Chapter 17

Home

Isaac sat at the edge of the small oasis pool, listening to the soft sounds of the water moving in the wind. Ivan and Garet were nearby, working on a campfire at the shelter under a dune. Mia was resting beside Isaac near the water.

Sitting as he was near the pool, Isaac couldn't help but think of the river that ran through Vale, and the times he'd spent there with Jenna. As he closed his eyes, and splashed the water a bit, he could almost imagine he was back there.

"Jenna..." he said softly.

He worried for her. How was she doing, travelling with the Proxians? He could not imagine they were doing much to make her trip comfortable. If they were hurting her, he knew he would never be able to forgive himself. Was Felix protecting her? How could they trust him to do so, knowing that he'd willing sided with the people who'd killed his parents?

They were close... somewhere in this desert, perhaps. It was only a matter of time before Isaac caught up with them. He wasn't going to let them slip away again, like they had at Mercury Lighthouse. He wasn't going to let Jenna stay with those monsters a minute longer than he could help.

Isaac heard Mia stirring, and shuffled in the sand over to her side. She moaned softly, rubbing her eyes as if she'd been sleeping peacefully.

"Ah, Isaac..." she said, blinking under the bright sun. "What happened? The last thing I remember was..."

Realization set in. "Oh. I'm so sorry..."

"Don't apologise," Isaac insisted. "We're just glad you're okay."

Mia crawled with some difficulty up to a sitting position. She looked at the pool of water next to them. "Ivan figured out how to use Reveal, I take it?"

"Thankfully," Isaac answered. "He said there's many more oases ahead, so we should have a much easier time ahead of us."

Mia slid off her boots and dipped her feet in the water. Morosely, she peered into the crystal blue pool, and sighed.

"I thought I was okay," she told him. "I mean, I knew I was struggling, but I thought we all were. I tried to think about what you would do, and I decided you would make the unselfish choice. I was trying not to be a burden, but that's all I ended up being."

"It would have happened to one of us sooner or later," Isaac said. "Really, don't beat yourself up about it. Nobody blames you, especially not me."

Mia looked up to him and smiled. "Thank you, Isaac. You're a kind soul."

He chuckled modestly, and looked in the water with her for a moment.

"This reminds me of back home," he said. "I used to sit with Jenna by the river for hours. The dock was right where her house had been, before the boulder fell. It was where she'd lost her parents; and her brother too, as we thought at the time. She was so lonely, those first few weeks. At first, we didn't even talk, she just cried."

"She had you," Mia pointed out.

He nodded. "I lost my father that night, too. I didn't even realise how much I was hurting until one day I met her there, and she was the one who put on a strong face for me. She held me for a long time, and didn't let me go until I'd let the tears out." It was awkward to say it aloud; normally he'd never admit something like that.

"She knew," Mia said gently. "She wanted to help you as much as you helped her."

"I still had my mother," Isaac continued. "But Jenna... she was alone. Her grandparents took care of her, sure, but she'd never been close to them. They were old, and not ready for the burden of raising a teenage girl; the best they managed was to put a roof over her head. Sometimes I think, if I hadn't been there..." He trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought.

Mia looked away for a moment, silent. And then, somewhat hesitantly, she asked, "Do you love her?"

Isaac, surprised by the question, took a moment to answer. "I do. She's family to me, as much as my mother and father. We, uh... we did kiss a few times, but it wasn't anything serious. We were just kids messing around."

The corners of Mia's lips curled in a smile. "Is that so?" Somehow she didn't sound entirely convinced.

Isaac hoped that Mia would think the red in his cheeks was from the desert heat. "I don't see how it matters anyway. If it had been Garet that was taken and Jenna was here with us, I'd still be doing all this. All that matters is that they took someone I care about, and I won't rest until she gets home."

Mia frowned, splashing the water around a bit with her feet.

"What's on your mind?" he asked her.

"Quite a lot," she said heavily. "And little I feel like sharing right now. I'm sorry, Isaac. It feels rude of me to do after you'd just confided in me, but I don't want to discuss it right now."

"That's fine; I can respect that."

Mia looked over her shoulder, and pulled her feet out of the water. She grabbed her nearby boots. "Let's go see what Garet and Ivan are cooking up, shall we?"

Isaac drew himself up and followed her, thinking to himself that she had ended the conversation a bit quickly.

After a refreshing meal they made some plans and continued on. Now that they had water in their canteens, and could get more, the previously oppressive malevolence of the desert seemed almost to have retreated. Their spirits were lifted, and they talked as they went, about nothing in particular.

Isaac couldn't help but notice the occasional glance that Mia sent his way. Something seemed to be on her mind, and he wondered if it had to do with what she'd told him back at Lama Temple.

"Isaac, are these visions ever... wrong?"

Hama had told Mia to forgive Alex, because one day she would make the same choice he had. Mia seemed to have taken that to mean that she would betray her clan somehow. Isaac didn't see how that was possible; Mia had been raised on the values of the Mercury Clan. She would have given her life to stop the thieves from lighting the beacon; Isaac was sure of it.

So what in the world could possibly tempt her to turn her back on it?

He was worried for her. She was clearly troubled, and he could only imagine the doubts in herself that she was feeling now. They would talk about it more, he was sure, once they were out of the desert.

The conversation gradually died down, as they walked for a while over a never-ending pattern of one sand dune after another and boredom set in. Before long the only sound was the whirling of the wind, and their footsteps in the sand.

Suddenly, Ivan interrupted the silence. "Um... Isaac?"

"Yeah?"

"I think somebody's following us."

"What?" he demanded, stopping in his tracks and turning around. He scanned the terrain behind them, but saw nothing. "Where?"

"Way back over there," Ivan said, pointing off in the distance. Isaac could see nothing but sand dunes and waves of hot air. "I didn't notice until I used Reveal just now."

Mia stepped beside Isaac, looking apprehensively out into the distance. "You don't think it's Alex, do you?"

"Um, no I don't think so..." Ivan said carefully. Isaac could feel Ivan's Psynergy flowing, and he knew he was using Reveal again to see through the heat waves. "Uh-oh..."

"What?" Isaac asked.

Without answering Ivan took off at a run. "Hurry!" he called back to them as he half-ran, half-slid down a dune. The others had to choice but to follow him.

They could not see what it was he was rushing towards at first, but as they drew closer, the illusion of the rippling heat faded, and a scene revealed itself.

There was a large pit in the sand, as wide around as a house, drawing inwards conically to a small point in the middle, where a creature resembling a huge insect rested half-buried in the sand. It had a pair of mandibles as long as a man's arm, waiting eagerly for any meal unfortunate enough to fall into its trap. And in the sloping sand, struggling desperately to keep from falling any deeper into the sand was...

Feizhi.

The violet-haired girl screamed, pushing against the sand with her arms and legs, fighting against the gradual pull of gravity. It helped little; every bit she slid deeper into the antlion's pit was momentum lost that could not be regained. Her panicked struggles were only making her fall faster.

"Feizhi, hold still!" Isaac shouted to her.

"What do we do?" Garet asked.

Isaac considered for a moment. It would be easy enough to use his Psynergy to push the antlion out of its pit, but doing so without endangering Feizhi would take a level of fine control that Isaac wasn't sure he had. It took less sand than one would expect to bury and suffocate someone. No, it would be easier and safer to eliminate the more immediate threat of the antlion itself...

He quickly formed a plan. Or at least, what he could graciously describe as a plan.

"Garet find the rope in my bag," he said, tossing his backpack. "Throw it down to her and keep her from falling in any more. Ivan, Mia, you two use Psynergy to blast the thing if you can - otherwise help Garet."

"And you...?" Mia asked.

He answered by drawing his sword and jumping into the pit.

Feizhi was defenceless, but Isaac wasn't. He could give the thing something else to focus on, like the steel of his blade.

As expected, the antlion shifted its attention away from Feizhi, swivelling in place in the dirt to fixate on the approaching Adept. It looked delighted that a meal was rushing right towards it, which concerned Isaac, but he was sliding down the sand much too quickly to stop now.

As he drew close to the beast, he swung his sword at it, only for it to move with surprising speed, burying itself in the sand. Before Isaac could hit it, the antlion was gone. As for Isaac himself, he stumbled upon reaching the bottom of the pit, unable to control the momentum of his fall.

He swore under his breath, having expected the antlion to just remain in place. He quickly reorientated himself, turning with his sword in hand. Over at the edge of the pit, he saw Garet and Ivan heaving on the rope, trying to pull Feizhi up.

Isaac didn't have time to wonder where Mia was, because he quickly sensed the sand under his feet shifting, and knew he had precious seconds to move. He jumped away, just in time, as the antlion emerged out of the ground, its mandibles snapping closed right where he had been standing.

He quickly turned again, swinging his blade at the creature. The steel sword struck the hard exoskeleton of the antlion, barely leaving a scratch.

The antlion turned and began to bury into the sand once more. Isaac swung again, striking at its back, to no avail.

"Damn it..." he muttered.

Well, he was distracting it, at least.

Isaac sheathed his sword; it was no use to him against this thing, and having the free hand would help him move in the uncertain terrain. He gathered up his Psynergy in anticipation, as he waited for the antlion to appear again.

This time, it was behind him. The insect burst out without warning, and Isaac could do nothing but throw himself to the side to avoid being torn in half. As he landed with a painful thud, he pushed his Psynergy into the ground beneath the antlion, reshaping the soft sand into hard rock.

As expected, the bug tried to bury itself again, only to find it could not.

"Gotcha," Isaac said, smirking.

He pushed his Psynergy again, and a chunk of the ground was reshaped into a pointy spike. Had the antlion been a second slower, it would have been impaled, but it was already moving towards the still-soft dirt of the pit walls. Isaac's spire managed only to cut it along its side and draw some green ichor before it was gone again.

Isaac swore under his breath. "You're a slippery one, aren't you?"

He shifted in place... only to feel a sharp stabbing pain in his side. Looking down, he saw a red stain quickly spreading through his clothes, right at the gap between two pieces of his light armour. He'd wounded the antlion, but it had gotten him too.

"Come on, hold still for a second..." Isaac muttered, preparing his Psynergy again. The antlion couldn't get him from beneath, but there were walls of sand all around that it could strike from. He wouldn't know from which direction it was coming until an instant before it...

"Ah!" Isaac shouted as the sand burst in front of him, the antlion's mandibles filling his vision. He unleashed his Psynergy, hardening the sand at his feet into a sharp spire. But he was not quick enough, and the spire only caught the tail end of the creature as it moved through the air towards him.

Isaac could do nothing but throw up his hands, catching the powerful mandibles of the antlion a second before they would have torn off his head. The massive weight of the insect pushed him back, and he landed with a painful blow on the now-rocky ground at the bottom of the pit.

With the antlion pinning him down, Isaac could not move. It took every bit of strength he could muster to keep those mandibles pulled apart. The antlion thrashed and struggled against him, and the two of them wrestled in the sand.

Isaac could not use his Psynergy again; if he diverted his attention away from the struggle, for even a moment, the antlion would kill him. As it was, the beast was much stronger than him, and bit by bit, it was winning. He wouldn't last much longer against it.

Isaac groaned with the effort of holding off the insect, and it was then that he noticed his breath was visible in the desert heat.

He understood at once.

Isaac allowed himself an instant to look away from the eyes of the beast trying to kill him, and he saw the ice crystals forming at the creature's base. It had been just as focused on the struggle as he was, and so it hadn't noticed.

Isaac pushed away from the antlion, rolling backwards as the mandibles swung shut with a powerful snap. The insect tried to pursue, only to find it was stuck in place. The Venus Adept drew his sword with the sound of freed steel, and drove forward, plunging the blade into the beast's mouth.

The antlion shuddered, and then moved no more.

Isaac found Mia waiting for him at the edge of the sand pit. Using his Psynergy, he turned the soft, slippery sand into hardened rock shaped like steps, and easily made his way out. Now that he did not have Feizhi, or the antlion to worry about, he could focus enough to do such things.

"That was foolhardy," Mia chastised him as he exited the sand pit. "Throwing yourself in there like that, without even telling us what you were planning?"

"There wasn't time to plan anything," Isaac said, collapsing next to her once he was back on level ground. "Feizhi was getting pulled in and she wasn't going to last much longer. We needed to give the antlion another target, and as a Venus Adept, I was the one best suited to-"

"No," Mia said firmly. "There were a dozen other ways we could have done that; ways that didn't involve you taking all the risk while we stood at the sides."

Isaac was taken aback at her tone, looking up at her in surprise. She was legitimately angry with him.

And then there was a click, and he understood something that had been eluding him.

"I'm sorry," he managed, looking back down.

Mia sighed, and her expression softened a bit. "Let me tend to that."

He'd forgotten the wound at his side. He nodded, and pulled his armour off so she could get to it.

While Mia healed him, the others made their way over. Feizhi walked behind Garet and Ivan, looking visibly guilty.

"Are you unharmed?" Isaac asked the violet-haired girl.

She nodded.

He took a deep breath, making a steady effort to calm himself. Getting angry wouldn't do them any good right now.

"You followed us out here," he said, not as a question. "Even after I told you back at the temple that we couldn't bring you along."

"I'm sorry," she said. "I... I had to."

"Because of your visions?" Isaac asked.

She nodded.

"This vision you've seen... was it worth leaving Hsu on his own, tricking Master Hama, and risking both your life, and ours?"

Feizhi flinched. "I... I can only say that you will need me at some point. If I am not there, you are sure to perish. That is what I foresaw."

Mia took her hands away, her healing done. Isaac pulled his armour back on, and drew himself up.

"You can't tell me anything more specific than that?" Isaac asked her.

"It... will be raining," Feizhi said slowly, taking time to think carefully. "And it will just be the two of us... we'll be separated from the others. I know that if I am not there, you will die. I could feel that."

Isaac frowned, and looked to Ivan.

"I don't know," the Jupiter Adept said, his hands going up in defense. "I haven't had any visions of the future. I don't know anything about it; my time with Hama was about learning Reveal."

"Master Adept, please believe me!" Feizhi pleaded. "I wouldn't have risked so much if it wasn't true! My visions have all come to pass, without fail!"

Isaac sighed. "Can we have a moment alone, please?"

Feizhi excused herself, and walked out of earshot, so they could talk.

"She seems pretty sure of this," Ivan said.

"I don't doubt what she says about her visions," Isaac said. "But it strikes me as odd that she didn't bring this up until I had already told her she couldn't come with us back at the temple. Nor did she give us any details about it until I pressed her for them."

"What are you suggesting?" Mia asked. "Do you think she's lying about this vision?"

Isaac didn't want to say it aloud, but that was exactly what he felt. "I don't know. She was right about Hsu and the boulders. She was right about us and our mission. She says she hasn't been wrong about anything yet."

"Can we afford to take the risk, even if she is lying?" Ivan asked. "I mean, she said you'll die if she's not there."

Isaac bit his thumb, then remembered he was wearing gloves. "If I had some idea of when exactly this was going to happen... We can bring her along to say, Kalay, but she has to be gone before we reach the next lighthouse."

"She's not a fighter," Garet agreed. "I mean, she knows kung-fu, but that's useless against an Adept."

"It would have been useless against that antlion," Isaac muttered. "Even with my Psynergy, I almost..."

Noticing the others' concerned looks, he quickly changed the subject.

"It's a moot point right now anyway. She followed us this far. It's too late for her to go back. She'll have to come with us at least as far as Kalay."

The others agreed.

"Ivan, do you think you could spare some time to teach her what you know?" Isaac asked. "The basics of Psynergy, at least. If she can at least protect herself that will minimize how much of a liability she is."

"I'll do my best," he promised.

They called out for Feizhi, and she rushed back over to them.

"It would be a death sentence to send you back," Isaac told her. "So congratulations, you got what you wanted. You're with us until we get to Kalay. Once we're there, we'll talk about it in depth and decide what to do."

Feizhi nodded, clearly trying not to look too pleased with this news.

"Let's get moving," Isaac said. "I've had enough of this desert."

Things were tense as they walked. Isaac was not happy about the situation with Feizhi, and he knew his anger was obvious to the others. Though he was trying not to show it, his silence was unusual enough to his companions to make the situation awkward.

The others, perhaps to make up for his behaviour, spoke with Feizhi as they walked; mostly small talk about Xian, her friends and family, and her training at Lama Temple. Inevitably, the conversation turned to their surroundings.

"How did you make it as far as you did?" Ivan asked her. "We were struggling and barely survived until I found an oasis."

"I've been through the desert many times," Feizhi said. "I knew the way like the back of my hand."

Isaac couldn't help but think of how easily she could have shown them where the oases were if they'd brought her along from the beginning. He felt a surge of frustration pass through him, now wondering if he'd made the wrong call.

"How much farther until we've cleared it?" Mia asked their new companion.

"Not very. We should be out before sundown, I think."

Eventually they came upon a large cavern mouth, and upon it was the unmistakable smell of dead monsters.

Near the entrance of the cavern was the body of a large, lion-like creature with the face of a man, two bat-like winds, and a scorpion's tail. The creature was large enough that it would not have fit in the living room of Dora's house; Isaac could only imagine how fierce it would have been had it still been alive. Though some time had passed, and the scavengers of the desert had already begun their work on it, the evidence of its demise was still visible. The long cuts could only be from bladed weapons, and the burned skin was evident of Mars Psynergy.

"Nice of them to care of it for us," Garet said dryly.

Within the small, cool cave they found the remnants of a campsite.

"What do you think?" Mia asked Isaac.

After some consideration, he said, "They can't be far ahead. That monster outside has only begun to decompose. They would have killed it before they made camp."

"I'm no scientist, but I do know that bodies decay faster in hot environments," Ivan added. "Though I don't really know how much faster..."

"We were right at their heels at Alpine Crossing," Isaac said. "We lost a day staying at Lama Temple, but we've made good time since then, despite setbacks."

Feizhi looked away, guiltily.

"There's a decent chance they haven't even made it out of the desert yet," Isaac concluded. "If we hurry, we might even catch them when we reach Kalay."

"If we make it out of the desert before the end of the day, we could be in Kalay by tomorrow afternoon," Ivan said. "We can go straight to the palace, and speak with Lady Layana. She can put out word amongst the city guard to keep watch."

"They'll have to stop and get supplies after travelling through here," Garet pointed out. "We're running on empty ourselves."

Suddenly, Isaac felt rejuvenated. "We don't have a moment to lose, then. They won't waste any time, so we can't either. Let's go!"

They continued on, leaving the cave and the slain manticore behind them.

With some guidance from Feizhi, they arrived at the rocky pass that marked the end of the Lamakan Desert right as the sun was beginning to set. They were exhausted, and wanted desperately to get some rest after two very long days of travel through the desert, but at Feizhi's suggestion they continued through the mountain pass for another few hours, finally emerging to familiar green fields and forests, and much cooler air. They threw together a makeshift camp and went to bed immediately, not even bothering to set someone as the sentry.

Luckily, their rest was without incident, and they woke to the chirping of birds and the hum of cicadas. They made up a quick breakfast with the last of their foodstuffs, splashed themselves with some water from a nearby river, and then continued on.

"It was like the desert was some kind of contained evil," Ivan remarked as they walked. "It turned so suddenly from green fields to dunes, and then right back as we left. I don't remember the contrast being so dramatic when I was younger and Master Hammet took me through it."

"It was not," Feizhi said. "Only very recently has the desert become this way. It was not so dangerous to travel it before, but now those who have gone through many times can't survive the heat."

"Let me guess," Isaac said. "It changed right after the eruption of Mt. Aleph, right?"

Feizhi nodded, her eyes wide.

"It certainly felt evil," Garet said, his voice unusually dark. "When I was using my Psynergy to repel the heat, it felt exactly the same as pushing away somebody else's. I swear I could almost feel the person on the other end of it."

An evil desert, Isaac thought, as they continued through the forest path, I suppose it isn't that hard to believe after everything we've seen.

The first signs of civilization began to show themselves, farms and small hamlets, as they drew closer to the city. The vague forest path gradually dovetailed into a well-travelled highway, and other travellers - some on foot, and others in wagons - appeared as the city of Kalay finally came into view.

Kalay was a stunning city of stark white walls and high-reaching buildings. A wall of large stone brick snaked around the perimeter of the city, and the path of the road led to a large gated entrance. Caravans in lines of traffic moved along the path, seeking entrance to the city.

"It's incredible!" Garet exclaimed. "I've never seen a town so big!"

Ivan chuckled, clearly amused with Garet's reaction. "Tolbi is even bigger, if you can believe it."

"Wow..."

When their turn at the entrance came, a pair of guards regarded them with boredom. "Your business in the city?" one asked.

Ivan, naturally, stepped up. "I am Ivan, servant of Master Hammet. I've returned and would like to go right to the palace to meet with Lady Layana."

The guard's demeanour changed at once. He quickly exchanged a nervous glance with his companion, and then said to Ivan, "I take it you... are aware of the situation? As you mentioned the lady and not his lordship..."

Ivan nodded sombrely. "With Lunpa? I have heard."

The guard responded with a nod of his own, and scribbled something on a paper in his hand. "Keep it to yourself, alright? The public doesn't know, and the lady wants to keep it that way. Doesn't want a panic on her hands, you know?"

"Of course."

The guard took their names and a quick look at their belongings, and then allowed them inside.

They emerged from a short stone passage into the open marketplace of a prosperous and thriving city. The ambiance was filled with the sound of chatter between neighbours passing by, children playing in the streets, and merchants hawking their wares. Everywhere they looked, something was happening. Isaac, being so used to sleepy, quiet towns, was taken aback by how alive the place was.

"Things are busier than usual this time of year," Ivan told them. "Colosso is only a few weeks away, so a lot of travellers are coming through on their way to Tolbi."

"Colosso!" Garet exclaimed, his eyes lighting up.

Ivan turned to him with some surprise. "You've heard of Colosso?"

"Even in a town as quiet as Vale, we've heard about Colosso," Garet said. "When I was a kid I remember hearing about it from a travelling merchant and deciding I wanted to go. My mum caught me training for it and yelled at me."

"She yelled when you when you fell out of that tree," Isaac reminded him. "You were trying to do sit-ups hanging from a branch and you fell on your head."

"Ah. Right." Garet rubbed the back of his head.

"I have been to Colosso once," Feizhi said. "My father took me when I was young. I was rooting for a fighter from Xian, but he was eliminated very early."

"That's unfortunate," Mia said. "I can imagine it would be disappointing to be rooting for a local participant, only to see them lose."

"It was," Feizhi answered. "I remember that I was not interested in the rest of the tournament. It was just noisy and hot, and I was bored."

"What happened to the fighter from Xian when they went back home? Did people give them a hard time for losing?"

Feizhi frowned. "Oh, no. He was eliminated by a fatal head injury. I suppose I should have phrased that differently."

"I... see," Mia muttered, suddenly looking squeamish.

"We should go right to the palace," Ivan suggested. "I'm sure Lady Layana will want to see us right away, and any shopping we need done will be easier once this crowd thins out."

It was clear enough Ivan just wanted to get back to the palace. Hammet and Layana were the closest thing he had to family, and he'd been away for several months. No doubt he was desperate for news about the situation in Lunpa.

Hammet's palace was some distance away, atop a hill overlooking the city. It was not quite as lavish as the one in Bilibin where they had met Lord McCoy, but it was still an impressive sight.

A man with a trimmed goatee stood outside the palace doors, speaking quietly with another city guard.

"Bunza!" Ivan called out to him.

The man turned in surprise, then dismissed the guard as they approached.

"Do my eyes deceive me?" the man asked. "Master Ivan, is that really you?"

"It is!" Ivan and the man embraced. "It's good to finally be home, Bunza."

"And it is good to see you again," Bunza said. "Ah, Young Master, things have been far from good lately. Ever since Master Hammet's entourage returned without him, we haven't known what to do. They told us that Hammet was a captive of Lunpa, and they said you had been left behind in Vault. When you did not return we... Well, we did not know what to think."

Ivan frowned. "I can imagine. I was not able to come right back as the bridge south of Vault was destroyed. That, and..." he glanced at the other Adepts, "Well, it's been a long story."

"These are companions of yours?" Bunza asked.

"Indeed. Were it not for them, I would not have been able to recover the Shaman's Rod in Vault. Or made it back here, for that matter."

"Then you have my thanks," Bunza said to them.

They made their introductions. Ivan explained to them that Bunza was one of the merchants in Hammet's employ, and an old friend of his.

"Lady Layana," Ivan asked him. "How has she been?"

The merchant's expression fell. "She has been strong in Master Hammet's absence. Things have been hard for everyone, and we can all see how his absence worries her, but she has been strong for Kalay's sake."

"I'd like to see her as soon as possible," Ivan said, now looking worried.

"Of course," Bunza said, nodding. "Follow me."

Bunza led them into a study within the palace, where they sat before a flickering fireplace and waited as he left to tell Lady Layana they had arrived.

"So this is where you grew up, Ivan?" Garet asked, reclining in a cushy seat. "Must have been nice living in such a fancy place."

"It was home," Ivan answered simply. "It was not until I was older that I realised that most kids did not grow up in palaces. But my childhood was not simply one of luxury. I was Master Hammet's servant, not his child, and so I was working as soon as I was old enough to."

"My parents worked me like a servant and I didn't get a palace," Garet grumbled in response.

Ivan chuckled, and his eyes softened as he looked over the room, no doubt reminiscing about his youth. Isaac suddenly felt a pang of homesickness.

Eventually, the door opened, and a woman entered who could only be Lady Layana.

"Ivan!" she gasped at seeing him. "I'm so glad to see you back safe!"

Ivan jumped from his seat and ran to her, and she embraced him as a woman would embrace her own child.

Isaac frowned and looked away, not wanting to make anyone uncomfortable. Ivan spoke of Hammet and Layana often, and while he had never once called them so, it was clear the two of them were his parents. Isaac had never asked why he referred to them so formally; perhaps it was simply the situation he'd been raised in.

Lady Layana was a woman in her mid-forties, and had a beauty that girls half her age would envy. And yet, despite the conclusion that one might think of upon seeing the gorgeous wife of a very wealthy merchant, Layana was clearly no prize Hammet had bought. From the moment she began to speak to the Adepts, her commanding presence made it clear that she was a natural leader.

"Any friends of Ivan's are friends of ours," Layana said to them. "I welcome you to our home. How long will you be staying in Kalay before you move on?"

Isaac wondered if that question had been directed at all of them.

Ivan shifted uncomfortably. "Lady Layana, I..."

"I know," she interrupted. "You cannot stay. You have a far greater destiny ahead of you than these matters between Kalay and Lunpa."

Ivan glanced between her and his companions, torn. "But... Master Hammet..."

"Is my responsibility," Layana insisted. "I am doing what I can to help Hammet here. But it will not matter whether Hammet is freed or not if you neglect your responsibilities and stay here."

Ivan looked again to his companions, unsure how much he should say. "Lady Layana... how much do you know about our mission?"

"Only what Hammet told me," she said. "For as long as we've had you, we've known a day was coming when you would have to leave. I can tell you now... would you like to have this conversation in private, Ivan?"

"My companions can stay," he said. "This is involves them as well."

"Very well." Layana rose from her seat and stood before the fireplace. "When Hammet was a young man, he set off for the western seas with a shabby boat and only a few coins to his name. He risked everything to go to a distant land to search for trade opportunities that he would not find in Angara. A storm struck and he nearly died... but he was saved by a group of Jupiter Adepts."

Ivan's eyes grew wide, but he said nothing.

"They gave him a bag of gold doubloons, and the advice that kick-started his career in trade," Layana continued. "Namely, to buy silk in Xian and sell it in Tolbi. At the time it seemed an absurd idea, and doubtless he would have ignored such advice from anyone else. But they knew things that they should not have, and Hammet understood that he must listen to them.

"They also gave him two other things which he was expected to guard closely in return for their help. One was the Shaman's Rod. And the other was-"

"Me," Ivan said.

"Yes." Layana held her hands, and turned to stare into the flickering fireplace. "The Adepts told Hammet that one day, many years from then, Mt. Aleph would erupt. And that on that day, the baby boy in his arms would need to set off on a journey. He would need to take the Shaman's Rod to the continent of Hesperia."

She turned back to them. "What exactly you need to do there, I do not know. I did not meet Hammet until a few years after this had all happened, when Kalay was already a growing city and you were taking your first steps. So I can only repeat what he told me."

"This is a lot to take in," Ivan said. "All these years, you knew about my powers, even the term 'Adept' and you never said anything?"

"Hammet and I discussed it many times," Layana said. "We had... differing opinions on the matter."

"Hesperia..." Ivan muttered. "That's the continent west of Angara. There's nothing out there to see besides mountains and jungles. What business could I have with the Shaman's Rod in a place like that?"

"Does that mean our journey will take us that far?" Isaac asked. "If the Jupiter Adepts foresaw in, then that must mean we'll end up there eventually."

"I have no idea," Ivan said. "Maybe this is something I have to do on my own, after our quest is finished."

Isaac frowned. Or more likely, it means we're destined to fail at Venus Lighthouse...

"I'm sorry Ivan," Layana said. "I wish we could have prepared you better for this."

"I understand," Ivan said. "Well, I don't... But I feel in my heart that you both did your best. It couldn't have been easy, but I think I get it."

"When you return, I promise you Hammet and I will both be waiting," Layana said, determined. "And there will be no more secrets."

They told Layana about the group they were following, and she said to them that while she had heard nothing about such an unusual group of people passing through, she would have an alert sent out to the guards. If anyone spotted Saturos' group within Kalay or the surrounding areas, they would have word sent at once. Isaac didn't want them to try to stop or arrest Saturos' group, as that would just be a quick way to get killed, but it was better than nothing. At least hearing some word of when and where they had been would be helpful.

Ivan wanted to enjoy every moment of being home he could before they left. He and Layana quickly left together, leaving the others to themselves.

The Adepts were still worn out from their long trek through the desert, so after a filling dinner, they decided to retire early. Mia and Feizhi were given a guest room to share, and Ivan naturally wanted to sleep in his old bedroom. Thus, Garet and Isaac were left with a room between the two of them.

The moon was full, and its light shined behind the drawn curtains.

Isaac tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. Garet was having no such trouble, his gentle snoring being the only sound to hear, save for the occasional stirrings of wind outside.

There was no rest to be had. Isaac tossed and turned for a time that could have been an hour, or perhaps five, but he felt no closer to sleep.

Eventually he gave up, and drew himself up. He got dressed and wandered outside to see if he could find something to eat somewhere.

The hour was late. The palace was dark, illuminated only by the stray candle here and there, and the moonlight streaming through open windows. Isaac encountered no one as he wandered unfamiliar halls, his sense of direction quickly lost.

Eventually he found his way to an open hall, and immediately felt a rush of warm, outside air as he stepped out into a courtyard. He soon saw he was standing before a garden surrounding a marble fountain, and that he was not along.

Mia stood alone in the open, her hands clasped behind her back. She was staring up at the night sky, unaware of his presence.

He considered whether he should turn and leave, or join her. Would it be awkward if he walked over and greeted her? Was he interrupting some moment of privacy?

Before he could make a decision, she seemed to sense his presence, turning her head to the side and catching sight of him.

"Ah, Isaac." She smiled, amused. "You can't sleep either?"

"I... guess not," he managed.

"Care to join me?" Mia asked, pointing to a stone bench.

He walked over and sat beside her, giving a start at the cold stone against the bare skin of his legs. Mia did not seem to notice or mind.

"It's a lovely night," Mia said, looking around at the garden. "On nights like this I can't help but think of home."

"Home..." Isaac repeated. "Vale is closer now than it's been since Garet and I first left. If we wanted, we could go back..."

Mia looked to him, perhaps wondering if he was going to say more.

Of course, he could not go back. Neither could she. Ivan was only fortunate enough to visit his home because it happened to be right on their path.

"I should write a letter to my mother," Isaac said. "I'm sure they could arrange to have it sent from here. I never said goodbye when I left. I didn't get the chance..."

"Isaac..." Mia said softly.

He blinked, and then realised a tear had fallen down his cheek.

Quickly, he wiped it away, embarrassed that he'd let her see that.

"I'm... I'm sorry," he said. "I-I don't know why I-"

"It's okay," Mia said, her voice gentle and reassuring. "There's nothing wrong with it. I won't think any less of you."

"I shouldn't," he said. Mentally, he kicked himself. Why would he say it like that?

"Isaac," she said warmly, taking his hand in hers. "It's okay."

That was the moment that broke his mask. He felt the tears coming, and knew now that there was no hiding it. Mia pulled him close, her arms around his back, and let him rest his head on her shoulder as he cried.

The weight of everything had been crushing him, and he hadn't even realised it until now. He was so good at hiding it from everyone that he'd hidden it from himself.

"I don't know if I can do this," he said to her. "There's so many people, so many places... All of it is my responsibility. How can I make any choices knowing that the wrong one could doom the entire world?"

Mia didn't answer the question. Perhaps she didn't have an answer.

"When I realised Feizhi had to come with us, all I could think about was how that was another life that I was now responsible for," Isaac continued. "If she was always around, how I would have to ensure every day that nothing happened to her. Because if I made one mistake, and she paid the price for it, I would never be able to forget that. Even if I could save the world, someone who trusted me and followed me had met their end because of it."

"We know you're human, Isaac," Mia said to him. "You aren't perfect, and you don't have to be. I know you try to put on a strong face for our sake. Being a leader doesn't mean taking on all the pressure, all the responsibility... all the risk."

Isaac pulled away from her, wiping his eyes on the sleeve of his shirt. He reluctantly met her eyes, and was surprised to see a glimmer of guilt in them.

"I risked my life in the desert because I convinced myself that I shouldn't drink the water," Mia said hesitantly. "I thought that was the noble thing to do. What you would do. But then, when we came upon Feizhi and the antlion, and you just threw yourself in there without hesitation..."

"I know," he admitted, remembering how angry with him she'd been. "It was hasty. There wasn't much time to assess the situation; all I could do was jump in and be a clear target so you guys could get Feizhi out of there..."

"But it was not the first time you've been a human target," Mia continued. "Back at Mercury Lighthouse you took a direct hit from Saturos so that we would have the chance to disable his sword arm. It was incredibly risky, and you could have easily died. Do you remember that?"

Isaac reached down to his side, gently feeling the flesh above his hip, and remembering the feeling of Saturos' sword going through it. "How could I forget?"

"It seems to me that your first instinct when things get rough is to jump in front of the danger and take the hit so we don't have to," Mia said. Her tone softened, and she continued, "I'm bringing this up because I'm worried about you. We all are. To be so eager to sacrifice yourself..."

"I'm not trying to..." He couldn't finish saying it. How could he refute something when he didn't actually believe it?

"You take so much weight on your shoulders, Isaac," Mia said. "We humans... we're not machines. We can only do so much on our own."

"But I have to," Isaac insisted. "You and the others follow me. If I falter, who could take the lead? You guys need me to be strong, or else..."

Or else you might face the doubts I have every day, he thought. You will lose that little bit of hope I inspire and realise how impossible the task before us really is.

"We're all in this together, Isaac," Mia said. "To the end. Look at what Ivan is giving up here for the sake of this mission. He's leaving behind his worried mother, and his imprisoned father, because he knows how important this task is. And that importance means that it's all the more essential for us to support one another."

"Okay," Isaac said. "You can start by telling me what exactly has been bothering you so much lately."

She blinked. "What...?"

"You're upset at me because I'm taking these burdens on my own," Isaac said. "But back in the desert you wouldn't tell me what it was that was bothering you so much."

"That's..." She was caught completely off-guard. "That's not what we're talking about right now."

"I had a realisation. You're a healer, Mia. You're so used to being the one who fixes others that you don't know how to fix yourself. How can you get on my case about not confiding in my friends when you can't either?"

Mia was on her feet then, indignant anger flashing in her eyes. "That is not true! You're just deflecting now, trying to make this about me!"

Isaac stood up too, for some reason. "It's not a one-way street. If you want me to confide in you and trust you like that, you have to do the same."

Mia turned away, unable to look at him. Isaac was then aware of the hard edge in his voice, and regretted it.

"I'm sorry," he said to her. "I went too far."

"No," Mia said softly. "You're right. It's hypocritical of me to stand here and chastise you for not trusting us when I..."

She kept her eyes on the ground, and Isaac realised it was not in hurt, but in shame.

"There's a lot I've doubted lately," Mia said slowly. "What Hama said to me really got under my skin. I was having such a hard time coming to terms with what Alex had done, and to hear that... Well, I guess I've just been wondering how it could be possible. He... didn't suddenly turn against our clan when he lit the lighthouse. But that..."

Mia was struggling to find the words.

"To make a very long story short, I trusted Alex. And after everything he's done, I guess I've been having a hard time letting myself trust anyone else. I'm sorry for that. You and the others have been good to me, and do not deserve such treatment."

"I guess I hadn't thought about that," Isaac admitted. "Forgive me. I pushed too hard."

He had been so sure it had been Hama's warning that had affected Mia so, but what she'd just said painted a different picture. Isaac hadn't realised just how lonely Mia must have been with her only family gone. Sure, she'd had her apprentices, but they were only children; not confidants.

At the heart of it, it wasn't about prophecies or the fate of the world, but just a girl who'd been hurt who was afraid of getting hurt again.

"If anyone pushed too much, it was me," Mia said. "I know that you try to put on a strong face for our sake. I shouldn't have chosen a moment of vulnerability to confront you about it."

Isaac laughed, half in exasperation, and ran his hand through his hair. "I guess we both have a lot to work on."

"Perhaps we could talk about this more later?" Mia suggested. "If we start pouring out our problems to each other, we'll get no sleep."

"Yeah," he agreed. "We have a long road ahead of us. Plenty of time to figure all this out."

Mia smiled, and then - much to his surprise - leaned up on the tips of her toes and kissed him quickly on the cheek.

"S-sorry," she said, her face red. "Um, good night Isaac."

Isaac had a million questions, but again, she'd slipped through his fingers. He stood there, the feeling of her lips lingering on his cheek, as she disappeared under the stone archway, leaving him alone in the moonlit courtyard.

A/N: Well! "95% confirmed to be in Smash Ultimate" huh? Would that I could go back in time, to let my past self down gently. That Grinch leak looked so legitimate, I was shocked to find it was fake. I've been waiting for Isaac to make it to Smash since the Melee days, and I was so sure this time that it was real. I'll leave last chapter's comment up, as a testament to how disappointing being a Golden Sun fan can be. In any case, we might not have Smash, but we will always have fanfiction.

About this chapter:

I considered having them fight the manticore in the desert rather than the antlion, and while the manticore is one of the more memorable bosses in the game, I eventually decided against it. I felt like the environment of the antlion made for a more interesting fight, and I liked the idea of making it a really clever enemy that Isaac struggles with. I enjoy fights with monsters a lot more when they have human-level intelligence, rather than just dumb brute force. I also wasn't really sure how to translate the manticore's in-game abilities into a fight that actually made sense (this is the same reason the Tret fight was changed so much). Also, them finding the manticore already slain by Saturos' group made for a nice homage to the giant snake from Final Fantasy VII.

I always felt like Feizhi would have made a great temporary party member. I would like to see a Golden Sun where you could have more than four characters in your group at once. So her joining the group is kind of a way to explore that idea. She won't be around for the rest of the story; I'm not changing it that much! But she will be tagging along for a little while, until she's able to fulfil that vision that she foresaw.

I'm giving Bunza a slightly expanded role in the story too. In the game he's a very forgettable NPC who essentially shows up out of nowhere to provide a getaway vehicle for Hammet when you bust him out of prison. I wanted to give Ivan another friendly face in Kalay, and I prefer to repurpose existing characters over making up new ones, so here he is.

Garet being excited about Colosso is the beginning of one of the plotlines I've been most excited to write in this novelization. I'm really looking forward to that part of the story, and I hope it turns out well and you all enjoy it too.

I tried to mix things up in the conversation with Lady Layana, while still keeping it close to the game version. Since it's so important, and hints at things that will happen in TLA, there's not really much that can be changed. I did take out those two generic guards who hang around, who I always felt had no business being around for such an important and personal conversation.

Isaac's comment about Vale being close during his talk with Mia is of course a reference to the fact that this is the part of the game where you go back to Vale and Vault and do sidequests. Obviously, as the pressing nature of their mission is being treated more realistically here than in a video game, they cannot spare the time to go off in the opposite direction.

Interested in what takes me so long to write these chapters? Follow me on Twitter (handle bacorium) for chapter updates, or to just chat. Enjoyed the chapter? Please take a minute to leave a review - it means a lot for me to get feedback on my work.

Next Chapter: Come Sail Away With