A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry for the lateness of this chapter. I had writer's bloc a few times, but now I managed to get this done! Yahoo! Anyway, thank you for reviewing. I really appreciate your comments. Enjoy!
Chapter 10: Secret and Safe
Happily, he took his older brother's hand. Yime. That was his brother's name. Isaac was glad to finally leave the odd -smelling room he stayed in. The people in white kept checking his eyes with a bright light and he didn't like it.
'Home' was where his brother said they were going to. "Where is our home?" he asked as they left the odd-smelling hospital.
His brother smiled at him. "Not that far," he told him. "It's a house up on that little hill. You're going to remember it once you see it!"
Isaac smiled back. Then he noticed the messy road covered in debris. "What happened here?" he asked.
Yime shook his head, frowning. "There was… a big battle a few days ago," he told him. "These bad people came and destroyed our gates," he pointed to the pile of charred wood. "But they're gone now. So we're safe."
Isaac curiously stared at the remains of the village gates. "Why would they do that?" he wondered.
Again his brother shook his head. "Well… It's a long story. I'll tell you once we get home, okay?" He grinned.
Isaac nodded.
"Isaac! Satoshi-san!" someone called. Both heads turned to the source: a little purple-haired girl, who looked the same age as Isaac, with bright red eyes waved to them from the wooden steps of her home. Isaac wondered how she knew him.
"Jenna-chan!" Yime greeted her. Behind the little girl, a taller woman with a bandaged arm and a boy with long, dark hair who was also about the same age as Isaac came out. Timidly, Isaac stayed back. The girl looked strangely at him.
"Satoshi! I'm so glad you made it back!" the woman cried, giving him a hug.
"Kiyoma-san!" Yime hugged her back. "Your arm… I'll take care of that. But first, may I have a word with you and your kids?" he asked, gently pushing the woman inside her home.
"Uh, sure. Felix, Jenna come inside," the woman told the other children.
Then Yime turned around to Isaac. "Just wait there. Okay, Isaac?"
The boy nodded, curiously looking around at his surroundings. He felt lost… He didn't know where he was in this so unfamiliar place. He didn't want to be left alone…
"…I see…" he heard the woman say as they all came back outside. The girl named Jenna-chan, approached him first, looking a little sad.
She gave him a smile. "Hi!" she cheerfully said, "My name is Jenna, Isaac-kun."
Isaac gave her a timid smile. "Hi," he responded.
She then pointed to the tall woman with red hair. "That is my mom," she told him. Then she pointed to the other boy who stayed back, giving Isaac a cold stare. Isaac quickly averted his eyes away from his and looked back at the nice girl. "That is my brother, Felix."
Isaac gave him a small wave. The other boy glared and walked away, back into the house. "Felix? Where are you going?" the boy's mother asked. But she didn't get an answer. She shook her head, looking sadly to the ground.
Jenna shrugged. "Felix is… not in the mood to talk… after what happened…" she whispered softly, staring at the dirt ground.
Isaac remained silent. He wanted to know what she was talking about, but he knew she didn't want to. Instead, he tried to remember… something that was nagging at the back of his mind. Something about Jenna seemed familiar…
"Jenna-chan…" he said quietly, catching her attention. "Um… do you know… who I am?" he asked.
Slowly, she sniffed as tears began to flow from her bright eyes. "Isaac…kun…" she sobbed, wrapping her arms around him.
As she cried on his shoulders, Isaac draped his own arms around her. "Don't cry…" he told her. He didn't want her to feel sad… He didn't want anyone to feel sad…
"Jenna…" her mother cooed, gently stroking her daughter's hair as she wept in Isaac's arms. "Come on, dear. Let's go home."
Jenna nodded. She slowly moved away, towards her mother. Her mother gave Isaac a small, sad smile and mussed up his hair. "Take care, Isaac-chan."
The violet-haired girl kept watching him with teary red eyes as she climbed up the steps and into her house. Yime grabbed his hand once more and they continued on home.
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Yime dashed through the first floor of the trapped filled sanctum, avoiding the trigger wires and dangerous switches hidden all over the water filled room. Even the stone steps that were for stepping stones across the pool had some trap switches. Running over the water with "invisible" trip wires was the method as he did so easily while carrying Isaac on his back. Running over water did seem difficult but it was easy to do with the aid of the Wind Element. You have to be quick and precise with your movements or you'll sink or run into a wire.
"Piece of cake," he told the boy who tightly clung to his back. "The second room's even easier. Watch this! Hold on tight!" he laughed, dashing into the stone corridor. He knew where every trip wire, every hidden switch, and every hidden pit that lay in the Mt. Aleph. He spent a lot of training in this place unnoticed by everyone in the village. He loved being inside the ancient place.
It felt like a safe haven, only if you exclude the dangerous traps and surprises littered all over the place. Plus, the view from the top was truly breathtaking. I allowed him to see beyond the forest boundaries and into the world he once came from.
Sol Sanctum… The Elemental Stars are hidden within here. Yime had never seen them inside, he never bothered to. He only wanted to see the beautiful scenery at the top floor. The Wise One once said that the Stars were sealed centuries ago within Sol Sanctum.
He jumped and skidded to a stop right before the next entrance. Carefully, he examined the doorway, making sure that all the trip wires were still in their original place. They were tough to see to the untrained eyes. The reflection of light shines off the surface of the wires, making them easy to spot.
Carefully, he slowly squeezed through with Isaac still on his back. Then he rushed forward, into the next room. Keeping as calm as he could to avoid distressing the boy, as he leaped over the once well-hidden pit full of spikes.
The first time he came here, he inspected every inch of every room, calculating how many traps were in each room and knowing where exactly they were. He didn't see the pit of spikes that time, so he almost fell to his doom. Lucky for him, he carried his katana that time. He managed to throw the sword downward, erecting the blade into the spikes to land one foot onto the handle to jump back up. He was so lucky that time… He lost his katana so he had to make up a story of how he lost it…
Hidekeru-san ended up grounding Yime for losing his first sword he had received on his first day of becoming a Genyin. A gift from his dad to him…
He suddenly stopped, retracing back to the pit. The pit was around three metres deep dug into the hard, rocky ground. It was around two metres by three metres in length and width. Sharp pointed spikes neatly lined up in rows laid at the bottom, as was a pile of bones that once belonged to an unfortunate samurai. As did his old sword that was still embedded in place. Now, if only there was a way he could get it back…
"What are you doing?" Isaac whispered, still clinging tightly to his back.
Yime bent down to let him off, careful that he wouldn't step on a switch. "I'm going to get something I lost a long time ago," he told the boy. "Step here," he pointed to a tile, "And here," he pointed to another beside the boy, "And don't move. There's booby traps all over the place." He took out his kunais and flung them into the opposite side of the pit wall, making footholds. "I'll be back soon, kay?"
Isaac nodded, afraid to move from his spot. Yime leapt back across the pit and climbed down into the pit, checking each kunai if they'll hold his weight. Slowly, he made it to the bottom. His sword was just a reach away. Well… Just barely. His fingertips brushed the handle, but he couldn't get a good grip.
Come on! Just a little more…
He stretched out his other arm, careful not to loosen the kunai from it's hold. Slowly, he managed to wrap his hand around the old, worn out handle. A small smile spread across his face as he yanked it a few times, trying to pry it loose. His effort also loosened some of the rocky dirt on the kunais he was holding onto too.
Come on… He pulled harder, finally grasping the sword free from the earth. "Yes!" he grinned. He bit onto the metal blade and climbed back up, almost falling as one of his kunais went out under his foot. Letting out a deep breath, he clambered back up, giving Isaac a thumbs up. "Got it!" he said cheerfully. He placed the sword into his belt and leapt over with his powerful legs.
"What's that?" Isaac asked, curiously wondering why Yime would go into a dangerous whole.
Saddened, Yime placed a hand on the sword's handle. "This sword was given to me by your father," he told him. "It used to be his. His father gave it to him when he became a Genyin. Then he gave it to me when I became a Genyin."
Then he gave Isaac a reassuring grin. "Isaac, someday you'll wield this sword when you become a Genyin. This is a very precious thing your father had given to me… And I can't believe I left it here for so many years…" he said regrettably. "Promise me that you'll take care of it when I give it to you!"
The little boy smiled and let out a short laugh. "I will!"
Yime patted the boy's head and bent back down for him to climb onto his back once more. "Off we go again! Hang on tight!"
"Sougoi!" Isaac said in awe. The sight before him was unbelievably beautiful. The afternoon sun shone down upon the small village down below the mountain side. He could see the forest stretching so far away, as far as the river flow. Golden plains waited beyond the endless trees. He felt free; not confined between trees or houses. He could see farther than he ever could when he was down below. And the sky… It was and endless blue that stretched over the horizon.
His older brother, Yime, was resting by his side, looking out into the world as well. They both sat between the stone pillars of the second top floor. Statues of goddess's poured crystal clear water out into the water filled basins that flowed through the man made stream and out the open side. "Beautiful, isn't it?" he asked dreamily. "Do you remember it?"
Isaac looked up into the clear blue sky. It did look familiar… somewhat. The sky… it looked so close that he could touch it.
I'll take you here to reach for the stars sometime…
He froze. He remembered someone saying that to him… Was it… Yime? He looked over at his brother who gave him a smile. "The sky…" he said, turning back towards the blue. "It looks like… like I can touch it." He stretched out his small hands feeling nothing but air as he tried to grasp the sky into his hands.
Yime let out a short laugh. "You always did try to touch it…" he told him. He gazed up into the sky as well with his golden eyes. "Once you're all grown up, you'll be tall enough to touch it."
Isaac pouted at him. "I don't want to wait that long! Lift me up!" he cried, pulling on Yime's sleeve.
Laughing, Yime grabbed the little boy's waist and lifted him up onto his shoulders. "Can you touch it now?" he asked.
Isaac strained his arms into the sky, crying out in effort. "No… I'm not high enough," he groaned with disappointment.
"Don't worry about it, Isaac. You'll reach it someday," his brother told him. "It's better at night. You can-"
"Reach for the stars…" Isaac finished for him. Yime looked surprised at him. "I remember someone saying something like that…" He smiled and messed up his brother's blue hair.
"Hey! Quit that!" Yime warned, swinging Isaac forward and tickling him. The little boy squealed and squirmed from his grasp. Yime was careful not to go too close to the edge of the stone floor. There were no protective railings or any safe ledges below them…
Yime stopped the little torture to fix up his hair. "Do you remember who said it?" he asked after Isaac calmed back down. Isaac looked up at him and smiled.
"It was you, wasn't it? You told me that only you and I came up here," Isaac told him. "It must have been you saying that you'll take me up here to reach the stars." He glanced up into the sky.
"You remembered my promise…" Yime smiled happily. His eyes glowed with joy.
"Promise?" the boy asked, raising his brow.
"Yeah, a promise I made to you the first time I brought you here," Yime explained, brushing a hand through his hair.
"A promise…" the boy repeated softly. Then in a brighter tone, "Can we do it tonight?"
Yime scratched his chin, pondering that thought. "Hmm… It's going to be tough. There's more guards at night. Maybe when you're older, how about that?"
Isaac pouted and groaned. "I don't want to wait!" he cried, crossing his arms.
Grinning, Yime ruffled the boy's hair and laughed. "Don't worry, kid. You'll grow up soon enough. In the meantime, I'll teach you how to sneak in here on your own! That way, it'd be easier to sneak past the guards at night if both of us are perfectly trained."
Isaac gleamed a smile before spotting Yime's old sword he had retrieved from before. He touched it, remembering what Yime had told him. "Yime?" he wondered. "Why did you say my father gave it to you and not our father? Wasn't he your dad too?"
Yime scratched his head nervously. "Uh… Well…" he fumbled, "To tell you the truth… I'm not really your brother…"
"What?!" Isaac cried, gaping in surprise.
"You see… I'm not from this village at all. Your mother found me and took me in when I was a little kid. My real name isn't Yime… I don't know what my real name is… I have no memory of my past," Yime explained. He sat back down, looking over the lush green forest. "You and I are so alike; we both have amnesia… We both have no past. But you're a little different. There are people here who remembers who you are. Your friends, the villagers… and me."
Isaac sat beside him, carefully looking down at the village. "Yime… We're still brothers, though. Right?' he asked.
Yime gave him a grin. "Of course, we are. Although we're not brothers in blood, we're brothers in mind and spirit. Your mom and dad were like parents to me. When you were born, I was happy to have a little sibling to take care of when they were too busy. Which was most of the time…"
He dipped his hand into the clear water, freezing the surface around his hand with his Psynergy. He then lifted the slab of ice out of the water to show Isaac. "Cool? Isn't it? I'm the only one in this village who can do this."
Isaac touched the slick surface and grinned. "Can I learn to do that too?" he asked.
"I don't know… You're a ninja from the village of Vale. Fire, wind, and earth are the elements you can control. So… I don't think you could. No one else can summon the Water Element in this village. Not even the Wise One," Yime explained.
Isaac watched the water drip from the ice and onto the stone floor. A ninja of Vale… he thought. He grinned and stood up, eager to get moving. "Yime, I want to be a ninja! A real ninja like you! Can you teach me?" he asked.
Brushing a hand over his hair, Yime smirked. "I'll help you train, but your sensei will be the one to teach you. School's gonna resume two days after the Ceremony of Passing. I'll get you back in shape for it in no time." Then he stood up and stretched his back. "Let's go back down. I'm hungry, aren't you?"
Nodding, Isaac happily climbed up his brother's shoulders and grinned.