Phoenix Reign

Chapter 4

The phoenix soared above me just above the tall oak trees as we traversed through the forest. Its fiery wings strong and gracefully kept it in the air, while its long fluffy tail fell behind like the train on a wedding dress. After much debate, mostly with myself, I decided to name the phoenix Incendia. She seemed to like it.

I was walking for a couple days trying to find the resistance group. When I left base camp, I did not think about the fact that I had no idea where they were. So about twenty minutes in, I had no idea where to start. Basically, I just went to the first village I came to and hoped they would be there. They weren't.

At this point, I had walked far enough to reach the large city of Layia, lying on the border of the forest and Xabia. I pulled my hood up to not draw attention, and tied Incendia to a tree just outside the town with some rope I brought from base camp. I strolled through the outskirts of the city, where poverty ran rampant. This is the place where a rebellion would seem most promising. For a normal person, this place would be very dangerous, but to these people I was basically their savior. Thus, they were pretty happy to see me.

I stopped at a run down tavern inn where multiple people tried to pick up my tab, but I declined. Those people had very little, they didn't need to spend it on me.

I sat in corner of the square shaped tavern, munching on a sandwich, and listening to the minstrel play. Suddenly, a hooded man sat on the stool across from me. He wore a dark blue cloak and brown trousers. Most of his face was hidden, but I could barely make out sharp slat blue gray eyes. He seemed to tower over me, even sitting down. With my trained eye, I spotted two knives in his boots and one openly strapped to his leg. A large bow and arrow was strapped to his back. To a normal person, he looked like a hunter, but I noticed a small phoenix necklace poking out from his blue tattered shirt.

"Act like you know me." He whispered so softly that I could barely hear him.

"Why it's nice to see you again." I shook his hand and tried to act friendly.

"It's nice to see you too." He smiled then looked around to see if anyone was watching. Once the coast was clear, he said in a hushed voice, "I heard you were looking for the resistance."

I nod, "I want to help."

He cocked his head to the side, "Why should I trust you?"

I smiled, "Because I have something you want."

"Okay, fair enough, but you are going to have to do exactly as I say. We are going to talk like we know each other for five minutes. Then pay for the drink and follow me outside, still talking." He ordered me, then changed to a friendly tone, "So how is the apprenticeship working out?"

"It's going well, but I still need to figure out a good guild to join." I replied, catching on quickly.

"Really? I thought you had settled that." He said.

"I did, but it didn't really work out. Now I am in search of a new one that fits my interests."

He leans back in his chair, "In that case, I know a really cool guy that can help you out. If you want to go meet him."

"Yeah that would be awesome." I put a few coins on table and he did the same. We gathered our things and headed out the door.

The hooded man led me out the door and down a couple streets. I glanced behind me and saw a guard suspiciously following us.

I walked beside the hooded man, "Don't look now, but we have someone tailing us," I whispered.

He paused for a moment then smiled, "You have a good eye, girl." He abruptly turned into the nearest alleyway and began to run. I quickly followed him into a crowded market near the center of the city. The guard quickly popped out of the alley, but we were lost in the crowd and he couldn't  find us.