C25 Chapter 25

(RED's POV)

I bid farewell; somehow, we've become close, although it's not obvious. I know I'm going to miss them. As we walk, Yellow asks, "What do you think is in the burning mountain? We should pass through quickly."

"Fire, I guess, but the question is what kind," I reply, so we remain silent, feeling the heat around us. As we walk, suddenly, fog surrounds us, halting our steps.

"Blue, Yellow, are you there?" I ask, but even in a whisper, our sharp senses can hear each other.

"Yes, I can still sense your presence," Blue says. "Me too," adds Yellow.

I'm surprised when fire appears in front of me. As I reach for it, it moves away. I follow it, saying softly, "Blue, Yellow, I'm following this fire in front of me."

"We're following it too," they say. We continue walking, unable to see through the fog, but feeling we're getting closer to Blue and Yellow.

Suddenly, we sense many presences around us. The fire stops, and I see Blue and Yellow.

"Where are we?" Yellow asks.

"I have no idea, why are you asking me?" I reply with a raised eyebrow, earning an eye roll from Yellow.

As the fog clears, we're surrounded by men of our age, dressed in red, with fiery eyes and red-orange hair. They're all handsome.

"Wow! There are so many handsome guys!"

I exclaim before Blue hits me with a stick to keep our distance.

Their stares turn hostile. "Why are you here? Don't you know women aren't allowed here?!" one of them says menacingly.

Blue, Yellow, and I exchange glances. So, women aren't allowed here, that's why there are only men. Is that why it's called Burning Mountain? Because they're burning with hotness?

"Mind your own business," Yellow says. "Leave, let's talk," Blue adds.

"Hey! We didn't come here to fight. We just want to pass through to Selkon Town," I say, earning more hostile looks.

"What's wrong? Can't take what I said? Fine, let's go," I say with a smirk, annoyed by their reaction.

As we feel trapped within a circular fire, we wonder who did this. I quickly move away from Blue and Yellow, realizing we're too close.

"Blue, move away!" I say, so they do, but we're still within the circular fire. But it's too late; we're propelled out of the fire.

"Argh!" I cry out. Why is this happening?

I realize I've been thrown towards some strangers. I quickly get up, noticing the frowns on their faces.

I see Yellow with another group of boys, and Blue too. I narrowly avoid being hit by a guy with a fire knife and another with a fire whip.

We three gather, keeping a distance. "What should we do, Blue?" I ask.

"Should we fight? We can't be burned by fire," Yellow says.

"Let's just dodge for now, fight only when necessary," Blue suggests, dodging a fireball thrown at us.

So, we keep our distance. I notice Blue suddenly ensnared by a chain of fire, and then I'm enveloped by a net of fire, while Yellow is shackled by chains of fire. We see the surprise on their faces.

"Why aren't you burning?!" they exclaim, puzzled. I grin and swiftly extinguish the fire around me.

"Release them," the man who threw the fireball at me demands. I comply, and the fire restraints vanish.

As the tension eases, I turn to see nine men standing behind him. Blue teleports behind them, startling them.

"Is it painful to be surprised?" Blue asks, making them turn and clutch their chests.

I see Blue laughing, teleporting in front of them, causing them to turn away, searching for her.

"Where did she go?" one of them asks.

"BOO!" Blue shouts, startling them, and they accidentally hit him with a fireball, turning him into ice and disappearing.

"Seems like you guys get surprised easily," Blue says, teleporting to Yellow and me.

"What do you want?!" one of the nine asks, clearly their leader.

"There are so many of you here, and yet, it's this group leading," I say irritably.

They seem annoyed by my attitude, but they turn and ask us to follow them, so we do. As we walk, they lead the way, with many men behind them and us behind them.

We arrive at what seems like their village, with fiery designs and many shirtless men.

"You're here at Burning Mountain," one of them says,

"and you need to stay here for three days."