The blue Phoenix

I remember it as if it were yesterday but it wasn't...
"Hey mom, I'm going out to take photos in the sea caves," said Rosalin.
"Ok," replied Rosalin's mom,"Just be back before dinner!"
"Fine," Rosalin replied impatiently.
Ugh. thought Rosalin.
     "I'm not a little girl any more mom," said Rosalin angrily.
"I know honey but I want you to be safe," replied Rosalin's mom honestly.
...
As Rosalin ran down the beach to the cave she suddenly tripped on a rock. When Rosalin got up she noticed something very odd. The rock she tripped on was blue, not a natural or manmade blue but an unearthly blue.  One so unnatural it looked as if it weren't actually there. Because of this Rosalin felt as if she must pick it up, so she did.  She slipped the rock into her trouser pocket along with her camera.  Rosalin slowly looked around for the cave. In front of her she saw a small crevasse that was just about wide enough to crawl through. She thought to herself, that might be where the rock came from. So Rosalin crawled through the crevasse and into a cave.
    The cave was huge. With massive archways unusual to nature.
"That's odd," Rosalin spoke out loud to herself. "Caves don't usually look like this. I wonder if this is an ancient civilization?"
"It is," said a mysterious voice coming from the far right corner of the cave.
Rosalin felt scared but took a deep breath and slowly paced down to where she thought she heard the voice.  As Rosalin peered around the side of an oddly shaped stalagmite she saw a beautiful crystal clear lake. When she bent over to look into the lake, it was like looking into a mirror. As she looked in, to her surprise, she saw a different face. A face that was not like any other on earth, one that most definitely was not herself.
     What she didn't see was her own mocha skin, dark brown-auburn hair, and light blue-gray eyes.  Instead, she saw  a blue skinned, ebony haired, shiney silver eyed person around the same height as herself. As Rosalin gazed at this wonder, the rock in her trouser pocket seemed to vibrate. She pulled it out of her pocket and it started to pull in her grasp towards the water. Rosalin tried to open her hand so it couldn't pull her in but it was too late. Suddenly she was already up to her neck in the water. It was then she noticed that the rock was pulling her down a stairway through the small underground lake.  Try as she might the rock seemed to pull her closer and closer until thump, she reached the bottom.
Rosalin thought, "Finally!"
Then out of nowhere the rock pulled her hand down to touch the floor of the lake. All of the sudden there occurred a huge burst of patterned light that was so bright it was almost seared into her eyelids. Then nothingness...

"Hey you!"exclaimed the stranger.
"Huh." thought Rosalin, "Where am I?" she asked.
"You are in the cave of the Blue Phoenix," the stranger said calmly.
"But how did I get here?" said Rosalin nervously. "A few seconds ago I was in a sea cave off the coast of Florida?"
     "I don't know. You tell me," said the stranger, " My name is Maya. What is yours?"   
"Hi Maya, my name is Rosalin," said Rosalin. "I think this rock took me here." said Rosalin as she pulled out the shiny rock that she found on the beach.
"Whoa, you found the Peace Rock," Maya explained, "My tribe has been in a great war for centuries with the Fire Tribe because they lost it a long time ago."
"But why? It's just a silly rock, a cool one but still why?"
"Well, a long time ago the two tribes were at war because the Fire Tribe had taken magic from half of our tribe the Water Tribe.  One day a girl much like you showed up with that very rock.  It was full of magic. Enough magic to make both tribes have equal power so they named it the Blue Phoenix so it would represent both tribes.  But the Fire leader was furious. He thought because his tribe's skin color is umber and always acts fierce and because he wanted to be the only one in power he wanted to vanquish the Water people. So one day he and one of his soldiers came and stole the rock and cast it into this very pond. The Water leader tried to get it back but the rock had made a barrier that could only be unlocked by another rock of its kind. Because of this we have been in war ever since,"explained Maya.
"Wow, so after all of this time you have been waiting for someone like that girl to unlock the barrier and restore the peace between the tribes?" concluded Rosalin.
"Yes, and the gods sent you through the barrier," said Maya thankfully.
"But how am I supposed to stop the war? I'm only one being and I only have a shiney rock?" wondered Rosalin.
"Members of both sides want the war to end. It is only the leaders who drag it on punishing those who won't fight," said Maya sagely.
"So all I have to do is get to the tribe leaders and convince them that their tribes can live in peace once again and that they should stop fighting?" Rosalin said doubting the plan.
"Basically, yea," said Maya.
"Great.  How am I supposed to do that and make it home for dinner?" Rosalin mumbled unhappily.
"Don't worry it probably won't take very long to get there, the only time consuming thing
is trying to persuade them both on one idea," said Maya energetically.
"Ok let's go, I don't want to be late." Rosalin said confidently.

"Your highnesses, you have guests," announced the guards..
"Bring them in," the leaders said.
"Your majesty," Maya and Rosalin bowed, "We have a proposal for you."
"Spit it out already then, and don't waste our time."
"We have the Peace Rock and..."
"You what-that's not possible," exclaimed the leaders.
"It is and we thought if the Fire Tribe got a little more than the Water Tribe then maybe we could all live in peace or at least not fight."
" I think that is wonderful," said the Fire leader.
"Hey, that is not fair, what about the Water people? We will forever live in vain," said the Water leader.
"Yes we know, but the Fire people are not allowed to use the extra power against the Water people. They can only use it to get rid of evil or others who try to hurt them.  Otherwise we can destroy the stone forever and live peacefully without powers," explained Rosalin.
"That sounds ok for now, we can always change it later." the leaders agreed.
"But keep in mind I will be the keeper of the stone so I can come between worlds whenever I want so I can always destroy it if I see war," reminded Rosalin.
"We know," said the leaders.

The next day the leaders ended the war and explained to their people why they did so.  In the midst of all of this Rosalin wondered how on earth she would get home because the rock was only to let her in, not out.
So she asked the leaders, "How am I supposed to leave this place?"
"Here, I never showed anyone this but it is what I used to open the barrier to throw the rock away." The Fire leader handed Rosalin a sapphire necklace made of the same stone that the rock was made of.
"Thank you so much." Rosalin said gratefully.
As Rosalin bid her goodbyes to her friends and the tribes, the leaders cast one thing into the pond together, it was a silver mirror. When Rosalin caught it and stepped into the pond she realized what it was for.
    When Rosalin got home she did not tell her mom why she was a little late or where or whom she had gotten the necklace from.  But after she ate dinner and washed the dishes she went up to her room she sat on her bed and pulled out her mirror out of her backpack. She held it up to face the moon through her window and then she heard Maya's voice and she turned it around  and talked for hours.  About how Maya was excited because in a couple of hours they were going to have a feast to celebrate the peace between the tribes, and about how Rosalin was going to visit after her school let out for summer, and lastly about how they both wished for the Peace Rock to forever remain!