Race to Fire Mountain: 1 (Future Hero)

Product Information

Katsuki jumps at the noise, and curls in on himself at the sight of his mom looming over him in the doorframe of his room. His heart pounds in his ears. Deku collapses in front of him, one arm beat to a pulp, the other crispy with ash. Katsuki’s nostrils fill with burnt skin and caramel. Jarell loves to draw. He doesn’t enjoy sport, and knows he lives in the shadow of his cool and popular older brother. He always feels awkward and out of place, unless he is drawing the figures and technology that come into his creative imagination.

Of course, Ulfrika has its very own fantastical twist, with talking beasts like Were-hyenas and Painted Wolves roaming the kingdom, alongside warriors who possess ultra high-tech gadgets, like a gauntlet with the ability to whip up mini thunderstorms, allowing one to cloudport to their desired destination. We know Ulfrika is a wide and wonderful place, so it is relatively unexplored in the grand scheme of things. Perhaps you could imagine the vast wildlife and places Jarell has yet to meet/encounter!

Destiny is calling!

The words stop coming to his tongue. Katsuki’s heart fills the silence and pounds so loud in his ears it’s all he can hear. The words stop coming and he’s falling right into her maw. Mistuki gets too close to his face. Katsuki tries to flinch away but she just presses further. He can smell the salt of her tears and the alcohol on her breath. Jarell, like his ancestor Kundi, is selfless, loyal, and kind. When Jarell discovers that he is Ulfrika’s long-awaited Future Hero – and that he has inherited a powerful magic staff – he does not attempt to seek fame or fortune. He doesn’t get bigheaded or arrogant. If someone is in danger, he puts his own mission on hold to help them first. He is as kind to animals as he is to people. Jarell earns the respect of his Ulfrikan peers not through his mantle but through his actions, which show that he has a brave and gentle heart.

Auntie Inko smiles when she sees Katsuki. It makes him uncomfortable because it’s different from his mom. It doesn’t fit into his survival method. He should be on guard, he should be ready to hold his ground again, but then he’s in Midoriya's apartment. It’s different down to the scent. The tension in his body is still there, but now it just feels childish enough to ignore. Are you kidding? Our boy wants to be the number one and he can’t even hold his own against some rando with an overinflated ego. How’s he supposed to make it at the top hero school?”His dad approaches, and crouches down next to him to get a closer look. On the picnic table bench, Katsuki has set out a few of his toys. One of them is an All Might figure that Izuku gave him. He has them lined up according to color, but as he looks at a small plastic shiba next to a car of the same size and color, he thinks about redoing it by shape. Afrofuturism was the perfect lens for that celebration. Our hero Jarell finds a magical mirror and an exiled God working as a barber in his cousin’s barbershop. Jarell soon discovers that he is the hero that those in a distant land called Ulfrika have been waiting for. This is the land of his ancestors. Pain rips across his abdomen. Things happen too fast for Katsuki to process. There’s loud noises, hands on his body, forcing him to the ground and restraining his whole body. The pain stops and Katsuki starts to thrash. The weight increases and Katsuki can’t breathe.

His mom handed him a few coins and Izuku starts reciting his favorite things about the hero as Katsuki turns the handle. He already knows Izuku’s speech by heart, but he doesn’t mind. He’d be prattling along with him if it wasn't against the rules. In the third book in the series, the land of Jarell’s ancestors is still not safe, and he must return if he is to stop the sorcerer Ikala from gaining power. Together with the help of Kimisi, and their new ally Bo-de, the trio must journey to a city of clay if they are to find what they need to defeat their enemy. But danger lies ahead… Katsuki’s heart drops into his stomach. Everything is loud and bright and painful. He messed up. Idiot. Idiot. Idiot. Look what you did. All you do is embarrass her. That’s not it! Hey, open your eyes Katsuki, I need you to look at me. Do you still want to play with the doggy?”But not All Might.” Katsuki peers through the window, he thinks he can make a few of the hero he wants among the others. The tile is soaked in burnt orange light when he finally splashes his face and takes a look at himself in the mirror. His reflection is pissed and pathetic, like a wet kitten. He hates the way defeat looks on him, the urge to carve it out is barely resistable. You have a degree in History and Economics, which is very cool! How has this influenced your career in writing? I think readers will be hugely excited to hear that tensions will escalate, new creatures and beasts will be introduced, and the reason for Legsy’s banishment from Ulfrika will finally be revealed…The stakes are high.

The energetic “Superhero” is a long awaited reunion between Metro Boomin and frequent collaborator Future, as the song serves as the first collaborative release from the two artists in five years. “Superhero” also serves as the first official collaboration between Metro and Chris Brown. My aspirations as a writer… I guess to get a chance to have my work showcased and read by people across the world. I’d love to get the chance and experience to venture into different areas like TV or film, but my first aspiration is to go to a bookshop and see something I’ve written, with my name on it, on one of the shelves. That’d be pretty cool. But I’d say how my degree mostly influenced me is that it made me not want to go into an industry or field that I didn’t have a passion in. I have no interest in becoming an economist or being a History teacher, and so I focus on writing and that’s ok. It’s ok to change your mind and that’s been a valuable lesson.Oh goodness,” the woman laughs. “Nice to meet you Katsuki. Did you remember to take turns talking, Izuku?”