(For some extremely strange reason, I've decided to post another chapter so soon after the last one. I'm not sure if it's because of my insane fans, boredom, or just the urge to finish this story… Hey, um, would you guys like me to post this other WA3 fic I have. It doesn't have any spoilers for this one, but that's not the best question, for you guys are probably loading those machine guns to kill me with for calling you insane. Yes, I meant you, and I'm sorry, but for my life to end would be very unfortunate, at least in my opinion. But then I would never finish this fic, but I'm just going to shut up and continue with the chapter, since that's the only real reason you would bother clicking on this link.)
The Myth of Crystaelius:
Chapter One: Dust in the Wind III
Aaron pushed away some rocks in an effort to escape the rubble. He had not expected the attack Janus used, and was slightly surprised at its strength.
"Mr. Aaron! Are you hurt!" He recognized that voice; it of course belonged to Todd. As far back as he could remember, the boy was had always been polite; it was Jet who would occasionally cast a remark, but aside from that, the two were never troublemakers.
Aaron freed himself from the rubble with one last push. Todd ran up to him, an expression of fear and urgency plastered on his face. His expression surprised Aaron, as he had not seen Todd hold that look for more than ten years. He reminded him of his sister, but he was quickly brought back to reality when Todd stated urgently, Mr. Jet; he's in trouble!"
"What happened?" Aaron asked, rubbing his forehead. "Mr. Jet and another man, I believe his name was Enrique, they both fell through a landslide that occurred on the other side of the town."
The swordsman nodded. "Alright, we have to find them. Show me where they were."
Jet winced while opening his eyes; a skill he thought was the easiest in the world. His body ached as he tried to stand up. "Need some help?"
The voice belonged to Enrique, who had outstretched his hand to help.
Jet fought the pain and stood up before rubbing his arm. "Where are we?" he asked painfully. Enrique glanced around. "From what I think, we might be in some caverns under Jolly Roger.
Jet studied their surroundings, noticing a large pile of rubble in the corner. "Would that be how we fell in?" Enrique nodded. "Yep; thought you were dead, I think you fell a little harder than I dead."
Jet glared at him before the cavern shook violently. A few stalagmites fell from the ceiling of the caves, and one of the walls collapsed, revealing a new chamber.
"I guess that is our way out," the black haired Drifter stated as he began to walk towards it. Jet followed reluctantly, hating the condition he was in.
The train ceased shakily, startling Virginia. She was trying to catch up on some needed sleep, but you could rarely sleep peacefully on a train anymore. The threat of a robbery or a hijacking was always on a passenger's mind.
Virginia rubbed her eyes and stood before gathering her belongings and exiting the train.
"Want some water?" Enrique asked while offering his canteen to his fellow Drifter. Jet hurriedly shook his head and quickened his pace, trying to spend as less time socializing with Enrique as he could.
The Drifter shrugged and ignored Jet's response, opening the canteen and taking a quick gulp.
However, another wall of the caverns collapsed, and when the dust cleared, revealed Janus Cascade. "It took me a little while to find you blokes, but at least now I can finish the job."
Enrique scratched his head. "Um, excuse me, but who the Hell are you?"
Janus scowled at Enrique. "Never heard of me, eh? Name's Janus, Janus Cascade; ring a bell?"
Enrique smiled casually and shook his head. "Nope, guess I've been living under a rock all these years."
"Guess you have," Janus answered, removing his sword from his sheath and preparing his battle stance. "But you won't live long enough to hear about what you missed."
The blue- haired man dashed at Enrique, slashing horizontally at him. The Drifter rolled underneath the attack, aiming the ARMs on his right arm at him and pulling the trigger.
Janus quickly held out his hand and formed a small barrier, stopping the bullets. He then pointed his index and middle fingers at the man and shouted, "Proton Beam!"
The blue beam of energy sailed directly at the surprised Drifter, who was quickly pulled out of the way by Jet.
The blast collided with the wall, causing a great explosion. Jet readied his ARMs while Enrique stood up, scanning the area.
Janus was nowhere to be seen, until another Proton Beam sailed at them. The two Drifters quickly evaded the attack, firing their ARMs aimlessly into the dust.
Janus smirked at their foolishness; raising his sword and jamming it into the ground. Massive pillars of dark energy erupted, combining together and causing another huge explosion.
Aaron studied the landslide. Whatever had caused it was extremely powerful, but the question that was truly bothering him was, what in the world was really going on?
"There has to be something bigger behind this, there has to be," he thought as the ground shook once more, and the entire area over the caverns exploded.
Todd and Aaron ran back to the entrance of the town, in awe of the explosion.
Janus's grin grew wider as he reviewed his work. "I might have overdone it. Hmm… That Guile guy didn't want him dead now did he? It doesn't matter; if that guy has the same power I have he should be immortal."
He shrugged and disappeared as a small amount of the rubble shook. Jet freed himself while grasping Enrique's body and hauling it up.
Enrique rubbed his head as he dusted himself off. "That was some freaky stunt back there; using that barrier thing to shield us."
Jet shook his head. "I didn't really use it; it just… happened, but I'm used to it by now."
The black- haired Drifter scratched his head. "Well, I'll make sure you explain it to me later," he stated as Jet picked his Airget- lambh up. "Whoever said I'll even meet you again?"
Enrique shrugged. "I don't know, just thought I owed you for saving my life back there."
"Consider that as payment for you saving my friend and I's lives before," Jet answered while inspecting his ARMs before walking off; Enrique hurrying to catch up.
Todd continued to blankly stare at the endless wasteland which used to be Jolly Roger. Aaron was not sure if the boy thought Jet dead, but he sure did not. "Jet… You managed to come back before, maybe not as yourself, but as a better person; a person with a different outlook on life, a perspective which reflected maturity."
"Aaron, did you ever have any brothers or sisters?" Todd suddenly asked. Aaron was startled by the question, but answered, "As a matter of fact, I did; a sister."
"Can you tell me about her?"
Aaron smiled and walked over to Todd, placing his hand on his shoulder. "Yes, I'd like to talk about her. It's been so long, since I ever did see any of my family. My parents passed away when my sister and I were very young, and my grandfather was out at the time. I would usually take care of my sister, as she had caught a very foreign and deadly disease. The town doctors had never heard of it, and no medicine was available at the time. She wasn't allowed to go outside, to experience any of the joys we all take for granted. She was really the only person I truly cared about."
Todd nodded. "What ever happened to her?"
"Well, one day, my grandfather came home, saying he would take us to a better home; he had found residence in Humphrey's Peak. "I protested, saying that it was dangerous to Ileana's health, but he ended up taking her and leaving me. It was shortly after that, that the town caught fire, and Jet passed away. He and a few others were the only ones to be found deceased, I became a Drifter, and you disappeared."
Todd shook his head, replying, "I guess you've felt what I'm feeling right now. Even though I lost my memory, I still feel as if I've lost someone very close to me."
Aaron smiled. "Don't worry, Jet's very versatile; I'm sure he's just fine."
"Hey! Aaron, Todd!"
The two turned to see Virginia running towards them. "What, uh, happened here? Most of the passengers from the train noticed the fire, and the workers called for help."
Aaron smiled. "It'll take time to explain."
(… You're still coming to kill me right? Well, if you are, I'll be ready… I think… I probably won't be, just don't hurt yourself!)
