Chapter Eight: Revealed
The eight Dragoons found it a bit more difficult to get together, but Sean somehow always found a way to train. The school year had begun and the Dragoons had to try and act like normal individuals, like they were before this whole mess started. Some of them found it difficult to hide their weapons from their parents.
Everyone was glad to be home, though. Things seemed a little less hectic.
Sean didn't really seem to fit into the school. He still had the same attitude as he did in the woods, so he never really opened up. It was really starting to bug the other Dragoons, mainly because they didn't understand.
But fate has a way of playing interesting games with its human toys.
Sean was walking through the halls after school, his backpack on his shoulder and ready to leave. As he walked by the main lobby, Sean spotted Melissa looking at a paper on the bulletin board. He stopped behind her and read it as well.
"A dance?" He asked out loud.
She turned her head around. "Yeah, they've been announcing it. It's Friday. I'm just double-checking the times."
"Hm." He said, not really going into it.
"I assume that you have no interest in going?"
"You assume correctly."
"Aw, what's the matter?" Melissa teased. "Can't dance?"
Sean gave her a look. "That's not the reason."
"Well, just come with us. The whole gang is going."
"Are they now?"
"Yeah!"
"Well, then the whole gang will be there except me."
"Ah, come on! Have some fun!"
"My idea of fun is a good fight. If you're going, then go ahead, but not me. Not my style. Later."
Melissa sighed and shook her head. She finished reading the bulletin and went down the hall to get her own things.
A little ways down, she spotted something on the ground: a book. She knelt down and looked at it. Romeo and Juliet. The entire sophomore English class was reading it. Somebody would need it. She opened the book and looked at the name in the front cover. She barely believed the name she saw.
Sean McMann
Sean was already long gone when Melissa found the book, so she had to find other means of returning it to him. When she got home, she called Ben and asked where Sean lived. He gave the directions and she went off.
It was a bit of a walk from her house to Sean's, but she eventually found it. It was a quaint little place. She went up and knocked on the front door. She waited for a little while, but got no response. She knocked again.
"Come in!" A voice called that was not Sean's.
She opened the door and walked inside slowly and nervously.
"Living Room!" The voice called again. Melissa found her way into it and saw a man in his late forties, standing on a ladder, working with the ceiling fan. "I would've answered the door, but I couldn't let go of this thing without it breaking. Sorry. Give me a sec." He finished working and moved down the ladder. He stepped off and looked at his visitor. "Can I help you?"
"Uh, you don't know me." She said. "I'm Melissa. I'm a friend of Sean's."
The man chuckled. "I wasn't aware Sean had friends."
"No?"
"He doesn't talk much about school. I'm Hank, Sean's dad. Nice to meet you." He shook her hand, and then froze. He seemed to be staring at her.
"Is…something wrong?" Melissa asked. He quickly snapped back to reality and let go of her hand.
"Sorry, sorry. You, uh…you kinda look like someone I knew."
Melissa got curious. "Who?"
Hank bit his lip, unsure.
"Hey, Sean!" He called.
"What?" Sean's voice called back.
"You got a visitor!" Melissa heard a door open and Sean stepped in.
"Melissa?"
"Hi." She said.
"Now tell me if I'm wrong," Hank said, moving to him, "but doesn't she look kinda familiar?"
Sean looked at her. Once more, the mystery haunted him. But his dad saw it too?
"Yeah, she kinda does." He said. "I've been trying to place it for a while."
"You have?" Melissa asked, surprised.
"You know who I think she looks like?" Hank asked.
"Who?" Sean wanted to know.
Hank looked at him and spoke the name.
"Anna."
For the first time since he couldn't remember when, Hank saw his son's expression change. It went from serious to stunned.
Sean couldn't believe it. He finally knew and it all made sense. Anna…
"Who's Anna?" Melissa asked.
"My late wife." Hank said.
"Late?" Melissa asked.
"I was on a business trip, so Anna decided to take Sean camping. But…there was an accident at a waterfall. Anna fell. They found her body miles downstream."
Melissa felt guilty. "I'm sorry."
He shook his head. "It's alright. That was years ago."
Sean crossed his arms. "So did you need something?" Hank and Melissa were both surprised by his coldness.
"Uh," Melissa said. "You dropped this in the hall." She handed him the book.
"Ah, thanks. I was looking for it."
"No problem." Melissa got a coy idea. "One more thing, though. You're picking me up at 6:30, right?"
"What?" Sean asked.
"You know. The dance?"
"Dance, eh?" Hank asked. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Well, we just decided today. Silly me. I already forgot when he was supposed to pick me up!"
"Well, this is new!" Hank said with a smile. Sean fought for composure.
"Yeah, it took a little convincing, but I finally got him to come with me." Melissa smiled at her plot.
"I'll bet." Hank chuckled. "This guy is one tough egg to crack!" He gave Sean a light slap on the back.
"So it was 6:30, right?" Melissa asked again. The question hung in the air as both people looked at Sean in anticipation.
Sean's jaw was clenched tight, but he uttered out a response.
"Quarter 'til seven."
"Ah, right!" Melissa said with a bright smile.
Hank was smiling just as bright. "I'll let you two talk." He walked off and said, "Don't screw this up, kid." Sean didn't respond. Once Hank had left, Sean spoke.
"You say you're my friend, but you play a very cruel game."
She patted his cheek. "I'm just more spice than sugar." She turned and tossed her head teasingly. "See you Friday. Don't be late!" With that, she left.
Sean couldn't believe he'd been caught in such a trap.
"So," Hank said, reappearing. "You finally decided to pick a girl?"
Sean rolled his eyes. "Just drop it." He walked past.
"I'm surprised you didn't see it." Hank said.
Sean stopped. "Didn't see what?"
"She does look a lot like Anna."
He turned. "It's been years. Why were you surprised?"
"Because you still haven't let her go."
That stung.
"I have things to do." He went into his room and closed the door. Hank heard the latch lock. He sighed and walked away.
In his room, Sean leaned his back against the door in deep thought. So that was it; the mystery was solved.
Anna.
Melissa did look a lot like her. Was that why he was so desperate to save her in the desert? Was that why he agreed to go to the dance? Was…was that why he felt…drawn to her?
Sean slowly looked up at his nightstand drawer. He inched towards it, baby step by baby step. He put his hand on the handle and took a deep breath. He eased open the drawer. There it was. He looked for a moment and started to extend his hand. Suddenly, he slammed the drawer shut and closed his eyes.
It was in the past. It was a memory.
Nothing more.
In his own room, Hank was thinking the opposite. He was holding his own picture and thinking. She wasn't just a memory. She was his life.
Friday came way too fast for Sean. He was very reluctant, but he'd already said yes. The dress was casual-thank the Lord. He'd go to a dance, but he would NOT dress up.
Even so, Sean found himself looking a tad more than casual as he examined himself in the mirror. But nothing else seemed right. Since when did he worry about what he wore?
Sean shook his head and walked out of his room. He passed his dad on the way out, who had to smile once more.
"Heading out?"
"Yeah, I guess."
"Nervous?"
"Never."
"Alright."
Sean caught something in his dad's eyes.
"Something wrong?"
"Hm? No, nothing. Go on now. Knock her dead."
"I don't think you really want me to do that." Sean said as he walked out the door.
Hank looked at the ground. He'd said he was alright, but in all honesty, he wasn't. Ever since his encounter with Melissa, he'd been thinking about Anna. It was all flooding back to him again. Feelings came over him he thought he'd vanquished.
A thought ran across his mind. He headed up to the attic.
Sean pulled up to Melissa's house. She was sitting on the porch swing, waiting. As she stood and walked, Sean noticed she looked a bit more than casual too. It wasn't bad, though. She looked pretty good, actually. Sean opened her door from the inside and she got in.
"You actually came." She noted.
"I'm on time." He said.
"I know. I just had a feeling you'd change your mind."
"I said I'd go, didn't I? Let's get going." He drove away.
The school was packed with students. Sean found a parking spot and they walked inside. As soon as Melissa saw the rest of the gang inside, she slipped her arm in Sean's.
"What are-?" He began.
"Aw, isn't that cute?" Brittany teased. Sean sighed. Melissa just laughed.
"You're going to have a lot of fun with this aren't you?" Sean asked her.
"Yeah."
"Wonderful."
"So you actually got him to come." Mike said. "I'm impressed."
"Without his sword too." Brad added.
"And sober." Robert put in.
"Yeah, yeah." Sean grumbled. "I'm just here because she tricked me."
Just then, the music began.
"Party time." Rob said with a smile. They went into the gym and Sean reluctantly followed.
Melissa continued her ploy to socialize Sean not long after the dance started. Three songs after the first, a slow song began.
Brittany and Brad had been on the sides, talking when the song began. Brittany knew this was the time to act. However, for the first time since she couldn't remember when, she was nervous, too nervous to say anything. Several times, she'd open her mouth, but no words came out.
C'mon, Brittany! She told herself. Since when do you get stage fright? Alright, just ask him in one…two…three! Okay, that didn't work. One…two…three! Aw, c'mon! Last chance! One…two…
"Hey, Brittany." Brad interrupted. "You, uh, wanna dance?"
Brittany couldn't believe it. "Uh, yeah, sure." So, they danced.
Part of Ben wanted to ask Christie to dance. The rest of him was telling him "No way, buddy. Ain't gonna happen."
Mike nudged him. "Dude, just ask her already."
"It's not that simple!" Ben insisted. "Once you ask someone to dance, the friendship line is crossed, whether they say 'yes' or 'no'."
"Yeah." Mike had to agree. "But what if she says 'yes'? That's what you've always wanted, right?"
"Well…in a way, yes, but then…" He trailed off.
"But what?"
Ben sighed. "Nothing. Just forget it."
"Mm, alright."
"So what about you? You dancing with anyone?"
Mike shrugged. "Dunno."
"I sure am." Robert suddenly said.
"Who?"
"The girl who just walked past."
"You mean the unbelievably hot one?"
"Yeah."
"You choose based on appearance? You're despicable."
"She has a hot friend."
"Really?" Mike's interest suddenly perked and both guys walked off.
Ben had to laugh as they left.
"Hey."
Ben turned. Christie! "Oh! Hey."
"Are you just going to stand there?"
"Oh, uh, I don't know."
Just then, another guy walked up to Christie. "Hey, Christie."
She turned. "Hi, Greg."
"You wanna dance?" Ben's heart sank.
"Sorry. I already have a partner."
"Oh, that's cool." He left.
"You do?" Ben asked.
"Yeah." She said. "So are we going to dance or what?"
Ben's eyes shot open. "Me?"
"Yeah, why not?"
"Are you sure?"
Christie gave him a funny look. "It's just a dance. C'mon!"
Just a dance, eh? Ben thought. Alright. I can play her game.
"Uh, yeah. But…I'm not very good."
"I'll be the judge of that." Christie said, pulling him along.
As soon as Sean heard the slow music, he feared the worst. He began to leave, but Melissa found him and dragged him onto the floor.
"C'mon! Dance with me!"
"I don't want to." Sean groaned.
"Too bad." She put her arms around his neck.
"I don't even know how!"
"Just put your hands on my waist and go with me."
He sighed and did so.
"There." She said. "That wasn't too hard, was it?"
"Mm."
"What's the matter? Not comfortable with physical contact?"
"Not really."
Melissa sighed. "You'll never get a girl that way."
"Not a problem."
"What? You have no intention of ever getting a girlfriend?"
"Not really."
"Geez, you are hopeless!"
"Because I don't wish to burden myself?"
"Oh, sexist now?"
"No. But if I get caught up in something, it'll hinder me."
Melissa looked at the ground, more serious now. "Sean…after talking to you dad, I think I understand now."
"Do you?" Sean was unmoved.
"Yeah. It was your mom, wasn't it?"
Sean didn't answer.
"When she died, you went into a kind of shell and hid there. I can understand what it's like to lose someone. When my parents divorced I never thought I'd see my dad or my brother again. I, too, went into a shell, vowing to never come back. And you know what that accomplished?"
"What?"
"Nothing. I got nowhere. I didn't move on. I just stayed in that spot of my life for the longest time. After a while, I realized it was getting me nowhere. I finally came out of that shell and you know what? It really helped. I was stronger, healthier, happier, whatever. I was better. Maybe it's time you came out of your shell too."
"Melissa, I really don't want to talk about it."
She sighed. "Alright. But try to enjoy yourself tonight, alright?"
"I'm trying." He admitted.
"Then stop glancing around the room every two seconds."
"Anything can happen."
"Let it. We'll take care of it."
Sean sighed. "So what exactly am I supposed to do?"
"You're supposed to concentrate on who you're dancing with."
"Alright." Sean said. He turned his gaze to her and looked into her eyes. Those eyes again. They held so much memory.
"Do I really look like your mother did?" Melissa asked.
Sean thought about the question for a moment. "It's in your eyes...I apologize if that seems awkward."
"It's alright. Is that why you were so desperate to save me in the desert?" The question hit home.
"I don't know. I don't know why I do a lot of the things I do."
"I see." She was silent for a moment. Sean kept dancing with her, still unsure.
"Um…" Sean began, but stopped.
"What?"
For the first time, he looked nervous. "Am I…am I doing alright?"
"You actually care?"
"When I do something, I try to get it done right."
"Oh…well, yes, you are. Pretty good for your first time."
"Mm…good. Thanks."
"You enjoying yourself?"
He hesitated. "I guess. It's alright. It's new."
"Well, that's a start. Now let's work on that smile."
"I smile."
"Barely, and only when something goes right in battle!"
"Little amuses me anymore."
"Stick around, Sean. We'll show you a good time." A little later, the song ended. "Hey, what do you know? You danced and didn't burst into flame."
"Very funny." He rolled his eyes.
Hank held the picture in his hand. He hadn't seen it in a long time. It was his wedding picture with Anna. She looked so beautiful in that dress. He looked at another of the same day. There they were again, this time holding little Sean. He had to chuckle at how small he was.
Sean had changed so much…too much. He was a different person now than he was in that picture. Could Anna's death have really scarred him that much?
Hank put both pictures back in the box and closed it. He'd been looking through a couple boxes of Anna's old things that he'd kept. He stood up to leave, but his eye caught something. Another box he hadn't looked through yet. He wasn't sure he had the strength to go through another. He stood there for a moment, then gathered up his courage in a deep breath and moved over to the box.
Hank sat down and opened it. He moved the light over so he could see.
Huh. This was strange. He didn't remember any of this. He found an old notebook and opened it. It was full of strange symbols that he didn't understand. Anna must've written all this, but why would she write in such strange code?
He figured she must have been doodling or something and went on. There wasn't too much else in the box. A strange necklace with symbols similar to the ones in the notebook.
The biggest item was another cardboard box which was taped up tightly. On the side it read, "Do not open until I am gone". Anna had written it. Hank had never seen this before. What was in it? Well, eight years had passed since her death, so it was well okay to open it. He pulled out his pocket knife and cut through the tape. After disposing of it all, he opened the package.
Inside, were two strange discs each about six inches in diameter. Each had a taped sign on it. One said Hank, the other said Sean. He put down Sean's and looked at his own. It had a few buttons on it, so one of them must do something. He turned his light a little and saw a little black arrow drawn in marker pointing to one of the buttons. He pushed it and the device came to life. Rings of green light were wrapped around it and a little red scanner appeared and scanned his eyes, then shut off. The green lights turned blue and the disc hummed. Hank put it down in a bit of fear and stood up.
The top mound began to split and open. Little blue lights flew out of it and swarmed together, seeming to make something. The something got bigger and bigger until it was almost Hank's height. They continued to mold and finally produced a perfectly clear image. It was a woman with long silver hair, shimmering eyes and a beautiful smile.
"Hey there." Her majestic voice spoke.
Hank could hardly believe it. "A-Anna!"
Meanwhile, the dance had heated back up again and the most of the students were in full swing.
Sean, of course, was not. He was out in the concessions area, just watching people go by. A few moments later, Melissa came out, followed by a group of tall, tough-looking guys. Sean noticed they were following too closely by the uncomfortable look on Melissa's face. He quickly found out why.
"C'mon, baby." One guy said, seeming to be the leader. "Just one dance."
"I said no." Melissa replied.
"Why not?"
She turned to him. "Do you think I'm that naïve, Brandon! I know what you really want. You're hoping to get in my pants tonight, aren't you?"
Brandon looked at his gang, then back at her. "Well, if you wanna get right to it…" He laughed.
Melissa shook her head. "You make me sick." She turned away again.
"Aw, c'mon." Brandon pressed on. "You know you want it."
"Not really." Melissa responded, not turning around.
"Yeah, sure. C'mon back here." She kept going. "Hey!" He grabbed her wrist and turned her. "I said-"
Sean grabbed Brandon's wrist and twisted it. "And she said no, so I suggest you back off and find some other girl in which to fulfill your lusts." He let him go. Brandon rubbed his wrist.
"You're that new kid, aren't you?"
"I am."
"Well, I suggest you step down, tough guy. This is none of your business."
"Oh, trust me." Sean responded, crossing his arms. "It is."
Brandon looked at him, then at Melissa. "Oh, I see." He said. "She's your skank."
Sean shot his arm out and Melissa collided into it. Had it not been there, she would have surely torn him apart.
"Let me at him!" Melissa demanded.
"Stay back, Melissa." Sean said calmly.
Brandon had to laugh. "What? You think she's gonna hurt me?"
"If I let her, she'd tear your head off."
"I'm sure." Brandon said dryly. "But anyway, since you're new, I'm gonna ask you nicely once more: Step down…unless you're ready to die."
Sean gave him a look. "Am I supposed to be intimidated?"
Brandon shook his head. "Look, I don't know who you think you are, but I own this school." Everyone was starting to gather around, watching them. "I do what I want and take what they won't let me have." He stepped up close. "That includes females. If you're going to stand in my way, I'm just gonna take what I want."
"I don't want to fight you."
"You shouldn't, because I'm itching to break every bone in your body."
Sean's eyes narrowed. "You don't know me very well, so I'm going to ask you nicely once more: Back off."
The crowd they'd attracted was stunned at Sean's boldness.
Brandon shook his head. "Boy, you are just itching to die, aren't you?"
Sean sighed. "I was hoping to avoid this, but if you are so insistent on fighting, them maybe it's the only way I can teach you some respect."
Brandon got right up in his face. "Alright, then. Let's go, pretty boy."
WHAM! Sean's head rammed into Brandon's face, knocking him to the ground. He sat there, dazed for a second, and then wiped the blood off his face. "YOU!"
Sean nearly fell over as he was shoved out the front doors.
"And stay out!" The teacher yelled back at him. Sean turned around and looked as the teacher slammed the doors behind him. Melissa came out instantly afterwards, soon followed by the rest of the gang.
"What on earth happened!" Mike wanted to know.
"Sean beat the snot out of Brandon and his buddies, so the teacher threw him out." Melissa explained.
"It's about time someone did." Robert said. "I'm just sorry it wasn't me."
"And by the way." Melissa turned to Sean. "You don't have to defend me, you know."
"I was defending him!" Sean explained. "But then he pinched a nerve, so I let him have it."
"How bad was it?" Ben asked.
Melissa went over it in her head. "Seven black eyes, five fat lips, four busted noses, several broken or sprained fingers, and a lot of blood."
"How many guys were there?" Brittany asked.
"Six."
"Wow." More than one person said.
"Yeah." Melissa turned to Sean. "So you got to fight after all. Happy?"
He shrugged. "Eh. It's more fun when you're saving the human race, but it was alright."
"So now what?" Brad asked.
"You guys should go on back." Sean said. "They didn't kick you all out, just me."
"But we don't want you to just hang out by yourself." Christie explained. "We'll keep you company."
"No, you don't have to."
"But we want to. It's called 'friendship'."
Sean sighed. "You're sure?"
"Yeah." They all agreed.
"Okay…what should we do?"
"It's only seven thirty." Brad said, referring to his watch. "We have a lot of time."
They all thought for a moment.
"Too dark to practice." Ben said.
"Nothing good at the movies." Robert added.
"Not many interesting places open for much longer." Brittany put in.
"Well, we could hang out at someone's house." Brad decided.
"Good idea." Christie concurred. "But whose?"
"Who's up for seeing Sean's place?" Melissa suddenly asked. Everyone's hand went up.
"What?" Sean asked.
"They haven't seen your place yet and you need to break into the friendship business, so let us hang out with you."
Sean scratched the back of his head. "Um…okay, I guess. Follow me."
He led the gang from the school all the way to his house. He opened the door.
"Well, here it is." He said. "Nothing too fancy, but we call it home." He stepped in and everyone followed. "Hey, Dad?" He called. "Brought some people over, is that okay?" No response.
"You probably gave him a heart attack." Melissa said.
"Ha, ha." Sean replied. "Dad? Hey! Where are ya?" He flipped on lights as he went. He looked around, but his dad was nowhere to be found. "Huh. Strange." He opened a door, revealing stairs leading up. He ascended and the others followed.
As he went up, Sean heard someone speaking. It was a woman's voice.
"Who could that be?" Sean whispered in confusion.
"Maybe he has someone over?" Ben guessed.
"I highly doubt it." Sean said. "And what would they be doing in the attic?" he trotted up the stairs and turned to see who it was. He froze.
The Dragoons walked up and had to stare as well. Hank was standing, staring at the hologram in front of him.
"No way." Sean whispered.
"What?" The Dragoons asked.
"That hologram…it's Anna!"
"Who?" Robert asked.
"Shh!" He wanted to listen to the hologram's words.
"…and again, I'm sorry I lied." Anna was finishing. "I only hope you can understand. I love you…goodbye." The hologram disappeared and the disc stopped glowing. Hank stood, immobilized for the longest time.
"So…" He said, finally. "You knew she wasn't human?"
Sean didn't know what to say. He was caught. After all these years, he finally knew.
"Well?" Hank demanded.
"Yeah." Sean answered. "I knew."
Hank turned and looked at him. His eyes burned with anger. "Tell me the truth."
Sean hesitated.
"I want to hear it from your mouth. Tell me the truth, son. Tell me about the real Anna…and the real you."
Sean was surprised at how much that last part hurt him.
"Who are you?" Hank demanded. "All these secrets…all these lies…tell me the truth!"
"We should leave." Melissa said.
"No. Stay." Sean said. "I don't want to have to tell this story twice."
The Dragoons looked at each other, then at Sean. Finally, they'd get some answers.
Sean took a deep breath, then looked back at the Dragoons and began his story.
"First of all," he began, "Anna wasn't my real mother. My biological mom died giving birth to me. When I was six, dad started dating again and he found someone: Anna. One night, he invited her over for dinner, and also to meet me. She was a nice woman; very kind to me and I could tell that my dad liked her a lot. But something caught my eye: she wore a strange necklace." Sean held his Dragoon Spirit up. "This was it."
"Wait." Ben stopped him. "You mean that person you said who gave you the spirit…was Anna?"
"It was."
"Then she's the one who trained you?" Melissa added.
"Indeed."
"Continue the story." Hank demanded. Sean did.
"Well, I was absolutely fascinated by her necklace, so she let me hold it for a minute. When I did, it glowed in my hands. I, being six, was amazed simply by the glowing. But Anna was astonished. I understand now. After all, how could a little kid be a Dragoon?
"When dad was cooking, Anna stayed out with me. She had to keep checking, to make sure that she wasn't imagining things. Sure enough, I was the Dragoon. But how on earth could she EVER explain it? I was six! I could never understand!" He sighed. "But, as you know, she wasn't human. She was a wingly, and therefore could use magic. She was pretty good at it, too. She conducted a spell on my brain. It expanded its ability far beyond my current years. It changed everything. I could think like an adult could…better, actually. That effect still lingers on me today."
"That would explain a lot." Melissa noted.
"Indeed it does." Hank agreed, still angry. "And then, she explained everything, correct?"
"Correct. She told me all about my Dragoon powers, my calling, the history of the Dragoons, everything. I couldn't believe how well I understood her. It was like a door was opened in my mind.
"But she made one thing certain about all this: no one could know. Things could get crazy in more ways than either of us wanted to know. So, I kept it a secret." He looked at his dad. "Even from you."
"For ten years." Hank snorted. "Well done."
Sean bit his lip, turned to the Dragoons, and continued. "Anna continued dating dad and later, they married. Anna and I could train more frequently now. She only taught me magic for a while. I was still way too young to know how to wield a blade. For several months we trained."
"Behind my back." Hank put in.
"It wasn't like that." Sean returned.
"Yes it was." His words burned. "But I want to know one thing more than anything else: how did Anna die? That waterfall story is a lie. Anna was a wingly, so she could fly away. How did she really die?" His face seemed like a dam that was about to break.
Sean's face turned grim, more than usual. He hesitated.
"ANSWER ME!" Hank blasted. Sean looked at him.
"Anna's death…was much more admirable." Now, he was telling both parties new information. "Being a Dragoon means you have enemies. While Anna and I were training in the woods, we were attacked by a very powerful foe. Anna fought him with all his might, but he struck her down. But with her last strength, Anna defeated him." He looked at his father. "Anna was murdered by an enemy no one could stop. Yet she did it. She died honorably."
"But she still died." Hank noted in a low tone. "All because of THAT!" He jabbed his finger at Sean's Dragoon Spirit.
"Anna and I both made our own choices in this matter."
"So you chose to lie to me." Sean couldn't reply to that. "I knew something happened to you. I just thought you were remorseful about Anna's death, but it was more. As the days passed, you grew more and more distant. You weren't yourself anymore. You were something else!"
"I'm still the same person." Sean retaliated. "I'm still your son."
Hank shook his head. "No. My son is gone." He pointed to Sean. "You took him from me." He walked past Sean and the Dragoons and walked down the steps. Sean stayed in the same position, motionless for the longest time.
"Now you know." Sean said. "You can leave now." They all did. Sean didn't know where to go from here. His father's last words dug deep and stung hard.
But how had he known? That hologram. Sean walked over and looked at it. It was some sort of hologram projector, he figured; a wingly tool. On its side, there was a label with his father's name on it. Anna had left it there for him to find. Where had he found it? A box was open and Sean looked in.
Sean searched through the items, marveling at each one. In notebooks, there were words in wingly letters, a language Sean had learned to decipher from a young age. Most of it was all records or notes, mostly on Sean's progress. He found other interesting writings as well, but they were for his father, who couldn't read it.
Memories came back at Sean, memories he wasn't happy with. Other than the notebooks, there were a couple strange artifacts, wingly-looking items. Probably mementos. Other than that, there wasn't much, at least nothing his father could make out. But then, lying outside the box, was another, smaller box that had been opened already. On the side, it read "Do not open until I am gone." That would get his father's attention.
Sean picked up his father's hologram disk and started to put it back in the box when he found another disk. This one had his name on it. Sean pulled it out and looked at it. He soon knew how to work it. His thumb hovered over the "on" button. Did he dare? He stared down at the disk, contemplating whether or not to activate it for a seemingly endless time.
At length, he put everything away except for his own disk. That, he took with him to his room opened his nightstand drawer, dropped it in, and slammed it shut.
He didn't need any more trouble.
AUTHORS' NOTE: So Sean's past is revealed, but what of Anna's hologram to him? What message does it contain? How will Hank and Sean cope after this encounter? Those questions to be answered in the next chapter. Thanks for the reviews everybody reviews, everybody. We love 'em and keep 'em coming, por favor!
