"Hey, there, big man. How have you been?" Samantha laughed, Alice and Pippa stood beside her. I smiled as she ran toward me, hugging me around my neck tightly. She stopped and looked at me solemnly. "Dude, I have something I need to tell you…" she said, before hugging me again. "It's about your left hand. It's…" she continued.
"Dead, the feeling is gone completely; it'll never come back…" I interrupted her, still trying to hold back the tears. Alice and Pippa seemed surprised, and Sam stopped hugging me.
"My god, how do you know that?" Alice said, surprised.
"And I take it Tidus and Jecht went to reunite the Ronso clans, huh?" I asked, ignoring the question. Pippa and Alice looked at each other.
"Not exactly, they came back two days ago. It's already been done. Alex, you've been unconscious for a week, how do you already know all of this?" Pippa said, confusion steeped into her voice. I finally let go of my tears, blubbering like a baby as Sam hugged me again, even tighter then before.

"Alex, what's wrong?" she asked, trying to console me.
"I keep coming face to face with my own mortality… And I can't cope." I sobbed.
"What do you mean?"
Alice closed the door of the hut quietly.
"When the lizard got my hand, I closed my eyes… I wanted to let go. Something, someone stopped me, made me carry on. I wish it was you guys, but it wasn't. It was just another of the people caught in my web of…" I paused, laughing. "…Destiny." I wiped my eyes to try and stop myself from crying.
"Alex…" Sam sighed, squeezing even more.
"There's something else… When I was unconscious…"
Sam's hand caught my shoulder, causing me to flinch. She let go of me and put her hand to my shoulder gently. "Alexis, what happened to your arm?" She said, feeling the scar.

"I… I had a dream. A replaying of the attack from those demonic hunters after our search for the Holy Grail… In the desert town with the guardians of the Grail, remember?"
"W… What? What has that got to do with anything?" she asked, confused.
"Please… Let me explain. In the dream I had, everything changed, it became an adventure in Spira. I... I met Gabriel Fisher there…" I said, tying to get a grip of myself.

"What?!" Pippa shouted suddenly, her face darkening a shade.
"He… he's aged incredibly. He said it's been 30 years since he went through the door. 30 years, compared to our 8... I still don't understand how this has happened… Gabe invaded my dream, impaled me." I said, putting my hand to my new scar.
"Alex…" Alice said, as her and Pippa came to comfort me.
"He isn't an innocent kid anymore… He told me it is my purpose to try and stop him, he's the reason I'm here. And, there's something about him, I got a sense of pure evil in his heart. He wants to kill me, and, for a little while, I wanted him to do it. If it wasn't for those two twins, I'd be dead, if this scar is anything to go by…"
"Wait a second, what twins? What else happened, Alex?" Alice asked, confused. I proceeded to tell them, without skipping a single detail.

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"So, these 'Twins' are another couple of people you are meant to meet properly in the future, to make sure you fulfil whatever your destiny is?" Sam asked. I nodded, having calmed down by now.
"And Gabe, also known as The Dark Walker in these parts, a spitting image of you, has become bitter and twisted in the 30 years he's aged in?" Alice asked. I nodded again. Alice nodded. "They always told me that kid was never meant to be found, now I know why…" she commented. It caused everyone to look at her quizzically, except me, who had a hunch she knew more about Gabe then she let on.
"So, The Four wanted you to hold the cards to their chest when it came to Gabe's life, huh?" I asked.
"Yes, I'm afraid so. I was informed that Gabriel Fisher would become a name synonymous with fear. The legends say he is to become an evil greater than anything ever conceived, including Xehanort, I presume. They said he was born into hate, and so it resided in his heart…" Alice said.

Suddenly, in what I could only call a fit of rage, Pippa grabbed Alice and slammed her against the wall. Sam shot up to her feet at a lightning speed and I quickly followed.
"What the hell are you doing?!?" I shouted, putting one arm between them.
"She knows nothing about how Gabe was brought up. Nothing!" she replied, taking no notice of my attempt to separate them and slamming Alice against the wall, pushing me out of the way in the process.

Sam reached out to her. "Pippa, please, don't do this. If you admit this now, how do you think Alice and Alex will see you, huh?" she said, almost pleading with her. Pippa slammed Alice against the wall again before I tried to pull them apart.
"No! They have to know, I can't let them think about Gabe's upbringing like that, they have to know the truth. I should have told Alex in the first place…" she said, breaking down into tears herself.
"Please, Pippa, I'm sorry…"Alice said, scared and in pain. Finally, Pippa let go and fell to her knees, sobbing.
"I am Gabriel's mother!" she shouted, in anguish. Alice and I were stunned
'Oh my god…' I thought.

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Inside the base of the Watchers

"Oh boy, that let the cat out of the bag." Ariel said.
"Better now then never. I'm glad they now know why everybody is where they are now." Raijik said.
"But what if they turn against her, then what?" Shiva said.
"They won't. Alex and Alice are open-minded; they will understand her when she explains her circumstances." North said.

"Talking of which, Gabe should never have been allowed to enter his mind, we're slipping." Shiva said.
"We never saw it coming, how were we supposed to know he would try something so cowardly after all the battles he's won with his dreadful talents…?" North said.
"At least, it gives us a little hope, right? He must be scared of Alex to do something like that, right?" Ariel said. Raijik sighed and walked away from his partners.
"If the team doesn't stay together, he may not make it to Gabriel. It's that simple." he said over his shoulder. They all went silent.

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"I was very young, only 16. I was… Some drunken bastard raped me. I was so ashamed about what had happened, but I couldn't get an abortion. It's against every single moral I have… It was just a week before I started to go to college, where I met Samantha, when I gave birth to a little baby boy. It was a blond haired, brown-eyed boy, just like the guy who raped me, and the kid had all of his features… I just couldn't keep him, with all those bad memories in just his face… So I walked out of the hospital and never saw him again. All I left was his nametag. Under the assumed name I had taken, Kerry Fisher, someone I knew as a child, in America, Gabriel Jason Fisher was left to live in an Orphanage for what should have been the rest of his childhood. How was I supposed to know this would happen?" Pippa explained, crying on Sam's shoulder.
"My god, I'm so sorry, Pippa…" I said, hugging her. Alice stroked her back to comfort her.

I was caught with conflicting emotions, as an eerie silence descended upon us. Pippa was a mother torn by the hate of an evil man and the love of a child, and the hate won. Because of that hate, an evil child grew up to what could soon be my worst nightmare. And things just circled in my head...
Why didn't she tell me?
What right did she have to give him away?
He should have been killed at birth...

But... In the end, she's a friend. No matter what she did in the past, she isn't responsible for Gabe's actions now...

"Pippa told me at the end of the last year, before we went to the prom, Alex. That's why I was so distant from you. I was scared something like that could happen to me." Sam told me. I smiled at her weakly.
"Oh, that kinda makes sense…" I said, thinking back.
"What are you talking about? How long have you guys known each other?" Alice asked. I looked at Pippa. She smiled back through the tears.
"Go on. I don't mind… I could do with cheering up, to be honest, and you guys seem to have had a happy life." Pippa said.
"If only that was true…" I said, shaking my head.
"Come on, I've shared the darkest story of my life, be fair and tell us about yours. Please?"
"Alright, I'll tell you about my life." I sighed.

"When I was a kid, my parents, Sycamore Lyle and Kimberly Edmenton, did everything for me. My father pushed me hard to make the most of my talents and strengths, but he loved me, so I accepted the rough training and studying. I had a loved childhood, and I got a lot out of my little life. But, when I was 8, it all changed.

"Mom and Dad, they… died in a car accident. We had no other family, so I taken from my home and placed in an orphanage, just on the outskirts of our hometown, Darlington. Spending the rest of my childhood there, I started to lull into a depression. Eventually, it got so bad I started to develop panic attacks. It almost killed me. When I was 12 years old, a bizarre incident occurred that only made it worse... I woke up miles away from my orphanage at the town Hospital, and a whole day had passed without my knowledge. Not only that, the orphanage no longer had any knowledge of my name, as if I was erased from their memories and accounts. And, even stranger, someone had enrolled me into a revolutionary new Campus-style Secondary School called The Commune, and this mystery person was footing the entire bill for it. I had been given a chance to mould myself a decent life. Knowing what I know now, I guess it makes sense. Like I was being groomed for this...

"Anyway, thanks to my Father's tutelage, I was already pretty bright, and, along with the street smarts I had gained with help from the other kids at the orphanage, I got on at the Commune well, gaining A qualifications in all of my Subjects. After the good times I had at the Commune, I decided to go into College education, so I attended an open evening in the Queen Elizabeth 6th Form College. Like I told you, I went to that 'place of evil' for two years, got my A levels there. That's why Gabe said we were linked through that place. Being back inside there made my skin crawl…

"During the visit, I must have sensed that lurking evil there, because, for the first time in a long time, I suffered a panic attack with so much suddenness and severity that I blacked out. Samantha Daniels, also a visitor to the college, revived me… Our Sam…

"She pretty much saved my life, so I stuck with her, trying to get to know her. Turned out we were into the same things. We clicked, became friends almost instantly. We chose the same courses after Bridging Week at the college, testing out all the lessons we were interested in taking. During the 2 year course, Sam really helped me with my panic attacks caused by the college, and we both got high grades, B's and A's. When I turned 21, we decided to form the AS Freelance Adventures Company, A for Alexis, S for Sam. Funded by Sam's Stepmother, Amanda Bentley, a silent partner in the team, we managed to gather hi-tech equipment and materials for my technical creativeness. This is the situation that gave birth to my baby, Persephone, which I have used for many different things over the past 2 years of our adventuring… Speaking of which…

"Where is she?" I asked them. Sam laughed.
"One track mind... Squall is looking after her. He kept it with him after the battle." she replied.
"He was going to give it to us, but we decided we don't trust ourselves with it, after all, one button press could lead to an accidental amputation with that thing." Alice said. Pippa laughed dryly, looking at Sam. Smiling she looked back and hugged her.
"You know... You never told me how you and he met." Pippa mentioned, returning the gesture. Sam blushed.
"I never thought to... I mean, I know pretty much everything about him, I just don't share it, it's his business."
I smiled. "The same can be said the other way around, don't forget that. I don't wanna have to tell people you're chequered past." I replied, a little menace and humor mixing in my voice.
"Hehe, I can imagine... Well, since we still have time to kill, why don't you come clean before he can?" Alice replied, sitting up a little.
"I... Nah, you don't wanna here mine..." the witch replied, blushing still.
"Go on... I always get cheered up by the way you tell things." Pippa smiled weakly, shuffling closer.
"Oh, okay... Since you asked nicely." She smiled a little.

"When I was only a little nipper, 1 year old I was told, my parents, Harriet and Reggie, split up and got divorced; amicably with no drama apparently, but that doesn't sound like my family at all. I stayed with my Mom, who suddenly decided to become a lesbian, getting engaged to, as Alex mentioned, our partner-to-be Amanda Bentley, a rich businesswoman and widow, 6 years later. Against the odds of these strange circumstances, I actually led a normal, happy childhood. When I was 13, I made the decision to become a Spiritual Buddhist, a more sophisticated, soulful type of a gothic Pagan lifestyle. I do still consider myself a Wiccan, but labels are labels…

"I was - still am, I guess - a very academic person, and I got pretty high grades in all the classes I attended. On the day of the Q.E. Open Evening, I noticed a lonely looking older kid, about 6 foot 5 inches, with shoulder length, almost ashen blonde hair, blue eyes and a few scars, wandering on his own, passing through all the rooms I was going to. We met again in the Main Hall of the college, where he suddenly had trouble breathing, and he collapsed. I managed to catch him before he hurt himself landing, and, as I had done a lot of times in the past thanks to one of my friend's suffering similarly severe attacks, I helped regulate his breathing and revive him. Turns out, his name was Alexis Edmenton. Our Alex… Not much has changed about him, except for his height and amount of scars. That lonely look, stacked at 6 foot 8, that lightest blonde hair, blue eyes now with contact lenses, and a few more scars to his collection…"

There was a gentle knock on the door as Sam laughed. "Come in." Alice said. Leon walked through the door.

"Hey, Alex, This belongs to you, I believe." he said, throwing Persephone at me. I caught it on its end. "How's it going?" he asked.
"Good. Where are Tidus and Jecht?" I asked.
"They're talking to their old friends. Yuna and the guys are reminiscing; after all, it's been a long time since Sin showed his ugly mug around here to disrupt their lives, and they haven't had a get together since…" he replied, looking outside. I stood up and joined him.

They were all sat together around a fire.
"… And then we took the food, and they were totally clueless!" Tidus shouted, laughing. The group laughed with him, and he looked up and noticed I was watching them. He waved me down. "Come and join us!" he said, still laughing. I shook my head.
"It's alright, Tidus, I'd rather not get in the way." I said, smiling.
"Suit yourself." He replied. Suddenly, Yuna hugged him around his shoulders.
"I'm so glad you're back." She said, a little teary. Tidus quietly hugged her back, and the group watched on. After the moment they had, they carried on with getting up to speed on each other's lives, like true friends. I smiled to myself and turned to go back to my own friends.

Suddenly, I saw some kind of meteor fly overhead, and strange, glowing spheres with tails, sort of like mini-meteors, come up from the ground in it's wake. Yuna saw them to and stood up, guns at the ready. "Everyone!!!" she shouted, pointing up at that same black meteor. The other's followed our gaze and realized, with horror, what was coming their way.
"NO!" Jecht shouted.
"YU YEVON!" Tidus shouted.

I was stunned, my eyes widened and my grip tightened in reflex. "He's returned…" I said. Monsters of all shapes and sizes started to materialise from the glowing spheres. Aeons... "Guys, come on. We got trouble." I called to the others, readying the Battle Staff on Persephone.
"You ready?" Leon asked me.
"Hell yeah, let's split up. Leon, go help the others with Yu Yevon. Guys, we're going after the Aeons." I asked, smiling.
Pippa smiled, cracking her knuckles. "So, the Infamous 5 are going to kick some spectral ass, right?" she asked.
"Damn straight." Alice said as she pulled out the guns Yuna gave her from her waistband.
"Let's do it." Sam said.