Prologue

A Bed-Time Story

It was a clear summer night. The full moon and stars lit up the sky, and a light breeze was blowing through the trees. It would've been a good night for camping with friends or family, but no matter how familiar this scene may be to everyday people, this place was far from ordinary, and so were the events that were taking place close by.

For down the hill and along the ocean, a busy port town was going up in flames. The government from the main land was looking for a group of individuals, travelers that were classified as criminals. The question was, were these criminals really criminals? Something like that makes you wonder who's really in the right. The government was tearing apart towns looking for them, killing innocent people, while the "criminals" were making their way to a town on an island. A town where they could hide and live in peace, or so they thought. That town down the hill was what they were looking for. A safe haven, a place of truce, but the government found it and started ripping it apart.

The townspeople weren't sure what to do. While some fought to protect the town, others fled for safety. Among the fleeing townspeople was the group of individuals, whose hope was diminishing. But at the last possible second –

"They found a boat, escaped in it, and lived happily ever after," a young voice interrupted. The scene had changed. There was no island, no port town, and no corrupt government. Just a bedroom with sky blue walls and a bunk bed shoved in the corner closest to the door. Two desks sat next to each other under a window next to the bunk bed, and a couple of dressers were along the wall opposite the bunk bed. Matchbox cars and pieces of Lego were scattered on the hard wood floor. It was a scene I'd always remember.

"Why did you ruin it?" a little girl asked. She was sitting on the bottom bunk next to my ten year old self.

"How did I ruin it," I questioned, "We've heard this story a million times."

"You have not heard it a million times." I looked up and saw my dad smiling at me.

"How about a hundred times?" I asked.

"No, I think it's somewhere around 30 times."

"See? That's a lot!"

"Yeah honey, maybe you should tell them a different story." I looked around my dad to see a familiar figure leaning against the door frame.

"Mommy, mommy!" my sister had slipped off the bed and ran into my mom's arms.

"Oh! You're getting so big!" my mom exclaimed.

I also slipped off the bed to go and hug her.

"I missed you guys so much!"

"You're back early." my dad stated.

"We managed to settle on a design sooner than expected." My mom said, looking up at my dad.

"Will that change the date of your business trip to Toronto?"

"No, it just means I have more time off." My mom stood up.

"Good," my dad said, cracking a smile, "because I was thinking we could go on a road trip."

"A road trip?"

"Yeah, we could take the kids to Disney Land and check into some fancy hotel."

I was sold on the idea once Disney Land was mentioned, and considering how jittery my little sister was, I could tell she was sold on it too.

"What about the repair shop?"

"I'll leave Jared in charge."

"But he's just an apprentice."

"Well, the kid's got to learn how to run a business someday."

"Fine," my mom said with a defeated sigh, "When were you thinking of going?"

"How about tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow?" she said in disbelief, "Isn't that a little soon?"

"Not at all," my dad said confidently, "We'll wake up early, pack some essentials and hit the road."

As you might have noticed by now, my dad was optimistic, while my mom was realistic. Yet, my dad somehow won most of their debates.

My mom let out a sigh, "Alright."

My sister and I rejoice by jumping up and down in excitement.

"What's going on?" I turned to find my brother standing in the doorway, having returned from his trip to the bathroom. When he saw our mom he walked over and hugged her.

"We're going to Disney Land tomorrow," she said, "but only if we go to bed right now." I was in bed in seconds, while my brother steadily climbed up the latter to the top bunk. My sister tugged on my mom's sleeve.

"Can I have a story?"

"Of course honey." My mom lead my sister to her room, which was across from ours.

"Good night kidos." my dad said as he switched off the light.

"Goodnight" my brother and said back. The door closed, leaving the room pitch black. To think that, as I fell asleep, all excited for the next day, I had no idea what I'd wake up to a few hours later.