Phoenix Rising

The Meeting

I wake up on a bed in a brightly lit room. Where am I? I look around puzzled. The room is completely empty save for the plain white bed, and end table by the bed. Am I dead? I suddenly remember the horror of events that just transpired in what seemed like only moments before. Maybe this is just one of my strange, morbid dreams. Who knows? Then I hear a noise behind me and look to see a wall sliding open and the beautiful girl who had saved me walking in. She gives me a once over, smiles politely and says in a sophisticated tone,

"Follow me please." She then proceeds to leave the room leaving me little choice but to follow after her. She walks forward without speaking a word to me. Her orange hair seems to fluctuate from neon bright to burnt sunset. Her body is slender, perfectly toned, and her beauty is nearly irresistible. I can't help but feel like I'm walking in a dream.

We walk into a hallway full of mirrors and I glance in a mirror to see my ruined clothes. My jeans are all bloody and dusty and my shirt is tattered and completely bloodstained. Of course what I am wearing pales in comparison to Emilea's orange leather pants and a slightly lighter halter top. She has a utility belt around her waist, much like a police officer or more like a spy, it has many different gadgets attached to it. There is also a gun at her right hip. She has a wristband that is about four inches wide and colored dark orange with black straps, black leather boots that stop at the calves, and a necklace that has a small orange bird on it. Her skin is a light milky color, but surprisingly she has no freckles even with her orange hair. Looking at her makes me realize how different we look, almost like complete opposites. The only similarity is the she looks to be around the same age as me, seventeen. I am slightly tanned and I have a scar that reaches from my inner brow to my cheekbone. I also wear a chain wristband with an onyx bird figurine attached to it, much like the figurine on Emilea's necklace. My mother gave it to me. She told me it was an heirloom that has been a part of my family for generations. I didn't question this strange coincidence. Maybe bird necklaces were popular in earlier times. We walk out of the hall into a big waiting room.

"Wait here." She commands me, turning to make sure I understand. Her eyes are so hypnotizing, I can't get over how beautiful she is. She looks into my eyes and I see a bit of remorse. She quickly looks away and leaves the room hastily through giant white doors. I am stuck in another bare, white room and all there seems to be in this room is a couch. After a while of standing I decide she might be a while so I go sit down on the plush, white couch. After several more minutes of waiting, I get up and pace around. How long is this going to take? I walk up to the door and I hear voices behind it. I try to listen to what is being said but the voices are faint. I do recognize Emilea's voice but she is talking to someone I don't recognize. Sounds like an elderly man. I happen to catch a few words such as orc, escape, Naira, and then mostly quiet arguing. Suddenly, the wall behind me explodes open with a loud bang, debris flying in every direction. The burst of energy blows me off my feet and the doors swings open.

"Oh, no. Not again." Emilea says in shock, looking at the debris of wall on the floor. She is followed by the elderly man I heard speaking with her behind the door.

She takes one look at me and says,

"Trouble just seems to follow you, doesn't it?"

"Only since this morning. Why, do you find it sexy?" I wink at her. She just rolls her eyes at me. She looks as if she is about to respond but then her eyes suddenly widen and she mouths the words:

Turn around.

I slowly turn and see what can only be described as a monster. The grotesque beast has a thick coat of slime covering its entire body. Even compared to my experiences earlier, this is the most shockingly disgusting. The smell escaping from the creature is horrid. Just imagine a rotting egg sandwich getting dunked into dead flesh and spoiled blood. Yes, that awful. The monster seems to resemble an orc and I know I must be hallucinating. The orc swings its giant club at us and I barely dodge out of the way. Emilea is about to attack him when an arrow rips through his chest, and he falls backwards. Shocked, I turn to see an elderly man standing a few yards behind me, he is dressed completely in white robes and he has on a shimmering, white cloak. He gracefully slides his bow back into the sheath on his back. He turns gracefully, with a look of distaste on his face, back into the room in which he came out of and Emilea follows him.