Phoenix Fire (Book 2 in the Winter's Series)

Chapter Nineteen: Phoenix Fire

I feel the anger build in my chest. White hot fire courses through my veins and my breathing increases. I run over to Bucky's crumpled form. He's bleeding but he's going to be okay. His metal arm took the majority of the blast but his clothes are singed and he's unconscious.

I ball my fists tightly and turn my head to the agent responsible for his condition. I scream out in anger and anguish and run full speed at him. My body feels like fire and I leap into the air using my wings as added weight, I ram my foot in his chest. His back slams into the ground and I drive my fist into his face over and over. The angrier I get the more my body fills with fire.

A group of agents start to move closer to Bucky's fallen form and I whip my head around to look at them. As soon as I make eye contact with them, they back off. Sweat trickles down my neck as my temperature rises. I pull my wings behind me as far as I can reach, before pulling them forward with all my might and knocking the row of guard near buck back with my gust of wind.

"Stay away from him!" I shout out while I rush to the fountain where Bucky lays. I catch my reflection in the water of the fountain. My eyes are no longer brown, but glowing a golden color. Looking down at my hands I see flames lick my flesh in small glowing rivulets healing the traumatized skin. I move Bucky's unconscious body behind me, putting myself between him and the danger. The agents draw their rifles and aim at me. Anger gets the best of me and I speak without thinking.

"Do your worst, cowards." I don't recognize the sound that comes from me. It's not entirely my voice, it's distorted. It's dark, and haunting. I cast gusts of flaming wind around me to prevent them from firing at me. My body covers in smoke as my clothes begin to burn off from my body. I use the cover to rush the agent who fired the explosive shot that hit Bucky.

As soon as my hand touches his shoulder his body combust into flames and then shortly ash. The only thing to leave the dying agents mouth before he dissipates is a hoarse cry. The scene draws the attention of the guards away from Bucky. They approach me tentatively; as if they could stop me as I am now.

"Shall we begin?" I say smirking while I walk towards the agent in front of me. I slam my head into his and he too is engulfed into flame and ash. Everything I touch burns and turns to ash, and I'll use that to my advantage. I kick off the ground in a backward motion, using my wings to hold me off the ground. I flap them around me creating a wall of flame, making the agents scurry back to avoid my heat.

I land kneeling and my wings come down like a blanket onto the ground. My fiery feathers gently touch the grass lining both sides of the concrete, causing the fire to jump from my wings and spreading across the ground. The numbers dwindle quickly as the surviving agents find refuge on the concrete. Explosive bullets rain over my head and I stay down to avoid them. I need to keep their onslaught away from Bucky. I use my wings as a shield so that I can stand up, the bullets bounce off like pebbles being thrown. I start to move forward toward them, keeping my wings held tightly in front of me.

When I'm close enough, I cast my wings back and grab the agent in front of me before shoving him backward, catching the two agents close behind him on fire. I snap my eyes to the next agent facing me. She smirks at me holding her explosive rifle toward my face, I widen my eyes slightly as she pulls the trigger. If I had been a fraction of a second late on moving my wing to guard half of my face, I would have probably been killed. Luckily my reflexes are faster than normal and I deflect the explosive round.

The bullets explodes several feet from me and I glower at the agent who fired the shot. I raise my foot and impel her with all the strength I can possess. Her body folded into itself; arms reaching out desperately to break her fall. Her expression was one of fear and morphed into horror as a spark ignited where my foot had previously been. Her body collapses into a pile of ash by the time she makes contact with the ground.