Chapter 4: Reignited Passion

(Hey guys! Just a heads up that this chapter is primarily going to be about Kai's and Zane's past. Oh, there's still a lot unexplained. What happened between the rest of the year of Kai and Zane being eleven? After the fire? Here are (some of) your long-awaited answers! FINALLY I was able to past this- yay!)

Past

Zane's eyes suddenly fluttered open. He looked around and saw he was on a medical bed again… and the same nurse was standing over him.

"Re-admitted ten minutes after discharge. Wow, that must be a record," she joked, seeing Zane had recovered fully.

"Oh. Ha-ha," Zane replied.

"You'll be discharged again once we've checked that you're behaving okay. If you aren't, well, we'll discharge you anyway so your father can fix you. You're technically okay by our standards, but we're still required to check you."

"O-ok," Zane agreed, sitting up on the bed.

Back in the waiting room, Dr. Julien decided that he would stay at the hotel right next to the hospital until what had to be done was done. Nya agreed with him in silence; together, they sat in the room, without speaking a word.

Ten minutes later, Zane was wheeled in on a wheelchair and was stopped next to his father.

"How did it go?" Dr. Julien asked.

"They discharged me exactly nine minutes, thirty-five seconds and one hundred milliseconds after I woke up," the android replied.

"That's good!" Nya said. Then, catching sight of the deathly emergency ward door, she looked down. "But… but… will he really make it?"

Zane was struck once again with sadness. Julien put an arm around them both.

"Time will tell," he said. "And if he does make it, then I have something to help him in life as well." He smiled a little.

"Father, what is it?" Zane asked, gasping.

"I don't want to give it away. I'm going home for a little bit and coming back. Why don't you two head over to the pediatrics playground and be there until I come back? It will, at most, take an hour. Be good children until then, will you?"

"Yes father," Zane replied.

"Yes uncle," Nya followed.

"Thank you, sweethearts. I'll be off then." He winked to try to alleviate their current mood, and walked away. Zane and Nya turned the other direction and walked towards the pediatric playground. It was behind another set of double doors- but this time, the doors were decorated with an aquatic theme- and met the receptionist.

"Hello, welcome to Pediatric Play! How can I help you?"she asked warmly.

"We'd like to enter, please," Zane replied. The two children held out their pediatric wristbands.

"Of course!" she replied, opening one of the double doors. "Have fun!"

Nya and Zane walked in and breathed in with awe.

The play center was huge; it featured three large slides, some swing sets protected by gates, a coloring booth, secret passages, monkey bars, and more- picture a playground combined with an indoor play area- and it was all aquatic themed. Helpers were stationed at various places in the play place. It was even divided into areas based on the child's age and needs. It was like being in a mini kiddie theme park. There were many, many kids from ages 5-12 playing inside.

But what awed them most was how different the kids were. A few of the kids there looked normal; others had mental disabilities such as autism and bipolar disorder; and some of them had physical disabilities- some couldn't walk without assistance from a walker, some had prosthetics, and others were in wheelchairs. What surprised Zane and Nya most of all was that despite their disabilities, all the kids were playing with happiness and harmony.

"Wow," Nya murmured.

"It seems this play area is aquatic themed as the color palette used for it is calming and puts one at ease," Zane concurred. "It's beautiful isn't it Nya- wait! Nya!" She had started running towards a slide.

"I love slides!" Nya yelled. "And this one looks awesome!"

"Nya, please come back here!" Zane shouted.

But it was too late. Nya had disappeared into the play structure. Zane sighed and decided to let her play there, and went to the coloring booth. He picked out a piece of white paper and a pencil, sat at an empty table, and started to draw. He began by drawing Frosty Samurai. Then he clothed him in his white and periwinkle gi and armor; finally he colored the background; a war scene.

A kid in prosthetics caught sight of Zane's picture and came over to the empty table. "Hey, is that Frosty Samurai?" he asked.

"Indeed it is," Zane answered.

"Whoa, that looks really cool!" he said in delight. "He's my favorite, too."

"Really?"

"Really."

"You know, you draw really well. How do you do it?"

"I can show you if you wish," Zane answered.

"That would be great!" the kid answered.

"Okay, let's start… Oh, I forgot to ask. What is your name?"

"Me? My name is Conan," he replied, holding out his prosthetic hand. "I'm eleven."

"My name is Zane, and I am also eleven. It is a pleasure to meet you." As he shook Conan's prosthetic hand, it reminded him of Kai, who would have a prosthetic arm if he survived, and Zane held back tears as he thought of him at this state.

"What's wrong, Zane?" Conan queried, sensing something was wrong with him.

Zane shook it off. "It's nothing," he replied. "Now, let's get started…"

Nya had played on the slide for a while before she found a secret passage. This one was hidden, and behind the slide she had just been on. She crawled into it and closed the trap door behind her. It was big enough to crawl through, and it was very dark, and (unfortunately for her) Nya's Nyctophobia (fear of the dark) washed over her. Cautiously, she crawled forward one step. Then another. Finally, she found a little hollow and began to cry. Why did her brother-her very own brother- have to be in the dank, morbid operation room? Why him?

"Why are you crying?" a voice asked.

Nya's primary reaction was to swat out at the person in the darkness. Her hand actually connected with the person and she hit them. "G-go away!" Nya screamed.

"Oowwwwieeeee… that hurt…" the person said. She sounded like a girl around Nya's age.

Nya immediately receded even further into the hollow. "I-I'm very sorry!"

"It's-it's okay, I guess," the other girl said, sniffling. Suddenly, there was a burst of artificial light, and she could see the girl clearly. She had two brown braids on either side of her head, and she had one blue eye. The other was covered up by a patch. She also had a prosthetic leg, clanking along the plastic corridor.

"Ah! G-get away from me…" Nya said in fear.

"I-I don't want to hurt you," the other girl said. "I just heard crying, then I came across you. You don't have anything ailing you. So… why?"

"I do, but it's mental," Nya replied. "It's called… trauma."

"What's that?"

"I don't know," Nya said, shaking her head. Then she pointed at the girl's eye. "What happened?" she asked.

"It's a long, long, long story!" she said, with a smile. She dimmed the flashlight.

"I'm Reilly!"

"Reilly… huh?" Nya said.

"Yeah. Reilly! And you are…?"

"Nya. Nya Smith."

"Nice to meet you, Nya Smith!"

"You don't have to say my last name!"

Reilly and Nya had walked outside the secret passage and were now sitting on benches. "So, what are you here for?" Reilly straightaway asked.

"My… my… my brother," she replied.

"Oh," Reilly replied. "I'm here with my brother, too. His name is Conan. He likes to draw, because he's grateful he can do it with his prosthetic hand. Me, I like to run, since I'm grateful for my leg."

She suddenly quieted down.

"Sorry Nya Smith, but I… I need to tell you this, I guess…"

"Tell me what? And it's just Nya!"

"How this happened to me, I mean."

Nya gasped a little. "But… why? We just met!"

"You seem so understanding of people! I know it. And you're my age. You will understand me. That's why I need to tell you."

"But-"

"Please!"

Nya sighed for a moment. "All right," she said. "But there is a catch. You have to listen to my story too."

Reilly grinned a little bit. "Of course, Nya Smith! I'll listen to your story too, no matter how sad it is."

"Are you trying to annoy me or something? Just call me Nya!"

"But I like you calling me Nya Smith! It sounds so… jingly. Rolly. I don't know how to put it. Nya Smith. Nya Smith. Neeeyaaa Smiiith Neeyaasmiith. You see?"

"Gah! Now it doesn't sound like my name at all!"

Nya sighed again. "Fine. But what's your last name, anyway?"

"Kiyuno. What are you thinking of, calling me Reilly Kiyuno?"

"Actually, yes, Reilly Kiyuno. No, even better- Reillykeyuuno."

Reilly laughed. "Fine, fine! Just let me tell you my story. It all begins here..."

She began.

"Once upon a time…"

She paused. "No, wait, it just isn't a "once upon a time" story. Okay. More like…"

"One day… There, that suits it. One day, I was invited to my friend's party. It was at… something like Mindy's Incredible Noodles. Or was it Chen's Incredible Pizza? I don't remember. There was a bar there, near the buffet station."

Reilly stopped here to take a deep breath.

"So while we were having fun playing the arcade games in there, my parents got tempted into drinking alcohol. Not just drinking, but drinking too much of it. Conan and I played in there until our credits on our cards ran out, then we just walked around the place, scavenging for more cards. Suddenly, Conan was lucky enough to find a card with 100 credits on it on the ground. Now, what were the odds of that? So we decided to pocket it and play games with it. We played until the place closed until about midnight.

"We then realized that our parents were missing, but there they were, waiting at the edge of the arcade for us… drunk, though no one knew. My dad drove us back home, but since he was drunk he didn't realize where he was going. So he accidentally swerved and another car crashed into us, sending the car nearly over a bridge. Unfortunately, both the car doors were damaged, the seats broke, and my parent's side of the car was dangling over the edge and… and… you know what happened from there…" Reilly began to sob loudly; then her once loud cry became softer and softer until only Nya could hear her. She covered her face in her hands, and it was Nya who put Reilly's head on her shoulder, and let Reilly bawl quietly. "I'm sorry for your loss, Reilly Kiyuno," Nya said softly.

It was a while before Reilly's cries subsided and Nya tried to break up the sadness for one moment. "So… at least you and your brother came out alive, right? Though not the way you wanted to," Nya added.

Reilly wiped her tears and hiccupped. "Yeah, you could say that. I'm so happy I didn't die because I got- and still get- to see the wonders of living. And I'm so thankful I'm alive right now… I'm thankful I'm part of an orphanage with a caring headmistress, to have food to eat, a brother, being able to come here… so I could meet people like you."

Nya looked with wonder. This girl was so mature, beyond her age. She had suffered a loss and met a fate seemingly worse than her own, but she was still thankful for everything. And she was strong. For four years, Nya thought. And I've been weak for almost a whole week. Punny, but I really don't care about that right now.

"Why did you bother telling me anyway?" Nya asked with wonder.

"Well, I have a job here, actually," Reilly replied. "I'm supposed to connect with people who seem to need it. Especially people my age. But don't get me wrong- I really don't know what trauma is. And I really don't want to know."

"It's what you had just now," Nya said.

"I-is that so?" Reilly asked. "Oh. It feels painful. As if someone had stabbed a spear through my heart."

Nya looked away for a moment. Here she was, talking to a special needs girl who really didn't seem like special needs, who could express her emotions perfectly. Here she was, being sort of like a therapist. Was she supposed to come to her?

"Y-you might be getting the wrong idea. I really didn't come to you on purpose, I guess! I mean-!"

Nya grinned and put her hand over Reilly's mouth. "Nah, I won't say anything. I've gotta tell you my story first anyway."

"That's right, Nya Smith!" Reilly said, after Nya took her hand away. "Okay, you can tell me now."

So Nya started her story- from the time Zane came over to the house where she first saw him to the other playdate, a few years later, when the fire happened, when Nya's mother dropped her out, to when she realized Kai could die.

"So he's in the operation room and… he… might… just…!" Her words were interrupted by sobs finding their way into her throat, and after a small choke, she let it out. "I'm so scaared… what's gonna happen to him?"

To this question…

The other little girl only smiled, and laid a shoulder on Nya.

"He'll be okay," she began.

"H-huh?"

"He'll be okay. I'm being completely honest here. I'm not trying to reassure you because he might die. I'm telling the truth. He'll make it out alive. I think it may not have been the fire capturing him… but him capturing the fire."

"That's unrealistic-"she started. Then she stopped and remembered Fiery Samurai. He discovered his power over the flames when he ran in to save a woman from a burning 10-story building. Bare. And he escaped unharmed.

It may be unrealistic, but maybe it can actually happen. Maybe he can pull through, like Fiery Samurai did. And he'll find a new power. Something…

Suddenly… Reilly pushed her towards the slide. "Ga-aah!" Nya nearly tripped.

"H-hey, what was that for!?"

"You had the face of Plato there," Reilly teased. "Don't act like an olll-die." She ran to the ladder of the slides.

"Hey, wait!" Nya yelled. "I'll get you back for that!"

"No. That isn't it."

A hand picked up an eraser and rubbed out Frosty Samurai's eye on the white printer paper. It picked up the pencil and redrew it.

"No, not this either." The process repeated.

"Do you need help?" Zane asked.

"N-no! I'm fine! I can draw this. Just-"

"You clearly look like you're struggling."

Conan sighed. "Ack, fine. So, what am I doing wrong?"

"The eye is like this…" Zane drew one of the eyes on the paper. It was perfectly well-rounded. The eye looked icy even before he colored it.

"Whoa… amazing!" Conan breathed. "You really do know your stuff!"

"Y-you're more amazing, drawing with your prosthetic hand," Zane replied. He has robotic parts connected to his human body. Yet he draws as if they are one. How does he do it?

"Ah, this? It's nothing, really. It was a result of a freak accident. Honestly, I'm lucky I survived with most of my body and my sister. My parents… weren't quite so lucky."

Zane's eyes widened a little. "Ah. I'm sorry," he replied with a somber look.

"That was a while ago, though. I'm over it now. But Reilly cries a lot about it. She doesn't completely understand it, yet. Other than that, she's been very active with her leg."

"And you, with your hand," Zane noticed.

"And… done!" Conan said. He pushed a picture of Frosty Samurai over to Zane. "How do you think it looks?"

"Whoa, this is a masterpiece!" Zane gasped.

"Yeah, well… I'm not really that good… y'know, not as good as you anyway. Your drawing is so- GWAAAAAH!"

That came from a younger girl rushing full-force into him- and it was enough to run him over. She was very fast. "Oi… Reilly, what is it now?"

"Zaaaane!" Nya yelled, running to the two boys.

"Nya! You're back," Zane replied. "Is she your new friend?"

Reilly got up. "Yeppity-yep-yep! I'm Reilly Kiyuno. Nice to meet you, Zane Julien!"

Nya sweatdropped. "Not the last name again," she muttered.

"I apologize for my sister's INSENSITIVITY," Conan said, emphasizing the final word.

"Conaaan…" Reilly whined. "Well, at least you know who this SNIVELISH person is."

"Like I said earlier, please forgive her," Conan added. "And snivelish isn't even a real word!"

"It should be," Reilly teased.

Nya burst out into laugher. "You two are so funny!"

Yeah, they are, Zane thought. Just like Nya and…

In a flash, Zane felt numb, as his essence disconnected from his body.

Kai.

Suddenly, his logic and "emotions" began to mix into one.

They started a war.

Kai can survive! He can be with his sister!

No, he can't. It's physically impossible.

Let hope prevail!

Logic oversees it all.

Kai can do this! He's my brother! My cousin! He must live! He lives for me, Nya, and everyone! He must! I need him! I CAN'T SURVIVE WITHOUT HIM!

No, he can't. He fell out a window from a fire, Zane Julien. He cannot live. His heartbeat mustn't be too low. He can't be in a coma. The variable pertaining to Kai's life is undefined. This shall not compute!

***CRITICAL SYSTEM WARNING: Main emotional and logical parameters are failing. These failures are crucial to your life. Solution: Terminate the program. Ending logic and emotions program in three seconds. 3… ***

TERMINATE ME? NO… THIS CAN'T BE! I NEED TO BE THERE FOR HIM! I NEED TO MAKE SURE HE LIVES AGAIN!

This is the only way you can survive, Zane. Would you kill yourself for him?

***…2 ***

KAI IS MY OLDER BROTHER! I CAN'T TERMINATE MYSELF!

You must.

***…1 ***

At this point, Zane had fallen to his hands and knees, and his eyes immediately lost their shine.

He… wanted… me… to… live… so… I… must… live! Or… I… will… be… ryjtyuf… uiginiuhm… of4h3rif… ri3ofh3ru… uhn3ifms3o…

***…0. ***

Zane saw utter blackness.

***Termination successful. Now activating emergency shut-down in 5… 4… 3… 2…1… ***

It was here, that Zane lost himself, and saw an utter silence.

***Good-bye, ZANE. ***

Present

Zane gasped for breath as he rose jauntily from his sleeping bag. He took many shallow, small breaths as he tried to recollect himself.

"What… was that just now?" he whispered to himself.

Somehow, he managed to wake Kai up with him. "Ugh, what happened now? Bad dream?"

"Y… yes, Kai. It was a nightmare."

"What happened? Did someone die? Or was someone so close to dying that you were traumatized?"

"I… I…" Zane searched all areas of his memory. But the dream was nowhere to be remembered. "I cannot recall."

"Zane, this is our third day on our journey to Ignacia. You've been getting nightmares ever since. Are you sure you'll be okay?"

Zane sighed.

"I hope."

(HOLY CRAP! What did I just write? I'm just… speechless… O_o

Shoot…

Uh… shee y'all in the nexth epissode!

if me can bring myshelf to writit. X_X)