Chapter Four

Journey to the Tower

With all the blizzards they had had from the man's "practice," it was surprisingly calm on the long trudge up the mountain. The snow held up well underneath their heavy boots and slow plodding, but a few times too many Piers slipped and fell down half what they had hiked.

Jenna reached a point where she started to waste her energy melting the snow and creating an easier path. But she soon tired, and Piers ordered her to rest.

"You can't tire yourself out already, Jen. We're hardly halfway," he kept reminding her. Jenna only grunted in reply.

She kept telling herself to keep going; the sooner they reached that godforsaken place, the better. And the sooner that she figured out what was going on in that man's head, the sooner Vale would return to normal and she could live her life again.

But her determined attitude could stop her Psynergy from running out. She blasted a large ember at a particularly formidable block of snow, and collapsed. She rolled to a halt at Piers' feet.

He sighed and propped her up. "Jen, what did I tell you?" he asked, his patience almost wasted. She said nothing. "I told you to not waste your energy on snow, remember?" he reminded her. Still, no response. He gritted his teeth. She was difficult at times, but this was a new low.

He nearly began to yell and shout, but then he noticed something. Her chest faintly heaving up and down, and her mouth slightly open. Her body was relaxed and limp. She was asleep.

Piers smiled at his foolishness. He set her down and sat next to her. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and shivered. If she weren't in a dead sleep, her powers would come in handy right now.

Piers rested his head on hers, sighing. She was so sweet in her weakest state. The only time when she was quiet. And when she was in that state, it was hell for Piers.

He lived on her voice. It kept him going. In his darkest moments he would hear her voice and everything would make sense.

He loved her; he knew. He had come to terms with it. But she knew nothing other than friendly affection for him, and it hurt. But sooner or later and when the timing was right, he would tell her. But not now, when she was asleep.

So he waited. Like he did any other day of his life. He waited for her to come to her senses, both figuratively and literally.

Jenna woke with an ungraceful sound. Her head was on Piers' shoulder; for some unknown reason, she blushed and put her head upright.

"What happened?" she groaned, those classic words ringing through the chilly air. "You knocked yourself out," he replied, removing his arm from around her shoulders. And again, Jenna blushed.

Her eyes widened in shock and she shot up onto her feet. "What time is it? We need to move!" she cried, and Piers lay back onto the knoll of snow behind him.

"What's the rush?" he asked, pretending to be laid-back. In truth, he was panicking. What if Jenna began to realize his feelings…?

"We need to get this over with, Piers. The sooner the better," she said shortly. She got up and brushed snow off her backside. Piers shivered and pulled his coat tighter around him, and tightening his scarf as well. He got up and began to follow Jenna, more determined than ever to get up that mountain.

Alex watched in grim amusement as his beloved Jenna and her Piers climbed the mountain with sheer determination. On Jenna's part, anyway.

He was at the tower's peak, where he felt the most powerful. He could see for miles. The ocean, more mountains, deserts; nothing escaped his eyes.

So it was no surprise that he could see Vale as well. He enjoyed corrupting that little town; it gave him a sense of importance. He was the ones who controlled their lives, and made their decisions for them. He was the one who changed their seasons and their moods. In a sense, he was God to them.

Alex didn't want to leave the satisfactory sight of Jenna coming to him, but his legs screamed for a reprieve. So he went inside and sat on his bed, craning his neck to catch a glimpse of the red-headed girl and her blue-headed bodyguard.

This Piers was annoying. He was always at Jenna's side; there was hardly ever a moment alone between Alex and Jenna. Rather, the image of Alex and Jenna.

Alex could tell that Piers cared for Jenna, more than a mere best friend. He could tell that Piers was hiding his love, and he respected him for hiding it so well. And his admiration for Jenna went down a notch. Only a blind person couldn't see Piers affection.

He sighed. Everything wasn't where it was supposed to be. The pieces of the puzzle were mixed up. He shook his legs. The tingly feeling was taking it's toll and they began to ache as soon as he stood. But nothing, let alone dull pain, was going to keep him from gazing at his Jenna.

Jenna stopped in her power-hiking. She felt strange, as if someone was…watching her.

She turned. Piers was huffing and wheezing his way behind her. "You need some help?" she called down to him, grinning. He scowled up at her and shook his head.

She turned back forward. The top of the tower was in view now, and she could just barely see a speck of blue dodging in and out of sight. Just when she began to focus on it, the beginnings of a blizzard whipped up out of nowhere.

She scowled. Practice was in place.

"Piers! Hurry!" she yelled behind her, and started to jog through the snow. She heard a loud groan.

Piers wasn't having a good time hiking. He stopped and started using his Psynergy to move the snow out of the way and running up the path he made. But the doubled effect of him using his power and running was tiring him out, faster than ever. He stopped, bent over, and breathed the dangerously thin air.

Jenna paused and looked back. Piers was doubled over, and heaving in breaths. She began to worry. Maybe she shouldn't' have brought him with her. This was her quest, was it not?

She started down towards him. "Piers?" she asked, laying a hand gently on his back. He looked up, his amber eyes alighting at her touch.

"Go back," she said. Piers stopped panting and stared at her. "Go back? But I've come so far…" he said softly, trying to absorb her meaning. "Piers, I'll be okay by myself." She tried to reason with him, but he wasn't having it.

"No, Jenna. I've come all this way, and besides, I can't leave you alone!" he said sharply. Jenna sighed impatiently. "Piers, I'll be fine. You can go back," she tried again.

Piers grabbed her shoulders. "Jenna, I can't lose you. You're all I have!" he said, his face frightened. Jenna gulped. Did he really mean it?

He hugged her, breathing in her scent and whispering in her ear, "I can't," over and over again. She shushed him and smiled inwardly. He was so nice to be close to at times.

Alex gripped the stone balcony, his breathing forced and shallow. They were coming closer, and he knew it. He snarled at himself. What a fool he was, for actually thinking that he could hold them at bay.

He ripped off two blue-gray bricks in his frustration. Piers was becoming more and more of a problem. He would have to go. And soon.

But he couldn't risk harming Jenna. She was too precious, and he couldn't flirt with disaster by getting rid of Piers too quickly. He would have to turn Jenna against the pathetic, love-ridden boy.

Alex's anger ebbed away. He began to hatch a plan.

Well, that was a good chapter, if I do say so myself.

Am I making Alex a little too evil? I don't think he's that bad in the game, but he is pretty manipulative. Tell me if I'm wrong.

I never finished the second game. I'm still trying to kill Poseidon. The fish-man won't go away, and he always leaves me with Piers only. The one dude that doesn't have reviving abilities. Sheez.

I revised this chaper a little, but only spacing-wise. I added a few lines, too, so all you readers can actually tell which POV you're in. Heh. Sorry 'bout that.

-MidnightPhoenix320