By now, all the children in America, Britain, Canada, etc., assume that a Phoenix's tail can power a wand, his tears can heal a most grievious wound, and that a creature the size of a swan can lift about a half-dozen people without breaking a sweat. They see a flame-colored pet, obediant to his master's whim; they see almost no fiery quality, no inherant glory that one should, by all rights, possess. And by those same rights, I should be thanking JK Rowling for bringing this off-forgotten, oft-characterized mythic to the mainstream. Oh, I do, but what I dispise is the perverse acceptance that the Phoenix has always been this way. Ms. Rowling did not, in a fit of inspiration, create a different variant -- no, she only reiterated what has been common knowledge for centuries. And suddenly, she is an authority -- and she doesn't even believe in magic! How ironic.
In a way, I should thank her for breaking the barrier, but on the other hand, this is what my Vahazayi are contending with. A songbird, a pet, a mute animal. It's enough to make me pull at my hair in frustration (and yet, I love the books). I have ever been the proponent of sentient mythics -- they transcend the normal schemes of reality, why should they not transcend the vocal barrier as well? can they not be on equal, or above-equal, footing with us? Why the hesitance, to create something so regal, yet unable to speak?
I was first introduced to Phoenixes through a novel by Elizabeth Forrest, entitled Phoenix Fire. The Phoenix never appeared 'til the end of the book and was a great disappointment to finish. I have the novel, however, as a symbolic marker in the turning point of my life. While not to my satisfaction, there would be no Vahazayi if I did not come across that book cover by Jody Lee. From there, I began a wild run through all the mythology books my local library owned, reading them again if there were no new others present. Through those excursions, I gathered a slew of information pertaining to other mythical creatures ... thus my fantasy immersion began. I also spent time looking through various encyclopedias and dictionaries, for definitions and pictures. They were all the same.
All the pictures I saw were some variation on the rise-from-the-flames/ashes, or, consumption by fire. You can take it either way. Very few depict the Chinese or Japanese Phoenix, who really has no place left in contemporary literature or society, save in ancient paintings or clothes. But I digress.
In recent years, dragons, unicorns, gryphons, pegasi, etc. have all exploded, have all had wonderful reincarnations. Except the Phoenix. The short stories that I have read are all the same: songbird, pet, swan-sized, eagle-sized, tired of his/her immortal life. Perhaps the only tale I have thus read was The Phoenix and the Carpet, but that was a long time ago. And that dealt with an egg and a worm -- such a gross beginning/end for a deservingly-magnificent bird. Why must people continue like this? Can you not think of a better way to use them? I fear if the Phoenix (or Phoenixes) were real, they would burn all stereotypers to the ground -- I know Vagan would. Even in anime, it is the same, sad story.
I digress yet again.
Over the years, I have endeavored to distance the Vahazayi from these mediocre beginnings (and by judging what the 'net and literature has to offer, it seems I'm the only one with the balls to do so). It is my hope that I have succeeded. Where there was no personality, you have close to 300,000 unique beings. They have their own minds, their own agendas. They are not put off by immortality -- in fact, they use to to their advantage, becoming the definative line of defense from evil. What else differs them from the conventional?
And that is just a smattering of qualities that has built up as a result of over eight years, from 1996 to the present. Hopefully, my little rant has turned something in your mind; perhaps you will look at them differently now ... maybe you will pick up one of my books one day and smile. That is all I wish.
