Stevie's Arc

Chapter 2 of 7

The herald posted the trial date at dawn. Stevie read it twice and her stomach dropped. Three days. She had counted on three weeks. Her phoenix still flinched at loud sounds. It landed clean on her arm, but it had never faced a beast. Three days was not enough. She wanted to beg the herald for time, but her mouth went dry when she pictured the words. She took the phoenix to the field beyond the town to practice. She meant to teach it to dodge fast strikes. She raised her arm. The phoenix flew back and forth, chirping. It thought the drill was a game. Stevie's hands shook. If she rushed this, the little bird would get hurt. Then the grass shook. A roar rolled across the field. A lion the size of a cart broke from the brush. Its fur was white and grey, and its shoulders bunched like stone. It fixed pale eyes on Stevie and charged. Stevie froze. She could not make her legs move. The lion crossed the field in three bounds. She felt its breath. She threw herself sideways as the paw swept where she had stood. The phoenix did not wait for a command. It dove. The tiny bird streaked at the lion's face, wings flaring bright. It raked its claws across the great eyes. The lion screamed and shook its head, blind and thrashing. Stevie scrambled up and ran. "Move, girl!" A huge man crashed through the brush behind her. He was all muscle, a lion's pelt slung over one shoulder, a club in his fist. Hercules. She knew the temple carvings. He planted himself between her and the beast. "That one's mine. It slipped my hunt." The blind lion swung toward the noise. Hercules met it. He caught its paw and threw it back. He roared louder than the beast. The lion staggered, half its sight gone. It could not fight what it could not see. It turned and fled into the trees. Hercules watched it go, then looked down at Stevie. She was shaking. The phoenix landed on her arm, panting, one wing scorched at the tip. "Small thing saved you," he said. "Went for the eyes without being told. That is a fighter." Stevie held the bird close. It had defended her on its own. Not from a drill. From a real killer three times its size. Trust, Artemis had said. The bird trusted her enough to protect her. "Your trial is that same beast," Hercules said. "Grown, healed, and angry. Blind won't last." He turned to leave. "Get help, girl. One bird bought you today. It won't be enough tomorrow." Stevie stood in the empty field. The trial was still coming. But now she had seen her phoenix fight, and she had heard the truth plain. She needed a second companion. She had three days to find one.