⚠️mild violence⚠️

PHOENIX

The cobblestone ground clicked from the three pursuers’ steps, quicker and quicker. The exceptionally tall man slightly stumbled from smacking his leg against the decrepit wooden sign board, but swiftly recovered.

Glowing low-hanging mounted lamps accentuated their sharp features in the dim alley; their tight clothes inhibiting motion.

The leader charged in with a blazing sword, and the other two with fists; one of them had his knuckles ignited with fire, his head cleanly shaved. The last man was tall and uncoordinated, the clothes seemed to hinder him most.

First came a crisp and heated slash, followed by a similar intensity of a fist. Phoenix stepped sideways and ducked, tripping the uncoordinated man before he even managed to strike. Thud!

Phoenix’s eyes snapped to a strand of blond hair, almost caught by the fire of the sword. The stones pressed against her knee when she dropped and rolled towards the corner of the alley. CRASH! The sword hit the ground a sliver away from her, emitting cracks and sizzling on nearby stones.

The clumsy man recovered from being tripped to the ground. He grunted, cursed and aimed a kick where Phoenix had dodged. She parried his blow with her arm, but her body was too light. She stumbled backwards on the wall, her hand numbing from the impact.

With a piece of rubble in her other hand, Phoenix manifested a jet of water from her palm. She propelled the jagged piece of debris, now enshrouded in a high-pressure stream, directly at the side of the man’s neck.

Motherf*cker!

That ferocious water stopped midway, causing the piece of stone to bounce off the tall man’s skin as if someone had pulled a prank and had flung a slingshot at him. No, even a slingshot would have more potency than that.

If she only had her gun, he would have dropped dead by now. Her aim was targeted at a vulnerable vein on a human’s neck.

As the water dropped on the cobblestone ground, Phoenix’s thoughts snapped back to the fight.

She leaped up and seized the lamp's mount above her, using it to swing her body and deliver a powerful kick straight at the towering man on the chest.

From her periphery, Phoenix noticed the bald man’s blazing fists about to strike her. She swung her body again, took advantage of the velocity to kick the uncoordinated man harder in the chest. His back slammed against the uneven ground with Phoenix on top of him.

The mount collapsed from the pressure of Phoenix’s weight. It came hurtling down the arm of the bald man who was about to attack her. He cursed under his breath. The metallic stench of blood mingled with the musky odor of sweat in the air.

Phoenix shifted her attention to the hooligan beneath her. She positioned herself to block off his airway with her knee and struck a pressure point on his thick neck. One down.

A smile emerged upon Phoenix’s lips. She indulged in the adrenaline coursing through her blood. Phoenix reveled in the familiar sensations brought upon by this fight, her surroundings slowing down, her senses sharpening.

She felt a surge of heat behind her. Swiftly, she tumbled off the opponent and used him as a shield. No sound this time. The flaming sword descended, stopping mere inches from the man, its flames tamer than before.

“If you wanted to kill me, you’d have to do more than this,” Phoenix sneered as she dropped the unconscious man and swiped away foreign sweat on her forehead.

The two ruffians left weren’t provoked. They glanced at each other and charged in a second time. Phoenix backed up from the incapacitated man so she wouldn’t accidentally trip while fighting.

The two moved in sync, albeit slightly hindered by their tight clothes. Blood poured down from the bald man’s arm, his flesh sticking out in multiple areas, yet his motions stayed sharp.

The leader would slice with his sword from one side and the other would lay in wait to attack Phoenix from where she had dodged.

Lily Bianca’s body was agile, light as a feather. She might not have the same muscle mass as these two, but she was faster. Phoenix used that to her advantage and evaded their attacks.

“Ugh!” the bald man’s fists slammed onto the other’s jaw, producing a sharp crack. While they were dazed, Phoenix jerked her knee upwards to unleash a kick towards the bald man to topple him to the ground. However, he was like an immovable mountain against Lily Bianca’s light body.

Phoenix switched tactics and targeted his nape instead. However, before she could strike, smoke emerged and flames erupted from his neck. Phoenix instantly realized why he was bald. Her hand retreated.

Another round.

The two rushed her for another onslaught, fearlessly trying to take her down despite already losing two times.

Phoenix edged back until the worn-out announcement board stand was behind her. Following a punch, with a clatter, the already dilapidated stand split into pieces.

Blood splattered on the ground from the bald man accidentally hitting a nail sticking out of the stand. A tiny flame reached the sign board’s wooden frame, puffing out as soon as it ignited.

Phoenix attacked by evading and using enemies’ strength against them. Her body was covered in sweat, yet fatigue hadn’t come to her. The more they fought, the clearer her mind was, her movements more fluid.

She could feel her opponents’ actions tapering off.

The blistering fire the two men used earlier now appeared meek. If earlier it could be used as a torch to light up a path amidst a snowstorm, the fire now wouldn’t be able to last for mere two seconds.

It was exhilarating to fight on the nose like this. No scheming, no pretending. Just pure, physical fight.

Phoenix had almost forgotten how good it felt. It had been years since she last tussled with anyone.

Just then, the two halted their strikes. The leader held his hand out, blocking the bald man from charging forward.

“I’ll take care of this on my own,” he said, tightly holding on to the grip of his sword. Not that it would change anything.

But Phoenix was wrong.

The enemies might have swords and fists covered with fire, but these weapons followed the same logic Phoenix expected them to have. She just needed to adjust her movements accordingly.

However, this person’s sword.

When he brandished it towards Phoenix, it seemed to have split the atmosphere, almost pulling her in. She dodged and it hurtled directly towards the ground. CRACK! The strike went past the stones and made a dent in the ground as if a superhuman had punched it.

The sword made a shrill sound, and it engulfed the area in flames, melting the cobble that touched it. Phoenix moved backwards, twisting her hair and hiding it in her chemise. A shiver crawled up her spine.

She could hear the bald man warn, “Boss, don’t kill her! The supreme is going to explode if you do!”

Phoenix stared at the leader dumbfounded. What the fuck kind of sword did he have? She jumped up at the second strike, dashing forwards to dodge the swords after effect.

As the man continuously pursued her, Phoenix dodged sideways and backwards. She used the mounted lamps to dodge strikes from below and propelled her further from the attacker. She grabbed the pieces from the sliced up wooden signboard, catapulting it towards the man’s arms, but he let them ricochet off his skin as he marched forwards, his every step resounding through the tight alley.

Phoenix cursed this damned world. She was akin to a toddler fighting against Galathia’s local goons. For some of them, magic and magical tools were part of their daily life. She grasped the rubble she snatched from the ground as she dodged and rolled from the man’s attacks.

Phoenix was driven up against a wall. She was back where she started.

The unconscious man from earlier made her stumble backwards and she fell on her butt, right onto the previously cracked stones, some of the debris tearing through her flesh. Phoenix inhaled sharply.

Her eyes blurred. She felt as if she was on a tightrope, desperately trying to hang on to the rush of adrenaline before letting her body utterly collapse.

The bald man stood to the side, clutching his bloodied arms and knuckles. He was leaning against the alley’s wall amidst the mounted lamps. He wouldn’t be able to fight anymore. The leader, parading with his blazing sword, had a stupid smile on his face as if he had already won.

He laughed. “If you come with us quietly, you won’t get hurt.” A sharp stone zoomed towards his leg, causing him to stagger. Of course. If she was using her original body, he would have been on the ground by now.

Phoenix pulled herself up, battling discomfort. She hissed as she yanked the rubble from her thighs and backside. Like a trained sniper, her eyes zeroed in on the target. She wasted no breath. She envisioned a jet of water piercing through human flesh and bones like a bullet, propelling the debris enshrouded within straight towards the man’s right knee.

“AGHH!” His knee toppled against the melted stone, and reflexively, he used his sword to prop himself up.

“You were saying?” Phoenix aimed for his other knee and CRASH! The sounds of bone cracking melded with the sound of his flesh collapsing against the ground. He groaned in pain, his breath quickened, and now he kneeled before her. Phoenix couldn’t suppress a chuckle escaping from her lips. He wouldn’t be able to use his shitty sword if he couldn’t dash to her after all.

Her focus shifted to the bald man, waiting for her next prey to make a move.

“You bitch!” he spouted. Phoenix didn’t mind. How many times had people called her names in the past? It was often used as a last attempt at aggression, like shooting her with a nerf gun. It was useless.

Seeing that the bald man didn’t have intentions of charging in, Phoenix’s shoulders relaxed. The tension in her body eased up, and she had never felt her awareness so crisp in years. That was a great work-out. She loved the thrill of straightforward fighting. No scheming, less talking. Phoenix wiped the sweat rolling down her face as she watched the helpless enemies before her. Her knees gave into the ground.

What the fuck…?

She felt something hit her, like a fly landing on her nape. Phoenix’s body trembled and her muscles eased up from tension. It relaxed so much that she could sense her legs melting into the ground, her spine curving downwards. A familiar wave of drowsiness invaded her system.

No fucking way!

Before her fatigue consumed her, Phoenix struggled to hold her head up. She came face to face with the fourth goon of the group, holding what probably was this world’s version of a tranquilizer. She remembered there were four of them when… in the shop. Why wasn’t he with… that girl. Huh? Phoenix's eyelids felt as if they were being pulled together by a magnetic force, irresistibly taunting her to draw them shut.

Fuck! Not again…