Aragorn and the Phoenix of Caspian (ENGLISH)

Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

Yosef wandered to the forest. His eyes were hopping between green grasses, green trees, and green bushes. He thought he was on the way back to the hut, but the patterns of the trees and plants were far more different than the trees and plants near the hut. He must be going farther from that or he’s lost. He won’t cry if he’s lost. Crying won’t help him find the right way. He’s been wandering around for forty minutes where in fact he should be back twenty minutes. Someone would and him, he believed.

“Leo? Hideo? Azrael? Prince Aragorn?” he shouted, but his voice echoed back to him. No one responded. He shouted their names in the vacuum, but no one responded. He’s not scared that he might be lost, he’s scared to face a wild animal or a group of rebels or even the phoenix.

The story of the phoenix when he was told when he was a young child was as daunting as any other ghost story told to children. They said the phoenix was deadly, it will burn you, your whole body. Someone said they will carry you on its back and will bring you to the sky where it’s going to roast you into ashes. Frightening, not only for kids but for adults.

He continued wandering. His feet crunched on dry leaves as he stepped forward. He focused his attention on the surroundings and his eyes and ears were ready to sense danger or sense help.

“Prince Aragorn? Hideo? Az—” He was cut off by a dog’s bark— or maybe it was a wolf. He jumped to the nearest tree where he climbed his way to the branch at a high altitude. He sat on it, eyes on the ground, looking for the dog or wolf.

Can a wolf reach his position? Can it climb to the tree? Are they that deadly? Those were the questions that filled his mind. He put out his sword stuck from his belt and positioned it downward.

A creature appeared on the ground, jumping and trying to reach him. It was barking loudly, angrily, hastily on him. It wanted to bite him. But the creature was no wolf. It was a dog, an adorable pet dog. It was clean, it didn’t look stray, but why is it here. A woman appeared to cuddle the dog! Finally, someone who can help him.

“Help! Can you help me find the way back?”

The woman raised his head. His whole body became white when her eyes were a color of lava. His chest pounded and his fingers scratched the bark of the tree. No way! When he was a child, there’s only one creature who has those colors of eyes. The phoenix!

Aragorn had looked around the forest where he’s familiar. He shouted Yosef’s name a lot of times. Where was he? He hoped he wasn’t captured by rebels or got ate by wild animals. The safest prediction, but he didn’t want to happen is that he’ll see Sphyra. He knew Sphyra won’t hurt him, but how about the other way around?

His steps had crunch hundred of dry leaves and dry stems. Finally, he saw Sphyra and Burn looking above the tree.

“Come here now. Go down now. I will not hurt you,” Sphyra said, her head was lifted to the tree. Burn didn’t stop barking and she’s adorable by trying to climb the tree even though her paw and legs slid on it.

“I won’t go down. You’re not going to fool me. You’ll patch me on your back and bring me into the peak of the sky where you’re going to turn me into ashes. Or you will roast me first and become your dog’s lunch.”

The sagged ears of Aragorn opened. He knew whose voice it is. He knew it was Yosef. He jogged towards Sphyra and Burn, looked upwards and he saw Yosef, hugging on the big bark of the oak tree. His eyes on Sphyra had traces of fear and want to get away from that place.

“Come here now, Yosef,” Aragorn said calmly. Yosef easily recognized his face and voice. Instead of having safety and serenity in his heart, he was afraid for Aragorn. He’s standing beside the phoenix who can bring him to the sky and roast and kill him.

“Runaway, Prince Aragorn. The woman beside you is the phoenix. She’s going to kill you and will turn you into ashes.”

Aragorn and Sphyra’s eyes matched with a glance. They have to explain this to Yosef. They have to convince him to not tell anybody where the phoenix is.

“Go down, Yosef. Nobody’s going to die. She’s my friend.”

Words were stuck in Yosef’s tongue. A friend? The prince is a friend of a phoenix. Of all the possible friendships that can be formed, they were the worst of it all. The crowned prince of Caspian, who has a mission to kill the deadly phoenix, the son of the person who almost killed the phoenix, and the deadly woman, the daughter of fire. How can this thing happen?

“Trust me, Yosef. She won’t hurt the both of us. She’s a friend.”

The prince’s words assured Yosef's safety. He slowly removed his hands from hugging the big bark of the tree. He released himself from the tree and crawled to the main branch of it. He used his feet to reach every branch back to the ground. He jumped before the last stem to the ground. He gasped and sauntered to Aragorn and Spyra. Burn followed him and sniffed his feet and the back of his legs.

His eyes didn’t leave Sphyra. He walked to Aragorn’s back. The dog followed him and investigated him by sniffing and trudging around him. When the dog felt that he’s a good person, he left Yosef and turned to Sphyra. Such a wise pet.

“Don’t hurt us.” His voice was hoarse and pleading to Sphyra. “Please, don’t hurt us.”

“I won’t hurt you,” Sphyra said. She strode to Yosef, but he was too scared to let her came closer. A young soldier who wasn’t afraid o anything but the Phoenix. Sphyra blasted a smile before trudging back to her place. “He’s too afraid of me. I haven’t hurt him. Glad to know that you know him, Aragorn.”

“When I came back, he’s lost and they said he’s searching for me. I’m thankful that he wasn’t eaten by a wild animal or captured by rebels.”

“Do you know her, Your Highness?” Yosef whispered to Aragorn’s back. He can’t help but stare at Sphyra’s eyes which looked like an orb of fire.

“She’s the phoenix of Caspian. But she wasn’t bad like that myth we were told when we were kids.”

It’s difficult to believe, but Yosef was facing the phoenix, a creature who’s everyone in the palace was afraid of. It’s difficult to believe when Aragorn said that she wasn’t dangerous. It’s difficult for him to believe that she was a friend. Lastly, it was difficult for Aragorn and Sphyra to explain everything to him.

Sphyra gasped, grabbed Yosef’s hand. It would be a long story for her to start with and it would be better for her to tell it now. Little by little, she told the boy the stories she told Aragorn. She wasn’t the phoenix that the king had killed. She’s the daughter of the phoenix that was killed by the king. She didn’t want to kill, she just wanted to stay alive and preserve her life so the death of her mother won’t be wasted. She hoped this young guy would understand.

“How about the fire? Aren’t you the one who did it?” Yosef asked. He needed more proof that his phoenix wasn’t the bad antagonist in their life. She was a creature, who only wanted to live, and was manipulated any a person who wanted to take over the throne.

“She’s not the one who did that. There’s someone who wanted to take over the position, who didn’t like my father as the king, who didn’t like me to become the next king. It can be a rebel or someone in my family. The reason why we came to the palace yesterday is for me to investigate some of my uncles and cousins. Believe in us, the phoenix is not the real enemy. Sphyra is also a victim.”

“Is that true?” Yosef asked Sphyra. There’s only a small percent in his heart that he wasn’t believing what she said. But Aragorn proved that it was true.

“Believe in me, Yosef. I didn’t want to hurt anyone. Please trust us and don’t tell anybody about me and Aragorn visiting me. I almost killed Aragorn, but he’s still the one who’s helping me.”

“Okay. I won’t tell anyone.”

A smile hopped from Sphyra to Aragorn to Burn and back to Yosef. If it’s Prince Aragorn’s choice to protect this woman, he would cooperate. His job is to believe and follow what the prince or anyone in the palace does.

“Your Highness, I will help you in case you need something to bring to her. I’ll try to study the area so I won’t be lost the next time I go here.”

“Thank you, Yosef,” Aragorn said.

“Thank you,” Sphyra repeated.

Burn jumped to Yosef. She’s wagging her tail and gasping and cheering for what happened. Yosef caressed the back and head of the dog.

“I hope I could have a pet dog like her. Isn’t she adorable, Your Highness?”

“Definitely she is. But that dog has to stay with Sphyra. Leo didn’t let any pets in the hut. But we can visit and feed her whenever we want to.”

“You should scream ‘Eagles love to play with fire’ when you’re on your way here so I can recognize if it’s the two you.”

Yosef nodded. “I will do that.”

“We have to go now, Sphyra. They might start looking for us if we’re lost for a long and they may find you.”

“Goodbye. Take care, Aragorn and Yosef.”

They waved their hands as they turned their backs on Sphyra. The walk back to the hut didn’t take any longer than half an hour. The three guys left in the hut were all worried about Yosef and Prince Aragorn.

“Where have you been, Yosef?” Azrael ran to Yosef, cupped his cheeks, and checked if there’s any scar on his face or body.

“He’s just lost and glad I found him. Nothing to worry about.”

“Your Highness is right. There’s nothing to worry about me.”