Despite the deadly silence within which Cathun stood, the crackling and hiss of the flames comprising his body increased.  Anger roiled through in in caustic waves leaping from his skin.  The words spat out from the God's mouth made him want to turn, to leave, to stop this madness from taking place.  Patiently testing the floor with his volcanic eyes, Cathun attempts to release a breath from his nostrils but feels choked as the weight of his words sink into what used to be flesh.

"...the reason you're burning up from the inside out wasn't to save the girl some trouble. It wasn't to be the hero."

He was right, despite everything in his soul wishing it were not true.  If he allowed the stubborn hatred of Gods to keep him from seeking aid, Ranjiri's efforts, her kindness, would be wasted on him for little reason.  His eyes shoot in her direction, little more than small indentations in the wall of flames that comprises his features.  A sigh escapes, barely audible over the seething fires which begin to dull, to calm.

He would listen to the asshole, if only for her sake.

Two candlelight pyres lift to capture the words of the God, studying them intently but making no outward comments at the insults laced within his instructions.  The insufferable bastard really needs to seek a vacation or something, he thinks callously in his mind.

Horror fills his body from the tips of his hooves to the length of his spine as Ranjiri is mentioned.  "What," slips out of his mouth, incredulous.  The fires of his body dance and leap into the air in unison.  Hardly a question, more of a pointed accusation.  The idea that her life would be held against his own made him feel nauseous, the burning pit of his stomach sinking further and further, spinning all the way down into the earth.  "You cannot place her life at risk."  The God either does not wish to hear his retort or wishes to continue with his next set of options, just as horrorific, this one guaranteeing her life would be paused for his own.

Staring down at the flames leaping up what once were his darkened legs, the blue lava pulsing beneath them.  He had to say something before Ranjiri agreed to be locked in a cage of earth or sign him up for this stupid hourglass.  Both seemed awful, but one would afford him time.  He needed time.  He could seek another opportunity to fix his problems without Ranjiri signing contracts with the devil.

"I'll go with the first one," his voice is small, like a young colt looking in the face of his parent's after breaking a rule.  "I'll talk to others in Helovia and come back when I understand."

Little did he know at the time, those words were not an empty promise.

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ooc -- I went ahead and skipped Ranjiri for this post, ali.  Hope that is okay!  Figured she would have more to go on with Cathun's answer.

Cathun

a firebrand in the night