TBATE - Fated To Rule Together

[Rewrite In Progress] Chapter 3 - A Mythical Creature

I spun my head around to look to for where the sound came from, augmenting my body with mana in the process.

"Who's there! Show yourself!", I commanded, letting the full authority of my once royal aura run free.

"Hahaha, no need to be so startled, I mean you no harm," said a smooth, silky voice. I turned my head around to look for whoever had just spoken.

"Over here," it said again. I looked around for a moment before my gaze finally rested on a giant white tree. It was stunning to say the least. It was imbedded with blood red crystals and dark blue gems. It's smooth texture almost made me think that it was made of marble. But that was nothing compared to what was on its branches. Sitting there, almost as if it was on a throne, there was a magnificent creature. One I had only heard about in story books. A phoenix!

It stood 3 meters tall and had bright ruby red eyes that seemed to pierce through my very soul along with a long, sharp beak that looked like it could slice through even the strongest of metals. It's strong muscular bird like body radiated such authority and strength that even the strongest of beasts looked insignificant compared to it. Its long swirly tail, covered in fire blew along the gentle breeze of the wind, enhancing its mystique while radiating elegance. And the way the fire mana danced around it, it seemed as if they were serving the mystical creature. Red fire radiated from the bird's body, which faded to a pale white and formed a type of crown on top of its head, as if signifying that it was the ruler of this domain.

I stood there dumbfounded for a moment with my mouth hanging open, staring in awe at the sight before me.

"Bugs will fly into your mouth if you keep it open like that," it said in its silky voice. I finally got my head together and spoke.

"Who are you. Are you the one that's been following me. And also, how are you able to speak, I've never heard of a mana beast speaking." I asked, still unable to comprehend the situation. The phoenix spread its wings and beat them until it was flying. The inside of its wings was even more magnificent than I could have ever imagined. It was a pale blue that faded to a blinding pearl white at the bottom of its wings. It landed in front of me causing a gentle breeze that pushed my hair back a little.

"Hahaha, aren't you a lively one. I like it! As for me, my name is Airileona (pronounced Airi-leo-na). I am what you would call a phoenix," she said.

"A phoenix! As in a Phoenix Wyrm, the S class mana beasts!" I blurted out. Phoenix Wyrms were some of the rarest mana beasts out there. Only a few of them were seen in a decade, so it was really surprising for me to see one. They were sought after for their unique ability to conserve their life and also for the fact that they were considered the masters of fire mana.

"No. Phoenix Wyrms are descendants of us true phoenixes. Our strength vastly outranks theirs. We are the true masters of fire and lightning. In your ranking system we would be beyond SS class," she spoke while smiling, as if amused by my reaction. "And as for how I can speak.... Well, I just can, Haha," she said anticlimactically. "You'll find that there are some beings in this world, other than humans, that are intelligent and powerful enough to communicate with others. And yes, I was the one who you saw when you were with your family."

"But why," I asked. Airileona just shrugged.

"Perhaps I was just bored, or perhaps I was interested by you."

"What do you mean. What's so interesting about me."

"Well, how should I say this. You hold yourself in a very elegant manor and the supreme aura you have even surpasses that of all the royal families in this continent." That was no surprise, the royals of this continent aren't that impressive compared to my old world. "And also, I noticed the fact that you are a mage. And a solid red at that, I thought humans awakened a lot later in their early adolescence."