THE FARAWAY LANDS OF OZ - Book One

Part Three, Chapter Sixteen: Phoenix

EVANORA

I saw images of horrid creatures with dry, ash-colored skin and eyes as yellow as headlights. I was always in this weird pod. Eventually, captured within it and looking into the room through the frozen window, observing the same creature entering and leaving through a circle of red. Eventually, it was only the rotting metal and mechanisms that I watched through the window.
In these dreams, my thoughts always wandered to my sisters, Marcy, Josie and Zion. I had not given him my affection in such a long time... I missed them horribly. I missed Noa. But I would never again see him. There was at least some hope regarding my family...
But today, my dreams did not visit Glinda's kind face, Aliyah's stern look, Theodora's beauty or Zion's handsome torso and loving grasp. Today, I saw the room again. All the devices were rotten, rusty and collapsed. The magnificent view of these technologies that I had visited over and over again in my dreams was the complete opposite.
Two figures were kneeling in front of the pod, trying to crack open the lid and to salvage the only mechanical parts that had not yet decayed. They did not realize how I watched their every step.
When they suddenly looked up and to their sides, I thought that I had been caught but then, the two goblin-like creatures unsheathed a knife each and stalked off to my right. I could not hear anything through my prison but two flashes of red and the two goblins sliding through the dust and in front of the pod indicated that something had happened.
A thin, hooded figure – not all too tall – came from where the blasts had. It bowed over the slain creatures and kicked them with the tips of his brown, leather boots. The figure turned around and walked over towards me, when my eyes began to give in to the tiredness once more.
The figure walked around the pod and pressed some button or flipped some switch because a warm sensation through my body told me that it had been powered down. This and the sound of something powering down like in sci-fi movies from the 70's and 80's.
The ice on the glass melted and streamed down along it as thick drops. Slowly, I began to regain feelings in my legs, arms and all throughout my body. My muscles gave in as the glass opened and I fell to the ground, dirt sticking in my wet clothes.
A strong but gentle hand pulled me up to my feet and I realized that I could barely see. This was not a dream, I knew. When you dream about the two same things over and over again, there is no say that your brain won't be able to make something up that is so far away from both versions.
"Here. Drink this and you'll recover."
"What is it? Poison?" I snapped and shoved the hand that was resting on my shoulder aside. I had no idea who this was, and I would not trust any drinks that a stranger offered me. Especially not after Hardy. I had almost forgotten about the incident. It was just coming to my mind.
"No. Coffee!"
I saw the blurred outlines of a cup and a pale, male hand. Judging by the voice, the person was no older than twenty, but I could be mistaken. I smelled the spicy aroma of freshly brewed arabica and did not care if there was poison in there or not for a second.
I was thirsty, I realized. And hungry. Very hungry. I picked the cup from his hands and gulped it all down with closed eyes, despite the heat running through my throat. I had been frozen numb and needed the heat.
When I opened my eyes, my sight began to return, and my head was clear. True magic lies in perfectly brewed coffee. That's what mother used to say when we were kids and when she tried to tease father. He had been a terrible coffee-cook.
"Thanks," I muttered and handed the cup back to my savior, before I looked him in the eyes. This was indeed a child no older than twenty. He had pale skin and clear, woken eyes of a crimson color. His hair was silver with blue tips and cut into a short Mohawk. He had removed his hood.
Freckles covered his cheeks and nose, and his smile was angel-like with deep dimples. He wore a grey vest with a sky-blue cloth around his neck, tight black pants and leather boots. He also wore a long blue trench coat with a little device around his wrist. Underneath his right eye were three red dots and he had tattoos on his neck that I had only seen once before on someone else.
"Are you a Siren?"
He looked at me with scrunched eyebrows. "A what?"
His surprise refuted my theory but nevertheless... "A Siren. Because of your tattoos."
He moved his index finger over the dots. "No. My dad told me that I had them since birth. They are part of my magic."
Now I looked surprised. "So, you are a Magick? How old are you, dear?"
He chuckled and moved his hand behind his head, rubbing it along the shaved part of it. "Whoops, I did not introduce myself: Lazarus Payne, 175 years old and a student in the Master School of Knowledge. Trained by my dad himself. At least until he... passed."
Not him too. So many have lost their loved ones recently. And he was so young still. Seventeen in human years...
"I was sent here to rescue you! And I have succeeded," He proudly announced but I shared my condolences first before referring to getting saved.
"I'm sorry to hear that about your father... By whom were you sent?" I asked curiously, hoping that it was someone I knew. Even my family. In fact, I only wanted it to be my family.
"Thanks for the words but it was a long time ago anyway. The boss-ladies told me not to tell. But you will find out soon enough. They're just around the corner in Phoenix."
Nothing made sense anymore. How long had I been imprisoned?
"Phoenix? Lazarus... What year is it?"
I feared the worst.
"Well, it's 3046, of course!"
I felt my eyes grow big and feared that they might plop out any second. I was this close to falling over again. I had been asleep for almost twelve-hundred years? There was no chance of ever seeing Glinda, my sisters, Zion and the children, ever again. They must have died centuries ago...
"Why the long face?"
I wiped a tear from underneath my eye and tapped at my lids with my sleeve. I had no-one now. "Nothing, just take me to your bosses."
"Alrightey!"
My voice had broken but thankfully, Lazarus had not noticed – or decided not to –and we began to walk through the small passage, along the corridor and out of the cave that looked like it had been abandoned a millennia ago. The memories laid deep, and I could not get Noa out of my mind. I had not managed to avenge him and Hardy must have lived a perfectly long life...
When we had exited the cave, I realized just how stuffy the air had been inside. It felt like an entirely different world now with fresh air that filled one's lungs. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, releasing it loudly from my mouth.
"Good to breathe again, right?" Lazarus asked me and I slowly nodded my head.
"You should open your eyes though, before you fall over."
"Fall over where?"
I had just enough time to hold myself back. We had reached the side of a canyon that had not been there the last time we had. But again, twelve-hundred years had passed, and much can change in that time. Just like the desert plains that had once stretched from here over the horizon; they were now replaced with a city. The type of futuristic city I only knew from movies. My jaw was on the floor.
"Is that...?"
"Phoenix!" Lazarus proudly announced once more, placing both his hands on his hips. And he had all reason to be proud. The city was everywhere you looked. To my left and right were only the glowing skyscrapers that reached from the bottom of the canyon to miles up above us. High in the sky, were vehicles flying around with no real order that one might think, they'll crash together any second.
"You might know it as Cattle Valley. Under the influence of the Government, the city had grown immensely. They wanted to rename it from Santo Ileso – its name in the early 21st century – to Saint Lucifer at first but the people petitioned to call it Phoenix instead. After the emblem of the famous family that lived here but then disappeared one day..."
That was us. I felt tears well up in my eyes again. How the people had honored us... I will always hold a special place for them inside me. I could not even think about showing emotions to Lazarus. I needed to find my way home. A few questions should distract him from me. "What's the Government, though?"
He shrugged me off by walking towards a shining Harley Davidson, polished and in such an exquisite condition that you might think no one ever rides it. "The boss-ladies will tell you more. Just hop on!"
He swung one leg over the seat and started the engine. With hurried steps, I followed his example and took a seat behind him. In this moment, the motorcycle revved beneath us, and Lazarus went full speed ahead. We were dangerously close to the edge, and I had to clammer my arms all around his waist, not to fall off. He radiated the aura of someone who could be trusted blindly; it was inexplicable. He gave me this certain feeling of... of security.
A moment longer and we would reach the end of the canyon. What was he doing?
"Lazarus?!"
We went flying over the edge and I could not help but scream. I am terrified of heights that I cannot control. When I fly myself, it's freeing but when I am forced into the air, I am terrified to death.
Lazarus seemed to enjoy my torment because I felt his body move, as he chuckled although I could not hear it over the engine or my screaming. He moved a hand off the handle and pressed a button in the middle of the cycle's body.
The tires turned around so that the sides were facing downward, and they began to glow blue immediately. We were falling slower and slower until we stopped, hovering in mid-air. Yet we were still at incredible heights.
"The bike is slightly tuned. Suitable for all kinds of travel!"
"YOU COULD HAVE SAID THAT BEFORE!" I shouted at him, not of anger but to make him feel bad about torturing me like that.
"You could have asked," He proposed, and I saw myself beaten. Lazarus made the engine rev once more and we began moving forward again, slowly but surely losing altitude until we had reached the ground.
I swung myself off the bike, glad to have solid footing under me again and waited for him to park the vehicle under a piece of cloth. I was panting as if I had run twelve marathons at once. My heart threatened to jump out of my chest.
"Why is it so dark down here?"
I looked around and it was as if it was night. To be honest, I did not feel comfortable around anyways. Drunk people were looking at me alongside scarcely dressed women who were waiting around the side of the road and blew kisses in mine and Lazarus' direction, as soon as my eyes met theirs.
"And what is this place?"
Lazarus took my wrist and began leading me away from the suspicious individuals. "I would not talk too loudly around here. We are in the Ash District. 'Fallen Phoenix,' they tend to call it. Here live the outcasts; those who are of no real use to the Government and Soleil Corps. This is a top security bank that supplies the town with anything." We took a very sharp turn. "And it's always dark here because no light can reach the district. The people live in a shell underneath the upper classes, covered by buildings. There is only one way out and no way up..."
Another, even sharper turn. "The other districts are the Golden District – or 'Rising Phoenix' – for all the other citizens and the Fierce Flame District – or 'Blazing Phoenix' – where the Government and Soleil have their headquarters. But enough talk now. The boss-ladies will tell you everything and we are arriving."
He hurried me along, going even faster. This was horrible. The Cattle Valley that I had loved to know had always made sure to make equality a point. At least, Marshall Holmes made it his life's work. No one was discriminated and no one would ever suffer under his watch. That's what the Marshall stood for and that was what he made the town stand for. He had tried his best, if it had not been for Hardy...
"This is horrible," I said out loud and Lazarus smiled at me for a quick second before he continued to drag me down narrow and even darker roads.
"We know. That is why we rebel against the Government. Me, the boss-ladies, and a few other individuals. We are a big group though and we find more and more followers every day. The entire Fallen Phoenix is on our side. We are there. Welcome to the Bada Bing Rebellion!"
We were standing in front of a building. It had a nice-looking neon sign. Very mature...
"It's an adult club," Lazarus said upon noticing my confused expression. I chuckled.
"I think we can both agree that 'strip-joint' is a quite suitable name, Lazarus."
We entered the building and indeed: everywhere were half-naked women and men on stages with poles, performing exotic and erotic dances while all kinds of people and otherworldly creatures were sticking dollar bills inside panties and underwear.
"THIS IS INDEED A STRIP-JOINT!" I shouted to be heard above the thumping beat of the music. It made my insides go all queasy and my chest hurt.
"'ADULT CLUB'... YOU'RE SUCH A CHILD, LAZARUS!" I continued and felt a fist hit my shoulder.
"SHUT UP! 'STRIP-JOINT;' YOU'RE SUCH A GRANDMA!"
I laughed. I felt like we were getting along perfectly. "I'M BORN IN 1630, SO YOU LEAVE ME!"
He returned the laugh. My voice already felt sore from shouting though. "WE'RE THERE!"
We stood in front of a doorless doorframe. The room behind was divided by hanging neon beads and the only thing that indicated any importance was the sign above it, saying "private".
"LADIES FIRST!" He tried to mock.
"THEN PLEASE: AFTER YOU."
I felt his fist once more, chuckled sinisterly and entered the room, nevertheless. I hope he didn't think that I mean all that serious. Because I most certainly didn't! It's the lack of human interaction for twelve hundred years...
It was as if all the sound magically disappeared when I walked through the beads. If you look at the room and the rest of the building separately, one would never have thought that the room belonged to a brothel. It looked more like a war-room with tables and maps and all kinds of papers on the walls.
Two women were leaning over a centered table, invested in something that was laying on the table. Maps or plans, I didn't know. Lazarus cleared his throat to announce our arrival. The two of them got startled and immediately turned around to greet us. They smiled and approached Lazarus and me with open arms.
"Auntie! We finally got you back!"
The train hit me just as much as it had hit me that I might never see them again. Marcy? Josie? The warmth inside me was almost burning me to death. I felt the first happy tears since Noa's birthday well up inside me and fell into my niece's arms.
"You are grown up! And so beautiful, both of you!" The two of them had always been very pretty. But now that they had grown up, they were perfect. Marcy was tall and slim with a short pink pixie haircut.
Only one strand of hair was its original color – a burgundy red, resulting in the mix of magic and human blood – and was braided with a red ribbon inside. Her skin was fair and rosy, and her ocean blue eyes looked just like her mother's. Actually, she was an exact copy of Aliyah.
Josie had put white and vermillion braids into her black hair which was only a little visible as the braids were tied into the cornrows. Her entire appearance radiated comfort. The two of them wore very futuristic attire that I barely had words to describe them.
"What happened?" I asked, as I broke away from Marcy and embraced Josie. She had become like a daughter to me, and I just decided to act like she was.
"we'll tell you. Sit down." I loved her voice. It made Josie seem even more calming and I just feel comfortable around here, deep and firm as it was. So much like her mother's. She led me towards a couch and each of us took a seat.
Lazarus got a bottle and four glasses, placing them on the coffee table after he poured a bright green substance into each one.
"It's cactus juice and tequila."
I looked at him perplexed, took a small sip and nearly choked on the spice and the fire in my throat that not even my Bourbon could ever match. "Aren't you a little too young for this?"
He lifted his shoulders and placed the glass on his lips. I stood up and held down his arm.
"None of this poison for you, mister!" I picked the glass from his hand and drank it myself, shuddering from disgust and coughing from pain. I placed the empty glass on the table and took the bottle into my lap.
Not that he decides to pour himself a new one. Marcy and Josie were having the time of their lives while watching Lazarus and me.
"I will not let him throw away his life and health by drinking this! Now enough of this; tell me what happened after Hardy sent you away." Each of them took a sip from their glass and Marcy began to talk. I wondered how they enjoyed this drink...
"We had to find out the hard way that Hardy had used a temporal displacement beam to send each of us away. We and Glinda were in one, but we lost her midway. The only thing I have left of her is the ribbon." She moved her fingers through her braid. Of course! Glinda's neck cloth: I should have realized sooner.
"She told me to find her but we had been unsuccessful so far. For two-hundred years, we were walking through Phoenix, begging for scraps of food and sleeping on the street until we were able to climb up the food chain and buy Bada Bing."
I put the bottle back on the table, keeping an eye on Lazarus though. This sounded even worse than being trapped and asleep. At least, I had been halfway unconscious during it. But two hundred years was a lot!
"We transformed it into a rebellion. We want to topple the Government and Soleil Corps; the two of them imprison Magicks, Vampires, Werewolves and even Fairies. The Government has been here from the very beginning, but the Soleil Corps was established some months ago. They have become very rich in no time and also supply the Government with all kinds of stuff. We saw how people took away mom, Auntie Theo and Zion immediately after they arrived from the temporal displacement"
She took a sip and Josie followed her example. I had to slap Lazarus' hand away from the bottle.
"This was several weeks ago. Now, we want to get them out and can do so with your help. Now that the guards had abandoned their post at your sleeping station, we were able to get you. The Government did everything to keep you under lock and key."
This was quite a lot of information and so chaotic... I had to think for a hot second until I could sort it out and understand it. They were sent here by Hardy, lost Glinda, eventually bought Bada Bing, Soleil Corps came into the game and sided with the evil Government, Zion and the family arrived but were immediately captured, the guards at my pod disappeared and I was saved. Now, we are here.
This made sense to me. "Where is Hardy now? And how did you find Lazarus? He is important to the job."
"You bet I'm important or they would have gotten you out!" Lazarus intervened in my question before Marcy or Josie could reply. The latter answered after a short cackle.
"Lazarus, of course you are important! As far as we know, Hardy sits atop the tower and manages the Government. As to Lazarus, his father went missing and was announced dead a few weeks later. That was when he came to us. He had heard of the Bada Bing from his old man and wanted to fight for our cause to get revenge on Hardy and free the city."
Good. Another one to share our loss and want to murder this bastard! "Excellent! When are we going to attack the tower and kill Hardy?"
Marcy and Josie looked at each other and then towards me with an apologetic expression. "Sorry, auntie but we thought it would be easier to go after Soleil first. When the bank falls, the Government will not be far behind. They are as good as one!"
Unfortunately, I thought. But when that was their plan, I would not stand in the way. They had far better experience around Phoenix and would know what is wise. "Alright girls. When are we going?"
They smiled. I had expected them to be glad not to meet any resistance but to see them this glad. "Tomorrow. You and Lazarus will go scouting before the rest of us join. It is all planned out. He'll fill you on the details in private. We prepared you a room and some gear," Marcy announced.
"Oh, and before we forget: We cannot use our real names. Hardy knows us too well. I'm Pnk – short for pink – and Josie is Vermillion. You will have to think about something too."
I had the perfect name immediately. It came to me the second she mentioned this code of secrecy. There was no need to think. "What about Phoenix? The people named the town after me, then I will name myself back after the town."
They smiled once more and dismissed me and Lazarus before they returned to their plans. We did not return the way we came but continued through another door that led to a staircase. We walked up one floor and the first door to the right was my room. It was a small space with only the bare necessities: a bed, a small closet and a chair that served its purpose as a bedside table.
"We'll be out by eight, I'll get breakfast and will tell you everything you need then. I wanted to ask you something first though..."
I looked at him with big eyes. He seemed nervous. "Ask ahead."
He rubbed the back of his head again. "Why do you hate Hardy so much?"
The memories flooded back inside me. Memories of a cute little boy with curious ice-blue eyes and a dimpled smile. The way he always used to tell me about things he learned. About things that adults might render small and ordinary.
The way he would always want a bedtime story, lullaby and three kisses – one on each cheek and on the forehead – before he would be able to sleep. A warm tear was running down my cheek.
"I... had a son once. He was my world... But Hardy took him from me before I could even begin to express my love towards him. Hardy has to pay for what he did to my perfect little angel. And he will, Lazarus. He will pay for every person that he murdered and every life that he destroyed. Yours, Josephine's, and mine."
He looked down at his feet. "I'm sorry."
I lifted his chin with two fingers and decided to hug him. Pull him tight towards me and squeeze him. The boy needs love. And I had to admit that I needed it too. "Do not be. You have nothing to do with it. And you would be a wonderful son, let me tell you that. Your dad would be very proud of you for being such a grown-up."
I released him and he wiped a tear from under his eye away too.
"Thanks."
I gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Of course. We must protect each other."
I kept looking at him after we broke the embrace. I had hundreds of questions. He may not be a Siren but as far as I'm concerned, knowledge magic is one of the rarest. They are able to mimic the first powers that a wielder comes in contact with so at some point in his life, he must have met a Siren.
"You are not familiar with any Sirens, right?" I tried once more but again, he shook his head with a smile on his face.
"As I told you before, I heard the term for the first time today. Why is it so important to you?"
I chuckled, apologizing with a swift headshake. "No, nothing, I'm sorry. It's just that we are kind of used to being sent around through time. The first time was by a pink light that turned out to be the doings of a Siren. So, I thought it would be wise to conclude that our trip to Cattle Valley is a Siren's fault too."
He kept smiling and I could not help doing the same. There seemed to be something about him that was so unfamiliarly familiar.
".Given that you have red eyes and tattoos, and we were transported via red light, I just thought. But your knowledge magic explains it. Perhaps it has been someone who knew you. Someone who wanted us to intervene and help this city..."
I was talking too much, I realized. "Sorry, I'm talking too much. It's been a long day and we can talk more tomorrow. Good night, Lazarus."
He chuckled a little again but agreed with one singular nod. "It is all right. Know the feeling. I'm quite the talker myself. Good night... 'Phoenix'" We snickered and then he closed the door behind him. Currently there was no lamp burning and I had to feel my way around the room. Yesterday, the hallway lights had illuminated the room.
I released a deep sigh. It was such a relief that I had at least something familiar in this new place. To find Marcy and Josie was just a plain miracle. If we find the others and Glinda too, I might start to think that things have finally turned our way.
I managed to find my way to the bed and felt a strange cloth on it. This must be the gear, but I will have to try it out tomorrow. One would think that after twelve-hundred years of sleeping, one would have enough. But I was more tired than ever.
I threw off my dress and immediately snuggled under the blanket. It may not have been a satin duvet like back at Fawkes Mansion or even at the Emerald City – By the Virtues, that feels far away – but it kept me warm.
And it smelled of fresh flowers. A smell that I guessed was rare around Phoenix. It was this smell that finally cradled me into a dreamless sleep after spending many minutes thinking of Noa, my family, Lazarus, and Hardy...