True Hearts

Chapter One

Dreams

It was dark. It was cold. And it was raining. James was walking home through the streets of Traverse Town. Traverse Town had once been a safe, friendly city. However, those days had long since passed. Now, it was rare to see anyone walking by themselves for fear of another attack. James had lost count of had many there had been now, but he thought the number must be at least fifty. He walked briskly, so he could get home to a nice hot shower and some warm food. He lived with his mother in a simple, three bedroom flat. His father and his oldest brother, Maximillian, had enlisted in King Mickey's army to travel to distant worlds and restore the balance. James had wanted to enlist as well, but the fact that he was still only seventeen, underage by one year, and the thought of leaving his mother alone in this place had made him change his mind.

He rounded a corner into the well-lit Town Square of District One. He breathed a sigh of relief, at least now he knew he was relatively safe. While the outer parts of Traverse Town were becoming increasingly derelict, District One still had the full protection of the mayoral guard. He jogged across the square and ran up the steps. He could see the lights were on in his house and he continued to run to the door. He fumbled with his keys and unlocked the door. Dripping wet, he hung his coat by the door and took off his shoes. The warmth and light of home instantly lifted his spirits.

He took a deep breath in, inhaling the smell of pumpkin soup. He quickly ran up the stairs to his bedroom. It was only just big enough for him. It had a single bed in the far corner and a desk up against the wall next to it, with posters of Gummi ships and his favourite Coliseum warriors lining the walls. There was a window above his bed, that looked out over the Town Square. He threw his backpack on his bed and went to the bathroom. He turned on the shower and looked at himself in the mirror. His normally ginger hair had gone brown because of the rain and stuck to his forehead, slightly swept off to the side. He removed his wet clothes and put them in the laundry basket, he was well muscled and tall. He liked to keep himself in shape in times like these.

Always helps to be able to defend yourself, he thought as he turned away from the mirror and walked into the shower. Warmth washed through him as the water ran down his body. He washed the stress of the day off his body and turned the water off. He dried himself and dressed quickly. He then ran down the stairs into the kitchen where his mother was sitting doing the puzzles in the daily newspaper.

"Another late night then?" She asked nonchalantly, as she looked up from her puzzle, smiling. She looked tired, but then everyone did these days.

"One of the deliveries from Twilight Town was late, the trains are being attacked so often now, they need to find another way of getting the supplies" replied James as he poured himself some soup into a bowl.

James had taken on an afterschool job to help his mother. He worked in a factory in District Two as a spare hand, helping with deliveries in and out of the factory and repairing the machinery on occasion.

As he gulped down his soup he glanced up at the clock, realizing he had no idea what time it was. The clock said eleven thirty.

"I hope they pay you overtime for the extra hours you do" said his mother, returning to her puzzles.

"Sometimes. Depends how the month's gone" said James between mouthfuls.

He finished his soup and washed the dishes. He walked away from the bench and slumped down on the couch in front of the fire place.

"When are Dad and Maximillian due back from service?" he said, rubbing his eyes as he suddenly realized how tired he was.

"They're back for a week at Christmas"

"What?" said James, "but that's not for three months!"

"I know. There's not exactly much we can do about it though is there. We might want them back here, but they are doing a good thing" said his mother with a sympathetic smile.

"I guess you're right" said James, standing up. "Well, I think I'm going to bed now. You should too, like you said it's late."

"Okay mister" replied his mother chuckling, "I'll see you in the morning".

James walked up the stairs slowly, looking at all the family portraits from over the years that were hanging on the wall. He smiled briefly and continued to his bedroom. He fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Everything was pitch dark. He was falling. Suddenly he landed on something. As he landed the darkness started to recede from where his feet were, uncovering a platform, very similar to a stained glass window. There was a picture on the platform, of a young girl, with long blonde hair in a purple dress. She held a red rose and here eyes were closed. She must be sleeping, thought James.

When he looked up from the girls face, three grey pedestals had appeared around the edge of the circular platform. On the platform directly in front of him was a green staff, with a blue sphere at the top of it. The blue sphere had two smaller spheres at the top, positioned where ten and two would be on a clock. On the platform to his left was a sword with a blue and yellow hilt, which had the same markings on it. The blade was of the purest white. To his right, there was a black shield with the same three circles on it in red.

James jumped in fright as a calm female voice spoke.

"A certain power sleeps within you. If you give it form, it will give you strength."

Not entirely sure what to do he walked up to the sword and picked it up off the pedestal. The voice spoke again.

"The power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. Is this what you choose?"

James observed the sword for a moment then said firmly, "Yes." The sword disappeared into a ball of light.

"Your path is set, now what will you give up in exchange?"

James looked around to the other two pedestals. He then walked over to the staff and picked it up.

"The power of mystic. Inner Strength. A staff of wonder and ruin. You give up this power?"

James contemplated the staff for a moment and again said firmly, "Yes."

The staff vanished into a ball of light, just like the sword had done.

"You've chosen the path of the warrior. You've given up the power of mystic. Is this the form you choose?"

James thought for a moment and for a third time replied with a firm, "Yes."

Suddenly everything changed from the pitch darkness to a blinding white, James covered his eyes with his hands. When he opened them again, he was in his house, standing by the staircase. His mother was standing by the kitchen bench where she did her puzzles. His father was standing by the fireplace and his brother was standing by the window opposite the fireplace. He walked over to his mother. He eyes were blank and emotionless and she began to speak in a monotonous version of his real mother's voice.

"What is most important to you?" she asked

"Friendship" James replied without thinking. His mother nodded and he walked away from her, moving towards his father. Again, his father's eyes were blank and he spoke in a flat, detached voice.

"What are you afraid of?"

"Losing my loved ones" said James, again without hesitation. His father nodded and he moved to his brother. As with his parents, his brothers eyes were blank and he spoke in a strange, flat version of his real voice.

"What do you want out of life?"

"To be the best person I can be" replied James. His brother nodded. Everything went dark.