Phoenix Rising

Time to Relax

When we opened our eyes we are in the middle of the school's garden. Some people are there and they all flinch when we appeared.

"Sorry people, we didn't mean to surprise you." Emilea laughs. We both feel the happiest we have been through-out our whole lives in this one moment. I pluck a black rose and give it to her.

"This is for you. Remember me when you see this flower and as long as you keep this, remorse won't rule your life."

"Thank you. We need to go to Casmir. We need to give him the cross as soon as possible."

We run to his office and knock urgently.

"Come in." he calls out. We run inside his office breathing hard and place the cross on his desk.

"Here you go." I say. "All of the targets are dead."

"Good. I knew I could entrust the two of you with such an important task. Where is everyone else?" Emilea and I look down. Our silence answers his question. "Well, we are holding a funeral in a couple hours. We will add them to it then. Go get cleaned up and get a little rest."

I walk into my room and open a dresser. There is all black and violet clothing. I take out black slacks and a black and lavender button up shirt. I take my shower then get dressed. I roll up the sleeves to the shirt and my hair line reaches to my eyes. I lie down for a little bit, and hold ice to multiple sections of my leg. It is still badly bruised and feels at least sprained in many places. Emilea abruptly enters the room.

"What are you doing here?" I ask surprised but happy that she has come.

"I came to finish working on your legs." She says innocently. I can read her mind and I know it isn't her original intentions.

"Thanks, they still hurt badly."

"How are you holding up with all of the losses?" She asks sympathetically.

"Poorly, it will take time to get over it." I admit.

"I understand, it will take me some time as well."

"I almost lost my mind when I thought you died..." I admit as well.

"When Josh brought me back to life I thought the same thing. He told me that you would be dead and he would show me your dead body. He said he would do a lot of awful things... I'm just glad you came when you did."

"It is almost time to go to the funeral."

"Do you think you will be able to handle it? You don't have to go if you don't want to."

"No, it is the least I can do to appreciate what they have sacrificed." I say sternly. As I get up I am amazed by how much my legs have healed over the last hour. We walk over to the commons area and we see all of the graves. The ceremony starts with a speech from Casmir. The first person they talked about was Violet. They talk about her life and her powers. They talk about all of her accomplishments such as becoming the leader of her hallway three sessions in a row. Then after the speech about her is over they talk about Kaela. They go through a lot of the same things. Kaela's husband and her three year old daughter go up and make a speech about her as well. The next one to be talked about is Josh. He has many friends that go up and make speeches. His is the longest out of them. The final casket is Rose's. Barely anyone speaks for her. The mandatory stuff is said and that is about it. I know I had to say something.

"Wait!" I shout. "I want to make a speech in remembrance of all of the dead heroes. I would first like to say that although I didn't know Violet well, and she didn't show much of a kind aura to me (at this some people chuckled knowing that Violet never showed a kind aura), but she will still be mourned. She was brave when I was in danger and she gave her life to protect me."

"I also need to give my respects to Josh. He always gave a joke when one was needed and was kind of strange at times, but he single handedly defeated a very powerful ice monster and he also saved my life from the killer man eating bats. Without his help, we would have never succeeded in our mission. He lived a hero and died a hero."

"Rose also was a hero. Although none of us knew her well, I knew her the best and was her only friend. Though her whole life was barely lived, she handled it the best she could and saved me from the same creature that killed Violet. She always asked why, and how. She will always remain in our hearts, most definitely mine."

"Kaela was the saddest death and was killed by the very thing she controls, water. We were faced with an impossible battle and she saved us all. She killed a whole horde of undead and sacrificed her life to save both me and Emilea. We are both so grateful for her courage and knowledge throughout the whole mission."

"Even though all of the dead has passed from life, they will always remain alive in our hearts and hopefully one day we will see them again in the afterlife in heaven." The crowd applauds as I step down from the stage and become very dizzy.

Emilea gives her speech shortly after I gave mine. After all of the speeches are finished and the caskets are buried, we all have a moment of silence. Crying and weeping of remorse swept the small crowd. After about half an hour we elect the new hallway leaders. A guy named Michael takes leadership over the violet hall. The next hall is Kaela's and a guy named Deen took her place. The last place to be taken is Josh's and a girl named Josephine takes over. Dylan has one more speech about our success and our survival. After the speech he tells everyone to return to their normal activities. He walks over to us.

"I am so happy you both showed up. Your speeches were phenomenal. You guys can go get some rest. Aris, in the morning, you will have to talk with Michael. He will have to be your new mentor now as well. After a week of personal training, you should be able to practice whenever you want and however you want. But you guys are probably dead tired. Have a wonderful night."

As Casmir leaves I say goodbye to Emilea and she promises to see me tomorrow afternoon. I go to bed and fall asleep soundlessly and only wonderful dreams filter my night.