by Eliza Nolan
Chapter Twenty
Aydan and I stand amongst moonlit shadows in the woods, just beyond the edge of the clearing where the Phoenixes have set up for the ceremony.
Some twenty men wearing red, hooded cloaks stand in a large circle around the edge of the clearing. Inside the circle, the five initiate teenagers, wearing black robes, form a smaller circle.
Two men stand in the center next to the altar. One wears a plain red robe and carries a chalice. The other's red cloak has a braided gold border around his hood and he holds a book in one hand and an ornate knife in the other; a small charm hangs from a chain wrapped around his wrist. It glows red.
"My necklace," I say, reaching up to where it should be around my neck.
"Are you ready?" Aydan whispers.
"For what?" I ask.
"This is it," she says. "This is what you're here for. They've started the ascension ceremony."
The men in the center of the circle go around from one initiate to the next, the one with the embellished hood chanting.
"Who are they?" I ask.
"The one with gold embellishments is the Phoenix High Priest. The other one's his assistant," Aydan explains. "They're preparing the Beshi for the ascension."
The Phoenix High Priest stops in front of the first of the Beshi. He reads from the book, then raises the knife in front of the kneeling boy. The High Priest waves the knife over his head, carving a symbol in the air. The initiate takes off his black cloak, letting it fall to the ground. It's Jack. He wears only a pair of shorts. On his chest is a scar identical to the triangle I discovered on Graham's chest. He also has a tattoo of a phoenix on his arm.
The assistant gives Jack a sip from the chalice, and his eyes glaze over.
They move around the circle from one Beshi to the next; each time the High Priest repeats his reading from the book and carves a symbol above the boys head, who then removes his cloak and drinks from the chalice. All the boys have the same scars on their chest and a Phoenix tattoo on their arm.
Finally, they come to the last of the Beshi: Graham. I watch, unable to move as he takes a sip from the cup put to his lips, knowing that he does this for me, and hating that very fact.
"What can I do, Aydan?" I ask.
"Nothing from here," she says.
"Where is here?"
"Here is a middle place," she answers. "Here is the place of dream, of hallucination, of nightmares. Here you can see things that other people cannot. But you can't change things from in here."
The men complete their way around the circle and return to the center. Several of the men in the outer circle take hold of each of the initiates as if they' re about to run away, which is ridiculous. Graham and the other boys' eyes are glazed over and they waver on their knees as they try to remain upright. They couldn't run if they wanted to.
The High Priest reads a passage from the book, then closes it and places it on the large stone altar.
Still holding the knife he walks over to Jack, takes his hand, and slices deep into the skin on the inside of Jack's arm from his wrist to his elbow. The blood flows quickly out of the large gash. The High Priest takes Jack's other arm and does the same.
Jack's eyes fill with wonder as he looks down at his arms and the gushing blood. It isn't long before the light in his eyes begins to fade. If it wasn't for the men behind him holding him up, he might fall. The assistant catches some of Jack's blood in the chalice. Jack's eyes close and the men let his body slump to the ground.
As Jack exhales a slow breath, a stream of white smoke rises up from his body. It spirals up, and sparks of light seem to ignite within it. It moves above the center of the circle and forms a low hanging cloud, resting there, occasionally emitting tiny flickers of light.
Jack's body lies still. Dread overwhelms me and my knees buckle as I realize I've just watched them kill Jack. I land on my butt. "Did that really just happen?" I ask.
"I'm afraid so." Aydan frowns.
"I thought you said that if I came I could stop people from dying." Panic floods through me.
"You can. You will."
"And how am I supposed to fight off twenty grown men?" I ask.
"You'll use your new found strength and speed."
"I can't control the powers. They come and go whenever they please."
"They will come to help you when you need them the most."
I grab at my empty neckline again. "The Phoenixes took my necklace. They have my power."
"The necklace is only a tool to help you channel the power. The only way they can take away your power, your birthright, is if they are allowed to finish this ceremony." She puts her hand on my shoulder. "And they are not the Phoenixes. There is only one Phoenix."
"I'm sorry, did you just say the powers are my birthright?" I ask.
"Yes, your birthright as your mother's daughter. It's in your blood. You are The Phoenix."
"I'm the Phoenix."
"Yes."
"Then who are they?" I motion to the men in the ritual circle.
"They are the ones who stole our secrets, and are trying to steal your magic. They're going to channel the Beshi's powers through the ascension ceremony. You have to get there first. You have to stop them."
I turn back to the men in the clearing. Several of the boys, including Graham, are becoming aware of what happened to Jack and struggle against the men who hold them.
"How do I stop this?" I ask, getting back on my feet.
"You have to go back out to the real world. You have to face them as you. You have to wake up."
* * *
I awoke in sheer panic. The adrenalin coursing through my veins told me it had been awhile since I was drugged. I rushed to the window. It was dark, night, and the ground below had become a parking lot with shiny, new cars parked on every inch of clear space.
Yet the house was eerily silent.
I tried the bedroom door but it was locked. I headed back to the window. I was definitely at least one floor up, if not more. There was a straight drop from the bedroom window. No way would I be able to make that jump without hurting or killing myself. Aydan said I'd be able to use my newfound strength, but I wasn't willing to bet that included surviving falls from great heights.
There had to be something in here I could use to force the door open or pick the lock. I pulled open the top dresser drawer. Empty. The next drawer was also empty. I yanked open all the drawers. All of them were empty.
I turned to the dressing table and ripped the drawers out, sending them crashing to the ground behind me. All empty.
Panic consumed me. I didn't know where I was or how long I'd been there. I didn't know how much time I had to get to Graham, or if I'd lost him already. I had to find him. But how was I going to get out of this house? I tried brute force, ramming the door with my shoulder, but the stupid thing was strong, and my super powers weren't there. This whole "not being able to control when they work" thing sucked.
I threw myself down on the bed in frustration. Hugging the pillow close for comfort, cold metal brushed against my arm. I pulled the pillow up to see what was underneath, and had to cover my mouth with my hands so as not to cry out.
A key.
I rushed to the door and tried it in the lock. It turned with ease. Did someone leave it for me?
I crept down the hallway to the top of the stairs. Seeing no one on the landing below, I gathered my courage and headed down the steps. Slowly at first, but then I picked up the pace when I realized there was no one waiting for me below.
At the bottom, the front door was just next to me. I was about to run out when I heard yelling and banging coming from the back of the house. Samantha? I rushed through to the kitchen and to a small door near the back. It shook as someone pounded it from the other side. It was locked with a deadbolt, so I turned the lock and opened the door. Samantha and Luke stumbled out.
Luke was bruised up, with a cut over one eye, but smiled when he saw me.
Samantha was still in t
he same sliced up clothing she'd worn down here, but other than the coating of dirt from our trip, she looked fine. Samantha squealed and hugged me.
"Samantha!" I shrieked, hugging her back.
"You found the key?" Luke said.
"That was you?"
He nodded. "I heard what Jack said about keeping me around while I was useful. I also heard what he said about who you are - 'The One.' I figured you were my way out. You're cutting it close, though. We need to go if we're going to stop them."
He didn't have to tell me twice. We raced out. Luke lead us around the house to a path in the woods. I tripped on a tree root, barely catching myself, but continued on. Stray bushes and bugs attacked me from all sides. It was hard keeping up with Luke; Samantha followed close behind me.
Voices chanted in the distance and light flickered from a bonfire up ahead. We ran to within a few paces of the clearing where the Phoenixes were in the middle of their most sacred ceremony.
And stopped.
"What now?" Luke asked. They both looked at me expectantly.
"Why am I in charge?"
Samantha cleared her throat. "Weren't you the one who wanted to come down here and stop this all by yourself? Now that you have backup, what do you want us to do?"
Okay, she had a point, but what was I supposed to do? Aydan said my powers would work when I needed them, but they clearly didn't. I couldn't get out of the locked bedroom without a key, and I fell all over the place running here.
"Give me a second," I said, peering out at the clearing. The men in red cloaks stood in a circle holding the Beshi. But now Jack wasn't the only one lying on the ground. Two other boys lay still, their arms dripping with blood. The cloud of white smoke hovered low over the circle, much larger now. It rumbled and lit up with shocks of light and sparks, gaining power.
Graham was much more alert. Whatever drugs they'd given him weren't enough to keep him docile as he watched so many of his friends die. He was putting up a fight. It took a lot of men to restrain him.
The other guy struggled as well. The High Priest was in front of him and grabbed one of his arms to make the first cut. The kid cried out.
I ducked behind a tree. I couldn't watch. Tears of frustration fell down my cheeks. I cried silently as I heard the kid yell a second time. No one was supposed to die. Aydan said if I came I could stop this.
"Julia?" Luke said, prodding me.
"I know. Just let me think."
"The kid they're cutting up right now is Stephen." Luke's voice was sharp and he struggled to maintain a low whisper. "He's been my friend since we were three. Please, Julia, What should we do?"
"Oh God," I said. "I'm not made for this. I can't do this." I squatted down on the ground covering my head with my arms. Maybe if I shrank small enough I would disappear and this would all go away.
"Come on," Samantha said. "She needs space." She lead Luke a short distance away.
I didn't need space, though, I needed strength, but I didn't feel strong.
Then again, maybe it didn't matter how I felt.
I got back on my feet and searched around for some way to test my strength. A branch hung low, just above my head. I reached up and grabbed it, trying to pull myself up.
Crap! I was still weak, just as weak as ever and Graham was up next. I peered out in time to see the High Priest grab the first of Graham's arms. I couldn't breathe. Graham cried out in pain. This was it. He was going to die. I had to do something, anything.
Without looking, I reached up above my head to the low hanging branch and pulled myself upwards as hard as I could. To my surprise I flew up through the tree branches. I continued to climb the tree, nimble as a monkey, shooting up the trunk. I followed a high branch out over the clearing until I was over where Graham knelt.
He yelled out again. The High Priest's assistant caught a few drops of Graham's blood in the chalice before returning to the center of the circle. White smoke rose from Graham's body. It spiraled up, filled with light, and joined the now enormous cloud hanging over the circle.
"No!" I screamed as I dropped, landing next to Graham. I pulled the robed men off him, as easy as pulling petals off a flower. The men flew back and I leaned over Graham, who was somehow still alive, breathing slow shallow breaths. A cry of joy escaped my lips. He looked up at me, barely able to keep his eyes open.
"Julia," he said. "Get out of here."
Someone reached their arms around me and pulled me away from Graham. I twisted out of their grasp to find three men trying to hold me. They seemed so feeble and moved so slowly. I pulled the hood off one exposing the face of a man in his forties. He was built like a refrigerator; he wasn't any kind of frail, but when he wrapped his hands around my throat and squeezed, it was like being strangled by a small child. I plucked his hands off my neck and gave him a small shove. He flew into several men behind him.
Luke joined the action, taking on anyone and everyone who came at him. He was fighting several men at once. I didn't like his odds.
Someone grabbed me from behind. "You look just like your mother."
I laughed. "Yeah, right. You know her." Clutching one of his hands, I spun, ready to make pie mush out of whoever this joker was. But stopped. The man was the spitting image of Dad. They could've almost been twins.
"I should know her," he said. "She ran off with my brother."
I stood looking at him, unable to move. Dad's asshole younger brother. The man who'd run my parents out of town. My uncle. "Connor?" I asked.
He nodded, and reached his hands up to strangle me. Still frozen, I didn't move to stop him.
Samantha charged out of the tree cover screaming some sort of warrior cry and jumped him. She knocked him off me, and snapped me out of my funk.
The Priest stood in the center of the circle, holding the chalice and chanting. He poured the blood into the fire and the cloud of smoke above him grew dark. Flashes of light sparkled through it like lightning in a storm.
Graham still lay at my feet and I dropped down next to him, hoping I'd have the ability to do what I had to. When I placed my hands over his arms, the tingling started immediately, so intense, it sent pain shooting up my arms. Ignoring it, I worked fast, healing one arm and then the other. When I finished, his breath was still shallow, but he sat up shakily.
Back on my feet and no longer afraid of anything, I stormed over to the High Priest. He chanted something he read from the book. Even as I approached, he didn't break his rhythm. He wasn't afraid of me, either. My eye caught sight of my mother's necklace wrapped around his wrist.
I reached out and tore it off.
"Julia," Samantha's voice cried out behind me.
I turned. My uncle, Connor, held a knife to Samantha's throat.
"Julia, give the necklace back," he said. The knife poked into Samantha's throat just enough to draw a few drops of blood. Samantha whimpered.
I glanced at the High Priest. Connor followed my gaze. "You know we can't stop this, Julia. The planets are aligned. We have to finish this now, or the power will be lost for another two hundred and fifty years." He pressed the knife firmly against Samantha's neck.
"Aah!" Samantha squealed. "I'm okay. Just do what you need to do." Her voice was full of determination even as tears pooled in her eyes.
My mother's necklace glowed red in the palm of my hand.
Blood trickled down Samantha's neck.
The Priest chanted.
I wanted to scream.
Instead, I made a choice.
The necklace flew through the air towards Uncle Connor. He let go of Samantha to catch it. I pulled Samantha away to safety at the edge of the clearing, and by the time I'd returned, Connor was back at the fire's edge.
Graham lunged at him and they locked arms. Graham, still weak from the loss of blood, stumbled back, but using his backwards momentum managed to pull Connor with him. Graham twisted, pushing him towards the fire. Connor teetered at the edge of the blaze, and dropped my mother's necklace into the flam
es.
"No!" I cried as I rushed at the fire. I didn't stop when I reached the flames, diving in after the necklace. My hands and arms became engulfed, but I thrust my hand into the white-hot, dancing embers and pulled out the necklace, clutching it to my chest.
Connor came at me, but Graham grabbed him by the hood of his cloak, holding him back.
The High Priest finished his chant. The low cloud of smoke above rumbled louder. Light sputtered from it, and it swirled overhead faster and faster until it became a small funnel cloud. Then it opened up and showered light and smoke down on me.
It was as if I was an empty vessel pulling in all this incredible energy. I became one with the essence of the cloud as it entered me. It was such a rush. Such a release. I'd never felt so strong or full before. My senses all heightened, and the world appeared to slow in front of me as I took it all in.
The High Priest's eyes widened as he watched the light enter me. He rushed over to the ceremonial knife Connor had dropped, and snatched it from the ground. He still held the book in one hand, clutching it tightly to him. I snatched the book from his grasp. "This is mine," I said.
Still clinging to the knife, he spun and ran down a path into the forest. Connor wrestled his way out of Graham's grasp and scurried after the High Priest.
And then it was just us.
Luke and Samantha stood at the far side of the clearing, but they appeared to be okay. Graham had already gotten some of his color back. I looked over at the other guys, the other Beshi, laying lifeless on the ground. How could anyone do this? They were just boys.
I wondered…
Dropping the book, I rushed to the closest one, not even stopping to check for a pulse. I grabbed one of his arms in each of my own, the prickly sensation began, and dull pain shot up my arms. Ignoring it again, I focused on healing. After what seemed like an eternity, the guy stirred. I moved to the next boy, and the next, healing each of them in turn.
As I went, it became harder and harder to heal them. The pain worsened and my energy drained. Yet I pushed forward, focusing all my strength into each of the fallen boys. By the time I got to the last one, Jack, I felt like I'd been hit by a cement truck. My arms shook and ached so much my eyes teared up. Still, I worked through the pain, channeling everything I had into him. I had to save him.