Fire Island

The time had come, the party now faced the Apocalypse itself.  They knew it would come in the form of fire from below, but it seemed like living fire, and intelligent, trying to communicate in advance what would inevitably occur- the violent worldwide volcanic eruption, and the single crater spanning all of the Northern Countries that would hatch the legendary firebird, casting the entire realm into destruction.  The party had been working for years on how to prevent this, along with the Phoenix.  Every encounter, every NPC, they grew in knowledge and strength, eventually realizing, as the Phoenix had said, it could not be prevented, only changed.  But the situation seemed hopeless until their encounter at snake island.  Now that they were high enough level to use wish, and speak with God (Kal'Drel's addition to the realm), they had the combination needed hopefully to change things enough for all to survive.  It would be risky for everyone, and costly for the party, but it was the only way, one that was thought might never be found.  First, the timing must be perfect although, in a larger sense, the players had all the time they needed.  They needed to be ready right as the Apocalypse began, as their plan only worked after the volcanic reaction had already started.  Gabriel had made sure to gather allies, specifically recruiters like himself, with the ability to recruit high level clerics and wizards throughout the realm, converting their ideologies to that of Kal'Drel and the party so they too could participate in the final plea.  There were those who were also aware of the changes that would occur and did not want this plan to prevent it to unfold, being some of the few that would survive and live comfortably after the collapse.  Their armies were met by Parthon and Pals, as well as The Misfit Circus, Team Strike Force, The Dragonslayers, and The Family, each now connected through covert channels, each with their own individual skill sets and group dynamics, now intermingling into additional layers of defense for masking and protecting the party's plan.  When the time came, they were all in position. Like clockwork, the cartoon-like eruption exploded worldwide, lava spewing directly into the air, instead of flowing along the ground.  Everyone saw, and made the same single prayer for intervention.  Even those who did not realize it- those who had heard of the plan through the chain reaction effect established by Gabriel, and subconsciously agreed with the goal- cried out in unison.  They all wished for another instance of dust to gnats, with the added twist that the gnats would be fireproof, on every bit of lava that reached over 1300 feet above the peak of its volcano.  God answered, and the gnats took form, suddenly surrounded by immense energy no longer bound.  Fireworks exploded worldwide in a fantastic display, in a rainbow of colors, a side effect imposed by God on the request.  As the world marveled momentarily at the fireball the gnats would soon form into once more, destroying them all, Kal'Drel stepped up to the plate.

Wish is an immensely powerful spell, but no wizard is foolish enough to use it past a certain point, a line they will not cross, rising with the urgency of the situation but generally only to a point.  Kal'Drel was effectively immortal, using a combination of his spells (although he defines them differently) to be constantly reborn.  In his lengthy time in this realm he observed great evil, and good that sprouted like flowers in a wasteland.  He had seen good triumph, only to be corrupted once more to evil, but he had seen the beauty in the potential here, and knew it must be preserved.  He could not bring himself to take shelter and then thrive in the vacant world that he would be met with after years of sequestering.  So he made a wish with a consequence no wizard had ever even come close to, he wished each firework of the living fire would have the form and consciousness of the whole, and therefore the ability to reform itself without relying on instinct.  The problem was that there was no guarantee of what it would do once it had formed.  Kal'Drel saw no other choice he could live with (the most likely outcome being the destruction of 99% of the population and decades, perhaps centuries, before the realm as a whole would begin to flourish again), and so he made the wish, and just as the fireworks began to let gravity pull them once more to the surface where they would become a raging firestorm, they halted in place, and both they and the gnats still flying amidst the storm sprouted wings, the latter becoming beautiful butterflies, absorbing all the colors and leaving only the natural color of fire in the former.  The Mini Phoenixes took flight straight up, coalescing into larger and larger Phoenixes until two remained at the poles, now approaching each other to collide, but upon seeing each other opted to instead proceed separately together.  Before leaving, one blew a healing wind onto the realm, restoring the damage that had been done in the fallout.  The butterflies scattered, settling everywhere, a reminder of what had taken place.  Kal'Drel breathed a sigh of relief, his impudence at assuming to alter the plans of God had been met with infinite grace once more.  Now it was time to explain to the world what just happened, and where to go from here.