The Double Life of Xeno, WonderBoy & Bread

The old cicadas, Abugazara, shook themselves into complacency

Ten-year-old WonderBoy watched them from the trees in his backyard

Tall with bark made of brown, the tree held his only home: his treehouse

Well, to him it was his only home

Today he dressed up as WonderBoy and dashed into the dandelion fields

As he kicked the grass and fought the tiny puffs of dandelions, a portal opened up inside the sky

He watched with bewilderment and fled as a dragon came crashing through

The creature's landing destroyed half the field and it's precious dandelions

But the earth would repair

WonderBoy was not suppose to flee in the presence of action!

He was to stand firm and tall

He watched as this old dragon from the Camelopardalis star system slowly rose on wobbly legs

It had strange arms, transparent wings draped atop brown webbing, sagging eyes and horns dotted along his jagged body

WonderBoy was't afraid

Not even this could stop him

The dragon didn't pay no mind to the boy

He hopped into the air and instantly took flight

Today WonderBoy saw his first dragon

When morning came he played atop the roof of his house

WonderBoy was daring like that

He jumped off the treehouse, he jumped off the porch and he jumped out the window

He always landed on something soft, like his dog, Paphis

It was in the backyard of their old WELT CO mansion where he decided to jump off the roof

The family AI, Supreme, watched him through her many eyes

His mother, a healthy brunette of thirty, was wearing her good hat today

She was sitting by the rose bush, tending to it's delicate roots and vines

WonderBoy was atop the roof, anticipating his nig jump

"Attention people of Welt Co! I will be performing my daring jump off this roof! Hold your applause, hold your applause!"

"Not again," muttered his mother.

Quicker than she knew it, something extremely heavy landed on her head

She didn't have time to gather her thoughts

For she had died from the impact of her little boy accidentally falling on her

"See mom! I told you I could do it!"

When he saw her under him—neck twisted and her face blue—he began to panic

But superheroes do not panic!

Superheroes mustn't panic!

They have to be strong and survive!

But the way she looked—it terrified him.

"Jackie, are you okay?"

His father was calling for him.

"Jackie Stollervich, are you okay?"

He couldn't let his father know about this!

He ran from the scene, rushing out of the gate and into the unknown. He couldn't stop the tears nor could he hide the pain.

"I didn't mean to do it. I didn't mean to do it."

His voice trembled weakly as he tried to run his fastest. He fell onto the grass, screaming and crying until his voice gave out. He hid his face in the grass, trying his hardest to hide his tear-striken face.

"Are you the one they call WonderBoy?"

He looked up at the disformed creature standing before him. He did not know how to describe it.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"That does not concern you," said the odd looking creature as he held out his hand, inviting the boy somewhere.

This same creature had helped another child whom went by the name WonderBoy. In a sleepy dragontown called Carver Dan, this "other" WonderBoy was going through the same thing as our leading WonderBoy. He was a blondie, aged ten with seablue eyes. His cape was lime green with red stripes. He never flinched at anything. Young WonderBoy loved to play with his dog Paphis. In the backyard of their Perch Tech mansion, WonderBoy climbed the tree, the doghouse, and the house roof. For a grand finale he would jump down from the top of the house! Most of the time he'd land on his bottom, or Paphis. One unfortunate day he landed on his mother while she was tending to her cloned roses. Coincidence? The impact broke her neck and caused instant death. Ever since then WonderBoy never played outside again. His days went in this song: get up, go to school, come home and sleep. Everyday means nothing and some things can't be beat.

One day he ran away from home with no intentions of returning. He grabbed his bag, and filled it with what he needed. He went to the kitchen and took a loaf of bread for the trip. He stepped out the door and unto the unknown and found a bus stop that he hoped would call a bus to take him to a new home. He sat there lamenting and crying, blaming himself for his mother's death. He withdrew a sharp knife from his pocket. With trembling hands he tried to cut his throat, tears sliding fast, but soft and silky hands had stopped him. Sitting next to him is Xeno, his imaginary friend. We don't know what Xeno looks like, except that he is jet-black in color. Xeno softly removed the knife from the boy's hands and whispered lightly, "Do not have fear."

The bus arrived right on time. The doors opened for the boy, revealing a chance at a new life reborn. He looked to Xeno for reassurance, and the alien nodded. He got on the bus and sat in the back, together with Xeno and the loaf of bread from home. He rested his head on Xeno's lap and closed his eyes as the bus shifted back and forth over cracked streets and potholes. When he awoke he hadn't a clue where he was. The first view he saw was a makeshift wooden bus stop by a swamp. He and Xeno got off there and walked a long distance, then the boy collapsed. Xeno carried the boy and they reached a quiet town nestled in the middle of the forest.

WonderBoy awoke in a doctor's bed. He looked around and spotted Xeno and his loaf of bread. The boy told the doctor his story and the doctor decided to take him in as his own. At night the town always held a celebration, for life was the reason to celebrate. The boy, Xeno and his loaf of bread did not look back on the old life.

But what of the boy's father and sister?

The moral: you figure it out.