Alright, first off to Delusive Longan, this is the sequel to Porcelain. So, if that last little statement seemed odd, it's probably because you haven't read the first fic.



Anyway, here we go!



Absence of Warmth



Chapter 2



Chapter 2



Gallons and gallons of water washed over me, pounding down on my unprotected body, filling my nose, ears, eyes and mouth. I couldn't see, I couldn't breath. The water picked me up like it was a living being, and threw me back down on the ground like a doll. Red and black flooded my vision, and I went down...down...down...down...



"Alex isn't here," I heard someone saying over the ringing in my head.



"Serves him right, I hope he was washed out to sea," another, higher voice replied.



"Sheba, don't say that," a third voice scolded.



I opened my eyes to see the blue of the sky. Sitting up was a struggle, but I managed somehow. Kraden, Jenna, and Sheba were all sitting near me on a patch of what looked like mostly dry sand. "Gone? Alex is gone?"



They all started, then looked at me. After a few minutes, Jenna nodded.



No.



"We have to find him," I stood up, and nearly had to sit down again. "We have to find him. We can't leave him to die. We can't."



"Felix, there's nothing we can do," Kraden told me, very softly. "We woke up just a little while before you. He may have gone into the next town to...find a boat or something."



"He must have healed us before he left," Jenna speculated.



"Come on," I walked over and grabbed her arm, pulling her to her feet. "We're going to find him. Now."



****



I stared at my cup of tea. Had that really only been two weeks ago? It felt like years...far too many years.



"What are you thinking about?"



I looked up and met the gaze of yellow cat eyes. Picard grinned at me, ever looking like a feline. That was the first impression I had gotten when I had seen the Lemurian, that he might as well have been born a cat, with his effortless, fluid grace and his uncanny appearance. His personality couldn't have been more different. After he had first decided to join our quest, he had been fiercely loyal and a wonderful friend. So very different from Alex...and yet somehow...I kept seeing similarities between the two. It must have been the long blue hair...



"I was thinking about Lemuria," I said, hoping he wouldn't catch my lie. For being a Mercury Adept, he had the odd ability to read people. "I was...wondering what it would be like."



He sighed, leaning back in his chair. "I don't know how I would explain it to you, there's no place in the world like Lemuria. All I can say is...it used to be much more beautiful."



We sat in silence for a moment, a silence that was interrupted by Jenna, Sheba, and Kraden coming down the stairs.



"C'mon, you," Jenna tapped me very lightly on top of the head with her staff. Sheba did the same for Picard. "We need to get going. Next stop is Lemuria, after all."



I leaned back in my chair and grinned at her. "But I thought you liked Champa."



"Um...no," Jenna shook her head. Sheba giggled, and tapped Picard again. The Lemurian grabbed her staff. She started trying to pull the staff away. Picard pulled, grabbed Sheba around the waist, and started tickling her.



"No! No!" she shouted inbetween shrieks of laughter. "Stop it, Picard! You're so MEAN!"



"C'mon," I groaned, climbing to my feet. "Our next stop is Lemuria, after all."



"Alright, alright," Picard released Sheba and stood up, dwarfing the young Jupiter Adept.



The door opened, and the strong smell of saline greeted me. Champa was built mainly upon docks jutting out from the barren rock of the shore. Boats provided homes for small families that had no wish to live in the carved out rock tunnels. It was no small wonder that Briggs had been forced to steal for him people.



We headed down one of the narrow ramps connecting docks, Jenna shielding her nose against the strong stench of seaweed.



*And soon we'll be back in our boat...and onto Lemuria...*



"Ah, Felix."



I spun around, nearly slipping on the moss covered wood of the ramp. I knew that voice...better than my own...



Alex was standing there, his arms folded, blue hair rippling in the salty breeze. He was regarded us cooly, like we were pawns in some game set up merely to amuse him.



"Alex..."



***



A bit on the short side, but next chapter will be fun!