Her True Form

“Out,” the zmaj behind the counter said a few moments after Yvette entered the outpost. Her scales were a slightly darker blue than Yvette remembered, but the red eyes were all too familiar.

However, the reaction was not something Yvette expected in the slightest. She barely made it a step inside before the zmaj turned on her and just glared.

“What?” Yvette asked. “I haven’t done anything. Ursula?”

“How do you know my name?” Ursula asked, baring her teeth slightly. “Listen, I don’t want anything to do with you empire troublemakers. Damn it, I thought someone would have warned me if one of your ships were pulling into the harbor. OUT!”

“Wait, no, I’m not with the Reborn Empire,” Yvette said quickly, shaking her head. “It’s me, Yvette!”

Ursula stared at her, her mouth falling open for a moment before she took a sniff of the air. She then shook her head. “Try again. I know how that… Yvette smelled. You smell nothing like… her.”

“I did die,” Yvette said. “I--”

“Unceasing Storm!” Bayla’s voice came a moment later. Yvette barely had time to see the girl come bounding out from the back area and nearly tackle her in a hug. “I-I knew you would return! I knew it! Did Gervas finally find you?”

“Uhhhh, not quite,” Yvette said before giving a sheepish smile to Ursula. “I knew he came through here, though. He got Chestnut and Redwood, right?”

Ursula looked between her and the girl for a few moments before nodding. “He did. You’re really… Yvette?”

“I smell like a girl now, don’t I?” Yvette asked.

“So you actually managed it,” Ursula said. “Kind of like a girl, kind of like a rainy day…” She looked at the robes. “Kind of like you haven’t given that thing a wash in a… ever.”

“Its been a long trip,” Yvette said softly. “Is Nautia here?”

“The mermaid? She’s long gone,” Ursula said. “Left as soon as Gervas did, out to sea. Apparently planning to commune with her gods or something for aid. I wasn’t really privy to the whole plan. They left the kid here. In case you came by.”

Yvette gave a soft sigh before lightly nudging Bayla off her. “It’s Yvette now. Unceasing storm is… well…” She reached back and pushed open the door. After a few moments the phoenix flew in through it, before she quickly closed the door. The phoenix flew twice around the room to slow its speed before landing on her arm. “I’ve been having her fly out of sight until I made sure I found the right place.”

“What do you mean right place?” Ursula asked, her eyes narrowed.

“I’ve only been here once,” Yvette said sheepishly. “It took me a few tries to find which building was right.”

“I don’t understand,” Bayla said softly, her eyes locked on the phoenix. “That’s… you?”

“Half of us,” Yvette said softly. “The phoenix half. I know it looks less impressive, but… well…”

“But you were so massive before,” Bayla said gently.

“Size means little to the storm,” Yvette said before she could stop herself. She then glanced down at the phoenix. “Right. We’re still very tightly connected. When we’re not touching, not quite as much. However…” She held out her left hand and electricity crackled on her fingertips. Bayla stared with wide eyed wonder. “Together, we are the phoenix.”

“Uh huh,” Ursula said. She, alas, looked unimpressed.

Yvette tried not to feel offended. Bayla looked impressed enough for the both of them. “Gervas was here, right? Do you know where he went?”

“Somewhere stupid, most likely,” Ursula said bitterly. “If he was planning to go through with his plan.”

“And his plan was…?” Yvette asked.

Ursula glanced between her and Bayla. “Are you absolutely sure this is her?”

“This is the form the phoenix took,” Bayla said softly. “But it’s so small now. Nothing like it had been. It’s kind of…”

“Meager?” Ursula asked. “I thought phoenixes were supposed to--”

“Do you wish to see what we are capable of?” Yvette asked, her tone harsh and a little vicious. Unceasing Storm was already angry at the way they were talking about her and a part of her wanted to demonstrate just how much of the storm she still was.

“Anything you break, you’re replacing,” Ursula said, seemingly unphased. “Listen, the lightning, wind and fire thing works on some people but I’ve been dealing with mages and their temper tantrums for years. Fancy bird or not.”

Yvette narrowed her eyes on the zmaj, but bit her tongue. She then glanced down at Bayla. “It is me, though. I ran into the Collector and he did… something to me. I don’t know what, exactly. But it split me back into two. But we’re not exactly… fully us. Parts of me are in me, parts of me are in… other… me, I guess. I’m sorry, I’m not exactly explaining it well, am I? I’m in fairly uncharted territory as it is. Before even considering the separation. But I am still the phoenix you knew. Did your memories return? When I awoke like this… the Collector had already taken everyone else. I wasn’t… well… Where is Gervas? Before I find out what happened I need to make sure he’s okay. What is he doing?”

“Getting help for you,” Ursula said. “Apparently he wasn’t sure he’d be able to find you, so he said he was going to talk with his family. He said that, apparently, the situation has changed. Frankly, I’m not seeing it. If you are that mage he was taking around, you seem just as much of a mess as before. I’m not sure that having a weird bird is going to change much.”

“Being a phoenix,” Yvette said. “I was. Am? It’s… weird. But that-- wait. His family? You mean his grandmother, right? Is that where he went?”

Ursula gave a small shrug. “Probably. Not a lot of other places for him to go.”

“When will he be back?” Yvette asked.

“No idea,” Ursula said. “You mages seem to work on your own time. Frankly, I think him going at all was reckless. You and he aren’t exactly the most welcome around here these days.”

“What? Why?” Yvette asked.

“Fallen mage,” Ursula said. “Word spreads. Had a bunch of hunters come this way for you a few weeks after you left. Luckily you weren’t anywhere near here. But you’d best be careful, if word gets out that you’re running around, new face or not, there’ll be trouble.”

Yvette gave a small nod. “I see. So you really don’t know anything else? He just went to his grandmother?”

“Possibly his mother, too,” Ursula said, a little bitterness in her voice.

“WHAT?!” Yvette asked, lunging forward and slamming both her palms on the counter top, making the zmaj jump a little. “His mother? Why would he EVER go to her? She’s a monster! A dangerous, horrible monster!”

Ursula stared at her for a moment before snickering. “So, you’ve met her?”

“Gervas told me all about her,” Yvette said. “He couldn’t have gone to her.”

“Ehhhh…” Ursula said with a shrug. “He might have. If he thought you were worth it. Boy has a good head, but a better heart. He wouldn’t go near that woman unless he really had to, but…”

“What if he runs into hunters?” Yvette asked.

“He’s not marked as a fallen mage,” Ursula said. “Aren’t you?”

Yvette shook her head before showing her arm. “It’s gone. Ever since I woke up, it’s been gone.”

“And your bird?” Ursula asked.

“What?” Yvette asked.

“You said it was half of you,” Ursula said. “Is the mark on it?”

“Her? How would a bird be marked?” Yvette asked before looking down at the phoenix. Unceasing Storm spread out her wings. The color drained from her face when she saw the mark of a fallen mage on her right wing. “It’s there.”

“Huh,” Ursula said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a mark of a fallen mage on a wing before,” Ursula said. “Impressive. How’d you manage that?”

“I died,” Yvette said. “I thought I was finally free of this.”

“Doesn’t seem like it,” Ursula said. “And if they notice it, you’re in trouble. Might surprise some people, seeing it on a bird like that. But those marks go deep. Said to affect the soul itself. If that’s your familiar, they’re going to know you’re fallen.”

“And arrest me, right?” Yvette asked, the annoyance rising. Without her phoenix half she could barely even do her magic. But now it served as a terrible beacon for who and what she was. She couldn’t even try and hide it with a bracer or anything now. “How long until Gervas should return?”

“Not sure,” Ursula said. “He said it might be a few months. A year, at most. If he comes back at all.”

“If?” Yvette asked before giving a light groan. “He took Vala with him. Why would she be involved?”

“Who?” Ursula asked.

“A uhhhh, friend of ours, kind of,” Yvette said. “I need to go to the Vault. I need to meet with Gervas’ grandmother. I--”

“You need to wait here,” Ursula said. “Gervas will come back when he can. If for no other reason than her.”

“Her?” Yvette asked before glancing down at Bayla. The girl had been so quiet that she’d actually forgotten about her for a moment. She felt a sudden rush of guilt. “O-oh. Right. Uhhhh, I should… probably…”

“That’s part of what Gervas said he’d take care of,” Ursula said. “If you showed up, he wanted me to make sure you stayed out of trouble and he’d contact me eventually. But if you go running off there won’t be any way for him to do that.”

“And if more hunters come looking for me?” Yvette asked.

Ursula didn’t have an answer for that, instead shaking her head. “Well… then just stay out of the way.”

“Also, the ring you gave me,” Yvette said. “It’s kind of… stuck with me now. So long as I’m here, if he’s contacting you with magic it won’t work.”

“Well, aren’t you just the destroyer of all good plans?” Ursula asked. “If you go after him you’re just going to cause more trouble for both of you. Listen, I know you mages like to cause trouble for everyone, but you’re just going to put him in more danger if you run off without a plan.”

Yvette sighed and sat down on one of the chairs and gave a light groan. Why couldn’t it just be simple? She let the phoenix go before looking up at Ursula. “Fine. I… don’t suppose you have anything to eat?”

“I’ll see what I can do for you,” Ursula said before turning to walk away.

Yvette then glanced over to Bayla. “I’m sorry.”

“Are you going to leave me here too?” Bayla asked.

“I… I don’t know,” Yvette said. “It might be dangerous. You shouldn’t get involved.”

Bayla gave a small nod, though she didn’t seem entirely convinced.

“I don’t suppose you remember anything? About who you were? Where you came from?” Yvette asked.

“No,” Bayla said, her voice low. “Please… don’t go. I don’t want to be left here alone again…”

“Is Ursula that bad?” Yvette asked.

“She’s… okay,” Bayla said gently. “But… she’s not a phoenix. Can’t I come with you?”

Yvette gave a soft sigh and glanced to her phoenix half. That was a danger that she didn’t even want to consider. How many days had she been walking now? How much had she eaten in that time, other than a few berries she found?

But she felt hungry. Not starving, just hungry. Her phoenix half could feed off the winds and rain themselves, drawing power from the storm. If there was lightning she doubt she’d have even been hungry. She looked human, but she didn’t really feel like she was anymore. She didn’t want to think of how many other parts of being a human she might forget. How much danger she might put Bayla in if she brought her along.

She didn’t want to just leave Bayla here, either. She was a mage, albeit a weak one. She needed training. Then she needed to figure out what to do with the kid. Couldn’t leave her behind, but couldn’t take her with her. It was all wrong.

After a moment, her eyes lit up. Now that she thought about it, there WAS a mage here. How hard could it be to convince her to just help train Bayla a little bit? So long as she hid her phoenix half, it couldn’t be that hard.