From The Ashes - 003 (Patreon)

Chapter 003 – Ablaze

[2012]

As a mystical creature that was often hailed as a Ruler of the Sky and a Divine Bird, my flaming form cut through the air with only a single powerful flap of my wings at speeds that would leave most fighter jet pilots slack-jawed.

I could hardly comprehend it myself, my newly gained powers seeming as miraculous as they were deadly.

I knew very well that the only reason that I had any control over my transformation and fire at all was that Marco's experience and skill had been transferred into my mind and body, which instinctively made me proficient in wielding this incredible power as he had done.

Luckily, I also wasn't easily excitable and had roughly fifteen years' worth of experience as an active-duty soldier, so I knew how to compartmentalize and not be distracted easily by this unbelievable strength that coursed through my veins.

Approaching the flying monstrosity in a blaze, I transformed into my hybrid form a mere instant before a collision could occur, using the raging blue fire that made up my wings as a propelling force to aid me in flipping around and aim forward with my legs which had already transformed into razor-sharp talons, their colour darkened considerably under the coat of fire that enveloped them.

Having 'willed' them to be unbreakable and incomparably sharp, my mind focused to the extreme as adrenalin rushed through my veins and seemingly slowed down my perception of the world, a current of spiritual energy had formed a blackish coat of Armament Haki around my talons.

Using my sharp talons as a spearpoint, I expelled a veritable storm of blue fire from my wings as I turned myself into a flaming lance that stabbed towards the giant skull of the vicious alien creature.

And the moment I came into contact with the thick alloy armor and hardened scaly skin, it all just crumbled under the force of my attack.

I pierced through the beast, leaving nothing but destruction in my wake.

Being able to sense my surroundings with more than just my physical senses, thanks to my spiritual energy enhancing my mind and granting me the ability of Extrasensory Perception, I managed to react lightning-fast after I had just turned the inside of the monster's skull into a burnt ruin of blood, flesh, and broken bones.

Returning to my phoenix form, I doused the falling beast with more of my fire to annihilate even the humanoid aliens using it as a troop transport before generating gales of destructive wind with my flaming wings and rushing towards the other alien presences that I could sense around me.

I ignored any resistance the Chitauri exerted, their energy weapons unable to damage my blazing body as I ripped them apart with my talons and let my fire consume them whole.

They hadn't known it before coming here and laying waste to the city, their weapons having caused ashes to rain from the sky. But they had not only angered me, who had been reborn from those ashes, but they had also given me a target on which I could vent the sorrow and grief that threatened to tear apart my heart.

I wasn't a violent person by nature but venting my pain in such a destructive way somehow made me feel less burdened, as if the mere expression of my sorrow lightened the weight on my heart.

"CYAA!", I called out, letting the mythical bird's instincts take over for a moment, the cry echoing through the whole city causing countless windows and storefronts to tremble as if on the verge of cracking.

…

"I have absolutely no idea … ", Stark stated somewhat pensively, not really enjoying the fact that another party had just appeared with unknown intentions, even if they fought the same enemy.

Though before he could ask Jarvis for a quick analysis of the data that his suit's scanners and sensors had undoubtedly picked up, multiple shots of those alien energy weapons struck him, part of the force contained in the attacks passing through his suit's defenses and striking his body, rattling his brain.

The sudden appearance of the flaming avian had caused him to pause in midair which had now proven to be a mistake as he fell from the sky after being hit by multiple blasters.

Re-engaging his repulsor nodes to generate enough thrust to fly off after crashing into a building, Stark staggered a bit in the air before landing again while Jarvis reported the damage that he had just suffered.

"Amor integrity down by 11%. Right leg thruster damaged, energy output fallen significantly. Estimated functionality by 24%. Immediate repair suggested to recover mobility."

"Damn … ", Tony muttered as he spun around and fired off several energy blasts from his palms at the approaching aliens before re-engaging his flight despite the damage, compensating his falling thruster with the ones on his other limbs and back.

Stark knew that without staying mobile, it wouldn't be long before he was pinned down and subsequently gunned down.

He also couldn't afford to repair the suit at the moment even though the situation had just gotten much more dangerous for him while enemies continued to pour out of the portal.

And as if all that wasn't bad news enough, Fury's voice reached his ears over the comlink with an even worse piece of news.

"Stark, do you hear me? You have a missile headed straight for the city.", the Director of SHIELD stated gravely.

Evading enemy fire as best as he could while returning fire at every opportunity that he got, Tony felt his temples swell with pain as the embers of hope in his chest started to dim down considerably.

“How long?”, he asked back.

“Three minutes, max.”, Fury replied while adding gravels, “The payload will wipe out Midtown.”

Realizing that he couldn't afford not to do something about this new threat if he and the others wanted to have any chance at resolving this invasion without sacrificing a whole city, Tony ordered: “Jarvis put everything we got in the thrusters, try and compensate for the damaged leg module.”

Flaming blue bird was naturally still on his mind but he simply didn't have the leisure to care about that now, considering that the creature hadn't attacked anyone but the aliens.

"Right away, Sir.", his trusty AI butler confirmed at the same moment that he felt his flying speed increase tremendously.

…

Cradling her daughter to her chest, Nora followed behind the fleeing crowd, trying to get away as far as possible from the aliens that were pouring out of the portal in the sky.

Making a sharp turn as she rounded around a corner while running as fast as she could, fear for her child giving her the strength to push back the exhaustion that threatened to encroach upon her consciousness, she couldn't react fast enough to avoid a sharp metal rod that was sticking out of a piece of concrete that had fallen from the sky.

Feeling a searing pain shoot through her left calf, Nora suppressed the pained cry that wanted to escape her throat and steadied herself as she continued running as fast as she could, ignoring her injury.

Suddenly though, a terrible buzzing noise behind her caused her to turn back her head and what she saw was a dozen of those alien gliders flying in her direction, shooting down everything that moved indiscriminately as they laid waste to the street below them.

Nora's throat constricted as she realized that there was nothing that she could do to escape them at this distance, hiding behind a vehicle not being an option considering the firepower that their weapons had.

She still ran though, even as tears ran down her cheeks, her arms wrapped tightly around the three-year-old girl in her arms. And she despaired as she heard the noise of explosions coming closer and closer, almost reaching her in just a few seconds.

And just when she thought that her death was certain, the sky was set ablaze.