Many thanks, for the support ya'll. Just to touch base on the Djinn, they will be making appearances, as for now, it'll just be too many characters in the story. And explanations will be provided later on.

I don't own Golden Sun.

Energy Flow

Chapter 1: Preparations

"What kind of disturbing news? The kind of disturbing news, that doesn't have anything to do with us or the kind that does?" Garet asked.

"Garet what do you think? And don't answer that! It was a rhetorical question!" Jenna said.

"The kind that does...infact, it has everything to do with you." Kraden said.

The Adepts glanced at each other. Jenna noticed Felix's eyes hardening. She watched Isaac hand twitch, as if he was going to grab a sword. But of course, the Sol Blade wasn't in his possession at the moment. Garet tensed up and she noticed a worried expression come onto his face, that she hadn't seen in a long time.

Suddenly the bright and warm day didn't seem so welcoming. Jenna felt as if the shadows had just grown longer. And right then, everything just seemed twisted and wrong.

"The Wise One told me, that there is new power coming into the world. And it's all because of the Golden Sun. Alex did die on Mt. Aleph and you know, he did possess the Golden Sun. Now when he died, the Golden Sun didn't have a place to go. All of that energy and power, it needed a new host or hosts. Do you understand?"

The Adepts nodded their heads, for once not tuning out Kraden.

"The Wise One went on saying that the Golden Sun did find a new host, or more specifically hosts. The Wise One is not sure the number of humans that received the Golden Sun. Or even the amount of power each host received. He does know that the amount wasn't equally divided."

"Where did the Golden Sun go?" Felix questioned.

Kraden adjusted his glasses, "I do not follow you Felix, what do you mean?"

"He means, where did the Golden Sun that Alex possessed, where did it go? Who are these new hosts, and where do they live? Right Felix?" Isaac said, looking at Felix for confirmation, who nodded his head in agreement.

"Apparently, the Golden Sun fled to the lighthouses; Venus, Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter. And that means, the hosts were most likely those in the towns that were near the Lighthouses, Lalivero, Imil, Prox, and Contigo respectively. When was the last time any of you received a letter from Ivan, Sheba, or Mia?"

"We got a letter from Ivan, about two weeks ago. He's been in Kalay with Hama the whole winter. He has the teleport Lapis, and Hama goes back to Contigo once a week, to make sure the town is doing okay. She is in charge there now, in case you didn't know Kraden. But Ivan didn't say anything suspicious about Contigo...or maybe Hama just didn't tell him..." Jenna spoke up.

"And Sheba is in Tolbi with Faran. Apparently they've been there awhile. They have been trying to start a Northern Gondowan Peace and Trade Agreement with Iodem. But he's been rather stuffy about, so they've been there awhile. Uh...I don't remember when that letter came." Garet ended rather sheepishly, his hand behind his head.

"About ten days ago." Isaac said with a grin at Garet, but that grin quickly faltered. "But we haven't had a letter from Mia since last fall. I assumed it was just because of the winters. You know how bad they get. I figured no messenger would want to track through Imil and it's territory during the winter. But now I'm not so sure." He bit his bottom lip in worry and the others exchanged glances.

"Kraden, what exactly does the Wise One want us to do?" Felix asked.

"Those with the Golden Sun are becoming more and more powerful, also hostile. Prox has become more military like, boosted by those with the Golden Sun. Lalivero has had an uprising and an overthrow of power while Faran has been away. I assume that both Sheba and Faran are unaware of this. Contigo has reportedly been split in half. Half of the people believe the power of the Anemos and their descendants should rule. The other half has formed New Contigo, under those that possess some of the Golden Sun. And Imil, from what the Wise One said, has experienced revolts and the hosts of the Golden Sun are starting some sort of dictatorship. The Wise One wants you to stop it before this gets out of hand."

"So we have to save the world...again." Garet announced.

"How powerful are the hosts?" Isaac said in a very demanding tone. "And why doesn't the Wise One just stop them?"

"The Wise One is very powerful yes? But his energy and power were vanquished greatly when he defeated Alex last greatly and he won't have enough to defeat anybody in this world for another century or so. At least according to some quick calculations I just conducted. And Isaac, to put it bluntly, a few of the hosts, could easily be as powerful as you."

"Why does this have to happen? Now, when everything appears to be over, we have to do this again! I want no part in this!" Isaac yelled out. Garet could never recall him looking angrier. He looked like he was at the point of storming away when Felix spoke up.

"So that's it huh Isaac. You're just going to leave and make us do all the work. What kind of leader are you? You're just going to sit here in Vale, while we go and defeat these people. Stop throwing a tantrum and grow up!" Felix said softly. He stood up straight looking at Isaac calculatingly. His messy brown hair swept in a breeze and his dark eyes looked at his counterpart scornfully. Kraden seemed rather taken back by Felix's words and Garet looked torn, trying to decide if he wanted to defend his best friend or not.

"What about Mia, Isaac? Are you going to forget about her?" Jenna said calmly, contradicting her normal nature. She remained sitting on the ground. She looked impassive, as if everything that had just taken place had nothing to do with her. She looked at Isaac straight in the eye. "Are you going to deny her? Deny Ivan? Deny Sheba? And Picard?"

Isaac didn't answer for a moment. He closed his blue eyes to get away from the calm stare of Jenna's. He let his fists, which had tighten into balls, relax and his shoulders slumped.

"...No...of course not...I would never..." He said after a moment. Jenna smiled briefly.

"I apologize. You were right Felix; I was acting like a little boy. I acted rashly." Isaac said a moment later in the silence that followed. His eyes were lowered to the ground in shame.

"It's behind now Isaac. Let it go. We all don't want to do this. But we have to." Felix said.

Isaac grinned and Garet clapped him on the back hard enough to make him stumble.

"Well what's the plan then?" Garet asked.

"We'll leave tomorrow. It will be easiest to get to Ivan first and luckily he also has the Teleport Lapis. Then we pick up Sheba and Piers. And finally we'll head to Imil to help Mia and to hopefully put these Golden Sun holders in their place." Isaac said, catching his stride as the appointed leader. "What do you think Felix?"

"Good enough for me." Was the short reply.

"Let's go! We have a lot to prepare for tomorrow! What do you say? Meet at the town gates just after dawn?" Jenna asked, bounding up from her position on the ground.

"Sounds good to me. Can I be in charge of food rationing again?" Garet asked.

This was met with a giggle from Jenna and an exasperated sigh from Felix. "Whatever you want to do Garet." Isaac said.

The four adepts started their way back toward town, making lighthearted conversation. Contradicting their actual feelings of what was happening.

"Hey wait for me! Can I come with you tomorrow? I'm not to old for adventures!" Kraden yelled out after the adepts. "Oh bother, I'll just meet up with them tomorrow morning."

He shakily began to pick himself off the ground using the tree for support. "Maybe I am getting to old for this." He said after finally standing up. "I don't believe this next adventure is going to be all fun and games either..."

Kraden stood for a moment longer, reflecting on everything that occurred today, his vision, the Adept's reactions, and Isaac's reluctance. "This isn't going to be anything like we expect. And for someone reason I believe it's going to be a lot harder than they think." He told himself. After one last momemt of standing in the shade of the oak tree, he finally started his way back to his cottage. And suddenly, he looked a lot older.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Garet took the plate of food handed to him with a simple "thanks" and just stared at it. All around him, his family joined in conversation with ease and laughter filled the air. He could hear his sister's shriek at his younger brother, Aaron, for throwing a bread roll at her. His grandfather was conversing quietly with his father and Vale's rebuilding progress with his grandmother busily interjecting her opinions whenever she felt the need. His mother was reprimanding his brother for throwing food and trying to stop his older sister, Kay, from doing anything back. Amid all of the commotion Garet's unusually withdrawn attitude wasn't noticed.

Looking at the window, Garet could see the sun just settling over the tops of trees in the west. The locusts, frogs, and crickets had just started picking up their night song, while the birds were winding down. The shadows in his home were lengthening and his parents had yet to light a fire or candles. Continuing to ignore his food, Garet's mind began to wonder to the events earlier in the day.

He was leaving tomorrow and he had yet to inform his family of that. He knew what their reaction would be. They were all too predictable. His mother would cry and tell him to be careful. His father would tell him he had to do what he had to do. His grandfather would wish he could come along and then give him some sort of speech. His grandmother would make sure he had all the supplies he would need. His siblings would poke fun at him and then there would be a teary farewell. He would miss his family, but he had a duty he needed to fulfill.

His conversations today with Isaac, Felix, and Jenna were lighthearted. The idea of what they were going to do laid on the edge of their minds. But they had ignored it entirely. Except for a moment when Isaac had mentioned Mia. He could tell his friend was really worried about her. Hell, he was too. But something about Isaac's tone had shown something more.

Truth to be told, Garet was a little excited about getting to leave again. To go out in the world and explore. However; he was a little unsure about this new rise in power. Kraden's tone, Felix's questioning, and Isaac's reluctance made him a little uncertain on how this adventure would turn out. He was scared that this quest wouldn't end as happily as the last one. How strong were these new enemies?

"Garet? What's wrong? You barely touched your food." His mother questioned, finally settling the dispute between Kay and Aaron.

Garet jumped out of his thoughts and reflections. He took a deep breath. "Mother, everyone, there's something I need to tell you."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jenna came down from her room upstairs. She had her pack all ready, filled with necessities, ready to be picked up tomorrow. Her light sword, the Burning Sword, was sharpened and ready to be infused with Mars psyenergy so that it would inflame when necessary. In other words, the sword would become it's own name.

Dusk had fallen on Vale and the townsfolk were winding down for the day. Jenna glanced out one of the stair windows to see light emitting from each of the cottages in Vale. Arriving downstairs, she came upon her father and mother sitting in the living room.

Her mother was sitting in a straight back rocking chair that had been made especially for her by the Vale's carpenter. She was knitting as well. She appeared to be making some sort of stocking, though Jenna wasn't to sure. She never had the patience to practice knitting. Jenna stifled a small giggle at the image of her mother. She looked like her grandmother sitting there knitting. Looking at her, one couldn't tell that anything was the matter, but Jenna knew better. Her mother didn't have much patience either and the only time she knitted was when she was really worried about something.

Her father wasn't much better. He was sitting in an overstuffed dark blue armchair. He was seemed to be reading a rather thick book, but Jenna noticed he hadn't turned the page since she had come downstairs. He had his reading glasses on, but his normally relaxed face was tense in his thoughts.

"Well, I'm all ready to go." Jenna said finally speaking up.

Her mother looked up and gave her a smile, "That's good honey. You said you were leaving at first light right?"

"Yes mama."

"Be careful Jenna, I know you're strong, but just be careful." Her father asked, finally putting down his book.

"No worries daddy, I'll be okay. We'll all be okay. Where's Felix?"

"He's outside."

Jenna nodded her head in thanks, and grabbed one of the candles as she made her way out of the door. Felix and her had already told them, right when they arrived home. Needless to say, their parents weren't very happy. Immediately to her right, she saw Felix sitting on a bale of hay, leaning against their house. Excalibur was laid on his knees. The bare steel gleamed from the candelight she brought out.

"Hey." She said, sitting down on the ground next to him.

"Hey." Came his soft reply.

They sat in silence for awhile. Each contemplating what awaited them tomorrow. The air grew darker around them, and Jenna's candle burned lower. They heard their parents get up and extinguish all the fire inside, except for one candle. Around them, other houses were becoming dark, but still the siblings sat in silence. Nothing disturbed them, expect for noticing one silent figure moving from the path leading to the Great Healer's Sanctum. The figure didn't notice them, his intent on one thing. He carried a large sword in his hand. But Felix and Jenna rested easily, knowing from the familiar walk that it was Isaac. Holding the Sol Blade, point to the ground, Isaac quietly opened the door to his house and went inside.

"Why were you so harsh on Isaac today?" Jenna suddenly asked, once Isaac was inside.

"He needed it. He is happy here and now, but he doesn't need to forget about our friends. And he doesn't need to forget about all of Weyward. If Isaac hadn't exploded about it though, I would have, or Garet would have, or maybe even you. It's just something that would have happened, and I don't blame Isaac for it. He just needed the right words to remember it, and remember who he was. But I almost screwed it up. You helped me out there. Why did you target Mia specifically when you spoke up? You said her first and with the most meaning to it." Felix said. Jenna listened carefully. Most things that came from her brother had a lot of meaning. He always contemplates everything he says.

She gave a small smile at his question. "Just call it a girl's intuition. I'm going to bed, I'll see you in the morning."

She made the most noise yet getting up and leaving, her clothes rustling and the door creaking. She left the candle behind for him though. He smiled at the thought. Even if she was impatient and fiery, she did often think of others. But then again, maybe she just forgot it.

Felix sighed, looking down at Excalibur still bare on his knees.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I hope that was satisfactory, leave a review if you wish and I would greatly appreciate it.

Reviewer Responses

Triad Orion: Wow, a prominent author reviewing my story! Makes me feel good, but I'm sure you get that all the time, lol. Thanks for the tip on the description, I tried to be better about it this chapter, but it didn't quite feel up to par. I'm glad you found this interesting and I hope you keep on reviewing! Any helpful criticism is welcome.

Net Strife: Thanks for the review. I hope this fic keeps on proving to be interesting to you. This fic really does feel mediocre to me, but I'm happy ya'll think it's good for a beginner like myself. Hopefully I can make this better as I grow more experienced and any helpful hints along the way are appreciated!

Anime-Master7: Thanks for your review. I'm happy everyone is finding this a good enough start. And I hope this chapter kept it up for you!

Until next time folks!