Chapter One: Darien Awakens
The sunlight peeked through the crack in the curtains. It touched Darien's face. Darien's eye lids twitched and opened. He droopily sat up and looked at his alarm clock. 10:30. "Ohhhhh. Why can't it just stay dark for a couple more hours?" he said as he reached up to close the crack between the curtains over his bed. He had forgotten to close the blinds last night. He lowered the blinds and the room went dim again. As Darien laid his head down on his pillow, his mom walked in to check on him. "I know you're awake, son. I heard you close your blind. I want you to practice today. I haven't heard you play you sax in weeks. You won't be any good when you go back if you don't practice!" "Okay, mom. I'll play today. Just let me sleep a little longer." "When you decide to wake up call Serena. She called around nine this morning." With that, she shut the door and made a beeline down the stairs.
About an hour later, Darien crawled out of bed. He headed for his closet and picked out a blue Polo shirt. He walked to his drawer and picked out a pair of blue jean shorts, socks, and underwear. He walked down to the bathroom, and put his stuff down. He walked over to the towel closet down the hall next to his sister's room. He opened the closet and took out a baby blue towel. He went back to the bathroom and put the towel down. He opened the glass shower door and set the water. He took off his clothes and got in.
Downstairs, his mother was making lunch for herself and his sister. "Good, he is finally up." She could hear the water running upstairs. She put one of the sandwiches she was making down on a plate. She proceeded to take another piece of the brownish colored wheat bread out of the package. She took the knife she was using out of the Miracle Whip jar. She took some of the mayonnaise and spread it on the bread. Darien's sister, Elaine, walked up her. She was about 5'4" tall, slender, had brown hair that was about shoulder length, and bright blue eyes. "Is lunch ready?" she asked. "Almost. Would you grab a bag of chips out of the cupboard over there?" said Jessica, Darien and Elaine's mom, pointing at a cupboard above a counter to her left. "Sure," said the slender fifteen year old walking over to the cupboard. She opened it and took out a bag of Lay's Potato Chips. She handed them to her mother. "Call me when lunch is ready!" said Elaine walking out of the kitchen toward the stairs. "Alright!" replied Jessica.
Darien turned off the water and opened the glass sliding shower door. A rush of cold air hit him as he opened the door. "Damn, that's cold!" he said under his breath as he stepped over to the door and shut it. He dried off his body and then turned on the waterproof radio on the counter surrounding the sink. He opened the cabinet underneath the sink and took out his Right Guard Sport deodorant, Gillette shaving cream, razor, and his Tommy Boy cologne. He locked the door. As he put the hot water in the sink, he heard something about one hundred and twenty three people just keeling over from exhaustion at the new jewelry store. He spread the shaving cream on his face and then ran the razor over his face, rinsing it after each stroke. As his favorite song came on the radio, he drained the water from the sink and began to put on his cologne and deodorant. He dressed quickly and then put everything back in the cabinet. Darien left the bathroom with his socks in hand and went to his room and proceeded to put some gel in his hair and then combed it to the style just as the barber had done. He put on the socks and then put his shoes on. He walked out of the door.
"What, none for me?" said Darien opening the refrigerator and picking out some orange juice. "If you would get up earlier, then maybe you could get some," replied Jessica. He opened the cabinet above the counter to Jessica's left and took out a glass. He poured the juice in and then put the cap back on the container and placed it back in the refrigerator. He downed the orange juice and put his glass in the dish washer. "Need anything mom? I am going to Wal-Mart to pick up a new pair of gym shorts," called Darien walking out of the kitchen. "Get me some eggs and some Diet Coke," she replied. "How 'bout you Elaine?" called Darien walking toward the stairs. "Just get me some Juicy Fruit," she replied. "Ok." He made his way up the stairs and into his room where he proceeded to pick up his car keys and wallet from the table beside his full size bed. He picked up his clothes from the day before off of the floor and deposited them in the hamper in his closet. He stopped by his dresser and unplugged his cell phone and took it in his hand with the car keys. "If you need anything else, I have my cell phone with me. I'll be around an hour, I'm gonna stop by McDonald's and eat. See ya later!" With that he walked out the door.
Darien opened the door to his yellow 1998 Chevrolet pickup. He closed the door and inserted his key into the ignition of the truck, and turned it. As the truck started, he plugged the cell phone into the power cord in the cigarette lighter. He put the automatic transmission into reverse gear and backed out of the driveway. He then put it into drive and peeled off. As he came to the highway, he stopped at the red light. It turned green and he turned left and headed to McDonald's. He pulled into the parking lot and found a free space and parked. He turned off his truck and took his cell phone off of the charger cord. Darien took his keys out of the ignition and pocketed them as he climbed out of the truck. He locked the doors and shut the door to the pickup. He walked up to the door and let himself into the restaurant. He walked up and ordered a Big Mac with a Coke. He sat down and ate his food. As he was sitting there, his phone rang. He took it out and the caller ID was showing Serena's number. He pushed the Talk button and said, "Hello." "Hey! Sleep in again?" "Yep-Damn. I knew If forgot something. Mom told me to call you before I went back to sleep!" "Aw, its okay. Where ya at?" she questioned. "McDonalds. Just catching some lunch before I go to Wal-Mart." "Okay. Hey, I can't go anywhere today, car is broke down. Would you be so kind as to pick up some Diet Coke and some red yarn for me?" "Sure. One question-what in the hell do you need yarn for?" "I need yarn so I can tie my granny up in a nice little package and send her to hell. No, she needs it for the sweater she is knitting. Can you believe her? In the middle of July she is knitting a sweater." "Tell me about it." Darien walked over to the trash can and put his garbage into it. "I guess I'll let you go then. Your mom doesn't like you to talk while you drive, does she?" "Naw. Just a little protective of her son that's all. See ya!" "Bye!" And with that Darien pushed the End button on his phone. He walked out of the door and to his truck, unlocked it, started it, and peeled off for Wal-Mart. He turned on the radio as he drove down the road. As he went through the green light, his phone rang again. He picked it up and pushed the talk button. "Hello?" "Hey! What's up?" "Not much. How 'bout you?" "Nothin'. Where are ya?" "I get asked that question a lot. I'm heading up to Wal-Mart." "Okay. Hey, will you pick up some Cherry Cokes and some of those little Cert's Mints?" asked Darien's friend Cloud. "Sure. At your house?" "Yup." "Hey, I am driving. I have to go. Call you when I get out of the store and I am heading over."
A small cat watched from the shadows in the bushes by the McDonald's sign. He had something shining on his forehead. A person saw a glimmer and looked. Then, strangely enough, the cat talked. "I wonder if he is the one?" The cat ran off down the street.
Darien pulled up to the Wal-Mart parking lot and parked his yellow truck in a space by a red car. A lady got out of the car and smiled. It was Missy Minix, owner of Acquired Collections. One of Jessica's best friends. She had a strange edge to her appearance. Her eyes were more dark than usual. Darien though that it must be her contacts. She had her hair not curly, but she had straightened it. She wore a black dress, with a red velvet vest. She had her hair up in a pony tail. Beyond the blackness in her eyes, there was a certain evilness there that Darien could not quite put his finger on. She walked up to him and said, "Hey, Darien!" her voice was edgy. Different. More sharp than usual. "Hey Mrs. Minix!" he replied. "Oh, please, you've known me since you were about thirteen. Call me Missy!" "Okay. How has your day been?" "Fine. I have to pick up some things for the shop. It is getting hectic." With that she walked off. Darien followed her into the store. He proceeded to get all of the items that were requested of him, paid, and left. He was worried about Missy.
As Darien pulled into the driveway, he was thinking. He was worried about Missy, something was wrong. He got out and got the Coke and other things out of the back, having dropped off the other things. "What the hell is going on here? Something is different." The cat from before walked along the driveway. Darien went inside and put the Cokes in the fridge, and then put the other things on the counter, and headed up to his room. He was wondering. He was just tired of all of this and wanted to take a nap. He headed up to his room, kicked off his shoes, laid down on his bed and went to sleep.
At about five o'clock, his window creaked. "What the hell? I though I shut the damn thing last night!" He reached up and closed the window. The cat was standing on the end of his bed. The golden shape on his forehead was glimmering. "How the hell did you get in here? And what the hell is that on your head?" The shape was a crescent moon. Then the cat talked. "My name is Artemis and I have been searching for you a long time, Darien." "How the hell? You can talk?!" said Darien in surprise. "What's more, how did you know my damn name?" "Well, I can talk can't I? Let's get down to business. This is for you." Artemis reached behind him and took a necklace off of the sheets. He put it down. "This looks neat." "Try it on." Darien took the necklace, undid the catch, put it around his neck and then redid the catch. Suddenly, he felt a fatigue. His mind was being washed with memories. Not from the sixteen years of his life on Earth, but of the years on the moon. It was all coming back to him. He was realizing that not only was he from the past, he was a prince. "Artemis. You came to me?" "Yes. Do you remember everything?" "Yes. And since you have come to awaken my powers, that means-" "Yes. Jenova has returned. She is trying to collect the Rainbow Crystals in order to unleash her wrath upon this world. We must stop her." "Yeah. Have the others been awakened?" "No. They can only be awakened when they have given their crystals. Once all seven of the crystals have been collected, they must again form the Silver Crystal." Darien looked in the mirror. "I guess I have to tell mom and Elaine. I can't cover my Crescent Moon up with a piece of tape, can I?" "Unfortunately, now they have to know. This is going to be tough, but we can win. We have to get the crystals first, though." "Yeah." "Well, better go." "Yes."
Darien walked off of the stairs. "Elaine, come in the kitchen for a second, will ya?" "Okay." He walked into the kitchen. He said, "Mom, there is something I have to tell you. You may need to sit down for this one." "Okay." They sat down at the table. Elaine first noticed the necklace. It was a gold circle that had a crescent moon inscribed on it. Then she looked up at his face, and saw the golden crescent moon glimmering. "What is THAT?" she asked. "That is what I am here to tell you." Darien proceeded to tell them about his past on the moon, his cat, and what he must do. "Oh my god," said Jessica. "That isn't all of it. Elaine plays a part in all of this too. You see that necklace she has?" "Yeah, the one I gave her as a baby." "She is a Rainbow Crystal guardian. That necklace actually has one of the seven crystals inside it." "As a guardian, she has to help me fight Jenova's power, or I might not win. If I should lose, first I would be killed, second the Universe would be enslaved." "What, what do I have to do?" Give me your necklace." She handed him the necklace and he stared into the crescent moon inscribed on a blue circle. The crescent moon on his forehead glowed brightly as the crystal formed above the necklace in his hand, glowing. A blue crescent moon formed on her forehead. "Now you have your powers fully restored. You are an 'ice witch' of sort." "I remember it all now. Serenity, too. And if I remember, wasn't mom in on this, too?" "Yes. Mother, you were, you were Queen Serenity. She didn't die. If you want to see what she looked like, look in a mirror." "Oh my god. As if it isn't enough that my kids are warriors, I am a queen? Great. Next you will tell me that mom's wand is the Crescent Moon Wand." "You asked for it." "Perfect." A moon lit up on Jessica's forehead. They were reunited as a family, as the family they were.