Chapter Text
Prologue
“Phoenix what the hell was that?" The voice cold and perpetrating, it coursed through her skull. "Try again…”
How had she failed again! What was wrong with her!? Everything! Everything was wrong with her! She had done this so easily before! And now when it matters of course she can't!
She tightened her fist raising it upward, concentrating on the lava she felt warmth go through her arms up her chest and spread through her body.
It suddenly went ice cold, all the warmth leaving her body, the lava remained stagnant, she scrunched her eyes closed.
“What the hell was that? We have Queens of the surrounding kingdoms coming today AND THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE TO SHOW THEM!” she slammed her fist into the wall.
Phoenix flinched backward, moving her shoulders as low as possible.
“Try again..”
Phoenix looked back to the lava, her chest tightening and constricting, her breath shaking and wavering. Her heart beat, hammering in her head so loudly she could hear it as though it was right in her ear. Why was she so stupid!? Why can't she do anything right!?
She raised her hand-
SLAM!
The door swung open, a guard peaked his head into the room “They have arrived ma'am.”
Her trainer sighed, putting her hand on the ridge of her nose “Alright…tell them we’ll be a minute.” With a flick of her hand the door shut.
Dead silence the room's air felt tightly condensed, rock about to crumble…..
She felt a tight grasp on her shoulder, nails digging into her skin, sharp and stinging. “You know as much as me how much everyone needs this. So don't mess it up for everyone just because you don't feel like it.” Her words sharp and serrated, each one a personal stab in the heart
“Sorry…I’ll try harder.”
***
Looking up she saw, what felt like hundreds of eyes all cold and unreadable. All staring directly at her, judging and calculating her every step. The room, desolate and quiet, somehow too quiet and too loud all at the same time, “You may begin.”
Stepping forward the lava warming her as she approached it, Looking down If felt as though the room had tilted, she felt sick to her stomach, the room warping and spinning, Her lungs felt compressed,stuck, aware that she was breathing but feeling as though she was suffocating. She inhaled more air slowly but it felt as though she hadn't inhaled anything, her throat still restricted and tight. Her breath grew ragged and panicked,
She was fine!
She was breathing!
She could Breathe!
but her throat tightened again, any breath inhaled, a wall of nothing, Her eyes growing wet, she blinked back desperately.
Nausea taking over, the world tilted sideways, everything swirling and turning, the sensation building in her stomach she felt acid build her throat, she swallowed quickly, shuddering horribly as the nasty acidic taste coated her tongue.
Queen Magma narrowed her eyes irritation in every fold of her face “Phoenix.”
Phoenix forced her trembling arm to move upwards
full concentration on the warmth below her, she let out a shaky breath and raised her arm forward, she felt the warmth spread up her arm up to her neck and spread throughout her chest,
Her chest went ice cold,………..
The lava remained, still completely stagnant.
Silence hung heavy in the room, the Queen's faces unmoving, unreadable, expressionless,
“I recall you said your pupil was rather skilled? Yet she can not even perform a simplified version of the spell? Is she even a Lava Mage?” Queen magma turned her eyes to her trainer.
Her trainer's jaw tightened, eyes filled with fear under the Queen's gaze.
Queen Magma continued “What do you have to say about this? It was your job to help her was it not?”
“Your majesty, I'm afraid I did all I could. We trained daily for hours as you requested. But it appears perhaps she wasn't as gifted as we once thought.” Her words stinging and cold each serrated and painful, more voices began to overlap and debate all to discuss her failure.
The reality was barely setting in, it didn't feel real.
She had failed…..
She had failed everyone, her town a desolate place, a scrap of a true home, she couldn’t count how many nights she had gone to sleep as her body was slowly ripped apart piece by piece by the need to survive, how many friends and neighbors died slowly as their body was slowly carved away piece by piece by hunger,the rampant crime and rades of screaming and constant paranoia, Volkins of all ages just trying to survive. Children taking on jobs at far too young of an age just so they could be a little safer, they never got a childhood.
And she had the power to save them all, to fix everything. Make them happy for once.
And she had failed….
She was a failure to everyone she had known including herself, the guards grabbed her wrist walking her slowly towards the exit,
Phoenix’s eyes burned, her chest constructed tighter and tighter as though someone was standing on top of her, she lurched forward, the world tilted on its side her head heavy and spinning
“Whoa! You good?”
she felt her stomach turn, acid building in her throat again, tears streamed down her face, her chest too tight, everything felt wrong she wanted to rip her skin off, the acid this time too fast for her, it spilling all over the floor, the taste of vile bitter acid coated her tongue and throat,
Phoenix shuddered horribly, tears falling faster down her face.
***
Phoenix buried her face into the rock slate of her bed. She sniffled, she wanted to scream, she wanted to yell, What was wrong with her! Why was she so lazy! She slammed her hand against her bed, her hand reverberating painfully from the impact.
A light knocking came from her door “Hey, honey are you alright? You've been in your room a while.”
Phoenix coughed trying to lessen the tightness in her throat “yes.” she said, her voice cracking horribly.
The door creaked open, “That doesn't sound ok to me.” her dad said chuckling,but his face was creased with concern “Mind if I step in?”
Phoenix nodded reluctantly, fidgeting with her hands, Her Dad sat next to her, moving his arm over her shoulder, she let herself relax slightly, leaning her head onto his shoulder. “What happened?”
Her chest tightened again, she hesitated unsure, but then said “My powers…I- you know how they haven't been working. Well today of all days they didn't work! And now we'll never get the money our town needs. And I-” He moved his hand in a circular motion on her back, the sensation relaxing the tension in her muscles. “Honey, it’ll be ok, I know things here can be rough. But we’ve made it before without any of the queen's money.”
“But everyone will be mad at me. I gave them hope and now it's gone. I wanted people to feel safe, to be happy, and now they have nothing” she choked out, feeling tears run down her face,
“You know even if we had the money it wouldn't fix everything. Economic recovery doesn't come easy.”
“I guess.” But it still felt like someone had ripped out one of her heart strings. “Also if they really expect a child to fix all their problems then they can go to hell.” Phoenix snickered, but felt her face fall, the dread still overtaking her, Her dad frowned and moved forward warmth leaving her side, “Hey you know what cheers me up a stone carving. It'll take your mind off things.” she got up, rubbing her face “ok.”
They moved towards the back hall of the house, her fathers workshop warm and smelling of carved stone. The room, a mess of different rocks and stones of all different sizes, shades and shapes, the room unorganized yet cozy. “Alright so what do you want to carve?”
“I don't know.” she mumbled.
Her dad picked up a pile of stone tablets held together by wire. “How about one of those surface animals? I know you've been obsessing over them since mom got you a stone tablet on them.” He handed her the stone tablet the weight of it lighter than she expected.
Phoenix flipped it open, skimming a few of the pages, the carvings not catching her attention until she landed on a small creature, its head square having long horns, mandibles around its face, and many legs. The best word she could think to describe it was adorably pathetic. The inscription read The Nenti “This one.” she said pointing to it. Her dad smiled, “Aww its so cute,” He moved his arms to the one of, many piles of rocks within the room “Alright choose whichever ever you'd like.”
She moved her hand on the varying rocks, each varying in roughness and texture. Phoenix clutched a smooth round rock picking it up and presented it to her dad. “This one.” “Alright let's get started.”
As time went on, rock was slowly peeled away, the meticulous clicking of rock and the sound of whirling blades. Her hand was unsteady but learning, by the end of many hours it was completed,
She lifted it up the sculpture smiling “Thanks dad.” He patted her head ruffling her hair
“No problem.”
To this day it was her most prized possession.
