Disclaimer: I do not own Golden Sun or Kingdom Hearts.

Chapter VII

Somewhat Damaged


The long bridge before the refugees stretched on for roughly half a mile, green fields visible on the other side. From where Jenna stood, the land of Kalay looked like a paradise, prosperous and green. The bridge they were preparing to cross was the last one they would have to face. Once on the other side, all that separated them from the refuge and safety of Kalay were a few miles of open, green field.

The people of Vale were camped out, south of Vault. They had spent a few days resting in the peaceful town, but Isaac had at last insisted they get moving. They were now taking an hour or two to rest up before the final stretch.

The pace they had set was infuriating to Jenna. During her journey with her brother, a trip like this would have taken only three or so days. The Valeans had been traveling for over a week, weighed down by children and the elderly. Jenna was bored. She couldn't wait to finally be in Kalay, so she could be done with travel for good.

Isaac was at the front of the crowd, awaiting a messenger from Kalay. He had taken the role of organizing the majority of the trek, as well as keeping the villagers safe.

The large mass of traveling villagers looked frightening to the local monsters, but a few had been bold (or starving) enough to attempt to go after some of the slower ones in the back. Only twice had monsters emerged from the surrounding forests to attack the villagers, but each time Isaac had dealt with them with long range earth psynergy. After a few had been crushed by falling stones, the others had turned tail and fled.

The villagers weren't as worried as Jenna would have thought. They had such trust in Isaac, such glowing adoration. Some had even suggested that had they remained where they were and rebuilt Vale, Isaac could have been the next mayor after Garet's grandfather died.

Speaking of Garet, Jenna felt his absence strongly. She could have used his company while traveling, as Isaac was too busy organizing the trek to spend much time with her.

Instead, Garet had run off to Imil to tell Mia about Felix's... disappearance. Jenna refused to say death. Even their parents seemed to have given up hope on their son's survival.

But Jenna still believed he was alive. Even when no one else would, she refused to accept that her brother was dead until she saw his body.

Jenna looked off in the distance. The messenger had arrived riding on a white horse, and Isaac was busy talking to him.

She wandered around a bit, eventually finding a tree under which she could rest. She sat down in the shade, closing her eyes and exhaling. She lost track of time as the wind blew through her hair.

Jenna wondered if her child would be a boy or a girl. She didn't really mind, so long as both of its parents were there for it. Nothing scared her more than the thought of her child growing up alone...

Like she had.

She was drifting off to sleep when a familiar voice roused her back awake.

"Enjoying the trip, Jenna?"

Her eyes shot open and she sprang to her feet. Isaac stood in front of her, but he wasn't the one who had spoke. The small, blonde haired boy atop the white horse had.

"Ivan!"

He slid off the horse and she ran up, hug-tackling him.

"Nice to see you, too." Ivan laughed.

"What a pleasant surprise." Jenna said, releasing him from the hug.

"I'm gonna be accompanying you for the rest of your trip." Ivan said. "Master Hammet has a large celebration planned for your arrival. He's been having new buildings built for the people of Vale to live in."

"Ivan's been busy." Isaac said. "Hammet put him in charge of the arrival of the refugees. What's your new title, Ivan?"

"Chief Immigration Overseer." Ivan said with a laugh. "And only sixteen years old."

"Everyone in Kalay is convinced that Ivan is going to take over Hammet's business." Isaac said. "There have been rumors of retirement."

"And exactly that, rumors." Ivan replied. "Master Hammet's only in his forties. He's not retiring any time soon."

Jenna laughed. It was nice to see a friend again, she had missed them all since they'd gone their separate ways after the journey. She was counting the days until her wedding, when everyone would come see her in Kalay. They would all be able to see one another again.

Except Felix...

Jenna pushed the dark thought out of her mind. He had to be alive, and she would make sure he was at her wedding, even if she had to send bounty hunters after him.

Ivan laughed at something Isaac said, and Jenna suddenly realized something. Ivan had no idea that Felix was gone. How would they tell him?

"I suppose it's time we get moving." Isaac said. "We don't want the villagers to get too comfortable in front of the bridge, or they might just settle a new village here!"

Ivan laughed and climbed back atop his horse. "I'll head to the front and coordinate the movement. You got the rear, Isaac?"

Isaac nodded.

"Perfect. Once we get to Kalay, we'll have plenty of time to catch up. You let Felix and Garet know if you see them, okay?"

"Uh... About that..."

"We will!" Jenna interrupted. "I can't wait to get there. Thanks for stopping by Ivan, it was nice to see you."

The small teenager flashed her a smile and rode off the front of the crowd. Isaac was giving her a strange look.

"What was that about?" He asked.

"Let's wait to tell him about Felix, okay?" Jenna said. "Seeing him cheered me up a bit, and I want to try to celebrate a little in Kalay before we start telling people he's missing. And hopefully Garet will get back soon."

Isaac nodded, understanding. "I have to go see my parents, before we get moving again. Since Ivan has me in the back, can you meet me there? We can talk while we travel."

Jenna nodded. "Alright."

Isaac headed off, disappearing into the sea of rising Valeans. Jenna sat back down against the tree, deciding to rest a few minutes move before she went to the rear of the group.

"Why are you not in higher spirits, young lady?" Came a voice from behind her. "A new home, newly-reunited parents, friends who care for you, and an upcoming marriage. Not to mention the child you carry. Why so sad?"

Jenna rose and looked around. There was no one there.

"Where are you?" She demanded.

"Other side, my dear."

Jenna stepped around to the other side of the tree. Sitting there in the shade was a small, old lady. Her face was pale and wrinkled, but very motherly. She wore clothes just as old and wrinkled as she was, and had a decrepit, rotting walking stick by her side. Almost white hair peaked out from under her drawn hood. Jenna was certain she had never seen her before, and yet her face looked strangely familiar.

"Ma'am, have you been sitting there this entire time?" Jenna asked, trying not to sound annoyed. She didn't like being spied on, but she was certain the old lady meant no harm by overhearing her conversation.

"Yes, my dear. I stopped to take a rest here, and haven't been able to rise."

"Here, let me help you." Jenna stepped over to her and helped the old woman rise. As she stood upon shaky legs, she leaned heavily on the gnarled staff in her hands just to stay standing.

"I fear I have been the one holding everyone back so much." The old lady chuckled. "Now dear, back to my question. Why are you so depressed? Everything is going so well for you."

Jenna looked down at the ground. "Well it is, but... My brother is gone."

"Your brother Felix? What happened to him?"

"Well... they say he killed himself. He just vanished from his tent at the edge of the chasm the night before we were to leave. But I don't believe he would do such a thing."

"You have faith in him, my dear. More faith than he deserves."

Jenna looked up at the old woman.

"Why do you put so much of your heart into someone who doesn't deserve it? All your brother does is focus on himself, on his own problems. He would rather drink and complain about about his girlfriend leaving him than be happy for his sister."

"That's not fair! He gave up a lot for us..."

"Not by his choice. The Proxians forced him into that. Tell me, would your brother really have saved the world if he hadn't been blackmailed into it?"

"He would have! Once he knew what was happening. He's acted selflessly so many times on our quest, just to help strangers in trouble. He's a very caring person."

The old lady chuckled, not so sweetly now. "Don't be so sure. All those people he helped... Did he help them because he cared or because he had something to gain?"

"What do you mean...?"

"Djinn, weapons, a psynergy-bestowing item... Was there any moment in your quest where your brother helped someone just for the sake of helping them?"

Jenna was taken aback. "Yeah, but he didn't always know there were things to gain from helping those people..."

"He didn't save the world because he wanted to spare the millions of people on it from a horrible death, he saved it so he could get mommy and daddy back. He's a selfish little bitch. He killed himself because he had nothing left, and you had everything. It was his final act of spite. He knew it would hurt you, to not have your brother there at your wedding. He's sitting in the underworld right now, laughing his ass off because he sees you cry for him."

"Shut up! Who are you? Why are you saying these things?"

A twisted, ugly grin split the old lady's wrinkled face. "It breaks my heart to see a pretty little thing like you waste your life, feeling pain for someone like Felix. Forget him. You don't need to mourn him anymore. Live your life, be happy. Don't feed your bastard brother with your tears any longer."

Jenna was nearly crying now. The old lady stepped up as thought to wipe her tears, but she roughly shoved the wrinkled hand away.

"That's good, let the anger out. Just remember who your true friends are, and who the anger should be directed at. Now before you run along to your handsome future husband, I have only one more thing to ask you. Did your brother ever have any intention of going to your wedding? Or did he just use the elders' banishment as an excuse?"

Jenna stepped back, hating the old hag before her. She turned and ran past the villagers, who were now slowly trudging along towards the bridge to Kalay. She glanced back at the tree only once, but she couldn't see past the people around her.

She wiped her tears away before she reached Isaac, who stood waiting for her by the wagons at the rear of the crowd.

"What took so long, Jenna? I was beginning to grow worried." He said as she ran into his arms.

"It's... It's nothing. I was just helping an old lady. Let's just go, I want to get to Kalay."

He held her in a warm embrace. "Don't worry, love. We'll be there before the sun sets."

They walked along in silence, Isaac holding her hand as they went. Jenna was thinking about the things the old lady had said. She didn't want to believe her, but...

The same doubts had been there, in the back of her mind. She'd just refused to believe them. Just like she was refusing to accept Felix's suicide.

Was she lying to herself? Was she making her brother out to be some kind of saint that he hadn't been?

As they passed the lone tree, Jenna looked out, expecting to see the old woman still standing there, grinning.

The hag wasn't there. But her staff was, propped up against the tree.


Felix and Xion made their way through the Bilibin Cave, though they hadn't entered from Bilibin. Their footsteps echoed as they made their way through the cold cavern, their only source of light being a torch that Felix carried.

Their journey of the past month had been a long and hard one, but it hadn't been miserable. Felix only allowed them to travel during the day, to avoid monsters. Xion hadn't seen any Weyard monsters yet, but judging from Felix's descriptions, she wasn't eager.

The terrain was rough and it rained often, but Xion found herself loving every day of it. Felix's mood was on and off, like it had been before, but on his good days, they'd have all kinds of fun. They ran out of stories pretty quickly, but they still had lots to talk about.

Felix taught her a lot about Weyard. She now knew the difference between Psynergy and magic, though she couldn't use either of them. And she also knew quite a bit about the history of this world, mostly involving the recent events of Alchemy's unsealing.

Felix was hesitant to discuss Alex, but she did manage to learn that he was on his way to Imil, just like them. Felix tried to hide it, but she could see he was eager to get there, and see his friend. It made Xion smile, every time she thought about how much Felix's friends meant to him. He was doing all this traveling, just to help out her and Alex. She liked that about him, how he appreciated and valued his friends.

She was glad she's found him. Despite his flaws, he was a good person.

She was eager to get to Imil and meet this Alex guy, to see what kind of person Felix cared so much for. They were nearly there, only the Bilibin Tunnel stood in there way. Xion was practically shaking she was so excited.

"How long is this tunnel?" Xion asked Felix.

"It's not that long." Felix said. "The trek to Imil that we'll have to take after it is worse. There always seems to be a blizzard in these parts, and the monsters around here are pretty vicious."

Xion looked up at the cavern ceiling. "So we're underneath a mountain right now?" She asked, amazed.

Felix nodded. "Yup. Several, in fact. There's a whole range of them that we've passed under already."

They had been traveling underground for several hours now. Felix was trying not to feel claustrophobic. He'd always hated this tunnel.

"You seem to know this place well." Xion said. "How many times have you been through here?"

"This is my third trip." Felix replied. "My first was years ago, back before my group had stolen the Elemental Stars from Vale. We were traveling to meet someone in Imil who Saturos had been in contact with for several weeks. The second time was during our adventure, we were off to Mercury Lighthouse to fire the beacon."

"Wow, you've done so much." Xion said.

"I guess." Felix muttered.

The person they had been traveling to meet had been Alex, of course. Had Felix known back then what he knew now...

He glanced over at Xion. He didn't know how he would come clean to her for lying about Alex. Hopefully she wouldn't be around when Felix finally found the man, and gutted him like a pig.

"This place sure is cold." Xion shivered, pulling her black cloak around her small body. She almost wished she was till wearing her Organization coat, but she had left it behind, burying it by a river near the mouth of the cave they were in now. If she ever needed it again for some reason, such as to use a dark corridor, she would return and dig it back up.

"It doesn't get any warmer." Felix added. There was more behind those words, but only he understood. Suddenly, he heard something, and he stopped.

"This place almost reminds me of the castle..." Xion began, but Felix quickly shushed her. She turned to him, somewhat irritated.

"What is-"

He quickly silenced her. His hand went to the hilt of his sword, and he slowly began to slide the blade out. He dropped his bag on the ground.

Xion, realizing there was danger, also drew her katana. Now that there was silence, she could hear what had alarmed Felix: the faint sound of rustling chains.

Felix bent down and stuck the torch in the ground, burying the bottom shaft in the ice below them. Then he leaped back to his feet and raised his sword just in time to block the first attack.

Four of them emerged from the shadows, and they were the most hideous creatures Xion had ever seen. They had sickly green skin, long pointed ears, hairless heads, and torn cloth for clothes. Broken chains were at their wrists, and sharp teeth gaped from their mouths, saliva frothing at the sight of their potential meals.

"Ghouls!" Felix exclaimed as the first one swung it's claws at him. The sudden attack forced Felix back against the frozen wall behind them. A second ghoul charged at him as the first's drooling mouth snapped at Felix's neck, held back only by his sword.

Xion was concerned for him, but she had to worry about herself first. The second two ghouls came for her, but luckily she had more time to prepare. She raised her katana, wielding it with two hands like a keyblade. Felix had been wise to stick the torch in the ground she noticed, or else he would have dropped it in the snow and they would be blind.

As the first ghoul closed in on her, she swung her blade down, slicing it's arm off at the shoulder. In the moments after she did that, she expected the creature to collapse and disappear, as Heartless always did from such injuries, so she readjusted her battle stance to attack the second.

But the first didn't vanish. It didn't even seem to react to the injury which was gushing out green blood like a garden hose. It just raised it's undamaged arm and swung. Unprepared for the attack that was about to come, Xion could do nothing as the claws of the beast slashed her across her stomach.

She screamed in pain, but managed to keep her mind in battle mode. As the ghoul opened it's mouth, about to bite her arm, she pulled her katana back and plunged it into the creature's mouth, the blade piercing its skull and emerging on the other side. The monster collapsed, dead.

Xion's stomach was burning from pain, but she forced it out of her mind. As the second ghoul was nearly upon her, she tied to pull her sword out of the first ghoul's head, but it was stuck. The second ghoul reached her and went straight to bite her throat. Unable to do anything else, she raised her arm free arm to block it.

The ghoul's razor sharp teeth pierced the flesh of her arm, plunging all the way down to the bone. She screamed, pushing the creature back as best she could. It's teeth came out of her arm, blood gushing out of the deep wound. The ghoul's teeth were stained red with her blood, but there was also drops of green fluid dripping from them.

Xion's mind felt on fire from the pain. With her last bit of strength, she ripped her sword out of the first ghoul's skull and swung it, slicing off the second's head. It's body stood for a moment, before crumbling to the floor in a twisted heap.

Xion dropped her sword and fell to her knees. The pain she felt was so bad, she couldn't focus on anything else. She faintly heard the sound of a ghoul screaming in pain before her muscles gave out.

Even in her agonized state, she could tell something was wrong. She had been injured on missions before. Her body shouldn't have been reacting the way it was. The pain was spreading all through her body, and all the muscles in her body felt stiff and rigid.

Her vision was getting hazy. Something was seriously wrong. She couldn't even scream anymore. She felt she could barely breath.

Felix plunged his sword into the chest of the second ghoul that had attacked him. It slid off his blade, dead.

He had heard Xion scream twice, but the ghouls attacking him had been so vicious he hadn't even had a chance to see what was happening to her. Luckily, he hadn't heard the sounds of the ghouls tearing up her flesh, so she must still be alive.

He turned over to see the two ghouls that had attacked Xion lying dead around her. He was at first relieved, until he noticed her lying in a pool of her own red blood.

Terrified, he raced to her side and flipped her over. Her beautiful face was stained with blood, and her eyes were glazed over. She was still breathing, though.

He quickly inspected her injuries. She had a slash across her stomach, which was seeping blood, and a bite in her left arm.

She had been bitten...

Felix quickly used healing Psynergy to close the wounds and raced to his dropped bag, tearing through his supplies. He prayed he hadn't forgotten it when he was shopping...

He hadn't! He grabbed the small blue flower and raced back to Xion's side. He tilted her head back, crushing the flower up to small pieces and forcing her to swallow it.

Xion's head fell back as the antidote entered her body, slowly purging the poison from her system. Felix cursed himself for being careless. He should have warned her about the ghouls before they even entered the cavern. Poison was a tricky condition. It was different for every monster. Sometimes poison could be left untreated for hours before it began to have negative effects on the victim. Other monsters' poison however, was fast acting, and usually lethal.

Unfortunately, Xion seemed to have gotten the latter.

Now it was up to fate. If the poison had gotten deep enough into Xion's system, the antidote would be useless and she would die. Felix prayed he wasn't too late.

The minutes ticked by, agonizingly slow. As her condition remained unchanged, Felix began to fear she was gone.

Slowly, however, color began to return to her cheeks. The antidote slowly cleansed her system, bringing her back to health.

Felix breathed a sigh of relief. She was safe.


As dawn broke among Imil, the fresh rays of sunlight cast their pleasant smile upon Garet, who gently woke from sleep. The blue glow of Mercury Lighthouse was now fading away, replaced by the familiar warmth of the friendly sun.

A smile graced Garet's face as he slowly turned over, looking out the window at the beautiful rising, golden sun.

Then he realized how early it was. With a groan he pulled the blankets over his head and went back to sleep.

It was nearly noon by the time Garet woke for real. No concerns were on his mind as he made his way down the stairs to the lobby, where he was sure a fresh meal awaited him. No concerns about Mia, the gambler man, or the mysterious thirteen card were on his mind as he sleepily made his way through the lobby and asked about breakfast.

The cook told him in a voice that seemed way too loud to Garet's virgin ears that there way no more breakfast left, and he would have to wait for him to finish preparing lunch.

So Garet once again found himself slouched over one of the tables, impatiently awaiting something to eat. He couldn't get ready for the day on an empty stomach.

At last, after deciding that he was being served by the slowest cook in the world, Garet finally heard the bell ring that signaled a meal served. Garet raced up, but found himself stuck at the end of the line behind a hunchbacked old man with a sick cough.

Once the old man finally got to the front of the line, he scratched his beard, trying to decide what to eat. It took all Garet had not to shake the geezer from frustration.

After what felt like an eternity, he returned to his table with a plate of steaming meat. What animal or monster the meat had come from, Garet knew better than to ask.

He wolfed his food down. As an experienced eater, he could pull off having steak for breakfast.

His stomach at last satisfied, he returned to his room and gathered up his belongings. He strapped his sword on his back, knowing better than to leave it behind. He may have been a laid-back joker, but he was no fool.

He then locked the room up and left, letting the innkeeper know that he would be staying another night. He walked through the snowy streets of Imil, which was now occupied, though not by many. A few children, here and there, and a man who was exercising, out in the old. Snow was not currently falling, but it did so often in Imil that the streets were always covered.

Garet's mind drifted back to the previous day. Most of what he remembered seemed to be him waiting around for the cook to make him something to eat, much like he had just got done doing. He remembered playing cards with a blonde haired man with a strange accent, and he remembered talking to Mia apprentice, Megan.

He also seemed to remember a strange nightmare involving a card, but he couldn't recall the details.

Garet made his way to the town's sanctum, where he expected Mia to be. He remembered having gone there the night before, but Mia had been resting from a hard day of healing. He had only seen that Megan girl when he stopped by.

As he crossed the bridge over the frozen river, he got his first glimpse of the sanctum that day, which surprised him.

There was a long line of coughing people outside the sanctum doors. As Garet watched, a villager emerged from the sanctum and another one stepped inside. He couldn't see what was happening beyond the doors, but he was sure the people were getting treated by Mia and her apprentices. He remember Megan mentioning a fever spreading due to the fountain running dry. Apparently it was the same fever that had been going around Imil the first time Garet had been there.

Though Garet badly wanted to see Mia, he decided to wait until the line was gone. She was busy, and he didn't want to get too close to the sick people.

Garet once again found himself waiting with nothing to do. The minutes ticked by, Garet pacing up and down the steps near the bridge trying to entertain himself. As he paced, he stubbed his toe on something hidden in the snow, holding back curse words as his toe ached. Frustrated, he dug around until he found what he'd accidentally kicked.

It was a stone shaped like a cube. Roughly the size of a fist, but very heavy and dense, like it was made out gold or something. Yet it was a very dull pale of gray, so dull in fact, that just looking at it depressed Garet. He picked it up to examine it, but the moment he touched it, something happened.

Images flashed through his head or a figure in a dark coat with a drawn hood racing through the streets of Imil at night. He mysterious figure darted around a corner, the stone cube in its hand. As the figure ran, he or she slipped on a patch of ice, the cube dropping from the hands carrying it and disappearing in the deep snow. The hooded figure dug desperately through the snow, trying to fins their cube, but just then someone darted around the corner, looking around wildly. The hooded figure gave up, and ran, creating a black hole of energy around the next corner and vanishing. Back where the cube had fallen, a large, red-haired man raced after the hooded figure, unaware they had just disappeared. A card slipped out of the man's pocket as he rounded the corner, falling in the snow behind him. The red-haired man ran forward, stepping on the stone cube as he took a hasty step. Thrown off-balance, he fell, landing painfully on his knee and elbow.

Garet let go of the cube and took a step back. What he had just seen matched his nightmare from last night perfectly. And yet, it had been too vivid to have been a dream. It had to have been real.

Garet hesitantly picked up the cube again. No more visions struck him this time, though the small stone seemed to be vibrating. He inspected it. It had a strange, white emblem on one of it's sides.

He stuck the cube in his pocket, making sure he buttoned it closed, something he had forgotten to do earlier, which was why he had lost the card. Remembering the card, he made his way back over to the spot where he had seen it fall in his vision, expecting to still see it there.

It wasn't there. He dug around in the snow for a bit, thinking it had just been buried, but it was nowhere to be found. Someone must have picked it up, he concluded.

The gambler had been wearing the same black coat the man in the vision had been wearing. The man in the vision had to be the same person, fleeing from Garet at night. Whatever was going on with this man, he had clearly lost the cube, which was something important to him. That much Garet figured. Why he had placed a card in Garet's room, and why, were still unknown.

Hopefully Garet would find this man and get some answers out of him.

With the stone cube in his pocket, Garet went down the stairs and looked out to the sanctum again. The line was all but gone, only a single old man in green remaining, who stepped inside before the doors shut.

Garet made his way down to the sanctum, stopping at the front gates. He took a deep breath, ready to confront Mia at last. As he was about to reach out and open the door, he felt the sensation of being hit by a train.

The entire stone altar, which had been thrown with superhuman force through the door, slammed into Garet with enough power to crush an ordinary human. Garet was pushed off his feet, flying back and slamming against a tree. As he was being hit by both the huge block of stone and the tree simultaneously, he felt like he was being crushed like an insect caught between two hands clapping.

Garet's body did not break, but the tree behind him did. It split clean in two, the top piece spinning off in the direct Garet had just come from.

Garet himself just kept flying. He was went over where the tree had been, the stone altar still hugging his body as he landed on the frozen river.

Had it only been his weight, he would have been fine. However, the stone altar somehow managed to land right on top of him, only a split second after he had slammed against the hard ice. The stone altar then struck Garet with just as much force as it had a moment ago, crashing through the two or so feet of ice beneath them.

As Garet was pushed into the bone-chilling water, the stone altar (which was now cracked in the middle from hitting Garet twice) split off in two pieces and sank into the water below Garet.

This all happened in less than five seconds.

Garet's body was numb. He had been hit by so much force, he hadn't even felt any pain when it happened. When his brain, struggling to process what had just happened to him, finally caught up, the amount of pain that hit him was so excruciating that he screamed underwater so loudly that he could probably be heard above on the surface.

He somehow managed to remember the tiny scrapes he had received the night before from tripping on the cube. It was almost funny to him how minor and incomparable they seemed to what he was feeling now. He was suffering from an agony that only an Adept could experience. A normal human's body would be crushed flat by now, after getting hit by that stone altar twice.

His survival instincts kicked in, after he realized that he had been underwater for over a minute already. He realized that if he didn't do something immediately, and get back above the surface, he would drown.

He forced his stiff, nearly useless body to move. He pointed his hands down at the bottom of the river, casting the strongest Psynergy he had: Liquifier.

The fire never appeared, as he was underwater, but the energy was there. And the backlash force that hit him was so intense, it forced him back up at twice the speed he had been moving flying through the air before.

Garet's body then received the third impact within the last two minutes that would have killed a normal human. He burst through the ice from below, flying about fifty feet in the air, before coming back down. He landed again on the frozen river in a different spot. This time, the impact only knocked the wind out of him, causing him to cough up a lungful of water.

Garet lay there, struggling to breath and to get his head to stop spinning. His senses then started coming back to him, one by one. The first thing he heard was a panicked female voice.

"Garet!"

He slowly looked up to see Mia running towards him across the frozen river. He could see two huge holes in the ice yards away, from where he had burst through each time.

"Oh gods, Garet... are you alright?" Mia exclaimed, running to his side.

"S-Seriously, Mia...?" He coughed. "Did you SEE what happened to me? Did you SEE what I got HIT by...?"

Mia quickly cast as much healing Psynergy on him as his body could take. About two dozen broken bones repaired themselves, and he could swear he felt an organ somewhere stitching itself back together. Despite the vibrating pain that still radiated through his body, Mia slowly helped him to his feet.

"Gods, Garet I don't know how you survived that..." Mia said in awe.

"Why, Mia?" He gasped. "Why did your sanctum's altar come flying out your front door like a missile?"

Mia didn't say a word. She merely pointed at the open doors of the sanctum. Garet's eyes followed her direction, and he got a good glimpse of the person who had kicked the altar so hard, it had burst through the front door, shattered a tree, broke the surface of the frozen lake, and nearly killed Garet.

Standing in the front door was the feeble old man with the hunched back.

"No." Garet just said. "I refuse to believe that."

He heard a laugh come from the old man. And then he saw why.

The old man straightened his back, pulled off his fake beard, and threw off his shabby green cloak.

Revealing the short blonde hair and black coat Garet had been expecting.

"I believe you have something of mine."