A few days later...
The car rolled down the streets of Sun City in the middle of the night. Stars twinkled beside the crescent moon. Streetlights cast a soft blue glow over the quiet neighborhoods. The cities of Sky World had been rather unaffected by the war itself, with most of the battles taking place at the gates of the Underworld or across the ravaged Overworld. Most of the houses were dark, although a few were lit up, showing promises of life within the silent city. At least that's what Pit Icarus imagined while he was being taken to his new home.
He had said goodbye to Palutena back at the Sky Palace, all the way back in Sky City. The palace was in a flurry of activity with many wounded being brought inside the palace's healing ward and other exhausted soldiers heading towards the barracks. Few stopped to consider the young angel leaving behind what he had always known and loved. The goddess put on a brave face for her people but Pit had a feeling that she was scared of what was going to happen to him. Pit was too.
Most angels didn't know that Sora and Lucian ever had any children. They had kept Pit a secret, not wanting to attract too much attention to him and have heavy expectations placed on him so young. The two had met as young warriors in training camp, and their competitive natures combined with natural skill led both of them to excel in the army. They had become very close friends despite always attempting to outdo each other and always stayed close together in battle. It was during a rather difficult battle that Lucian had become badly injured, and Sora stayed day and night by his bedside wanting nothing but to see him recover. During his recovery Lucian said that he would only promise to recover if Sora promised to marry him. She agreed, and Lucian healed.
Together they worked harder than ever and quickly rose through the ranks. They excelled to the point where they were two of the ten top generals that led Palutena's army and coached her royal bodyguard. After spending a hundred years at general rank, Sora decided she wanted a child, but it took another fifty for her wish to be granted. Pit was born much to his parents' and Palutena's delight. Both generals had loved training for battle, especially archery, and passed their skills on to their son early in his life.
It didn't take long for the top generals to notice something special about Pit. Pit excelled at archery far beyond others at his age level, and it was clear to everyone that he would surpass his parents in battle with time. His skill at archery quickly earned him the nickname, 'Kid Icarus', as by this time 'Icarus' had become a substitute for 'a great archer'. Sora and Lucian were loved both among the soldiers and the civilians, and when they were able to take a break the three angels lived contently in their quarters within the palace. Everything seemed to be fine...until last night.
Medusa was always attempting to summon and control more powerful demons in her quest to destroy Palutena. This time was the most powerful creature yet - a thirty-story high shadow-hydra, able to shoot fire, lightning and acid from its six mouths. The terrifying creature had practically eliminated all life from a sizable portion of the Overworld, and many of Palutena's army had died fighting the creature. With this knowledge, Pit's parents knew what they were getting into, they knew they had a son at home...and they attacked anyways. Together they had trained, battled, raised a son, and now died while the darkness that created the hydra faded away, gone forever.
It was a major loss for Medusa, for the hydra was the strongest demon she had ever controlled, but it was a great loss for Palutena as well, who had lost her greatest generals. That night Pit had been simply looking out the window of the Sky Palace, wondering when his parents would return so they could be happy again, when a servant came in with the message that his parents would never be coming back. So here he was now, going to meet some family which he never knew existed, in a strange car, in a strange city, crying all the way there.
Pit didn't know why his father had never told him about these relatives. For as long as he could remember, the only extended family he had were his mother's parents, Grandpa Vesper and Grandma Iris. But they had both died a couple of years ago together in a car wreck. He had barely known them. It was weird having wings but not being able to fly. Well, the truth was most angels were so unfit now that their wings were getting dull from lack of exercise, hence the reason for cars. Not much unlike humans on other worlds. With Medusa's evil a constant in the world, not even angels were immune from 'undesirable' traits. The cities in Sky World were built on clouds, and the cars designed so they could float over empty spaces if needed, basically resolving the need for having wings. Pit's parents had made sure he could fly just in case he ever needed a quick escape. It was hard work keeping in the air, but he could fly around for a good half-hour now. Not too bad for an angel these days.
The young angel still could not believe the turn of events. Suddenly he had a huge family! Where the heck did they come from? Pit remembered asking his father about the family only two years ago, but Lucian simply said that his parents were dead and he had no siblings, exactly like his wife. Obviously he had lied to Pit. Why? Pit knew his father must have had a good reason to lie to his only child, but still…
Pit had no more time to dwell on things as the car pulled up in front of a three story house. It was kind of hard to see in the darkness, but Pit could tell that it was painted a light color, had small steps leading up to the front door, and somehow seemed menacing. This house definitely did not seem to be a home.
"Well, here we are, Kid Icarus…ready to go inside?" Two centurions had come with Pit: Emily, who was second-in-command of one of the legions, and Marquis, who had a teasing smile and who was a friend of his late father. He was the one who had spoken and loved using Pit's nickname. Emily, however, was much more serious.
"Let's go," she snapped, getting out of the car. Marquis winked at Pit and got out the driver's side. Pit followed from the backseat.
Marquis unloaded Pit's two suitcases from the trunk and began to carry them to the front door. Emily was already there, ringing the bell impatiently.
After about five minutes of waiting, a woman appeared at the door. She was wearing a ratty pink bathrobe, had brown hair in turquoise curlers, and fuzzy pink slippers on her feet. Pit had to bite his lip in order to keep from laughing at the funny sight, but in his gut Pit had a feeling that something wasn't right.
"What do you want?" The woman half-snapped, half-yawned while leaning against the doorframe. She had this strange voice, almost scratchy, like a stick was rubbing the inside of her throat and she was trying to talk through the pain.
"You're Mrs. Greystone, correct?" Emily asked.
"That's me," the woman sniffed, "And you're the little ankle-biter, aren't you?" This last was addressed to Pit.
"Yes, this is your nephew, Pit Icarus, son of Lucian and Sora Icarus. His parents are dead and he is now in your care," Emily replied before Pit could respond.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever…come inside already. I'm tired and need to get up tomorrow. With Boris on summer vacation, there's so much to do. The kid's in grade seven, isn't he?"
Pit replied, "Actually, I'm in grade eight now…I skipped a year."
His aunt mumbled under her breath but Pit still heard, "Smart-ass kid."
Pit stared in shock at his aunt's reaction, but if the two centurions heard they didn't seem to care. Emily pushed against the small of Pit's back and said, "Hurry up now; it's been a long night." Pit was pushed unwillingly into the house.
Everything about this house seemed hard. The floor seemed unnaturally stiff under Pit's sandaled feet, and everything was brightly polished to a shine. The narrow entryway was plain white and had a steep stairway at the end. Next to the stairs was an arch that led to the kitchen. Two doors to the left were shut. An archway to the right led to a living room colored a gaudy pink with everything in starched floral patterns. Even the couch cushions in the living room looked as hard as rocks. The environment fit the last name of the family living in it perfectly.
"Well, here are all of Pit's things," said Marquis, putting the bags down next to a couch in the living room, "If Pit ever needs anything, simply give the Goddess a shout. She really loves this little guy…" Marquis ruffled Pit's hair and smiled at the young angel, "I'm going to miss you, buddy. I promise you I'll come back to visit you after the war is over."
Pit couldn't return the smile. He did not want to be here. Something seemed off, although he couldn't place what. There was simply nothing Pit could do right now except hope for the best. "Okay…bye, Mark," Pit said, and he gave Marquis a hug. Another part of Pit's old life was leaving and he did not know when he'd see it again.
Emily nodded to Marquis as he left the room. She then turned to Pit's aunt and whispered, "So Kara, are we still on for tomorrow?", keeping an eye on the young angel to make sure he didn't hear.
"Of course," Kara yawned, not caring if Pit heard or not, "Time for bed. Get going and we'll speak tomorrow." Emily nodded and left the house.
The front door slammed shut and Pit hurried to the large glass window in the living room just in time to see the car pull away. It wasn't until the headlights fully disappeared before Pit realized this his aunt was still in the room. He gulped, turned around and managed to whisper, "Um…where do I sleep?"
"Sleep there," his aunt said harshly, pointing in the couch, "And don't you even think about going anywhere!"
"I wasn't planning on it..." Pit mumbled to himself as Kara left the room, turning off the light in the process. Once he heard a door somewhere upstairs slam shut, he fell onto his knees. He was drained, both physically and emotionally. It must be at least three in the morning and he hadn't slept for almost twenty-four hours. He should be already asleep, but with his parents dead and since he was now alone with an aunt that did not seem to want him he could think of little else.
Still, there was not much else to do at this hour. The pit in his stomach made any idea of eating impossible. All he could do was try and sleep. Pit sighed and quickly changed his clothes. He pushed his bags to the side of the room and lay down on the narrow couch. Lying on his side and staring at the hideous floral pattern made Pit feel dizzy, so he rolled onto his back and stared at the white stucco ceiling. The feather pillows on the couch were clumped together and hard, made of scratchy threads that made Pit's head itch. A thin blanket lay on the other arm of the couch, and Pit wrapped himself in it before letting the tears flow again. His parents were dead and he stuck in a strange house with strangers. Hopefully, his family here would love him. Hopefully, he would be safe here. Hopefully, he would be okay.
Those thoughts didn't comfort Pit much and he ended up crying himself to sleep. This was one of the last times he'd ever do so; in the months and years that followed this night, he'd soon forget how to cry.
I know it doesn't sound too bad for Pit right now, but just wait. For some reason I always make my characters suffer…and Pit isn't going to fare much better than any other story I've written before in my life. R&R, please!