Hey all! I know I've waited FAR too long to update, but here I am anyway! I'm gonna try and get updates a BIT more often, but I promise nothing. Ok? Then let's go! Before that, though… I'm gonna respond to my reviewers thus far!
Commissioner Tanner: Indeed it is…
DeathFan88: I might just read that… You said the chapters were like 10-20 thousand words apiece! Wow.
Werecat Rei: I say it was about TIME they added this section when they did…
Alatnet: Thanks for the support!
Fireismyspecialty: You wanted updating? You got it!
Iamalittleteapot: ...Woot, indeed… Keep on reading!
(namelis): Might I suggest you slow down and separate your sentences? I thank you for the large, thought out review, but please… I need to be able to READ it… As for my influences on the plot? You'll just have to wait and see.
Arctic 666: Thanks much!
(chris): Well, at least it's not hazardous to your health… Or IS it…?
King of Mana: Interesting fact: I've never touched a board, skate, surf, or otherwise, in my life, in reality…
Aki Kitsune: Hmm… I might check it out…
Alphamech: Yeah, CN really jips us with givin only one Ep. a week… Ah well. I'm only just getting into Episode 3 to 4 in this fic, so no worries about you falling behind.
Vampslayeraxle: …You're a dark one, eh? Thanks for the advice… Not that "I" will listen, of course…
Now then, onto the fic!
Previously:
"That light… It brings nothing but pain and guides us all to our dooms… but it's so beautiful…" Axel said with a tear in his eye.
"What was that…?" I asked, feigning ignorance. 'The Seventh Swell… I didn't realize how beautiful it would look in person… But that POWER it unleashed! It really IS strong…' I thought as I asked.
"That is the Seventh Swell. Not much is known of it, but it is a devastating weapon… One that I'm all too familiar with the power of…" Axel explained.
'Oh, right… Adrock…' I thought. "I'm gonna go see if those two are alright. Don't try and stop me!" I declared as I grabbed the borrowed Ref Board and flew towards the epicenter of the previous blast.
Chapter 3: A Fresh Start to Adventure
As I flew towards the Nirvash, I began thinking. Why was I placed here? Can I really help? The most important thing on my mind was, however, how this all happened. I was slowly believing in what I was doing, rather than dismissing this as a simple dream. I stopped my train of thought, though, as I approached the center of the crater that the Nirvash created with the Seventh Swell. I was awed at the sight of the enemy LFOs, which were barely still existent at all. I could see that they were almost completely eradicated, and what little bits survived were filled with some white substance that I presumed was salt. I got off the Ref Board at this point and carried it in my good arm as I walked over to a lean, tanned guy with what looked like a basketball jersey on.
"Hey!" I said, garnering his attention. "You saw that boy fly over to that white LFO, right?" I continued.
"Yeah, why?" he replied. "Are you a friend of his or somethin?"
"You might say that. Is he alright?" I replied.
"You'd have to ask the Leader. He's the gray haired guy. He should be somewhere around where the type ZERO is. That's the white LFO, in case you didn't know. When he said this, a man on a hill a few feet away turned towards us. He had a moustache and the makings of a beard. His camera gave away what he was up to.
"Mathieu, you might wanna try watching how much you tell people… How do you know this kid's not some spy for the military…?" he scolded.
"Oh, relax, Stoner… You wouldn't mind even if he WAS, 'cause then you'd get a big scoop and try to become famous off of it…" Mathieu shot back.
"Well anyway… Thanks for the info," I stated and left before the argument could get any more heated. I saw the 909 landed right next to the Nirvash, and climbed on top of a leg of the 909 to see what was going on inside the cockpit that Eureka and Renton were strapped into. I observed a man who, except for the gray hair, appeared to be in his early thirties, if not late twenties. He was checking on Eureka, who had awakened, and Renton, who had not.
"Hey you! Guy with the gray hair!" I said into the cockpit. He turned around and said with an annoyed tone, "Don't bother me, kid! I'm busy here!"
"Geez…" I responded. "I'm just worried about that kid with the brown hair in there… He's a sorta friend of mine."
"Ah, ok. Take him with you, if you want. Oh, wait… You're in no condition to be taking anybody anywhere… That arm won't do you much good while it's stuck in that sling… Where did you come here from, anyway?" he asked.
"I came from that workshop over in the distance," I said, pointing to Axel's place. The man, Holland, winced at this.
"Well, I suppose it was inevitable, with this happening here…" he said to himself. He called Mathieu and Stoner over, and the three arranged it so that we'd all get situated, with Eureka piloting the Nirvash in ground mode, and go to Axel's.
Back at the Workshop's Yard
"Renton! Renton!" I heard Axel's shouting as the Nirvash stopped at a clearing near the rubble of where Renton's room was. He dashed over to the Nirvash as Eureka exited it.
"How is Renton?" Axel exclaimed as soon as he got there. I decided to stop him from shouting anymore with some words of calming.
"Relax, Axel. He's unconscious for now, but a little bit of resting ought to fix him up properly. Don't shout so much…" I said. This had the opposite effect of what I'd been planning, though. Axel looked ready to explode, but then he suddenly softened as I helped to get Renton set up on a makeshift bed. He looked as if he were in bliss whilst he slept. Axel smiled at this, which puzzled Eureka.
"Why do you smile…despite how reckless he was?" she asked.
"I smile, because I'm proud of him. I need to be, because I'm the only one who WILL be proud of what he did. Many people would call his actions foolhardy or excessive, but I'll be proud all the same. You'll understand when you grow up and have kids." Axel stated as he watched Renton sleep peacefully.
"But I…" Eureka started as Holland Reffed over on his board.
"Forgive my lack of contact. I'd never expected to run into you again…" Holland said as he landed.
"What do you want from me now? You've already taken my son… You won't take Renton, too!" Axel spat back. "How long have you been hanging around near here? I'll bet you've been here for at least a day now… Anyway, where's your Terminus?"
"It wasn't safe for me to use the Terminus to get here, so I flew on my board." Holland stated simply.
"Figures… I suppose that the fact that you've returned can only mean bad luck… You who said he would never return here… I only have a slight idea why you showed up at the same time that the type ZERO did, but I assume it means you've decided to accept your responsibility… All I had cared to do was give Renton a normal life… Normal happiness…" Axel continued.
"Is this what Renton wants?" Holland asked. I stared at the conversing duo from my spot near where Renton was resting. 'Wow… I never realized how intense it would seem just to watch those two like that…' I thought. I then glanced over at Renton, and noticed Eureka poking him in the face. I chuckled a bit at this then resumed listening to Axel and Holland.
"Soon, Holland… Soon, we'll see who was right…" Axel said.
"If that's so true, then explain this to me… Why did you make him give the Nirvash the Amita Drive?" Holland replied, waiting for a response to that good point. "You really don't believe in that sort of thing. You're just lying to yourself about your beliefs."
"You don't know anything!" Axel shouted. "I really DID believe those things! What would some outsider like you know about this, anyway?" Axel then grabbed Holland's collar and raised him into the air slightly.
"Then explain why you still hid the Amita Drive!" Holland demanded.
"Because my own son made it!" Axel responded, not letting go. "Really, you have no right to have it! The only person besides me who should ever hold it is Renton! I will not forgive you. However, you are the only one I can entrust that accursed thing to." Axel then finally released his death grip on Holland's jacket and scarf, calming down somewhat. 'Wow… That old guy can sure show some anger…' I thought as I continued watching the exchanges between the pair over there.
"We're finished… Just leave, Holland…" Axel said, loosing a few tears.
"I apologize for what I have done…" Holland started. He never got to finish, though, as Axel walked away without another word. I then heard Renton speaking.
"I don't have any clue… Why my father made something that could do that… Or why things happened as they did… What should I…?" Renton started, as Holland interjected.
"That's not something you can ask someone else. You need to decide on your own. What you do and what you choose are your responsibilities alone. It's up to you to give waves life, or kill them. That's how a Lifter thinks, correct?" Holland said, with wisdom in his voice.
"H-he's the real deal…" Renton said to himself, awed that Holland himself was there, giving such sage advice. Holland then walked over to the ruins of Renton's house. I saw him pick up something from the rubble, and decided to investigate.
"What're you staring so intently at…?" I asked.
"Ah, it's you again. It's… nothing." he said back, though his voice made it clear that it WAS something indeed. He then turned, and so did I, to see Renton standing partially behind a part of a wall that was still standing.
"You've already made your decision, haven't you?" Holland asked. Renton then ducked behind the rest of the way. Holland continued anyway.
"You believe in the waves… That's the only way that you could have pulled off that Cut-Back Drop Turn… Yeah, I saw it. With regards to what happened in the end… You believed in the world. Thusly, the world responded in kind." He then walked over so that he was next to Renton. "You could always quit now. That decision would be just as good as any. However, my mentor used to tell me this: Don't ask for it; go get it yourself, or else you'll receive nothing." Renton then dashed out from behind the wall.
"T-that's…" he said, shocked that Holland knew of that saying.
"What do you truly believe in?" Holland asked. "Why did you choose to believe in the Nirvash?"
"I don't know… I think the Nirvash was telling me to believe in the feeling I felt while I was in there… The desire to save her… So I did. I thought that if I only chose to believe, I could save her. I thought that that alone would become my proof. However…" Renton said after a few moments of thinking.
"Proof, huh?" Holland said, seeming mildly amused. "If you really want to prove something, try sticking with us. It's what she wants, too." He then gestured behind the two of them to Eureka, who was standing there. Before anything more could be said or done, a loud alarm sounded.
"What the?" I shouted, surprised.
"The shelter-enforcement alarm!" Renton exclaimed, equally shocked to hear it. Then, overhead, a ship flew swiftly by, one shaped similarly to a stealth jet from my own time.
"The Izumo!" Holland said with anger. "They're faster than I thought!"
"What's the problem? Are those the same people who sent those military craft after you all?" I asked. 'Why am I so surprised…? Is my knowledge fading of the events that happen? That may be good, actually… Less risk…'
"Yes. No more time to explain!" Holland shouted. Eureka then ran up to him, calling his name.
"Sorry, Eureka, but I need the Nirvash's radio," he said, and dashed off. Eureka then grabbed Renton's hand in both of hers.
"Hey… Let's do this together! It won't work without you…" she said. He, after a moment, chose to grasp her hand as well. They walked over to the Nirvash, and I followed suit. We all saw Holland talking on the radio. Eureka, once Holland cut the transmission, then spoke up.
"I think we should go back to the Gekko now…" she said.
"Nah. It's a little late for that now… To get out, we'll have to forcefully… huh?" Holland began as he jumped off of the Nirvash to the ground. He was looking at Eureka and Renton, who were holding hands there at the moment. "I see…" he continued. "Wait just a moment, I'm going to read the waves." he said.
"Wait, Holland. Let me do it." Eureka said then.
"But you said that you've not been feeling well as of late…" Holland reasoned.
"I'm fine now." Eureka replied. "Actually, I'm feeling really good today." she finished, smiling slightly. Holland looked shocked at that. Eureka then turned to Renton and said, "Hurry up!" as she ran, dragging him along too.
"It can't be…" Holland said after the pair left. I thought about asking him what he was talking about, but I figured it wouldn't be wise. I decided to follow Eureka and Renton over to a cliff face where she was holding her un-clasped hand into the sky. Renton decided to follow suit.
"Heh. Why not?" I reasoned with myself as I too raised a hand to the sky. I stopped after a moment, though, as I saw Renton staring at Eureka with a blush on his cheeks. Suddenly, Eureka spoke.
"The waves… They're here!" she said as she lowered her hand. Renton then quickly backed a step away, startled. This amused her, and me, too.
"You are really interesting, do you know that?" Eureka asked with a smile.
"I-interesting…?" Renton asked, still in shock.
"Yes. You remind me of my children!" she said, smiling so warmly that anybody could melt at it. She then said, "I'll be right back. I'm reporting to Holland." and ran off. Renton was speechless and motionless as he appeared to be trying to process those sentences. He then ran over to the center of the rubble of his house. I followed, intrigued.
"Ah! There it is!" he said triumphantly as he held up a magazine. He proceeded to flip through it, when I held my hand on the pages to stop his turning them.
"Please tell me you aren't looking for love advice from a book…" I said, sighing.
"What's it to you if I am?" he retorted.
"Trust me on this. I'm no love expert, but reading…" I started as I snatched the book from him. "Manly Horizons… Is NOT going to help you."
"Don't try to give me advice!" he shouted as he took the book back.
"Ah well. Don't blame me for what you find out, then…" I said. He scanned the page he was looking for, and began mumbling to himself. Eureka herself, coincidentally, walked back over and was kneeling down next to him.
"It can't be!" he shouted in agony as he dropped the book. I laughed at this, yet he wasn't done, not by far. He began rolling on the ground rubbing his head, and spouting out more hilarious things.
"This is bad! This is REALLY bad! What do I do! I'll keep on being treated like a child… Am I going to be wasting my effort every day with no result! This is bad! I haven't even asked her name yet!" he shouted to himself as he squirmed.
"My name is Eureka." Eureka said simply. Renton heard this, but didn't fully process it.
"Of course! Her name's Eureka! That's a really nice name!" he said, and then finally, in a split second, stopped acting crazy and sat up, blankly staring at her.
"You asked my name, right? I'm Eureka." she said again, knowing that he hadn't fully paid attention the first time. "What's your name?" she then asked.
"I-I'm Renton." he stuttered out.
'Geez, this guy's a mess…' I thought.
"Wait a second! Were you listening to all of that just then!" Renton shouted, appalled at the possibility. Eureka then moved her head slightly closer to Renton, causing him to blush worse in a panic.
"You definitely are interesting. I haven't met someone like you in a very long time…" she said, then stood up. "I met someone very much like you, a long time ago. You're exactly like him!" she said, smiling. Renton sat there and simply stared. Eureka then extended her hand to him to help him up. "Let's go. If we don't hurry up, the waves will leave without us…" The three of us then walked back to the Nirvash.
When we returned, I heard shouting on the other end of the radio. Holland, on the other hand, remained calm and cool.
"We have no other choice, Talho…" I then decided to listen more intently, and heard the other end as well.
"But that messes up the unit!" a girl complained. I presumed that it was Talho. "Anyway" she continued, "what if the Amita Drive starts going crazy like it did earlier?"
"It won't unless it gets serious." Holland assured her. I heard a bleep, and a guy who sounded like he was high spoke.
"I finished the hacking, Leader." the guy said.
"Hey! Don't butt in like that!" Talho yelled, annoyed.
"Relax," Holland assured her. "Anyway, even if the Amita Drive DID act up, we'd survive. I am, after all, putting Adrock's son in the Nirvash.
"Are you sure it'll be alright…?" Talho asked, still not certain. I had had enough, so I whispered for Holland to give me the communicator.
"Who the heck do you think you are?" Talho shouted into my ear, bothered even further.
"Hey, relax. Your own Leader says it'll be fine, so it'll be fine. Or do you not TRUST him?" I said, a hint of amusement at the end.
"Why you… Fine… " Talho said as she cut the link, as did the stoned-sounding guy.
"Relax, I'm having Eureka do all of the piloting. She knows the plan, so we're set." Holland assured Renton, who had hopped into the second cockpit. "All you do is sit here and watch the Amita Drive, alright? If you see anything wrong with it, cut the connection immediately. Listen… The one who put it there is you, so it's your machine now. That means it's in your control. Take responsibility, no matter what."
"Sure." Renton responded. "Before we go, can I have three minutes?"
"Alright… Make it quick." Holland said. Renton then hopped out and ran over to his grandfather. I watched them for a moment, then spoke to Holland.
"Can I go, too? I think it would be good for Renton to have a guy his own age to talk to, so that he doesn't have to feel pressured." I reasoned.
"You have no idea what you'd be getting involved in, kid… Neither does Renton, for that matter." Holland said. "Give me a REAL reason why you should be allowed to go, and I may consider it."
"I… I have no family here. I have only one friend here, and that's Renton. Would you really leave me homeless? Anyway… I know that if I go with you, I might just be able to help people… I hate seeing oppression, so please! Let me have this chance to stop even a small part of it…" I said, looking down.
"Argh… I'm too soft…" he sad to himself. "Fine. Get in the Nirvash, behind Renton's seat. Don't say I didn't warn you, though, alright?" Holland finished, defeated. By now, Renton had returned.
"I've decided!" Renton announced to Holland. "Please… Let me train on the Gekko!"
"I see… Well then, seeya in a while!" he said, smiling and tousling Renton's hair as he ran off.
"Holland really is mysterious, isn't he?" Eureka more stated than asked. "However, it's that mystery that makes me able to believe in him." After that little statement, I watched Holland fly into the sky on his board, the green particles of Trapar flowing behind him. We all got into the Nirvash, then.
"What? Josh, you're coming, too?" Renton asked, startled that I was huddled behind his seat.
"Sure. Why not?" I asked, flashing a smile. We then got situated, all three of us, and drove off into the road.
"Wait a second! You're going the wrong way! The building's-" Renton started.
"I know. The waves, though, are telling me that they'll shift in seven minutes. Going around from the east will be faster." Eureka replied through the intercom/video. When we passed under a small rock tunnel, she thrust us into humanoid mode and we flew straight up at a blistering pace. I gripped the back of Renton's seat tightly, and then I heard Eureka speaking again.
"It's been a long time since the Nirvash was this happy!" she said with joy as we zoomed through the air, towards the airport where I presumed the Gekko was at. She said one final thing, too. "Let's go home, Nirvash!"
-End Chapter 3-
Wow. A lot longer than I'm used to writing… Hopefully, Chapter 4 will be out soon, too! Till next time, ciao!