Aizen's Truth
---
The flames around the mountaintop did not rage.
They burned quietly, as if waiting.
Nero, Angel, and Nagel had climbed the last ridge, their bodies aching, but none of them spoke.
Because ahead of them—
Standing at the edge of the cliff, surrounded by fire that didn't burn him—
Was Aizen.
The Lord of Flames.
Waiting.
---
(The Distance Between Them)
Nero stepped forward.
Aizen did not turn.
"You finally made it," Aizen said, his voice calm, almost welcoming.
Angel gripped her sword. "So it's true. You planned this."
Aizen exhaled. "Of course I did."
Nero's fists clenched.
"Why?"
Finally, Aizen turned.
His golden eyes pierced into Nero's soul.
"Because the fire was never meant to be mine."
---
(A Truth That Burned)
The flames around Aizen shifted, moving like they were alive.
"This power," Aizen continued, "was always waiting for someone stronger than me."
Nero frowned. "Stronger? You're the Lord of Flames!"
Aizen chuckled. "Am I?"
For the first time, Nero saw it.
Aizen was burning.
His arms were scarred with fire, his skin cracked like molten stone.
Nagel cursed under his breath. "What the hell happened to you?"
Aizen's gaze softened.
"I lost the war against the fire a long time ago."
---
(The Fire's True Nature)
Aizen raised a hand, and the flames responded instantly.
Golden embers rose into the air, forming shapes—figures, warriors, monsters.
"The fire isn't just power," Aizen said.
"It's alive."
Angel's breath caught. "What?"
Aizen nodded.
"It has always been alive. And it doesn't just burn. It chooses."
---
(Why Nero Was Chosen)
The flames shifted, forming a figure that looked exactly like Nero.
Nero stepped back, his heart pounding.
Aizen continued.
"The fire didn't just come to me. It came to many before me. Warriors, kings, heroes. It whispers to them. Tests them. And if they're not strong enough—"
Aizen clenched his fist.
"The fire burns them from the inside out."
Nero's blood ran cold.
"So… I was just next in line?"
Aizen smiled sadly.
"No. You were the first one the fire didn't reject."
---
(Aizen's Regret)
Angel narrowed her eyes. "You knew this would happen to him."
Aizen nodded.
"I hoped I could teach him. Guide him. But the fire had other plans."
Nagel scoffed. "So that's it? You just handed him a death sentence?"
Aizen's voice was quiet.
"I didn't choose Nero."
"The fire did."
---
(A Choice That Couldn't Be Avoided)
The fire flared, forming a burning pathway toward Aizen.
"You're at the edge now, Nero," Aizen said.
"You have two choices."
Nero swallowed hard. "And what are they?"
Aizen's eyes darkened.
"You can embrace the fire completely… become something greater than any human before you."
Nagel tensed. "And if he doesn't?"
Aizen's voice was quiet.
"Then the fire will take him… just like it took me."
Silence.
The fire whispered, waiting.
Nero clenched his fists.
Because now, he knew the truth.
This was never about power.
This was about survival.
---
(The Fire's Whisper)
A deep voice echoed through the flames.
Not Aizen's.
Not his own.
Something else.
"You have already been chosen."
Nero staggered, gripping his head.
The fire was speaking to him directly now.
Nagel swore. "What the hell was that?"
Aizen watched him carefully.
"The fire has finally accepted you. That means there's no turning back."
Angel shook her head. "No. We can find another way!"
Aizen sighed.
"There is no other way."
---
(The Path to the Future)
Nero looked up at Aizen, then at his friends.
His heart pounded.
Every choice led to a different future.
One where he accepted the fire.
Or one where he let it consume him.
And as the flames rose higher, Nero whispered—
"What am I supposed to do?"
And the fire answered.
---
The fire spoke again.
"You have already been chosen."
The words echoed inside Nero's head, pressing into his thoughts like searing metal.
His vision blurred.
His chest tightened.
And deep inside, he felt it—something shifting, something changing.
Like the fire had already begun to reshape him.
To claim him.
---
(The Fire's Final Demand)
Aizen watched him carefully.
"You feel it now, don't you?"
Nero clenched his fists. "I don't—"
His breath hitched.
The fire wasn't just whispering.
It was pulling.
"Accept me."
The voice was deep, ancient.
"Become what you were meant to be."
The flames flickered wildly, as if waiting for his answer.
---
(Angel and Nagel's Desperation)
Angel took a step closer, her voice sharp.
"Nero, fight it. You don't have to do this!"
Nagel's grip on his axe tightened. "Yeah, screw this 'chosen' nonsense. We've come too far for you to just give in now."
Aizen exhaled slowly. "You still don't understand. This isn't about choice anymore."
Nagel turned on him.
"You're wrong," he snapped. "There's always another way."
Aizen's expression darkened.
"You think I don't know that?"
He lifted his arm—his burned, cracking skin barely holding together.
"I tried to fight it. And the fire tore me apart."
His golden eyes locked onto Nero.
"You won't be that lucky."
---
(The Fire's Control Tightens)
Heat coiled around Nero's arms, moving on its own.
Not attacking.
Just… waiting.
Like it was testing his resolve.
"You are already mine."
The voice of the fire was calm now. Certain.
And Nero realized—
It had never been afraid of him.
It had simply been waiting for him to accept what he was becoming.
---
(Aizen's Warning)
Aizen stepped forward, fire wrapping around his form like chains.
"You have seconds, Nero."
The ground beneath them cracked. The flames surrounding the mountaintop grew brighter.
"Either embrace it fully," Aizen said, "or let it consume you from the inside out."
Nero's pulse pounded in his ears.
His body felt like it was splitting apart.
Like the fire was already deciding for him.
---
(The Choice That Couldn't Be Avoided)
Angel grabbed his arm.
"We'll find another way!"
Nagel stepped in front of him.
"You're stronger than this damn fire, Nero. Prove it."
Aizen shook his head.
"He doesn't have that luxury anymore."
He looked at Nero one last time.
"Choose."
Nero gritted his teeth.
His flames roared, curling around him.
This was it.
His body was failing.
The fire wasn't going to wait anymore.
He had to decide.
And so—
He did.
---
End of Chapter 21
. The fire makes its final demand—Nero must accept it or be consumed.
.Angel and Nagel refuse to let him go, desperate for another way.
.Aizen's warning—there is no escape. Nero has seconds to decide.
.The moment of choice—Nero finally makes his decision.
Next up: Chapter 22: The Price of Power—What did Nero choose? And what will it cost him.