ENTERING SKY HIGH
BY PHOENIX FURY.
CHAPTER 1:
Beep… beep… beep...
(What is that beeping and why won't it die?)
Phoenix Firestone slapped the alarm off and turned over pulling the covers overhead. Seconds later a hand reached out from the covers and flicked on the bedside light. A head reappeared and looked at the window where no light shone through yet. Slowly she pulled herself out of bed and groaned as she changed into her training sweats. "A normal girl would not get up a 5 in the morning to do a workout. No a normal girl would be asleep." She grumbled sleepily. Phoenix wasn't a morning person at all. But it was her routine no matter where she was so she went through it like a robot, most of the time with her eyes closed.
She made her way to the pool house where a 20 by 8 meter pool lay ready to dive in. Through a door lay a homemade gym.
She hadn't had the chance to use it yet since they had arrived in Maxville yesterday. Her father liked the ordered life so would have the house decorated before they actually moved in. He left Phoenix's room to decorate for her to do; after she had chosen which room she wanted after he had shown her pictures of the house they were moving to she would figure out how she wanted it done and when she arrived he would have all the materials there waiting so she could get started straight away since she liked doing it herself. They'd arrived yesterday in the early hours and Phoenix had locked herself in her room decorating her room before all her things arrived in the afternoon. Luckily she was rather good at moving from place to place, and with all the practice could get it done quickly.
With a weary sigh she got started on her morning routine.
She was for once grateful for her routine, since it worked of some of the nervousness developing as she became awake enough to realize what the day was. 15 minutes each on the bike, treadmill and then on the cross-trainer, 30 torso crunches and thigh lifts and then 20 sit-ups and 20 press-ups on the floor.
She started to relax as she stretched herself out and started doing a quick Pilates and yoga workout. She changed into her swimming costume and did 20 lengths before getting out and sitting in the Jacuzzi and then in sauna for 10 minutes before pulling on a towel bathrobe and heading to her room.
"I hate mornings." She grumbled as she entered her room and went straight to the bathroom. Painted in cream and beige with mosaic tiles, there was a large bath, double shower, a large sink area with cupboards around it. Flicking on the shower and waiting for it to warm up she washed out her mouth, she'd brush her teeth after breakfast.
She dropped the robe and put the wet costume in the sink to soak in clean water. She stepped into the shower and stood under the hot water beating down on her with a sigh. She washed her hair and came out smelling of vanilla, ginger and cinnamon. She towelled off and blow-dried her hair and brushed it through; she looked at the waves in the mirror and decided to leave it loose, but with few small plaits to make it different.
Then she stood in her underwear looking at her clothes. Thankfully she had finished organizing her wardrobe before she had gone to sleep or it would take too long. "Can't go wrong with blue jeans…" She tossed them onto her bed and looked through her shirts. "Ah hah." She smiled as she pulled out a simple grey top with a white design on it. It had an uneven neckline and had holes in it. "Perfect."
Getting her bag ready and choosing shoes could wait till she had breakfast she decided as she went to the kitchen.
"Morning Xian." An Oriental man sat at the island drinking tea as he read the newspaper. He had been with her father since she was very young. He was her father's assistant but she wasn't quite sure what he assisted him with. Her father never spoke about his work; he barley spoke to her about anything really.
"Morning Miss Phoenix."
"Is father around?" She asked as she poured herself two glasses; one of juice and the other milk.
"He's working and didn't wish to be disturbed."
She nodded. (Of course he didn't want to be disturbed after all it's only his daughter first day at high school why would he want to be here to see me off?) She sighed and took a seat. She had a bowl of fruit salad but she merely picked at it not really hungry as she read the sports and a news summary. She got up after she had finished half of it and heard a shuffle in the paper.
"Remember your tablets." A voice said from behind the paper.
A small dish lay beside hers with three tablets, she swallowed them without a word. (Multivitamin, starflower and evening primrose oil, everyday keeps the body working in order.) She repeated in her head what she'd been told every morning when she was young and tried to refuse.
She went back to her room and brushed her teeth, washed her face with a wet flannel and rubbed some moisturiser into her skin.
She came out of the bathroom and looked at her boxes trying to remember which one held what she wanted. Finally she found her box of shoes and slipped on her black ballerina flats.
She opened a red and blue plastic box starting packing her bag. Her pens, notepad, her small art kit she carried with her and a folder. She took the papers she needed from her desk and slipped them into a notebook and slipped the bag on her shoulder.
She ran her hands over her coats on the pegs beside the door of the wardrobe. A leather jacket with red flames on the arms was pulled out.
She sat at her vanity table and opened a small square drawer where her nail varnish was and quickly she painted her nails silver.
She opened her jewellery box and slipped on a tribal thumb ring and a Celtic knot ring on the right hand and a thick band on her middle finger on her left hand. She put a few beaded bracelets on her right wrist and slipped a t-bar chain around her neck. She put some perfume on her pulse points and checked her reflection as she put raspberry lip balm on her lips.
She did a quick mental check of what she would need for her first day at school. She grabbed the book she had been reading before she had gone to sleep and slipped it into her bag to read if she had time.
She walked out her room, down the hall and down the grand staircase and into the massive hallway.
She looked around at the empty hallway.
The house felt cold to her and if every other house hadn't felt the same way she would have thought it was because she had just moved in. No pictures of happy parents, or kids laughing. It was simply cold, no personality, no life.
She opened the front door and paused looking back. In a normal household parent's would and hug and kiss you, wishing you luck and maybe seeing you off at the bus. But not in her house.
She sighed. "Time to get on the school bus." She shut the door and walked down the driveway.
A big yellow bus drew up beside the curb and doors opened as she walked to the corner. She saw a boy step on as she walked to the bus. She took a deep breath and stepped up tucking her hair behind her ear. She must have looked nervous or he sensed the new kid vibe. A man in his late forties sat in the driver's seat. "I am Bob Taylor the bus driver. The bus is fuller then usual but there's a seat left."
She looked up the rows for an empty seat and found one next to a boy who got on before her. He had shoulder length black hair with a red streak, wearing a leather jacket and jeans. He sat with a book in his hands and one earphone in his ear. He didn't give the impression he'd want her to sit next to him but there was nowhere else.
She walked up. "Is it alright if I sit?"
"No."
She blinked at his tone. (Ok I may never have spent time with other kids or know how they behave but I really don't think this is normal.) A little voice ordered her, 'just sit down. Don't let people walk over you.'
Taking a deep breath she said, "There's nowhere else so I'm afraid you'll have to lump it." So she sat down and looked straight ahead. (This is going to be fun.) She thought sarcastically.
Warren Peace looked up to see a girl standing in front of him. He hadn't seen her before but he didn't really play attention to other people. She asked if it was alright to sit.
"No." He looked back to his book. (Why can't I read in peace and quiet?)
Then he heard, "There's no where else so I'm afraid you'll have to lump it."
He couldn't believe it when the girl sat down. Did he suddenly look like a nice guy? (This is all Strongholds fault. The one day I was the nice guy... well the guy who helped save the school, and suddenly my reputation as the bad-ass has gone up in smoke.) He muttered silently.
He couldn't help but take a closer look at her. She wore a leather jacket and a grey top underneath, tight jeans with what he thought looked like black ballet shoes.
But what interested him was her hair. It was red, with golden red streak at the front that glittered when the sun shined on her; it reminded him of burning fire.
Her eyes widened as they were all strapped in. She gasped as the bus took dropped off the bridge. (Oh dear god, I'm going to die on my first day.)
(Must be new.) Warren took pity on her, "Don't worry it flies. Think of it like a rollercoaster."
"Oh that's useful to know… but I've never been on a rollercoaster." She muttered giving him a small smile as the bus finally took off up into the sky. And her stomach dropped with each loop the bus did. Her eyes were half shut as her hands grasped the rail.
"New?"
"Yeah..." She whispered as through the clouds she could see something. She gave a small gasp in shock as she saw the school for the first time.
"You'll get used to it." Warren muttered.
"Kept aloft by the latest anti-gravitational propulsion, the school is in constant motion as a precaution against those who might have nefarious plans." The bus driver said as they landed. "Be on time if you want to catch the bus. Welcome to Sky High."
She stepped out and thought she might puke as she saw how many kids there were. She remembered from her papers she was to go to reception.
She gulped slightly and made her way through the halls.
She watched a boy with an old lady glaring at him get pulled into her office and the entire hall echoed with, "IF YOU DO THAT AGAIN YOU'LL GET DETENTION MISTER! NOW GET TO TUDOR!" The boy ran from the office.
The old lady saw her hovering by the door and didn't recognize her so she asked sweetly, "Can I help you my dear?"
"H-Hi I'm new. Phoenix Firestone."
"Ah yes. You need to take some tests with Mr Medulla, and then you'll meet the Principle and get a tour. But first you have to see the Nurse."
(Tests on the first day it gets better and better.)
The nurse's office had a four beds and a little office where the nurse did her paper work. Nurse Spex was a small woman with short white grey white hair and large glasses. Phoenix was weighed, had her height measured and then some blood drawn. Then using her x-ray powers Spex scanned her from head to toe.
"We have to test your senses." She was handed a switch and a pair of earphones. "We're testing your hearing first, press when you hear a beep no matter how quiet it is."
She put the earphones on and shut her eyes to concentrate. She ended up pressing the switch fairly quickly.
Nurse Spex took the earphones and switch off her and turned out the lights. "Ok your eyesight."
First she shone a bright light in Phoenix's eyes and then she had her read out lines of letters from a board. As the letters got smaller and smaller Phoenix felt her eyes … shift almost. As if she was moving from the dark into the light. There wasn't a line she couldn't see. There was a brief reflex game where she had to a screen spilt into four called A, B, C, D then was given a pad with the four letters and had to press the letter where a little light turned up in that section. Then given a multicoloured pad and when the light that colour showed she had to press the corresponding coloured button.
The phone rang in her office and Nurse Spex spoke for a minute before coming back. "Dr Medulla is coming to pick you up for your test. We've got one more thing to do. Are you allergic to anything?"
"Not that I'm aware off."
"Just write down your address and emergency contacts and we're done." She handed a clipboard to Phoenix to fill out as Nurse Spex collected all the data from her tests from the computer.
"Done."
"Good, it will take me a few hours to input the data we collected and then put into English so that we can understand the results. Otherwise welcome to Sky High."
Dr Medulla was a man with a very big head was her first thought. He sat her down and pulled out a laptop and a few sheets of paper. "Your username is Firestone and password is Phoenix till you change it. Half the test will be multiple answers and you click which one you think it is and the others you will have to write it. The papers is for you to make notes or work things out if you wish."
(Well that was easy.) She thought after she finished the tests for the normal subjects like English, math and science. (This won't be I don't think.) She turned on the laptop and got started the hero section.
Question 1: What do you do if you're kidnapped?
A = You give in
B = You insult them till they kill you
C = You ignore them and pretend your on holiday in the Caribbean
D = You try to escape and save the day
Phoenix rubbed her tired eyes after she shut down the laptop. Her head ached and she was actually hungry for a change. She looked to the clock and wasn't surprised it was lunchtime.
Medulla looked up. "Are you finished Miss Firestone?"
She nodded.
"Then go get some lunch after you've eaten go to reception I'm sure you have paperwork to fill out."
She put the paper and laptop on his desk and wandered down the hall to the cafeteria.
(The food looks alright.) She thought looking over her plate, salad and sandwich, and sat down at an empty table. She watched the other teenagers laugh and joke around. They looked so happy. It felt strange to her.
She hadn't had sleepovers or hung out with her friends because she didn't have any friends. Her father had kept her isolated because of her powers. She had been home schooled so had had never really been around other kids. Tutors had kept her entertained by taking her out to museums, art galleries and the theatre. She had seen a lot of the world but she didn't feel like she actually lived in it.
She ate quietly and then went back to the reception desk to fill out some forms. She was starting to get a headache and she still felt tired from jet-lag. After the bell went off signalling the end of lunch Medulla came into reception.
He passed the results to Mrs Fester and looked upon the girl in one of the chairs. She'd pulled off her jacket and was reading a book. "Miss Firestone?"
She looked up.
"You passed your tests with a good mark. You might need to go over freshman books for your classes so you know where you're at but otherwise you'll be fine. Come with me."
"Principle Powers will give you a tour and then assess your power."
She nodded wearily. She was tired and had a headache and now she had to use her powers. Wonderful.
Principle Diana Powers waited out front overlooking the school gardens as she waited for the new student.
(It's rare for a student to not enter as a freshman.) She ran over the details of the student that she'd read over that morning in her mind.
Phoenix Firestone.
Blood group = AB. Age = 16. Gender = Female.
Father = Dr Michael Firestone. Mother = Deceased.
Home schooled. She travelled with her father having different tutors in each country.
Medulla had said the girl was 'good' which meant she was very bright as he passed her in the halls on his way to file the results.
She turned as she heard someone approach. Old instincts still working. "Principle Powers, this is our new student."
Her eyes widened as she looked at the young girl.
"Come on Diana, lighten up." A girl laughed as she flew up into the sky swirls of light in her wake. Her dark blue eyes danced with joy and her hair floated like red fire under the sun's light.
Diana shook her head pulling herself out of her memories.
"I am Principle Powers, welcome to Sky High." She shook Phoenix's hand noting the strange bracelet. "That's an interesting piece of jewellery."
Half was gold the other half silver with a circle in the centre. A black line ran around the circle and in-between the gold and silver. A red gem like button was on the right and on the left was a blue one while a white one was in the centre of the circle.
"It helps me control my powers."
Diana paused at the plural word. "How so?"
"When I feel myself loose control I push the switch, it acts like a panic button completely shutting of my powers."
"Is that why you didn't come here as a freshman?" Medulla asked.
"I lost control a lot back then. Father decided it was best to wait till I had better control."
(He should have sent you straight to us. It's why this school exists, to help with the control of your powers. Parents always think they know best I suppose.) "Don't worry we can help you with that. But first the tour."
"And finally this is the Gym. Through there is where we do 'save the citizen'. The object of the game is to save the hostage while defeating the bad guy."
Phoenix nodded, she could see a gym class taking place at the other side of the room.
"Now it's time to show us your power."
Phoenix hesitated, her hand covering her bracelet.
"It's alright."
Phoenix sighed pushed the dial around a bronze circle and pushed the red and blue buttons simultaneously. She closed her eyes.
(Breathe, focus and stay in control.) She thought as she listened to her heartbeat.
She focused on the sound of the beat. Then she felt it, something was… different.
There were other beats.
She opened her eyes as if in a trance and looked around the room. The trees swayed towards her as if welcoming her into their world from behind the windows.
She gasped as her hands caught fire and grew into ribbons of flames. Her hair glowed and floated around her.
Waves of fire wrapped around her as she was lifted up into the air. She could feel the fire trying to escape from her control.
Begging her to join them, to dance. To lift her arms in surrender and burn. The beat sped up. She wanted to dance but couldn't afford to just give in.
"She's an elemental." Boomer muttered coming to stand beside her.
"No, she's more then that." Diana whispered as benches floated around the room.
Swirls of light were floating in the air.
"Comets."
Diana nodded.
She couldn't fight as control was taken.
Her hair was turning into fire.
Her eyes were made of light.
She was dancing within the flames. Her arms weaving up into the air and then down around her body. The wind in the gym was spinning around the figure. She felt like she was dying, but completely alive at the same time.
"She's losing control." Medulla said as the flames and the force of the wind grew. Trees grew and the ground trembled.
"Pull the fire alarm. NOW!" Diana shouted.
She could feel flames lick her skin.
Feel heat coursing through her veins.
She was made of fire.
With her last thread of control Phoenix touched the button on her wrist. All the power that had been reaching out slammed straight back into her.
She fell through the air, crashing into the ground.
END OF CHAPTER 1.
Phoenix Firestone is all mine.
Hope you liked it. If so review it, I'm open to suggestions and ideas.
PHOENIX FURY.