Draft Chap 3

Chapter 3: Not So Familiar Faces

"Mom."

"MOM."

"MOM!"

Pyrite awoke in a cold sweat.

What was that? She wondered. Who was that boy, and why did he refer to me as his mother?

And why did it seem so familiar?

She rose from the grassy bed in her mountaintop cave and stretched her body, letting out a yawn. She looked off into the distance towards the rising sun.

She turned around and extended her white wings.

As the sun warmed up her body, she could feel the color returning to them. The pure, white color that they were previously had turned into a blazing orange.

A loud squawking sound could be heard in the distance.

"SQUAAAAWK!"

It was followed by a series of softer sounds that eventually drowned out all other noise.

"QUIET!" yelled Pyrite. The squawks immediately stopped. "It is a new day. Extend your wings out with the sun so we can show the world that we are the proud phoenix race!"

This was followed by a roar of cheers. Pyrite turned around towards the edge of her cave and jumped.

As she fell, she extended her wings, allowing her to fly through the sky.

However, Pyrite did not go upwards. Instead, she plummeted down towards a forest below. She landed on the forest floor and began walking towards a large wooden building resting on top of a moss-covered stone structure. It had a wooden staircase leading towards its entrance.

Pyrite started to walk up the steps, being greeted by guards stationed on the sides of the staircase as she walked up.

One of the guards in particular had a great big smile on his face as he greeted the queen. Unlike every other member of the phoenix race, this guard had blue feathers on his wings instead of orange ones. He had short, black hair that was spiked upwards. His eyes were an intense blue of a shade similar to his wings. His body was well toned and fairly muscular, and he wore a white robe.

"Good morning, milady. It's an honor to be in your presence." Said the guard.

"Oh, Christopher! It's great to see you. I actually need you to come with me for a second, would that be okay?" Asked Pyrite.

"Su- Sure thing, milady. It would be my pleasure." Said the guard with a bow and a beaming smile.

"Please follow me."

Pyrite and Christopher walked up the stairs and entered the building.

"Miss Pyrite, am I really allowed to enter the sacred domain?" Christopher asked hesitantly.

"Would I be asking you to follow me if you couldn't?" Asked Pyrite in return.

"I- I understand."

Pyrite and Christopher finally reached the top after what seemed like ages. Despite how far they had traveled upwards, the dense leafage of the forest's thousand year old trees was still far above them. There were two guards stationed at the entrance to the building. They opened the doors for Pyrite and Christopher to pass through.

"We welcome the queen." they said at the same time, looking at each other in anger afterwards.

"Thank you, Neil and Nile." Said Pyrite with a radiant smile that immediately removed all bad blood between them.

Neil and Nile are known as the greatest warriors in the entire clan… for her to be able to make them completely docile, Pyrite really is a powerful ruler! Thought Christopher.

Pyrite entered the building with Christopher following closely behind her. The floor was covered with a bright orange carpet decorated with a flame-like pattern. The walls were made up of logs lined up against each other, with a few windows being cut out on each side. There was a staircase leading up and a staircase leading downwards into the stone structure below.

"Follow me." Said Pyrite as she went downwards.

As they descended, Christopher could hear screams resounding in the distance, followed by the crack of a whip.

"Christopher. There are three reasons why this is called the sacred domain. One, it is where the queen goes about her business. Two, the Prism of Fire lies on the highest floor. And three, because it is also where troublesome visitors are dealt with." Said Pyrite with an unchanging expression of seriousness on her face.

Pyrite looked backwards at Christopher and made eye contact with him.

Christopher looked back into her bluish green eyes and blushed before looking away.

"Christopher. Look at me." Said Pyrite.

Christopher obeyed and looked into Pyrite's eyes.

He noticed how her long black hair reflected the light coming from the torches on the sides of the stairwell. He looked at her plump lips and started to daydream, until Pyrite started to speak.

"Christopher, you are one of my most trusted guards. That is why I would like to promote you to be a royal guard. You will receive training from another member of the royal guards in techniques and on how to use your fire. If you-"

Pyrite was cut off by the sound of a bird squawking.

"What is it?" Said Pyrite as she rushed up the stairs. Christopher followed behind her.

"Milady! We have spotted two humans roughly a mile away. They are heading towards the City that borders the human land with ours." Said Neil and Nile simultaneously.

"Why does this deserve my attention?" Asked Pyrite in an annoyed voice.

"They are being followed by a pack of Dune Wolves and are bleeding heavily. Also…"

"Also what?"

"We think that one of them is the Draconian."

Pyrite stepped backwards in surprise.

"The draconian… the one who will uncover the secrets of the world… we must save them immediately!"

"Milady, they are too close to the city and if we go, we will be spotted. You of all people must know of the dangers of humans."

"Dammit! I guess we'll just have to pray for their safety." Cursed Pyrite.

At this moment, Pyrite thought back to the dream she had that night.

Why am I thinking about this now, of all times?

She thought about the boy in her dream. She thought about his wavy brown hair, his bluish green eyes, and his handsome, prince-like features.

I can tell that the boy is attractive, so why do I feel a different type of love for him? Why does he feel like family to me?

While thinking this, Pyrite walked over to her crimson throne and sat down.

"I order you to station all of the guards on the edge of the kingdom and wait for the Draconian to come."

"Your wish is our command!" Said Neil, Nile, and Christopher at the same time before all running off to tell the rest of the guards their orders.

With the guards gone, Pyrite looked down at her desk to see a pile of papers to go through.

"Looks like we have stuff to do." She said with a groan.