by J. C. Fiske
“I . . . you, I mean,” Rolce stammered again, his breath edgy, his mind racing.
“I don’t mince words, Rolce, and I don’t play games. You are as handsome as you are intelligent, as powerful as you are humble. Did you know I’ve been watching you for sometime? Up here, from the skies, I see all of Thera. I see how it connects, I see how it moves, but especially, I see those who stand out, and you, my dear, sweet, Rolce . . . you are what every man needs to be, should be,” Seveara said, suddenly moving her long arms around his neck and draping them over his shoulders. She then raised a finger under his chin, and raised up his face so they could look one another in the eyes.
“It must be hard for you, being so intelligent, able to see how everything connects, how the universe flows, and it must be equally hard to be around people who cannot see things the way you do. You are so alone. As am I, Rolce. Why not fix that?” Lady Seveara said as she wrapped her right hand around the back of his head, and gently, tugged his face toward her to rest upon her generous bosom. She then began to caress his thick, dirty blonde hair tenderly with her long, strong, fingers.
“Seveara . . . Lady Seveara, I . . .” Rolce stammered, but she shushed him, and continued massaging his head.
“Tonight could be the last night you have upon this world. Men such as you are so hard to find nowadays. Men are too full of venom and spite, and anger, and you, you are none of those things.” Lady Seveara said. She then lay both hands on his cheeks and raised up his face again to look him in the eyes. “Rolce? I would not have such a rare, beautiful individual as you put your life on the line. Instead, I would have you gaze upon me and rather than deny the pleasure you feel, I want you to embrace it. I would give you one taste, just one, and once you have it, I know you’ll want more . . . this is my offer . . . in a few moments; I will allow you to gaze upon my face. When you do, I will become your everything, I will become your addiction, I will become . . . your goddess, and once I do, I will cancel this silly bout my city wants . . . I will join your side, and together, we can bring order, and peace, and our love will shine as a beacon, for all to aspire to . . .” Lady Seveara said, as she then slid her fingers down Rolce’s face, then, lifted them to her mask, and slowly, lifted it. “Gaze upon me, Rolce, and tonight, become mine.”
Rolce wanted to look away, be he found he couldn’t, watched as every inch of her face appeared before his eyes, slowly, and then, she was revealed to him, and Rolce, felt his heart stop in his chest, and understood, fully, why the mask was needed. With it on, her body, while utterly captivating, felt as if it were missing something, as if the pieces of her were separate, unflowing, but right now, before him, and him alone, she stood as the complete, golden goddess that she was . . .
“What is your answer, my dear, sweet, Rolce? Will you become mine?” Seveara asked, flashing a smile that would have given most red blooded males cause to weep, but Rolce was not most men. It took him a few moments to catch his breath, to hide, and adjust the bulge in his drawers, but once completed, he swallowed hard, and found his voice.
“You are probably the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen and will probably ever see again, but, that being said . . . I’m sorry. My heart, you see, it is already accounted for and, and I mean no offense with this next coming statement, but, I feel it needs to be said. . . .” Rolce said as a smile he did not predict, stretched across his face. “ . . . But, you’re nothing compared to my Kinny Kalloway.”
Seveara’s eyes grew large, and with a look of utter shock and embarrassment, she shackled her mask back on and stormed away with a whirl of her robes, without another word, or a look back.
Rolce let out a clenched breath, and found he needed the railing to support himself. He clutched it now, desperately, as if he were holding a life preserver after coming up for air from the bottom of the Aquarian ocean.
“You do like women, don’t you?” Jackobi asked. Rolce spun around, startled by the cold, gruff voice to see Jack leaning casually against the inside of the doorframe.
“Jack! I . . . how long have you been standing there?” Rolce asked.
“Long enough.” Jackobi said.
“What, what the hell was all that about!? I was just here minding my own business and, and in she walked and . . . whew! I, did that seriously just happen!?” Rolce asked, stupefied.
“She has a thing for younger men. Trust me, you weren’t the first guy she’s pulled that on. Why do you think she hates me so much?” Jackobi asked.
“She, tried to, with, with you!?” Rolce asked, surprised.
“Who said anything about trying?” Jack asked, raising an eyebrow.
“You? You and she were . . . and you did . . . JACK!” Rolce scolded.
“Better get some sleep, Rolce. Tomorrow is the big day,” Jack said, as he turned his back on him and made his way inside for the stairs.
“Jack! Come on, tell me! Did you, did you really . . . you know . . .” Rolce asked.
“Did I what?” Jack asked, as Rolce caught up with him.
“You know . . .” Rolce said.
“Tap that?” Jack asked.
“Well, that’s one way of putting it . . .” Rolce said.
“Rolce, I’m Jackobi Foxblade.” Jack said as he turned his back on him again and climbed the stairs, only to stop halfway up, turning around with a rogue of a smile.
“ . . . You’re goddamn right I tapped that,”
“Three years, come and gone, and Gisbo? It’s showin’! You’re stronger, older and maybe even a little wiser!” Vadid said, dodging a falling, elemental charged kick from Gisbo, which shattered a stump. “You’ve learned much from my Apache friend, Geronimo. You have become fire under control!”
Vadid charged in on Gisbo with a tackle and Gisbo, seeing it coming, simply fell back to the right, did a spin and ended up behind Vadid, moving as swiftly and silently as the wind. He struck out, aiming for the back of Vadid’s knees, seeking to cripple him, but at the last moment, Vadid disappeared in a burst of fire and reappeared behind Gisbo, throwing two fingers forward, ready to go for a pressure point in Gisbo’ neck, when Gisbo, merely turned and caught his fingers in mid air. Vadid grinned wide with pride.
“You have learned much from the Spartan Likos, Gisbo. Every defense you take, simply, builds into an attack. You move without thought, without fear, relying only on instinct.” Vadid said. “Now, show me what you’ve learned from the greatest warrior of them all! Well, besides me of course . . .”
Vadid pulled his fingers from Gisbo’s grasp, but only because Gisbo let him. The original Man-Phoenix then charged forward with a roundhouse kick toward Gisbo’s groin, only to have Gisbo stand on his left leg in a crane pose while bringing up his right foot, heel up, to meet Vadid’s kick. His Grandfather’s foot struck hard against Gisbo’s heel, and to Vadid, it felt as if he had just struck a brick. Vadid cursed with amused pain, and stumbled back.
“Ah, Earth style, standing your ground, maintaining your space like a wall. Good, very good,” Vadid said as he shook off the pain in his leg and charged in with a rising right fist toward Gisbo’s chin, only to have Gisbo step back out of reach, leaving Vadid stretching forward, trying to hit him, in an awkward, off balance stance, and that’s when Gisbo changed his momentum from backward to forward, and like a crashing wave, struck Vadid with his right index knuckle in the soft spot beneath the sternum. Vadid stumbled back once more, coughing and laughing.
“Yes, YES! Water style, giving momentum and space to your opponent, before riding it back into him! Good, very good!” Vadid said. Then, without warning, Vadid leaned right and went at Gisbo with a right hook, but rather than defend, or block it, Gisbo moved in toward it, arms outstretched, moving his own face right past Vadid’s oncoming fist, and embraced him in a soft hug, absorbing the blow’s missed energy, before altering it, and tipping his own body forward which flipped Vadid off his feet and sent him into three neat somersaults, before he came back up in a crouched position.
“Wind! Wind s
tyle! Very good! Absorbing the energy, then manipulating it to your own desire! Well done!” Vadid said, and, like a leaping frog, he jumped forward and charged again, only this time, Gisbo charged quicker, racing Vadid, and beating him as he stepped into Vadid’s charge space, his arms crossed and leaning forward, giving Vadid no time to mount a defense. Gisbo took full advantage of this as he unleashed a series of rapid fire aggressive combinations, hitting Vadid in the stomach, the right of his face, and finished off the combo with an upward palm strike, landing right beneath Vadid’s chin, causing him to tumble backward into a tree, which stopped his momentum.
“And finally, Fire Style! Taking away an opponent’s space and using constant aggression as a constant defense! Flawlessly executed, Gisbo! Maybe you’re not such a Sally after all!” Vadid said as he pushed himself off the tree, ready to go again. Gisbo was taken aback by the man’s fortitude. Each time he struck his Grandfather, it felt like he was striking a slab of iron. This time, however, Gisbo met his charge, and was about to send him back into the tree, when Vadid halted himself, and rose up a hand.
“What, why are we stopping?” Gisbo asked, coming to a stop, a little out of breath.
“Oh, we’re not stopping. I just think that now you may be ready to fight me for real, with fully charged essence. Ready?” Vadid asked. Gisbo was amazed. The man didn’t have a bit of a choke in his tone. He wasn’t out of breath at all. If anything, he seemed livelier than when he started. Gisbo was about to respond when Vadid ignited his essence in an explosion of energy that nearly knocked him on his rear.
The pressure of it was immense, but also familiar. He had felt the same way when he faced off against Drakearon, but that’s where the similarity ended. Vadid’s essence was vastly different. Where Drakearon’s felt oppressive and artificial, Vadid’s had a tugging sensation to it, like a planet with its own gravitational pull. His energy, it felt natural, earned, as if blood, sweat and tears created every fluctuating particle.
“Come on, Ashley, give your Granddaddy another one of those punches of yours,” Vadid said, this time taking on a more reserved stance. He wanted Gisbo to make the first move, and Gisbo gladly obliged as he ignited his own roaring essence and flew at his Grandfather, striking him with all he had, only to have it all rebound back at him, just like the time he struck Ranto during the test for his second band. Gisbo didn’t just fall back this time though, he flew back, straight into a tree, shattering it as if it were a tall vase.
All breath fell out of Gisbo now. He wheezed, trying to get it back, and felt as if he had just sprinted head first into a stone wall. Everything in his body spasmed and he felt his innards squishing and squirting about inside him as the Drakeness healed his internal damage. He then, for the second time that day, saw his Grandfather’s hand lowered to him, ready to help him up, and Gisbo gladly took it.
“Easy does it. Seems we still have some more work to do,” Vadid said.
“Three years, and I still can’t even break through?” Gisbo sputtered out, his voice hoarse and ragged.
“Good thing we have two more,” Vadid said, throwing an arm around his grandson and helping him walk. “Don’t worry yourself. You just woke up, like, what? Fifteen minutes ago? I wanted to test you, see what you learned. You got the technique and mindset down. Now, we gotta work on your body and power, so we can turn those base styles into something new, and totally yours, but first, let’s take a break. I want to show you something,”
“It’s just, so frustrating when that happens. It felt like I just attacked a boulder.” Gisbo said.
“Pah, boulders can break, but the heads of us McCarley’s, Gizzy? Even boulders roll in fear of our noggin’s fortitude!” Vadid said, knocking Gisbo’s forehead playfully. “Anyone home?”
“Don’t make me laugh, it hurts!” Gisbo said, pushing the hand away. “So, where are we going?”
“Ever wonder where we are exactly?” Vadid asked.
“Um, a forest?” Gisbo asked. Vadid sighed loudly.
“You’re killin me, Gizzy . . .” Vadid said.
“What? It’s true!” Gisbo said.
“You know that’s not what I meant. I meant, where is this forest located?” Vadid asked.
“All I know is I’ve been here many times before, in my dreams. A, a monster was chasing me and it turned out that this monster, was the Phoenix, talking to me, and,” Gisbo said.
“Stop here, this is it,” Vadid said.
“What’s it? I . . . oh,” Gisbo said, dumbfounded. Suddenly, the trees stopped and before them was nothing but blackness.
“Put your hand out,” Vadid said. Gisbo did and suddenly he felt something solid and warm, and suddenly, the outline of a door flashed in white light, then, opened revealing a familiar, black, sparkling hallway, and at the end of it, lay an equally familiar elevator door.
“Recognize where we are now?” Vadid asked.
“This . . . we’re in the black tower! The only thing standing after Heaven’s Shelter . . . blew up . . . but, but how?” Gisbo asked.
“Because as long as a Man-Phoenix lives, it cannot be destroyed.” Vadid said. “But, this place, it is more than just a simple tower.”
Together they walked toward the elevator and stepped inside.
“You wondered how I found all those spaces in time across Thera? Well, this tower helped lead me to them. Doorways open and close across Thera all the time. Time and Space, they are living, breathing entities linked through the Phoenix and the Dragon, and every so often, spaces open to breathe and let time flow. This tower, you can say pretty much anything within reason and it will take you there. Those offices you traveled to? They’re just pocket dimensions in Time and Space, and as far as I know there are an infinite number of them. Most of the time when you visited my son Narroway’s domain, in my old office, it wasn’t where you were, but possibly, when you were. Each room and each pocket dimension is linked to the person who owns them. Only a special few were allowed within my personal home, my personal tower, and their pocket dimensions became whatever the owner wanted” Vadid said.
“You . . . I think you . . . my mind just broke . . .” Gisbo said.
“That forest was a pocket dimension of my own design, to hide away from Drakearon all these years, and I did need to hide . . .” Vadid said, his voice ashamed, but also full of frustration.
“But, but why?” Gisbo asked.
“It will be a story you will have to hear and have to hear soon, but not now, not yet.” Vadid said, then he paused and looked to the ceiling. “Man-Phoenix Domain!”
Just like the last time, the elevator flashed and shot straight up, moved right, then shot back up again before finally halting, and with a ding, the elevator opened.
“Come on,” Vadid said. Together they walked down a new black hallway to a blue white shining door at the end. Vadid put his hand on the doorknob, then, turned to his grandson.
“This room, Gisbo, you may change it when it is your time to take the Man-Phoenix mantle, but, I feel, you may not want to. I’ve been preparing this place for you. Being Man-Phoenix, the responsibility, the sheer weight of the power, it can be . . . I’d like to say stressful, but, as you will understand, it’s far more than that. You will need a place to gather your thoughts, have some downtime . . .” Vadid said, pausing, and sighing. “. . . and, I’m sorry to say Gisbo, but in Thera, there’s no such thing as a secret identity when it comes to the Man-Phoenix, not anymore. This isn’t a Man-Angel comic book. Everyone knows who you are. Your secret is out, and your life, it’s never going to be the same again . . . but you won’t be alone, not while The Renegades are around, no sir!
But, enough of my blabbing, I just, something tells me, I’ve done good here. I just know you will love it, and until you come up with a better name, welcome, to the Man-Phoenix Domain!” Vadid said, as he opened the door, and together, they walked inside.
There was a flash of light, and it took Gisbo a few moments for the sparkles in front of his eyes to stop dan
cing about, but once they did, and his vision became clear, he was able to only mutter one word . . .
“Whoa . . .”
“Everything you’ve ever dreamed? Of course it is,” Vadid said, smacking him on the back.
Gisbo turned his head all about, trying to take in his new surroundings, and trying to accept that what he was seeing, was indeed real.
Above him, like a ruby, the sun was set just set over the treetops, bleeding out over the skyline, and giving the atmosphere hues of pink, purple, and orange, and just above the sun, clearly visible, waiting to light up the oncoming night, was a full moon, shining beautifully. Gisbo’s eyes watered just looking at it, something inside him moved and wept, but not out loud, as he was distracted by what lay beneath the beautiful skyline, a peaceful pond that sparkled in the setting sun, reflecting the sky like a moving, watercolor painting.
Gisbo walked toward the pond right to the edge, where an arching bridge lay, connecting to an island at the center of the pond. He walked over it, slowly, admiring the beautiful craftsmanship and the runes carved into the handles of the woodwork. When he reached the other side, he found himself in a beautiful, familiar garden. He tried to place the decorations and the setting, and then it hit him. It was the same style of garden that he had seen while walking in the shoes of Miyomoto Musashi and this made him smile. All about him were a variety of tea leaves, cherry blossom bushes and trees, and bamboo water pipes that clinked and clunked, by little streams running throughout the garden, and around various pathways and resting stones.
And then he saw it. In the exact center of the island stood a giant, oak tree, and resting in the tree’s ancient leaves and branches, sat a treehouse, but not just any treehouse . . . it was his treehouse, the very same one from Heaven’s Shelter. Gisbo’s heart leapt in his chest as he bounded up the stairs circled around the trunk, and arrived up top to find the same deck, furniture, and grill that Falcon had cooked over.
