"The full phoenixes were after the demon-angel, wanting to reborn again," sagot ni Ma. Full phoenix? Ano 'yon?

"Ang mga full phoenixes ay nakakapag-anyong tao at phoenix. Makapangyarihan sila, at ang lumika ng full phoenix na ito ay sina Lucifer at Sinclair. It was when you had intervene with Lucifer's creation, iyong pangyayari na pinakialaman mo si Lucifer at binagyan mo ng kamatayan ang phoenix."

Napasinghap ako. Naaalala ko ang memoryang iyon sa utak ko nang malinaw. It was the first time na nakaalala ako mula sa aking nakaraan. Iyon ang unang pangyayaring naalala ko mula kay Sinclair.

"Phoenicia, she was the first phoenix. Since siya ang ginawa niyo ni Lucifer, some would say anak niyo siya," nanlaki ang mata ko sa realisasyon. Ako ang gumawa kay Phoenicia? The hero? The creator?

Naglabas ng buntong-hininga si Da. "She was the one who tried to possess you when you were a child, at nasisiguro kong siya rin ang nagnakaw ng katawan mo ngayon. She's the most powerful phoenix after all."

"Hindi rin totoo na siya ang gumawa sa lahat. We were born from chaos, created by chaos, the vast empty space. Although some would argue that there are more heavenly beings watching us from chaos. Ang unang umiral sa mundong ito ay sina Lucifer, Red, Seraphin, Alpha and of course Sinclair, the first woman, the demon. Matagal na panahon ay nagawa si Phoenicia, the second woman, the phoenix," pagpapaliwanag ni Pa

Nanliit ang mga mata nang marinig ang iba pang mga pangalang 'di ako pamilyar. Serpahin and Alpha.

"Lahat tayo ay narereincarnate, maaaring bilang flower, hayop o kung ano man. But Phoenicia and all other full phoenixes can only be reborn sa mga demon-angels," dagdag naman ni Ma. "We have the power to reincarnate, if the land of souls would allow us. Your role as the creators and primordial beings in this world has allowed your reincarnations, and it can be in any form. However, this was forbidden to Phoenixes."

"Pinagbawal din ang pagmamahalan ng isang demonyo at anghel. Katulad ni Lucifer," she stopped when father intervened.

"Alam mo na ba ang nakaraan mo, Eris?" Wika niya't umiling ako. Hindi ko naaalala lahat.

"The cause of Lucifer's fall... was his love for you. Walang kinalaman si Sinclair sa pagiging demonyo ni Lucifer. He was smitten, he was addicted yet innocent. Hindi niya alam kung anong maaring madala ng pag-ibig niya. Then, Red helped him. They created Lucifuge to prevent him from being completely a demon. Ngunit hindi nila alam na doon magsisimulang lumaki ang numero ng mga demonyo. The myths were true, Lucifer somehow created the demons. He was also the one who created you, Sinclair. Hindi ka mabubuhay kung hindi ka niya binigyan ng kaluluwa."

Love? 'Yon ba ang dahilan kung bakit ako naging interesado sa kanya agad nang una siyang makita? Perhaps, Levi and I loved each other in our past life, but I could also be wrong.

My father let out a small chuckle. "Kung tutuusin, Lucifer almost created everything. Lucifer is the creator, not Phoenicia. On the other hand, Red is the hero, and again not Phoenicia."

"Paano naging hero si Red?" Mas lalo akong naging interesado.

"Phoenicia was strong. She was mated to Alpha, ngunit hindi niya ito gusto, nagagawa niyang matanggal ang link dahil mas malakas siya kay Alpha. Phoenicia was infatuated to Red. They were close, but to Red, she was but a younger sister. Red was in love with someone else," sagot ni Pa.

"At doon nagsimula ang away. Alpha was mad at Red, for being the one she liked. Phoenicia was mad at Sinclair, for being the one Red liked," nanlaki ang mata ko. My fyglja have liked me before? Hindi kaya iyon ang dahilan kung bakit namin naging fylgja ang isa't isa?

"Lucifer was mad at Phoenicia for hurting Sinclair."

"How about Seraphin?" Tanong ko. He was mentioned earlier, but I haven't heard of him.

"Seraphin wasn't involved in any of these. He lived in another place, Earth. A place of peace," ani Ma. "Phoenicia made vampires, hybrids and more phoenixes. Red made alchemists, witches, wizards, dragons and sorcerers. Lucifer made more angels, deities or gods. Alpha made more werewolves. Sinclair made demons."

"The war started but it led to nothing. Lahat sila'y malalakas, at hindi nila nagawang talunin ang isa't isa. But then, Phoenicia knew of Seraphin's world. Earth was inhabited by animals, nature and humans. It was a perfect world, hanggang sa binalak itong sirain ni Phoenicia because of envy. She believed nothing shall be perfect."

"No human had a bad heart. It was pure, serene like the crystal clear ocean, but Phoenicia has stained it," pagkukuwento ni Ma.

"Seraphin was furious, he attacked Phoenicia. But she had a plan at iyon ang blood fest or the extinction of mankind. The real war started. It was everyone against Phoenicia. It lasted so long, that it needed to take your souls away. It was the turning point, and Red finally ended it."

"He had consumed every flame of Phoenicia, and because of that, Phoenicia froze. She did not exactly die, but her body has ceased to exist." Ah, ito ang katotohanan sa likod ng frozen state ni Phoenicia. But if Red did that before, he might do that again!

I thought and my eyes lit up with hope. Kailangan ko lang sabihin iyon kay Rain, and maybe everything will end.

"No," matigas ni Da na tila ba nabasa ang iniisip ko. "Your body that Phoenicia possesses is marked as his fylgja. He cannot hurt and kill it. And even if he does that again, there's no guarantee that it will end forever. Lifetimes may pass again, and Phoenicia may reborn to another demon-angel."

The bond... I let a sigh out of frustration. I knew that the bond was strong, but I didn't know that it would remain even if another soul is in my body now. Magiging delikado ito para kay Red.

"Then how can we end this, Ma, Da?" I asked. If the world is at stake, I need to do something. "If Phoenicia has a part of my power, from Sinclair, then can I overpower it like what I almost did to Lucifer? Para maging isang demonyo nalang siya at mamatay, hindi niya na kailangan ma-reborn." It was a wild speculation, but it made sense, unless...

Napatawa naman si Da. "You also thought that back then, as Sinclair."

At hudyat ng mga katagang 'yon ay lumabas muli ang isang isang alaala.

"It might be the only way, Red. To stop the bloodfest. I'm willing to be a villain, and you. . . You become the hero," saad ko. Napatingin ako sa paligid at nagtaka nang makakita ng pulang buwan. Blood fest, ito ba 'yon?

"Sinclair!" Napalingon ako sa tumawag sa'kin. Si Red. His voice was breaking, and I was dumbfounded when I saw tears running down from his red eyes. Kumawala ako sa kamay niyang nakahawak pala sa'kin.

"If there's no other way, I'll do it, Red," aniya nang nakatalikod. "It's a demon's path."

The memory was vague. Hindi ko alam kung ano'ng tinutukoy ko. Pero baka ito na ang sinasabi ni Pa. Ang gagawin ko ay ang naisip ko kanina— to overpower Phoenicia using the demon soul I share her.

"Your plan won't work, Sinclair." Lucifer. He appeared in front of us suddenly. "You cannot sacrifice the entirety of your soul to Phoenicia. That would just make her powerful. Kahit ano'ng gawin natin ay 'di mawawala sa kanya ang angelic soul sa kanya."

Nanliit ang mata ko. "But why did it work for you? Nawala ang demon share ko sa'yo matapos nating i-extract 'yon."

"I was an angel to begin with, and we cannot extract from Phoenicia. She'd never let us do it. Isa pa, demon-angel soul ang bumubuo kay Phoenicia. Katulad mo, isa kang demonyo bagaman binigyan kita ng parte ng kaluluwa ko. There's no way I can extract the angel soul I shared you since it is what made you demon," paliwanag ni Lucifer.

Mas naintindihan ko naman ang pinaparating niya. And returning back to reality, I realized that we had less chances now. There's no way to end it yet, if all of us are in equal power. Human lives will be the one lost here. Discord will fill the lands.

"There is still a way, Eris. There might be," saad ni Da, kung kaya't napatingin ako sa kanya. Napabalikwas naman ako nang makakita bigla ng malaking buwan sa ibabaw namin. Tila bumagal ang ikot noon habang napansin ko ang araw na unti-unting nawawalan ng liwanag.

Then, a mirror in front of us appeared. I saw Red, Lucifer, Georgia, and all others in Phoenix Academy. Red's body was ablaze with fire, while Michael Gaza, had a miniature of the moon levitating atop of his hand. Then, I remembered who he was, the Alpha.

They were all against forces of Phoenixes and vampires. But as the moon slowed down, the opposing side's movements did too. It seemed like victory for Phoenix Academy, but the clash still continued.

"Your comrades has successfully delayed the blood fest, but it does not stop it from happening," saad ni Da. Ibig sabihin ay totoong pangyayari ang pinakita ng salamin.

"You need to defeat this nightmare to wake up. The way out of Neverland is cut your connection to us, the grief from your belief that we died in your arms, and the illusion that we are alive in your mind. You have to accept that we are no longer part of the world, Eris Sinclair," paliwanag ni Ma habang hinihila ako para sa isang mahigipt na yakap.

"That is the way for your soul to be reborn in the world. They are still waiting for your return, Sinclair."

Phoenix Academy
By lostmortals
Plagiarism is a crime.

Votes and comments are highly appreciated. Thank you for reading!