by N. A. Carson
“You been hiding something haven’t you, Fin.”
Shaking my head, I looked behind me to see more town people starting to gather. “No. I promise I haven’t. Honest, I didn’t mean to. It just happened.” I looked at Mrs. Haywood, feeling my eyes start to burn. “Please.”
“Shapeshifters can’t be trusted, can they, Fin?” said Lockhart.
“I’m not one,” I stated with a tremor in my voice.
“Then how do you explain fire coming from your hands, leaving behind no burns?”
I swallow the panicked cry building in my throat. “I was mad. I didn’t hurt him. Why don’t you understand? It was an accident.”
They were all starting to close in on me.
“Yes, this time no one was harmed,” said the governor, “but what about the next? If someone makes you mad, are you going to set them on fire?”
“No,” I choked. “I wouldn’t. I don’t even know how it happened. I didn’t...”
I glanced at Mrs. Haywood, who was holding the girls close with tears falling down her face. No one was going to come to my rescue. The closest people to family I had were all turning on me. Hell, Reese had been the one to turn me in. I was a monster to them, a shifter.
“I’ll leave,” I stated as a last effort. “I’ll leave this place. I won’t come back; I promise.”
“And let this curse spread to another innocent town?” the governor smiled. “I’d rather kill you now.” He let out a sharp whistle, one I had heard before on shapeshifter hunts.
The first man made his move and I quickly made mine. Shoving Mrs. Haywood at him, I pushed my screaming foster sisters out of the way and ran for it. They had only left me one choice, and that was the cliffs. I could hide there and then escape to the higher mountain. I would be okay as long as I didn’t let them catch me.
I dipped and weaved through the streets, knocking a few confused people out of the way. Crashing into an old man, I sent him flying into a bread rack. I clambered back onto my feet as loaves fell on top of me. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Reese leading the mob. He was the closest thing I had to a brother. His betrayal hurt more than I expected.
“Kill the shapeshifter!”
“Stop him!”
They were really going to kill me. The town who had raised me, lectured me. Half the women I passed had given me a swat for stepping out of line. They knew me. Yet now, that was all forgotten. I skidded down the embankment to the junction.
“Block the trail!” yelled Reese. “Stop the shifter.”
Panic spread through the men in the area as they looked for the monster. Their eyes landed on me. Some looked shocked, but they all still formed a barricade to the mountain pass, clutching their pickaxes. I ducked around the tower and skidded to a halt at the rock barrier. All that sat in front of me was the endless drop of the canyon. The crowd grew still, and I turned around to see the men forming a half circle around me. All were ready to fight. The tears were real now. In one morning I had lost my family, and soon I would loose my life.
The crowd parted, making room for the governor. I had never liked the man, but now I realized his truly sadistic nature.
He glanced around the gathering with a look of pleasure on his face. “The boy was cursed by the fire demon. It is no longer human.” He locked eyes with me. “For a creature of fire, we shall cut off its head and burn the remains.” He removed a sword from its sheath.
Covering my mouth, I gagged on my breath and nearly threw up. My body was shaking. I dropped to my knees as I felt a small ember ignite in my chest. Something was wrong, or maybe this was just what happened when someone was sentenced to death. My sight went hazy. I noticed two men at my side. They grabbed my arms and pulled me away from the ledge.
My body wasn’t responding. I didn’t even fight. I just let them drag me through the dirt and toss me at the Lockhart’s feet. Sweat was dripping from my chin. The heat was turning into a sharp pain. I was ready to die if it would end whatever was happening inside me.
He raised the blade overhead as I laid collapsed on the ground. I just wanted it to end. No more hiding, no more pain—finally an end to this constant cold.
“I send you back to hell. May the gods accept your tortured soul.” He swung the blade.
My eyes snapped shut, and I felt a rush around me. The pain in my chest poured through my skin, and I was wrapped in warmth. I felt at peace. If this was hell, I wished they had sent me sooner. My suffering was over.
Chapter 11: Firebird
My skin grew cold, and I was met with the same aching hole in my chest that I had dealt with in life. Upon opening my eyes, I found the ground scorched black around me. My clothes were strewn in a pile of ash outlining my body. I slowly lifted my head and covered myself with my hands. The governor was being lifted off the ground as water from someone’s canteen was being poured over his burnt hand. A stain in the shape of a sword sat a few feet away.
Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. They all simply stared. I tried to move, but remaining upright alone was taking all my strength. I was a monster to them. Everyone had seen my power. I was done here. They’d never let me stay.
A firm, steady clap echoed through the ravine. A hushed whisper spread as people moved out of the way of the cloaked man.
He continued to clap with a smile showing on his half-hooded face. “My, my,” he said lightly. “My sparrow has sprouted his first wings.” He lowered his hood, revealing black hair and fair skin. His features alone exuded power. This was Zoran. His deep voice fit his appearance. “Beautiful.” He walked forward and stopped at the governor’s side. “Simply beautiful.” He gave him a grin. “Thank you, Edgar. You raised him well.”
“He’s not eighteen,” snapped Lockhart. “The boy must die. That was the arrangement. The moment he let his power be known, I could kill him.” He cradled his burnt hand. “That was the deal.”
Zoran grabbed his charred wrist. “If you’d like to try again, you still have another good hand. Maybe this time with your fist, so you end up like your sword.” The governor’s skin started to sizzle and the man’s knees buckled. The governor howled in pain as steam rose from his flesh. But once Zoran released his grasp the governor’s flesh had been repaired and he was unscarred.
“There, now I don’t feel as bad about lying.” The stranger turned to me. He folded his arms in front of him like a proud father. “Look at you. At last, my sparrow has hatched.” He undid his cloak and slipped it off. “I had to wait eighteen years for this moment. I couldn’t be happier. So many failed, little firebird.” He walked over and laid his coat over me. “Your kind is one of the stupidest shapeshifters. They always end up burning something down before they turn eighteen.” Stooping down, he fussed for a moment with the cloak. “Always getting themselves killed.” He lifted my chin. “But don’t worry, you’ve finally matured.” He patted my cheek. “Now you’ll just blow up anyone who tries to hurt you.” He stood and faced the gathering. “And you all should remember that.” He locked eyes with the governor.
“He’s not eighteen,” spat Lockhart. “This shouldn’t have happened.”
Zoran grabbed my arm and sent a jolt of warmth through my body. I gasped but had the strength to stand. Once on my feet, I was pulled against his side. I didn’t fight it. My body was reacting again, and the close proximity kept it hidden.
“Just because you pulled him from the rubble on a certain day doesn’t mean he was born on that particular day.” Zoran hooked my chin and lifted it before running a finger along my jaw. “Firebirds have a two week grace period before they enter the mortal realm.” He looked away from me. “Comes in handy when you burn an entire town to the ground when you’re born. If they didn’t, Fin’s kind would never make it past the first day.”
“What do you mean?” I whispered. “I didn’t burn anything.”
Zoran gave me an unimpressed look. “Unless you’re going to sing me a tune, then I don’t need to hear your voice.”
I pushed back against
his chest. A blast of warmth hit me and I went limp in his arms.
“Still a wild animal in need of taming.” He shook his head. “Well, I have the rest of eternity”—his hand went to my neck—“to mold my little sparrow into an obedient little songbird.” He gave my throat a firm squeeze. “Thanks for keeping an eye on him, Edgar. Gail is yours.” Zoran waved his hand toward the town. “I’ll continue to protect your little city as long as you mind yourself.”
Lockhart wouldn’t make eye contact, and people around us were giving him suspicious looks.
“Who are you?” asked Mr. Haywood. His wife was clinging to his arm. “What have you done to Fin?”
He released me and I crumpled to the ground. I quickly arranged Zoran’s coat to keep myself covered.
Zoran flicked his wrist and a black flame appeared. My eyes grew wide. I wanted it. I’d die for that.
“Zoran.” He gave an exaggerated bow. “The third God of Fire, Keeper of Dragons, and forever trapped in the realm of humanity.” He said the last section with disgust in his voice. “I’m the one who happily accepts all your tributes, which in turn helps keep my hoard of dragons fed, so I don’t let them eat you instead.” He gave them a smirk.
The word “dragon” filtered among them. Lockhart started to sink into the crowd but didn’t get far before the townspeople blocked his path.
“One of the younger dragons slipped out a couple weeks ago.” He let out a deep breath and glanced at me. “But do not worry, he has been punished for the problems he caused.”
“We’re sending our herd to this demon,” said a voice from the group.
“Filthy shapeshifter,” scoffed an old miner, shaking his pickaxe.
A flame shot from Zoran’s hand and in seconds the miner was no more than black ash fluttering through the air as it formed a pile on the ground. “I am no demon, and being called a shapeshifter, though not as degrading as being too referred to as human, is still insulting.” He wandered along the front line of the crowd and stopped in front of Lockhart. “It’s really not a smart thing to do to a god. Right, Edgar?” Zoran folded his arms.
“The man is who he says he is,” announced the governor. “Zoran, Third God of Fire, Keeper of Dragons,” breathed Lockhart. “Please accept an apology on behalf of the town. We did not mean to offend you.”
“I accept it.” He wandered back to where I sat and helped me up. He didn’t give me that shot of warmth like before. “You did tend to Fin for me, but you really should be asking for his forgiveness. You were trying to kill him just now.” He brushed back my hair and continued touching my face.
I kept trying to pull away, but he was persistent.
“I have a gift for you,” he whispered. “To celebrate the only birthday that has ever mattered in your short pathetic life.”
“I don’t want anything from you,” I said with no power in my voice. I wiped my face with his coat.
“Oh, you will like this one.” He pulled me close. “I saved it for you.”
His hand slipped beneath the cloak and around my waist. I felt the heat of flames and then something hard pressed against my back. He pulled the object out. A red design glowed across the surface of a box. I recognized it from the first time we’d met.
“You have two choices, Fin. One, you can stay here and live whatever miserable life these people give you, which most likely will involve living in some sort of prison or cage.” He shrugged. “You won’t be allowed to move about freely, knowing Edgar. Or,” he said as he gave me a smile, “you can come with me, and I will show you what potential your powers truly have.” He tucked a stray hair behind my ear. “Maybe even let you meet some others who are just like you.”
“Like me?” I bit my lip. I didn’t trust him. As much as I loved the warmth he gave me, I’d take my chance with them, even if I was locked up. At least I wouldn’t hurt anyone. This man didn’t care for human life.
“The other firebirds will love you. Welcome you right into their little flock.” He forced a smile.
I just stared at him. His offer was tempting.
“And not to mention, I’ll let you have my box—oh, and this.” His free hand went back around my waist, and more intense heat than ever before filled my body.
Closing my eyes, I let my head roll back.
“You want this?”
I nodded. “Yes. Yes, I want it.”
He pulled me closer. “This is only a small taste of the sensations I can give you.”
“I want it,” I breathed. “I’ll go with you.”
“Good.” He pressed the box into my hands. “Open your present.”
I ran my fingers along the first latch before popping it free. The heat started to escape. I looked to Zoran, who gave me a nod.
“Go on.”
Undoing the other, I held the lid shut. “What’s going to happen?”
“Open it and see.” He slipped behind me and gripped my shoulders. “It’s time they learn not to touch what is mine.”
I flipped open the lid and the black fire erupted from within. I felt into Zoran and dropped the box. It felt so good. Finally, the cold was truly gone.
I heard screaming, and flames growing all around me.
“It’s time to go, Fin.” Zoran slipped an arm around my back and the other beneath my knees before picking me up.
I didn’t care what he did with me. I was surrounded by fire, and I couldn’t have been more at peace.
Chapter 12: Flying
I was jarred awake and blinked hard when the sun hit my face. My surroundings were fuzzy, but as my sight focused, I saw the sky was filled with thick smoke. I locked eyes with the person carrying me. “You—”
He dropped me.
I landed on my back in the dirt. The fall had knocked the air from me. Groaning, I rolled over and crawled to the edge of the path.
Zoran stood there with an eyebrow raised.
“Stay away,” I breathed, clambering to my feet. I was still feeling unsteady and clung to the coat wrapped around my waist. “I don’t know what’s happened, or why I said it, but I’m not going anywhere with you.”
Zoran narrowed his gaze. “I may have an eternity ahead of me, but I have no patience for temper tantrums.”
I pointed my finger at him. “You stay right there,” I stated, trying to sound threatening. “I’m going back to Gail, and you can go back to that inferno pit where you belong.” I swung my arm toward the bottom of the cavern.
His mouth curved into a smirk. “You mean the town you just set on fire.”
My eyes shot back up the path. The town was hidden by the mountainside, but the smoke billowing into the air could clearly be seen.
The black flame appeared in his palm. “I bet they’d be so happy to take you back.” With a twist of his wrist, he made the fire disappear.
I inched around him and backed up the trail. “I didn’t mean to. That box did it. I wasn’t thinking. You did something to my head. It was your fault, not mine.”
“Hmmm....” He took out a red metal pocket watch. “The dragons need to be fed, so I only have a limited amount of time before I push you off the side of the cliff. Your choice.”
I glanced over the ledge. Even as far down as we had traveled, I still couldn’t see the bottom of the ravine. “You wouldn’t.” I sucked in my lips and met his gaze. “You didn’t do all this and burn an entire town to the ground to kill me now.”
“If killing you were that easy, I would’ve told Edgar to push you over. A creature so fragile isn’t something I would keep.”
“You’re insane.” I clenched my fist. “I’d rather live in the forest alone than go any further with you.”
“My patience is soon to be nonexistent.”
“Well, you can’t really turn me into a pile of ash, so I don’t really—”
In a puff of smoke, he had closed the five-foot gap between us and had this hand wrapped around my throat. “You are merely a minute step above a human. Do not mock a god, Fin. If you were anyo
ne else, I would have killed you the moment you spoke.”
I swallowed hard and looked over my shoulder. My feet were barely remaining on the trail. I locked eyes with him and saw fire flicker in his irises. “You won’t do it. Killing me would be a waste.”
Zoran smiled and leaned into my ear. “You weren’t paying attention.” He traced the shell of my ear with his free hand. “So, little sparrow, here’s your first lesson.” He ran the finger across my cheek. “Flying.”
Chapter 13: Devil’s Playground
The coat was ripped from my body, and Zoran’s hand landed in the center of my chest.
He gave me a smile as his eyes glowed red. “I’ll see you at the bottom.”
Everything slowed down. I reached for something to grab, but Zoran disappeared. The air left my lungs as I started to fall. That man’s smug face appeared above me with no remorse for what he had just done.
I screamed. Spinning through the air, I prayed my heart would stop before I reached the bottom. The surrounding mountainsides were blurs of colors subdued by the whistling of the rushing wind.
“Isn’t it exhilarating?” Zoran appeared at my side. His face emerged from a black cloud. “Better spread your wings, little sparrow. The bottom is approaching.”
The cloud vanished, and I was alone in my final moments. I could see the floor, the jagged rocks, and lava streams. I closed my eyes and hoped death would come quickly.
My chest ached with a heated pain and fire engulfed my body.
I felt the pressure of impact, but instead of death, I was lost in a rage of flames. My limbs were nonexistent. My body erupted. As I went to draw breath, I reformed, and the fire returned to the source deep inside me.
Rolling to my stomach, I clawed at the soot beneath me.
“Well, at least your landing was soft.” Zoran was leaning against a rock with his coat draped over his arm. “I do apologize, though. I forgot you’re too young to fly. That’ll take time to develop.” He kicked off the boulder and wandered over to where I was laying. He stooped down. “So how was it? Exhilarating?”