or face me with pride as he expected me. "Tell me, General, did you bring an army with you? Or just those two? I've been curious about just how powerful I am. And if I can take on, say, an armored division or just a few platoons, that would be amazing for me to really see what I'm capable of."

He refuses to answer. "Come on, what did you bring?" At that question, everything seems to shift a bit. I can see further beyond my regular sight as I'm whisked away across the desert. I see a simple tent where there is a room of people operating the drone that was tasked with killing me. But outside that tent are vehicles, a couple of tanks, and soldiers with weapons scattered everywhere. And every single one looks ready for a fight.

I'm brought back as I blink. It reminds me of when I when "read" the old journals. They would take me to the time and place that they were written and tell me the stories they had to share. But this was in the present. This was here and now. "Did you expect to fail? Or did you just prepare in case your first option did?" He continues to tense up the more I speak.

"Get running. And tell them where to find me. Otherwise, the world will know of your folly." I slap him on the back pushing him forward past his dead men in the dirt. He looks back before he starts running away. "Go faster! I don't want to be waiting for long!" As I watch him run through the dirt and sand, the only thing I can think of is that movie where the main character is being chased all his life by these bullies.

I'll at least be polite and wait by the vehicle. I'm going to keep my eyes on the sky in case they try and send that drone back after me. I know they're hard to see but not impossible. I won't rule out that it's something that they would try again. Being next to this vehicle only makes me an easier target. But I am curious to see if I can take a second one.

I wait patiently. I think I saw the drone flying overhead once but lost it in the sun. The heat is starting to climb as the day goes on. I use my abilities to keep most of it off of me. I have my little bubble of a comfortable temperature while I try to clean myself up a bit more. A lot of the blood has dried. All the cuts inside my mouth have closed as well. I'm not going to be pretty but I should probably try.

I use the side view mirror to make an attempt at it. The dust cloud growing on the horizon catches my attention. I sure hope General Weller is with them. It just wouldn't be as fun without him! I start to walk toward the dust cloud wondering if they're going to be civil before they try to fight me once again. The closer they get, the more I can see. There is a personal vehicle that is leading them. It's just a standard humvee.

My wish came through. Someone does want to talk to me! The humvee rolled up to a stop with the General stomping out. He's got a few more folks with him this time. "Red Welch! This is your only warning to stand down!"

"General! I'm not the aggressor here! You threw a missile at me! And the world saw it!"

He didn't like that answer. He stomped off without another word circling his finger in the air. The other soldiers load themselves back into the Humvee before turning around and trying to kick dirt into my face. The tires spun to no effect as they moved back to the front line. I'll give him one more chance to make this right. I'm not going to be the one who attacks first. But I'm also not going to trust him not to attack.

I set up a barrier like before focusing the brunt of it in front of me. I'm going to reinforce it more than I did for the first one. I won't need to take a missile this time but a tank shell can do quite a sizable bit of damage.

My vision goes a bit blurry. Not from the use of power but the power of the barrier. It straightens itself out to where I can see again. I'm just waiting for the first move. There's a cloud of dust that's kicked up in the distance. I may have had an accurate guess on the tank shell. I hear the impact to my left. I feel the pressure as the shell buries itself in the dirt. It was close. Just a few more feet to the right and it would have been a direct hit. I see another cloud of dust and I can almost see it travel. I hold steady waiting for the impact. I can feel the blast in my core as the shell makes an impact on the barrier. Everything around me is kicked up as the barrier takes the brunt turning the shell into shrapnel. The pieces are thrown into the ground and over me into the air. I hear a few pieces hit the vehicle behind me. Looking back, there are some chips in the windshield.

That's enough for me to consider that this is a deliberate attack on my person. The barrier is trashed. It won't be able to take another hit like that. I let it disperse into the area around me. Under the cover of the dust, I begin to gather power for my own use. I'm not going to wait around for another hit.

I'm reminded of the fire at Madam Odette's manor over a year ago. I summoned storm clouds to bring in the rain to help extinguish the fire. I want to show what I can do. I want to show myself what I can do. That spell will be a base but it won't be raining.

The clouds begin to form overhead bringing dreaded darkness to the area. I can feel the pressure in the air change the more I gather. There's plenty of heat that I can draw from and bring into this mixture. Thunder begins to roar from above while lightning starts to jump from cloud to cloud. I can hear the sounds of the machines they brought whirling up to get closer.

I remember back when I first tried this that it took everything I had to build up the storm to a level that it could assist with the fire. So far, this feels easy. I begin inserting the heated elements into the mix turning these black clouds into a dark red. The lighting changes from electricity to strings of fire. As they run across the sky, they drop fire that fizzles before it hits the ground.

One managed to strike the ground in front of me leaving a pyre where it hit. The flame goes from a roaring pillar to a simple flame before sizzling out. The forward advancement is brought to a halt. I continue to build the power above me, working it to a form that I can use. I think I can hear faint yelling in the distance of one pissed-off General Weller but he's quickly drowned out by another strike nearby,

Everything feels good. I don't feel strained as I work this into a frenzy. The thunder roars as spits of fire begin to rain from the sky. One lands close to me and I can feel the unnatural heat. It's not just warm but searing. I see more of these begin to fall from the sky before me landing among the convoy of vehicles and troops trying to make sense of what's happening. I can hear the beginning of commotion as they try to scatter for cover.

I see a large red ball land on one of the vehicles engulfing it instantaneously. The panic now begins as they have nowhere to hide. "Come on General! You wanted a fight but you can't handle a little extreme weather!" More of these flames begin to fall. I can hear some people barking orders while others are trying to get out of the area. Within minutes, a sea of flames burns on the desert ground where they once stood.

The yelling stops, the vehicles cease, and all goes quiet. The crackling of flaming thunder brings me peace as though it would on a rainy night. The warm glow of the fires lightens up the dark skies. Even with the sun hidden away, it's clear as day. The radiating heat is comforting to me knowing that this isn't the full extent of what I can do. Yet now I know that if I am threatened, I am more than capable of defending myself and others.

I revel at the moment. A decisive victory that I will use to send shockwaves across the world. You do not come after me. You do not disrupt my ideals. You do not cross me. I want a world where mages can live in peace and I will ensure that this goal is obtained. I dare anyone to try and stop me now. Any army from any nation. I will make them kneel before me.

One more goal accomplished.

One more tail achieved.