Zia Rashid demonstrating the ability via fire magic.
Pyrokinesis, from the Greek words pûr and kinesis (meaning "fire" and "moving" respectively), is the ability to control fire as well as being completely immune to being burned by fire. Leo Valdez posseses this ability, being one of the few children of Hephaestus to do so, as do the Norse Fire Giants of Muspellheim, and it is even possible that some children of Loki possess pyrokinesis.
Description
Pyrokinesis is a powerful ability to have, with pyrokinetics (as user with this ability are called) having the power to generate, control and manipulate fire. These pyrokinetics excite the atoms within an object, with enough energy to ignite the object, and are capable of generating flames from thin air, not requiring the consumption of oxygen or combustible objects to maintain the flames.
Pyrokinetics have been seen being able to create flames, increase the temperature in their proximity, and endure extreme heat without being harmed. Pyrokinesis seems to be a very rare ability among children of Hephaestus, with only a select few ever possessing it. Users can telekinetically control and manipulate any fire or flame, and are able to utilize them in any way imaginable. More experienced users possess complete control over the size, shape, density, temperature, and even color of the flames that they produce, and are capable of burning almost anything.
Abilities
- Summoning fire.
- Augmenting existing flames.
- Resistance/immunity to thermal energy.
- Shaping flames into any form imaginable.
- Heating up/down objects from a distance.
- Sensing thermal energy/infrared vision.
- Influence over lava.
- Creating shields of flame.
- Teleportation through flames.
- Resistance/immunity to snow magic/cryokinesis.
- Possibly using flames to achieve flight via jet propulsion.
- Creating thermal updrafts.
- Channeling flames through weapons to enhance their combat capabilities.
- Radiating heat.
- Absorbing flames.
- Breathing fire.
History
In 1666, Thomas Faynor, the last pyrokinetic child of Hephaestus before Leo, accidentally lost control of his ability while in his bakery. This is what started the Great Fire of London, which was thought to have been started by one of the ovens.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
The Last Olympian
Despite being the Titan of light, Hyperion is able to absorb Greek fire into his body after being hit with it.
The Heroes of Olympus
The Lost Hero
Leo Valdez, a pyrokinetic.
Only two demigods in the series have been revealed to be able to use Pyrokinesis, Leo Valdez and Thomas Faynor. Leo at first is unwilling to tell anyone about his power because he feels that his power is a terrible thing, believing it caused his mother's death and his cabin feels that pyrokinesis is a curse as people with this power seemingly only appear when bad things are about to happen. When Leo was a baby, Tía Callida puts him in a blazing fire pit of which using pyrokinesis, he withstands the flames. Later, when Leo was five, he seared his hand print an inch deep in the solid wood of a picnic table. At age eight, Leo used pyrokinesis again and accidentally burns down the warehouse his mother worked in with her inside. At Camp Half-Blood, Leo use his powers to withstand Festus' flame attacks. During the battle with the cyclops in a warehouse, Leo uses it again to endure a firestorm caused by red hot coals and kerosene caused by Ma Gasket. He also uses pyrokinesis to summon a white hot bolt of flames for breaking a chain holding an engine, causing it to fall on Ma Gasket. He later battled Khione's snow powers with his own fire and managed to drive her off.
The Blood of Olympus
Leo unleashes a supernova of fire which, combined with an onager shot from Octavian, scatters Gaea, defeating the goddess. This kills Leo, but he is resurrected by Festus with the Physician's Cure.
Storm Runner Trilogy
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Not part of Riordanverse
The following article/section is from the Storm Runner/Shadow Bruja continuity under Rick Riordan Presents and not the Riordanverse canon. |
The Storm Runner
In the Empty, Zane Obispo discovers that the power of fire has been passed down to him by his father, Hurakan. He tells Zane to draw in energy from the sun, but he nearly burns up before a wave cools him down. His father tells him to release the energy or he will burn from the inside out. Zane later unleashes a wave of fire while defeating Ah-Puch.
Known Users
Hephaestus, the god of fire
- Typhon (can breathe fire)
- Harpocrates
- Hephaestus/Vulcan
- Hestia
- Helios (solar fire, from his chariot)
- Apollo (solar fire, from his chariot)
- Eos(possibly; solar fire)
- Hades (black hellfire)
- Hemera (solar fire)
- Hyperion
- Iapetus (very limited)
- Cacus (can breathe fire)
- Enceladus (can breathe fire)
- Serapis
- Ra (solar fire)
- Sekhmet (limited)
- Bast (limited)
- Hurakan
- Hecate (through magic)
- Ares (limited)
- Fire Giants
- Children of Hephaestus/Vulcan
- Leo Valdez
- Thomas Faynor
- Caeculus (son of Vulcan)
- Children of Hecate (through magic)
- Nico di Angelo (limited)
- Circe (limited)
- Medea (through magic)
- Pasiphaë (through magic)
- Zia Rashid
- Setne (through pschent)
- Zane Obispo
- Riley Oh (formerly)
- Jo
- Flordeliza de León (through magic)
Gallery
Trivia
- Interestingly, Thomas Faynor, unlike most children of Hephaestus, owned a bakery instead of doing anything involving mechanics. Leo has also shown to be a good cook from years of fending for himself.
- Children of Hecate have limited pyrokinesis, but only through one known spell--Incantare: Templum Incendere, as demonstrated by Lamia.
- The first ever naming of the fire-manipulation ability to be "pyrokinesis" is in Stephen King's book, Firestarter.
- Curiously, the plot of the protagonist Charlie McGee, a girl with pyrokinesis who inherited this ability from her parents, is very similiar to that of Leo, both of them initially believing that their pyrokinesis is a bad thing.