Here's chapter 3. Continuing the accidental journey of Alex to far and strange lands.

I warn this one would be an absurd fic.

Dissclaimer: I own nothing


My New Friend, The Old Prince Part I

Alex suddenly felt something solid beneath him; it was dry and soil-like.

His body moved slowly, he could have sworn that he heard a crunch as he did so; he hoped it hadn't come from him. Some air touched his face then, it was dry and hot, as the soil.

He realized he wasn't floating in the terrific sea anymore; he was now in a laying position over a strange ground. He wringed some of the soil in his hands, sensing it between his fingers.

Sand.

He woke up fully, opening his silver eyes, the sun welcoming him with his light and warmth at full power. He took a breath of hot dry air, even tough he didn't need it. His senses revived completely.

He tilted up and looked around. He could smell, hear, taste, see and feel. The ambient he was now in was hot, very hot, and dry. The sun was brighter than ever he could remember in NY, and there was no wetness in the air.

By the look of the zone around him, he could deduce he was in a dessert. It made no sense to him at first. Maybe the sea had taken him to a strange place. But a desert? It didn't seem very logic.

He stood up and took a few steps, again looking around, every horizon he could look at seemed the same to him. He was as alone as he used to be in the grey wasteland and in the sea. He couldn't even smell any valuable life form anywhere near –for valuable life form, of course, he meant an edible human being-. He looked up; at least the infected crows had finally left him alone.

He started walking, thinking about some explanations.

From where he was, the logic place he would think he would end up in, and it had to be with some dessert would be some part of… Texas, Arizona?

He took a high, very high jump to open him a better perspective. Every angle seemed just as the same as the first time. He didn't remember Texas's desert to be so large.

When he was back at the ground, the force of his impact left a huge crater on the sandy soil. Sand was much softer than concrete, and it changed its form more easily.

An awkward thought suddenly came to his mind, sand seemed more friendly than concrete. It wasn't as easy running in sand as it was running in concrete, but sand still a better company, for some reason.

He started running, but not running like when he was still in NY, pursued by strike teams and hunters, he felt free this time. As he ran, he experimented jumping in different forms and distance, creating craters of different forms, also curving and twisting his trail, rising clouds of dust in his trace that vanished almost instantly after.

Then he finally charged a jump, higher than any other he had intended before. He opened his arms and legs and started gliding. He watched as the clouds of dust faded, and now from the height where he was, the image he had of his trace, really seemed like a gigantic bunny. He had carved a bunny in the sand.

Carving a bunny in the sand didn't seem like something logical also. He didn't even remember to have been thinking of bunnies as he was running.

Whatever, it's not the strangest thing that has happened to me.

He wasn't sure if this temperature could affect him. Then again, he was alone. Still alone. And after some more walking, jumping and tracing curious figures in the sand, he got, not tired, but bored.

Carving figures in the lonely sand wasn't a fun that could long. He thought about how much time he was wandering in the sea, it could be days, weeks, years, centuries, what if he had been out for a millennia! He didn't quite know the life extent that Blacklight could offer, so it sounded as a possibility after all. And if he stilled in NY? What if this dessert was NY after a thousand years? What he would do? Was humanity still existed?

After a while those preoccupations seemed also pointless.

Heat or cold, sand or snow, city or not, it didn't matter. He was as bored as when he abandoned the original NY.

He started just to walk again, slow, but unstoppable as he was, traveling trough the sandy grounds and dunes. Water wasn't a worry; heat didn't seem to dehydrate him either. He was becoming so powerful and fitted that he started to wander, with only a trace of anguish, that maybe this world would become too boring for him.

Boredom and loneliness were a torture.

He couldn't form a family, there was no other specimen like him –as a matter of fact he had killed both woman that would have an opportunity to be his spouse, for using an not-so-strange word: Karen Parker, the woman Alex Mercer used to love -the little backstabbing bitch-, and Elizabeth Grene, that would seemed to be his 'perfect' female viral companion -that crazy megalomaniac-, the notion of she being his mother was just too eerie for him to accept her as companion anyway –he could be a killer and a monster, but he wasn't that sexually depraved-. And for the last instance he was a little scared of the thought of experimenting with Blacklight reproductive proprieties to have children of his own.

That just won't do.

He couldn't have any friends; he just couldn't be really himself with anybody, for the most of the people would run, scream and call the police for just seeing him jump, or shifting his appearance. They didn't share his hobbies either. Slashing, gutting and mauling weren't popular pastimes for the normal people.

If I try to hug them, I will end up killing them, anyway.

As he lay sat gloomy in a dune, he saw the sun setting, and the sky became gradually reddish. It reminded Alex the color of blood.

He somehow didn't need blood; he didn't need flesh, bone or even people. He needed people.

Friends? Family?… No. Enemies.

And sadness stroke again.

He crossed his arms over his knees and rested his chin in his arms, with his silver sight lost into the infinity of the sands, and then he kept steady as a statue.

Into his naughtiest thoughts, was the idea to have someone to bother him, and then let him go, just to have an excuse to have somebody to hunt down and claimed vengeance over. He sighed, letting in and then out the dry air of the desert.

What would it matter if he just stayed here? He wouldn't die, nobody would miss him if he did so, and he didn't need anything from the world.

But then again, maybe that was just the reason of his mournful quest for company and purpose, he didn't need, but he wanted. Taking what he wanted from the world wouldn't give him anything however.

It was all just too complicated. He would want just to stop thinking about it; he was starting to feel too human.

Being alone is driving me mad…Well…more than I was before…

Then, surprisingly, he felt he wasn't alone anymore.

"Hey there, outlandish living thing" Suddenly a voice sounded in the quietness of the desert night.

Alex rose up his head quickly, looking around with curiosity. The sky was getting darker, and so was the ambient, strangely, he couldn't place the location from the sound, as he neither could smell anything alive near him, or at least anything that were human.

Now he was convinced that loneliness was finally driving him insane.

"If I'm not being discourteous to you by asking, hooded chap… Why are you looking so dismal and fatigued on this magnificent night?" It was a handsome male voice, with a tint of malice. It wasn't an old voice, but Alex could easily distinguish a trace of solemnity in it.

"Who's there?" Alex asked, standing up taking a defensive position instinctively, again wandering the nearby grounds with his specialized sight to seek for the mysterious visitor.

There was silence then. The sand strangely seemed to quiver around him, and someone or something made his presence clear in the proximities.

Alex saw the sand in front of him rose up slowly to form a cloud, and from a little whirl in it, he could discern a dark tall figure, which seemed to be clad in a long black cape, with also a hood. So Alex couldn't see his face, if such thing had a face.

"It's a divinity here who is speaking, you child. Now be a serviceable living thing and provide me a biscuit" The visitor said with a sardonic tone.

Alex just stared at him with plain incredibility.

"Biscuit? What?" Alex asked with a lost voice, his silver eyes wide open and his mouth a little twitched in confusion. "Wait…where the hell here can I get a biscuit from…?…No, wait even more, I'm not willing to give anything to such a strange…whatever you are"

The figure chuckled.

"It was just a joke, child. Do not be troubled by my impossible petition" The strange being with the sinister- yet attractive voice- consoled.

As Alex couldn't see his face, somehow he knew the stranger was grinning under his cover.

"I assume you have a name. Will it kill you to share it with me, outsider? Or are you just too bashful?" The figure asked.

Alex doubted a little at the question. He was indeed intrigued with the presence of this stranger, but also quite annoyed.

Now I remember why I ran away from people.

But Alex couldn't say he was sure this guy was a normal human being –if humans still existed as such-, but neither it was like him. An immediate urge to find more about this strange creature suddenly filled him.

He tried to think something clever to impress this new individual.

"The name of what I look like, is Alex Mercer, the name of what I am is Blacklight, the name that others have given to me, is Zeus" He answered slowly, with a calmed voice.

"Interesting child" The figure said. For Alex, the fact of being called child wasn't all comfortable, and the figure just didn't hear much older to call him like that. It was annoying. "I remember to have heard that last name once; it was the name of a god. Are you that special?"

"Compared to what?" Alex questioned more serious.

The figure chuckled again, irritating Alex further.

"Defensive answers will get you nowhere, child" He stated.

"Stop calling me that" Alex demanded, with an angrily tone. "I'm not a child. Who are you anyway?"

Another low chuckle.

"I find funny that, just like you, child. I have a name for me, a name for what I am, and a name given to me by others"

That statement sent Alex into more doubts.

This person wasn't normal, it was a fact now –After all he just happened to appear from out of nowhere, doing strange things with sand-.

And why did him keep calling Alex a kid? It had been just his luck to come along this strange being after the unknown time he was 'out', or it was fate? He better get some answers, or else.

Well, most of issues involving me getting answers just tended to end up in a bloody mess anyway.

Alex just looked at the other, trying to pull some patience out of his most inner self.

"Well, start explaining, and stop calling me…Just…Why do you call me like that anyway?" Alex mumbled.

"You are the first person I came to find after two thousand years. How would I call you then?" He spoke, again with that sardonic tone.

"I told you, my name is Alex…but, what do you mean two thousand years?" Alex questioned, even more pushed into incredibility.

Was I out all that time or this prick is just mocking me?

"You can't be that old…can you…?" Alex scolded. "By the way… Do know if something important happened when I was out? Where are we? Is this land once known as New York? Have humans evolved all like you? Do they all speak English? Have flying cars already been invented?"

"Oh, but I can, and I am, my age is something that I'm proud of, it gives me the reckoning of experience" The other laughed, this time more loudly. "And answering to your curious questions about this modern reality…well, as I've seen, nothing really important has happened in the world's life. We're in a desert; you seem to forget things very easy. No, this land has had a lot of names, but not New York. In my times, we liked to call it Persia. Humans haven't evolved from bringing destruction upon themselves for pleasure. No, I just happened to learn English in my last visit to the "new cities", and for the last instance, no; there are no currently flying cars"

It was something in his dark, sinister, yet sensual voice that was starting to get on Alex's nerves.

"'In your times' this was called Persia?" He said doubtful. "How the hell I ended up in here?"

"I was wandering that myself when I first saw you. I really don't know, blame destiny" The figure murmured calmly. "Or the fact that you have a very bad sense of orientation"

"Stop mocking me!" Alex finally snapped.

His arm became the huge blade he has grew accustomed to, ready to slice the annoying stranger right in half. The other didn't move, Alex found it amusing, yet stupid, just to stand there waiting for a painful death wasn't the better of ideas.

Anyway, the guy had said he was hell-lot-of-a years old, so he had probably became senile, unable to recognize the impending doom that was about to fall over him.

Alex was about to reach his objective, already imagining how the blood would spill in the sand –he had never seen anything like that, so it was fun to imagine it- the blade went right to the stranger's chest, Alex grinned in triumph.

Then he noticed something odd: There was no smell of blood pervading the ambient.

His victim wasn't even bleeding. The blade has just passed trough him, but there wasn't a single droop of blood spilt.

"The hell…?"

Then Alex felt something quite difficult to place, like being pulled around by some overwhelming invisible force, specifically being dragged back.

It all became swirly and blurry for a moment. After an instant, clarity came back, and he realized he was just standing where he was before he had attacked; even his arm had turned back to normal. He stood stunned for a moment.

"Wha…what did you do?" He asked the stranger, again confused. He hadn't ever experienced something like that. "What kind of thing are you?"

That question was strange for him to ask, normally, he was the one to be asked that.

The shady figure chuckled even louder; then suddenly wagged back the hood of his robe, and Alex was finally able to see his face.

He had tan skin, black smooth hair at the height of the shoulders and a little goatee; also he had blue defying eyes, there was something weird with his eyes –apart from an evident vertical scar in one of them-, something like a radiance of nobility and solemnity but also a satiric mischievousness. He didn't look old to Alex, or maybe he was too awed to really analyze all the details.

"You look impressed, child. As you may already imagined, I flicker with an aura of royalty"

"That's not it. And I told you to stop calling me like that!" Alex sneered, again prompting to attack, shifting his hands into claws.

His strike again went trough the stranger, yet again, no blood seemed to appear. Alex stared up at the stranger's face, which suddenly was adorned by an evil grin.

"I must admit your parlor tricks are amusing" Alex heard him said with an eccentric melodious tone.

"I bet you've got a bunny under your hat!"

Just then, the stranger extended his hand to pull off the hood of Alex's jacket.

"Now here's your chance to get the best of me, hope your hand is hot! C'mon, child! Let's see what you've got!"

The stranger's eyes suddenly blazed with an unnatural gold, his hair started to whirl up with that same weird energy, his skin started to turn into an ash-like black color, with loopy glowing marks around his eyes, face, and maybe beyond.

Then Alex felt that odd sensation again, like being paralyzed, all became swirly and blurry, the energy dragged him away, then returning him to the place he was in before the attack.

Alex wasn't willing to give up, of course. Even when his current opponent was something he didn't understand -It hadn't stopped him before- He shifted again, the covering of his arms getting thick and heavy as he summoned all his strength into his hammer-fists.

The stranger, now all up transformed into a sandy-glowing specter-like creature, just grinned at Alex's intentions of hitting him. He rose up his hands right to stop Alex's punches with seemingly no effort.

"You try to slam me with your hardest stuff. But your double whammy isn't up to snuff. I'll set the record straight; this is jus not your place. You're only second rate" Chanted the sinister figure.

Then again, Alex fell into that sensation of paralysis, and the dragging. This time, he ended up falling back on the sandy soil.

Alex stood up rapidly; he had to understand his enemy's power in order to defeat him. He decided to attack again, but from a different angle. He jumped, this time he chose the deadly claws. After a few sprints to confuse his enemy, he finally aimed to slash him in two.

Just in the last instant, he felt his body going slower; slow enough for the stranger to catch his wrist.

"You think your claws are meanie, but your aim is lame. You've got a lot to learn about my little game. So for your information, I'll reiterate; you're only second rate."

The stranger gripped his wrist, lifting him and slamming him onto the sandy ground like a rag doll, one time, two, and over again, then tossing him away.

As Alex hit the ground definitely–after bouncing a few times-, he carved a crater, and raised a cloud of sand.

"Men used to cringe at the fringe of my blades" The figure smirked, his golden eyes wickedly glowing. "You stand against a battle skill of ages"

Alex spat out some sand as he stood up, the cloud of the said material slowly fading. He stared up at his enemy, and rubbed his eyes when a bit of sand threatened to fall into them, blinking out of reflex. When he reopened them, the only thing they met was the sinister figure, now at a few steps from him, smirking.

"Now if you're not convinced that I'm invincible, put me to the test! I'd love to lay this rivalry to rest!" He offered, placing a straight smack at the side of Alex's head, sending him back to the ground.

Alex had never felt something so powerful hit him since Greene. Now filled with a mixed emotion of challenge and anger, he stood up, summoning his whip-fist.

He sent all kind of horizontal, vertical and diagonal whiplashes, which were avoided with masterful acrobatic movements and flips from the sandy stranger. It was something beautiful to see, he had to admit.

Then, he stood up just in front of Alex, quiet yet gloating.

"Go ahead and zap me with the big surprise, snap me in a trap, cut me down to size, I'll make the great escape, It's just a piece of cake; You're only second rate!" He invited. Alex took his invitation hastily, shifting from whip to blade, sprinting to him and effectively slashing him in two from the left elbow to the right waist. Alex stepped back. Again, no trail of blood.

He heard a chuckle.

Impossible.

Alex's eyes wide opened at the stunning sight. The horrible cut Alex had just delivered seemed to have little effect, as the sandy consistence of his enemy was already repairing itself. There was a brief moment of silence.

For some reason, this made Alex smile, something inside him had just found amusing in try to kill this new enemy. He dispelled out the blade from his hand. His silver eyes now blazing with malevolence, his mouth opened, offering a toothy smile. This was exciting, after all this time without something enough challenging to feel alive.

He breathed deeply –It was the time to give it all-, the inner of his body heating up, his fingers twitched a little. Decidedly he smashed both of his fists into the sand. Instantly, giant spikes emerged out all around the near area.

Not pleased with only that, the second the spikes retired into him again, he immediately summoned another devastator, this time numerous tendrils, as thick as steel cables sprouted out from his body in all directions possible.

In other circumstances, this attack would be sufficient to terminate efficiently half of an army. But when Alex stood up to see the effects of his, usually final strike, he found, not only that his enemy was unscratched, but he was also keep smirking.

Both of them looked the other in the eyes, sharing the same savage urge to fight, to destroy, to strike, to obliterate. Both of them could see that same yearning blaze in the others one's eyes.

The sandy specter stepped back, moving his hands aside from his body. Alex could feel a great energy surrounding him. His eyes glowing cravingly with expectation.

"You know, your hocus-pocus isn't tough enough, and your mumbo-jumbo doesn't measure up. Let me pontificate upon your sorry state; you're only second rate!" The dark specter stated with that charismatic singing tone.

"Zaba-caba-dabra! Sandy's going to grab ya! Alakazam-da-mus! And this thing's bigger than the both of us!" The sand around him, particularly behind him started to rise till a gigantic wave of sand was gathered.

That couldn't be just for showing.

Alex reacted by reflex, covering himself with his thick armor. The special heat again filling his body, ready to be released along with his very blood in a shock wave to counteract his enemy's attack.

"So spare me your tremendous scare! You look horrendous in that bizarre shield! And I can hardly wait to discombobulate, I'll bury you deep and dim in this desert. You'll make a better living as a fossil plaque. You're only second rate!"

Even though for Alex was difficult to say, both of them were smiling maniacally when their atrocious forces collided. The shimmering cursed sands against the tainted monstrous blood. It all went into chaos for a moment, a huge cloud of dust rose from the tremendous clash.