Chapter 7 The Neighboring Kingdom

The neighboring kingdom was named Greethose (Gree-those). Their ruler was a cruel old man. The old man looked like he was on his death bed when I was brought before him. He sat up on his throne and stared at me licking his lips. I did not want to give myself away for anything. But the way he was looking at me made me want to take flight.

I was tossed into the throne room. I could tell the intent was to make me fall. I would not give them the satisfaction. I kneel before no man! I will fall before none as well.

The room was huge and lined with mobs of people on both sides. The only walking area was the long rug I was standing on. The rug ran the entire length of the room and was red. As I walked down the red carpet towards the throne, he got up on his spindly legs and hobbled towards me. I stopped right in front of the crowd.

The old man walked around me clicking his tongue at me. "I guess you will do. You are pretty enough to be a phoenix." He yelled, "Marbas! Are you sure that this creature is the one."

A sulky looking man with a hunch walked up. He kept licking his lips and undressing me with his eyes. Before he could even talk, I could see his forked tongue flicking in and out of his mouth. This man was very obviously possessed. The forked tongue came out in a ghostly matter. It was plainly clear that no other person could see the apparition though. This man was also in desperate need of a good bath. I could smell the mix of B.O and sulfur from across the room. He must be Marbas.

Marbas: Well my liege, there is only one way we can truly tell. We must make her go through the trial. If she survives she is the phoenix, and as such, with my dedication with the information, she is your next queen.

The old man pursed his lips at me. He grabbed the collar of my dress right between my breasts and pulled me down. He forced a kiss on me, leaving smears of his saliva on my face. I did nothing. I was biding my time. They did not know my true power. Besides the old prune will turn into prune juice on the wedding night if he is that stupid.

The old man: Well she is a strong one. Maybe she will bare me a strong son. FINALLY! If not, I will find a more beautiful woman. I would prefer a bed warmer instead of a queen anyway.

Marbas: Do not be foolish my liege! This woman has power you are unaware of!

The old man walked past me and slapped me hard on the butt. I did not take to well with that. I flipped around grabbing his hand and slapped it hard on the back. The old man laughed, "Lets see if your that fiery after the trial. Throw her in the pit."

Before I could say anything I was literally picked up and carried off to an arena. They cuffed my ankle to the floor in the middle of the sand floor. It was obvious that they used this for gladiator games. I guess I was tonight's entertainment. I hope it is all they bargained for.

A loud gong was heard and echoed through the pit. As it echoed I heard the stone doors all around me open up. One skinny boy ran around lighting all the sconces around the pit and left the area. Then a whole troop of soldiers marched in. They stood against the walls shoulder to shoulder two men thick. They covered the entire perimeter of the pit. When the marching stopped the stone doors closed again.

All of the soldiers were clad in armor and armed to the brim. They were so shinny that it made the entire room alight with the reflection of the light on their armor. It was nearly as bright as day time. But the true time must have been after eight at night.

My hands were not bound. Just my ankle. I had a good laugh at their expense. I yelled, "Are you sure you want to lose all of these good men? This will not be a good time for them. I will not submit."

The old man was sitting in a throne just above the pit looking down. The entire pit was surrounded with onlookers as well. The old man smiled and held out a thumbs up at me. Well, I knew I needed some exercise anyway. I will try to take it easy on them. I ripped off the sleeve of my dress and pulled my hair back with the fabric. I put it up in a quick sloppy pony tail.

The old man turned his thumb down, and all of the soldiers rushed me at once. I waited until the very last second and jumped up into the air. The chain on my ankle would only let me get about four feet up. But it was enough. A dozen of the soldiers rammed their heads into each other.

I landed on top of the unconscious bodies. Another soldier grabbed my dress and yanked back. He pulled me off of my feet. I landed in his arms. His hand grabbed and began groping my breasts. Now I lost my cool.

All of a sudden all of the soldiers froze. I had started radiating music. It bounced off the walls. It was music unlike anything they had ever heard before. It was the song Unbreakable by Janelle Monae and Kelly Clarkson.

The soldier who was fondling me let me go and backed away. I began to dace holding my left hand in the air. In my left palm was a flame. The faster the song went the hotter the fire burned. Then the fire began to creep down my arm burning off what was left of my clothing. Till the fire reached my feet. The fire left behind fire garments that covered the vital parts.

The faster I danced the more the soldiers backed away. When I was completely engulfed and my fire was burning clear, I split into two. I began to dance with my self. Eventually I was burning hot enough that I melted off the cuff that was restraining me to the ground.

I was not leaving till I had taught these animals a lesson. I turned my back to myself and we beckoned them to attack. As the soldiers complied we fought as one. We kicked, punched, and sang as we fought back knocking out every soldier that attacked.

That is until only the Sargent and the Lieutenant were left. They came at us with pikes first. We broke the pikes and jerked them into us. We traded stealing their swords. We aimed at their groins and the men dropped to their knees. I giggled and combined with myself becoming one again. I knocked both men out with the butts of their swords at once.

I stuck the swords in the ground and stared up at the throne. The old man looked and smelled like he had pissed himself. I allowed my fire to burn hotter until my wings were visible. I flew up till I was even with the dirty old man. I got right in his face.

He yelled, "someone get her!" Not one soul moved. I grinned. I looked around but Marbas was no wear to be seen. I grinned at the old pervert, "What a waist of my time." I turned and with two flaps of my wings I was off flying away into the blue clear sky.

I was proud of myself for not killing anyone. They will never realize exactly how close they came. Maybe some day, they will learn their lesson. I do not think they would have ever listened to me.