Fire is the most ravenous force in nature. Its very existence is contingent upon that which is feeds, and it feeds upon its prey until it is brought to nothing. And when its prey is exhausted, the fire, as powerful as it might have been at one point, is exhausted as well and disappears into nonexistence.
When it is controlled, fire is to men a useful tool to eliminate that which is waste so as to free up space for that which is not. When it is not controlled, it is a decimating force that feeds and feeds until all of its resources are spent and all that is left in its wake is in utter ruin. It is a force to be harnessed, and it is a force to be feared when it is untamed.