Title Here

A Phoenix From The Ashes

By Majin Magus

Chapter One

Matrix and AndrAIa walked through the deserted, rundown streets of Mainframe, each ready for the worst. Megabyte had been in the Principal Office for as long as they had been gone, and Bob had just left to go talk to Dot.

"What's that?" Matrix growled as a support beam from an old building fell down. "Gun, command line…full delete!"

The gun leapt out of its holster and focused on a shadowy form inside one of the buildings. The gun clicked and fired. The shot disappeared into the shadows, then seconds later, the figure stepped from the building.

Matrix and AndrAIa gaped, but soon regained their composure and prepared for battle. "What the hell are you?" Matrix yelled at the figure that was still shrouded in shadow.

The figure stepped from the shadow. It was a female sprite. Matrix and AndrAIa blinked, and she was gone. Matrix turned to AndrAIa.

"Did you see a female sprite just now?" Matrix asked, putting his gun back. AndrAIa nodded.

"How did she survive a full delete blast? We better be careful about her, wherever she went to," AndrAIa said softly.

Then Matrix and AndrAIa set off to tell Dot of what they had seen.

*

Megabyte, who was deep inside the Principal Office, stared at Phong's head within the glass container. He grinned maliciously as the wise man screamed in pain.

"Not too much longer now and I shall leave this accursed system to crumble," Megabyte murmured as another line of code was cracked. He had been here too long, and the system could crash at any moment. There had been no games for the longest time, not since the boy had been destroyed. There had been foolish attempts made to destroy him by Mouse and Dot and their little rebellion, but that was failing fast.

The evil virus shot a scowl at one of his soldiers. "Don't just stand there, go make sure those pathetic fools aren't attacking again!" he growled. The small one viral jumped and ran down the hall.

Megabyte suddenly made the claws on the back his hands come out. He glanced over his shoulder.

"Who are you?" He called confidently into the darkness of the hall.

A snicker was heard from the shadows. "Very good. Very, very good," a female voice said.

Megabyte turned. "Who are you?" he growled, his eyes glowing with increased anger. He crouched, preparing to jump and delete whoever this intruder was. Then the female stepped from the shadows.

The girl was a head shorter than Megabyte. She had black eyes like an abyss, and just as empty. Her ears were pointed and her hair was blonde and short. It hung to her shoulders but a few strands hung in front of her right eye. The girl wore a brown leather jacket unzipped right about at the bottom of her rib cage, revealing a black shirt underneath. Her skin was white.

What caught Megabyte's eyes was the Guardian-style icon on the left side of her jacket, right on her heart. A sword in a black sheath was strapped around her right shoulder and around to the left side of her waist, with meant that she was right-handed. The girl also wore jeans.

"I shall ask you one more time: Who are you? Even though you are a Guardian, what is your name? Tell me before I delete you!!" Megabyte's claws grew a little longer. The girl smirked.

"My name is Phoenix. I am Guardian 1695. You should know me, Megabyte…" Phoenix said, staring straight into his eyes.

Megabyte backed up a step. "I deleted you…you must be strong, strong indeed. You were the first Guardian to come to this system, even before that idiot Bob."

Phoenix grinned. "I didn't escape unscathed, you know," she said, grinning.

"Really? How very interesting," Megabyte commented, drawing his claws back into his hands. If he needed them, they could return at a moment's notice.
"Yes. I shall show you." Phoenix lifted the left shelve of her jacket up to her elbow. There, on her forearm and in green, was Megabyte's insignia. Megabyte looked at the sign with interest, but he focused on Phoenix when her right hand when to the hilt of her sword.

"I was the first to be infected with your viral energy, Megabyte. It was mine and your first fight, wasn't it? I didn't have my sword then, and you were more experienced than I." Phoenix's black eyes looked upon Megabyte and she smiled.

Megabyte waited for her move, to defend then slice her open. 'Her Guardian code should be tearing her apart with the impulse to delete me,' Megabyte thought, narrowing his eyes. 'So why hasn't she attacked?'

"You know, it may just be the viral energies within me, but I think you should live," Phoenix sighed, letting go of her sword's hilt. Megabyte relaxed. Somehow he knew she was telling the truth.

"I suppose I'm kind of a half Guardian now. While I lay being gradually deleted, a Guardian came from the Super Computer and rescued me." Phoenix paused.

She continued. "The Guardian put me in a healing capsule that cannot be unlocked until the occupant is totally healed, so I was not infected by Daemon. This Guardian went and took my place in Mainframe. He is, of course…"

"Bob," Megabyte finished, scowling. "You mean, was."

Phoenix shook her head ruefully. "I am mostly viral now, but I do keep tabs on the Guardians so they don't come for me. Bob is alive. And he is in Mainframe. I saw him and an older pair of sprites."

Megabyte was puzzled. "Who is this Daemon?" he asked.

The girl looked at him. "She is a super virus that has infected all the Guardians except for Bob, myself, and Matrix. I know of Matrix because he is a Guardian. I saw him and a game sprite earlier today," Phoenix answered.

"Damn. Bad news," Megabyte cursed. "The boy, Bob, and the girl are back and still alive. Damn, and I also have something of a rival."

Megabyte turned to Phoenix. "Open a portal to the Super Computer for me so I can delete this Daemon!" he roared, unsheathing his claws.

Phoenix shook her head again. "Can't do that. I don't have a key-tool, I got here by following Bob in the web. I was never issued one, actually," she sighed. "I got this sword instead."

"This is getting complicated, but very interesting…" Megabyte commented.