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The New City

The sun was warm against her face. She closed her eyes and breathed in a deep breath as the wind rushed against her skin leaving a trail of goose bumps. Piper opened her eyes and looked down. He eyes scanned the green terra below her. The hills dipped and peaked while the dirt roads swerved around them like a ribbon decorating the land. The clouds opened up in front of her revealing the bright glow of the Aurora stone. The sight of the amazing stone brought a smile to her face as she glided towards it.

Piper landed her heliscooter on the cobble stone laid in the center of the capital. The welcoming faces of the civilians and her friends were made known as they surrounded her. She looked at her crew mates and her heart was warmed. They stepped forward and a hand reached out to her. His green eyes looked happily at her as she stepped off her vehicle.

"Come on Piper." Aerrow spoke with his hand open for her to take.

She didn't hesitate. With another step she reached out her hand towards his. Her finger tips closed in on his and she could feel the warmth of his hand. A jolt of energy shot through her body as her eyes quickly opened. She shot up gasping for air as her eyes tried to adjust to the dark room around her. She calmed her breathing and looked out the window near her bed. It was nothing more than a dream; a dream of home. Her hands clenched the blanket covering her body. She stared out at the night sky and hoped that she would be able to go back to sleep.

It wasn't the first time she dreamed of home. Sometimes she would re-live a previous adventure or a fun outing with her crew mates. Sometimes she would see herself flying over Atmosia and viewing the civilians living in peace. And sometimes she would see their last battle before crossing over to where they were now. It had been going on for four years now, but no matter how different the dreams were, they always felt real. She could feel every touch given by a person and hear every little creak or noise made by the Condor. Home seemed to become nothing more than a dream; nothing more than fading memories that could soon enough be forgotten.

Piper laid back down and closed her eyes in attempt to force herself to go back to sleep. She shifted around many times and frequently looked over at her clock. Her bed didn't feel comfortable anymore. She grabbed her blanket and exited her room. The hall was dark and cold. She slowed her pace and walked delicately past her friend's doors. She stopped in front of Finn's door which was cracked open. She peaked inside to see if he was asleep and closed it slowly. Her hand rested on the knob as she turned her head across the hall to another door.

The bright greenish-blue lights from the new city leaked in from the main living space into the hall and created a shine on the metallic "A" that was hanging on the door. A small smile made its way onto her face as she looked away and stepped out into the big room. She made her way to the big couch carefully avoiding the little metal parts and tools left by Junko on the floor that were illuminated by the glowing night life shining in through the ship's windshield. Piper settled into the worn in cushions of the couch and allowed her thoughts to run free.

They thought it would have been an easy mission, or at least a quicker one. Once they followed Cyclonis into the portal, they should have been able to find her and finish the battle. Much to their dismay, she was no ware in sight when the crossed over. Instead they were met with the bright lights of an unknown city shining in their faces. They quickly headed for the woods in search of a place to hide themselves. Danger could have been lurking any ware and it was too risky to storm into the city without knowing what powers it or its people held. They managed to find a safe spot under a large cliff's overhang. It was covered by the thick foliage but they cut away at the greenery as to allow for a view of the looming city. Next to the cliff was a large waterfall. It provided a much needed supply of fresh water and the rushing water coved up the noise made by the ship or any of its passengers. It also served as a good source of energy for Stork who had begun working on finding a way to communicate with Atmosia.

Their only obstacle was obtaining food. What they couldn't find in the surrounding area they had to carefully and discreetly pick up at the city's market. Once in a while they would cover up with hope that they wouldn't grab any unwanted attention and make the journey by foot down into the city. They kept interactions short and sweet and had been able to fly under the radar for four years now to the point where they felt almost comfortable going into the city. They knew to look out for the petty thieves and expected the vulgar language being yelled by some vendors and customers when they felt they were being ripped off

Some good had come from being trapped in the new world. They had all grown closer together. They had grown out of some of their bad habits and phases as they grew older and bonded. Finn had honed his skills with his bow and even developed new techniques. His aim was to be envied and his speed and agility would allow him to take on twenty at once without breaking a sweat. He also began training with Junko in the gym. Junko was a full grown wallop now and his strength had tripled since they left Atmosia. He also spent his free time developing his culinary skills. Stork, to say the least, could maneuver the Condor with a blind fold on. This had been tested a few times due to boredom. He usually spent his time visiting the city's library to read up on as much history as he could about the area.

Piper continued to practice her crystal binding. After becoming perfectly attuned with Aerrow, the opportunity to discover new power presented itself. She also continued with her Sky fu and even began teaching Aerrow in exchange for him teaching her how to handle his energy blades. She was no ware near as advanced as he was with them, but if in a caught in a bad situation, she could successfully run away and keep the enemy off her tail.

The strangest part of their new "home", if they could call it a home, was that not once had they seen or heard anything from the initial thing that brought them to it. Even if they hadn't been able to track Cyclonis down, Piper though that she would have at least tried to attack them once after realizing that the clearly didn't know where to turn after the dead lead. But there was nothing. With this last thought Piper's breathing slowed and she drifted back to sleep.

More to come.