Chapter 3

In the waking world, Joshua had just gotten his stubborn locker open; when a jock slammed it shut again. He growled and started trying to open it again.

"You shouldn't let them do that Josha, hun?"

Joshua looked down at Monique. She was a special Ed student, she had OCD, and was slightly shorter then most fifteen year olds. She met him here everyday at this exact time; it was part of her routine.

"What am I supposed to do about it?" Joshua opened his locker.

"You should tell someone, hun?" Monique rocked on the balls of her feet. This was the only place she felt safe, with Joshua.

"Like who?" Joshua pulled out his books and shut his locker.

"Your teacher teacher, or the principle, maybe, Hun?"

They started walking down the hall together, Monique dodging invisible things that had been there at one point, "I've already tried that," Joshua said.

"You need to keep trying-" Monique stopped. There was a stray trashcan in her path, she shifted her feet.

Joshua went over and moved the trash can for her.

"Thank you, Josha, hun?"

"No problem."

The bell rang.

"No!" Monique jumped around in a circle, "I'm late I'm late, it's all wrong!"

"Calm down Monique," Joshua reassured his friend, "that was only the warning bell."

"Hm…" Monique rubbed her hands together and started walking again.

Joshua followed her, though they had past his class room; she was used to having him with her until they got to the special Ed room; when they had met his class had been across from the special Ed class room.

"Thank you for walking with me, Monique," Monique said, "I know you class is back there, see you, hun?"

"See you,"

Monique went to the special Ed room taped the doorknob and mouthed, two, two, nine, six, then went into the class room.

Monique hugged herself and shuffled her feet. She was stuck in a glass box; this wasn't part of her routine, "Josha? Hun?" Joshua didn't come, "Josha? Hun?" she taped on the glass, Joshua wasn't there with her, "Josha! Josha!" she pounded on the glass box. It was wrong it was all wrong. She screamed, pounding the sides of her glass cadge, trying to find a way out. She fell over, too overwhelmed by panic to stand, "Josha!" she screamed. Something was torn away from her head, causing her to fall over on her hands and knees. She cried uncontrollably, "no! It's wrong! It's wrong!"

"Hey, it's okay," Monique was pulled into a secure hug, "Josha?" she looked up, it wasn't Joshua.

The creature had a round face with a small mouth and large, smiling, blue purple eyes, and a jester looking hat on top of its head.

Monique struggled in the creatures arms. The creature let her go, "go away, far far." She waved her hands at the creature trying to make it leave her alone.

"It's okay," the creature said kindly, "my name is Elijah," Elijah held out his hand. Monique scuttled away from it. Elijah dropped his hand, "what's your name?"

"I don't want to tell you, Hun?"

"Hun?"

Monique stared at Elijah angrily, "you making fun of me, Monique?"

"So your name's Monique?" Elijah smiled.

"Apologize, for making fun of me, Monique," Monique ordered.

"Why do you keep saying your name like that?" Elijah asked.

"I don't want to tell you, hun?"

"And you said hun, again, for no reason," Elijah looked at Monique questioningly.

"Stop asking me, Monique, stuff, Hun?!"

"Okay I'm sorry," Elijah said defensively.

"Elijah," a boy with yellow hair ran over to Elijah, "the children took all but one of the boy's Idyea."

"Which one did they miss?"

"Guess,"

"Good," Elijah looked at Monique, "what about her?"

The boy with the yellow hair called over his shoulder, "Baby come over here."

A young woman jogged over, and kneeled in front of Monique.

"Go away, far far," Monique waved her hands at the girl.

She ignored her, "this wont hurt," the woman touched her finger to Monique's forehead. She pulled away a seconded later, "she has everything but hope," she said to Elijah and the boy with the yellow hair.

Monique started to cry.

"Ah," Elijah crawled over to Monique, "it's okay, we're not going to hurt you, we want to help you."

"What do you mean I have everything but hope, hun?"

"There are these things called Idyea that reside in your heart, they are: hope, purity, growth, intelligence and courage, our enemies have taken your Idyea of hope, but don't worry we'll get it back," Elijah smiled, "I promise."

Nights shifted uneasily in the sky, they had been flying for about twenty-four hours and they hadn't spotted anything that looked like land.

Reala had flown up higher, to get a better look around.

Reala flew back down next to Nights, and shook his head. Nights moaned a bit.

"We have to keep going Nights," Reala said, "that's the only way we're going to find another island."

"But it's so dark," Nights hugged himself.

"It'll be light soon," Reala held out his hand, "I promise," Nights took Reala's hand, and they started flying again.

Nights had fallen asleep soon after they had started flying again. Reala carried Nights on his back as he flew, but he was getting tired as well.

Reala balanced Nights on his back as he splashed water on his face to wake himself up.

"There's something in the water," Nights said drowsily.

Reala looked into the ocean water, "I don't see anything."

"Maybe my eyes are playing tricks on me," he closed his eyes again.

A large tentacle shot up out of the water. Reala flew quickly out of its reach.

Nights, now awake, looked down at the water apprehensively, "it's a giant octopus."

"Don't be silly," Reala said reassuringly, "there's no such thing as a kraken."

Another tentacle shot out of the water almost grabbing Reala's leg, "okay, fine, krakens exist."

"Like that's going to make him stop attacking us?"

Two more tentacles came up out of the water, flailing wildly, trying to grab them.

"Why is it even attacking us," Reala said dodging a flailing tentacle, "it's not like we attacked it."

"We entered his territory, that's reason enough for him."

"You don't even know if it's a boy," Reala said flying through the monster's tentacles.

"It's better then calling him: it," Nights shot back.

"You humanize everything," Reala rolled his eyes.

"Enough arguing," Nights said angrily, "let's just get out of here!"

The two 'Maren flew quickly away from the monstrous octopus.

Nights flopped down onto the small island that he and Reala had just found, "I never thought I'd miss land so much!" he curled up into a ball, "forget setting up camp, I'm just going to sleep."

Reala placed a blanket over Nights, "sleep well," he kissed his forehead.

"You too," Nights snuggled into the grass and fell asleep. Reala did the same.