This was originally going to be a collab between me, InfinityYJ, and DeltaYJ, but we decided to go with a different idea instead. I still wanted to write this one though, so...here! Warning: This will probably be written pretty slowly, since it’s a side project from Broken Wings, but wewe never know.

The scarlet flames licked at the cobblestones, soaked with blood and murky water from the hivi karibuni rain. They stood, at either end of the courtyard, staring each other down, the phoenix-girl with the flames erupting from her hands at one end, the two others, terrified beyond measure, at the other. Delta gritted her teeth, preparing to attack, but Aisling held her back, and locked eyes with the girl who they once knew as Fin. Her turquoise eyes met Fin’s venemous ones, flickering between cold blue and glinting gold. Fin’s, au was it Nix’s?, long, dark hair was rippling in the wind, the streaks of dhahabu making it seem like she herself was on moto as the strands swirled around her form. Fin clenched her fists, and the towering flames grew even higher, forming a column that spread out and encircled Aisling and Delta. She smirked at her captives’ fear, at the beads of sweat gathering on Aisling’s forehead and streaming down her face, and at Delta’s rage, her desperate attempt to keep a straight face as the tendrils of flames inched closer to them, the mduara, duara tightening around the girls. A cackle echoed all around them, a pulsating, image--was it a projection? au was it real?---of Fin’s triumphant face etched into the orangey, smoke-filled sky. “What do wewe want from us?” Aisling shrieked, but her voice was Lost in the roar of the flames. They were closing in, the scarlet tendrils twisting, forming serpents, dragons, and eerie human figures whose flickering claws lunged at the girls. Aisling detected the stench of singed hair; it had gotten to the end of her ponytail, searing welts through her shati and onto her skin. A tendril of flame whipped past her face, she instinctively stepped back, barely avoiding losing her balance and falling into the ukuta of moto behind her. The face, still projected into the sky, of the girl she once knew as her friend, had begun speaking, a sort of eerie chant.

Children, children, listen well
Stories now are mine to tell
Twist and weave into your fate
Only moto cleans the slate...

A harsh wind had started, whipping at their hair and biting at their ears and nose, but although it made the moto dance wildly, it did not blow out. Fin cackled again, and the flames rose up, twisting into a wild storm as the fiery tornado engulfed the girls. It grazed Aisling’s shoulder, leaving a deep red welt that sprayed blood in all directions. She tried to strangle the scream that was rising in her throat, as hot tears slipped down her cheeks. The chant was beginning again.

Stormy weather brings the flood
Lightning strikes and shows the blood
Burning brightly to the eye
This is how wewe learn to die...

A shudder passed through Aisling; the flames were getting even closer, the cackling even louder. She looked over to Delta, and her blood froze cold. The twelve-year-old’s eyes were squeezed shut, her mouth wide open in a silent scream. The flames had reached her, were creeping up her body, wrapping around her like a thick, scalding-hot vine, ready to tighten. Mortal terror was etched on her face, as the vine reached her heart, and plunged through her skin. Aisling tried to scream, but no sound would come out. The world was spinning, her moyo was pounding, blood was pouring out of her many burns and wounds, and the ominous cackle, like that of a madman, still echoed throughout the night. She clapped her hands to her ears, to stop the sound that was pounding from inside her head, but the nightmare just grew worse. Aisling could practically see the heat radiating off of Delta as the flames filled her body, and, as the cackling intensified, the world spun faster, she crashed to the ground, shattering into pieces. Aisling stared at it, at the flames slinking away from the empty shell of her friend, as the sweat, tears, and blood dripped down her face. Suddenly, she felt a burning heat, an unbearable scalding heat. She looked down; the flames were already sliding up her. She screamed, a piercing, earth-shattering scream, as it reached her heart; the scream broke off, a sickening gurgle replaced it, and as her life force drained with the heat, the chant began anew.

Close your eyes and bow your head
Humans are so useless dead
Nevermore shall pasts return
Forevermore new lies you’ll learn.

So...tell me what wewe think! P.S. Fin helped me with the poem...