The origin of the Dark Pheonix Excerpt from the Book of Mythical Beasts.

Once long ago in a small village lived two twin sisters. One daughter was slightly taller and prettier than the other. Their parents showed great affection for the first since she was popular amongst their community. They were poor farmers and others in their community liked her so much they gave them things for free. The parents treated her like a gift from the heavens but the other sister who seemed almost sickly from birth they treated poorly. They took out their frustrations on her. Even blaming her for angering the gods when the crops that year were bad.

One day the church came and took the first sister they had heard good things about into their order. Once she left the parents dragged the second child they considered useless trash into the monster-infested woods. They left her there to die. They wanted the beasts of the forests to end her life so that they didn't have to take care of her anymore.

The next day a well dressed and beautiful woman with orange hair came banging on their door. She was too well dressed to not give the impression of a noble. She also had a noble aura that gave the two detestable parents instinctive fear.

The woman simply demanded to see the second child. The parents tried to claim they only ever had one daughter but the woman would not hear it. She lit intense flames in her palms and said: "last chance, where is she?"

"She was useless so we left her in the woods", the mother finally proclaimed like she had done nothing wrong. "She was just useless baggage anyway what do you care?"

"Your first child may be of little value but she was priceless! Now that I know for certain it was you two I won't hold back anymore!" The woman said as she transformed into a massive bird alit with flames.

"P-Pheonix!" the two shouted simultaneously.

These two parents greatest failings in life were not truly loving their children and being blind to an obvious gift right in front of them. Their second daughter had a song that was beloved by all birds and it had captured the heart of a Pheonix. She would come to listen to the girl's song every single day disguised in a different form. Then one day the girl was suddenly gone. She waited the whole day but the parent didn't even seem to care she was missing. Following her sent the Pheonix scoured the woods eventually finding her remains. It was then she knew that this was filicide. Her own parents killed her!

As a beast of great virtue, she had to confirm it herself. Once she did she had to make them suffer for their atrocity. This act of personal vengeance turned the Pheonix's once orange feathers black. Her once golden yellow eyes had become an amethyst dark purple.

Without even thinking about it I placed Zothergs soul stone into my dimensional storage. Then slowly with one foot in front of the other, I approached my prey. My steps were light but they sounded like the beating of drums. Once I had wondered how I could ever be as angry as the prophecy said I would. It had said that my rage would burn brighter than stars and be colder than a frost dragons breath. Now I had an idea of how. I would have lived here content with those I loved but Muiren had to come here and screw everything up. Now people I cared for were gone and now he's gonna fricken pay!

Muiren stopped making noise mid-groan once he spotted me with his remaining eye. At first, it seemed he hoped I didn't notice him. Once he knew I was on the warpath to him he began panicking. He must have not had a plan B in case the first one failed.

In desperation, he said, "I don't suppose your willing to talk this over?"

"Sure thing!" I replied super sarcastically. Holding my ax I slid my finger slowly down the blade and said: "Let me show you my Elven hospitality!"

I knew that no matter how hard I tried I could not keep Muiren imprisoned here. His vessel was clearly falling apart at the lowest level. I could see the spell that bound him to that form was fading as was the mana that powered it. Still, I planned to make that moment feel like a lifetime. Biting my ax into the skin at his shoulder I became to peel bits of him off.

I had seen this method of extreme torture once in a medieval documentary. As I skinned him alive Muiren howled the most extreme profanities at me. I was ripping long strips of his skin off and yet my face remained expressionless throughout this exchange. I cared not what this excuse for a God thought of me. He was my enemy and deserved no mercy. He wouldn't live and let live so I had no choice but to make him experience true fear.

Right before his vessels binding broke I cleave him in half from the bottom up. I wanted him to experience what it meant to really be on my bad side. It's human nature that even the kindest person has a dark side. The knowledge of good and evil was what some religions called it. Truth is that because of this humans are capable of both the greatest good and evil. Beings like elementals that are born only of light, are inherently kind but often never know what it is to really love someone or something. I was only capable of this act of cruelty because I was once human. A fact I had always known but when I looked back I saw the horrified looks on the faces of my own tribe.

My kin had never thought me capable of such things. I would define the ultimate good as a person who loves all people no matter their race unconditionally and ultimate evil as someone who hates everyone and values them as little as a bug. Most people exist in a spectrum of grey between these two. Once I would like to believe I was close to the first one but then asshats like Muiren came along into my lives. Those who are only happy when others suffer. The Elves sat back while they were bullied and did little or nothing to defend themselves. Well, I won't sit back! I'll fight back with everything I have! As long as it takes!

A wise man once said," All it takes for evil to succeed is good men do nothing". I don't care anymore whether people think if I'm good or not! I'll sure as hell do something.

I turned to my terrified and frightened kin, "It's over now!" I shouted.

"I have punished our attacker and forced him to suffer for the life of Zotherg that was lost! As well as our homes that are gone now."

I looked around at the devastation that destroyed our small village. Zotherg had managed to carefully withdraw from the ground without harming a single one of us. Our homes weren't as lucky. I heard a faint clapping noise. I looked at the survivors again. First one person clapped but it was followed by others. I had thought they would blame me for Muirens attack but instead, they were in awe because we together defeated a God.

With my inner fear of being ostracised for my dark side relieved, my shoulders relaxed a tension I had been unaware had been there in the first place.

Walking to where the injured were I saw that my father Ileor was stable laying on a mat my mother placed him on. I approached him because I had a suspicion that in the past my father had kept a secret from me. One that I was sure Muiren had somehow found out. Had I know whatever it was perhaps we could have prepared for this outcome.

"Father, tell me what have you been hiding from me?" There was a hint of impatience in my voice.

A bitter and almost fearful look appeared on my fathers face," I... I thought that if I didn't tell you it would keep you safe. I had thought as long as you didn't know everything would be fine".

"What would keep me safe", I asked as gently and as calmly as possible. My body was still shaking at this point. I was barely holding myself together emotionally.

"That I was the previous Kings Nephew. That as such only you can be the next king." Ileor said as a look of complete defeat and sorrow covered his face.

"Wait! What? Wouldn't that mean you are King?" I asked.

"No, only one of our line who possesses great magic can claim the crown. I was the only member of the royal family to survive and it seems Muiren knew this somehow." He replied flatly.

Now I understood why Muiren put in so much effort coming after me. Even if I could still reincarnate in this world with my memories the prophecy would be broken if the only remaining members of the royal family died. Muiren knew one member had survived and used it against us. Once he found me all he had to do was leave no survivors. What Elven parent would willingly abandon their child? He probably had no idea what my dad looked like or even his name. When he saved Emma though he probably figured Ileor was my father. It all made a disturbing sort of sense.