Nightfall had claimed the folks of Crocus once more. With the sun being replaced by the moon, the streets of the capital found themselves empty for the most part. There were the bars filled with drunkards and foot soldiers patrolling the streets. In the mix of these two was a red-haired mage carrying a golden book by his side.

With every swift turn, Shin found himself nearing an empty grassy field away from the presence of the soldiers. This grassy terrain would be the canvas for his call to the heavens. It was a coin toss as to whether this would even work but he had come to far not to give it a shot. He was close to being a god. The god that was bound to him element was Hephaestus, the god of fire. Further reading revealed that Hephaestus was usually among the gods forgotten by the world. He possessed a leadership skill that his followers clung to and he was able to hold his own during bouts of combat. His fire was his greatest weapon, bringing beauty and destruction both. It was this beautiful destruction Shin hoped to achieve.

As he stepped onto the grassy terrain before him, the city lights behind began to fade into the darkness. All that was left to guide him was the light of the moon and his own flames. Taking a knee, he opened the golden book to the page describing the ritual. All that was required for him to do was to recreate the symbol shown in the book and speak the word written underneath it. If done correctly, the symbol would glow and god of fire would be before him... or so the book stated. Only way to find out would be to conduct the ritual for himself.

Grabbing a branch from a nearby tree, Shin began to etch a large circle in the dirt ground beneath him. The soil was rather fertile making the process a lot easier and less time consuming. Once he had made the circle, he proceeded to create a pair of stars through it. In total, their would be ten points spreading out from the circle representing the flares of the sun. Finishing the etch of the strange sun, Shin tossed aside the branch and stepped away from his creation. Placing his palms together, he closed his eyes as if in a prayer. This was a strange thing to do for him as he was never one to engage in prayers. Keeping his eyes closed, he dropped to his knees and placed his hands on the ground before him. After a brief moments pause, he took in a deep breath and a single word escaped his lips, being heard by no one but him. The word brought with it a heavy breeze that had the blades of grass dancing in its wind. The word spoken by Shin was one that translated to burn. With it, the god Hephaestus would heed his call and reveal itself. The word spoken by Shin was Aduro.

The heavy breeze increased in velocity, nearly knocking a few of the smaller trees. The winds brought with them a heat that caused the surrounding area to increase in temperature similar to that of a desert. Wiping a few beads of sweat from his forehead, Shin shifted his attention to the dirt sketch of the sun. A ring of fire surrounded the sketch taking the form of the sun etched into the ground. Streams of fire reached to the sky, dancing to the winds tune under the light of the moon. From the fires rose a figure engulfed in intense flames. Pushing its arms aside, the flames dispersed and the intense winds dispersed leaving a colossal being.

Setting foot on the grassy terrain was a large man with a blond ponytail along with a black and gold robe. Resting on his chest was the symbol Shin had etched into the ground. Taking a moment to survey his surroundings, the being set his gaze on Shin who was struggling to his feet. The situation that had unfolded was rather overwhelming and had gone smoother than Shin had anticipated. Once on his feet, he turned to the being with a slight grin perched on his lips. "You there mortal, where am I?"

"I've summoned you, the God of Fire. You possess a power that I crave. As a reward for freeing you from your slumber, it is the least you can do." Pausing for a moment, the being lunged forward and gripped Shin by the throat applying pressure little by little. Lifting him up, the being locked eyes with Shin. "Listen, you did not free me from anything. I heeded the call of the sun which somehow came into your possession. As you mentioned, I am the fire god Hephaestus. I am revered by my followers and do not take orders from anyone. You're one of those mages are you not? I sense some fire in you but alas, it does not hold light to my own power. Even if you were to obtain my power, I doubt it would do you any good," responded Hephaestus. As another brief moment passed by, he loosened his grip and allowed Shin to fall to the ground.

Catching his breath, Shin rose to his feet once more with a scowl. "I called you here for that reason alone, to provide me with your power. Others have called for you but none have been able to harness your power. I am a user of fire magic myself. I have a glimpse of your power but not to the extent I need. Join me and I promise you, you will be revered by all in this world." Hephaestus, intrigued by Shin's retort faced the red-haired mage. He examined the mage from head-to-toe, getting a read on the type of person Shin was and the type of power he possessed. Processing the information, Hephaestus' lips formed a grin. "You've got guts summoning a god and talking back to one. I should kill you now but you've peeked my interests human. If your body can handle my powers, I shall lend them to you. I will warn you however, many have attempted but have perished."

Without hesitation, Hephaestus placed his palm on Shin's chest. A warm aura surrounded the two as the sun marking on the chest of the fire god took a red hue. The warm aura intensified in its form, creating a blinding light that resembled the sun. Shin's body was being taken by Hephaestus, acting as a vessel for the fire god. Where the red-haired mage once stood was now the Hephaestus. "So this is the fire god huh?" An impressed expression was on Hephaestus' face. To the gods surprise, Shin had managed to flawlessly become one with Hephaestus. "Aduro!" Returning to his normal form, Hephaestus was replaced with a bright glowing Shin. The single word he had spoken was the gateway for allowing him to use Hephaestus' power. However, Shin was not the same red-haired mage he once was.

His once short red-hair now reached his back and appeared to be bunched in the form of a ponytail. As the glow began to fade, Shin felt a little odd. His red hair had now become blond, similar to Hephaestus. It appeared Shin had taken on a form similar to Hephaestus, his appearance changing. With this newfound magic and what appeared to be a new appearance, he was ready for what the future would hold. It was time to bring an age where the sun would always shine.