Chapter 4

Six months.

That's how long Cole had been gone was six months. From February to July. That was six months of his life he would never get back. And he even missed the opportunity of celebrating his ninth birthday back in April. But the only person Cole could blame was himself.

The first few days after returning home was filled with Cole having to discuss his journey with the media. News reporters, people from newspapers and magazine industries were raving about Cole's sudden return home and wanted to know his true motives for running away. Finally getting tired of all the attention and wanting to be left alone, all Cole told them was he made a mistake leaving the boarding school he was attending and running away would never be his first priority again.

Even Lou and Lilly were getting tired of the media bothering Cole. All Cole wanted was to be a normal kid again and go back to the way things were before. They were finally able to bring out a police officer from the city who kept the news and cameras away. After three weeks, things went back to normal and the media finally left Cole alone.

It was nice to be a normal kid again. Even though there were times he still had thoughts about his time on the trail led by the wind and also having nightmares about the moment he caused Buck's downfall. There was actually one night Cole had a nightmare about Buck coming back from the dead, blaming Cole for killing him. And to even the deal, Buck actually had a saw and planned to use it for Cole to join him in the afterlife. It scared Cole so bad he ran inside his parent's room and crawled in the bed to find safety in his mother's arms, something he hasn't done since he was really little. He never told his mom what his nightmare was about.

But Cole did whatever he could to get on with life and not let Buck get to him. At least he had Jerky beside him whenever he had nightmares. A dog has always been known as man's best friend. And Jerky was Cole's best friend.

It was one night in early August when Cole woke up just a couple of hours after he went to bed to get a drink of water. He was glad this time he didn't wake up from a nightmare. Petting Jerky's head, he made his way to the kitchen when he began hearing voices coming from said room.

He was a little worried about who it could be, but it turned out to be his parents sitting at the kitchen table talking to one another. Not wanting to bother them, he was about to make it back to his room when he heard his father say something that made him stick around.

"I think moving to the city will be a new beginning for all of us," he heard his father say.

Moving to the city? What is Dad talkiquartet

"It will be best for all of us, especially Cole," his mother said, "I think it's better to leave here and help him make a fresh start somewhere else. A new school, new friends, and new opportunities for him to decided his future. Any school can help with all those things."

"Cole can grow up to choose whatever career he wants," Lou said, "But the only way to do that is to go to a different environment. Going to school in the big city. Making new friends. Not being judged by every little thing you do. My first experience at the Marty Oppenheimer wasn't so great, either, and I pretty much made an embarrassment out of myself there, but my father never gave me a choice to do whatever I wanted to do with my future. I was forced to continue the family tradition of becoming a singer and dancer. But I made a promise before Cole was ever born that I would never do that to him. I want him to have a choice. And I'll make sure he is no longer ridiculed for being himself."

Cole couldn't help but smile at what his father just said, but he decided to be surprised and go back to the original subject at hand. So he revealed himself. "Are we actually moving?"

Lou and Lilly looked to see their son standing by the doorway, a bewildered expression painted on his face. Lilly smiled and reached out her arms. Cole came over and let his mother place him on her lap before she and Lou began their explanation.

"Sweetie, your father and I were planning to tell you about all this later, but I think now is the best time," Lilly said, "We've been thinking about moving to the city for a while now. Even before we sent you to the Marty Oppenheimer, we were already making plans for it."

"The quartet and I were able to find a theatre in Lemington Town with housing," Lou said, "We'll be moving there along with the other quartet members and their families. I think it's time we started over and begin a new life. Now I know you may be a little upset with moving and maybe even scared, but your mother and I will be there for you every step of the way."

Cole gave his parents a smile. "Are you kidding? I'm the happiest kid in the world right now! I was hoping I could start over somewhere else. All of us. I'll finally be able to actually make friends and go to a normal school and this time I promise not to embarrass myself. I will never do anything like that ever again. Can we move there tomorrow?"

Lilly chuckled. "Cole, it's going to take a while before we can move there. Have some patience. But the good news is we've got you enrolled at the local school so you'll be able to start when mid-September rolls around."

And his mom was stating the truth. When early September rolled around, the Brookstones moved into their new home and the quartet's new theatre in Lemington Town. And Cole never hesitated for one second to tell his parents moving to a new place was the best decision they ever made.

Their new place looked like a boarding house, except bigger. It looked as tall as an apartment building and his family had an entire floor to themselves. All the rooms were separated from one another with the aid of a hallway that made it look as though he were traveling down the hall of a hotel building. At least that's what it felt like to him. Plus, he loved his new bedroom. It was larger and more spacious than his old room ever was. It felt like he was sleeping in a palace bedroom. His parents even bought him a queen sized bed, even though his room was big enough to fit a king sized bed. But it was huge nonetheless.

His new school, Lemington Street Elementary School, was right down the street as he started there in mid-September. He noticed the boy who was the same age he was that was the son of one of the quartet members. His name was Toby and he was a pretty nerdy kid, but Cole had actually never met him before. He was always left at home with a babysitter every time tof quartet had a show going on. Cole felt bad seeing him get picked on by kids who were taller than him. And thinking they were better. Cole decided to step in and be his friend. They lived in the same building, anyway. Who says they can't be friends?

He was glad nobody at his new school knew who he was. He was actually able to make some new friends and helped Toby join in. He actually didn't get ridiculed when he tried the triple tiger sashay and failed at it. The other boys who were trying to attempt it failed just as miserably, but each were being helpful by pointing out each other's flaws and what could be improved. Cole was glad to be in a school where flaws could be fixed. At least he's not the only one who falls flat on his face. They just laugh it off and move on. It can always be attempted again.

Cole enjoyed school everyday and never felt nervous getting up at six in the morning to go. He was actually excited to see his friends and they all hung out outside of school as often as they could. Even Jerky joined in with them. The fourth grade was turning out better than any school year ever has and it was only around March. Cole couldn't wait for the next couple of weeks to go by where he could finally be ten and proud to be a preteen.

Cole had wandered inside his father's office with Jerky in tow in the theatre one afternoon, watching Lou work on the new security camera system he had installed on the front doors of the theatre entrance and inside the auditorium and stage. There were actually a couple inside the boarding house as well that were placed in the system.

"Hey, Dad," Cole said, "How's your new surveillance system going?"

"It's going great, son," Lou said, "Now if anyone tries to break inside the theatre of the boarding house, we'll have video footage to turn them in to the authorities. I best figure out a way to thank your mother for the idea."

Cole looked at the footage of each camera on his father's computer screen and saw someone standing outside the theatre's entrance. The picture was in black and white, but the little boy was able to see the person had a long beard and a straw hat on his head.

"Hey, Dad, I see somebody standing in front of the entrance doors," Cole told his father.

Lou nodded. "Good eye, son. I'll go down and see if they need anything."

Lou made his way down to the lobby and went to open the doors, smiling at the older man in greeting. "Hello, there, sir. Can I help you with anything?"

The man nodded. "Yes. My name is Wu. I was wondering if you knew of a little boy by the name Cole Brookstone."

Lou sighed. "Listen, sir, I'm not meaning to sound rude or anything, but my son no longer wants to be bothered by the media. He just wants to enjoy his childhood in peace."

Wu shook his head. "I assure you, Mr. Brookstone, that I'm not from the media. I'm here for a different purpose. A special purpose, to be exact, that involves Cole. Perhaps you wouldn't mind if I could speak to him about it as well as you and your wife?"

"Oh, not at all. Please come inside. I'll lead you to my home here. I'm sure my wife won't mind an extra guest at dinner. You can talk more about this special purpose then. But I must ask, sir. What does it have to do with my son?"

"All in good time, Mr. Brookstone."

Once dinner arrived that night, Cole made sure to mind his manners in front of their guest. Usually his parents would never invite strangers into their home, but this old man seemed different than anyone they've ever met. They ate in silence for a few minutes with Cole making sure Jerky took his carrots since he hated carrots. He never knew that the man name Wu was watching him feed his vegetables to his dog.

Wu chuckled. "You should be eating your vegetables, Cole. The strength within you will never stay strong if you don't eat healthy."

Cole sat up. "Strength? What do you mean?"

"You know about your powers, do you not?"

"Powers?" Lilly was confused, "Cole, what is he talking about?"

"He never told either of you?" Wu asked.

Lou shook his head. "No. We never knew he had powers. He probably doesn't know he has powers."

"He does, actually," Wu said, "It was during the time when he ran away from home that Cole discovered a special elemental power he possess. He has shown this immense power of strength during his time in Stixx when he stopped a criminal from robbing a group of villagers."

"Cole, why didn't you tell us anything about this?" Lilly asked, fearing what types of things her son has done and worrying how he could've gotten hurt doing it.

"It just never came up," Cole told her, "I unlocked them when I was in the woods." It was also when I probably potentially killed Buck and damaged some of his house, but I don't plan on telling you that. Then another thought struck Cole's mind. How does this Wu guy know about my visit to Stixx? "Wait a minute. How did you know I was in Stixx, sir?"

"Cole, everyone knew you were found in Stixx," Lou told his son, "They talked about it on the news ever since you were found there. That's probably how Mr. Wu knew who you were."

"Actually, I saw it all happen," Wu admitted.

"How?" Lilly asked.

"I was actually passing by Stixx one day to pick up some lemon honey tea when the event transpired. Well, I must admit it was no accident that I went there. Mr. and Mrs. Brookstone, I would like your full permission to take Cole with me during the summers to train at my monastery to become the master of earth."

"The master of earth?" Cole asked.

"Wait a minute," Lou said, "Let's slow down here. Now, Mr. Wu-"

"Sensei Wu, actually," Wu corrected Cole's father.

"Sensei Wu, I'm not saying you're lying to us or anything, but I'm a man who doesn't believe it until I see it. Unless I can see proof that Cole is the destined master of earth, I'm not sure I can believe you."

Sighing, Cole used his immense strength to lift the dining room table up over his head, hearing gasps from his parents. Sensei Wu sat there in silence, a smile on his face.

"Oh, my goodness," Lilly said, shocked by how such a little boy like Cole can lift such a heavy object.

"Okay, I'm impressed," Lou confessed, "You can put the table down now, son."

Once Cole put the table down, he sat back down to hear more of what Sensei Wu and his parents had to say.

"Well, now that we've seen Cole's powers, I don't see why he can't train with you at your monastery, Sensei Wu," Lilly said.

"But it's Cole's choice whether or not this is something he wants," Lou said.

Wu nodded. "I personally agree. I am a father myself and will always let my daughter have a choice. Her needs always comes first before my own."

"Cole, sweetie, would you like go with Sensei Wu to learn how to control your powers?" Lilly asked her son.

Cole gave it a moment of thought, but he only gave a shrug. "I can't really give you a yes or no answer because I'm not sure if it's actually something I want to do."

"You do not have to answer right away," Wu said, "But perhaps we can talk more about this matter in private. That is if your parents don't mind."

"Not at all," Lou said, standing up, "Take as much time as you need."

"We need to get dessert ready, anyway," Lilly said, collecting the empty plates and silverware off the table.

"We can go into the theatre's auditorium, if you want, Sensei Wu," Cole recommended.

Wu nodded. "That sounds like a great idea."

The two went inside the auditorium where they sat in some seats on the front row in the middle section. Cole listened carefully as Wu began to discuss what role he would play becoming an elemental master. It was during the time when the young boy ran away that he unlocked his powers. The reason they were so strong was because he had no control over them, but he did learn a very valuable lesson about using his powers to help others and keeping himself away from the darkness. Even though his powers were dangerous in some ways, it would only be when enemies were involved. But that would only mean his powers were useful because he would be protecting the people.

"If you decide to come with me to my monastery, I will help train you to become a ninja and teach you to be one with your earth powers," Sensei Wu told the young boy, "So after telling you all this, has your decision changed or are you still unsure?"

Cole signed. "It's a big decision to make. One part still says yes while the other part still says no. I may need more time to think this through. To figure out which side I should listen to."

Wu nodded. " I understand. This is your decision, not mine. There are still a couple of more months left in the school year. I will give you until school ends to decide." He stood up. "I best be on my way. Tell your parents I thank them for dinner. But I need to start heading back home now. I left my number on your refrigerator."

There wasn't a single day that Cole didn't think about what Sensei Wu told him. By the end of May, he finally made his decision. Since school was ending in a week, he knew Wu would be expecting an answer. And he had one.

It was one afternoon where he went to his mother and announced, "I want to go."

"Go where, honey?" Lilly asked her son while wiping her hands with a dish towel.

"I want to go to Sensei Wu's monastery to become a ninja. And I'm absolutely sure about this. I promise I won't run away this time because this is something I really wanna do. Trust me, I don't wanna go through that whole mess again."

Lilly chuckled, picking her son up and kissing his forehead. "I wish I could say yes, but I'll have to talk to your father about it first. It's only fair to hear what he thinks."

Cole had no plans to go to bed until he heard his parents discuss whether or not he could become a ninja. It truly is something he wants to do and he hopes they'll say yes. So he stood next to their doorway to keep from being seen to over hear what they have to say.

"It sounds like something he really wants to do," he heard his mother say, "And he was literally begging on his knees promising us he won't run away from it."

He heard his father laugh. "After that whole fiasco, I don't think he plans to go out into the world like that until college. And besides, even if he tried, Sensei Wu would just find him in a heartbeat. Now that I think of it, this may be the special talent Cole has been destined to do. I don't see why he can't go."

"I feel the same way. I can't wait to tell him in the morning."

When Cole heard that, he rushed back to his room, where he celebrated silently to himself to keep his parents from hearing. He went to bed a few minutes later with Jerky lying right next to him, dreaming during the night of what it would be like to be a real ninja.

To be a real hero.

Now he knew exactly what his special talent is.

He is a martial arts hero.

The Master of Earth.

OKAY, SO NOW COLE HAS FOUND HIS DESTINY TO BECOME A NINJA. SWEET! NEXT CHAPTER, HE'LL BEGIN HIS TRAINING. WE'LL SEE WHERE THIS WILL TAKE HIM.

WILL HE RUN AWAY AGAIN? OR WILL HE ACCEPT HIS LEGACY AS THE MASTER OF EARTH? FIND OUT IN THE NEXT CHAPTER.

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