Ivory Inferno

by LeAnn Mason

  Rescue was so close. I opened my mouth to scream my anguish to the heavens.

  “Bianca, stop. Breathe. We can’t just come busting in,” Tabbart soothed as he came to kneel near my face. Wiping at the dirt and debris still overtop and impeding the view, he continued. “The heat from your rebirth has melted rock, and it’s solidified into obsidian. It is very fragile and very sharp when shattered. We must be careful moving forward. We’ll get you out, but we can’t just come busting in. Not without doing some real damage to you. Do you understand, Firebird?” His weathered face was creased with concern, dark eyes bright with worry.

  My palm plastered against the roof of my tomb as water again leaked from my eyes, either from light sensitivity or panic. I’d pretend it was the former for a little longer. Tabbart’s calloused palm descended to where mine still pressed, a silent promise that shored up my resolve, and I nodded minutely.

  “I might be able to use my pickaxe to make a small hole, but I think the smartest option, with the least potential for more harm, is to dig a little deeper so we can try and come through the side. There is a higher probability that the debris wouldn’t injure you or, at least, not by too high of a degree. Are you okay with that? How are you feeling?”

  Did he seriously just ask me that? Delivering a dead-eyed stare without conscious effort roused a sardonic chuckle from the bearded half-man. The sound stayed my panic just enough to allow for a kernel of hope that I might make it out of this grave before I died in it. Again.

  “If you still have the ability to be a teenage girl, I think we have some time yet.” Nick still hadn’t entered my narrow field of vision. It was like I was staring down the length of a tunnel with nothing past the edge of my enclosure entering my sight. I heard his disapproving grunt though, taking the comment about his previous roar to heart.

  A blur of black descended into the hole, and a streak of gray followed, moving to the opposite side as the first. The dark wolf paused to investigate me, or the rock, wet nose smearing some of the dirt still covering the clear portion of the casement. I brought my fingers to where Ebony’s canine face hovered, wishing more than just about anything that I could touch her. Feel the cold wetness of her nose, the warm panting of breath. I wished I could wrap my arms around her furred neck and bury my face in the coarse hair deep enough to feel the soft undercoat buried beneath.

  I’d even take a lick or two without complaint.

  One last lingering look of molten amber eyes that I knew my friend Allya stared through, and the wolf got to work. As if on a mission, Ebony began digging a trench in the earth still piled around where I lay. A quiet and unhelpful lump in danger of dying. Again.

  I hated my helplessness. The reliance I had on my friends and guardians. It was pathetic and something I vowed to change the moment I was free of this hunk of lava rock. Even if I died again before that happened.

  Especially if I died again before then.

  Screw this.

  Nope, I wasn’t going to lie around and let everyone else do the work for me, worry about what would happen to me if they didn’t take the utmost care. I wasn’t fragile.

  I was a freaking phoenix.

  Death means nothing to me.

  Carrying this new resolve, I again put fingers and knees to the obstruction above me and, with methodical rhythm, began striking.

  The wolves on either side of my tomb stopped their hurried mud flinging with eerily similar expressions. Man, Hunter and Ebony, if not Allya and Jason, were becoming quite the mirror of their other half. I couldn’t wait to inform my friends of that fact. My prediction was that Jason would be smug and Allya annoyed to the point of trying to prove otherwise.

  Now, I just needed to survive to see it.

  My head swam as I used more of my depleted oxygen stores, movements faltering.

  “Firebird, stop! We don’t know what will happen if it breaks.” Tabbart again attempted to reason with me, but I was beyond it. I wanted out and I wanted out now.

  “I’m coming out one way or another, so either help or back off, Tab,” I growled. Hopefully, the halting, breathy demand was heard and heeded. I hated to admit how weak the demand had been and the possibility that I’d fail to extricate myself.

  Tabbart, having given up arguing with me, slid down into the hole with pickaxe in hand. With a solid thump, he landed atop the heap still covering my feet and lower legs. “Maybe if we leave a little debris, it will act as a cushion or barrier for the shards that will invariably be created with a breach.”

  Then he mumbled something I didn’t catch, but the digging wolves scrabbled to leap up the embankment the dwarf had used as an entrance. “Turn on your side, and curl yourself into the fetal position as much as you can. Maybe then you will be clear of the breakage altogether.” I did as told, pulling knees to chest and head to knees. I kept an arm wrapped around my head just in case.

  A creaking splinter sounded, much like that of the ice eclipsing a frozen pond when it cracked, opening to swallow you whole.

  CHAPTER 22

  “P lease don’t let me die. Again.” My words, as if a harbinger, heralded the shrieking of an irreparable fissure.

  Hissing escaped my lips as pressure descended on my legs, sharp pinpricks igniting my bare skin where piercing shards of obsidian, embedded within the falling dirt, sliced my feet and ankles, burrowing deeper as the pressure atop increased. But there was a burst of fresh, moist-forest air that accompanied the sensation, allowing my head to clear slightly.

  “Hang on. I’m going to try and pull the rock away from you as I move upward, B.” Tabbart’s clouded voice reached me through the bubble I still sat within. The invasion of rock and soil at my feet hadn’t allowed for more than a quick burst of fresh air before it had filled the readied hole. But I had faith that they’d get me out of this with my latest life intact.

  Breathing became harder as the air thinned again, the fresh air too quickly used by my starving body. My saviors worked quickly but carefully, to separate the stone enough for me to escape without slicing my body from shoulder to ankle, trying to wriggle through some dwarf-sized hole.

  My mind headed toward fuzzy again, vision fading in and out, so I closed my eyes and tried to breathe steadily. I hoped if I focused on only myself, on clearing my mind, meditating, that I would be free before I knew it.

  At least, that was my hope.

  “Hey, B, how you doing down there?”

  I creaked open an eyelid, squinting into the blazing light. A few blobs of darkness broke up the abundance of rose-tinged blue sky that greeted me by scorching my retinas, and I squeezed it shut again to keep from blinding myself. Allya’s call was forgotten as I inhaled deeply, the abundance of soil-scented air filling my lungs and sending my body arching to reach for it.

  Dirt spattered my face and torso and covered my feet and lower legs substantially, the sight bringing with it the sting of many cuts. It looked like my meditation attempt had been successful. I hadn’t felt any of it. How long had it been? Had I been meditating, or had I passed out? “How long has it been?” I croaked, my voice thick from new cords and raspy from the panic-induced screaming I’d attempted however long ago.

  “Just about half an hour or so, but now that all is well, maybe he’ll calm down a bit.”

  “He?”

  Allya cocked her head to the side, indicating something unseen to my current, limited field of vision. “The raging bull, er, bear, over here. Are you good? Can you come out now and put the big guy’s heart at ease?”

  She spoke lightly, but I could see the tightness of her cloaked body, the way she gripped the cloak with clenched fists as she held it around her naked form. “Crawl on outta there. I’m going to take the opportunity to find some clothes. Maybe I’ll even get some for you guys so that you can shift without letting it all hang ou–” Her voice cut off quickly as Tabbart pushed her away roughly, grumbling something I couldn’t make out through the stone still surrounding my upper body.

  “Try
to ease your way from the obsidian,” Tabbart instructed. “Carefully,” he added as I began to worm my way toward the hole. A task in itself. There wasn’t enough room for me to turn around, so I had to settle for scrunching my fetal-positioned body toward the portion of the capsule where my legs had lain when stretched out to my full height.

  That lower portion had been obstructed by the dirt that had invaded through the clear barrier the cooled rock had provided. Pushing at the debris with paddling feet and swiping hands, I slowly cleared a space that would possibly allow me to worm my way through the gap, but more obsidian had been hidden within, and my skin sported new stinging slices from my efforts.

  I didn’t care, couldn’t even bring myself to worry about my state of incinerated undress as I arched my arms through the jagged maw I was expected to weasel out of. Contorting my shoulders so I could rotate my hands to lay against the outer barrier of the casement, I worked to heave the rest of my body from the confines by pushing myself up and out.

  My strength had obviously been affected by the ordeal because lifting my weight out of the hole proved… difficult, and I did feel the searing cuts left as my body wriggled to clear itself of the tomb.

  I hissed at a particularly nasty slice that opened from waist to hip on my right side with a final heave of extrication. A very animalistic huff rose from above me as I came to a seat atop the glass-like stone, legs still dangling through the hole as I attempted to regain my breath and gather myself to face the crowd of… whoever loomed above.

  “Calm down there, Yogi,” Allya groused as another grumbled chuff sounded. Looking up, I saw Teddy, Nick’s bear form peering down at me from the dug-out rim of the grave next to Tabbart’s short, bearded, and worried face. The bear’s amber eyes were bright, solely focused on me, the intensity searing my greedy lungs and making my breath hitch. Leaning forward, his huge head nearly laying on the ground, he extended a giant paw into the ditch toward me.

  “Really? You are giving me a hand?” I asked, a smile coloring my tone. Leave it to Teddy to do the unexpected. But speaking of that, my last encounter with the animal hadn’t been the best. Was it wise to chance it again?

  The animal shook the dagger-tipped appendage with impatience, or maybe encouragement, I couldn’t be sure.

  “Here, this might be safer than trying to grab a hold of Knife-Paw over here,” Allya called down, tossing a rope, the other end of which she wound behind her back. She held the remaining length with her right hand so she could act as an anchor against my weight. Pulling my legs carefully up through the hole they dangled within, I came to stand gingerly, straddling the hole I hoped would distribute my weight. Hinging at the waist, arms out in front of me, I fell against the steep embankment and grabbed for the rope dangling like a carrot before a horse.

  It was a promise of escape, the trophy I just needed to take hold of. The frayed spiral of white and blue nylon blinked at me like a beacon, waiting. Waiting for me to seize it. Reaching to the side, I flipped my wrist to wrap the cording around my arm for stability while I brought the rest of my body to align beneath the lifesaver.

  “All right, I’m ready,” I called up, bringing my left foot to rest in a push-off position centered on my body. Hopefully, my newly formed muscles would hold up under the stress and strain of walking myself out of there.

  “Tally-ho.” I barely had time to wonder what the girl’s crazy outburst meant before I was yanked upward along the dirt mound, leaving my leg falling away from its braced position to trail behind the rest of my sliding body.

  Talk about road-rash. My body scraped along the dirt, sticks, and rocks along the surface or just beneath as I flew past. In only a moment, my hands met air, dropping heavily as my head and then upper body cleared the tomb’s walls. I let go of the rope, pulling in deep breaths of air now that my body felt like it had control again. That short ride had scared the piss outta me.

  Hopefully, not literally.

  “Holy geez, give a girl a warning next time, will ya?” I panted into the dirt where my face lay, grateful to be back on top of the land.

  “Sorry about that. I had a little help.” Allya glared at the bear next to her with accusation, but he didn’t pay any mind. No, he was too focused on me, those searing eyes again locked on mine. After a moment of what almost looked like indecision, Teddy took a measured step in my direction, then another.

  I watched him, still lying in the dirt, taking the time to just breathe and appreciate the return of life, of possibilities. A third, smaller step brought his enormous fur-clad presence close enough to touch, not to mention blot out the fiery sun from where he now hovered over my prone shoulder. With a wary eye, I watched as Teddy’s mass lowered, legs like tree-trunks folded until his bulbous head was inches from my own. Hot air washed across my shoulder, brushing my face in heavy pants as the bear settled in.

  “I’m fine, Teddy,” I promised the walking rug huffing at me. It seemed a bit like a child’s ploy for attention. “If you wanna say something, you know what to do.” The gray wolf appeared, nipping at his friend’s round, furry ear from the dominant position he’d taken atop the bear’s much larger back. The bear, annoyed, lifted his massive head to look back at his friend, a growling grunt-type noise his response.

  “Bianca, you okay?” Tabbart butted in, laying a large swath of cloth that looked like a sheet across my body. I rolled away from the encroaching bear, gathering the material to me as a kind of shield. Only then having remembered that I was unclothed after my… rebirth. I nodded in thanks to my guardian for having the foresight to bring something to shield my nakedness from the world.

  “I’m starting to feel a bit like a Shifter. I keep ending up naked around too many people.” Falling back on levity, I attempted to ground myself, to sway my mind and that of the lingering onlookers still watching my every move as if afraid I would break. “I’m fine now, guys. The worst is over. Life is restored, and all is well. Can we head somewhere where I can clean up and maybe put on some actual clothes?”

  “Sure, sweetie. Then, how about you give us the lowdown on how exactly you ended up buried in the earth in some kind of a crystal cocoon?” Leave it to Allya to come out swinging but with her trademark attitude to give just that extra little bit of flare.

  “Sure.” Sometimes it was better to just bite the bullet. This was probably one of those times, but as my bruised and bloodied feet dragged through the dirt, and dried leaves and twigs snapped and crinkled under my lethargic weight, I hated that I’d have to tell another story about how I’d died.

  Seniors in high school weren’t supposed to have experiences like this. Well, honestly, no one should because no one, not even Vampires, came back from death. Except me.

  CHAPTER 23

  “I knew there was something seeded in her, but to be so brazen as to murder a member of another supernatural town. And as an Elder!”

  “Preach,” Allya affirmed her great aunt’s sentiment with an exaggerated head bob. After we’d shuffled back home to shower and dress, I should have known that being left alone –maybe even some blessed sleep for my haggard soul– would not be quick to come. There were too many people who “cared” for me wanting answers. The small mercy was that I didn’t have to recount the events several times over.

  There were enough “caring” peeps around that one or another could relay with reasonable accuracy the day’s events. When Rory and Mae had shown up, most of the group thought that bringing in some authority figures would be prudent. I’d agreed to one: Elsie.

  So, while I still sat in my living room, I was surrounded by inquiring minds and motoring mouths. Elsie, for her part, had taken the whole “phoenix” thing in stride, saying that she’d always known I was stronger than anyone recognized. I knew she could see the spirits of those who didn’t cross over, but she’d told me long ago –when I’d been brave enough to ask her– that my mother was not around.

  I always wondered why that was, considering the circumstances of her death and that
I would have been left all alone.

  “I don’t know a lot about phoenixes, unfortunately, but I do know a couple of people who may be better informed than I am. I’ll reach out and see what we can learn. I know that you are concerned about the ramifications of your heritage upon your place here in Grimm Hollow, but I believe that most of our citizens wouldn’t use the knowledge in any kind of untoward manner,” Elsie said wishfully.

  “I sure don’t trust the random public with that kind of knowledge,” Al scoffed. She, like me, had plenty of reasons to believe that people may not be inherently good. I loved that she got that about me and didn’t expect me to just put it all out there for any ol’ someone to see. She’d lived her life with plenty of secrets, some of which probably saved her life if not the lives of others.

  Mae wanted to research, and research was better done when questions could be asked and answered. I figured she wanted some leeway on what would be said. Rory stayed quiet. Stoic but watchful. He was still learning his place and how to function around others, so he mostly kept to himself. Well, except for Mae, with whom he kept in constant contact. It was like she grounded him. It made me smile. Everyone should be as lucky as my friends.

  I wished I were. Especially of late. I mean, finding out you’re not what you thought you were and then dying a couple of times, to boot… Well, it sure would be nice to have someone I could count on to snuggle up with. The thought had my tired eyes shooting to the far corner of the room where Nick took up brooding residence about as far away from me as he could get and still be a part of the conversation. At least, he and the other formerly-fur-clad scattered around the packed-to-cramped living room had located some clothes to don.

  I had a hard enough time trying to focus without several sets of goodies saluting like neon signs. Especially Nick. I mean, a guy his size was hard to ignore, even when fully clothed.