Phoenix

Chapter Twenty - Tragedy (A Recall)

When the most precious thing to you was taken from you, what could bring back your happiness? He was the only person that mattered to her but the thought had not fully sunk into her until everyone became her enemy because everyone and everything ruined her from the coveted place that she was in. Alexia just couldn't give her forgiveness to those who had wronged her and dragged her down to the empty, remorseful kind of loneliness of the world. It was like someone intently disturbed her own deep peaceful sleep and brought her into this version of life and she couldn't escape from it because she knew her dreams were more real than this and more believable.

True it is because Alexia has been experiencing disturbingly vivid nightmares every night and these were the only thing that she wondered in her life because she was absolutely certain she was not mourning anymore and she had accepted that he was gone forever as long as she lives. It was her God— the nightmares of her beloved, she wondered why they won't go away. It bothered her but somehow the ancient longing within her was pleased because it made her somehow still connected to her most precious lover.

I miss him. Alexia spoke over the thick air and the approaching smoke from the devastated cruiser which several hours after would be reaching the bottom of the ocean. Alexia gazed safely and alone from her sound boat reaching the coast of the Bahamas Islands. Then, she smiled. Alexia was more of a maniac during that time and actually, she is. She played with life by bringing institutions and ancestries down and it kept her heart beating in glee and thrill instead of the dead empty space that had replaced her heart.

She realized that life is, in majority, meaningless and everyone pretended to have something as purpose but when it was taken, life is meaningless therefore. The death of her beloved had awakened her nevertheless and the long life she had made her realize a lot of precious notions.

The waters violently engulfed the large chunk of the debris and she had heard the weeping of innocent civilians who desperately clung on whatever could save them from falling into the large mouth of the ocean. Alexia smiled cleverly for she had seen those expressions many times before then she prepared herself to meet her young assassins in the nearby island who had no idea what she just did. It doesn't matter to them though and the new additions to the innocent lives she had offered to Death, who to her was a large part of life and should be embraced. Every now and then it is customary for the weaker of us to offer themselves for the strengthening of the whole. It is the advantage of the stronger ones in the cycle of life. She glanced back at the drowning passengers of the cruiser and she guessed a figure of how many of them would be survivors. She hated drama so she went on with her little boat. She was celebrating the success of her own mission and the demise of a strong family of hypergenes together with that pitiful cruiser.

She needed to do that partly because she had nothing to do with all her time and partly because she needed to secure her power over her kind so that no union could rise and revolt against her for she knew her old friends would be happy to find strong companions in this war against her Dark Knights. Fear is the strongest element of power, she believed.

Finally! She arrived at the coast of one of the distant islands of Bahamas very close to the route of the cruiser which was hosting a free travel tour for families and it so happened that she had found the names of her targets in a travel prize ad and she had to destroy the ship. She laughed at the mere thought of the event and she wouldn't care about the news. She was luckily now in Bahamas which so happened to be home to the Organization's Base.

Alexia picked up a phone call from her son asking her whereabouts until she arrived at the base when it's near evening. She found them hanging out near the sea talking about useless things.

It was the same misty wind the last time she went to that part of the shore. Her assassins were gathered towards the forest and Alexia started to call their attention then she walked towards them.

"I missed the trees." Catseye told her once she joined them. "What was keeping you busy?"

"Meetings." Alexia lied plainly. "Where is DK?"

Her eyes searched for DK then pointed at him with something shiny she was holding. It was her knife. Alexia walked ahead of her and towards her son for a private conversation. She saw Magpie and Dragonflee motioned five feet away from her. DK found her then they started to talk until behind them the rest of the assassins seemed to have found something close to the shore.

"Quiet. We got company." Magpie whispered and he was a few feet away but Alexia could still hear him. She was instantly alarmed and DK, too.

"Someone's running behind the trees." DK was sharp to catch the motion. Catseye was already aiming for she got a good view from her angle and DK stared at her until Alexia walked towards her location.

Someone please help! It was a woman's cry and just before it ended, Catseye's knife flew straight into the air, to the gaps in the trees and disappeared. DK ran towards the stranger and he knew she had hit her. Alexia followed cautiously.

"Who was it?" Dragonflee spoke.

"Catseye, you hit it." Magpie whispered as he slid down the bushes.

DK and Alexia saw it and it was a woman and she was wearing a rose-pink dress like she just got out of a party. Alexia gazed at the ocean instantly seeing pieces of debris from the catastrophe. Then, she looked at the woman's face and she was astounded by the circumstance. She could recognize her and she was the family's daughter whom she hunted in the cruiser. This was just one of the many instances when Alexia was absolute that there was a God and he was playing with fate and chance. Alexia grabbed her pistol and was ready to shoot until DK spoke.

"A mess. She's not from around here. . . She's bloody hurt."

Then, Alexia realized this woman was indeed strong and she had an idea. It was an idea that was playing around her mind long ago only that she couldn't decide for she might need a hypergene. She would need a hypergene exactly like this strong woman. She will make good use of her.

"Stop!" Alexia shouted. "Catseye!"

The woman was crippled and then she collapsed down the grasses. Alexia ran towards her and helped her with her cold bare arms. Magpie and Dragonflee looked at each other surprised; Catseye stopped at her feet. DK was holding his gun and ready to shoot at any time.

Alexia glanced back at the rest of the group and she gave a strict I-am-in-charge look. "It's okay, sweetling. It's okay." she told her. "It's okay. It's alright."

"But I. . ." the woman uttered in pain. She swallowed hard.

Alexia told DK to come and pick her up which he did and everyone was casting a doubtful look but Alexia dismissed them with a gesture. DK gazed at the woman's face and he had only touched a woman once until now. The woman opened her eyes and she was obviously nauseated and confused but Alexia turned to her and touched her cheek.

The woman would be joining the assassins in the Base and Alexia would be meeting everyone telling them the newest plan she had in mind.

Minutes ago back in the forest, the rest hadn't noticed but DK picked up something from the bushes with his hands and it was woman's lost wallet.

***