Well anyway, I just thought about Roland's past so basically, it's just stalling for time, I guess. Then again, it's just causing me more work. Gyah... Oh well... On to the story!

Disclaimer

Well, you know what goes here. I do not own PSO... blah blah blah!

Back in the day: Reminisce

I was Roland Conners. I had my cyan colored hair spiked and I always had my favorite necklace around my neck that I've had since my youngest brother was born. It's made of a chain and on it are three rings, with the biggest one between two same-sized smaller ones. Nothing too fancy, but it is very important to me.

I called it Fami. The chain was from my father, the rings from my mother, and the three rings represented my brothers and I, which is the reason why I called it Fami. It represents my family. I remember how mad I'd get when I'd lose it. I was throwing fits everywhere. Now that I look back on it, it's pretty funny seeing me all riled up over something that has "no specific value". However, it may not be a value to anyone, but it is to me.

My father's name is Alexander and my mother's name is Meilyn. I was sixteen when my brothers and I found out that our parents were chosen along with hundreds of other hunters to scale a planet called Ragol. I was excited to know that we were finally going to land on a planet. No more artificial air, no more artificial food…. I knew we were in for some adventure. Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to go and that left us disheartened. Mom and Dad said it's strictly hunter business. We obviously didn't like the idea.

My brothers and I stood by our parents' doorway as they packed up, trying to convince them to sneak us in, but they still refused to take us along. My youngest brother, Ness, who was eight years old at the time and had brown-colored hair that went to his chin, tried to hold back his tears. The second of us three, Reno, who was thirteen and has cyan-colored hair that always looks as though he just woke up, comforted my little brother by playing their favorite video game together. The little one calmed down a bit.

We hugged and said our good-byes by the warp pad.

"Now you be good to your aunt now, okay boys?" Mom said. Reno and I got the cyan-colored hair trait from our mother. Reno has red irises from our father and I got the amber colored irises from our mother.

"Okay, Mama," we replied.

"And Rolly?"

"Yes, Mama?"

"Keep a close eye on those two."

"'Kay," I replied.

"Now, I'm warning you three. Don't chase after us, okay? Stay with your aunt."

We replied, "Okay."

"Time to go, Hon!" Dad called from the warp pad. Ness got the brown-colored hair trait from our father. He also has amber-colored eyes.

"Do we have everything?"

"I think so. Oh my! Look at the time, Mei!"

"Wow! We're late! We better hurry, Xander!"

Then, we said one last good-bye to each other and we watched our parents warp outside and disappeared with one last wave. As we prepared to head to our cousin's house, I saw my dad's casecontaininghis signature weapon lying by the warp pad. I have to return it to him. I don't know what will ever happen to my parents if they don't have it with them. With that in mind, I told my brothers to go ahead without me and I'll catch up with them soon. Ness still had signs of sadness, but this time, it's about the safety of our parents. I patted him on the head and reassured that we'll see Mom and Dad again. After that, we parted ways. Fami rang as I ran. (Ring, ring.)

The amount of people I saw as I entered the hanger caught me off guard. How am I supposed to find my parents now? Then, I heard an announcement on the intercom saying that they're now boarding. The hunters automatically formed lines in front of the check-in points and among the ones on the front are my parents. They were actually never late for anything. They only say that to get us moving so we could get wherever we're going earlier and never have to worry about lines. However, they always seem to forget something.

I dashed to them, but they already passed the gate. I tried to pass through, but a guard caught me halfway.

"Hey, kid!" the guard grunted, "You're not allowed through there!"

"But I—," I attempted to explain my situation, but he cut me off.

"Security! Take this boy away."

"B—but… but…" It's too late. They already flung me out of the way. Fami poked me in the eye. (Ring, ring…?) I couldn't get mad at it, because I liked Fami so much.

As I got up, I heard another announcement on the intercom. "After everyone has been accounted for, we will depart for the Central Dome on planet Ragol very shortly. Thank you for boarding the Gran Squall." I had already left when it repeated the message in another language.

Upon arriving my cousin's house, I contemplated my next attempt to return the weapon to the rightful hands.

"What happened, Rolly?" the middle brother asked.

"I couldn't give it to Dad, Reno," I replied while playing with Fami. (Ring, ring!)

"So, what are you going to do now?" the little one asked.

"I'll try sneaking in after dinner and hopefully there'll still be some hunters in line," I said quietly, hoping a certain someone isn't listening.

"Why? What'll happen if there are no more hunters?"

"Then, I won't be able to reach Mom and Dad, Ness. They'd be already gone."

"Why not just give it to the guard at the gate, Rolly?" my cousin Kenneth whispered. He's a year older than Reno and has long dark-green hair that's pulled back in a ponytail. His eyes gleam jade-green.

"Whaaa! Don't do that!" we snapped. (Ring, ring!)

"How long have you been standing there, Ken?" I gasped.

"I came in at 'So, what are you going to do now?'"

"Ugh… I was hoping you wouldn't come. Knowing you, you'll probably slip up even if we specifically told you to keep it quiet.

"Nuh-uh!"

"Remember when we found a dagger in the plaza, Ken?" Reno retorted, "We were going to keep it, but you ended up blurting it out to Auntie Melissa by 'accident'!"

"Oh… yeah…."

"You're too much of a goody-goody," Reno snapped. "Oh! And remember when we snuck in the—"

"Okay! Okay! I get the point. Jeez! Leave it to you guys to put me down."

Since Ken is now part of the "team," it complicated things a bit. I have to devise a plan that even ol' goody-goody Ken could make it look real.

"Okay… hmm… Now, I'll make you a part of my plan to sneak out and you probably won't know what hit you."

"But Rol," Ken retorted, "Why don't you just give it to the guard?"

"Remember whatUncle Slysaid about the hunters and the military?"

"No. Not really."

"He said that the hunters and the military don't exactly look eye to eye. Now, if I give it to them, they'll just probably steal it without caring."

"Yeah. No kidding." Reno retorted.

"Time for dinner, kids!" Auntie Melissa called out from the kitchen.

"Uh… you guys go on ahead," I called out as they left our quarters. I already have a plot thought out. "Hee hee hee…. This is great!" (Ring, ring…!)

I quickly set up the plan and joined the others with a straight face.

"Where were you?" Auntie Melissa asked.

I thought of a lie quickly and replied, "Oh, I used the bathroom."

"I hope you washed your hands."

"Yes, Auntie. I did."

"You better have! You don't want to get sick, right?"

"Yeah… we know," we replied.

"Good. Wash up afterwards too. Okay?"

"Yes, Auntie Melissa," my brothers and I replied. Our cousins replied with a "Yes, Mom."

We finished eating and now, it's just a matter of when the riot will start.

We were in our room reminiscing over the old times and commenting on Auntie Melissa's good cooking when—

"MMMOOOOOOOMMM!" yelled Kenny's younger sister, Silvia. She's as old as Reno, but still fights with her brother like a little child. She has lavender colored hair that's bobbed. Her eyes look almost as purple as her hair. I took their history together to my advantage.

"What's wrong Silvia?" Auntie Melissa asked.

"Ken took my stuffedanimal again!"

I moved the stuffed animal from her room and put it on Ken's bed because he also loved dolphins. I let Ness and Reno in my plan while Ken was distracted and told Ness to jump in after I already snuck out, thus fixing the problem and containing the peace. Then, all I have to worry about is how Reno will cover for me. He's good at that, but I'm not sure how he'll fare this time. Don't worry. I got this down, he said before the chaos. I just hope he does.

The fight went on and it was my chance to sneak out. I stealthily snuck passed the ruckus and to the warp pad with one hand on the case and the other holding Fami quiet. My heart pumped faster as I got closer. I finally made it and unintentionally let go of Fami to press the button to warp me outside. (Ring, ring?)

Ken screamed, "Did not!"

"Did too!"Silvia screamed back.

"Did not!"

"Did to—"

"Okay! Okay!" Auntie Melissa attempted to break the fight, yet again. That's all I heard before I teleported. I just hope Reno covered for me and did something about Fami's sudden outburst.

I arrived at the ship docks and luckily there were some hunters left. I desperately needed to find a way in and if I end up coming with them, they can ship me back to Pioneer 2. That's all.

I quickly scanned the area without being too suspicious and saw some hunters packing crates in the back of the ship. One of the guards opened up one of the crates and a quarrel between the guard and a hunter erupted. I'm assuming the guard is part of the military. He's huge! I don't think the hunter has a chance.

"Can I help you?" the hunter disdainfully asked.

"No, thank you!" The guard continued to poke through the crate.

"(EHEM!) That's my crate, you ingrate!"

"Wow! You can rhyme."

"(scoff) I'll mop the floor with your carcass when I'm through with you!"

"Ha ha ha... bring it on, scrawny!"

At that, they fought viciously and thrashed everywhere, tipping some of the crates around them. The hunter tried to activate his saber, but the guard grabbed his hand and turned it into what looked like a mix between a headlock and an arm-lock. The hunter countered by shaking the guard off balance and flipping forward and landing his back with the guard still behind him. The impact knocked the air out of the guard and left him vulnerable to another attack.

The hunter unsheathed his saber and aimed at the guard's throat, "You know what they say! 'The bigger they are… THE HARDER THEY FALL!"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Someone intervened. I was afraid that I'd witness a death. I took advantage of the situation and snuck into the opened crate. Fami almost gave my position again. (Ring… ring…) Now, I knew why the guard was interested in this crate. It was a food supply crate! If the Gran Squall were ever going to be delayed for any reason, this food would help a lot. All I need is an air hole and I'm prepared for the trip.

I sat silently on the packaged, processed food as the commotion dissolved and hoped that I wasn't seen. Apparently, no one did because they shut the crate. I frantically tested the crate to see if there's an air hole. I took a deep breath, I searched for a hole, and sure enough, there is one. I decided to celebrate by munching on some of the tasty snacks. If I got out of this crate without anyone noticing, the hunter can blame the mess on the guard.

It took only a few hours until arrival, but as the transport touched down, something fell on top and my air began to thin. I started to panic and struggled to get out. Whatever it is, it obviously gave me a challenge and, to top it off, all of the wrappers from the food I ate absorbed the pressure I was putting on them and made whatever it is that sat on top of me seem heavier than usual.

I begin screaming for help, pounding on the crate loudly, and occasionally have another go on the lid. (RING, RING!) I was desperate enough to take my father's prized weapon out ofits case and attempted to cut open the crate, but I couldn't, especially with the amount of space I have. I was going to die in a messy crate. Might as well save the money for a casket. Then, I heard voices outside and thought I was saved. The voices sound like military men.

"Wow! This place is beautiful," someone said.

"Eh? Whatever," grunted another.

"The nature, the fresh air!" pauses to breathe in, "I wish we came here sooner."

"You pansy! Snap out of it! Remember our mission?"

"Yeah, yeah. Lead the hunters into the trap then ditch 'em on the spot." Damn it! I knew this mission was too good to be true! WHY I OUGHTA—

"Good! Now…. Would you look at that! I forgot they are doing that today."

"Wow! I never expected the communications link to look like that. Beautiful."

"Ugh! Easily amused."

"Do ya want yer ass kicked?"

The floor rumbled loudly.

"What the hell is that?" That didn't sound good.

"Oh damn, that's huge!"

"What the hell are you doing there? Haul ass!"

"Oh sh—"

"BRACE YOURSELVES!"

"TAKE COVER!"

I was engulfed by their conversation and forgot about my situation. All I remembered after that was a sound of a huge explosion, followed by terrifying screams, and, oddly, a blinding light.

I should've stayed. I miss everyone. But, what happened to everyone else who were on Ragol? There has to be more survivors out there somewhere. There just has to be!

Cool? Well, there might be more days like this and if anything becomes confusing, I'll make a day to clear things up. But, only if there were reviewers and stuff. Plus, college and work is taking a lot of my time and I almost never have a time to work on this. So, bear with me and sit tight. I'll get to it as soon as possible. Gyah... So, catch y'all later! See you on Day 7 if I'll ever get to it...