I focused inwards, finding and prodding the flame buried in my chest. No sense of danger or direction stuck out at me; suddenly, I knew she was alright.
I told Faust carefully, “Something tells me she’ll be just fine.”
He gave me a sharp look. “Is this related to your…?” He trailed off, gesturing vaguely at me.
Unsure, I shrugged. A flicker of feeling nudged me, and I turned sharply to stare off to the left. Flames and bright light burst up in a pillar above the forest canopy. It shone as bright and blinding as the sun for a few seconds before the light faded, leaving a brilliant silhouette of a phoenix twice the size of Millie, left in its wake.
Whispers and cries of awe blanketed the area.
The phoenix’s wings beat. It released an angry trill, flying up before swooping back down through the trees in a fiery dive, shining through the trees like a distant city. We turned to statues, watching until the shock faded. While everyone else was still frozen in shock, I shook myself out of it, kicking our horse forward as fast as I dared to that distant light. The movement revived those around me, hoofbeats echoing behind us.
A few chimeras rushed at us–or rather, past us–as we approached, fleeing the phoenix’s rampage. Someone bellowed at the army, ordering them to hunt the rouge chimeras down for their crimes, and the thrumming of hoofbeats grew just a little quieter as ranks split off to to just that.
Ahead, trees burst into flame, sending shadows pooling out as they fled from the desolation.
A line of fire blocked our path ahead. And yet, no matter how much closer we got, we only felt the cool brush of night wind. We slowed down, inching forward as we approached the fire, wary of being burned and testing how close we could get before we felt the heat. Our hose dug their hooves in inches from the flames, huffing and tossing their mane. Amazed, I leaned forward, reaching over the horse’s neck to brush my fingertips against the flaming wall.
My hand tingled. It was undamaged when I withdrew it, and I urged the horse to go further still. Octavia’s nails dug into my sides again as the horse slowly took a careful step forward, and I felt her lean backward.
“Are you insane?” Octavia asked when I continued forward still.
“Nope.”
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She shrieked with surprise as we were plunged into the light, the flames tickling our skin. Still, the heat never struck us. The Chimeras noticed our lack of injury, soaring and sprinting to the line of flames. The fire raged at them, licking at their clothes and burning their skin. We flinched at the smell of burning flesh, our horse picking up the pace, eager to leave the blackened chimeras behind.
Octavia’s forehead pushed against my back. “I hate this.”
We pushed through and into an ashy clearing decorated by snapped and burning trees. Octavia and I ducked as the air above our heads rustled and whooshed, the phoenix soaring feet above to land behind Sera, settling to look over her shoulder like a guardian. Sera’s short and bright red hair swung loose in the distance, reflecting the fires around us and giving her a halo of fire. Her eyes burned bright, set on her face with resolve but not anger.
Shadow-wrapped figures lept down from the trees behind her, preceded by shouts and exclamations of alarm. The fire parted for the entry of Augustus and Aquila, followed by a small retinue. They scattered across the clearing like ashes, joining Azure, Sky, Aeolus, and the remaining guards.
The forces behind us lept into the fray as well, humans and chimeras working side-by-side. The tide of battle turned in our favor, and we chased off or killed the attacking chimeras in rapid succession.
A dark shape caught the corner of my eye. A stray chimera with its claws outstretched reached out desperately for us, all reasoning lost. Another glance showed that Octavia and I were too far away and had to face this on our own.
Our horse dodged the initial swipe as Octavia scrambled for her knife, drawing it from its scabbard. The chimera recovered quickly, attacking us without regard for rhyme or reason. Octavia blocked when she could, and we ducked when she couldn’t. After a narrow dodge of a swipe to my face, she grabbed my hand, shoved the knife into it, and shouted, “You’re too in the way! We’ll die at this rate!”
I took over the job, my hand shooting up to block nearly on its own. The constant movement of the horse underneath us and the immediate presence of Octavia behind me made blocking difficult and retaliation even harder. The chimera was fast and uncaring of the cuts I etched in his body.
The chimera withdrew, beating his wings to fly backward out of range. Like a cat, his tail swung with agitation. His tail froze, and I readied myself for impact. He chimera lunged upwards, launching himself into the sky before diving back down at our heads. With widened eyes, we ducked, leaning as close to the moving horse as we could, Octavia clinging tightly for balance. Needle-like claws swiped across my back but found no purchase. Still leaning over the horse, I twisted my head to watch the chimera bounce off a tree on our right, gaining speed as he did so. His eyes focused on our horse this time, and I knew ducking would not be an option.
As the horse underneath us dodged, I leaned as far to the side as I dared, stabbing the knife in what I hoped was the proper direction. The blade impacted something, and I flinched. My hands loosened their grip, and the it was wrenched out of them. There was a thump and a swoosh as something scraped against the ground.
I inched my eyes open to see the chimera lying on his side, the knife sticking proudly out of his chest. His eyes were empty, and he didn’t move. My eyes lingered, and I expected to feel some guilt but only felt relief. It made me uneasy, and I looked away, checking on Octavia. She looked back, her face a little paler than usual, her fearful expression transforming into relief.
Her mouth stretched across her face, and she exploded into sudden, hysterical laughter. Between laughs, she huffed, “I honestly didn’t think you had it in you.” I gave her a weak smile in return, unsettled.
Across the clearing, Aeolus, Faust, Azure, and Sky were already moving back toward Sera. Helia, unsurprisingly, was already at her side.
I kicked our horse back into gear, heading over as well.
Their conversation paused as Octavia and I approached, an equal balance of uneasy and encouraging glances thrown at Sera and me. I felt the childish urge to hide away, but Octavia steadied me, her arms tightening around my waist and then loosening as a warning. Or reassurance, perhaps.