Title: Risen From The Ashes
Pairing: Olivia/Natalia Doris/Blake ?/?
Rating: MA for strong language, adult situations, violence, blood, drug use.
Slightly AU most invents remain the same with a few concentrated changes to the Otalia storyline.
Summary: A mysterious stranger comes to town and changes the lives of Olivia and Natalia forever
She watched her as she worked the room – stopping to talk and grace the world with her presence. Olivia grinned as everyone in attendance was bewitched by the grace in which her fiancé carried herself, and the beauty that exuded from her pores and shinned with every gracious smile. She could spend the rest of her life doing whatever she could to keep that happiness shinning in Natalia.
Olivia sighed before she could catch herself – hoping that no one had heard her.
She looked around at the all of the friends she had never realized she had and wondered if her thoughts were normal. Did everyone think of their own mortality as often as she did her own? She didn't know but there was a feeling a nagging little thought in the back of her mind that told her this couldn't last. The irony of this situation didn't elude her. After all these years of trying and failing to get it right – after all of her missteps and bad decisions – the only thing she could possibly do wrong to ruin all of this…was die.
How fucked up was that?
Suddenly she felt panicked and looked frantically around the room for Natalia. Her lover had told her that she wasn't a puppy and that was true…at least not anymore. With the proper training she had become a full grown watch dog meant for the protection of her lover and right now she knew that Natalia needed her. She finally spotted Natalia clutching to Jonathan as if he was a life preserver and hurried to her side.
"What's wrong with her? What happened?" She was a flurry of motion checking Natalia face for any signs of pain, her forehead for a fever, anything that would tell her the cause of Natalia's distress.
"I don't know Aunty we were talking and she just started freakin out." Jonathan too was panicked. No way in hell did he want to be blamed for something happening to this woman.
"Natalia baby look at me."
Natalia looked up at Olivia with watery terrified eyes – her breath coming and going so quickly that she felt dizziness swarm in her peripheral vision, and saw the most beautiful face marred by the imperfection of fear.
Then her world went blank.
Francesca sat feeling a little awkward with Daisy's head resting on her shoulder. It wasn't that she didn't like it, but the shit was hella weird.
They watched the sun make its lazy trek across the sky not saying anything at all. Every now and then Daisy would grip her tighter in their loose hug and Francesca would be useless in preventing herself from returning the gesture.
"What was the dumbest thing you've ever done?" Daisy broke the silence first with one of her many questions as usual. Francesca laughed at the fact that the girl just couldn't stop talking. "Don't laugh just answer me. Off of the top of your head dumbest thing you've ever done – go."
Francesca knew what she was doing. Daisy wanted a comparison. She wanted and needed right now to see where she measured up.
There were three instances of sheer stupidity that came to mind.
"What the fuck happened to the engines?" one of the crew shouted over the deafening roar of the plane pitching, and lurching, as the engines burned and smoked.
Phoenix turned her back to him and ran to the cockpit to ask what the fuck had just happened. This was supposed to be a routine run of a shipment to South America and back again. She knew that no government planes had found them because she was jamming the signals – a favor to her old friends in Columbia. Juan was going to be so pissed.
"What the hell are you two…" Phoenix cut off seeing the pilots throats slit as their limp bodies hung unnaturally in the pilot chairs. "FUCK!" She turned and ran back into the main cabin. "Parachutes now! Someone is on the…"
She paused seeing a man standing and smiling at the open door to the plane. The floor was littered with bodies in various states of mutilation. The figure dropped what she was sure to be last parachute out of the door.
"Oops," he laughed and jumped before she could reach him and the life saver strapped to his back.
She looked around seconds away from panic before her crazy mind began to think up the only contingency plan with a chance of working.
She took one final look behind her…
"Fuck it!" she growled and dove out of the plane. The first thing she noticed about diving head first out of an airplane was that your eyes stung like a mutherfucker.
Just below her she could see the triumphant form of whatever asshole they'd sent to steal away on the plane. She brought her arms back to her sides and angled herself towards him or at least she thought that black blur was him. The wind all but cut through her body in stingy pricks and splinters as breathing became an Olympic event. She timed herself just right and slammed into his back sending the two of them twisting and twirling in the turbulence of the air. Above them the sound of the plane exploding shook the air – the force threatening to separate them. Phoenix grabbed hold of the man as he was unable to get a hold of the intruder on his back and snapped his neck. Dead weight began to plummet towards the earth.
Thinking quickly Phoenix positioned herself in front of him and planted her back against the dead man's stomach. She closed her eyes seeing as how her site was useless at this point anyway and felt around behind her for the various snaps and clasps that kept the parachute locked to the other body. She undid them and maneuvered the man's arms out of the shoulder straps and pushed his body away. The straps to the parachute flapped and flailed upward slapping her arms and face. She smiled realizing that if she had done this on his back no way would she have been able to get a hold on them. She shoved her arms through the straps and in quick succession snapped and tightened the various restraints of the parachute. She turned over on to her stomach just in time to see that she was quickly approaching the point of no return and released the chute.
She watched as the body crash landed into a field and exploded with the force - blood and body parts flying as if a bomb had just gone off.
She landed clumsily and bruised her leg as she got caught up in the chute. She pulled out one of her knives and cut her way out of it.
Without a second thought as to what had just happened or where she was she ran.
The unknown man who was now dead was going to land here.
Friends wouldn't be too far behind.
The wind had finally calmed down with the breaking of the new day and Phoenix was glad for it had stolen one of her senses from her. Now though she could listen for the silent approach of footsteps which of course were getting closer and closer.
She couldn't even hide on a fucking mountain without these asshole finding her. She moved swiftly but quietly as she grabbed up her gear and shoved it into her bags. Her heavy coat and Nike boarding boots came next. She knew they hadn't found her yet the tent being as white as the snow surrounding them, but it was only a matter of time before they did. From what she could hear there were three of them. This was surprising to her because at this point they normally sent teams of at least ten after her. They must have split up.
She looked around her heavily insulated tent contemplating her next move when one of the heaters kicked in.
Shit!
It was just her luck that her own hideout would betray her.
"What was that?"she heard one of the men say in what he thought was a whisper. She shoved on her gloves and knit cap.
"I don't know but it sounded like it was coming from over there."
Footsteps crunched in the heavy snow.
"Shit, shit, shit," Phoenix threw on her sea bag after jamming her back pack into it and strapped herself in so she wouldn't be separated from it. She grabbed up her snowboard in one hand and her Katana in the other after lowering her snow goggles and waited.
One of the morons walked straight into the side tent.
"FUCK SHE'S BEEN RIGHT HERE THE WHOLE TIME!" one of them shouted. His voiced echoed off of the stillness of the mountain at their backs as he righted himself from the ground.
Phoenix dove out of the tent into a roll already looking for her first target as she dropped her board and brought her Katana down in a swooping arc. The head count was now two to one…literally.
"Team four reporting in: we found her. Track us!" one of the men yelled into his radio as the other charged her.
She had been right of course – there were more than three of them crawling on this mountain – how many was with them she didn't know but she sure as hell didn't want to find out.
She made quick work of her attacker after receiving a crushing blow to her ribs on her right side. She'd bet her fortune that at least two had been broken.
The last man standing aimed a shotgun at her too afraid of his own mortality to think rationally.
"You so do not want to do that," Phoenix warned him. She cut a worried glance to her left. The mountain was quite for a reason.
"I kill you and I'm set for life," the man gloated as he cocked his gun.
"If you make it that far."
"I'll make it," he smiled and pulled the trigger.
Phoenix kicked the gun into the air so that the shot…that loud-as- hell- fucking-dumb-ass shot missed her but still rang out as clear as a bell on the snowy mountain side.
There was a short second of silence as the two of them looked at one another before the telling shifting of mass amounts of snow echoed above them in a deep rumble before a wall of white death began to stampede.
Phoenix looked at the man and laughed.
"Fucking moron." She delivered a solid punch to his jaw and ran leaving him behind to pick himself up from the frozen ground.
She was carrying a lot of weight on her and her feet continued to sink further and further into the snow as she ran, but she had her sights set on a bank just ahead that if she timed it just right…
Behind her the avalanche had come to life roaring and swallowing everything in its path as it rushed down the mountain. Her tent and the idiot who had started all of this were now a distant memory. How was it that something so beautiful could be so destructive?
She could feel the mountain rumbling under foot. She reached the snow bank and jumped off positioning her board below her feet and snapped her boots into the bindings just before she landed her board picking up speed.
She looked behind herself as she hurtled down the mountain as the wall of death came closer and closer.
She turned around and leaned forward a little bending her legs trying to pick up more speed. She knew the mountain like the back of her hand, and she knew that there was only one way to beat the avalanche. Of course it would be the most dangerous option.
Figures.
Still the avalanche raced towards her eating up more and more of the gap between them until she was sure she wasn't going to make it. Then mercifully she saw it just up ahead…the drop off.
This part of the mountain ended where rock met sky…and then nothing. Well there was something it was just that it was about 20,000 feet lower. Unless of course one only saw it as a gap…you could look across and see where the mountain continued at the current altitude.
So all she had to do was jump it.
Only thing was she was really heavy right now.
Oh well.
Phoenix jumped at the last possible second as she felt her snowboard leave the ground. The avalanche continued downward pouring over the side of the mountain as she flew across the vast amount of space. For one terrifying moment she knew that she was going to die, because she wasn't going to make the jump. Intelligence kicked in and told her that she didn't have to.
As she sank lower than the edge of the other side of the mountain she reached under her heavy coat and grabbed her climbing picks and buried the cascade of them all the way to the head into the mountainside she had just slammed into. She felt the air leave her body in a rush of searing pain. Lights and black spots danced in her vision as her forehead collided with unforgiving stone.
"Ugh," she supposed was the most appropriate thing to say at that point. Her body was screaming and her head was pounding, but it would take an act of God to get her to loosen the death grip she currently had on her pick handles. Slowly she regained her breath and steadied herself for the short climb up the side of the mountain.
Once she finally reached the top she drug herself over the side and crawled away from it. She could feel the heaviness in her body and her snowboard still attached to her feet dragging behind her. Finally she just collapsed and rolled onto her side and stared up at the clear blue sky. She lifted her head marginally to look across the gap she'd just failed to jump and thought of the man who was now buried under an immeasurable amount of snow.
"Dumbass." She didn't know if she was talking about him or her at this point.
She let her head fall and darkness take her away..
In Lima, Peru sits the third largest waterfall in the world. It's sheer drop of water measuring about 2,529 feet. It's so remote that it had yet to be discovered…well…at least while she was there. She'd noticed some nosey researchers milling around the village before she left. They'd find it soon enough though. The villagers of Cocachimba didn't care too much to take the five mile trek on the winding dirt road to reach it. For hundreds of years they feared the legends of the serpent and siren that guarded the sea. They stayed as far away from the waterfall named Gocta as much as possible.
So why in the hell was it that she was running towards it?
She'd been in the rainforest for weeks now hiding out and getting some R&N after she had the life saving procedure that also saved her arm. It still hurt like holy hell, but at least it wasn't still dangling uselessly at her side and gushing blood from the gaping wound that used to be her shoulder.
She'd just gotten the hang of actually using the appendage again which was good because she was currently pumping it and its twin for all they were worth to pick up speed as she hurtled towards the waterfall she knew to be just a few yards away. She could already smell the spray of water in the air and hear its deafening roar.
A bullet whizzed past her head.
She clutched the device in her hand for dear life.
"There's nowhere left to run."
Captain obvious behind her was shouting dumb shit again. He'd been doing that all morning as she ran through the forest. She assumed he was lead in the team of 15 men currently barreling down on her.
Of course she knew there was nowhere to run. That was kind of the fucking point.
She broke through the thick trees and saw the cliff come into view. She detonated the bomb in her hand and let it fall from her grasp as she dove off of the waterfall.
Was this what flying felt like?
She didn't let that thought linger as she plummeted. All she could do was trust that she'd jumped out for enough to be able to avoid the jagged rocks at the bottom and that the voice in the back of her head had told her to do the right thing.
Her body cut through the water as it returned the favor. Her skin burned from the impact but at least she hadn't broken every bone in her body. She swam to shore and looked up. She could just barely make out the figures of the men astonished by her feet.
She didn't think it was anything to gawk at.
The shit hurt like hell.
"HEY!" she yelled getting their attention. "TELL THE DEVIL I SAID GO FUCK HIMSELF!"
To this day she wondered if it was the explosion rocking the rainforest that led those researchers to their "discovery" of the waterfall. Or maybe it was in God's plan for it to be found.
It made sense considering she was sure he was the only reason she survived that jump.
Francesca pursed her lips as Daisy looked up at her expectantly.
"It's a three way tie between the time I jumped out of a plane without a parachute, the time I raced an avalanche down a mountain on a snowboard, and the time I jumped off of the world's third tallest waterfall."
Daisy smiled at her before she burst into laughter.
That was the thing about telling the truth. Sometimes it was possible to be so honest that people couldn't help but to think you were lying.
"Olivia I'm fine; I promise," Natalia protested her lover's hovering as she settled her down into their bed in the suite.
Natalia had worked herself up into a frenzy to the point where Rick had to give her a shot of something (she was still too doped up to remember what) to get her to calm down. This of course had sent Olivia into hysterics. Luckily though she realized that Natalia needed her so she managed to calm herself.
She'd moved Natalia to The Beacon to rest before they went home. If Emma saw them like this she would jump to the worst possible conclusion.
Olivia could still feel her heart beating erratically from the scare, and to be honest all she wanted to do was get Natalia to rest so that she could continue working on calming it down.
"Natalia I swear to God if you don't lay your ass down on this bed and get some rest I'll tie you to it and it won't be a good thing," Olivia growled.
Natalia flopped back in a huff and complied recognizing Olivia's no nonsense tone. "Fine," she pouted and crawled underneath the covers. "Just a little rest," she mumbled before she quickly drifted off.
Olivia smiled as she rapidly tapped her fingers against her chest.
"Okay Spencer…calm down…calm down."
Olivia made her way to her office to try and do just that without being caught by her fiancé. She popped a few Ativan and dropped heavily into her desk chair.
She began to take long deep breaths. "Calm down or Natalia freaking out is going to turn out to be some sort of premonition."
Rafe walked into the suite with a grin on his face as he munched happily on his treat. He'd never been allowed to eat anything like this before and his was kind of milking his new found freedom. It was when he noticed his Ma's shoes and purse in the living room that he panicked and jammed the Snicker into his pocket before she could catch him.
The treatment plan Francesca had come up with for him had worked and he was now diabetes free, but due to certain circumstances it wasn't a good idea for his Ma to know that yet. He slowly crept towards the master bedroom thankful not to be hearing any of THOSE noises. Rafe realized the door was opened and walked in to see his mother asleep on the bed fully clothed.
That wasn't right. His Ma only took naps when she was sick. What the hell happened?
He rushed to her side and fell to his knees to look at her face. She looked peaceful enough and her breathing was alright.
So why the hell was she knocked out?
"Rafe," Natalia mumbled as she swam back to consciousness.
"Yeah, Ma it's me. Why are you in bed?"
He sat on the edge of the bed while Natalia slowly pulled herself up to lean against the headboard. She blushed little and bit her lip.
"I had a little episode earlier and kind of freaked myself out."
"What? What happened? Do you need to go to the hospital? Where's Olivia?"
Questions were fired off in rapid succession.
"Mijo I'm okay really. Just needed to sleep off whatever cocktail Rick shot me up with."
Natalia cupped his cheek.
"You sure you're okay?" Rafe searched his mother's eyes.
"I'm fine."
"Good."
Olivia realized just before she collapsed to the floor and the world went dark around her that leaving the suite and not calling for help…hadn't been a good idea.
"She said she didn't want to talk to you," Francesca reiterated as she scowled at James.
He'd come across them laughing together in the park and leaning against a tree. He had been angry already at Daisy, but this just took him to a whole new level. She wasn't even sad that they had an argument. What the hell?
"I wasn't fucking talking to you! Why are you always here? Everywhere I look, everywhere I turn, Phoenix is there fucking up EVERYTHING!"
"What the hell are you going on about?" Francesca questioned him.
"You," he pointed an accusing finger at her making sure to stay more than an arms length away from her. "You fuck up everything!"
"James you need to calm down," Daisy warned him.
He looked at her with angry eyes and snatched her by her arm pulling her away from Francesca.
"We're leaving."
"What the hell is wrong with you? LET ME GO!" Daisy tried to yank away from him but failed.
Before he could take two steps Phoenix had separated him from Daisy by yanking him backwards by his shoulder blades and spun him around slamming him against the tree.
"You will do well to learn how to keep your hands to yourself boy," Phoenix growled.
"Phoenix…no." Daisy wrapped her arms around her waist and pulled.
But it was too late. That anger that either had to be pinned down or unleashed was raging right now and there was nowhere for it to go but out. Out from the pits of her stomach and away from herself. This was the type of fury that was all consuming and Phoenix couldn't tamp it down. So as she raised her fist to strike out she loosened her grip on James and gave one warning in way of an angry shout.
"MOVE!"
He ducked just in time to miss having his head knocked off as Phoenix's fist collided with the tree that once was at his back.
It shook as the sound of wood splintering exploded through the park.
Francesca stood there chest heaving with her fist protruding through the other side of the tree.
"The site of you right now has me feeling a bit murderous…perhaps you should run now," Francesca calmly warned as she took in a deep breath through her nostrils and closed her eyes.
James didn't have to be told twice as he took off without another word or thought of Daisy.
The crazy bitch could have her.
Daisy stood there frozen in shock not being able to believe her own eyes.
Francesca had just punched a hole…through a tree.
Francesca pulled her arm from the hole revealing not so much of a scratch to mar her skin and sighed as she looked at a wide eyed Daisy.
She put her hands up in a placating manner making no further movement.
"It's okay…I'm not going to hurt you."
Daisy was taken aback by that and snorted as she walked up to Francesca and shoved her. "Of course you aren't dork. But that was so cool. Can you like break bricks with your head too?"
Francesca's eyebrows crept to the top of her forehead. "Um I suppose I could. It's kind of beneath me at this point but yeah."
Sensei had always laughed at those competitions. Men masquerading as martial artists breaking bricks and boards for points to be tallied. No he taught her something a lot more useful.
Like how to put her fist through a body for instance.
Of course he had to make it more difficult by having her practice on a tree.
How many times had she broken her hand trying to figure that shit out?
Anything else was now a simple parlor trick as far as she was concerned.
As she looked down at a thoroughly entertained Daisy, Francesca realized something.
Either this girl was crazy as hell, they were perfect for each other, or both.
This was getting worse and worse.
And now she had to explain to her Mom why one of her hand picked trees in a park that was named for her had a hole straight through it.
"It's not a big deal Rafe."
"I'll believe you once I talk to Olivia," Rafe told his mother as she trailed behind him on their trek to Olivia's office.
"She's just going to tell you the same thing," Natalia huffed.
"Right and that's why she forced you to lay down and rest?" He turned and grinned at his mother in question.
Natalia glared at him.
Just as the reached the office door Natalia noticed a smudge at the corner of his lip.
"Is that chocolate?"
"Oh look we're here. Olivia?" Rafe rushed into the office trying to get away from his mother only to notice the woman in question lying on the floor. "Shit!"
Natalia and Rafe rushed to her.
"She's not breathing…SHE'S NOT BREATHING!" Natalia began to do CPR after commanding her son to call 911. "Come on baby breathe for me. Please breathe."
He called Francesca instead.