Born Of Fire

Born Of Fire Chapter 7

Well Born Of Fire is now #34 on the What's Hot List! I thank you all and hoep that you will all vote again, as I would love to see Born Of Fire hit page one. Thank you for reading, and remember to vote and comment!

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Phoenix walked in the direction Glaston had come from, treading carefully as to not make a noise that would alert any more invaders to his presence. He crested the second ridge and was greeted with the sight of a slew of black tents, the flaps rippling in the wind. A fire raged in the middle of the encampment, casting faint shadows to stretch forth menacingly in the waning natural light as the sun slowly dropps farther down the horizon. Crouching down, Phoenix took care to stick to the shadows, wanting to get an idea of how many men the invaders had left behind to guard their camp. He came up to the circle of tents and peeked in through one of the flaps on the rear, noticing that a single man slumbered within. One by one, Phoenix looked through the tents, numbering forty four in all. On his way around, he came across a thick, low to the ground wooden cart, the kind that could only be drawn by oxen. Upon the cart sat a large metal cage, holding people aged only what looked to be seven summers, others slightly older than Phoenix himself, and some in between. Most of them slept, and Phoenix paid no mind, promising himself that he would return once the enemy had been taken care of. He turned away from the cart, but a flash of green caught his eye and he turned back. A pair of green eyes stared back at him, belonging to a young woman within the cage. She opened her mouth to speak, and Phoenix brought a finger to his lips, quieting her. Pushing the woman from his mind, Phoenix turned again and continued counting the sleeping men.

Fifteen men had been left behind, and Phoenix had an idea. He bent down and plucked a small rock from the earth, and started rolling the stone between both hands, rubbing briskly. Heat flowed from his palms, and soon the rock glowed red hot. He dropped the rock onto a piece of the tent that splayed out onto the floor and the canvas smoldered. Moving quickly, Phoenix made one more revolution of the encampment, dropping a glowing stone onto each tent. At the last one, Phoenix strode into the center of the tents, basking in the warmth of the fire beside him before he spread his feet, and bent his knees. He placed his elbows at his sides, and angled his palms up. Closing his eyes, he reached out to each of the rocks and felt the heat smoldering in each. A smile touched his lips, then Phoenix opened his eyes and straightened his legs, then brought his hands up to the sky, roaring with the effort. The stones behind each tent flared with the heat, then burst into flames, taking the tents with them. A moment passed, then a chorus of tortured screams went up into the darkness, and flaming, doomed men started pouring from the tents. Phoenix grinned, and let his fire come forth, lighting his hands. It was unnecessary though, as the screaming soldiers started falling one after the other, smoking charred remnants of the men they once were. When the last fell, Phoenix turned back to the cage that held the prisoners. Striding up to it, he let his eyes wander to the interior, looking for the green eyes of the young woman. All of the prisoners had woken to the screams of the soldiers, and most eyed him warily as he approached. Failing to find the woman, Phoenix lit his hand and grabbed the lock on the outside of the cage, heating his hand until the fire stopped crackling, and started hissing instead. After a few moments, the lock slipped from the latch, and Phoenix dropped it to the ground with a dull thud. The door creaked open and Phoenix stepped back, waiting for the flood of humans to exit the cage.

None moved, and Phoenix cocked his head to the left, questioning the people within. After a few seconds, a dark skinned woman pushed her way through the mass and dropped to the floor in front of her savior. Her green eyes bored into him for a second before she launched herself forward, coming at him quickly.

Phoenix stepped back, ready to fight her off when her arms encircled his neck and she hugged him tightly. "Thank you so much. I had come to thinking we would never escape."

Phoenix was taken aback for a moment before he found his voice. "Y-You are most welcome."

Kicking himself, Phoenix turned from the woman and walked back to the middle of the encampment to look for clues as to who the invaders were. The crowd of prisoners, who had finally exited the cage, followed suit, with the girl leading. Phoenix came around the still flaming remains of a tent, and spied a small man in armor standing next to the fire, arms full of kindling. With wide eyes, the man inspected the charred bodies and tents, seeming to be in shock. Phoenix lit his hands and moved for the man when a hand fell on his shoulder. He turned quickly, and met the eyes of his father. Flames glimmered in his fathers eyes, the reflection from the fire and Phoenix felt a wave of contempt run through him before he pushed it away.

"Welcome to the party father. This last guest was just leaving," said Phoenix, gesturing to the man who still stood dumbstruck, surveying the carnage. Phoenix conjured an orb and sent it forth, but it was deflected by another just before it crashed into the man's chest. Seething, he turned upon his father,who had been the one that had thrown the second orb. "Why?"

"Because we need to ask him questions Phoenix," Doritan said, not even looking at his son, but studying the soldier intently.

"What is there to ask? They invaded our town, almost killed, then almost defiled Ember, and you want to let him live?"

His father turned, looking at Phoenix for the first time. "We need to find out who sent him, and see if there are others coming," he argued back through clenched teeth.

Phoenix opened his mouth to argue when a hulk of a man, built akin to Gorog pushed passed them both and stood staring at the soldier with impassive eyes. The young green-eyed woman stood next to him, looking quite small and frail in comparison. She hung onto his arm, and slapped him on the back once, then the large man moved his right hand across his body toward the left. A rock appeared from the darkness of the right of the camp, then smacked into the side of the soldiers head, knocking him unconscious. The man stalked forward toward the prone body and Phoenix dimly noted that he could barely hear the hulk's footsteps. Bending down and grabbing the soldier from the back plate of his armor, he hoisted him into the air and tossed him over his shoulder as though he weighed nothing at all.

He turned back to where Phoenix and his father stood, and said in a deep, even voice, "Where would you like him sir?"

Doritan smirked at Phoenix, then inclined his head to meet the large man's eye. "Follow me, I will give you somewhere to imprison him."