The Phoenix (Part 2 WoE)

Part 2 of the War of the Elements

(Read part one first)

Luke Alverra’s POV

Only the royalty had the powers of the elements. That’s why they were so formidable. But could a regular peasant have the powers of the elements? No. That’s what my intuition tells me. But I’m the complication. The outlier. I have the power to make fire obey my will. However, sometimes it gets out of my control, and I accidentally burn things I don’t mean to.

So now I stared at this bird which my brother had given me. I supposed it was some sort of Christmas present, but a feeble attempt at one. It was evidently the worst one he had bred.

“Too runty. Like you.” But I knew he didn’t mean it. In fact, I had strong limbs with a lanky build. I had dark brown hair which covered my gold-flecked eyes. My brother in the other hand was buff with muscles that popped out protrudingly. So yes, I was a little frail, but I couldn’t eat much food without burning it. 

“I’ll try my best not to burn you alright?”

“Wheeeeewhooo!” It whistled indignantly. I laughed at him. 

“I’m Luke. Perhaps we can be friends, eh?” It felt good talking to a living thing. I had no friends, but that was partly my fault. I was so scared of my own powers that I wasn’t even sure I could have friends without accidentally burning them.   And what good would friends be? If I told them my secret, they would shy away from me, or even report me. No, better to keep my secret safe even if I stay lonely.

“I honestly don’t know how to take care of you, little friend.” I had tried feeding him roots, but he’d turned away coughing. But I had to feed him something. If I didn’t, he would die. So at dinnertime, I took the highly flammable foods that I couldn’t eat and fed them to the little bird. He seemed to like it! 

Throughout the next few days, our bond grew. I began to call him, Phoenix, due to the vibrant colors of red, orange, yellow and gold that made up his feathers. Much of my time, while I was reading, (surprisingly, books didn’t burn under my touch) Phoenix would perch on my shoulder, nuzzling me at times. It was like having a real friend for once. 

Phoenix grew fatter and his coat of feathers started to shine. He was beginning to have hold over his wings. Some times while I walked through the streets of the town, Phoenix could fly jerkily above me. At night he would cuddle on my chest, with his wing over his body. At these times I was most self conscious of my powers. I couldn’t sleep at all, for fear of burning him. 

One morning, while Phoenix went on a warmup flight around the house, I heard my brother and dad laughing maliciously.

“Ay! The runt has grown fat! He can be our Christmas feast. Tell Luke to stop reading and hurry up and skin the bird.” 

The runt. The runt has grown fat? Then it dawned on me. The runt was Phoenix. 

“Angus! Stop! No! Phoenix!” I arrived breathlessly at the kitchen where my brother held Phoenix by the legs. My heart stopped. Phoenix struggled and wriggled around, resisting. I watched with horror as my brother brought the blade down on Phoenix’s neck. 

So I did the only thing that I could possibly do. Before my eyes, a streaking fireball zoomed towards my brother. It hit him in the chest and he screamed and dropped Phoenix. 

The fire spread across Angus’ chest. My father watched with horror.

“A monster. You are a monster!” He shook a shaking finger at me with anger in his eyes. 

“My son is a monster! No, you are no son of mine! You have killed my son, you monster.”

By then, Phoenix had taken flight. He was fine. Phoenix was still alive. He circled above me and flew ahead. When I didn’t move, he circled back again and hovered above me. He wanted me to follow him. I slung my backpack across my back, hoping it had some books in it. 

As Phoenix led the path I ran behind him. I wasn’t sure for how long we ran, but soon we reached a forest. I wasn’t even sure which town we were in anymore. All I could think was that I had no family anymore. My father disowned me and I had killed my brother. My mother had died before I could remember her, as was normal in such conditions. I didn’t feel sad. I had Phoenix, and that was enough.

Suddenly, Phoenix stopped and flew onto a branch. I heard a heavy crackling of leaves and twigs from close by. I pressed myself close to a tree trunk and tried to remain quiet. The person moved even closer. He or she was right in front of the tree I was hiding behind. Please do t come any closer, I prayed.

“Shoot. I knew I shouldn’t have worn this darn dress. Dumb ball gown.” It was a girl who sounded like she was relatively my age. Perhaps she wasn’t dangerous. I was starting to calm down when she walked right in front of me. Both of us screamed at the same time. I shot fire, she shot water. The two elements dissolved each other. I stared at her in shock, and she regarded me with confusion. 

“Who are you?” We asked at the same time. 

“I come in peace.” We both declared at the same time. 

In bewilderment, we started to laugh. It felt good to laugh after all that had happened. She must’ve gone through something too. 

“I’m Luke.” I said.

“And I’m prin-  I mean, I’m Mira.” 

“Hi. You tell me about yourself first. No secrets to keep anymore.” She nodded, and began. 

“I’m Princess Mira Nobelius and my father has just been abducted...”

As we talked, Phoenix circled the air around us and landed on my shoulders.

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Heyyy! Thanks for reading! Kate’s character is coming out and I’m really rushing so I’m gonna edit this part later...