Ice Phoenix (7 page)

Then the second transformation began.

A wave rippled across the sails, followed by a blue light, which covered the entire hull. Before her very eyes, the sails hardened into a completely different material. They had truly become the solid hull of the ship.

The captain's voice rang out once more.
"Preparing to enter the In-Between. Please remain seated during this time."

Terrana rushed back to her pod by the window; she would have a front row view. She snuggled in quickly, impressed by the automated shields that locked her in, and stared out. The prow of the ship was rising. She could feel a build-up of pressure at the back of the ship and she clenched her fists, her heart still thumping wildly. And then they were off! It lasted only a few seconds as the clouds faded completely from her sight
. Suddenly, everything outside her window turned black. They had entered the In-Between!

She couldn't believe it. She was actually in the In-Between.
In Space. She was going to see the stars, moons, planets, and gates! She would pass asteroids, she would see meteors, and she would be the first Fijian to enter the In-Between, except — her initial euphoria took a dive — she would never be able to tell anyone back home about it. They could never learn of the United Worlds of the In-Between. For a while Terrana remained in her pod, gazing into Space.

"Miss Ondur, there are two people at the door for you."

"Hmm ... I'm sorry Kazu, did you say something?"

"There are two people at the door for you."

"Oh." That was a surprise. Who could possibly want to see her? "Can you show them to me, Kazu?"

A projected hologram appeared in front of her, and to her surprise she recognised Mikin and the fair boy. The boy was looking at her, but Mikin's head was turned away, as if he didn't want her to see him.

"Mikin?" she asked hesitantly, talking to the hologram.

"Ah, so you
do
know him," said the fair boy. He seemed quite serious, which was a far cry from when she had first seen him. "Then perhaps you should let us in. Your friend here got into a bit of trouble and needs another place to stay."

"What, why?
What happened?"

"Go on, show her." He gave
Mikin a little nudge and the elephant slowly raised his face. Terrana gasped, her hand covering her mouth. Mikin had a large bruise under his left eye, his trunk was scraped and bleeding, and his overalls were torn and dirty.

"Oh my god!
Who did that to you?"

Mikin mumbled something under his breath so she couldn't hear him.

"Kazu, let them in."

She raced to the door, pulling
Mikin aside the moment he was inside the cabin. Then she faced the fair boy.

"Did you do this?" she asked in a threatening voice. He took a step back, surprised by her sudden display of aggression.

"Why would you think that?"

"It looks like you dragged him here." Terrana was feeling really angry — how could anyone have attacked Mikin? She wanted to hit whoever had done it.

"I did," replied the boy, looking at her steadily. "I dragged him here."

Terrana would have pushed him out the door had Mikin not tugged her hand. She turned to look at him.

"Don't be mad at him," he said in a low voice. "He helped me."

The fair boy leaned in suddenly so that his face was only centimetres from hers. She could feel his breath on her face when he spoke.

"That's right," he said softly. "I saved your friend from getting slammed around like an ice puck. Isn't that right,
Mikin
?"

Terrana glanced at the little elephant. He was nodding miserably. "So ... who did this to you then?"

"The boys in my cabin," he answered. "They wanted to put a collar around me and make me sit on their laps. I refused." His ears flapped as he tried to hide his face behind them.

Terrana reached out and touched him, her heart nearly breaking. "Don't," she said softly. "Don't hide your face. Never hide your face. I'm
gonna find those boys and I'm gonna hang them from the ceiling, okay?"

"What, all five of them?" said the boy, an amused expression on his face.

"Yeah, all five of them," she retorted. "Something wrong with that?"

"They are
Grailons you know ... twice your size, horns on their heads, shoulders like brick walls? That doesn't bother you?"

Terrana took a deep breath, thinking through her options. "Have they got brains?"

He smiled. "No."

"Then no, it doesn't bother me."

Mikin tugged at her hand again. "Lorn already took care of them. Anyway, I don't want you to go and find them."

"Lorn?"

"That would be me," said the boy. He grinned and her heart went thump again. He really did have the most beautiful green eyes. "Anyway, you should spare your pretty eyes from them. Why don't you invite us to stay here with you instead? You must be bored up here by yourself."

She suddenly found herself shrinking from two pairs of pleading eyes ... eyes
that threatened retribution if she kicked them out.

"Kazu?" she called out hesitantly.

"Yes, Miss Ondur. Do you require something?"

"Can my two friends remain here with me?"

"If Miss Ondur so wishes it, then yes."

"I wish it."

"I shall inform the kitchen of your two extra guests then."

"Aw
riiight! Smack it there little fella!"

Terrana turned to see Mikin and the boy giving each other a high five. Then, in a flash, they raced to the bar and began helping themselves to whatever food and drinks they could find.

"Umm, I'm not sure if we can touch those," she called out.

"Don't worry about us, Terrana," shouted Mikin. "We got it covered!"

Terrana returned to her pod by the window, unable to shake off the feeling that she had somehow been duped.

Dinner turned out to be a scrumptious affair of soup, salads, and warm dinner rolls followed by a delicious nut stew and a selection of sweet, fresh dumplings. After eating as much as they could, they retired to their pods by the window, curled up their feet and sat in comfortable silence with their favourite beverages. In Terrana's case, it was hot chocolate.

Mikin had applied a gel pad to his eye, and the swelling had receded quickly. One of the attendants had treated his trunk, applying a green lotion to it, and Terrana had been astonished to see it healing right before her eyes. Her burns had taken weeks to heal and she still had a light scar on the side of her face, but, she determined, the extent of the injuries could not be compared. She had nearly died.

The atmosphere between the three students was polite; none of them wishing to be rude by attaching the sensory pads and disappearing into a virtual world of fun and games. Eventually, it fell upon Lorn to break the ice.

"
So, Terrana, am I right to guess that one of your parents is an official?
"

She looked up in surprise. Both he and Mikin were looking at her expectantly. "Huh? Why do you think that?"

Lorn gestured around the room. "Blue coin? First class travel? Only the very rich or important are allowed a blue coin. Didn't you know that?"

No, she hadn't known. Baneyon had only warned her not to lose the coin. Was he important then? She thought hard. He had a nice apartment, but he constantly moaned about his bills so no, he couldn't be rich. She had never seen him leave for work, either, and if he did, it was to grab a drink from the nearby ca
f
é and ogle at the pretty women walking by. She ruled out important.

"You're not very familiar with how things work here, huh?" said Lorn. "Which sector are you from?"

Terrana hesitated. Should she tell them? Would they treat her any differently if they knew? Lorn's eyes followed her like a hawk, as if he knew she was hiding something. Mikin, on the other hand, looked like ... an elephant.

"I'm from ...
Fiji." She hadn't been able to say it, that she was from Sector Thirteen. She didn't want to be treated as an outcast. Lorn whistled and leaned forwards, regarding her with curiosity.

"From Suva?"

Terrana sat back in surprise, her eyes widening. How could he possibly have known? It was a simple question. No disbelief. No accusation of lying. No ridicule. The little knot inside her came loose. He had known all along, and yet he had treated her like a normal person.

"I'm from an island in the
Yasawas Group in Fiji."

"I'm lost," said Mikin. "Where's
Fiji?"

Lorn sighed. "It's in Sector Thirteen, dodo."

"Sector Thirteen?" Mikin threw Terrana an incredulous look. "Really?"

Terrana nodded.

"Wow! That's
uber
cool!" he cried, leaping from his pod. He sidled up to her and began rubbing her with his trunk. It was cool to touch and quite ticklish as he ran it up and down her arm, and she began to giggle.

"Wow! That is amazing! I have a friend from Sector Thirteen!"

"Okay, back off Nipponian before you smother her in trunk juice!" 

"My trunk does not juice," Mikin replied in a hurt voice as he found himself being deposited back into his pod by Lorn.

"That may be true, but you don't just run your trunk along any girl that comes along. Where're your manners?"

Mikin's ears flapped and he hung his head. Terrana felt sorry for him. "It's okay
, Mikin. I didn't mind."

"So," said Lorn, settling into his pod once more, "is your family here or do you have a guardian?"

"A guardian. His name's Baneyon Ondur."

At the mention of Baneyon, both Mikin and Lorn turned pale. Mikin looked as though he was about to cry actually.

"I'm really sorry, Terrana! I didn't mean to be rude — I was just excited at meeting someone from Sector Thirteen. Please don't tell your guardian! I'll return to my cabin!"

Terrana was taken aback. Why were they suddenly so afraid? "I said I didn't mind, Mikin. There's no need to return to your cabin."

"She doesn't know," said Lorn, glancing at Mikin. "She doesn't know who he is."

"What are you talking about? Of course I know Baneyo
n
— he adopted me!" Terrana raised her voice. Their sudden deferent behaviour was beginning to annoy her.

"No, you don't. If you had, you'd know he's an Imeldor," replied Lorn.

Imeldor. That was a new word. It sounded lame. "Is that a kind of weaver then?"

Both boys groaned. "I can't believe I'm sitting with a girl from Sector Thirteen who's on her way to Minda Yerra and she has no idea of who an Imeldor is," said Lorn.

Terrana glared at him. The urge to kick him was quite strong.

"An Imeldor is someone who has achieved the highest stage of weaving," explained Lorn. "There're only a few people in the entire universe who have achieved this level, and your guardian, Baneyon Ondur, is one of them."

That still didn't explain much. "How high is high?" she asked.

"He can flatten skyscrapers with a flick of his fingers," said Lorn.

"Create whirlwinds and slice you up into little pieces," added Mikin.

"Pluck this ship from the In-Between and send it crashing into an asteroid if he wanted to," continued Lorn.

If they expected her to react in astonishment, they were sadly disappointed. She looked more sceptical than ever. "I think you have the wrong Baneyon. The Baneyon I know spills coffee on the carpet and makes
me
clean it. And he even forgets to tell me which junk I'm supposed to board."

The boys gave her strange looks. Lorn changed the subject. "How old are you?"

"Thirteen."

"That's the same as me!" blurted Mikin.

"And you?" asked Terrana, looking at Lorn.

"Sixteen. I'm from Daiphus, by the way."

It was the beginning of a conversation that kept them up long after dinner. Time passed quickly as they learned about one another and, more importantly, Terrana got to see the world through their eyes. She was intrigued by the watery underworld that Mikin came from and how his parents had raised him to be a bookworm. Lorn's childhood was pretty much defined by his zest for life, and it came as no surprise that his parents had found him to be a handful.

It was only when the discussion swung around to Terrana, and Mikin asked about her family that things went wrong. The boys sensed instantly that Mikin had asked a taboo question. Her cup dropped to the floor, clinking as it charted a trail of muddy chocolate
. A deep red burned beneath her cheeks, and for an instant the boys could have sworn her eyes had blackened.

"Terrana?"
Lorn said hesitantly. He and Mikin looked at each other with worried expressions.  She was shaking.

"Terrana!"
Lorn leapt to her side, placing a hand on her back and starting to rub it in an effort to calm her down.

"I'm okay
," she finally said in a small voice. But clearly she was not. She had believed she could speak of her family's death without becoming emotional, but she had been wrong.

"They ... died in a fire." Emotion spilled into her throat and she choked, collapsing into a coughing fit.

"It's okay," said Lorn gently. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

They spoke about other things, of life in other worlds and what to expect when they arrived at Minda Yerra. Because Lorn was a third-year student, he gave them the heads-up on the rules, classes, and teachers to avoid.

"Master Drummik is strict. Never ever
not
do your homework in his class! The headmistres
s
— it doesn't matter what you do, she'll kill you either way."

Both boys carefully avoided bringing up Terrana's family in their conversation. In fact, they steered clear of the thirteenth sector completely. For that, Terrana was grateful, even though she knew they must have been burning with curiosity.

Eventually, they retired for the night. Instead of heading to the individual sleeping rooms, they remained in their pods, which converted into beds complete with pillows and covers, and gradually fell asleep.

For the next few hours, the dome was silent. Nothing but
the occasional light from the stars touched the cabin as the ship flew through the In-Between, passing by planets and the occasional asteroid field.

The first sign there was something wrong was when the entire ship began to shudder. Had Terrana not been cocooned safely in her pod, she would have fallen to the floor. There was more grinding and screeching, and Terrana panicked. It sounded as though the ship was trying to squeeze through a very small space and not doing a good job of it.

"Kazu! What's happening?" she called out anxiously. The ship's computer did not answer.

"Terrana!"
The voice was hushed and belonged to Lorn.

"Lorn, what's happening? Why won't Kazu respond?"

"Shh. Keep your voice down. You too, Mikin."

"The lights won't work, Lorn," said Mikin. He sounded scared.

"They're out for a reason. The captain's disabled the entire ship. Look outside, and whatever you do, do
not
make any loud noises."

The three of them peered past the edge of their pods and out the window.
Great big chunks of blue ice drifted by. They were icebergs, some larger than the ship.

"
Ve, ve-velassium!" stuttered Mikin. "Th-then that means ..." he trailed off, suddenly terrified.

"The ice-phoenixes are here," said Lorn, grimly. "We are in so much trouble!"

The icebergs drifted out of sight and the whole cabin was bathed in complete darkness. Terrana's heart pounded like a galloping stallion in her chest and she desperately tried to recall what she had learned about the ice-phoenix. Her conversation with Baneyon and Eliksha returned to her.

"If you ever come across one, run!"
Baneyon had said. Fat chance of her doing that now. She couldn't exactly run out into the In-Between could she? She made a mental note to tell Baneyon to improve upon his survival tips, or else young, impressionable girls like her could end up in very bad situations following his advice. She wracked her brain, trying to recall what the ice-phoenix could do, when she realised she had seen it. The icebergs. The breath of the ice-phoenix could turn anything into ice. Even vacuum. That was why it was called velassium. Dartkala's breath.

"Lorn? What about the others?" asked
Mikin. "If they start screaming, they'll attract attention."

"The captain's already thought of it."

Lorn was right. The inner-side of their pods began to glow faintly, and Terrana realised that a message was being written out.

Do NOT move, do NOT make a sound
. And then it vanished. From the corner of her eye, she spotted something, and the back of her neck prickled.

"Lorn, what does an ice-phoenix look like?" she asked in a very loud whisper.

"I don't kno
w
— I've never seen one!"

"It's not a cross between a chicken and a pineapple, is it?"

"Sssh! Your voice is gonna attract attention!"

"Is it sort of white and wispy, with an icy feathery mane, greenish eyes,
shoots like a rocket instead of flying like a bird?"

"Will you please, just be
quiet
?"

"Last question, can its eye alone be larger than our window?"

When Lorn didn't answer her, she sat up straighter in the pod, looking around for him. A hand covered her mouth, pushing her face back against the pillow, and the next thing she knew Lorn was climbing into her pod. The weight of his body pressed on hers, and she felt his breath on her neck.

"If you don't shut up, we're all going to die!" he whispered fiercely.

"Umph, umph," she grunted, pointing at the window. Lorn turned his head slowly, following the direction of her finger. It took him a few seconds to spot it, but when he did the breath went out of him, and his hand fell away from her face.

He couldn't believe that he hadn't noticed it earlier. Had it been there the entire time? A cold, green fire writhed outside the window, harbouring a dark centre, which remained steady and watchful. It covered the entire window and he suddenly realised why he hadn't seen it earlier. All this time when he thought he had been staring out, he had actually been looking into the centre of the fire.

"You could have said the ice-phoenix was outside the window," he said reproachfully.

"I was trying to be sure that it
was
the ice-phoenix before I told you." 

"Well congratulations, now you know!"

"Well, I didn't want to sound dumb and just say, hey look, the ice-phoenix is staring at us!"