Colony L3- 9:45 AM- April 18
Trowa sat at the fire, sipping at some of the coffee that he had made. It wasn't anything like he could get on Earth, but with some cinnamon spice mixed with it, it tasted good and was hot. Catherine sat beside him, telling him about what was new with the circus, since he had been away helping the Preventers Group. He was just glad to be back and wasn't following the conversation too much, but caught the last thing she was saying.
'…And there's this kid that arrived a few weeks ago, he's one of the acrobats, using the low wire…he reminds me of you, maybe the way you're so silent…Trowa, are you listening to me?"
Trowa started and looked from the flames into Catharine's eyes. "Uh, yes, you mentioned something about a new acrobat… how old is he?"
Catharine smiled, glad Trowa was listening at least a little to her, even if he wasn't obvious about it. "He's ten years old. Seth's been mean to him, but that's the way Seth is, always having to be bossy, even if he doesn't know what he's talking about. The new boy doesn't talk at all, but the paper he gave us said his name was Taliesin."
Trowa blinked. That was the name in the e-mail he had received… there was no returning address and it couldn't be traced, but it said to 'watch for Taliesin'… Trowa stood up, setting down the cup of coffee.
"Catharine, I need to see him… where's Taliesin at?"
Catharine stared at Trowa. His expression seemed the same, but his eyes were intent, his voice with a hint of urgency in it. "He's in one of the trailers, asleep… Trowa, what is it?"
"I'll tell you later, I promise… Right now I have to see if he's who I think he is." Trowa hurried away from the fire, as Catharine watched him go. Thinking back, she knew that Taliesin was the name of a Celtic bard and wizard, one of the wisest and bravest men in their legends. She had read a book about legends and mythology when she was younger, she had used it to pick the name Triton for her little brother, since her parents had reminded her so much of Aphrodite and Poseidon. Triton, her little brother… she sadly watched the bright red orange flames dance toward the dark skies. He'd be about Trowa's age, if he were still alive…
Trowa ran toward the main tent, figuring that the boy would probably stay away from the trailer Seth was in, stay inside out of the cold…suddenly, a shape caught his eye. Near the lion's cage was a huddled figure, wrapped in a blanket, lying on their side. Trowa knelt down and pulled the blanket away to see the person's face.
It was a boy with short black hair, shivering and grabbing at the blankets, trying to keep warm, even in his sleep… he started and blinked in confusion, his eyes the color of sapphires, like the color of the sea during a storm. Trowa kept his voice low.
"Hey… it's okay. Are you Taliesin?" The boy nodded slowly. Trowa continued. "Catharine said Seth was being a bully. Did he do anything?" The boy nodded, then grinned and smacked a fist into his free hand, mimicking punching moves. Trowa smiled. "He tried to fight you, but you fought back?" Taliesin nodded. "Fighting isn't always the best way to solve confrontations." Taliesin looked confused and nodded slowly, then he cocked his head at Trowa, pointing at him.
Trowa was mystified by the sign language, then realized that the boy didn't know who he was. "My name's Trowa." Trowa noticed the light of realization that lit up in Taliesin's eyes. He offered his hand to shake. Taliesin looked down at it. Trowa noticed the boy's expression wasn't confusion or wariness but… fear… he was afraid to shake hands?
Trowa moved his hand away, but Taliesin reached out quickly and grabbed it. Trowa saw a flash of light, then grayness…
…It was as if he were watching a black and white movie… Trowa felt Taliesin's hand holding his, but wasn't able to shut his eyes or jerk away… what he saw were memories, Taliesin's memories, through the boy's own eyes…
Inside of a hospital room, some years ago...
"Well, little one… you're the second boy in this family…" said the woman who was holding him, cradling him in her arms. "Your older brother Kentaro's waiting outside; we have to think of a name for you…" An older man came in, looking down at the boy in the woman's arms. "Diane, he's beautiful… look at his eyes, he's looking at everything around him. He'll be a bright one… do you have any ideas for a name?" Diane looked up at the man, smiling, speaking in a soft tone. "I think that this one should be named Kenjiro… Iwayama Kenjiro… but as a nickname, we'll call him Kenji…" The old man smiled at her, reaching out a hand to touch the boy's arm. "Ichiro would be proud of you, Diane… his sons will live on for him…"
A shadow appeared at the door, the mother looked up and smiled at the figure standing there. "Kentaro… come and meet your brother, Kenjiro…" A serious-eyed dark-haired boy about five years old walked over, looking into the eyes of the baby his mother held. He reached out a hand, and the baby grabbed one of his fingers, gurgling happily. Kentaro's serious expression faded, a small smile creasing his lips. Kenjiro was still a baby, but managed to hear a whisper from his brother before he went to sleep. "You're my little brother..."
There were many emotions and experiences Kenjiro had as he grew up… the feeling of being held, safe…happiness…the joy of living… learning to walk, run, read, and write… but since he was born, he could not speak, though he moved his mouth and tried over and over again. His mother went to many doctors, but each new method brought no success. Kenjiro was silent, a mute, for reasons unknown. But despite this, he was intelligent, was a very avid student, and did well in school and at home. .
When he was seven, on a day he came home from school, his older brother walking him home, there was an ominous presence in the air. Something wasn't right. They had to get home, quickly! Kenjiro ran ahead, his brother behind him, calling after him. Kenjiro stopped in front of their house, it was on fire… all the houses on their street were catching flames or being consumed by them…sirens were blaring all around him, all across town, until there was a upheaval of noise… fire… smoke… people screaming, shouting… a crowd was rushing past them, people were hysterical, running to get away. The crowd separated the two boys from each other. Kenjiro tried to make his way through, to get to his brother, but felt a hand grab his and pull him away. Kenjiro turned and saw Kentaro, fighting and shoving people, trying to get through the crowd to reach him. "Kenji! Where are you, Kenjiro! I found Mother and Grandfather, they're alive! Kenjiro! Kenjiro! Get out of my way! I have to reach my brother! Kenjiro!"
Kenjiro tried to get free, trying to yank his hand away… but it was no use, the grip on the person was like steel… Kentaro faded away as the crowd moved past, blocking him from view. The person holding Kenjiro's hand took him to an alley, stopping. Kenjiro tried to escape, pulling more frantically, but stopped when he heard the person speak. "It's alright… I won't hurt you, Kenjiro…" Kenjiro looked up at the voice, it was a man's voice, and it was a man speaking. He was wearing scientific clothing, but his nose… instead of flesh and bone, there was a metal nose… with four wires attaching it to the man's face. He bent down until he was looking into Kenjiro's eyes.
"Listen to me, Kenjiro… OZ is attacking; they are taking over your base. Your family will survive; I promise you they will be safe. But you must trust me if you want to live. Take this ticket-" the man pressed a ticket into the boy's hands- "- there's a fake I.D. inside, your name is Taliesin. Remember that name. Go to colony L3. Find the circus with the boy named Trowa Barton. He has a friend named Catherine Bloom. Trowa is the pilot of a Gundam, he will help you…" At the boy's confused look, the man sighed. "Kenjiro, you have an amazing gift. You cannot speak, but you can send images into the minds of whoever you wish… telling those people your intentions, your ideas, your thoughts… all without words. You must go to L3. Trowa will take care of you, and your family will be safe, I promise this. Your gift should not be taken away. Go."
With that, the man let go of Kenjiro's hand, and vanished into the crowd. Kenjiro stared at the ticket. It was a space shuttle ticket, going one way, complete with a false I.D card and passport with his picture. How did this guy have his picture? More importantly, how did he know about his ability? It had been a secret kept within their family, though he had used it a few times in the past, just to try it out. His older brother Kentaro didn't have a power like that, so he was a little jealous... but one time Kenjiro helped him out, so he thought it was cool...
He looked down at the ticket, knowing he was going to go. He knew that the man was telling the truth, but he couldn't really explain how… it was just something he felt, rather than thought. He stuffed the ticket in his pocket and ran, toward the airport… there was a large crowd gathered there, but he made his way through the crowd, the security, and the adults and found himself sitting in a window seat, looking out at his town. OZ had granted the space shuttle permission to launch, having gained control of the airport. The plane moved, started to pick up speed, lifted from the ground… and Kenjiro looked down at the town he had lived in, where his family was… he made a promise to himself, that whatever the future brought, he was going to find his family.
That had been three years ago… he had landed on the colony and had traveled around, doing odd jobs, earning his food and searching for the circus with the two people he had been told to find- a boy named Trowa Barton and a girl named Catharine Bloom…
Trowa yanked his hand away and fell back, his vision returned to him, everything back to color… The boy, Kenjiro, Taliesin, stared at him, his eyes watching Trowa intently. Whatever Trowa had been expecting, it certainly wasn't a boy with abilities such as this… Trowa realized he was staring and regained his composure. Then he reached out toward Kenjiro; the boy winced; shutting his eyes, thinking Trowa was going to grab him… then opened them, seeing Trowa's hand offered to him. He took it, and this time there was no rapport. Trowa helped the boy from the ground, inwardly relieved; on the outside, he kept his solemn expression. "Come on, Taliesin… you can tell me the rest inside of the trailer I share with Catharine… but you can just write words, instead of…"
Trowa stopped, thinking of the right name for it. The boy looked at him, and at once a thought 'entered' more than appeared in Trowa's mind.
"I call it Projecting. It's like showing a person a movie, from a film projector… and this isn't mind reading… I can just project my thoughts to others when communication is strong enough. I can't explain it as much as I feel it. And Taliesin was just my code name…will you call me Kenji?"
Trowa looked at the boy with amazement. He caught himself as he realized he was staring, and a small smile appeared on his face. "Alright, Kenji. But no surprises like that." Kenjiro smiled back.
It was raining as the two boys made their way to the trailer. But to Iwayama Kenjiro, as he stared up, watching the water drops fall to the ground, that rain held the promise of a new beginning.