Ancestors: The Other World

Chapter 3

"You were kicked out because you attempted to assassinate the King and chase after the Ice Phoenix!" bellowed the Griffin, leaping forward, waving his claws about threateningly. "And look what you have become," sighed the Selkie somberly. "I don't need your pity. I have achieved power beyond your imagination. I have achieved extreme regeneration and Winter follows where I go. I am immortal and you can never defeat me. I am the embodiment of sadness itself!" roared the Ice Phoenix as ice spikes exploded from the earth. Radiance grabbed Sophie and flew them into the air. Sophie let out a shriek as the ice spikes flew right past her eyes and nearly slipped off Radiance.

"And what do you plan to do with this power?" yowled the Lunar Dragon, flying out of range from the icy spikes.

"I will rule this world, and rule all that live in it! The power of every single beast is MINE!" she screeched. A huge blast of cold air was sent forth by the flapping of her wings, hitting the Tanuki, who morphed into a stone to hold himself to the ground.

"You all copied me. I was the first to merge with a Beast!" she roared, shooting a wave of icy spikes. The Red Phoenix dived away as Ice Phoenix dived downwards. "And I will always be more powerful than you!" she bellowed as snow warped around her, the wind wailing as the 9 heroes tried their best to break out from the grip of the icy whirlwind. Sophie could barely hear Radiance say anything over the commotion of the battle below. Radiance soared upwards while Sophie clung on tightly, burrowing her face into Radiance's feathers, unable to watch. However, when the wind died down, she lifted her head up meekly.

Out she emerged, with white wings sprouting from her back. An icy crown was placed on her snowy white hair. Everything she wore was white, including her robes, but her eyes were the same horrifying shade of red. "Tempest, cease this at once!" yelped the Tanuki, who was puzzled by the new change. The Roc quickly swooped down and flew the Tanuki away from the dangerous ex-Queen.

"Shut up you measly shapeshifter," she spat and pushed her palm outwards. The earth began to rumble as hail began raining down from the sky. She flapped her wings as the wind began to stir violently, throwing all aerial creatures off their flight path. "I control the air and the water and the ice now. Now, I will take every other power!" she cackled.

The Red Phoenix fired a beam of fire out, which the Phoenix deflected with a watery shield. "I don't know how to stop her," cried the Lunar Dragon, flipping through a book in her hand. "Eh? How do they stop the Ice Phoenix?" Sophie questioned. She didn't know why she felt so nervous. She knew they defeated the Ice Phoenix, but an awful ominous feeling washed over her.

"The Sacrifice. One of the biggest events in Other World History," marvelled Radiance.
"We have to combine every ounce of our strength together and take her down. A one-shot kill. She must not be allowed to regenerate," ordered the Red Phoenix. "Our families. What about them?" whimpered the Tanuki. The Leviathan shook his head sorrowfully. "This is it. This is goodbye to them," he growled.

They all took out a letter each. The Red Phoenix nodded as Queen Tempest began to fly towards the East. The Red Phoenix produced a purple fire and burned each letter, the smoke flying in different directions.

Sophie looked in awe. "You can send letters by burning it with purple fire?" she gasped. Radiance wrapped its wing around Sophie. "Get ready. This might be in the past, but you will feel the strength of the Sacrifice," warned Radiance. This was the first time Sophie had ever seen Radiance be this worried. And if such a carefree and arrogant bird tensed up, she knew this was probably a very serious issue.
"Tempest, you will pay the price!" yelled the Red Phoenix. "Let's do it," they all whispered at the same time. The last words each of them spoke before they chased after the speeding Queen Tempest.

Each creature charged and latched onto the icy queen, dragging her to the earth. The Red Phoenix's feathers lit up, as if it was a signal. Out from the sky emerged a  translucent dragon head. Sophie's jaw dropped in awe. Was this the magnificent Spirit Queen?
Its jaws parted as a huge beam of energy was sent spiralling down from the sky, crashing onto the 10 creatures on the ground. Each of the 9 heroes also used the last of their power to fire at Queen Tempest, and the giant burst energy flooded outwards.

Radiance wrapped its wing around Sophie, protecting her as the force of energy nearly threw them back. A wave of white energy pulsed outwards, altering the area's energy. The earth began to rumble as the energy formed a barrier looking wall at the place where the 9 heroes had died at.

"That was how The Veil was formed. The Spirit Queen gathered every living being that didn't side with Queen Tempest and brought it with her to the Other World. Everything else remained in the Material World. The Spirit Queen used the last of her powers to seal off The Veil and hide it away, and also wipe the memories of the Other World from everyone else in the Material World," explained Radiance. Sophie couldn't form words to reply. Speechless, she watched as the world began warping again.

Sophie was back in the classroom.

Everyone was silent.

Shinso faced them with a gentle smile. "Don't worry. The Ice Phoenix is dead. Now, head on through the portal and get ready to have some fun learning about the creatures. Don't forget your notebooks! If anyone asks, you're travelling gypsies, seeking knowledge of every creature in the land," he beamed. "Isn't this a bit rushed?" squeaked Xin Ming, but Shinso ignored him.

Sophie felt a shiver cross her, as if the Ice Phoenix laid its eyes on her. She made a conscious decision to go against all this evil so others wouldn't have to feel the same shivering sense of fear.

"Wait, hold on we were all just being emotional can we take it slow—" Hanlu yelped but Shinso just shot them a heartless smile before shoving them through the portal.