Magic can kill the user. That's a well-known fact between mages. The power of the arcane is both powerful and harmful. Since the body itself can't regulate it without the consciousness.
The ember spark flashed with light as it ignited with the flame Zephyr kept. Merlin waved her hand around it, trying to form it as best as possible.
Elementals are some of the strongest beings in the world, rivaling dragons and ancient spirits in their might. The ancient scholar Olivia once said. that if dragons are 100 in power, then they have 50/50 between physical strength and elemental energy. Elementals are 90, with that whole 90 dedicated to their elemental magic. A dragon can't win against them in a fight of magic.
"Here she comes. I was right." Zephyr smiled, "That nova should've killed Ann if your curse witch didn't direct it toward the wall at the last moment." She stared at the flames, "But that was all good. She sealed this spark after all."
"We have Doma to thank for that," Arad said, extending his hand toward the flames. "That attack was reckless."
"How did she do that as a mere soul?" Merlin sighed and looked at Arad, "It's your turn again, break all the chains."
"I ready, send me in." Arad cracked his neck.
Merlin waved her hand, and the whole room disappeared. Arad found himself standing in a large wasteland of rock, mountains, and hills. A massive orb of fire flew in the air while chained to the ground with golden chains.
^Amber's magic was actively trying to break her body down. It wasn't a side effect, but one of the flames' main purposes.^ Arad took a step, and flames burst from the orb, charring the ground.
^But the flames' main purpose wasn't killing Amber. It was only getting rid of her weak human body. It was probably close to how draconic sorcerers can grow wings and scales over time. But the process and result differ from one origin of power to another.^
Arad approached the first of the ten chains, grabbing it with his hands. Using all of his might, he shattered it with one move.
^The flames were trying to transform her into something akin to a fire elemental, an evolution like mine.^ He stared at the next chains as the flames got hotter.
^And like me, Amber needed something that she didn't have. The Infernal spark is a source of power to sustain her transformation. Just like how the cursed metal is for me, and without it, I could die mid-evolution.^
CRACK! Arad shattered the second chain.
^Doma only knew that if Amber's flames wanted her dead, she would have burned first before unleashing that attack. But the flames obeyed her to the end, and only burned her last. For that reason, she cursed Amber's soul so she wouldn't leave the mortal world and remain as a fire spark. The same curse that keeps people's souls wandering the world as ghosts and vengeful beings.^
CRACK! CRACK! Arad broke the third and fourth chains, and the fire exploded again, melting the mountains around.
^We had her preserved, but none of us was an expert in fire or its magic. Even Doma didn't study it much but had only focused on curses.^
CRACK! The fifth chain broke, and Arad took a step toward the sixth. ^The only reason we knew of the infernal spark, and this whole thing is Zephyr. As a high spirit, she knew some people who were experts in fire.^
Arad shattered the sixth chain, ^The fire spirit.^
^Since the ritual already failed once. The world would reject her back to the elemental plane of fire where she would serve the goddess there for all eternity, probably why she let her use the power in the first place.^ Arad broke the seventh chain.
^Those are the chains that pull her there, and that's why I need to break them. Usually, it's an impossible feat, but I alone can do it since my void can isolate me from the spark that burns everything.^ He looked at the fire. ^Those aren't Amber's flames. They are coming from the elemental plane of fire. This whole place is like a land between the worlds.^
CRACK! Arad shattered the eighth chain, and the ground started melting.
^We had to go through several steps. Sealing Amber's soul. Which was done by Doma. Getting the infernal spark which I did dig out of the burning land beside the capital. Merlin was the one to put Amber's soul inside the infernal spark. And now I'm here to break the chains.^
CRACK! He shattered the ninth chain, and the fire got so hot that matter started flying through his void, reaching into his scales.
Arad's body started expanding as he transformed into his draconic form, empowering his void as he walked across the hellish blaze of the plane of fire. In that place, there is no air to breathe, no solid land to stand on, and not a single drop of natural magic in the land besides fire.
Outside, Merlin looked at her hand. "The demi-plane I made is quaking. It's about to happen again." She looked at Zephyr, "Another blast. Do you think he would survive it?"
"He has an elemental advantage over her," Zephyr replied, "The void is a high element, just like light and time. He should survive as long as he can endure the heat and lack of air. But we can be sure his body won't combust out of nowhere like how everything else ends in the flames of the elemental plane of fire."
Zephyr sighed, "Or this is at least what the Fire Spirit said. She's even providing us with a vessel. I doubt she'll deceive us at this point."
CRACK! Arad shattered the tenth chain, seeing the flames around his rage into a blood-red blaze, shifting to blue. He stood there, staring at the orb where Amber's soul and the infernal spark were. He should pull her out.
SWOSH! The flames disappeared, and he took a step back, hearing the silence as a tiny, blindingly-white speck of dust flew from the ground.
[SURVIVE THIS AND I'LL LET YOU HAVE THAT WOMAN!]