A/N: ...Wow. Within two days, this fanfic was more popular than my other works combined! O_o This is...this is just...wow. A HUGE thank you to all that bothered to look at this; I bid welcome to you all. And even bigger thanks to my reviewers; you guys have really made my day. :)

EDIT: Most changes are grammatical, but some bits have been trimmed, such as description of the incoming storm (WHAT was I THINKING,) and Master Fung's little run around the grounds. Slightly changed bits include a certain conversation between a dragon, a Dragon-trainee, and a pregnant woman, and a certain character's facial wounds. That is all.


Chapter Two: Omi

"What is this, Master Fung?"

Smiling slightly, the no-longer-young monk turned to his small companion. Four years after the storm, Omi had become easily excited and extremely curious about the world that flourished around him. The youth had shown a great interest in the training of a Xiaolin Dragon, and had already become psyched on becoming a Dragon of Water; he wanted nothing more than to become the greatest Xiaolin Warrior he could, a trait Master Fung felt strangely relieved about. His vocabulary was surprising, however; he could speak strongly for a four-year-old, even though he sometimes needed to sound out the words and had difficulty every now and then. At the moment, the large-headed four-year-old was stooped over a small insect in the grass, eyes wide with an unconcealed wonder that could only come from a child.

Walking over, Master Fung looked at what had caught his pupil's attention, and smiled. He stooped over, allowing the creature to climb onto his finger. "This, Omi," said the monk, squatting, so as to be closer to Omi's eye level, "is a caterpillar."

Omi's eyes went rounder. "What does it do, Master?"

"Well, it eats and eats, until it spins a cocoon around itself. After much time in this cocoon, it will one day become a butterfly. Like that one," he said, nodding over to a butterfly that had just alighted on a nearby flower.

The small child's eyes landed on the winged insect and lit up. Face following suit with an excited grin, he hurried over to the flower in earnest. The brightly colored creature lifted itself into the air, fluttering around Omi's wondering eyes for a moment, and flew away. Omi laughed happily, and turned to his teacher.

"Did you see that, Master?" he asked excitedly. He was positively beaming, bouncing on the balls of his feet, and all because of a small insect. Laughing inwardly, Master Fung nodded gently.

"Yes young one, I did."

With another excited giggle, the youth hurried over to a different flowerbed, eyes searching intently for another butterfly. With a small shake of his head, Master Fung followed at a slower pace, smiling at his pupil's excitement. On his shoulder, he heard Dojo make a noise of confusion.

"I don't get it; it's just a bug," remarked the dragon.

"To you, perhaps," replied Master Fung calmly. "But to Omi, it is a new and wondrous creature, revealing a world he was not aware of. Through his child eyes, he sees things that we cannot hope to ever see again. You were once like that, I believe."

"C'mon, give me a break! It's been over fifteen-hundred years since then! You expect me to be able to remember that far back?"

"No, Dojo. It hasn't been nearly as long as that for me, and yet I have no recollection of my youngest days."

Omi came sprinting up to them then, grinning like mad. "Dojo, Master Fung! Come and look; I've found such wonder..." He paused, face screwed up in concentration. "...won-der-ous things!" he finished, beaming.

"I'll come, Omi," said Dojo, slithering down from Fung's shoulder. "Master Fung has something important to do, don't ya?"

The old monk nodded. "Dojo speaks true; I'm afraid I will have to wait." Seeing Omi's crestfallen expression, Master Fung smiled gently, patting the youth on the head. "Go along, Omi; I will join you later."

After a moment, Omi's face brightened. "Come, Dojo! You must see!" he cried happily, racing to the flowerbed and motioning for the dragon to follow. Before Dojo could go, however, he heard Master Fung clear his throat. The green dragon looked up at his old friend.

"What?"

"Keep an eye on him, won't you?" requested Master Fung, nodding at Omi, who was now calling to Dojo, waving his arms to signal his green friend over. Dojo snorted.

"What do you think I am?" he said accusingly. "Of course I'll keep an eye on the kid!" With that, the dragon slithered after his friend, calling, "I'm coming, Omi, I'm coming."

For a second, Master Fung watched the two, secretly wishing he could go over. But he knew he couldn't. Omi wasn't the only one in need of attention...

Sighing softly, Fung turned towards the meditation room and, for now, unused vault. Leaves from last year's autumn rustled around him from the breeze as he approached the building. Entering, Master Fung walked calmly over to his usual spot and sat in a meditative position. Settled, he closed his eyes and opened his mind to the world.

--P--

With a prowess that exceeded his years, a ten-year-old boy hopped amongst the rocks, intelligent dark eyes examining his landing spot thoroughly each time in the few precious seconds it took to jump from place to place. Stopping on a particularly large boulder just on the edge of the forest, he raised a hand to brush thick, obscuring strands of ebony hair out from his sight. With a small sigh, he placed his hands on his hips and looked back; his seven-year-old brother lagged behind, shifting his way through the imposing rocks with less than half of the success his brother was having. All the same, when the youth looked up to see how far behind he was the older flashed him a grin and the thumbs-up sign.

"You're doing great, Ax!"

The younger, Axel, grinned briefly, but then lowered his head and returned to struggling over the rocks. It took him several minutes to reach the spot his brother was at, bent over and panting. He straightened, swiping dark-bronze locks out of his crystalline-blue eyes, just as his sibling had. Once Axel had regained his breath, he fixed his older brother with a slightly accusing look.

"Do you really have to go so fast, Brant? You know I can't match that speed!"

Brant rubbed the back of his neck embarrassedly. "Sorry, Axel; I just get so excited..."

He cut himself off when the sound of someone else approaching crossed their ears; someone much bigger. They both looked back the way they came, and saw a woman making her way across the rocks. She was a nicely sized woman, usually slender, with long, reddish-black hair twisted into an elegant braid. Normally, Estelle would have been able to overcome the obstacles nimbly, but heat from the late-afternoon sun and her round stomach combined to slow her a great deal.

"Mom, are you sure you should be moving around like this...especially in your condition?" asked Axel, worriedly. This caused Estelle to smile; Axel always tended to act older than he actually was, a trait both she and her eldest son were proud of and found amusing, all at the same time.

Estelle patted her hard, round stomach affectionately, giving her youngest boy a grin of reassurance. "This child isn't coming for some time, dearest Axel. Besides," she said, sitting down heavily on the rock, "I did this all the time when carrying both of you, and look how you turned out!"

"Yeah," mumbled Axel; only a deaf man could have missed the tinge of resentment in the child's voice. "Just look."

"Aw, c'mon, Ax," said Brant, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder. "We each have our different strengths."

"Oh yeah?" said Axel, turning a burning look at his brother. "What's mine?"

After the smallest of silences, it was Estelle who spoke first, pulling Axel into her warm embrace. "You, Axel, are my protector. You keep me safe."

Though Brant nodded his agreement, he felt a small twinge of annoyance under his brotherly love for the younger boy. Brant had been training for a while, perfecting his martial art skills, so as to be more of a barrier between harm and his family. But Axel had always been by their mother's side when she needed help. While Brant went to make sure everything was okay, his brother remained with Estelle. He knew he shouldn't, but he couldn't help but feel a small pang of jealousy. It all seemed so... fated.

It was then that Estelle turned her loving, chocolate gaze on her oldest. "Why so quiet, Brant?" she asked gently, eyebrows formed into a question.

Blinking, the boy shook his himself, and grinned. "Nothing, mom; I'm fine."

"Mm-hmm," said Estelle, releasing Axel from her embrace. She was obviously not fooled, but let it pass all the same.

"Anyway," said Brant, wanting a change of subject and turning to face the woods, "we should get a move on if we want to-"

Brant felt the remaining words turn to ash and vanish before utterance. He sensed Axel at his side, voicing concern, but his brother's voice seemed faint and far-off, a mere whisper carried to him by a breeze. There was something in there...and he wasn't the only one who could see it.

"...Brant?" Axel's voice sounded small and terrified to his ears. "What is it?"

The older boy never had a chance to answer.

A huge shape flung itself out from the bushes and into Brant so quickly that it was nothing more than a blur to his eyes. His head knocked to the ground, and the last things he was aware of before the darkness were jaws dragging him away, Axel's young hands gripped tightly to his wrist, Estelle's screams, and green eyes still burning in his mind...

--P--

Sighing deeply, Master Fung glanced at the doorway. Judging by the light, it was late afternoon, just a little before dusk; he had been meditating for much longer than he'd realized. The monk rose heavily to his feet, and exited. A thought struck him, and he headed toward the gardens...only to find it empty, devoid of any temple inhabitants. Omi and Dojo had obviously long since left this place.

With a small sigh, he headed towards the kitchens. Closing in, however, he heard voices, becoming louder to him as he neared. Yes, there they were: the youth and dragon were settled around the table, eating a snack, both talking animatedly about their discoveries. Omi's head turned just as Master Fung was about to clear his throat to speak, causing the old monk's eyebrows to rise. The small child grinned happily at him, mouth still full of food.

"Hewwo, Massa Foong!" said Omi around a large helping of sandwich. Dojo grinned widely, revealing the food within his mouth as well, and waved, indicating he couldn't speak.

Biting back a laugh, Master Fung fixed his charge with a semi-serious look. "Now Omi; what have we said about speaking with our mouths full?"

Blinking a few times, Omi blushed, swallowed, and grinned again. "But Master, my mouth is always filled with words! How would I be able to speak then?"

"Having your mouth filled with words is much different from your mouth being filled with food, young monk," replied Master Fung patiently. When he turned to Dojo, however, his gaze became fully stern. "I had at least expected you to know better, Dojo Kanojo Cho."

"Sowwy," replied Dojo. At his old friend's hard stare, the small dragon, like Omi, blushed and swallowed. "Sorry," he corrected himself. "It's just this kid really rubs off on ya."

"Indeed," said Master Fung, arching an eyebrow.

Omi's voice bounced towards his ears. "Master Fung! Why did you not join us in the garden?" The youth's tone held a little more than some accusation.

Master Fung nodded to him, apologetic. "My apologies, Omi; I'm afraid that what I had to do had taken a little longer than expected."

What happened next was unexpected. Omi's mouth was actually halfway open to reply when wails filled the air. All three of them jumped, looking around. It was an eerie sound; a scream of grief and pain from unearthly origins, shoved into a single word that they knew yet did not recognize. Looking confused, Omi studied himself, eyebrows slanted in a question. Exchanging a look, the three agreed silently, and rushed out to find the source. None of them had anticipated what they would see there.

A woman, heavy with child and sobbing uncontrollably, was supported in the arms of another monk. Tears carved tracks in the dirt covering her face, and strands of hair were falling out of the braid hanging down her back.

Master Fung and the monk exchanged a glance, and the monk half supported, half carried the woman into the temple. Omi watched all of this with wide eyes.

His teacher turned to him, and said, "Please go to your room, Omi; I will come and inform you on what I know soon enough." With that, the old man walked with surprising calmness after his comrade, leaving Omi and Dojo to gape stupidly at each other.

After a few minutes, Dojo sped up onto Omi's shoulder and began tugging forward. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Follow them?" said Omi, eyebrows rising and arching with shock. "But...but Master Fung said-"

"Oh, come on, kid!" exclaimed Dojo. "A little eavesdropping now and then never hurt anybody! Move it!"

Giving in, Omi crept quickly but silently in pursuit of his elders, remembering his little training and blending into the shadows as he worked his way through the temple. Uncertain of how he was doing it, the small Chinese boy somehow managed to slip past a few monks without being noticed.

Eventually, sooner than the two had expected, they spotted Master Fung and the other monk, standing just within the open doorway of a room, in which the bed was occupied by the now-unconscious woman. Remaining silent, the two found that they had just come upon Master Fung mid-sentence.

"...happened to the boys?"

"We have no way of knowing, Fung. For all we can assume, the creature has eaten them by now."

"Lower your voice," Master Fung murmured quietly, sending a glance towards the woman in the bed. The other bit his lip and looked a little ashamed.

"There's no helping it; she will find out in time...," he said in a tone to match Master Fung's volume.

"But not now; not when we haven't any proof."

The other nodded, conceding that Master Fung was right. After a small pause, he said, "What kind of creature do you think it could be? A large cat that breathes fire... I have no recollection of ever learning of such a thing."

Omi and Dojo exchanged an uneasy glance.

"Memory fails us all," responded Master Fung sagely, eyes growing distant in thought.

For an unaccounted for amount of time, nothing more was said, as both of the older monks wracked their brains for the answer that eluded them. It was thick enough for Omi and Dojo to become increasingly nervous. Suddenly, Master Fung's eyes opened.

"First and foremost, we must protect the temple."

"Agreed," said the other.

"And Omi...," said Master Fung quietly, his eyes flashing to Omi's and Dojo's hiding spot. For a split-second, Omi thought that maybe Master Fung was calling him over; but then the monk's gaze shifted back to his companion. "Omi cannot move around the temple unattended. He must be under supervision at all times."

"And to be safe, he should be restricted inside unless it needs be he should move to another building."

Omi's jaw dropped in mixed horror and disbelief. Dojo pinched him, so that he wouldn't forget that they were hiding. The youth's mouth shut quickly and silently.

"I agree," nodded Master Fung. After another pause, he said, "Go now; you have other matters to attend to."

With a nod and a bow, the other monk left, walking past Omi and Dojo without so much as a glance. For several moments after he had left, Omi and Dojo remained hiding. It was only when the remaining monk spoke to them that they knew they already were found out.

"Come on out, Omi, Dojo."

The two cohorts in crime looked at each other, surprised and yet not surprised. With a defeated sigh, Dojo waved a claw to motion Omi forward. Head bowed, Omi stepped out from his hiding place and glanced at Master Fung, feeling ashamed of himself for snooping.

"Master Fung-"

"I know you overheard, Omi, and I also know who talked you into following me." He gave Dojo a meaningful look that caused the dragon to quail. When Dojo couldn't meet his gaze any longer, Master Fung turned back to his pupil, sympathy in his blue eyes. "You should know, young one, the part concerning you, I meant it, and I stand by it firmly. It's for your own good."

A feeling of injustice boiled its way up into Omi, but, looking at his teacher, he knew it was fruitless to argue. Anger flowing in his veins, the boy glared at his shoes, and said, in a forced voice of dangerous calmness,

"Yes, Master Fung."

--P--

The black-navy blue of a night sky cast such an odd hue on the world: dark blue, almost indigo. The tiny pinpricks of light in the dark blanket were outshone by the moon, a bright, silver coin in the sky. However, tonight, this peaceful image was interrupted by a huge wall of dark clouds, creeping along and swallowing up stars like smoke. A flash lit up the clouds briefly, and a distant grumble echoed through the night.

For Omi, the sky was strangely fitting to his mood. On one hand, he was content like the moonlit half, fine with everything here. On the other, he was upset by Master Fung's orders, much like the approaching storm; he had looked forward to exploring more of the world inside the Xiaolin Temple. Each new day yielded new surprises, after all. But here he was, stuck inside while the night called to him. He sighed heavily.

"Aw, cheer up, Omi," said Dojo, shifting a few scrolls in his arms as to hold them a little easier.

"But Dojo, I can't stay inside while the world is outside!" Omi complained, whirling on the spot to face the dragon, his arms flying up. "How can I sit here and do nothing?"

"You could meditate," the dragon suggested, almost overbalancing but catching himself just in time.

The child groaned. "But I already tried that! My thinking is so filled with thoughts I can't think thor- thoroughly!"

"That's a mouthful...," Dojo muttered.

"Honestly, Dojo! There is nothing here to do," Omi concluded miserably, leaning against the rail.

Dojo said nothing; he was too busy trying to balance himself and the scrolls. However, it was when he nearly toppled over for the fifth time that a light bulb popped over his head with a small Ping! "Well, I know how you could be productive."

Omi brightened. "Really?" he asked, interested.

The green dragon indicated the scrolls. "Give me a ride."

That wasn't exactly what the child had in mind; he deflated slightly. He tried to come up with something, but the slight silence, which lasted roughly five seconds, was enough to irritate the youth's small friend.

"Well, don't everybody jump up at once!" snapped Dojo crossly. "I know it's not the most glamorous job in the world-"

"I'm sorry, Dojo!" Omi exclaimed apologetically. "It is just...it was not...I did not mean..."

"Yeah, yeah," Dojo grumbled, clambering as best he could onto Omi. "Just get moving, would you? I'm sure Master Fung wouldn't worry so much if I was with you."

Without a word, Omi nodded and walked where Dojo instructed him. The little dragon seemed to calm down as they went along, and soon he was in an infectiously good mood. Pretty soon, Omi was chuckling along with him, even if he did need to have a few things explained to him. After all, he was only four years old.

Soon they reached the scroll room, Dojo's obvious destination. While Dojo went inside to sort his scrolls, Omi remained at the door, thinking...

When Dojo exited, he was greeted by the sight of Omi with a most peculiar expression on his face. Just when he was going to speak, Omi said, "I want to visit the lady."

--P--

Estelle was unlike anything Omi had ever come across, never having seen a member of the female group of the species before in his life. His fascination, however, was in the fact that she carried unborn life within her. When he asked if it were by magic, the tiniest of smiles, the first one seen there since the afternoon, forced itself into her face.

"No," she said, hoarse chuckles shoving their way out of her throat. "It's not magic, Omi; at least, not the kind of magic you have in mind."

This confused him. "But...what other magic exists?"

"The magic of life, of course," she said, as though this were obvious.

Omi's expression remained blank, and Dojo shook his head. "I'll explain when you're older. I guess you'd need to know the opposite first."

"You mean death?"

The other two in the room jumped, because this particular inquiry was made by Omi. They both stared at him, blinking in surprised befuddlement. After exchanging a glance, they turned their full attention to their young companion.

"...You know what death is?" the woman finally asked; she said the words carefully, as though treading on red-hot coals.

"Probably not," the child admitted, sounding out the longer word. "But I think I may be getting the idea."

In truth, Omi didn't really understand the concept of death. Several days previously, he and Master Fung had come across a bird, lying motionless beneath a tree. Master Fung had deduced that it must have hit the plant, crushing its skull, though no evidence of broken bones had been present. When Omi had inquired as to what the bird was doing, his teacher had become very quiet, as though contemplating how to best explain it. Finally, the old man had conceded it was dead, only to be posed with the question of just what death was.

"Is it like being asleep?"

"...Yes, Omi, that would be the easiest way of explaining it, though it stops woefully short of the truth; death...is a sleep from which one never wakes."

The whole thing had made Omi more than a little confused. All that he had been able to glean from the experience was that the motionless bird had been the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen in his short life. The delicate body and fragile-looking wings had been etched in his mind with perfect clarity.

Omi shook his head to clear it. "In any case, I suppose you are right; life is magic."

Estelle and Dojo seemed to embrace the continuation of the conversation, for they visibly relaxed. But after a few moments it seemed that Estelle had relaxed a little too much; the smile faded from her lips, and her eyes were downcast. With the tiniest of sighs, she stared at the blankets.

Concern entered Omi's eyes as he tilted his head to the side, curiosity lining his gaze. "What's wrong?"

She balled her hands into fists, gripping the blankets. "I- I fear that the magic of my sons' lives may have been ripped away."

"You mean, you think they are dead," interpreted Omi. Lacking an understanding of just what exactly death was, his tone was casual, even though his voice was concerned. By some miracle, Estelle looked past it, even as the tears squeezed their way from behind her eyes when she nodded.

Dojo shot his young friend a sharp look, and patted Estelle comfortingly on the shoulder. "I'm sure they're okay," he said, tasting the foul lie in his words as he spoke them.

A humorless laugh escaped her lips. "You sound so sure," she remarked, a hint of sarcasm in her words. Shaking her head, she said, "I've been so worried... I haven't eaten since lunch."

"We can-not be sure of ever- ever-y-thing, Estelle," said Omi, approaching the bed. "But that does not mean we can't hope. And you can-not...a-ban-don the new life in you," he added, eyes flashing to her stomach. "I think you should worry about your baby first."

Estelle didn't answer; for a while she said nothing, but eventually she nodded, almost determinedly. When she said nothing more to her visitors, they decided it would be best to leave her alone for the moment. Once they were out of earshot of the woman, Dojo shook his head.

"You shouldn't talk about death so lightly," he said quietly.

"Why, Dojo?" Omi's eyes were quizzical.

The dragon sighed. "You'll know...someday."

They continued to walk through the temple; Omi wasn't all that sure of where his feet were taking them, because it was almost as though they had suddenly developed minds of their own. It wasn't until he was aware that Dojo had left his shoulder that Omi stopped. Glancing down, he spotted Dojo a few feet behind him, apparently lost in thought. The child turned around, facing the dragon.

"Dojo?" he asked

Dojo jumped, as though tugged from a particularly interesting dream. "Huh?"

"Are you alright, Dojo?"

"Alright?" Dojo's eyes were tugged in a frown as he thought about this. "Yeah, I'm fine, I was just..."

His voice faded away as his eyes widened, fixed at a point somewhere above Omi's right shoulder. Slightly frightened, Omi turned his head to look around himself, even at the ceiling. Unable to see the source of Dojo's fear, he turned slowly back to the dragon.

"Are you sure you're-"

"Cats are carnivorous, right?" Dojo interrupted with a foreign intensity in his face.

Omi blinked. "What?"

With a small groan, Dojo rephrased his previous sentence. "Cats eat meat, don't they?"

That didn't help too much, but Omi slightly understood what Dojo meant. He shrugged. "I suppose so..."

"So that means..." Dojo swallowed. "...those two could already have been turned into dinner by now; eaten." Tears popped up into his eyes. "Poor kids..."

Omi said nothing; although unable to comprehend some things, he certainly knew that this wasn't good. Biting his lip, he started pacing subconsciously, once again unaware of his feet's actions or their intent. All he knew was that he wanted to help, somehow, but he didn't know what to do. A feeling of helplessness crept over him, and he didn't like it one little bit. Racking his brain with no success, he sighed, arms slapping against his side.

"What does Master Fung do in a situation like this?" he wondered aloud. Dojo heard the remark, thinking it was for him.

"Well, usually he goes over to the vault and meditates," the dragon said helplessly.

Omi's head snapped up. "Does it work?"

"Sometimes; it helps him get an answer nine out of ten times." The dragon closed his eyes. "But I don't really see a way out of this one." Raising his head, he opened his eyes as he continued to speak. "Why do you-?" His voice failed him as cold fear gripped his heart.

Omi had vanished.

--P--

By the time Omi had managed to scale the tree, a light drizzle had started up, the clouds covering two thirds of the sky above him. He planned to get to the vault by roof-hopping; it would help him to get to his destination without detection.

But when he had managed to get to the first roof, it seemed that his plan was easier said than done. The ground seemed much farther away than it actually was, and a smallest of breezes was buffeting him around, making him wobble even worse than he previously was. Nevertheless, Omi was determined to do this. He needed an answer, and this sounded like the best means to get it. On unsteady legs, he started his journey across the rooftops, struggling to squash the swell of doubt growing in his heart with every step.

His worrying only increased when he came to the end of his current path. Below him, the ground stared back up at him, looking extremely solid. Across the gap stood another building, the roof about level with the one he was currently on. Omi bit his lip; there was only one choice.

Feeling extremely nervous, Omi backed up several steps. Closing his eyes, he inhaled deeply, held it for a second, and released it, opening his eyes. Steeling himself, he started running across the wet roof. With each near stumble, his terror increased, until he ran out of roof and he had to jump.

For a few, uncountable moments, Omi had a distinct feeling of flight. Suspended as he was in midair with nothing beneath him and only inertia making it possible for him to do this, he felt as though everything had been left on the ground. It was strangely...liberating. Then he noticed that the roof was becoming increasingly closer. He swallowed, bracing his feet for impact.

The landing came sooner than expected. His feet touched the tiles, and shock waves worked up through his legs, his torso, and up to his arms. For a moment, he wobbled dangerously on his precarious perch. But then he steadied and blinked, looking back; the distance seemed so much smaller now. A spark of confidence growing in the place doubt once occupied, he allowed himself a grin and carried on.

He managed the rest of the journey with little incident, until he reached the final jump. The steady drizzle hadn't been enough to soak Omi to the bone, but it was certainly enough to make the rooftops slippery. On the final landing, one of his feet slid out from beneath him, and he skidded down the incline and found himself falling.

It took him less than a split-second to notice a slowly growing puddle just beneath him. His mind, still surprised by his slip, was so overthrown by this sight that all he could think about besides the need of a safe landing was water. His mouth opened to speak, though he didn't really know what he was going to say. Finally his tongue was loosed, and he gasped out the first thing that popped into his head as he closed his eyes:

"Water!"

Braced as he was for impact with the ground, Omi was greatly surprised when it never came. Instead, a cold wetness covered everything but his head, soaking him more effectively than the rain ever had. He opened his eyes, and nearly fainted.

A pillar of water, small though it was, had suddenly grown from the puddle, looking like some kind of mutated tree trunk. He sat there, the embrace of the liquid strangely comforting, like a warm blanket on a stormy night. Omi looked around himself, and a grin forced the corners of his mouth upward, giving the child a slightly deranged look. He'd had no idea how this had happened, but he liked it already. With a boost of confidence, he decided that he wanted to be back on the ground.

"AA-!"

SPLASH!

Omi groaned. Instead of being let down gently, the pillar had fallen away as though sucked into a vacuum, and Omi had landed painfully on the stone path. His hand stung terribly; lifting it to look, he saw a scrape on his palm, bits of loose rock and dirt sticking to it, drops of blood as red as cherries oozing silently from the wound. Tears of pain were building up in the child's eyes, a tiny wail lodging itself in his throat. Finally, he started sucking on it, spitting out the dirt and rock as the tears streamed down his face. Still sucking on his injury, Omi rose to his feet and walked the remaining distance to the meditation vault, wiping his eyes on a soaked sleeve.

The warmth cast by the torches and the cauldron situated in the middle of the circular room had therapeutic effects on the cold, wet child. Even the scrape's stinging had lessened. He took his hand from his mouth and looked around, wondering what to do now. Settling himself in a position he had seen Master Fung take many times before, he closed his eyes, trying to concentrate.

In a matter of moments, he was overtaken by a hoard of noisy, distracting thoughts. Frustration mounting, Omi tried to dissipate these to a steady silence, but this proved to be easier said than done. For each one thought he managed to squash, ten more took its place. He groaned, and stood back up.

It was then that a strange idea came to him. Not really knowing why, he bent over, placed the top of his head on the ground, and tried to balance himself; he toppled over almost immediately. Not to be deterred, the small boy picked himself back up and tried again. It took him five more tries to finally balance on his head, and even then he was a little wobbly. Situating his body in a meditative position, he tried it again...and this time it worked. Allowing himself a grin for a moment, he returned to meditating.

He remained that way for what could have been seconds or hours, searching for the answer. Suddenly, he had a strange sensation on his forehead, as though someone were inside his head, pressing a number of warm circles against his skull. Before he could dwell on this, however, he was swept away in a thought:

He saw the Xiaolin Temple, ancient and beautiful in the rain; his vision closed up on one of the entrances, this one with a tree-lined path; his vision went further, and he saw a creature, long and lithe, with burning green eyes...

The vision passed, and Omi's eyes snapped open. He knew where to look.

Leaping to his feet and ignoring the dizzying sensation of blood rushing from his head, Omi stumbled from the meditation vault and, once his legs righted themselves, sped to his destination, ignoring the slight increase from drizzle to rain, leaping over puddles and passing buildings in a blur. The urgency of the situation and a drive of determination shoved all thought of alerting Master Fung or anyone else to his revelation right out of his head. Seeing the entrance, he skidded to a stop in front of it, panting slightly, and went on guard as he opened the doors with all the silence he could muster.

Step by cautious step, Omi peered out to the land beyond the temple walls, caution starting to be mixed with wonder and exhilaration. He had never before been allowed outside of the temple grounds, and technically, he still wasn't supposed to be out here. All the same, he was taking his first steps ever out from the safety of the Xiaolin Temple. It was exciting, and this excitement was only increased at the thought that he'd be meeting a dangerous animal in battle.

He didn't think of death; he didn't even know what it was.

Soon, Omi had cleared the stairs and was on the path; trees loomed forebodingly above him, and a small tremor of fear slipped into him. Omi gulped, and then froze when a growl reached his ears.

It was unlike anything Omi had heard before, like every fear had been crammed and morphed into a single noise uttered from a single throat. Frozen solid with fear, Omi jerkily moved his head in the direction the sound came from. Something flashed across the path, and Omi's head snapped in the other direction. Feet rooted to the spot, all Omi could do was wait.

The tiniest of whimpers issued from the side, and his eyes glanced in that direction. Omi managed to catch sight of two shadows, slightly hidden behind a tree, before the attack.

A roar filled Omi's ears; it was an unearthly scream from the bottom of the deepest pits and the darkest shadows, frightening, almost metallic, and chilled blood where it flowed, freezing every part of the body. The creature leapt from the trees just ahead of Omi, claws extended and jaws wide, revealing razor sharp impossibly white teeth, meant for tearing flesh from bones. It caught the light streaming from a gap in the clouds, and Omi saw just what he was facing: something quite like a mountain lion, only with faint tiger-like stripes, and more slender in build, sleek; a tawny hide touched silver from the moonlight; green eyes like fierce emeralds blazing with a strange light- the same eyes he'd seen in his vision.

Trapped as he was from fear, the only thing Omi could do was watch as, seemingly in slow motion, the monster soared at him and rammed into his body, pinning him to the ground. The spell broken, Omi slammed his feet into the chest of the creature, catching it off-guard and shoving it off of him, and he leapt to his feet. It prowled a few feet away, as though keeping its distance, and suddenly lunged; Omi threw a punch and hit the cat squarely in the jaw. It yowled and leapt back, its eyes glaring at him.

The thing remained where it was, glaring at the small child with a hatred he'd never encountered, causing him to quail slightly. It attacked again, this time catching Omi off guard and locking its jaws around his arm, strong enough for a grip but not to pierce the flesh, and threw him into a tree on the right side of the path. Omi slammed into the tree, hearing the branches above rattle from the impact and feeling a few leaves land on him and the ground around him. Looking up, he saw the creature stretch its jaws open; a green orb began growing there until it became a fireball, and it shot towards him. Omi was just able to dodge the blast, which left a black circle in the place his head was moments before. Still against the tree, Omi was forced to dodge three more blasts.

In the brief respite that followed, Omi glanced to the side and saw the two shadows more clearly this time: Two boys, the larger one lying facedown in the grass, motionless, while the other cowered next to the first, fear dancing in his eyes.

The next thing he knew, Omi was being pinned to the tree by one large paw, and staring into the face of the cat. It bared its fangs and uttered a seducing growl, sending shivers up and down Omi's spine. Unexpectedly, the child felt his gaze being drawn to the creature's eyes.

In his mind, silky and so soft it was just barely audible he heard a voice whisper, Look.

So he did.

His mind screaming to him not to look, every fiber of his being rejecting the command, Omi, without hesitation, looked into the creature's eyes.

Green filled his gaze. Black slits were surrounded by green circles; while generally emerald, the irises were flecked with every shade of green in the spectrum. The eyes pierced him to the bone, reading him like a child's book. But they weren't eyes; they became flames, vast and fierce. Flames were dancing fiercely within the holes of the skull. Flames of crackling heat, comfortably warm and at the same time unbearably hot; flames that never slept, never stopped...

Within these flames, Omi saw something grow, something white-red in color. Soon he saw a circle, and then more, and then a diagram of them, tilted into a diamond. The diamond was on a large, round head; his head. It was him, a few years older perhaps, but him. His shirt's colors had swapped positions with each other, the dominant one now being black. But his face... his face was contorted by a frightening, deranged grin, eyes dancing with a mad light. He stood suspended by water, arm-like funnels reaching out, one pinning an older tan boy to a cave wall, while an even older boy, mighty in stature, struggled to his feet behind the water-wielding deranged warrior. Fear coursed through Omi. This...what was this? It couldn't be...it just couldn't be...

A droplet of water fell from the branch and hit the floor with a small drip.

The image flickered.

Omi blinked; another drop hit the floor. It happened again, like the vision before him was a mirror-like pond, and raindrops were now falling into it. Right then, Omi had an epiphany. He recalled the pillar of water that had caught him before he hit the ground, and saw the droplets distorting the image. Calling up the last part of his mind not carried away by the horrifying vision, Omi heard the steady crash of ocean waves, felt the small raindrops hitting his head. It happened again, and didn't go away this time: the warm circles pressing against his skull. Focusing what he could on it, Omi uttered the name of his element.

"...Water."

Waves rose up before his eyes and receded. The vision cracked like glass and shattered, and Omi was back in the rain, pinned by the cat-creature. As though it realized that its trick had been thwarted, the creature growled, more angrily this time, and bared its teeth at Omi. Fear embraced him in its familiar arms, even with the strange circles, as he stared into the green eyes, their powers useless against him now but still terrifying, still filled with rage and hatred.

Quite suddenly, staring into those pitiless green eyes, Omi knew what death was.

--P--

When Master Fung heard the commotion coming from outside the gates, he'd already sent Dojo to gather the other monks and tracked Omi to the mediation vault. His heart already pounding in his throat, the shrieks and cries of battle only served to further increase his anxiety for the young child a dying woman had placed in his care.

When he came upon the gates and saw the doors slightly ajar, his fear increased, and he raced, panting now, over to the gates and was forced to stop, trying to regain his breath. When he opened his eyes, he didn't see anything...at first.

Heading down the steps, he suddenly noticed a large, limp form lying on the path, unmoving. He feared it was Omi, until he realized that it was far, far too big to be the monk. With calmer steps, he walked over to it. Reaching it, he was greeted by the unconscious body of a large cat, alien to him in form. He turned his head to the sound of labored breathing, and found himself rooted to the spot with surprise.

Omi stood there, his face shadowed as to hide his expression, raindrops sliding seemingly unnoticed down his face. The youth's gaze seemed fixated upon the creature that was, apparently, his former opponent. A faint, yellow glow, square in shape, emanated from his forehead, visible and yet not quite, sticking out in the darkness like a daisy amidst a bouquet of roses. Master Fung approached the monk, cautiously; if Omi was at all aware of his master's presence, he didn't show it. Upon closer inspection, he could just see a diagram of nine dots, casting the square shaped glow. His eyes widened; he'd never really expected Omi to posses that...

He became aware of footsteps heading towards him, and looked away from his charge to see Dojo leading the rest of the monks towards them. The dragon reached them first, and upon seeing Omi his nerves seemed to calm.

Just slightly, anyway.

"Omi? Oh good, you're alive! Master Fung, what's going on? What's with Omi? What's that?"

The rapid-fire of questions bounced off of Master Fung, for his only concern was for Omi. But then he heard a faint whimper off to the side; looking up, he saw two boys.

Estelle's sons!

Shooting Omi one last worried glance, Master Fung hurried over to the boys. The smaller boy, Axel was what Estelle said his name was, seemed to be physically whole. Brant, however, lay unconscious on the ground, face in the grass. After patting Axel comfortingly on the arm, he squatted next to Brant and turned him over. Upon seeing the boy's face, his stomach mimicked the action.

Brant's face was completely covered in blood. Fighting against the bile that had leaped into his throat, Master Fung wiped the red substance from the child's face as best as he could. Three deep gouges started at the right side of the boy's forehead, slashing diagonally across his face. He heard Dojo give a low whistle.

"Whoa...," he said, eyes widening. "That's one nasty injury! He was lucky it missed his eyes!"

Master Fung silently agreed, though he didn't give voice to this opinion.

Suddenly, a frightening snarl came from behind; Dojo gave a noise of terror and dived into Master Fung's vest as the old monk whirled around, leaping into a fighting stance. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Omi lift his head. The cat had regained consciousness, and was now glaring at everyone around it with unprovoked hatred, except for in the case of Omi. Before the monks could so much as bat an eyelid, however, the cat raced down the pathway and vanished into the rainy night without a trace.

Once the thing was gone, Omi lowered his head again, and Master Fung thought he heard the child sigh. In the blink of an eye, he was squatted at Omi's side, fixing the child with such an intense gaze that he was certain his student was aware of it.

"Omi?"

Omi's eyes flickered in his direction briefly.

"Omi, what happened here, young monk?"

For a while, it seemed as though Omi were trying to awaken his tongue from a deep slumber. Finally, with some difficulty he said, "Fire."

That didn't make sense. "What happened?" Master Fung repeated, trying to get a straight answer from his charge.

Omi merely shook his head, closing his eyes. "Fire... Green...green fire..."

Master Fung bit his lip. Omi wasn't well, that was certain; the young monk needed rest, possibly medical treatment for all he knew. Straightening, he placed a guiding hand around his student. "It's time to go inside now, Omi."

The youth raised his head slightly, and the diagram faded. "Home."

Master Fung smiled encouragingly as Dojo peeked from out under the vest and resumed his position on the old monk's shoulder. "That's right Omi: home."

Quietly, the three of them walked towards the gates as the other monks tended to Brant and Axel. There mother would be highly relieved. As they passed by the trees, Omi said nothing, and Master Fung presently worried that the child had gone into a mindless coma. But then, the four-year-old looked up and glanced to the side, at the raindrops.

"...Water."

One of the drops remained where it was in the air, just in Omi's line of sight, and followed the three, keeping its position all the while as it dodged its companions. Master Fung's eyebrows rose as Dojo's mouth fell open in disbelief.

"When'd he learn how to do that?" Dojo hissed in Master Fung's ear.

Omi smiled.


Next up: Kimiko. I haven't started yet, so I need to get cracking on her. But I've got an idea of what to do...

Tell me what you thought about this chapter; it would help to know what you liked or disliked. But you don't have to if you don't want to, I'm just asking…