Divinitas

009 - Prelude to Battle


Like a marionette Phoenix spooned the cereal to his mouth, going through the motions of chewing and swallowing without conscious thought. His blood eyeseyes were riveted to the distant figure of the Child of Soul across the dinning hall, smiling a predator\'s smile at him. His dark violet gaze spoke one thing: \'all in good time.\'

The night\'s rest had allowed Phoenix to come to a conclusion. It was obvious Aether wanted something from him. Why was the question, but that could wait. What concerned him most now was how to keep his freedom. Damn it, he would not allow himself to be controlled. Eleven years of wasted life living under the hand of others was damned long enough. No more. He had come here to carve for himself a destiny as he saw fit. Not to live it belonging to someone else.

Going to the Principal was out of the question. He would probably laugh in his face and enjoy watching him suffer. Leaving Genesis? He would rather slit his wrists before he did that too. This was the best chance he had of achieving his dream of being somebody, making something out of himself. He wasn\'t about to throw all that away because of one boy.

So what do to?

No option there. Defeat Aether in the duel.

~ * ~

The class scheduled for Tuesday morning was located outside. A very nice change having been cooped up since late Sunday morning when he had arrived. Simply stepping outside the stone walls of the castle reminded Phoenix just how awe inspiring the Castle of Genesis was. How like something out of a dream, a fairy tale, a beautiful painting. Anything but a leaf from reality.

The insistent tugging on his short sleeve pulled nix\nix\'s attention away from his admiration of the castle that had become his home.

\"Quit day dreaming, Phoenix! Class starts in a few!\" Chima told the taller boy, half dragging him down the slightly sloping landscape behind the castle. This was a place Phoenix had yet to explore, having only glimpsed the castle from its main entrance.

Phoenix rolled his eyes at the younger boy\'s enthusiasm. Where Chima derived all his energy from Phoenix would never know… Then again, it could be from the fact that the boy ate enough for three people.

Suddenly the pulling on his arm disappeared. Phoenix looked down to see the boy sprinting down the rolling landscape and then all but skid to a halt at the boundary of a well built timber fence. With bright green eyes the boy turned back and gestured frantically for the other three to join him, the largest grin painted on his delighted face.

\"Horses!\" Chima shouted back. \"They\'re giving us horses!\" The absolute joy that emanated from the boy was like an infectious divine light. He was smiling so much that it seemed his face would split into two.

Phoenix\'s eyes bulged at Chima\'s words. \"Horses…? You mean those creatures with four legs that trample on people?!\"

Draco just gave the frozen boy the look before shaking his head sadly and joining Chima down by the fence.

\"Horses, Phoenix, not some mythical monster from some nightmarish bedtime story. Humans have used these animals for millenniums for agriculture and transport purposes. And whilst there have been incidents where horses have caused fatalities, those are the exceptions, not the generality,\" Gryps said flatly as he strolled past, his long braid flickering like a living entity.

The other boy glowered. \"Yeah, well, excuse me for being an un-educated street rat!\"

\"You\'re excused,\" Gryps replied without so much as a glance over his shoulder.

Within the blink of an eye, Phoenix had locked his arm around Gryps\' neck, halting the boy\'s progress. \"You are such a cold bastard!\" Phoenix shouted as he tried to break Gryps\' neck in anything but a mock attack.

Gryps just frowned, as one might if a fly flew about one\'s face. Harmless yet very annoying. His long thin fingers rapped themselveoundound Phoenix\'s arm and effortlessly threw the boy over his shoulder.

Whether by luck or skill, Phoenix twisted his body in mid flip and landing in a crouch, glaring with burning eyes up at the cold silver figure standing before him. \"You know martial art techniques,\" Phoenix noted in a low dangerous voice.

Gryps smirked. \"Observant.\"

\"Hn. And I suppose your looks serve to get you in bed with those you\'ve targeted to assassinate?\" This had been meant as a mocking insult, yet a profound change of expression flickered across Gryps face as if a deep and regretted truth had been touched.

The silver haired boy\'s powerful leg lashed out, aiming to wipe Phoenix\'s head off his shoulders. Phoenix\'s upper body fell backwards, the wind from Gryps\' foot sending his flaming fringe into a wild dance. Like a coiled spring, Phoenix leapt backwards and stood up, arms ready in defence. That was a little too close for comfort. He didn\'t need to add a dislocated jaw to his list of injuries.

Before either boy could attack each other again, a loud whistle blew. \"Alright, that\'s enough. Break it up, you two,\" a friendly yet stern voice of a teacher called out from below them. \"Come on, get down here! We\'re ready to start!\"

Gritting his teeth, Phoenix trudged down the slope and joined the class. Sulking slightly, Phoenix leant on the fence next to Draco who patted him on the shoulder sympathetically.

That was the first day Phoenix laid his eyes on a live horse. Felt its warmth, smelt its dusty yet comforting scent, touched its glossy black coat, or ran trembling fingers through silky locks of hair. Never would Phoenix have imagined in a million years that being with an animal such as this could bring him some semblance of peace as he felt now. No, there was nothing quite like doing something simple and innocent to calm one\'s wild mind.

And even as the horse, a black stallion by the show name of Solar Flare, stomped on his foot and he screamed curses at it, the lost child in Phoenix\'s heart was smiling for the first time in many, many years.

~ * ~

The remainder of the week flew by as if some higher power had tipped all clocks to run at twice their normal pace. With all their classes and homework, and then additional time spent caring for their assigned horses, no student had much free time to speak of.

It seemed to Phoenix that by Tuesday evening the whole school had discovered that Aether had challenged him, including the first years who had no idea of the implications behind it. There were now more than ever continuous whispers behind his back that carried his name, which annoyed Phoenix to no end. What made everything worse was the fact that Casimir took it as a personal insult that Aether would have the indecency to do such a thing to her Little Phoenix, and made him train for Metamorps evs every spare second the boy had.

One might ask how Casimir was able to pressure the stubborn boy into more training than was healthy for him. The answer was simple. Phoenix trained simply because the only place he could escape her was in Metamorphosis. Besides… There was something about being within Metamorphosis that seemed to make everything right. It was almost like being home, wasn\'t it…?

~ * ~

Friday evening. Time was all but gone. Dinner was eaten, the school week was done. But it was never too late for more training. And there was still the night left before the fateful morning.

The Metamorphosis training hall was deserted, though still brightly lit as if it were midday. There were no windows here. Nor were there any visible sources of light. It seemed that light just flowed from the walls, from the ceiling.

Standing in the very centre of the hall, Phoenix looked inquisitively up at the brilliant golden eye directly above him. The iris was gold, the pupil silver… And the eye wasn\'t human... The pupil was a silt, like a cats\' or a snakes\'. Fine rays of light stretched out from it, winding their way through the clouds to touch the fouguregures of the gods around it. Linking them to the eye like… chains.

The sound of one of the simulators opening drew Phoenix\'s attention away from his examination of the painting above. Leaning up against the side of the silver capsule was a gleaming scythe with a long chain and claw attached to the opposite end of the curved blade.

\'Child of Earth,\' Phoenix thought automatically as he watched a girl dressed in a House of Earth uniform emerge from the simulator. Almost certainly in her final year and thus eighteen years of age, the girl was tall, well built, and sported dark locks held back by a length of plaited hair on either side and left to flow freely behind her. Her steady gaze rose to meet Phoenix\'s, and the two stood there, regarding each other at a distance.

Never breaking the gaze, the girl picked up her weapon and walked with slow steps toward the unmoving boy. \"You are Phoenix, aren\'t you.\" Her clear voice carried over the remaining distance easily, rebounding off the cavernous hall. \"Do you know Aether?\"

Phoenix frowned. \"Only that he\'s the Child of Soul and that he\'s challenged me to a Duel.\" He suddenly didn\'t feel like standing there anymore, and he certainly didn\'t want to talk to the Child of Earth. With long strides, the boy crossed the radius of the hall and touched his hand to the surface of one of the simulators, prompting it to open.

\"But do you know him? As in, do you and he share a common past?\"

\"No,\" Phoenix replied shortly, swinging himself into the seat of the simulator. \"Before coming to Genesis, I had never even glimpsed him on the street.\"

The girl looked thoughtful. \"Aether has never shown the slightest interest in anyone before… Let alone take on a lover.\" Phoenix\'s eyes widened at her use of the word, his mouth gapping open to protest he certainly was not his lover. But the Child of Earth continuing with her spoken thoughts, ignoring Phoenix\'s reaction. \"So I am wondering, why you? On the very first day you arrived, without even knowing your personality?\"

Phoenix just glared at her. \"How should I know the whims of that demented fiend? Why are you asking these things…?\" But even as his words left his mouth, the reason dawned on him. \"You like him, don\'t you…?\"

The girl only smiled softly. \"I\'m Dawn, Child of Earth,\" she said as she walked towards the exit. \"I hope you win tomorrow.\"

The frowning boy watched until she had disappeared from view, and then slammed the hatch of the simulator shut, sealing himself in the cocoon of darkness.

~ * ~

Some small part of Phoenix was aware that morning had come. That small part of him heard the muffled roar of the crowd outside, the cheers, the chattering, and whispered to the sleeping boy it was time to wake, to face destiny.

The boy shifted in his sleep, snuggling down deeper into the comfortable reclined seat. Like a mother\'s embrace, it was. Warm, comforting, something he had all but forgotten. No, it wasn\'t time yet to wake up. Let him sleep just a little longer and dream sweet tender dreams.

The hiss of the hatch being released was simply the wind blowing though gaps in the rocks where he played. They made such an interesting sound-

\"There you are!\" Ares\' enthusiastic voice boomed over the roar of the crowd. \"Come on, get up! Everyone\'s waiting for you to begin!\" His large hands took hold of Phoenix\'s sleep crumpled Metamorphosis uniform and hauled the still sleeping boy from the simulator, dumping him unceremoniously on the polished marble floor. \"See, Aether, he didn\'t chicken out! He\'s been waiting here for you all along!\" Ares boasted, no doubt with his chest puffed out and standing tall before the Child of Soul.

\"I would chicken out if I was allowed…\" Phoenix muttered, picking himself up from the cold floor and gathering the will power to lift his head and look Aether in the eye. Oh, he didn\'t need to lay eyes on him to know he was there, standing right before him. That boy had a presence that Phoenix could feel a mile away.

\"Phoenix.\" The name was spoken like a caress, sending ripples down Phoenix\'s spine and drawing the boy\'s red eyes upwards to the perfect face belonging to the one who had spoken. Aether smiled, confidently, contentedly, and offered his hand for Phoenix to shake.

The fiery boy stared at it stupidly until Ares elbowed him in the ribs, and grudgingly Phoenix took Aether\'s hand in his, a glare in those fierce red eyes. But no sooner had Phoenix closed his trembling hand around Aether pale slim one did a loud and familiar voice ring out across the hall, causing him to snatch it back as if he had been bitten.

\"No! Don\'t you dare touch Little Phoenix!\" Casimir cried out from some distance beside them. Phoenix saw that the only reason he wasn\'t being clung to by the hyper-active girl was because both Draco and Chima were restraining her for all they were worth. At least they had the mind to see he didn\'t need another distraction right now. Chima grinned and gave Phoenix a thumbs up sign.

\"I will see you in Metamorphosis, Phoenix,\" Aether said softly, letting his hand fall back to his side. His amethyst eye roamed over the boy, the smile still playing on his lips. Then he turned, raising his arms to draw the attention of the excited crowd surrounding them. \"The Duel will now being. May the best pilot win!\"

As if someone had suddenly turned the volume up to full, the wave of noise that exploded from the crowd was enough to send Phoenix staggering backwards. By the time Phoenix had recovered himself, the crowd has swallowed his adversary.

At once Ares pounced on Phoenix, pulling him back towards the simulator he had spent the previous sleeping in. \"Listen, Phoenix. This is one damned important Duel-\"

\"No kidding…\"

\"-since Aether has never challenged another student before. If you win this, the House of Fire will be famous. And so will you! Look, I know you haven\'t had much time to train in Metamorphosis, and Aether is the best player to ever come out of this school, but keep a level head about you! Don\'t think about the consequences of losing. After all, Aether seems like a reasonable chap-\"

\"You\'re not the one he wants to bloody own…\"

\"-I\'m sure you two will work something out! Now, just try your best, that\'s all anyone\'s asking. So Aether\'s is currently undefeated, but hey, there\'s a first time for everything, right? Ready? Great! Get in!\"

And Phoenix found himself being shoved back into the simulator, his head still trying to process the whirlwind of words that had fallen from the Child of Fire\'s talkative mouth.

\"Ugh… What kind of thing is that to say to me just before this?\" Phoenix moped as he was sealed into the dark interior of the simulator.

At once the silvery blue screen blinked to life in front of him, a line of glowing text scrolling across it.

It is the truth. Aether is undefeated.

\"Gee, thanks for clarifying that to me. Now that I know it\'s the absolute truth, I feel so much better!\" Phoenix exclaimed sarcastically.

Metamorphosis acknowledges that you, Phoenix Incendium, are thankful towards it for providing useful information.

The initiation process for synchronising your active thoughts to Metamorphosis will now commence.

\"Shows how smart you really are… Can\'t even tell when I\'m being sarcastic,\" Phoenix muttered as he opened his eyes in his new surroundings. \"Weapon version three point three,\" Phoenix said loudly to the air around him.

Personalised for his use, a long double endedrd, rd, much like the one the Child of Fire carried minus the red jewels set in the handle, materialised in the space before of him. Grasping it firmly with both hands, the boy proceeded to survey the land around him, searching for any sign of the Child of Soul.

\"Damn it, where are you…\" Turning around and around, Phoenix could catch no glimpse of Aether. It wasn\'t as if there was any place to hide out there either.

Then, without warning, something large and burning slammed into Phoenix\'s back. Red hot metal claws dug without mercy into the boy\'s already scarred back, tearing a painful inhuman scream from his raw throat.

~ * ~

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