Now to the reviewers.
Lucky Star25: Yes it looks like its going to be Vale shipping. I'm glad that you like the story enough to come back for more.
Meneil: I feel for you Mene. My siblings have dragged me away from the stories I was reading in mid chapter quite a bit. And they always seem to wait until the best part of the chapter too…
I like to try out new things when I'm writing. So when I noticed that they were hardly ever mentioned I had to act. Those are characters with a lot of potential in stories. As for Ivan well…I can't say much or it'll ruin the plot.
Thanks for the advice. I'll try to add more detail. And I kind of like the longer reviews. They usually have something important to say if they are making it kinda long.
I'm sorry for the long wait for the update. Here it is though so enjoy.
Chapter 3
Party Crashers
A man with light blue hair walked down the dark corridors of the palace. He was called to a meeting by Conservato and if he missed it his plans were going to be blown out of the water. He wore a simple back shirt and pants and his azure eyes were focused on the door at the end of the corridor.
"I've been waiting," a man said from the back of the pitch black room as the light haired man entered the room. "Alex of Imil."
"Why did you call me here, Conservato?" Alex asked evenly. He already knew why but to keep up his façade he asked anyway.
"That kraken was a prototype of our aquatic genetics research and development," Conservato replied angrily. "It took us six years to develop it! And you let a bunch of kids kill it!"
"For a good reason I assure you," Alex said as he closed the door behind him. "I needed to test the strength of those 'kids' before I could make my next move."
"But why the kraken!" Conservato shouted. "You could've used your own monsters!"
"No…" Alex shook his head. "If I played my trump card to soon you'd lose your chance at becoming king of Lemuria and you and your fellow conspirators would be hung not by Hydros but by the people you've deceived."
Conservato's body shook with rage at the brazen comments of Alex. But Alex had a very good point. He took a deep breath and calmed down some. "So what's our next move?"
"I need to go attend to some things," Alex smirked to himself. "You have a party to go crash…"
Jenna still sat in the sickbay but she was asleep by Felix. Mia was asleep on the floor by her desk. Felix stirred a bit as he slowly came to. He opened his eyes and looked around. And to his surprise and maybe horror he saw Jenna sitting by the bed. He wasn't sure just what he was feeling anymore. His mouth hung open as his brain computed how she got here. After all wasn't he in Prox?
Wait…didn't Agatio try to kill him? And what happened to Karst? He wasn't going to find any if he stayed in bed. He quietly got out of bed and looked for his sword. He found it in it's sheath laying on the ground next to his bed.
"I'll be back…" he whispered to Jenna. He turned to leave when he heard Jena moan. Realizing time was short he quickly moved out the door. He turned down a hallway and began his search for the exit to where ever he was.
Jenna woke up as the door closed. She looked around groggily and noticed that Felix was gone. She got up and tripped over her own feet falling with a loud crash that woke Mia up. Jenna got back up and made her way to the door.
"Jenna…?" Mia looked up at the agitated mars adept. "What's wrong…?"
"Felix is gone!" Jenna snapped as she left through the door. She started looking through the ship with Mia hot on her heels. "Where is he!"
"You have to calm down," Mia said calmly. "Panicking isn't going to solve anything."
Jenna spun around and in her rage almost hit Mia. Realizing what she almost did Jenna looked down at the ground. Mia put a hand one her friend's shoulder and smiled. Jenna glanced up and sighed.
"I'm sorry…" Jenna whispered as she started crying. "I just wanted him to stay…to be here as my older brother like before…"
"Its alright," Mia pulled Jenna into a hug. "He'll be back."
"How do you know?" Jenna asked slightly annoyed. "How do you know he won't go out there and get himself killed or worse…what if he decided not to come back!"
"He cared for you before the accident right?"
"Well, yes…" Jenna responded slowly.
"I don't think that would change just because you got separated for three years," Mia smiled as she let go of Jenna.
"Then why'd he leave?" Jenna frowned.
"He probably needed to find out where he was or maybe he needed fresh air and a chance to stretch his legs," Mia replied as she glanced around to see if anyone was watching.
"I guess your right…" Jenna sighed. She whipped away her tears and stretched a little bit as she yawned. Then her stomach rumbled loud enough for both of them to hear causing Jenna to blush slightly in embarrassment. "Up for breakfast?"
"Garret!" Torch shouted. He hated this one job. Every time Garret needed to get up he was the one called to do the deed. Why? Because he wakes up swinging sometimes. "If you don't wake up I don't get to see Cannon!"
"Put a sock in it…" Garret moaned as he pulled the blanket over his head.
"Don't make me use my ultimate weapon…" Torch threatened. Garret's only response was a snore. Torch sighed as he dove into his recorded voice program. This one always does the trick!
"Last warning Garret," Torch smirked on the screen as much as he could. Garret's snores only got louder so Torch decided it was time to have some fun.
"Garret…" Jenna's voice came seductively over the speaker that was built into the hand held device. "I need you…"
"What!" Garret sat up fast knocking his head against the ceiling of the small room. He fell back holding his forehead and groaned. Then he threw a sock at the laughing program that had played Jenna's voice.
"Your face was priceless!" Torch couldn't stop laughing. He even managed to get a few pictures. Garret growled and got up. He threw his shirt on and stretched.
"You didn't have to be so mean."
"You wouldn't wake up!"
"…Did you have to use Jenna's voice?"
"Would prefer Isaac's then? Because I can do that instead if you like."
Garret stared at Torch for a moment. Then Garret let an evil smile make its way across his face. He picked up Torch and walked out of the room.
"Where are you taking me?" the small red creature asked indignantly as Garret's smirk only grew bigger.
"I'm going to get those sound files deleted!" Garret exclaimed as he proceeded down a complex set of corridors to where the cafeteria was. "And don't even think about making backups! First, however, I'm going to eat."
Piers woke up and just laid in bed. He had a feeling something bad was going to happen. What exactly he didn't know. He finally hopped out of bed and went to look out a nearby window. To his surprise it looked like a bunch of people were getting stuff together on the docks. It was just barely dawn so all he could see were the shadows of the people and things they were moving. Then he noticed that all the lights around that area of the docks were off.
"So that's it…" Piers smiled. Things weren't going to as bad as he thought. He went and turned on a light as he went to the sink. He splashed his face with some cold water to wake himself up. He was about to start some tea when someone knocked on the door.
"Come in," Piers called out as he started heating the water. He pulled out a plain wooden box that looked very old. The door opened and Rachel came in. She stifled a yawn as she came in and took a seat on a chair by the window. "Couldn't sleep?"
"No…" Rachel sighed. She glanced around warily with her green eyes as if to expect another attack. But Pier's flight from Lemuria had been nothing less then a war. And these kids had been caught in the middle.
"Something on your mind then?" Piers opened the old box and pulled out two small bags of paper that fit into the palm of his hand. He put his finger into the heating water for a moment before pulling it back out and shaking his head.
"I can't understand why you're hounded like this," Rachel said firmly. "You left Lemuria like your ordered by Conservato. We hadn't caused any trouble for Lemuria or Conservato and he still sent his kraken after us!"
"You don't understand…" Piers shook his head and checked the water again. This time he found it satisfactory. He pulled down two ceramic cups and filled them with hot steamy water. He put one bag in each cup and walked over to the table by Rachel. He set a cup down by her and took a seat at the other end of the table. "When I was told to leave it wasn't just Lemuria I was told to leave. I was told to live in fear because I would be hunted until I was dead."
"And yet you still let us sail with you?" Rachel stared as she took the ceramic cup. "Why? If you knew you were being hunted by people and things with the intention to kill you then why did you bring us?"
"Would you have preferred it back at Izumo where you parents abused you and you had no one to talk to?" Piers asked as a took a sip of his drink. He stared at Rachel with his gold eyes and it made her shift uncomfortably.
Flashback
I came into the house with the bread dad wanted. It was messy as dad never cleaned up. I slipped of my sandals and was on my way into the living room when I tripped over our white cat Fluffy. I fell down on top of the bread pressing it flat.
"Rachel," dad called out. He came around the corner scowling with a beer in hand. He reached down and picked me up. Looking down he saw the now flat bread. "Did you do that?"
"Yes…" I sighed and braced myself for what I knew was going to happen next. He put his beer down and began beating me. When he finished I lay on the ground bleeding and moaning in pain.
"Don't do it again!" He stormed off with his beer leaving me on the ground. There was no point to trying to talk to him to tell him it was an accident…that I could get more…I got up tears rolling down my cheeks.
I walked outside and into the hell that was the slums of Izumo. Gangs took what they wanted and killed any that got in there way. It didn't occur to me that I'd never see my family again. After today I'd be on the run from bigger things but I'd have a home…one I could enjoy living in.
End Flashback
"I helped you because it was the right thing to do," Piers continued after a moment of silence. "Not because I was trying to put you in danger. And you're the one that wanted to stay."
"Because I had nowhere to go!" Rachel snapped. All of his comments, while well intended, struck a soft spot in Rachel's heart. "Where would I have gone? What would I have done for food or shelter? Who'd have take me in? I was only ten years old and you had expected me to survive on my own in a foreign land and around foreign people that I didn't even know existed!"
"I wouldn't have asked you to if I didn't think you could," Piers replied calmly. This was not a conversation he wanted to have right after waking up but he'd already avoided it for far to long. He sighed before continuing. "And I realize now that it was a mistake to ask you to stay. But remember, you can leave whenever you choose to. That is the deal I made with each member of this crew."
"And you'll get the same answer from each and every one of us!" Rachel stood up and glared at Piers. She walked over to him so that they were face to face before she continued. "Through thick and thin, life or death we have pledged to follow you. Not you or Mia or Isaac or anyone or anything will change that! You helped us when we needed it so now let us help you in your time of need."
Piers smiled as his mechanic had finished her speech. That was why he liked Rachel. Because no matter what happened she was always willing to speak her mind. Whether or not anyone wanted to hear what she had to say didn't matter. One way or another they did end up listening.
"Well if that's the case then I have one order for the crew," Piers' smile grew broader. He was going to have fun with this little…diversion outside.
"And what would our captain's order be?" Rachel was nervous about the smile Piers wore on his face. He'd only smiled like that when they'd gone in to rescue Mia. Of course she wouldn't let her nervousness show.
"When the opportunity presents itself I want you and the rest of the crew of the Hydra to enjoy yourselves!" Piers stood and put one foot on the chair he'd been sitting in and pointed out the window to where the people were busy moving things.
"Aye, aye sir!" Rachel giggled at the pose Piers had taken as she mock saluted him. She turned and walked out of the room still giggling. Before Piers could sit down however the door burst open and Felix walked in.
"I was wondering when you'd swing by," Piers said as he took a sip of his tea.
Felix who was startled by Piers' knowledge of his escape stood there dumbly for a moment before regaining his senses. He cautiously came over to the table where Piers now sat and took a seat himself. They stared at each other in silence for what seemed like hours.
"Where am I?" Felix asked breaking the silence the permeated the room.
"Your on the Hydra," Piers replied his face a blank. "I am Captain Piers and I brought you here after the two people you were with left."
"What!" Felix almost jumped out of his chair to go and throttle the Lemurian. "You let Agatio take Karst and did nothing!"
"You were severely injured and needed medical attention," Piers said as he watched the young man on the other side of the table fume. When he'd gotten there Agatio, or so he assumed, was pulling Karst, again he assumed, from the wreckage of an armored truck and Felix was on the ground. He had heard Agatio say that the brown haired boy before him was dead. "If I had intervened then you'd be dead right now unable to do anything about it."
"…" Felix had to admit Piers had a point there. But what was he to do now? He couldn't waltz right up and say 'Hey guys I'm home!' No, they'd shoot him on sight because they would think that he was a monster masquerading as him. All because Agatio said he was dead and proved it by coming back with Karst who at that point would lend credence to the story. Of course this could be played to his advantage as well.
"How long would it take you to get me to Prox?" Felix asked as he glanced out the window. He had to hurry before it was to late.
"I'm sorry to say that I've never heard of Prox," Piers replied apologetically. "And even if I knew where it was I couldn't take you for at least another week."
"What?" Felix jumped up and began pacing back and forth. "There has to be a way to get there before its to late…"
"None of the other ships here would know how to get there either," Piers said as he stood up. "So why don't you stay here and spend some time with your sister while your wounds finish recovering. I'm sure she'd really like that. And it'll prove your not a brain eating zombie like some of the crew thinks you are."
"I know I've survived quite a few near death experiences and been called a lot of things because of it but I've never been called a zombie," Felix remarked dryly.
"Some interesting things are going to happen today so be ready," Piers warned Felix as he pointed out the window. Felix went over to have a look himself. He stared out looking for anything that seemed out of place. Then he noticed all the workers working tin the dark. His trained eyes pierced through some of the dark and he noticed some of the things that were being moved were not the usual cargo.
"Fire works?" Felix turned to Piers with a look of puzzlement. "Why?"
"The kraken is dead," Piers sighed instead of smiled however. "But its only the beginning…"
"What?" Felix couldn't hear the last part as Piers had been mumbling. Piers walked over to the window and ignored the question he'd been asked.
"Even though we just met I want to tell you something," the Lemurian captain said as he still faced the window. The reflection in the window showed a haggard Piers who looked like a heavy burden was placed on his shoulders. "But first you have to promise not to tell anyone until I'm ready to tell them."
Felix looked up at the ceiling as he thought about it. If he promised to keep the secret then the curiosity that was building in him would be satisfied. But that also meant that he would have to live with what might be a really dark secret for the rest of his life. Of course if he declined the his curiosity would keep him up at night until he found out what the secret was. He sighed as he leveled his gaze upon Piers and sighed.
"Alright, let's hear it."
Aaron sighed as he sat in the crow's nest. He was one of maybe three people who didn't get hurt or expend all of their energy in the battle against the kraken. So he got stuck with the guard detail. He replaced Zack at about two in the morning and had been up here since. Although why he had to guard the ship when there were boats patrolling the harbor armed with state of the art radar, sonar, and psyenergy pacers he had no clue. He stifled a yawn as he stood up and stretched his stiff legs.
The sound of metal colliding with metal rang out catching the young mars adept's attention. He drew his sword after he climbed down the ladder and looked around. Clang! He spun around as it was behind him.
"Who's out there?" Aaron asked nervously as he took a step forward. Clang! Again it was behind him causing him to spin around. Clang! This time Aaron took a deep breath. He wasn't hearing any footsteps between the sounds so there must be more then one opponent. Clang! Clang! They were getting faster and closer. Still no footsteps were heard and Aaron desperately searched for the perpetrators that were making the noise. Clang! "Show yourselves! All of you!"
"Your clever little kid…" a raspy voice called out from the dark. "But you cannot hope to beat us all."
"I'm not little!" Aaron cried out. He raised his sword with one hand and looked up at it as he turned all the way around. He stopped when he saw a pair of eyes leering at him from behind a stack of boxes. He had a plan and he knew it would work. "This is your last warning. Leave now or else."
"Or else what? You'll poke us with that toothpick?" The one behind the box sneered as the others laughed at the comment they thought was funny. It only served to anger Aaron. He was scared but no one got away with insulting his ability to fight.
"It's your loss!" Aaron cried out as he focused. He'd been told that ten year olds shouldn't worry about their psyenergy. They were to young to fully control it and if they tried to hard they might fry their brains. But Aaron hadn't listened. He didn't want Garret to think he was weak because he let his sister do all the helping. He'd honed his abilities for the past two years and was fairly confident that he could win the battle with what little he had.
He moved the box on top of the stack and let it fall on the hidden foe. It made a sickening thud as it crushed its head between the heavy box and the metal floor they were about to fight on. The laughing immediately stopped as two figures made their way out of the shadow. One was wearing a blue sleeveless shirt and black pants. The other one wore no shirt but also wore the black pants. Both had swords strapped to their sides.
"Now we'll make you pay!" the one with the shirt said as the both drew their swords. Aaron started to panic as he took a step back. He had trained using a dummy and a stick. Now he had a real sword and these were real men. And they had real swords too. "Any last words shrimp?"
"Y-yeah…" Aaron stuttered as he stalled to look for that last elusive option. He glanced around and noticed that the man without a shirt was right between a box and the railing. He gained more confidence as he could take another one out. "I hope your good a swimming."
"What?" the comment caught both men off guard. It gave Aaron enough time to focus his psyenergy into the box. It began to move which horrified both men. It pushed the shirtless one over the side of the ship and the other one just stared at the box that now stood in place of his friend.
"I can still beat…you…" the man stopped halfway in his sentence as he noticed the sadistic grin on Aaron's face. It was the kind of sadistic grin that was followed by much pain and ended with death. The man gulped and took a step back as the air seemed to move only around Aaron.
"Your lucky I felt generous…" Aaron said in a low tone as the sadistic smile grew. "If I wanted to I could have made all of your hearts explode!"
"Ahh!" the man ran off the ship waving his hands in the air over his head. Aaron watched as the man ran around crying out about a sadistic kid until the Tolbi guards came and arrested him. Aaron smiled letting the grin fall from his face.
"Where did you learn that one?" Zack's voice startled Aaron and he spun around ready to slice whatever was behind him. Realizing it was only Zack the young adept lowered his sword. "That smile almost freaked me out."
"I developed it to use on my sister when she was terrorizing my room," Aaron stated proudly puffing out his chest slightly. "It works every time too."
"Your going to have to teach me how to do that some time," Zack said as he leaned against the railing to watch the sun begin rising. "There were so many times that would have come in handy…"
"If I do teach you it won't exactly be like mine," Aaron said leaning next to Zack.
"How come?"
"Because everyone puts their own twist to it."
"Oh…well could you still teach me?" Zack looked over at Aaron with wide shining eyes.
"I suppose I could but you have to promise me that you won't use it on anyone on the ship," Aaron smirked. If this is what Garret goes through every time he goes on one of these missions then he was clearly insane. But then again he wouldn't have his brother any other way.
"I promise!" Zack said as jumped up and down. Usually he acted like an adult and was serous and all that adult stuff but there were times when he was able to act like a kid. He jumped at every chance no matter how dire the situation.
Kay opened her eyes and sat up. She moaned as she rubbed the back of her head. She must've rolled off the bed. Does the floor have to be so damn hard? Getting up she looked at the room she was currently bunking in. It was Rachel's but she slept in the engine room most of the time and the room came with two beds so Rachel said she could stay in her room until it was time for Kay to leave. Kay had readily agreed and the first thing she had done was shower then sleep.
"I wonder what is going to happen now," Kay said to no one in particular as she dug around in her bag for clothes. A few minuets later she was wearing a pair of denim shorts and a sleeveless red shirt. She exited the room and began wandering aimlessly around the ship looking around and enjoying the peaceful quiet the place seem to hold. That was until she bumped into a very depressed mars adept.
"Watch where…" Kay cut herself off as she noticed it was Jenna. The older mars adept didn't seem to notice that Kay had bumped into her and continued walking. "Jenna!"
"What?" Jenna turned around now that she'd been snapped back to reality. She glanced around and ascertained her surroundings quickly before turning her attention back to Kay. "What do you need?"
"You were wondering around in a trance," Kay said looking concernedly at Jenna. "What's wrong?"
Jenna sighed as she leaned up against a wall. "Felix is gone again…"
"I am?" Felix stepped around the corner. "As far as I can tell I'm still here with all my pieces attached."
"Felix!" Jenna ran forward and hugged her older brother so hard he thought his back might break. And then she let go so her brother could breath. After a moments silence she punched him. Hard enough to cause Felix to stagger back. He stood there rubbing his cheek where he got hit.
"You left me all alone…" Jenna started to cry. At this point Kay was ready to leave. No one noticed as she slipped away leaving the two siblings along. "You didn't even try to tell me you were alive! All this time I thought you had died! I was finally getting over what happened and you come back!"
"Jenna…I couldn't tell you…" Felix looked away as Jenna glared at him.
"Why not!" It was taking all of Jenna's will power to keep herself from throwing herself into her brother's arms and just cry.
"Because the people I worked for after the accident wouldn't let me!" Felix snapped. It was frustrating to see Jenna like this and her interrogation wasn't helping matters any. And of course Agatio's tricking Karst still plagued his mind as well as Piers' secret. It was all to much to take in all at once.
"So work to precedence over your own sister!" Jenna's jaw practically hit the floor. This wasn't the Felix she knew. This wasn't the Felix that would find a way to skip the things he wanted to do if she needed help.
This Felix was a monster.
"It didn't take precedence over you!" Felix was now shouting. "It was my job to find all the secret labs that made the monsters! I took the job because I was worried about you! I may not have been here but I was trying…"
Jenna felt really bad now. Not only was she wrong but she had thought he was a monster. He wasn't allowed to contact her because he was destroying these labs that created the monsters. Almost immediately all her feelings of anger and sorrow left her and it looked like a visible weight was lifted off of her. She hugged Felix again and cried into his shoulder.
"I'm sorry…" Felix said as he wrapped his arms around his sister. Life must have been really hard for her without him there. But he was back now. "I didn't mean to leave you alone like that…"
Piers sat in his room with his eyes closed. He could have been mistaken for a statue except for his breathing. He took deep breaths, inhale slowly… exhale slowly…
"Piers?" Mia poked her head into the room and quickly glanced around until she saw the Lemurian sitting on his bed his legs crossed taking deep breaths.
"Come in, Mia," Piers said as he opened his eyes. Dawn now filtered in the window. He got up and walked over to a chair. Mia sat down and looked up at Piers. "How long have we traveled together Mia?"
"A little over a year now…why?" Mia looked at him quizzically. Something was wrong and it was easy to tell that it was as very bad kind of wrong.
"We might not be able to be together for much longer," Piers sighed glancing out the window.
"W-what do you mean?" Mia was blushing at the last comment but tried to ignore it.
"Events have been set in motion…" Piers shook his head. "Soon… very soon events will spiral out of control and the whole world will be on the brink of destruction."
"By what…?" Mia had never heard Piers like this. He was always hopeful and happy…but now he seemed like he'd lost all hope and the sorrow he felt was finally crushing him. It scared Mia to see Piers like this.
"When I contacted Hamma," Piers started to explain as he watched all the workers on the docks hide, "She told me about a vision she had. In her vision a boy with brown hair would be found and brought back. After the boy was brought back a powerful creature would attack. It would be defeated and those that feared the creature would celebrate.
Then an old man appeared and he carried with him ill tidings. The brown haired boy would try to fix the problem the old man put before him. But around the boy's arms and legs were strings. A shadow above would move the strings with words and the boy would move.
Four great fires from the north came down to also fix the problem. The first two would do some bad things to fix the problem. A group of people would rise up and stop them. One of the great fires was very evil and controlled the last great fire. Together the second set of fires would try to stop the boy. But the boy would free the controlled fire and together they put out the evil fire.
Then four orbs, each a different color, floated around the boy. He took them to four points on Weyard leaving an orb at each point. Every time he left an orb behind it disappeared and was replaced by a giant sphere of energy. When he had placed the orbs at the four locations a beam of light shot from each one. The shadow went to where the four beams were converging and absorbed the energy that was being formed by the four beams."
"Felix must be the brown haired kid in the vision!" Mia said in shock.
"And the powerful creature was the kraken," Piers nodded as he looked over at Mia. "And the people are coming out to celebrate."
Mia got up and looked out the window and indeed they were going to celebrate. Fireworks were set up on the rooftops and some of the ships. A stage had been set up and stalls lined the docks where they hadn't the previous day. "Then that means…"
"Yes," again Piers nodded. "Although Hamma said that the visions she sees are only what might come to pass. I think this one is going to come true."
"Then lets do something about it," Mia said turning back to Piers.
"What do you mean?"
"While Felix is off trying to fix whatever the problem is lets find that shadow!" Mia exclaimed as the rest of her plan suddenly dawned on Piers.
"And if we find it then we can sever the strings and keep it from absorbing the power…" Piers stroked his chin as he thought it over. "Sounds like a good idea. We'll start tomorrow then."
"Why tomorrow?" Mia asked as she glanced back out the window. Then it dawned on her.
"I want to let the crew relax before everything goes to hell," Piers stated as he headed for the door. "I have to make one announcement then we can all relax some."
"What will you do?" Mia asked as Piers opened the door.
"I don't know…" he frowned for a moment before continuing, "I guess I'll stay up here."
"If you've got nothing planned how about you take me down to the party?" Mia asked not meeting Piers' gaze.
"…Alright," Piers nodded and smiled.
"I'll be ready shortly," Mia said as she slipped by Piers and ran for her room. Once she was around the corner she rested her back against the wall and took a deep breath to slow her beating heart. She liked Piers as more then a friend but he put his responsibility to his crew before personal matters. This time was different.
He accepted.
That one simple action made Mia feel happier then she'd felt in a long time. Now a problem struck Mia's feelings of happiness. She had no idea what to do next. During her time in Imil she healed the sick and wounded. She didn't worry herself about a relationship. People needed help and she was going help as many of them as she could. It took a lot of time and energy to see people walk out of her clinic with a smile on their faces with their friends and family.
That was before Alex showed up. The man that forever changed her life. He walked in looking for a job one day and she readily gave it to him. Soon she had fallen for him and he had fallen for her. Together they were happy until he disappeared for a couple of days. Mia was really worried but kept healing people until he came back.
"Mia?" Kay was waving her hand in front of Mia trying to get the healer's attention.
"What is it!" Mia suddenly shouted while blushing. Then she realized she shouted. "Sorry."
"Don't do that!" Kay snapped. She glared at Mia and took a deep breath to get herself under control. "Are you alright?"
"Why wouldn't I be?" Mia asked as she checked her arms and legs. "I'm still in one piece."
"You were staring into space," Kay sighed as she leaned on the wall opposite from Mia and grinned. "And from the blush on your face you were thinking about someone special."
"Well…I…" Mia stuttered. Kay's teasing had embarrassed the young healer and she couldn't get the words out.
"I bet I know who it is," Kay said slyly her red eyes flashed with mischief. "Its Piers! It has to be him!"
At this Mia's already crimson face turned three shades darker and she turned away. All she could manage in response was a muffled groan. Kay beamed with triumph as Mia did her best to hid her face.
"Its alright, Mia," Kay said letting the grin drop from her face. "You shouldn't be ashamed for the way your feeling."
"But its embarrassing…"
"Have you asked him out yet?"
"Yes," Mia suddenly looked at Kay with wide eyes. "Were going later today but now that he's taking me I'm not sure what to do next!"
"I'll help you," Kay's grin returned.
Three hours later…
"Alright captain," The dark haired boy turned to face Piers. "Your on!"
"Thanks, Boey," Piers picked the mic sitting on the arm of his chair and tapped it a couple of times to see if it was working.
"This is captain Piers speaking," Piers always opened the announcements like that so that the crew would stop talking and listen. "I have a few announcements. First is due to the kraken attack we will be stuck in the harbor a bit longer then we expected."
Both Sarah and Boey moaned at this as was most of the crew across the ship. Piers waited a few moments before continuing. "But I've gotten word that our stay here is free and they are willing to give us all the parts we need to fix the Hydra at a very low price."
Both kids on the bridge would've fallen over if they hadn't been seated behind their respective computers. Both spun around and stared at Piers. The captain merely nodded with a smile as the cheer the crew gave off could be heard all over the ship.
"Also!" Piers' smile grew. He was going to make sure everyone enjoyed this little event. "I'm ordering all hands to leave the ship and head on down to the party immediately! I want you all to enjoy yourselves and try to stay out of trouble!"
"Does that mean us too?" Sarah asked as she found the ability to speak again. She wasn't sure what was going on but it sounded good.
"Of course," Piers nodded as he stood up and headed for the door.
"But what about the ship…?" Boey asked as he, too, stood up.
"I think you all need to enjoy yourselves while you can," Piers said his gold eyes glanced around the room as if looking for something. "We can always repair her after the festivities are over."
Felix leaned against the railing of the ship as the crew made their way down the gangplank and over to the party. He didn't feel much like celebrating. Come to think about it he never felt like celebrating. Everything had gone right for these kids in the end and he didn't feel like spoiling their fun.
He sighed as he looked to the north. Vale had been his home for most of his life but he'd grown attached to Prox and the people who lived there. Most of them anyway. He'd spent many nights just listening to the elder tell stories about the hero's of Prox with Menardi and her sister Karst. Afterwards Karst would talk about wanting to be like the heroes of old. Menardi would always respond by saying 'To be like the heroes of old you have to give up all you have and do what needs to be done' and then rest her hand on Karst's shoulder.
"Felix," Jenna said stepping forward with Isaac right behind her. His shoulder was bandaged and he still looked really tired but he still smiled. "I thought you'd be down there relaxing some."
"I don't think I should…" Felix replied. If Jenna was anything like the Jenna he knew three years ago the there was going to be trouble.
"C'mon Felix!" Jenna grabbed his arm and dragged him down to the party. Isaac followed after the siblings laughing and all three of them were already having fun. There was a crowd of sailors, some of which were already drunk, waiting at the end of the gang plank waiting for the heroes that slew the kraken.
Isaac tried his best not to bump into people as doing so sent jolts of pain down his arm. Mia may have healed it with psyenergy but it still hurt and would be bandaged for the next week while it healed the rest of the way on its own.
Felix followed Jenna as she made her way to the buffet. His stomach rumbled as he caught the scent of food. He picked up his pace and made it to the table in time to see Jenna pile meat on top of some noodles and pour some kind drink into a glass with ice. He noticed Isaac was close behind him and Jenna was already digging into what she'd grabbed.
The table was long and there was lots of foods from various restaurants, bakeries, and homes. The smells of all the different food would make anyone's stomach growl with hunger. At the ends of the table were smaller tables with different drinks. Most noticeably of which was the barrel of Ale that was quickly being drained by sailors and other people who were still showing up.
Felix hastily grabbed a plate full of meat, noodles, and bread and took a seat next to his sister. By the time he'd sat down Jenna was sitting back down with a second helping.
"Such a ravenous appetite," Felix said watching her tear into her second helping of food like there was no tomorrow. If he wasn't careful then his food might become her next helping. He was surprised to find out just how hungry he was.
"I was so worried about you that I didn't eat," Jenna stopped eating long enough to reply to Felix before continuing to clean her plate. Felix ate just as fast as Jenna as he was also really hungry.
"Don't let her fool you Felix," Isaac said as he sat down next to Jenna. "She always eats like this."
"I do not!" Jenna exclaimed as her face turned red.
"Then why do I have to go buy food every other day?" Isaac replied playfully.
"Isaac," Jenna replied with a smirk. "And what about some habits I could mention? Like I dunno… your collection of…"
"Hey!" Isaac blurted out his face now turning red with embarrassment. "I only told Felix about the one he was watching!"
Felix watched the two go back and forth with fascination. There was once a time he was so sick of the bickering that he'd leave and find something else to do. Now he had missed it so much that he couldn't get enough of it.
"Hey," a group of seven men walked up to where the three were sitting at. All of them wore the standard issue Tolbi uniforms complete with spears in hand and swords strapped to their sides. The sunlight glinted off the tip of the spear as Felix looked up at the men. "Are you Isaac of Vale?"
Felix decided they weren't worth his time and went back to eating. Isaac stop talking with Jenna and looked up. He turned and eyed each of them weighing his chances of winning if a fight broke out.
"We're here to place you under arrest," said the man in the lead. Felix pushed his chair back and stood up taking a fighting stance.
"You'll not be taking him," Felix stated simply before he started swinging.
Garret was enjoying himself thoroughly and he hadn't even left the ship yet. After he deleted the sound files from Torch, much to the Djinn's annoyance, everything was peaceful. At least until Piers' announcement. He was hoping for a quiet and peaceful day to relax and recuperate. Oh well.
He made his way on deck to find the bright smiling face of Lydia waiting for him. "What are you doing here?"
"I came by to find out why you aren't at the party," Lydia said her smile fading slightly.
"Sorry," Garret rubbed the back of his head. "I was just on my way to the party."
"That's good to hear," Lydia smile brightened back up as She stepped to the side to let Garret down. "Everyone is waiting to talk to the heroes that slew the kraken!"
"You set this up didn't you," Garret's eyes narrowed on Lydia as she beamed with pride. He was slightly upset when she nodded but then sighed. The crew did need the uplifting boost that a party garnered after a long and harsh time. "Well then, lets get going."
They turned to leave when there was a crash followed by angry shouts and Tolbi guards pouring into the streets. Garret ran over to the railing and watched as Felix took on a group of Tolbi's Elite Guards without a weapon.
"No way!" Garret exclaimed as he watched Felix toss one into the air with one arm. Then as the guard was plummeting to the ground Felix did an uppercut catching his opponent in the gut. "That's impossible!"
"Why's that…?" Lydia sounded afraid to know the answer. She looked up at Garret nervously.
"As you know to be drafted into the Tolbi guard you have to win the Colloso tournament," Garret explained as Felix continued making the Elite Guards look like weaklings. "But in order to become an Elite Guard you have to win the tournament FIVE times in a row!"
"Then that means…"
"Yes," Garret nodded not taking his eyes off the fight. "They are very strong and Felix is making them look like regular army chumps."
"Wow…"
At this point the crowd had formed a circle and had let more of the Tolbi solders into the brawl. Felix merely started fighting harder. Each blow he dealt knocked down a solder. Then only one solder stepped forward and the others backed off.
"Oh no…" Garret muttered under his breath. "Not him…"
Felix was barely breaking a sweat against all the solders he had beaten. They lay sprawled out on the ground groaning. Then one stepped up and set his lance against the table. Felix had to look up to see the man's face.
"Why do you defy Lord Babi's orders?" The man then took off his gauntlets and helmet and set them by the table next to his spear.
"I owe him a great dept," Felix replied taking his battle stance. "And on what grounds does Babi want to arrest Isaac?"
"He has committed treason against the nation of Tolbi," the big guard was bald and was a walking mass of muscle. He took off his armor and set it by his other stuff and took a fighting stance. "And seeing as your helping him I have to arrest you too."
And the two fighters charged forward ready to launch their attacks.
And that's a wrap and my attempt at a bit of a cliffhanger. As evil as they may be they still make stories a little more interesting. I have to say that it was hard coming up with what Felix and Jenna would say to each other. But like I said if you feel I did it wrong or you think you know how I could make the story better feel free to review. With that said I'll let you go…for now.
Don't hit your head on the way out.