"Oh." Aelin, the speechless one, could only reply, with an OH.
As she literally has nothing to speak back.
She followed what he did. She closed his eyes, and then as he said, she focused on the fire element.
Then, after a moment, she opened her eyes to see or feel her wings. But, nothing. No, there weren't any wings. Not even a trace of them.
~~
She took a deep breath and then closed her eyes again. This time, she heard a voice. That voice, which firstly informed her that things have changed. That she could defeat that liger with just one breath of her. That very voice resonated in her system again, 'Aelin. It's all about focus and concentration.
Just forget about everything and focus on me. Try to trust me, rather than anyone else. Because anyone can harm you except me. Because I am a part of you and you are a part of me.
Only when you will trust me can we win this World together. Only then, we can rule over the entire universe. Only then, we can earn what we want. Respect. Dignity. Freedom. And most importantly, the end of fear, end of rules, end of orders, end of misery.
Aelin, we are the superior most here. There is no one or nothing, we can't defeat or tread on. But, for that, you have to learn to rely on me. You have to learn to trust me. You have to let go of everything and believe in me.
Believe in us. And then let our bond do the rest of the magic. Will you do that, please?'
Aelin was shocked and scared. But since, she had watched the video of vision. She had seen that injured girl talking with a voice. So, she tries her best to not freak out and make a joke of herself. Since her eyes were closed. So, nothing could be seen on her face. As if the phoenix's facial facade was back, which hid everything from others. She again opened her eyes, found nothing, took another deep breath, and closed her eyes again.
' Aelin. I should be the last person in this Universe you should be scared of. As I said earlier, you are me. I am you. So, try to believe me once. I assure you, you will never regret it. Never. Ever.' The voice added again.
Aelin took a deep breath. Although, she was in a chaotic state. Although, the last thing that she wanted to do was trust someone in her life. But here, she was doing it.
Despite being backstabbed, cheated countless times. Here she was trusting a voice and this fellow again.
'How can I do that?' She questioned herself.
'By letting go. Let go of everything. All the emotions, all the memories, past, present, everything. Make yourself as empty as a shell. And then let the energy of fire fill that empty shell of yours again.
Don't forget, a Phoenix and fire are one. Just like you and I are one. I am the one who controls the power, the energy inside you. While you are the brain of me. You are the eyes and ears of me. You are the senses. And you are the one who controls them, too.
I am just your… um… friend…guide… pet… slave… servant… or whatever you like to call me as. I am the bird form of you. I am your heart. I am your emotions, your happiness, your sorrow, your joy, your anger, your sadness. Everything. Just like that beast form of that girl Devmaya. It will take some time, but you will understand.
So, now time to let all the shackles, all the limits, all the boundaries go. Time to take the Phoenix's revival flight, Aelin.
Just focus on me. Focus on the fire in you. You can do it. Hehe!!! Only you can do it. Do it, Aelin. Now.' The voice resonated.
And Aelin did what she was told. But if the readers think it is very very easy. Then allow me to enlighten you.
Despite practicing for the entire 15 days and 15 nights in the very same place. She still wasn't able to let go of all the humiliation, all the tortures, all the memories of the past.
At this time, her inner voice and her outer voice [ Prithvi] encourage her many times. In fact, it's solely because of their motivation, she was able to hold on this long. But, still, she wasn't able to let go.
Damnit. Why is it so problematic? Can't she just achieve what she wants? Like can't it turn into a piece of cake for her? Or especially for her.
But Nah, even if she is a phoenix. She still has to earn the power she possesses, herself, with her efforts. After all, people don't value the things given to them on the silver platter.
They only value the things they worked hard to achieve. And she was currently in the very same phase.
After another timed lap of 20 days and 20 nights. Finally, she was able to completely cool her nerves from inside out. And at that time, after being emerged in darkness for what seemed like an eternity. She finally was able to see the dot. The dot of fire.
The dot of light. The dot of color. The dot of life. The dot of her trust. The dot of the bond.
With each passing moment, the dot started increasing in circumference, and very soon, or can say, at the speed of light, the dot turned into a huge circle, which engulfed her fully from inside out.
Prithvi, who till now, was staying next to her while dealing with all the matters telepathically, no matter how critical the situations were. At the same time, he was sending his Qi to her, from time to time, to energize her and her system.
To replace the deficiency of food and water in her system. He too saw the change happening in her... Her human form started producing blue flames… [ The bluish flame of fire, the pure yet the most torturous form of fire]. (The scene was no less than watching the person burning with fire, live. From inside out, all fire. Just that, the person in concern's eyes were closed and she wasn't feeling any type of discomfort or pain or heat.)
Then, the bluish flames turned black. [ The IInd stage of fire.] Then yellow. [ The IIIrd stage of fire.]
And then, from yellow to red and then creating the hues of orange in it.
And there she was, the fire phoenix. Or can say, the phoenix with flames of fires engulfing her inside out. The symbol of the activation of her powers, of her energy, of the activation of her wings, the activation of the unbreakable connection between bird and the goddess form of a phoenix.
Symbol, which symbolizes that this is the time, Time For Phoenix's flight from her ashes of flames. Yep time to let go of her everything, while embracing her new self. The symbol of rebirth. The symbol of Change.
[ As per Indian mythology; Fire is considered the purest and most sacred element of this Earth. Since it provides us with heat, light, and cooked food. So, this engulfed with fire form of phoenix has been revered highly by the organisms. ]
~~
And he couldn't help but smile, a little. After all, this time, this Phoenix won't be reviving with the intention of killing or destroying everything. This time, this Phoenix is reviving with the intention of knowing herself, finding herself, and becoming undefeatable in this Universe.
As he could very clearly see the message this Phoenix was portraying with her flames. And so does the Entire Universe, will see.
Heaven, Hell, all the galaxies, all the planets, all the satellites, all the asteroids, all the meteorites, all the black holes. The Entire Universe will see, hear the message and bow down to this Flight of Revived Phoenix.
~~
As expected, the moment she opened her eyes. They weren't the normal turquoise blue, as usual. They turned golden. The most dangerous form of fire, which earthlings had never ever seen, in their entire life.
Her reddish-brown hair turned into fiery, fine silk threads of fire. As if she can spit the fire. Even her most conservative, regal dress, was showcasing the flames of fire.
It was like she was burning. But, she wasn't getting hurt. Or to be precise, she wasn't feeling any pain or any discomfort or anything. As if she wasn't burning at all. As if she didn't carry that golden fire in her whole body.
Even her dress was fully intact. To say nothing about all the hidden weapons in her body, about which she was completely clueless, yet.
And there it comes, her flamed wings. The combination of red, orange, yellow, and golden colors. Making them the most breathtaking of all the wings that exist in the heavens, till now.
~~
Even Prithvi couldn't help but fall in a daze, definitely, it was his first time. Seeing her wings, her fire, her beauty, this mesmerizing sight, this enchantress... it was simply just too much. That the thing that never ever happened in the millennia was happening.
He fell in a daze at her glory. His heart, to whom, he thought, always and already belongs to her, skipped thousands of beats, within a second altogether.
[ Edited chapter.]