My immortal phoenix.

by Lieral


Chapter 3- Magic.

Chapter 3.

Twilight and Sunset went upstairs in total silence. Twilight observed everything that could give her a new information, but this building seems exactly like the other one…

Meaning: useless data.

When they reached the fourth floor Sunset started to walk through the labyrinth of walls as if she does it every day, and turning to the right one last time she entered in a door slightly better preserved than the others. Twilight followed in and saw what seems to be the other girl’s room.

The walls are cracked, and there’s no windows either, just a big hole where the window should be one day, there’s what seems to be a bed, but definitely it didn’t seem comfortable. It also had a bookshelf full of books in an advanced state of degeneration, in fact, books are something that was not lacking in that room, since they not only occupied the bookshelf, but also a big part of the walls were hidden behind piles of books.

“I guess… I should say ‘welcome to my place’… Isn’t it?” Sunset turned to the other girl and said it while approaching the window. “At least… That’s what I’ve read once or twice.” She said and turned her gaze to outside, where the monster is still ‘sleeping’.

“Hum… it’s… Comfortable? In a simply way...” Twilight said observing the room and mainly the books with interested eyes.

“Huh,” Sunset gave a small side smile before she returns to her usual serious self. “I can see you’re used to another kind of environment, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it’s definitely different!” Twilight answered automatically thinking in her apartment.

“Why won’t you sit?” Sunset asked and pointed to the bed.

“I… I think I will accept your offer.” Twilight answered and sit down, and just now she noticed how much energy she wasted running from the giant monster, her legs didn’t stop shaking and her entire body feels like she has made enough exercise for her entire life.

The silence reigned in the room for almost two minutes. Sunset observed the outside world with uninterested eyes, and Twilight simply didn’t know what to say in this situation.

Another minute passed and Twilight decided it’s time to begin with a conversation.

“So… You said your name is Sunset Simmer, right?” She said.

“Yes.” Sunset answered without turning her gaze, and Twilight cursed herself for saying something so useless.

“Hum… I can see you like books!” She said happily for finally founding a common ground. “What are those books about?”

“Feel free to look.” Sunset answered simply.

Twilight observed the books with interest, most of them where way older than they should, most were even handmade. She took one and looked at the cover of the book, it has a picture of a large and fanciful castle, she opened it and tried to read it, and to her surprise it’s in her own language.

“Is it… The beauty and the beast?” She asked and leafed through the book to confirm her suspicions.

“Yes, it is.” Sunset finally turned her gaze to the other girl. “So not only you have that book from where you came, but the writing is also the same, am I right?”

“Yes!” Twilight answered excitedly. “I mean, we talk the same language, but I didn’t know if the spell and writing was the same! So, that may mean our worlds has another similarity than just the words! What is this place called? In my world it is called desert! And here? I mean, first I thought this may be somewhere in my world, but we definitely don’t have monsters like that there! Oh, and talking about monsters, is that Tatzwurm the only one? There’s others of it’s kind? And about other monsters? Do you have dragons here? And what about the people? I don’t see anyone beside you. Why do you decided to live in this building instead of another one of those around? Oh, my goodness, there’s so many questions I still want ask!”

Sunset stared Twilight with mixed emotions, but she blinked twice and said. “So, you like to talk when you’re excited, isn’t it?” She asked with the first full smile since Twilight arrived, but the girl didn’t notice it since she’s worried trying to hide her embarrassment.

“Huh… I… Well, you’know…”

“Don’t worry with that!” Sunset said and took a deep breath. “I know you’re interested in all of that, but let’s start slowly, okay?”

“Oh, sure! I’m sorry I have made all that show.” Twilight apologized honestly.

“Okay… Let’s start with the monsters! There’s a lot other than just the Tatzwurm, but they use to be territorials.”

“Really?” Twilight asked writing every word in her notepad, that surprisingly survived the attack of the Tatzwurm. “Do you have an idea of when they started to appear?”

Sunset’s expression darkened a lot, she again turned her gaze to the desert outside and took a deep breath. “Well… There’s a lot of time, this I can say!”

Twilight got worried with that sudden change, maybe she hit an old problem, but when she opened her mouth Sunset interrupt her with a phrase.

“Well… I can tell you more, but this will be a real story class, if you don’t mind.” She said and turned to Twilight while leaning on the wall with crossed arms.

Twilight’s eyes widened as she prepares to write faster than anyone would do. Sunset smiled with that image.

“Well… I guess everything started long, long ago.” She said and Twilight wrote down every word furiously. “The life in this world started to change… When they discovered what they called… a miracle.”

“Miracle?” Twilight asked.

“I don’t know if you have that word in your world, but here… It was called magic.” Sunset said and suddenly Twilight’s eyes widened in surprise, she looked at Sunset and couldn’t help but ask.

“Magic? Like supernatural powers and things that even the science can’t explain?”

“Well, I guess you know the word.” Sunset gave a cynical smile.

“We sure do! But… There’s only one thing in my world I know that could be called magic, and it is the mirror I crossed to come here… But I wasn’t trying to do magic, just science!” Twilight said trying to process this new information.

“Well… Here, everything started with a fountain… A legend said if someone entered in a certain fountain, not only all of that person’s deceases will disappear, but also everyone that entered it will also leave younger than when he entered.”

“The fountain of youth!” Twilight said automatically.

Once again Sunset’s expression darkened before she answers. “Yes. Someone actually discovered the fountain of youth. And then… They decide that is a good idea to explore it.”

Twilight nodded and resume her writing.

“With the time, the humans started to control the magic, they use it to everything, and not long after that…” Sunset stopped in the middle of the phrase. Twilight turned her gaze to the red hair and was surprised to see by the first time the unmistakable feeling of the rage. The air around Sunset seems to be getting hotter and hotter, the books started to shake and a cold wind entered through the window. But suddenly she breathed deeply and continued with the story. “That part is of no importance…

“Using the magic, the humans thought they could do anything. The skies weren’t the limit anymore… But together with that miracle, the darkness appeared too . The people couldn’t really control the magic, after some time, the creatures of the world started to change. The magic started to create monsters capable to take the lives of an entire town, the humans started to fight not against the monsters, but against themselves for the dominance of the magic, the world started to take deep damages, the humans creating bombs to kill the humans. The monsters eating the earth itself and fighting against the humans for dominance. Until…”

Twilight wasn’t writing anymore, she’s not hearing some old fairy tale about how the magic saved the day, but instead she was hearing how the magic was the beginning of the end.

“The brutality increased more and more. Until a… human… drowned by her madness and darkness decided to end it all. Gathering and concentrating the magic of the entire world, she shoots it against the earth itself.” Sunset looked at the sky with uninterested eyes as she continues. “In that day… The light disappeared from the world, almost every living being died. The explosion of shadows swallows the world for… I don’t even know… Maybe years, or maybe seconds… But in the end, just small insects and other unlucky beings survived.”

“In the end ... The land became arid, the water rotted along with living things, and those few who survived had to continue to survive, because having a life here would be very difficult.” Sunset gave another cynical smile. “But not impossible.”

Twilight put her pen down. Trying to get all that wasn’t easy, she may not have lived those dark times, but she’s certainly in front of someone that at least lived the end of those days. But more than that, Sunset said everything started when people discovered the magic. Well, wasn’t it exactly what she has done with the mirror?

“When… When the humans discovered the magic, how long it takes to the world… Well, end up like that?” Twilight asked avoiding eye contact.

“…” Sunset thought for a bit. “Who knows?” She said uninterested.

“Is there… Any other humans… Besides you?” Twilight finally asked.

“Who knows?” Sunset answered in the same tone as before.

“Don’t you never think… About leaving?” Another delicate question.

“Huh? Why should I?” Sunset answered turning to face Twilight with honest surprise in her eyes, and the lavender girl definitely didn’t expect an answer like that.

“Well, this place is almost uninhabited.” She answered.

“Uninhabited? I should warn you to not think that way, Twilight. All that happened was that one species among so many others on this planet ceased to exist.” Sunset paused and pointed to outside, where some skeletal and gruesome birds were flying and fighting each other for food. “Those guys are still living here, eating the sand and drinking the rotten water to survive… I still live here!” With that she finished her phrase.

“Well… Don’t you feel lonely?” Twilight asked while playing nervously with her fingers.

“Lonely?” Sunset asked back with an incredulous face. “That thought never crossed my mind. I actually like that live, where I can have the entire planet to myself. And is not like I can’t have fun here either. I can read all the books of the planet, I can sing as loud as I can without anyone bothering me. And mainly, I can play with the occasional intruder that comes to my territory!” She finished her phrase with her characteristically side smile.

Twilight thought about what the other girl have just said. That was simply the saddest thing she ever heard in her entire life, saddest even than movies that the dog dies at the end, but Sunset simply didn’t care about it, almost like she already forgot how to feel lonely.

Looking at the sky Sunset turned and said. “It’s getting dark, I think you should go. I don’t think you can endure the cold of the night dressed like that.”

Twilight looked at her own clothes and simply have to agree, her clothes weren’t small or provocative, but it’s definitely not made to endure the cold.

“Yeah… I think you’re right. May you come with me to the mirror?” Twilight asked.

“Why should I? You already have a bodyguard!” Sunset said with a teasing voice.

“What bodyguard? And what if the Tatzwurm come to attack me again?” Twiligth asked afraid.

“The Tatzwurm? If it wants to attack you, don’t you think it would have done it long ago?” Sunset asked.

“But you said that thing is sleeping.”

“That was long ago, that little boy is hearing our conversation for a really long time!” Sunset answered and the monster showed its head with its creepy and bizarre smile through the window hole. Twilight screamed and fell from the bed and tried to hide behind the pile of books while Sunset laugh for the first time since the other girl arrived... And probably in a long time. “You… You should really see your face right now, it’s hilarious!” She said wiping away a tear of laughter.

“I’m glad my scare makes you so happy.” Twilight said Ironically. The monster still looking at Twilight hopefully.

Sunset soon stopped laughing and turned back to the old self. “Don’t worry about it. The Tatzwurm will certainly protect you from anything, and you may trust it... Actually I think he likes you.” She said and turned to the window.

Twilight stood up and turned to the door. “Hum, Sunset…”

“Huh?”

“It’s okay… If I come back to visit you… And the Tatzwurm?” Twilight asked, and as soon as she finished her phrase the giant monster gave a loud cry and smiled happily.

“No one will stop you.” Sunset said without taking her eyes away from the sky.

“Okay, and one last question…” Twilight took a deep breath before she asks. “Why do you save me?”

“…” A small silence covered the room. “Who knows…” That’s the only answer Twilight received before she walk away to the magic mirror.