'Hey guys GhostNobody here to say a big thank you for your continued love and support, I can warn you now that this chapter is going to be a bit of a mission to read, it's by far the longest one I've ever written and it took an age for me to get it to the point where I was happy with it, that point being about 3000 words worth of additional content and corrections I might add, so strap yourselves in guys, so with one last big thank you to you all for continuing to walk with me on this crazy adventure of ours this is GhostNobody saying a big thank you to you all and on with the show….'
Chapter 41: Eye of the Storm.
Jack stood by the large statue in the middle of the village as he watched his daughter being led by the hand by a young black girl towards a hut on the edge of the village, he had to laugh as he saw the innocent little white cat riding along in his daughter's dreadlocks like they were some sort of hammock.
He couldn't help but feel worried when she'd gone out into the village on her own, so he'd discreetly followed her to see what was going on, it wasn't that he doubted her ability to defend herself, hell she could probably out do just about anyone her in single combat thanks to her extensive training, but a father's instincts don't just switch off like that, but now he could see she was fine and apparently in good company he relaxed a little.
"She's very beautiful and it's obvious that you'd do anything to protect her" a very feminine voice said from behind Jack suddenly, he turned and to his surprise he found himself face to face with a rather beautiful Yaujta female, before he could say anything to voice his surprise at her presence she continued to speak, "You're a good father and a good man Jack, Tik eleth is a very lucky woman to have you at her side" the young woman said, Jack had noticed the grey smoke swirling around her which meant that she was a spirit, but she was unlike any spirit he had encountered before, there was an aura of power around her but at the same time a purity of sorts that seemed to radiate from her, she turned and looked up at the massive statue and that when it clicked in Jack's head, the woman and the statue looked identical, the young woman before him was Paya the goddess of the hunt.
As the realization registered on his face and his mouth dropped open Paya moved from the statue to his side, the smile never left her face, "I see that you've figured out who I am you always were a perceptive one" she said smiling,
"Well I can't say that I'm not surprised but I guess I shouldn't be with what I've learned since becoming a Dream Warrior, but I can't help but wonder why a Yaujta Goddess would want to visit me" Jack said, this simply caused Paya to smile even broader,
"Simple because of how important you are to me" she said, Jack frowned slightly,
"Important how?" he asked curiously, Paya smiled but seemed to ignore the question, instead she walked back over to the statue and ran her hand over it,
"Ahh I remember the days that this planet used to hold such glorious and pure hunts, a place for young warriors to test themselves against the most powerful beasts in the universe, but back then they respected the balance, they respected the harmony of life, but then the bad bloods came and the wars began, so much death and so much hate, it changed the Yaujta in a way that now needs to be undone before it's too late" Paya said, then she turned to face Jack and to her surprise found him directly at her side, before she could speak Jack raised a hand and placed it to the side of her face,
"I don't do cryptic and I don't like riddles, if you're here that means you have a purpose for me and I don't like being a puppet on a string especially when my family is at risk, so let's see if this works on you" he said and before Paya could say a word she saw his eyes change to bright white and his veins began to glow with pure white light, she grinned darkly,
"You're a bold one aren't you?" she said as she felt the human Dream Warrior trying to penetrate her mind, he returned her grin,
"Have you met my wife?" he said, this made her laugh, it was a high pitched noise like music,
"Very well Jack the Bold, let's see if you can handle the mind of a Goddess, it'll serve my purpose anyhow" she said and with that she allowed his mind in and their consciousness's joined as one.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
The inside of the hut was gloomy except for a few burning candles over in the far corner, it was pretty sparkly decorated with a few furs from some of the animals here thrown around as rugs and bedding, it actually looked like a cozy little home to Sela's eyes as she looked around herself, then she noticed the two beds over by the far wall, one was occupied right now and her eyes locked onto the shape of Robert laid on his bed with his head propped up with some sort of fur pillows and some sort of large vellum pad in front of him.
Sela noticed that he seemed to have some sort of sharpened sticks and rocks around him and a small knife that she guessed that he used for sharpening them next to him, at first she thought maybe he was writing some sort of diary like her Matriarch had done when she lived here, that was until she noticed the vellum pieces stuck up around the walls of the hut, in the gloom they had been hard to spot at first but as her eyes adjusted she could see them more clearly now, they were sketches and drawings done in charcoal and graphite and they were exquisite.
Sela's eyes locked onto one near to her and it appeared to be a young ooman woman with long wavy hair and kind happy eyes, she was smiling and Sela couldn't help but wonder if this was Roberts mother, "Why do you always have to have it so dark in here Robert? It makes it hard to see anything!" Amy said in an exasperated tone and she stumbled across the room towards the window, Sela heard him sigh heavily,
"If I've told you once I've told you a million times, it helps me to focus and it helps me with the shading" he said in a deeper voice than Sela had expected, in fact she realized that this was the first time she'd ever heard him speak, Amy pushed the window open with a loud creak and light flooded the room, instantly Robert shielded his eyes from the brightness, "Ahhh Amy what the hell!" he said sitting bolt upright on his bed to look at the little girl, but instead his eyes were drawn to something else entirely, Sela eleth.
Amy noticed Robert staring at Sela and he was Boo seemed to choose that moment to abandon his living hammock and wrestled his way up her dreadlocks and onto her shoulder as she stood there nervously wringing her hands together, she also noticed a range of emotions passing over Roberts face, everything from confusion at finding the alien girl here in his room, to anger at seeing her, then amusement at seeing her little white cat trying his best to climb up Sela's dreadlocks and onto her shoulder without falling off, then back to anger.
"What's she doing here!?" Robert asked the anger in his voice obvious, this felt like a punch to Sela's heart, it was obvious that the merest sight of her filled him with anger, but she took a deep breath as she remembered what her Matriarch had once said to her, that people would be both shocked and mistrustful of them because of what they were, but for her to rise above it and to prove her worth and show them how wrong they were, so instead of running away to die in a hole like every fiber of her being wanted her to do she stood her ground,
"I brought her here because she's my friend" Amy said with an angry edge in her voice, in fact it was enough to tear Robert's eyes from Sela and move them onto the young girl,
"Friend? How can you be friends with that thing!?" Robert asked angrily, this one got Sela's blood boiling, but before she could spit a reply Amy got there first,
"She is not a thing she is a person like you or me Robert!" Amy roared in a voice that stunned everyone present including the little white cat currently on Sela's shoulder who was now regarding his owner with an opened mouth expression.
The sheer force of the little girl's anger seemed to shock guilt out of Robert, "Amy….." he began before being cut off by the feisty young girl,
"No! you don't get to speak to me until you apologize to Sela eleth, she came here because I asked her to, so she could show you that her kind are not all bad" Amy said, this seemed to flick Robert's switch back from guilt to anger again,
"How can you say that Amy!? You know what their kind did! To me, to you, to my parents….." he said before his voice trailed off into a very dark place that pulled Sela's heart stings like a harp, she instantly wanted to run over and throw her arms around the young teen and to tell him it was all going to be all ok, but she knew when to not get involved and she could see that this was one of those time and besides she didn't think that particular course of action would get a positive reaction here, but then the young girl pulled out what could only be described as a miracle out of the prodigal head of hers.
"I know what they did Robert just as well as you, they killed my friends too remember? But that wasn't Sela eleth that did that was it?" Amy said, Robert remained silent but his look was curious, "My mom told me a long time ago that white people like you used to use black people like me as slaves, they used to force us to work for them and to rape and kill us just because they could, but then things changed and got better and now white people are friends, allies and equals, I mean look at us Robert, you're my best friend and you look after me and take care of me and your white and I'm black" she said, Robert looked stunned at this little pearl of wisdom but then his mind seemed determined to fight against it,
"That's different!" he exclaimed,
"How?" Amy asked folding her arms across her little chest,
"We're both human!" Robert said,
"So? What does that have to do with anything? Not so long ago white people didn't think that Black people were human" Amy said angrily, Robert didn't say anything he simply looked stunned, but Amy wasn't done yet, "Just because she's different from us doesn't mean that she doesn't have feelings Robert and that doesn't give you the right to stamp all over them and hurt her, oh and for your information she's half human too" Amy said with a dark smile which told Sela she'd pulled her trump card, Robert's face showed a look of complete shock and amazement as it flicked between both Sela and Amy rapidly, but before he was able to gather his thoughts Amy pushed her advantage, "Yeah you remember that powerful looking dude in the white armor?" she asked, he nodded silently with wide shocked looking eyes, "Yeah that was her daddy" Amy said, Robert turned his gaze to Sela and she could see the unspoken question in them asking her if it was true,
"Yeah it's true, that's my father" she said in a quiet voice, he opened his mouth to speak but Amy got there first again,
"So you see Robert she's not that different from us and even if she was what difference does that make? Sela eleth is a strong, kind and gentle person, she even saved Boo when he ran off again and brought him back to me, look he loves her to bits and he's a better judge of character than any of us" she said pointing at the little white cat riding on Sela's shoulder who decided that it was the perfect time to nuzzle the side of Sela's mandibles which caused her out of reflex to scratch him behind the ears and causing him to purr loudly, Robert watched this and the look in his eyes made Sela think that his young friend's words and the actions of this little white cat this had just destroyed his version of reality rather completely, "So you say sorry to her and we can all be friends, otherwise I'm not going to talk to you again and I might just go and live with her because I don't want to be friends with someone who would be so hurtful to someone who hasn't done anything wrong, just because of what they look like" Amy said in a voice that made her sound so much older than her years, but Sela could see that last little shot had really hit home, Roberts eyes now showed a pain like no other hidden there, it was obvious that he needed Amy like she needed him, then he turned and looked directly at Sela eleth, she could see the pain in his eyes but there was something else there too,
"I'm sorry for what I said Sela eleth, you aren't a thing and I had no right to say that to you and I'm sorry for it" he said with what sounded like a bucket load of pain in his voice, Sela eleth's anger faded away in an instant,
"It's ok, I know that the Yaujta have caused you a lot of pain and for that I'm sorry, but you have to understand that those that did those terrible things to you and your family do not represent the Yaujta as a whole, they're criminal scum who don't care what pain they inflict as long as they get their sick thrills" Sela said, Robert looked at her curiously,
"It might shock you to learn that I was brought here to be hunted to, I was torn from my family home and dumped here so that I could be hunted and killed just so that their clan leader could hurt my parents" Sela said in a sad sounding voice as she thought about how that sort of pain would have felt, it occurred to her that the small glimpse she just got from that wasn't even close to the pain that was Robert's reality, he looked both shocked and surprised at this,
"Wait so they hunt and kill their own kind!?" he exclaimed, Sela nodded,
"Yeah, my Matriarch was torn from her family and dumped here to be hunted, but she fought them off on her own for a number of years till she met my father when they did the same to him and together they were able to escape" Sela explained, Robert looked curious,
"Matriarch?" he asked, Sela eleth smiled at him not understanding the term,
"It's a respectful term for my mother" she said, he looked rather thoughtful for a moment,
"So your mother was stuck on her own on this planet for years?" he asked, she nodded, "I can't even imagine what that must have been like, I'd have lost my mind long ago if it wasn't for Amy and Boo and everyone here" Robert said thoughtfully,
"Though she'd never admit it I really think my Matriarch was far from losing hers if you listen closely to the way she tells the story and she's a strong proud Yaujta huntress" Sela said,
"I can imagine, I was terrified when they turned me loose on this place after they killed my family, I don't know why they spared me but sometimes I wish they hadn't" Robert said in a pain filled voice that made Sela want to rush over and hug him, but she figured a reaction like that might scare him even more, he really wasn't used to being this near to a Yaujta, so getting a hug from one might break his mind.
A sudden boldness came over Sela eleth and she decided to act on it, she walked over to the foot of Robert's bed and stood looking down at him, as he looked up at the young proud half Yaujta huntress she could see the mixture of fear and curiosity in his eyes, "May I sit?" she asked pointing at the end of his bed, he looked at where her hand indicating and took a deep breath, but then he nodded and she smiled at him and sat down on the end of his bed facing him as he drew up his legs out of the way, as she sat down Boo the cat jumped down from her shoulder and jumped straight onto Robert throwing himself into the young teen's arms knocking the pad out of the way as he did, "Hey you silly cat!" Robert said to the little purring white cat as he rubbed him behind his ears, Sela leaned down and picked up the pad to return it to Robert but as she did she noticed what he'd been drawing on it, it was a picture of Amy and Boo playing by the statue in the center of the village, "Hey this is really good you are a fantastic artist" Sela said as she began to flick through the pad, Robert looked really bashful at her praise,
"I like to capture my memories as I see them in my head, that way if they got me then there'd be at least a little part of me left in this world unlike my family" he said in a sad voice, Sela looked up at him,
"There is a little part of them left too you know" she said, he looked at her curiously,
"You" she said, a smile broke slowly across his face as if the thought had never occurred to him, "And while you still live they'll never be forgotten and they can live on in you" Sela said, Robert now full on smiled,
"Thank you Sela" he said as tears started to flow down his cheeks, then a sudden thought struck her and she nearly slapped herself for not realizing it before, in a burst of activity she jumped to her feet and without realizing her actions reached down and grabbed Roberts hand, his eyes widened in fear as his instincts kicked in, but rather than harm him she pulled him off the bed and to his feet but she kept hold of one of his hands which made him look at her wild eyed, "Come with me, there's someone you need to meet, I think he'll be able to help" she said,
"What why?" Robert asked without realizing that he and Sela were still holding hands as she led him abruptly across the hut past a rather confused but happy looking Amy,
"Please just trust me" Sela said smiling at him, the confused teen looked at the powerful looking young Yaujta huntress that was leading him by the hand across the room, it suddenly struck him that he was holding hands with a girl, even if that girl was an alien, suddenly the warmth and softness of her skin entered his mind and a massive blush crossed his face, as his face was turning bright red he got eye to eye with Amy who smiled broadly at him and winked, what the hell was this feeling and how the hell was this happening?
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Jack's mind felt like it was going to break apart and shatter like a glass hitting concrete at high speed, it was taking all of his strength to hold himself together, but then he broke through and he saw it, the universe in its entirety.
He was floating in blackness but he was surrounded by light, stars and planets, galaxies and solar systems all around him and he could feel the life pulsing from every direction all around him, it was like the warm glow of a sunrise on his skin after a cold night, but more than that he could feel the minds and hearts of uncountable living beings of races he didn't even know the names of from every direction passing through him like a highway, "It's really something isn't it?" a voice from behind him said, he turned slowly and saw Paya floating there with him,
"It's incredible" he said, she smiled broadly,
"I was going to ask you if you liked what you saw but Goddess or not I think your wife would probably hunt me down if I did" she said causing Jack to burst out laughing,
"You know her well then" he said smiling,
"Would you like to see her?" Paya asked, Jack raised an eyebrow,
"What really?" he asked, she smiled again,
"You're in the mind of a goddess Jack a feat that no other mortal has ever accomplished I might add so color me impressed here and yes really, just reach out with your feelings for her" she replied, Jack thought about this for a second and instantly his head was filled with images of the woman he loved, there was a sudden rush of color as the universe around them seemed to move and respond to the request, the whole thing turned to a rush of color and he found himself standing in a massive arena, to his right was the woman he loved looking every bit the radiant proud Yaujta huntress that he adored, but suddenly he sensed her feelings and he felt a mixture of rage, fear and pride all rolled together, that's when he noticed both Shena Black Crest and a male Yaujta stood with her along to his utter surprise three Xenomorph queens, they all appeared to be watching something in the arena so he turned to look as well and that's when he saw his son Ryan stood there tall and proud holding two swords while a large Yaujta male circled him, suddenly he became aware of Paya stood directly next to him and she placed a hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry Jack that boy of yours is as strong as they come and he'd already started something here, something that needed to happen in order to save both her species and yours" she said pointing at Tik and then at him,
"What do you mean?" he asked,
"Reach out and touch the feelings of the crowd with your mind, see them and feel them" she said, Jack looked confused at this but he did as she asked, a massive surge of emotions suddenly entered his head, it took him quite a bit of effort to focus them and apply them to an individual, the majority of the crowd seemed to be in total support of his son and what he stood for, he could feel the conflicted emotions of various individuals around the arena as they battled with themselves over what they were feeling, quite a few of the females in the crowd were feeling feelings of attraction towards his son and jealously towards Shena Black Crest, but at least half were considering their own beliefs very carefully, they were stuck in emotional battles in their own heads, all their lives they'd been told that humans were a weak prey species and were good for nothing but hunting, but here stood a male born of a human male and a Yaujta female who embodied the core values of Yaujta society as well as throwing in human values into the mix, never in a million years would have they considered that a union between their species could produce an offspring that was not only so strong but was so radiant, quite a few of the crowd were considering going hunting for a human mate of their own.
Jack turned to Paya with a raised eyebrow, "It looks like Ryan has started some sort of Yaujta love revolution" he said, she grinned broadly and gave a musical laugh,
"Exactly" she said, Jack tilted his head curiously,
"You see there are events at work in the universe that have been set in motion to unravel the very mortal world as we know it, two species will have the strength to stand up and face it together and this evil knows this, so it has targeted both species and has instilled strong feelings of xenophobia and mistrust in both, this all to prevent an alliance and more importantly interbreeding between the two because it will be the hybrids like your son that will be on the front lines, shining beacons of how two proud and strong species are not only strong alone but so much stronger when their together" she said, Jack considered this very slowly and a realization hit him suddenly,
"So my being a Dream Warrior and meeting Tik on that planet was no accident was it?" he asked, Paya smiled sweetly,
"Nope, I have searched for one of your kind so very long Jack, a perfect human Dream Warrior with an open mind who would see the beauty of the Yaujta and I found you, so I made sure that you were one of the ones that the bad bloods took to that planet where you met your beloved Tik" she said, Jack laughed softly,
"So I guess I should thank you for bringing me together with the other half of my heart" he said which caused Paya's smile to broaden,
"You're are most welcome Jack and really it should be me thanking you, you and Tik are going to be directly responsible for saving the universe" she said, this caused Jack to laugh out loud again,
"Sounds like a hell of a day doesn't it? Got up this morning, went out to the shop, got lost and met a pretty alien girl had a couple of kids, then ended up saving the universe" Jack said causing Paya to laugh,
"Well it's true, you and Tik's love for one another was the catalyst that set all of this in motion, so you could very well say that love saved the universe now couldn't you?" she said with a sly smile, then she turned to Jack to face her, "Well now we have to go back as I feel that your daughter needs your help with her own love issues, but before we go I have two gifts for you" Paya said, Jack raised an eye brow,
"Love issues?" he asked, Paya winked at him,
"You'll see" she said, then she reached forwards and placed her hand on his chest directly over his heart,
"Jack Mason I bestow upon you the gift of a Yaujta life span, may it serve you well and now for the biggest gift, I awaken you, go forth Dream Warrior" Paya said and with that Jack felt power rushing through him like he'd never imagined, his entire being filled with a bright light and he felt his mind explode.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
As Sela eleth dragged Robert from the hut and across the village towards the hut where her and her father had been set up she noticed something strange, over by the big Paya statue in the middle of the village she saw a bright light, both Robert and Amy who was following along with Boo all turned to look as well, just in time to see her father floating in the air glowing.
"Hey Sela isn't that your daddy?" Amy said pointing, at that moment he stopped glowing and dropped back to his feet, forgetting that she was still holding his hand Sela nearly pulled Robert off his feet as she charged towards her father at full tilt, it was all he could do to keep up with the young huntress, but as they ran something strange happened, he happened to look at the side of Sela's face just as one of the god rays of light hit the other side of her head, it framed her in an aura of golden light that seemed to make her skin radiant, the brown and green swirls across her body seemed to light up of their own accord it also seemed to make her piercing blue eyes seem to glow, he watched as her massive dreadlocks swung and bounced around her head and back as they ran and he felt his mouth fall open as he truly saw her for the for the first time, she was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen.
The trio stopped right in front of Sela's father Jack and he turned to look at them, the first thing Sela noticed was that his eyes were different, they weren't only blue anymore, they were blue with specks of bright gold flecked throughout, the next thing she noticed were the two ice white lightning bolt shaped streaks in his hair, "Father what happened!?" Sela exclaimed as she instantly reached up and inspected his changed hair with her free hand,
"You ever wonder what it'd be like to meet god?" he replied, she looked at him curiously, "Yeah well I can cross that one off the list, I just met Paya" he said, his daughter's mandibles dropped open in shock,
"You met the goddess of the hunt!?" she exclaimed in a shocked confused voice, he nodded,
"Yeah nice lady actually" he said smiling,
"Nice lady! You meet a goddess and all you can say is nice lady?" Sela exclaimed with wide eye, at that moment Jack noticed that she had others with her and he also noticed that she seemed to be holding hands with a teenage boy who was looking at him with a look of total amazement painted on his face, Jack's eyes flicked between them both and then a large grin spread across his face,
"So that's what Paya was talking about" he said softly, Sela was confused what he was looking at for a second till she realized that she was still holding Robert's hand tightly, but just before she released it she also noticed how tightly he was holding onto hers, as she did rather begrudgingly release it a blush spread across her face right down to the tips of her mandibles, a blush that Jack noticed the boy was sharing and he couldn't help laughing at this till his daughter shot him a death glare,
"So what did Paya say?" Sela asked quickly moving away from what her father seemed to have noticed, he always had been rather observant and she knew he could read her like a book even without the Dream Warrior abilities, it was rather infuriating sometimes.
Jack turned and looked into his daughter's rather embarrassed eyes, "It seems we have rather a bigger part to play here than we originally intended, there's something happening in the universe and it seems that only the Yaujta and human race can stop it and it's up to us to get them together to fight it" he said, Sela eleth cocked her head curiously and he detected both curiosity and worry in her eyes,
"What sort of thing?" she asked, Jack shrugged,
"She wasn't that forth coming, but what she did say is that only by bringing the Yaujta and human races together as one is the only way to stop it, I also saw Ryan and your mother" he said, that instantly snapped Sela's head up,
"What!? You saw them? How are they? Are they ok?" she asked in rapid succession,
"Far better than I could have ever imagined actually, according to Paya Ryan is starting some sort of love revolution aboard your mother's clan ship, apparently by showing them his strength in combat he has changed rather a lot of minds as to the value and strength of humans as a race, apparently rather a few of your mother's old clan are giving serious consideration to walking your mother's path and taking a human for a mate after what he's done there, but not only that he somehow managed to form some sort of alliance with the kiande amedha" Jack said, Sela felt a relief wash over her at the news that her beloved twin was ok but that last part really shocked her,
"Friends with the kiande amedha!?" she asked in a shocked voice, her father nodded,
"Yeah I know caught me off guard too, I saw your mother, Shena Black Crest and some guy I didn't recognize at the edge of some sort of arena and they were stood side by side with three queens" Jack said the surprise evident in his own voice as he gave voice to what he'd seen.
The entire time this little exchange had been going on both Robert and Amy had been standing as silent as door mice listening to all this, but both of them were rather confused by what they were hearing, it didn't make any sense to either of them, suddenly Jack focused on them and he smiled, "I see you found who our little friend belonged to" he said indicating Boo who had climbed up on Amy's shoulder and looked like he was sizing up jumping onto Sela's back, he walked over to Amy and gently stroked the happy little cat who responded with a happy purr,
"Yeah" Sela said lost in thought at what her father had just told her about what was happening with her brother, suddenly Robert decided to speak up,
"Ummm sir?" he said in a quiet almost shy voice trying to attract Jack's attention, he turned to look at the young teen who seemed to shrink a little under his gaze although he tried his best to look friendly, he guessed he could look kinda intimidating under all this armor and weaponry, "I was wondering how did you see them exactly and what was that with all the glowing when we first arrived?" he asked, Jack smiled at him warmly,
"Yeah I guess all this could be confusing to you guys" he said still smiling, this seemed to embolden the young teen a little, he returned Jack's smile,
"Yeah somewhat" he said,
"I'm what the Yaujta call a Dream Warrior" Jack said,
"A Dream Warrior? What's that?" Robert asked,
"It's kinda hard to explain but in a nut shell I have certain special abilities that give me quite an edge in a fight while at the same time I can see the unseen, things like spirits and the darkest secrets that people don't want others to know" Jack replied, these words seemed to snap Sela eleth out of her trance and she quickly walked up to her father's side,
"Spirits?" Robert said sounding even more confused,
"Yeah of the dead" Jack replied,
"It's said that Dream Warriors have a foot in between worlds, half in the living half in the spirit" Sela said, Robert's expression grew even more confused at this but also rather worried, Sela turned to her father,
"Can I ask a favor father?" she asked,
"Of course you can sweetheart" he said looking at her,
"This is Robert, his parents were brutally taken from him by the bad blood pauks in a supreme act of unforgivable cowardice" she said, Jack's gaze flicked from his beloved daughter to the young teenage boy whose expression had darkened at the mere mention of the bad bloods and what they were responsible for, Jack could see the pain and hate etched deep in his soul, it washed off him in waves, he got the feeling he knew what his daughter was about to ask of him, "I want you to help him, please father let him see them again and to be able to say his goodbyes properly" Sela said, Robert snapped out of his dark expression and looked up in utter amazement at both of them,
"Are you serious!?" he exclaimed in utter shock, Sela nodded, she walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder and she instantly felt him shaking in a mixture of fear and nervousness,
"My father can help you to say the goodbye that you should have gotten to say, don't be afraid Robert, be strong show them that you live on and honor their sacrifice and that you will avenge them" Sela said, he looked up in to the half Yaujta girl's face and found himself instantly caught up in her bright blue eyes, they were filled with such kindness and gentleness, she seemed to radiate such a mixture of things to him, strength, compassion and kindness to name but a few, but the strongest of all of them that came stampeding out of a dark corner of his mind like an untamed powerful wild horse, was beauty.
Robert took a deep breath and steeled himself, "Ok" he said with his voice still shaking a bit, Sela smiled at the beautiful young male and squeezed his shoulder gently, then they both turned to face her father who was smiling at them both, he walked slowly up to the young teen and looked him right in the eye, the young teen's breath caught in his throat as he saw the immense strength and power in the eyes of Sela's father, it seemed to glow like lightning in his soul,
"I know such a despicable act can leave its mark, it leaves a scar that never seems to leave us, a hole in your heart that never seems to be filled" Jack said softly, the teen's breath caught again, Jack had just perfectly described how he had felt all this time, "But in the face of such darkness we can also grow strength, the strength to go on no matter the odds against us, the strength to carry on no matter what we suffer, you see Robert those we love never really leave us, they're always with us, right here" Jack said tapping the young teen right on the heart, the young teen looked down at Jack's hand and then up into his face, but he wasn't looking back at him, but at something to either side of him, "They're here, would you like to see them Robert?" Jack asked looking back to the teen's eyes, Robert's eyes widened and he nodded, his heart was hammering in his chest like a jack hammer, "Alright, this is going to feel quite strange at first alright?" Jack said, the teen nodded and then he felt Jack place a hand to the side on the side of his head, then in a flash his vision flickered and suddenly Jack was surrounded by a billowing pure white fire, he turned his gaze to his left and he saw that Sela eleth was surrounded by the same billowing white fire and he felt his heart skip a whole series of beats rather than just the one, she looked like a goddess, proud and beautiful surrounded by this purity given form, she was the most incredible thing he had ever seen, he couldn't believe that these feelings had been hidden somewhere in his heart, only two hours ago he'd have happily killed her for just being one of the same race as the bastards that had done these evil things to everyone here, he'd hated her so much that he couldn't even bear to look at her, but now he couldn't imagine ever wanting to harm a hair on her head, then an image of running his hand over her hair and her head, feeling her soft hair and the texture of her skin while she leaned against his chest swam into his mind and filled him with a warmth, suddenly a voice in his head spoke, "Just a heads up when I'm connected to a person like this I can hear all their thoughts and their feelings" it said in a Jack's voice, the young teen's eyes widened in shock and fear as he looked into the eyes of her father, he'd just heard what he'd been thinking about his daughter but he didn't look angry at all, he was smiling rather broadly, "Don't worry I won't tell her, I'll leave you to do that" Jack's voice said in his head as the Dream Warrior winked at him and Robert couldn't help but smile, "But first I think there's some people here who want to say hello" Jack said and with that he turned the young teen around, there standing behind him surrounded by grey smoke was his parents.
Robert's heart felt like it had just exploded and he rushed forwards out of Jack's grip, but much to the Dream Warrior's surprise the connection didn't sever, in fact it was replaced by a purple beam of light that linked the two of them, "Mom! Dad!" the young teen yelled as he threw himself into his mother's waiting arms, all of them had tears streaming down their faces, Jack glanced curiously at the purple light, then he decided to try something and he focused it onto both Sela eleth and Amy and more beams shot out of him and connected them into the link, suddenly they both blinked in surprise at suddenly being able to see what was happening as well, Sela eleth looked at her father in confusion,
"I guess Paya gave me an upgrade" he said to her telepathically, then he noticed that even Boo seemed to be joined to the link as he noticed he was feeling the little cat's emotions as he watched the scene unfold, to Jack's utter amazement the little cat was feeling quite a rainbow of emotions here, he was happy that his friend was able to see the ones that he loved, but he was also sad that they were dead, he was also hungry.
Sela eleth watched as Robert embraced both of his lost parents, it always amazed her that when spirits were revealed by a Dream Warrior were as real as living people, she could see the dents in Roberts clothes where they were touching him proving their existence, she could feel the tears also rolling down her cheeks as she felt his emotions flowing through the link her father had set up between them all, she glanced at Amy who was also crying at seeing this, but she could also feel the weight that was lifted from Robert's heart at seeing them again and finding out that they were now in a place with no pain and no worries, they were currently telling him how proud they were of him for stepping up and looking after Amy when she had no-one to help her, she glanced at now from Amy to her father and she swore she saw tears in his eyes but when he noticed her looking at him he did his best to shield them from her, but she could feel his emotions through the link to and she felt the happiness he felt as well as the sadness that someone so young should have to go through this, she walked over to his side and he looked at her with a smile, without saying a word she just put her arms around him and drew herself against his broad chest and held on tight.
Jack held the link together for thirty minutes to allow Robert and his parents to say all they needed to say, when they were finished Robert's mother approached him and Sela, she was a tall elegant looking woman with flame read hair and green eyes, she smiled at Jack broadly, "Thank you Dream Warrior for allowing me to speak to my son again, you have given me a gift worth more than my life" she said, Jack smiled back,
"You're very welcome" he said smiling, then she turned to Sela eleth and her smile grew even wider,
"I see what's in your heart young one and I beg you, please look after my son, he needs someone as strong as you to protect him" she said, Sela felt herself flush bright crimson but she nodded, then she glanced at Robert and she saw him looking right at her with exactly the same blush on his face, at that moment she felt a flash of his thoughts transfer through the link and she instantly knew that he'd gotten hers as well, both of them thought the same word at exactly the same time while looking at each other, 'Beautiful'
With a final good bye Jack severed the link and only the living were left standing here, Sela eleth and Robert were both staring at each other in an embarrassed silence, Jack walked over and placed a hand on Amy's shoulder, she looked up at him, "Let's take a walk Amy, I think these two need a little time to talk" he said quietly, she nodded and as the two of them turned Boo jumped on to Jack's cloak and clambered up on to his shoulder, he almost blended in perfectly with Jack's armor, but as the two of them turned they both noticed they seemed to have acquired quite a crowd, apparently some of the villagers had noticed what was going on with Robert and had come to watch, word had spread quickly of the man able to contact the dead, straight away a young woman came straight up to Jack and held out a small wallet sized picture of a young man, "Please sir, will you let me see my husband again?" she asked, instantly the whole crowd of them surged forwards towards Jack, some holding photos others just shouting out names, he looked down at Amy,
"I get the feeling I'm gonna be quite busy here" he said smiling at her, then she smiled up at him,
"So many to help so little time" she replied causing Jack to laugh out loud, "Why not just use that purple light again?" she asked, he looked at her curiously then back at the crowd, he wondered if it was even possible for him to join this many people together at once, but it certainly would be faster,
"You're a genius kiddo" he said with a grin, then he turned and focused on the crowd, as he did he felt a massive surge of energy within him and it lifted him off the ground taking him and his little shoulder mounted companion high above the surprised crowd, bolts of purple light shot from him and struck various members of the crowd before chaining from them to others, in mere seconds the whole crowd were joined as one, it was like a massive hive mind of thoughts and feelings and ideas all circling together in a massive whirlwind of emotion, it was taking all of Jack's strength and focus to maintain it but it was stable, closing his eyes he focused his mind and put out a huge call to the spirit realm, then as he opened his eyes grey swirls of smoke started to appear at the edges of the crowd and they snaked between people before forming up in front of the people they were aiming for, he heard various shouts of joy and surprise for all over as they were reunited with their lost loved ones, the sheer volume of joy and happiness that surged through Jack from the crowd nearly overwhelmed him, it was like nothing he could have imagined, as he floated high above the crowd he watched as brother was reunited with sister, mother with child, husband with wife, the dead mingled with the living and the joy flowed like water or more accurately like tears.
Robert and Sela eleth stared at each other for what felt like an eternity both totally oblivious to the min miracle that Jack was performing behind them both, they were so totally focused on each other that it was like the rest of the world was phased out, but before either of them could speak Robert's fear took control of him again and he turned and ran, this reaction surprised Sela eleth and for a second she didn't react but she watched him go, then a small tug at her arm brought her to her senses, she looked down and saw Amy looking up at her, "Well are going to go after him or just let him run away?" she asked, her words snapped Sela eleth back into the moment and she nodded and turned before setting off after Robert at full tilt.
Robert slammed the hut door so hard it shook the whole place, his emotions were swirling around in his head like a whirlpool, he was so confused, on one hand he couldn't help hating the Yaujta for what they'd done to his parents and to all the others here, but he also knew that all Yaujta were not responsible for what a small group of criminals had done, then he was happy because he'd finally got to say a proper goodbye to them thanks to Jack and those amazing Dream Warrior abilities of his, then there was how fast these feelings for Sela eleth had sprung up out of the depth of his heart and this was the most confusing thing for him, he didn't understand how he could be attracted to one of the very race that killed his parents and how had these feelings appeared so quickly? Then there was the fact he'd gotten a glimpse into her heart and found out that she shared his feelings and felt the same about him and it scared him like nothing ever had, he didn't know what it meant or what it would lead to if he gave into them, but he couldn't help but feel like he should be fighting against them and that they were somehow wrong and that he should be hating himself for feeling this way.
Also swirling around in his mind was the biggest question of what would he do now? After all this was over and if he survived it what would he do? If he was able to return to Earth how would he explain his parent's disappearances? It wasn't like the authorities would believe that he was taken to an alien planet and brutally murdered, they'd lock him up in a place for the criminally insane in the belief that he murdered them and disposed of the bodies, then what would happen to Amy and Boo? All of these questions and so many more were rampaging through his head threatening to tear his mind apart, when he'd released the tight grip he'd been holding over his emotions when Jack had shown him his parents it had opened the Pandora's box that he'd been barely able to keep shut and now his mind was raging with all these fears and paranoias.
Suddenly the hut door opened with a massive bang and there stood Sela eleth, with the light behind her outlining her beautiful frame she looked like a powerful and beautiful Amazon warrior, she was looking right at him with concern plastered all over her face and in her eyes, oh those striking and beautiful eyes of hers, how he wished he could just drown in those beautiful pools of electric blue, "Robert?" she asked with obvious concern etched into her voice taking a step towards him, he shied backwards a step away from her, his heart was pounding as he began to look for a way out, he couldn't let her corner him, surely these feelings couldn't be real, they must be a lie, no one would ever feel like that about him least of all a powerful alien warrior princess like her, what in the name of hell would she ever see in him? It must be his mind trying to play a trick on him again, trying to make him make a monumental fool out of himself again like the last time he'd asked a girl out in the deluded belief that she'd actually liked him, people at his high school still sniggered and laughed at him for that one and that was two years ago.
Sela eleth took another step towards him and again he shied back another step, one more and he was stood with his back to the wall, "What's wrong Robert?" she asked as she noticed the panic on his face and in his eyes, he said nothing he just shook his head and then she saw tears staring to fall down his face, was it her that he was scared of? Had she done something wrong? But then she knew what she had to do, his Matriarch had put her faith in her to protect him and now with all these feelings coursing through her she decided to was time to be bold and take a chance, so instead of taking another step forwards she dashed forwards and seized hold of him.
Robert nearly went full on panic but Sela eleth's strength held him pinned to the wall with her body, but she didn't harm him she merely held him in her strong arms, he looked up at her and he against found himself looking into those beautiful eyes of hers and then he felt something against his chest and it took him a second to realize it was her heart beat, it was beating so fast it felt like a Jack hammer in her chest and that's when he realized that she was just as nervous and scared as he was, it was at that moment that he broke, he couldn't hold it anymore and the tears burst out of him and he threw his arms around Sela's body and clung to her, her skin was wonderfully soft and warm and his hands found the gaps in her armor and gripped onto the strong muscles of her back, Sela eleth watched this beautiful and sensitive male break down in her arms and she pulled him tightly against her, she could feel the pain flowing out of him like a river after the dam burst, every injustice he'd suffered, every pain he'd endured and every confusion he'd muddled through all at once, she felt so sorry for him, no one this young should have to endure things like this, but endure them he had and while some would look at his as weak Sela could see something totally different, she saw a beautiful and sensitive human being that had managed to endure despite the odds and the challenges thrown at him, he'd taken everything they'd thrown at him and then some and was still standing, now he needed a shoulder to let that pain and fear loose so that it sisn't destroy him and she was only too happy to be the one that allowed him to break his mask.
They stood like that for at least ten minutes till he was all out of tears, then he looked up into her eyes again and in a shaking voice he said words that nearly made her heart explode, "I know this is sudden and I know I probably shouldn't and I have no idea why or how it happened at all let alone this quickly, I was always told that it was slow process but you were like a lightning bolt to my heart, I don't know if what I felt when I was connected with you and your father was real or an illusion but I love you Sela eleth, you're the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in my life" he said in a shaking voice as if he was expecting her to flip out and strike him, but now it was her turn to surprise him, she brought her hand up and he flinched as if she was about to stoke him across the face, but instead she placed her hand to the side of his cheek and gently wiped away the remaining tears, he leaned his face against her hand loving the feeling of her soft warm touch against his face,
"I feel exactly the same about you Robert, when I saw you for the first time I couldn't believe that a creature so beautiful could exist, you made my mandibles drop open in shock at how striking you are, what you felt when you were with me and my father was real, you saw into my heart and I'll admit that it scared and embarrassed me, but I'm not ashamed of the way I feel about you, it's a mystery to me too, I never imagined love could strike this quickly or fiercely but it has and I swear this to you now, if you have me I'll stay by your side and you'll never have to be afraid again, I will be your shield and your sword, I will protect you to my dying breath" she said, Robert smiled so broadly that his face looked like it was going to fold in half, then a small voice from the door startled them both,
"Just kiss her already Robert!" it said and both of them snapped their heads round to see Amy standing there smiling at them, then they looked back at each other and they both noticed the other blushing and instantly they both started laughing, both of them felt like a massive weight had been lifted from their shoulders, then Sela turned to him opened her mandibles and exposed her inner mouth to him as drew him pressing her lips to his incredibly soft and warm ones and they both melted into their very first kiss.
Sela's heart felt like it was going to explode as she felt the soft warmth of Robert's lips press against hers, she could feel his mouth moving slowly as he gently pulled her lower lip between his and then she did the same to his, she stroked the side of his face with the tips of her mandibles enjoying the sensations of tracing his jaw line with the sensitive tusks at the tips of her mandibles, for him this was the most exquisite and exotic experience of his life, he could feel her every breath passing past her lips and into him, it was like nothing in the world existed except for them, he could taste what to him tasted like vanilla on her lips and it was amazing, he could feel the power and strength of her muscles as she pressed her body tighter against his, he couldn't believe it, this beautiful and immensely powerful girl wanted to be with him, for the life of him he couldn't fathom what she saw in him but right now as they revelled in the delightful intimacy of what they were doing he didn't care, well that was right up until a massive explosion rocked the whole hut and threw them both over and the whole place went black.