Phoenix Children - Prologue
Deep in the heart of Torchfire mountain...
? POV
I sigh, looking down at the lava bubbling near my bare feet. It's smoldering in here, and it feels so good to be back in a volcano. Deserts are...nice, but nothing can compare to the intensity and passion of the pure fire in a volcano. That's not why I'm here though. No, I'm here for one thing, and one thing only.
To gain my wings.
I hear my mentors footsteps, in which I stand up quickly. Turning, I meet his burning amber eyes. I hope I get eyes like his, not like my clear green eyes. Thankfully, I already have black hair, so that's one sign of being born with Starfire in your soul. Either that or bright blond hair. My brother has brown hair, with dark brown eyes. Neither clear signs, but who knows. Once I get my wings, I might be able to tell if he, too, is like me and my flock.
"Are you ready? This'll be the first time you ever go through with this, so I'm not gonna lie it'll hurt...but it's so worth it." Scorch tells me, his sharp eyes still on mine.
"Yeah...I just hope that I still look good with wings." I say, laughing a bit nervously. He smiles, then walks up to the pool of lava, and trusts his hand in. When he pulls it back out, there are no burn marks, and in his cupped hand is a flower born of lava, a Blazerose. I swallow hard, knowing the next part will hurt. I've seen other fledglings get their wings, and they almost always scream. Scorch had respected my wish, and made sure this ceremony would be just between us.
I don't want anyone to hear my screams.
"Phoenix Children, we have gathered here in the heart of this house of fire to watch this Fledgling - my student - earn her wings. She has learnt our ways, fought our battles, and shown that a spark can turn into a forest fire in a mere few hours. Just as a phoenix lives and dies, only to live again, she must shed her human form to join us as a true flaming angel." Scorch still uses the speech, but it's a tradition that must not be broken. I wouldn't have it any other way. He looks around, then turns to me, and I see the flower in his hand is now alight and burning.
"Go on...it's finally time." He whispers to me, and I know he's not supposed to yet he does. Wanting to get the pain over with, I quickly take the burning rose - ignoring that it's in fact burning my hand - and I swallow it whole.
Instantly, the fire takes over. It spreads across my skin, my hair, it's in my eyes and in my body. I can't hold back my shriek, but there is another feeling too. My back has gone numb, and now the fire is gone. I gasp for air, feeling like the smoke had torn it from my lungs. I look up at Scorch, who is grinning wide.
"You look wonderful, your eyes are red. Red! Haha, your a mage after all!" He cheers, grin never fading. I can't help but smile as well, and I turn my head to see if they're there. They are.
A pair of beautiful, fiery wings are attached to me. Feathers tipped a smoky black, as they turn red then gold in the center. A bit of the fire that engulfed me are on my wings, but fire can no longer hurt me. Only help me. I laugh out load, moving my wings up and down. It's wonderful! Even if my wings will vanish soon, as I need to return to human form every now and then. My green, not red, eyes and my wingless form that is faced with death. As a Phoenix Child, like a phoenix, whenever faced with death I can simply let myself burn and rise again.
"Hey..." I hear Scorch speak up, pulling me out of my thoughts. "Seeing as you won't keep your wings for long, since you gotta go back to your brother and his friends, wanna fly back to the Nesting Grounds? As siblings, no longer student and teacher." I smile at Scorch, nodding. This makes him smile back, not a grin but a normal smile.
"Well then, sister Nya, let's fly!" With this, and two hard beats of mine and his wings, we take off. Soaring deep into the sunkissed sky, just as the flaming orb vanishes over the horizon and the stars and moon takes its place.
