The New Kid
Chapter 3: Memories
Disclaimer: I don't own Golden Sun. I only play the game. I do own this story, so don't steal it.
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"How about we go hiking today?"
"But Da-ad," complained a 12 year old Isaac, "I don't want to go outside."
"Why don't you go hiking with your father, Isaac? It'll be fun! And besides, you really should get outside more," said Isaac's mom, Dora, as she dried another plate.
Isaac and his father, Kyle, were sitting at the dining table, having just finished breakfast. Kyle had the morning's paper stretched before him, and Isaac was already reading the comics.
"Isaac," said Kyle in an undertone so Dora wouldn't hear. Isaac turned to his dad. Kyle lifted the newspaper so that Dora couldn't see him. "I need to talk to you," he whispered, mostly mouthing the words. "So," he said in his normal voice, "what do you think?"
Isaac glanced at his mom, then the comics in front of him, then back to his dad. "Okay."
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Isaac kicked a stone alone the gravel path where small clumps of grass poked through every few feet. He and Kyle had already walked about thirty minutes, and Isaac was starting to wonder if his dad would ever talk to him about whatever needed to be talked about. The two rounded a massive boulder beside the trail. Isaac looked below the path to his right, watching the rushing water of the river twenty feet below.
"Here we go." Isaac stopped walking and looked back to his father. "This should be private enough. Don't you agree, Isaac?"
Isaac glanced around. The river was to his right, a hill of large rocks to the left. He started to nod, but then his eyes fell upon a yellow sign in the shape of a diamond. The picture on the sign was a silhouette of rocks tumbling down a hill. Below that was a white rectangular sign. "What about that?" Isaac pointed to the signs.
Kyle turned back around to see the signs. "Hmm…'Caution: Falling rocks. Please keep off hill.' Don't worry about it Isaac. I only want to discuss some things without your mother hearing." Kyle smiled to his son, who smiled back.
But Isaac wasn't completely reassured. A thought tugged at the back of his mind.
This isn't safe, Isaac. You shouldn't be here.
But Dad says it's all right, Isaac argued with himself.
It's not all right, Isaac, and you know it. Get out of here. You know what this is really about.
Then I just won't use it.
How can you kid yourself like that? You know you can't control it!
"Everything okay, Isaac?" said Kyle's voice breaking into Isaac's thoughts. Isaac smiled and nodded. "Good." Kyle smiled himself. Now, what I wanted to talk about was, well, you know."
Isaac bowed his head some. "My powers?"
Kyle nodded. "Yeah. We really need to work on that. You have to learn how to control it. I know it's only small things right now, but it can easily grow. You need to harness the powers you possess before it's too late. So, starting today, you start training. Don't worry," Kyle put a hand on Isaac's shoulder, "I'll be there to help you every step of the way."
Isaac looked up into Kyle's eyes. "Promise?"
"Promise." Kyle smiled before backing away. "Now, where to begin? I know! See this little plant here?" He pointed to a small plant growing next to the trail (the side next to the river). Isaac nodded. "See if you can make it grow any."
Isaac kneeled before the plant and raised his right hand. Don't do this, Isaac. Isaac closed his eyes as a golden glow surrounded him before flowing to include the plant. Slowly, the plant began to grow. After a few inches, a small flower began to bloom.
"Well done, Isaac!" said Kyle after about a minute. The light faded and Isaac opened his eyes. The small plant had grown into a dandelion with a medium sized yellow flower at the tip and several leaves sprouting from the base. Some of the grass around the dandelion had also grown and was now a healthy shade of green. "That was great! You may already be able to control it!"
Isaac stood and stepped back a few steps, observing the weed. "Was that it?"
"That weed was a small task, Isaac. It seems to me that your powers focus around plants and making things grow." Kyle stood thinking for a moment. "Yes, I think that should do it for today."
Isaac sighed with relief and walked over to the boulder where he had set his pack. As he leaned over to grab a strap, though, he felt a sudden surge of his power welling up within him, and he stopped moving. Let it pass. Please, let it pass, begged Isaac. Please, let me control it. But the feeling only grew more. Now you've done it, Isaac. You triggered your powers!
"Isaac? Are you okay?"
Isaac stood and turned back to his dad, gripping at his chest. "It's my powers. They…it's like…it's building up inside me…" Isaac sat back down beside his bag, still clutching his chest, but now shivering as well.
A look of grave concern consumed Kyle's face, and he started towards Isaac. "Just stay calm, Isaac. It'll be okay. Everything will be fine." Kyle reached out a hand to touch Isaac's shoulder.
Suddenly, the golden glow surrounded the 12-year-old's body, but brighter than ever before. Kyle was knocked back by a small wave of the energy that radiated from the boy, causing him to fall to the ground. Kyle stared for a moment at his son, wondering what to do, when he felt a slight rumble from below. Earthquake? No, it couldn't be. As far as he could remember, the region had never suffered an earthquake before. But the ground was defiantly vibrating. Could it be that Isaac could control the power of the earth itself? Or was this just some side effect from the burst of energy?
"Isaac, you have to try and control it," said Kyle, trying to stay calm, more for his son than himself. This had happened before, and Kyle knew that the feeling of the surges scared Isaac. But being scared only made it worse. The last time it happened, it wasn't until Isaac had calmed down that the powers were then controlled. "Just stay calm, Isaac. You can do this."
Just then, a pebble rolled across the trail between Isaac and Kyle. Kyle watched it roll away towards the river. It was then that he remembered the small earthquake and realized that it had been increasing in strength. Looking up, Kyle could see some of the smaller rocks starting to slip, and his eyes widened.
Isaac raised his head to look at Kyle, who glanced at Isaac before turning back to the hill. Isaac looked to the hill and saw it too: the rocks were starting to fall. Kyle took a step back before turning and running towards his son by the boulder. "Isaac! You can stop this! You have to stop this!" shouted Kyle. Just then, the ground shook harder, causing Kyle to loose his footing and fall back down.
"Dad!" Isaac jumped to his feet, but was quickly knocked back down. "Dad! Hold on!"
Think Isaac. Think. It's your fault this is happening.
What can I do?
Get calm. You have to calm down.
I can't. I'm scared.
Don't be scared. If you want to save your dad, you can't be scared!
"Isaac, I know you can control this!" Kyle shouted. "I believe in you, Isaac! You can do it!"
Isaac stared at his dad before closing his eyes, trying to focus his powers. Kyle watched him and could feel the tremors receding. Kyle smiled to himself and stood again. Soon, the vibrating stopped completely and Isaac opened his eyes. Kyle nodded to him with a smile, and Isaac grinned back. The golden glow had already faded away.
Kyle took a step forward, but stopped. Had he imagined it, or had he felt another vibration? But Isaac had felt it too. Both of them looked up at the hill of rocks as a few stones started to tumble from the top, knocking other rocks loose as they fell.
What happened next happened quickly. Before either of them could react, large rocks were falling down the hill towards them. Isaac would never fully understand it all. He would later remember seeing the rocks and boulders rolling and bouncing across the trail; remember seeing his father there one moment, but gone the next; remember the water splashing up as the hundreds of rocks fell.
After a few minutes, it all stopped. The rockslide came to a halt, blocking the trail before a stunned Isaac, who still stood by the large boulder, his pack still on the ground.
"D-Dad?" stuttered Isaac before walking to the edge of the trail. Isaac fell to his knees, staring at the churning waters below. He could feel tears welling up in his eyes, blurring his vision. "Dad?" Isaac closed his eyes and shook his head, not wanting to believe what he knew was real. "Dad, don't go. Don't go…"
Isaac bent over, his knees still beneath him, hugging himself. He didn't wipe away the tears that flowed from his eyes as he sobbed.
After a few minutes, Isaac raised his head, and his eye's fell upon the dandelion he had used his powers on. It had been flattened by the passing rocks. The golden flower lay crushed in the grass, a few petals scattered around it.
I can revive it, thought Isaac, wiping away his tears and reaching for it. But something stopped him. Instead, Isaac reached out and touched the plant with his index finger. I…can feel its pain…I can feel it dying…
Not liking the feeling of the plant, Isaac withdrew his hand. He was alone.
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The digits on the clock changed from 6:59 to 7:00, and the voice of the radio host could be heard. Isaac groaned, but reached for the snooze button. The sound cut of as an announcer was telling the day's weather. Isaac sat up in bed, trying to erase his nightmare from his mind.
The memories had haunted his dreams ever since it had happened five years ago, and Isaac rarely got any good rest anymore. He had grown used to it, learning to clear the thoughts from his mind at the start of the day and avoid thinking of it again before going back to sleep the next night.
Isaac sighed and walked across the room. He grabbed his clothes that he had laid out the night before and made his way to the restroom.
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And that concludes chapter 3. Sorry if it was a bit confusing. I have to admit, I never thought I'd be able to write that whole flashback scene. Sorry that it took so long to update. Between school letting out and me traveling some, I couldn't really get this typed 'til now. I know I probably left a zillion questions unanswered with this chapter, but all of that will come up in later chapters. R&R please (you don't have too. I just like saying that.) And no flames.