In the last instant before the massive log smashed into him and the tree beside him, the air above Rain's right arm fractured, splintering into shards of glass that hung in the air for the briefest heartbeat.

  From those shards, a steel round shield erupted into being, heavy and solid in his grip.

  The impact came a breath later.

  The log hit like a battering ram, the sheer force hurling Rain a dozen meters through the air. The tree he had been using for cover split with a sharp crack, the top half collapsing in a shower of leaves. The log itself splintered on impact with the shield, exploding into jagged chunks that tore through the underbrush.

  Rain hit the ground hard, but rolled to his feet before the dust could settle. He should have been dead, every nerve told him so, but his future self was already moving, already assessing. He glanced at the shield. The lower half had been bent inward, nearly crushing his forearm in the blow. With a heavy exhale, he let it dissolve back into the same fractured void it had come from.

  The shield had saved his life. But the pain in his arm and ribs told him the forest guardian had still managed to leave its mark.

  The giant, undeterred, shifted its gaze to the fleeing girl and the wounded boy in the distance. It stooped, gnarled fingers curling around another log as thick as a man's torso. Rain's mind locked on a single truth: if it reached them, they were dead.

  The air around his left arm cracked, glass-like fractures spiderwebbing outward. From them, a bronze javelin materialized, its weight familiar in his grasp.

  A creeping warmth walked up along his palm, a fine line of flame intertwinning his fingers, moving up his arm, before roaring through his body like wildfire. His skin prickled. His breath shortened. His very soul felt as if it were burning alive.

  'What's happening to me?'

  Future Rain's face remained calm, but every muscle was taut with focus. He drew the javelin back, the heat intensifying until the weapon itself began to glow, first at the base of it, then racing down the shaft, enveloping it in rippling orange light.

  The giant turned toward him, raising the log overhead.

  Rain threw.

  The javelin cut the air in less than a heartbeat, a streak of molten light. When it struck, the blast tore through the giant's side, sending a shockwave that rattled the forest. Broken wood, dirt, and smoke erupted outward, swallowing the monster in a choking cloud.

  Rain dropped to one knee, coughing blood violently. It seems he overdid himself. Flames licked stubbornly across his hand before fading. His chest heaved.

  'That... My Reflection is controlling fire.'

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  It was more than he could have hoped for. Elemental Reflections were rare, fire rarer still, and its destructive force was legendary. The thought alone eased a weight in his chest. Maybe... just maybe... he could survive this.

  The smoke shifted.

  The giant staggered forward, missing half of its right side, but still moving, still radiating murderous intent.

  Rain forced himself upright, summoning a steel sword into his grip. A fine blade basking in the sunlight of the forest, reflecting its light outward.

  Charging at full speed towards the giant, he held nothing back.

  The giant's massive fist crashed down where he had been, the ground quaking beneath the blow. Rain slid to the side, heat flaring in his chest again, hot, but bearable. The blade in his hands ignited, fire tracing along its length. He slashed at the monster's arm, the flames hissing against its bark-like hide. The cut was shallow, barely inflicting damage.

  He didn't stop.

  Darting between its legs, he aimed for joints, tendons, any weak point. However, its natural armor stopped each strike. The fire sputtered against it.

  'Too strong.'

  His breath grew ragged. Each swing was weaker than the last. One mistake, just one, and it would be over.

  The giant lashed out behind it, forcing Rain to dive forward. As he scrambled to his feet, the tentacle-like roots hanging from its shoulders whipped down, wrapping around his arms and legs. The sword fell from his grasp as he was yanked upward, the air knocked from his lungs.

  There's no way... I'm going to die. I'm dead.

  The giant lifted him high, its remaining arm drawing back while Rain tried prying his way out.

  The blow sent him sailing through the air like a rag doll, his body smashing into a thick tree with a wet crack. The trunk bowed under the force, forcing the bark to splinter. His vision tunneled into darkness.

  When it returned, the world was a blur of red. Blood dripping into his eyes. Every breath was fire in his ribs. His half-open eyes struggling to focus, but still, he clearly saw the giant moving towards him.

  Rain's left hand twitched. A low, broken laugh escaped his lips.

  "I'm not going alone, you bastard."

  The heat erupted inside him, far greater than before. His blood boiled, cauterizing his wounds from the inside. The pain caused him to scream from the top of his lungs. Fire poured from every pore, racing up his arms, spilling into the dirt at his feet. He could barely see, but he didn't need to; he felt the flames bending to his will.

  Standing up, his breath exhaling dark smoke caused by the fire inside him. His body was an inferno given human form, his outline shimmering in the rippling air. Each step toward the creature left blackened footprints in the soil.

  The giant hesitated, mid-stride.

  Memories flashed in the firelight, his parents' faces by a campfire, the glow of burning trash in the slums, the warmth that had carried him through the coldest nights. For the first time, he saw them clearly, and for the first time in this memory, he could hear his thoughts.

  'Mom...Dad...I'm sorry.'

  Fire had always been with him.

  And now he would die with it.

  With a roar that shook the trees, Rain unleashed everything. The flames surged outward in a tidal wave, circling the giant's feet, climbing its legs like entangling vines holding it in place, engulfing it in a single, consuming column of fire. The roar of the blaze drowned out the monster's screams. Sap hissed and boiled from its bark, dripping like molten glass.

  Rain pushed harder, his body shaking as if the fire would tear him apart from within. The air itself burning and warping, and the giant's silhouette convulsed before collapsing inward, reduced to a smoldering husk.

  The hungry flames disappeared with the wind carrying the dead Shards' ashes.

  Rain stood amidst the ashes, swaying. He managed a faint, victorious smile.

  "Heh... told you I'd get you."

  Then his knees gave way, and the black claimed him, reducing him to ashes.

  His Selection was over.