Ice Phoenix (15 page)

The boy blanched a little. "Most people would have burned it or —," his eyes narrowed, "bought a new one."

"Oh, I could never afford something like that," said Terrana promptly. "My guardian's a miser. It's a beautiful coat, made from Swivan wool. It's probably worth a fortune!"

"Not if it's been covered in alien bacteria." He started walking out of the stable. Terrana followed.

"I'm not an alien. I'm from Sector Thirteen."

"That makes you an alien."

"I'm a very clean person! I've taken three showers today!" She counted her drenching in the lake as a shower. "Anyhow, do you know where I can find this animal? I'd really like to thank the person who rescued me."

The boy sighed, coming to a halt. They were outside now and he pointed at the mountains behind the stable.

"Up there."

"Huh?"

He sighed again and caught her by the shoulder, pulling her towards him until she was standing only centimetres from his chest. He spun her around and pointed to a trail leading up the mountain. "You'll find the animal if you take that trail."

Terrana looked at the trail uncertainly. It was dark, covered by thick bushes and trees on both sides, disappearing into a world from which she might not be able to return. She turned and faced him, smiling sheepishly. "You're not by any chance going up there
now,
are you?"

Cold blue eyes assessed her. "Let me guess, you're scared of a few trees."

"Plus I have no sense of direction," said Terrana quickly. "Your directions lacked specifics.
Up there
could be anywhere. Also you didn't tell me how high
up there
is."

"Are you always this persistent when you want something?"

"I've been trying to thank my rescuer for weeks! And as you pointed out earlier, three weeks is a long time."

His gaze lingered on her face, holding her eyes. "If you found this person, how would you thank him?"

Terrana's heart pounded, although she didn't know why.

"You bear no gifts, you're too poor to take him out for a meal, and you're too young for anything else."

Her eyes narrowed. "I've got sincerity.
Lots
of it."

The corner of his mouth curled again. He turned away and began striding towards the trail. "Try to keep up. I won't wait for you."

She beamed and ran after him.

He meant what he said about not waiting for her. He didn't look back once as he led the way up the rocky, steep trail which sometimes disappeared completely from sight. Terrana caught her trousers on the jutting rocks several times, ripping them in the process. This upset her of course, but she kept her mouth shut and did her best to keep pace with the boy, who moved with the ease of a mountain lion.

Eventually, after several bruises, scratches, and a lot of huffing and puffing, they reached a clearing in the trees and stumbled out onto a wide plateau. Terrana blinked in the sudden brightness of the sun, unaware of the twigs and dirt clinging to her hair, and gawped at the magnificent sight before her.

From where she stood, Minda Yerra had
never looked more spectacular. The great dragon gazed out over the never-ending lake in a contemplative manner, seeing things that no living being could.

It reminded her of another scene that similarly used to take her breath away — her heart contracted as it returned to her. She could see coconut trees fringing a white beach and shells sparkling in crystal waters. She could even hear waves crashing gently on the reef. The silver form of a dolphin broke through the water, sending jolts of happiness through her body.
She took a step forwards, hoping to get closer to the dolphin, but pain lanced her feet and she looked down to see the ground on fire. Angry flames licked at her legs and she gasped.

"What's wrong?"

His voice was like an icy blast of wind which snuffed out the fire, returning her to reality. She blinked several times, her face pale as she stared at him.

"N-nothing.
Is, is the animal here?"

"It is."

She looked around, saw nothing, and an ominous feeling pervaded her. "I don't see it."

"Walk to the edge and then jump. It'll come."

Right. Terrana looked back from where they had come. If she was quick enough, she could shove him out of the way and make it down the mountain. She didn't think twice. She bolted, keeping her head down and ... ran straight into a brick wall.

The boy sighed and moved like lightning, hoisting her onto his shoulder. He began walking towards the edge of the plateau.

"Let me go!"
she screamed, kicking and pummelling.

"
I thought you wished to see the flying animal."

"I wish more n
ot to die!"

They reached the edge and Terrana caught a glimpse of the trees and rocks below. She felt sick.

"Oh my god, oh my god! Don't you let me go! Don't you dare or I swear I'll haunt you for the rest of your life!"

"That would be a fate most undesirable, tempted as I am to drop you."

"Don't you dare! Please, we can work something out. I'll clean the stables for the whole year — just don't drop me!"

"Not interested. We should get this over with quickly." He stepped over the edge into thin air.

Her screaming nearly shattered his eardrums. She was too terrified to notice they weren't falling as fast as they should, and instead focused on becoming a human octopus, curling around the boy. A large animal appeared, and the boy grabbed onto it and climbed on. As he adjusted their seating, he unpeeled Terrana and swung her around so that she faced him.

The animal snorted and changed direction, heading towards the lake. Terrana turned quiet but the boy did not suspect anything.

"Feel free to thank me," he said.

She raised her head and looked at him, her face pale and devoid of any retribution.

"Well?"

Projectile vomit plastered itself all over the front of his shirt. She did it quite loudly, too, not withholding anything, and when it was finally over, she wiped the side of her mouth and glared at him.

"Thank you."

His expression was unreadable while the creature they were seated on shook slightly, whether in mirth or disgust it was difficult to say. This boy deserved it. She must have lost ten years of her life going over that cliff!

Her eyes widened slightly as she witnessed her vomit freeze over, separating itself from the boy. It floated away and dropped straight into the forest below.

"Is there anything else you have left in that gaping, black hole you call a stomach?"

She shook her head. She wanted to reach out and touch his face, wondering how he could have spoken when it was set like stone. Instead, she asked, "Your animal?"

She could feel its powerful muscles rippling beneath her as it beat its wings. Wonderfully soft fur brushed against her skin and she was amazed at how steadily it flew — she did not need to cling to anything.

"My friend," he replied coldly.

"Oh." She supposed he would be touchy after what she had done. "What's his name?"

His eyes narrowed and he placed a hand under her chin, forcing her to hold his gaze. "Perhaps, you should learn
my
name first."

She felt bad then. She had pestered him to lead her up the mountain and not bothered to introduce herself.

"Sorry," she said meekly. "What's your name? Mine's Terrana."

"I am the prince of Swiva, His Majesty Gil Ra Im, son of the Ice Queen Julere, but you may simply address me as
Your Majesty
. My friend’s name is Dragoth, one of the legendary faars of Swiva."

Terrana stayed quiet a whole minute. The cogs in her head turned but she could think of nothing appropriate to say. Finally, she said, "Would you like your coat back, Your Majesty?"

They were flying over the lake and Terrana was trying her best not to look down in case she panicked and fell off. The prince hadn't said a word and she
shot him a worried look.

"
Well, don't you want it back?" She thrust the satchel at him. "It's clean, honestly!"

"
Who brought you from Sector Thirteen?" There was something fixating about his star
e
— Terrana couldn't look away.

"
Baneyon. Baneyon Ondur."

He seemed to recogni
se the name because he looked mildly surprised. "Where's your family? Are they here with you?"

In her mind
's eye, Terrana saw the fire. Something writhed within; little did she know it was the second crack. The first had occurred earlier, when she had been gawping from the plateau.

"
My family," she said, falling into a strange stupor, "are dead. All of them."

The prince leaned back in surprise.
"All of them?"

"
All of them."

"
I am sorry to hear that." He stared at her curiously. A vacant look had touched her eyes. "Terrana, are you okay?"

She didn
't respond. He shook her. "Terrana?"

Her world had turned dark, sucking her from the bright sunshine and cool wind in the sky. The prince's voice had faded into nothing more than a distant memory, and Terrana sunk deeper, struggling to make sense of her new surroundings.

In the darkness, a tiny
flame flickered. It grew, gradually creating a rip into another world, and she saw a glimmering white light ahead. She walked towards it, stepping through the darkness onto soft, white sand. Clear, warm water swirled around her feet. Terrana knew where she was.

The sharp sound of timber cracking made her turn towards the house
— it was burning. Her parents and Archie were still inside. With her heart in her mouth, she sprinted towards it and suddenly found herself standing in the living room. The walls groaned in sadness as raging flames consumed them. A large hole gaped overhead, where the ceiling should have been. This was where she had left Archie.

"
Archie!"
she screamed. Her eyes, red and burning from the smoke, could still make out her brother's writhing form trapped beneath the burning beam. He must have heard her because his hand moved.

"
Terrana ... get away from here."

"
Archie!" She ran to him, into the smoking flames, and grabbed his blackened hand. Hot, blistering pain enveloped her and she realised she was on fire, but she refused to abandon her brother. Tears sizzled down her cheeks. "I won't leave you this time. I won't let you die alone."

Archie smiled and the skin on his face turned to ash, revealing white bone
beneath. "Look at you, Terrana. You're not burning. You can't die."

In the incinerating
heat, Terrana turned cold. Darkness welled inside her until her body could no longer contain it, and it spilled from her eyes.

"
That's right," said the skull that was her brother. "You can't die. You're the one who killed us."

She
stumbled back, falling on her bum as she tripped over her feet. The darkness from her eyes spilled across the floor and into her brother.

"That's
not true!" Fire enveloped her but it no longer burned.

"
But it
is
true, Terrana."

The voice
... it came from Archie, but it did not belong to him. It was, however, a voice she recognised.

Archie chuckled and Terrana started to tremble.

"Who are you?" she cried.

He raised his head and she watched as his skin repaired itself, melding rapidly into something terrifyingly familiar, and when it finally completed, she
screamed and backed away.

She was staring at her own face. Every detail, from the eyebrows, nose, mouth
, and chin, belonged to her. Only her eyes were different. Black pools swirled in her eye sockets instead of human warmth. Her hair was longer too and reached her shoulders whereas Terrana's was only a few centimetres off her scalp.

"
Don't you like your new look?" said the mirror image as she slithered like a snake from beneath the burning beam and got to her feet. Her coal-black body glistened in the firelight, completely naked.

"
Get away from me!" Terrana cried, her eyes bulging in fright.

"
I can't. I'm you." She advanced on Terrana, a cruel smile playing about her mouth. Her hair was longer, flowing in the scorching currents of the fire. "We have to be together, as one."

"
Get away from me! You are evil!"

She
laughed. "Evil? Why do you think I'm evil?" She stretched out her arms, and blue-orange flames erupted around her. She dazzled before Terrana, a deadly butterfly in the centre of an unrelenting fire, and beckoned. "Come here."

Terra
na was pulled towards the fiery girl. She stopped only when their foreheads touched. A dark hand caressed her face and she found herself drowning in two black pools that were her eyes.

"
You and I ..." she whispered softly, "We are one." And then her lips pressed upon Terran
a’
s, locking them in a kiss. Fire seeped into Terrana's mouth.

The prince reached out to shake Terrana again, but he leaned away as she burst into flames. He observed her as she got to her feet, easily keeping her balance on the faa
r’
s back, and obviously no longer afraid of falling. His eyes narrowed as he looked at her darkened skin, the hair dancing across her shoulders in a halo of fire, and the terrible malice spilling from her eyes. The prince sent a warning to his faar:
Dragoth.

I am aware.

Silver scales raced up the faar's body, covering it completely with impenetrable amour. Feathers disintegrated along its wings to be replaced by silver, pulsating energy, and its majestic mane transformed into a deadly halo of needles that rippled in the wind. Eyes that were previously blue glowed a deep red.

The prince
ejected a fine layer of mist around him — the malice he sensed from the girl warned him of an imminent attack. He wasn't wrong.

T
he air compressed in front of him, and without any hesitation he leapt off Dagroth's back into the empty sky. A burst of searing flames erupted, encompassing Dragoth entirely. The flames raged on for several seconds with Dragoth still trapped inside. Then, as suddenly as they had appeared, the flames vanished.

Hovering just far enough away to see what was happening without getting burnt, the prince tried to collect his thoughts. He quickly came to realis
e that Terrana was not in full control of her powers, and whoever or whatever she was, was still trying to adjust. Her focus was unsteady as she continued to balance on Dragoth. This gave the prince an idea.

Dragoth
.

The faar understood immediately and
rolled in the air. Terrana was thrown off and she plummeted towards the lake, her limbs flailing wildly. The prince followed, unsure whether he should save her or whether she would stop the descent herself. He had observed Terrana on several occasions during PT classes and knew she was not capable of weaving anything substantial to save her life.

As he looked at the girl, his reason told him it was not Terrana. Whoever or whatever this entity was, it had just
superheated the air to create an explosion — an act that was beyond Terran
a’
s skill level. Uncertain whether he should fight her with his full strength, he decided to err on the side of caution.

D
ragoth appeared at his side and the prince steeled himself against the force of the faar's powerful qi. A thought reached him.

I wouldn't suggest holding back against
Anarret, young prince. Whatever she is, she is strong.

If they weren't in a grim situation, the prince would have smiled at Dragoth's naming of the new Terrana.
He had turned her name into a palindrome.

I don't want to hurt her, Dragoth.

You may not have a choice. She could be after either of us, so we will separate for now.

I will face her, Dragoth.

Dragoth flew off to observe the pending
battle from a safe distance.

Anarret
was no longer falling. Somehow, she had figured out how to condense the air particles below to create an upward pressure. She was rising ... and seething. Prince Gil Ra Im watched and waited.

F
lames licked her body and she looked like a jewel on fire as she flew straight towards him. In a blink of an eye, she was within centimetres of the prince, swinging her right fist at him. He remained calm in the face of her attack, and a barrier engulfed him, a complexity of heavily pressurised air and electric currents designed to prevent any object from penetrating.

Anarre
t’
s arm passed right through, and the electric currents danced along her skin. The wall of pressurised air failed to deflect her attack, and her fist caught him on the shoulder.

The prince recoiled
from the impact, shocked by her insane strength. His shield dissipated. There were not many people, especially students, who could counteract his barrier without being hurt in the process. His shoulder throbbed from where she had caught him, and he felt the onset of a painful bruise. Fire surged from her other fist, transforming into a gaping maw that was bent on devouring him. He twisted out of the way and immediately executed his own attack.

He drew
moisture from the air and condensed it into fluid bowling balls. He hurled them at Anarret, pummelling her mercilessly. Steam rose around her as the water touched her burning body. Undaunted, the prince recycled the steam back into water and blasted her again.

In a fit of rage,
Anarret superheated the air around him, and before he could react, she released an explosion that sent him hurtling through the sky. He had not yet regained his balance when he was surrounded by his own weavin
g
— the fluid sacs erupted, showering him in boiling liquid.

Prince
.

I am fine, Dragoth. You may be right, howeve
r
— I cannot overpower her without possibly hurting Terrana.

Prince Gil Ra Im hovered in the air, his appearance partially transformed. His eyes possessed a piercing adamantine lustre, and his skin had lost its pigmentation.

Anarret flew towards him, and the prince noticed she was smiling. She halted a few metres from him, devoid of the rage he had sensed earlier.

"Thank you for releasing me," she smirked. "You have a way of reminding Terrana of home."

Prince Gil Ra Im frowned. "As I thought, you are not Terrana."

She laughed. "Apart from my appearance, do I, in any way resemble that little cry-baby?"

Prince Gil Ra Im gave a cold-blooded smile. "Had I been certain you were not Terrana, I would not have held back. I had no wish to hurt her."

"
Awww, how sweet is that? Unfortunately,
Your Majesty
, she and I share the same body, but I'd like to think of it as mine.
Try
what you want with it!" She giggled.

The prince lunged forwards
and punched her square in the chest. She grunted and fell back, winded and perhaps a little bruised, but nowhere close to being out of commission. A network of water belts closed in on her, and before she realised what was happening, the prince coiled them around her, binding her limbs. The water hardened into ice and doused the flames.

The prince flipped forwards and kicked her in the stomach, sending her plummeting. His hope that he could keep her restrained was shattered when
the belts around her cracked. Ice shards sped towards him; he melted them, paying no heed as huge drops of water rained down on him.

Anarret
loomed in front of him and he found himself staring into her bottomless eyes.

"You have no idea how to treat a girl! I don't like being restrained in ice, especially when I'm on fire!"

She snapped her fingers and Prince Gil Ra Im doubled over in pain. Anarret slid an arm under him, forcing him to look at her. Then, she leaned forwards and whispered in his ear.

"Cold inside, cold outside.
Don't you want my warmth to reach you?"

Prince Gil Ra Im screamed as tiny fragments of ice erupted through his skin, fleeing his body like bullets. Through the haziness of the pain, his mind reeled from the unimaginable power of the girl in front of him.

"How ..." he gasped, "did you take my qi?"