Movement across the planes as a phoenix traveled always reduced us to ash. I could sense my father’s discomfort with dissolving into ash, but it was required and he was a king so he didn’t complain.

The great hall of the Assembly was magically protected. None could enter but the assembly, and up to two companions they must bring on their own fire. Our entrance would not be on my father’s fire, but my own power.

That alone would shock them.

The downpour of ash in the middle of the circular room wouldn’t hurt with our hope for dramatic impact, either.

I felt my father lose consciousness once we had scattered across the void, and I let my energy gather him close. Just for fun Spark and I let our energy fly around the room, ruffling their crest’s before we zoomed up into the dome.

While the dragons below us eyed the room suspiciously I drew my father’s ashes in with my own and nudged him to consciousness. The first murmurs below let me know it was time to show ourselves.

Our ashes drifted down slow at first, like flakes of dust catching in the light. As they grew thicker, the dragons around us began to take notice. Green, blue, yellow and red eyes turned toward the growing pile of ash.

A whisper of energy separated my father’s ashes from our own and in a whirl of power and my own red fire he came back into human form. His cheeks flushed, eyes still bright silver, he radiated a new sense of strength like he’d been as revitalized by the experience as I always was.

I grinned and let the fire overtake me to stand tall beside him, Spark perched on my shoulder. “Good morrow, my lords.” I bowed down to one knee, my right hand curled before my forehead in a sign of respect. My inability to fully transform into a dragon had led to a compromise since I had no crest lower in respect to my elders.

“Rise, Child.  You are not their inferior.” My father spoke with warmth and pride I hadn’t heard in years. “They are yours. I hadn’t quite realized what you’re capable of.”

Pride and a bit of embarrassment probably colored my cheeks, but I did as he commanded. “My lords, I have come in hopes of staying your desire to begin a war again. To tell you the truth of what I am, of what the hybrids are. Our kind cannot afford another war, and the human race does not deserve the wrath of Alatus.”

“The truth of what you are is an abomination.” Gardolden, a particularly old and stuffy dragon with bright yellow eyes signifying his ties to the northern lands bristled. His forefeet curled over the edge of his ledge and he crouched as if to pounce. “You came in without the aid of your father. That shows how dangerous you are.”

“I, and my father’s phoenixes are the only beings capable of breaching your magical protection, because we are the only ones descended of a race older than your precious dying dragon magic.” I smiled, and hoped the malice and intent behind my words had their impact. “If I was a threat you’d already be dead. Did you not feel me ruffle your crest before we showed ourselves?”

“Is that a threat?”

“Not yet. Just a point of fact.” I turned my back on the blustering Gardolden, and scanned the dragons behind me. The twelve men along with my father represented the greatest powers on the Wyvern plane. Thirteen total. It stood to reason they were scared.

“The time for secrets is over.” Jdyne’s voice carried through the room without effort and stilled all protest. “I have attempted to protect the princess, your future queen, mind you, for too long. It’s time you learned the truth.”

“A Terran can never be our queen. We told you that years ago, Jdyne.” Sigda, a green-eyed dragon with opalescent scales called from my left. His eastern lands were vast, and he’d always been kind and indulgent of her in her youth. Good to know allegiances were so weak.

“I am more than Terran. More than Wyvern. Perhaps you are just scared, Sigda. Perhaps you all are. Change has never been welcome to the dragons, after all. It took you millennia to give up the Terran plane and let them be.” I lifted my chin, and turned to face the man that once told me stories alongside his son. A son now dead.

“And look what they’ve done with it.” Sigda refused to look at me.

“Your son, and my best friend, Tamyr was lost in our last war, Sigda. At one time you wanted us mated. Now you question my role in our world?”

Sigda’s crest sank flat to his head and his wings fluttered, a huff of steam curling from his nostrils.

“So many of you know me, and you have known Alatus. Will you truly let the inflammatory words of an ill-tempered and jealous one determine our futures? Will you let us battle and destroy what’s left of our world, and let him destroy another plane and its inhabitants because he is power-hungry?”

I dropped onto the parapet easily. Rather than mess with trying to brush out my hair from my travels, I let the fire course along it and smooth it out. When my father dropped down beside me, his own blue fire crept along his silver scales until he stood tall and regal in human form again.

“There are a few curious questions being thrown my direction.” A sly smile teased the corner of my father’s mouth.  “They are wondering how my phoenix grew so large in just a short time.”

My laughter bounced off the stone walls as we began our descent down the stairwell. A screech followed my laughter and the very bird most any dragon that had seen me thought I’d been landed on my father’s shoulder. “Hello, Pyre.”

Pyre bowed his head in my direction and offered another shriek of hello. I wouldn’t swear to it, but I thought the phoenix got sick pleasure from making my human eardrums tingle in distress at his calls.

No one knew the reason Pyre was so close to my father. No one, of course, but myself. It was an unknown fact to the wyvern world that my mother hadn’t been as human as she seemed. Somewhere along the line her family had dabbled in magic enough to acquire phoenix blood. The rare genetic quirk that had spent unknown generations hidden until the added touch of my father’s dragon and gryphon blood brought it to life.

That meant I was related to the nasty bugger on his shoulder, not that we held any great love for each other. It probably didn’t help that as a youngling I’d attempted to see how many ways you could accelerate a phoenix’s combustion to ash.

Surprisingly, there were quite a few.

A smile I should have hidden tugged at my lips.

“I know that look. What wicked deeds are you up to child?” Diane, my human stepmother (the fiftieth one my father had taken) wagged her finger. “I heard talk of your father’s phoenix growing exponentially, but based on your appearance I’d say rumors are false. Hello, dear.”

Jdyne bent to kiss his wife and chuckled. “Apparently Jyoti has decided the time for lies and secrets has passed. I wasn’t aware she’d become so skilled at spreading her fire-wings. You should see her, Diane.”

Rumored descendant of the Goddess Diana herself, Diane had been one of the first humans my father had become enamored with to take his true self in stride. Unlike all others but my mother, she’d insisted on coming to his home. It endeared me to the woman that reminded me much of my own mother. “I can see her now. That’s quite a gown, Jy. I’d be envious if it wouldn’t leave me with ugly scars.  Our greetings can wait until you’ve returned from the Assembly and put on human clothes again.”

“The fire would never touch you, D.” I laughed and reached out to squeeze her hand.

“I fear there isn’t much time. It’s unclear how long Alatus will be in the Other World, and Jyoti should report to the Assembly.” Jdyne lifted Pyre from his shoulder and sent the bird into the rafters with the other phoenix gathered above.

All of them eyed me, until the lone female gracefully hopped from her perch and floated down onto my shoulder. Unlike Pyre, Sparkle didn’t shriek, but cooed akin to a dove.  I could sense her flames merging with those in my dress.

“Thank you, Sparkle. I’d appreciate the company.” I glanced at my father. His brief nod answered my unasked question. He expected me to help us travel to the next plane to meet with the Assembly. “Shall we, Father?”

“We shall. Diane, we will return for supper. Jyoti will join us.” His tone broached no argument, but Diane cackled.

“Shouldn’t you ask her that?” Diane shook her head. “Jy, my dear. Would you join us for supper? I’ll have Nash make your favorites.”

“I will. Father has assured me my human family won’t notice my absence, so I’d be happy to spend some time before my return.” I set my hand on father’s arm and closed my eyes.

It was time to travel on the power of the phoenix.

The Assembly would certainly be shocked to hell by our entrance.

“If I’m to speak before the assembly I should change. These human clothes are already too small.” I held out my arms to demonstrate the way the sleeves now only hit three-quarter length when they’d hit my wrists earlier. Of course, I wouldn’t mention the chocolate kiss melting in the pocket of my jeans in this heat.

“We’ll return to the castle so you might change. Will you be dressed as a warrior?”

“Testing me, Father? Of course I won’t dress as a warrior. They’ll think me hostile and side with Alatus more firmly before I ever open my mouth.” I set my hands on my hips and frowned. “What about the family? My appearance is already altering, if I go back to them.”

“You forget what powers I have, child.  You’ll be restored if that’s what you wish. If you think it’s safe for them.”

“I guess we’ll find out soon enough.” With a sigh, I lifted my arms and gave a great stretch. I grew taller, but more impressively, flames travelled along my arms to add to the decorations. I could feel the same sensation crawl along the flesh of my face.

Jdyne diverted his eyes as the transformation took place and the human clothes burned away. “I wasn’t aware that’s what you meant by change, child.”

My eyes closed and I let the fire take over until it had replaced my clothes in the form of an almost living dress. It ebbed and flowed when I walked, draped to cover what humans found indecent, and slipped along my flesh like a second skin, which it was. “Did you not tell them the truth, father?”

“They don’t know about it. No one but Addrannyn knew of the phoenix. Only five other hybrids had the birds influence before he figured out how to create eggs without the birds influence and brought in enough helpers to make more hybrids, so I didn’t think it was necessary.” Jdyne shook his head and the last of the human illusion shivered away to reveal his fully scaled self.  Now on all fours, his head swung to face me. The voice carried the same, but rang through my head instead of my ears. “Some secrets were meant to keep you safe.”

“All the secrets in the world failed to keep m safe. They did the opposite. It’s time for truth, Father.” I slipped my hand along his nose, then through he comb atop his head. The rough scales scratched my flesh, but by the time I lifted my hand, they wounds had healed. “Shall we fly?”

The long elegant head dipped in a bow. After a momentary crouch, he took off into the air. Long silver wings unfurled and he offered a long call to the heavens. It echoed around the countryside and calls of all kinds were returned.

I couldn’t stop my grin as the king took his place in the sky, his scales and wings reflecting the glory of our two suns in an almost blinding display.

After several minutes of enjoying the sight, I spread my arms.  The flames spread to reflect my arms and formed into long elegant wings.  For the first time in fifteen years I crouched and took off into the air, letting the wind almost blind me as I raced higher than my father.

I let out a call like his, more high pitched, similar to the bird, while still all dragon. Familiar calls of welcome were returned and I chuckled, dropping down to fly next to Jdyne.

His silver eye blinked at me before he flew toward our castle. Once again his voice entered my head. “You have never flown these skies with the wings of a phoenix. You’ve always clung to the dragon. Are you sure you want to do this?”

“The time for lies and secrets is over.” I repeated. “I am all of these things, and will not hide it any longer. Alatus will have his war if he is determined enough. I prefer he do it with the full knowledge in the open.”

“You’ll test the limits of the Assembly’s tolerance.”

“I always have, Father.”