Chapter 2

"Isaac, wake up"

Someone was shaking me awake.

"Please, dear, wake up!"

Groggily, I opened my eyes to see my mother looking down at me with worry plastered over her features. Immediately, I was fully awake. "What –" I began but was soon cut off by a crack of thunder.

"Hurry, Isaac! The village is in danger; we need to get of here!" Before I could comprehend what in Venus she was talking about, she pulled me out of bed. "Gather only what you need," she told me as I quickly dressed.

After throwing on my tunic I asked her, "What's going on, Mom? Why are we in danger?"

She creased her brow as she frantically tied my cloak, (which she had recently taken off the hook with her Psynergy), around me. "It's this storm. A large boulder on Mt. Aleph has fallen and is heading for Vale," she explained grimly. "The elders are trying their best to hold it back for as long as they can so the villagers can escape!"

At first, I was taken by shock before fear began to crawl up my senses. "W-What?" was all I could muster as I stared dumbly at Mother.

"There's no time to explain, Isaac," she said urgently, "We need to go, now!"Again, she dragged me with her then stopped at the stairway. "Do you have everything you need?"

I took a quick glance around my room and nodded after seeing nothing important to bring along.

"Good. A lost possession can be replaced. A lost life can't." We descended the stairs in haste, hearing my father call for us at the bottom.

"Dora! Isaac! Hurry! The boulder could fall any second now!" he warned, hurrying back outside. I was confused at both my parents' different description of the situation. So the boulder hasn't fallen yet, which would be logical since I was still alive and not crushed under.

I followed Mother into the rain. Wind and water struck my face as soon as I took the first step out the door. Thunder rumbled above while lightning flashed in the dark clouds that covered the entire sky.

Father was waiting outside, completely drenched to the bone. "Kyle…" Mother began, eyeing Father with deep concern. "The boulder… will they be able to stop it?"

Father shook his head, giving both Mother and I a frown. "I don't know, Dora," he answered truthfully. "The elders will not be able to hold it for long… Hurry, take Isaac and head to the Plaza."

"What about you?" Mother cried, "Aren't you coming?"

Father walked up the path and stopped. "I'm going to help evacuate the other villagers."

"Wait, Kyle, let me help you!" She started in his direction, but Father quickly stopped her.

"No! It's too dangerous! Please, just take Isaac to the Plaza!"

I frowned at him. "Dad…" I moaned, afraid that he would not escape in time. I, too, wanted to help… but neither my Psynergy nor my strength was strong enough to aid any villagers in need.

Mother shook her head and faced me. "Isaac is old enough to go to the Plaza by himself. Right, Isaac?"

I hesitated before giving a slight nod. Indeed I could go to the Plaza alone; I did it many times to run errands. It was just that I did not want to leave my parents until I knew they were safe with me.

With an assuring smile, Mother nodded back. "Okay Isaac," she began, "I'm going to help your father. Now head to the Plaza. We'll meet you shortly, okay?"

"I... Okay. Be careful!" I hollered over the wind and thunder. She waved to indicate she would and headed off with my father.

I watched them disappear from my sight before turning around to head for the Plaza. Soaked completely from head to toe in a matter of seconds, I shook from the cold as well as from fear.

A boulder, huh?

A stupid boulder was going to crush Vale… Impossible! But it truly could happen…

I started down the stairs when suddenly a tremor shook the earth and chunks of rock rained down before me, smashing the stairway to pieces.

Gasping at the frightful fact at how close I was to getting crushed by falling debris, I scampered away from the unusable stairs. There was no other way down from where I was so I had to take the other route I knew.

I ran past my house and passed Garet's empty home. I stopped when I saw Garet, struggling to pull a large chest with him. Quirking an eyebrow, I quickly ran up to him. "Garet, what are you doing? We have to get out of here!"

He looked at me, panic written all over his face. "I can't leave my stuff!" he cried, pulling the rope as hard as he could.

"Forget about your stuff!" I yelled. "We have to go! We can't take the stairs down there." I pointed past my house. "We'll have to take the long way."

I grabbed his arm and pulled him away with me.

"But… my valuables are in there!"

"Garet, do you want to get yourself killed? We don't have time!"

With a growl, the redhead gave in and nodded. "I guess you're right…"

"Come on!"

We ran across the bridge only to freeze from a deafening crack coming from the mountain. I stood frozen when a huge boulder, the size of a house, came crashing down Mt. Aleph only to be stopped by four elders standing in its path. With their Psynergy, the elders created a barrier to keep the large boulder at bay. But from the strained looks on the elders' faces, it did not seem like they could hold it forever.

"Ugh!" one of the elder's cried. "It's too heavy!"

"If we run out of Psynergy, Vale will be destroyed!" another exclaimed.

"We got keep this up until the villagers are safe!"

I watched in horror with Garet, feeling completely helpless. I wanted to help… I truly did. But I was too weak.

One of the elders fell on one knee in exhaustion. He turned around and saw us with wide eyes. "Hurry boys! Run! Get out of here!" he hollered.

"Isaac! The boulder's coming! Let's go!" Garet ran. So did I.

We ran as fast as we could. When we reached our usual meeting spot but I was stricken back at the boulders that had broken the fence and protective barrier. No longer was anyone able to enter the cave. Ignoring the sight, I continued to follow Garet. We kept running all the way to Felix's home.

I heard Jenna scream.

"Felix!"

"Hang on, Felix!" It was Father.

Feeling my stomach clench at the thought of something terrible had happened to one of my friends, I rushed to the scene. Felix was in the raging river, clinging onto a trapped log for dear life. Eyes closed tightly, I could see Felix trembling in the cold water.

Garet and I ran up to the riverside, to get a better look. My parents, Jenna and her parents were desperately trying to save the boy in the water. Father threw a rope but it did not reach Felix.

With a yelp, the boy lost his hold and was pulled under. I cried out his name in horror. No… it couldn't have happened… One of my best friends had been…

I heard Jenna sob from the deck and Garet whimper beside me.

Then, as if a miracle had occurred, the head of Felix emerged from the surface, gasping for air. Relief washed over me when I saw that my friend was still alive.

"Isaac!" It was Mother, she and the others had seen us. "What are you doing here? Get to the Plaza!" she cried.

I was about to answer but Father interjected. "Dora," he began, giving Mother a firm stare, "go with Jenna and find someone who can help us. I've used all of my Psynergy helping the other villagers."

Hesitating for only a moment, she nodded in response and took Jenna's hand. They came out the front door. Mother was evidently worn out from exhausting her Psynergy while Jenna was holding back her tears.

"I'm going up north to see if I can find anyone. Isaac, Garet, and Jenna, go to the Plaza and find someone who has Psynergy to help us. Understand?"

We nodded. She went north while the three of us headed south.

Jenna was in the lead. As we crossed the bridge I saw her glance sideways at her brother. I did as well, hoping that Felix would hang on for a little bit longer.

"We have to hurry!" the girl urged, sprinting much faster than I could since I was tired from having to run earlier.

At the Plaza, most of the evacuated villagers were gathered around the Psynergy Stone.

"Help! My brother fell in the river!" Jenna cried, once we reached the large, purple crystal. "We need someone with Psynergy to help us!"

The Mayor, Garet's grandfather, heard the news and rushed towards us. "What? Little Felix has fallen into the river? Brian! Hurry! Felix needs help!"

The one named Brian was a muscular man. Having just finished replenishing his Psynergy from the brilliant stone, the man leapt over to us.

"All right," he said, giving a confident smile to Jenna. "I have enough Psynergy to save your brother, kid."

Garet's grandfather placed a firm hand over my shoulder. "Isaac, lead Brian to Felix," he told me.

"Y-Yes, sir," I mumbled, trying to catch my breath.

"I'm coming too!" said Garet and Jenna at the same time. The Mayor looked reluctant before I turned and led the way. I heard him protest against Garet's decision to come along, but that didn't stop my friend from running right behind me.

I led Brian to where Felix was as fast as I could. We had reached the bridge and, thank the heavens, the boy was still there.

"Mom! Dad!" Jenna called out, "We're back!"

"Jenna?"

Mother saw us on the bridge. "Did you find anyone?"

Brian stepped up, "I'm here to help."

"Hurry, get down here!"

We went down the stairs and stood beside Mother where each of us prayed that our new-found helper could save Felix. Taking in a deep breath, Brian focused his Psynergy to cast a spell but his concentration was quickly broken by a thunderous cracking sound that came from above.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as I saw every detail of what happened next…

The horror on Father's face… The falling boulder… Jenna's parents… and Felix…

Dad…

No! I closed my eyes tightly, not wanting to see the terrible fate in front of me. I heard someone scream beside me but I did not know who. A deafening sound of cracking wood and splashing water came after as time sped up again. The feeling of a sudden heavy downpour of cold water made me cringe and tremble at the nightmare that had played out before my closed eyes.

I stiffened as I strained my ears to hear for voices; voices to indicate that Father and them were okay. However, it was awfully silent despite the sound of rain and running water.

Slowly, I opened my eyes and saw what I did not want to see: The dock was gone; completely destroyed. Father was gone. Jenna's parents were gone. So was Felix.

I was breathless and deep inside I felt terribly ill. Someone started to cry. I wanted to cry too.

No… I shook my head vigorously, not believing what I saw before me. They had to be alive…

I ran as fast as I could in search for help. Father… all of them… they needed help!

Unwanted tears blinded my vision and I hastily wiped them away. I had to get to the Plaza! Ignoring the strain in my legs, I ran with determination to find someone – anyone – who could save my father.

"Only the two of us survived…" said a voice, stopping me in my tracks. I gulped for air as I searched for the speaker.

"Who could have known that Sol Sanctum could unleash such power!" said another voice, discretely belonging to a female.

I listened intently to the voices, finally realizing that they were coming from the ledge above me. They had mentioned Sol Sanctum… What were they talking about? Who were they?

"It's amazing that we were spared…" the man said, bitterness evident in his tone.

"That switch must have been a trap…" said the woman with a snarl.

"It created such a powerful storm!" I heard the man growl.

I gasped, soaking up all the information that led to one damn explanation: They were the ones who started everything… They were the ones who created the storm.Fuming with anger, I clenched my fists so tightly that my knuckles turned white. It was because of them, my father is… Father is…

"Who would have known that Alchemy could possess such power…" the woman continued.

"We mustn't fail next time," the man said seriously.

The woman shortly laughed, "Next time, we'll certainly –"

"Isaac! Wait for me!"

Garet! Damn it, they must have heard him too…

I was right; above the ledge the two speakers appeared. They took one look at me before dropping down in my path. I was surprised at their appearance for they did not look like ordinary humans. Nor friendly…

Eyes of red glared right at me; their cold stare had frozen my body in fear. Evil was how I could describe the feeling that came from the pair of strangers. The blonde female, her skin a light pink, held a dangerous-looking scythe in her hand, indicating that she was capable of killing me… if she wanted to. The man, on the other hand, carried a large glimmering sword which also indicated that he could kill me as well… if he wanted to.

"Were you eavesdropping on us?" the man hissed, eyes seeming to glow in ferocity of the question.

I jumped and backed away. The only answer I could give was shaking my head 'no'.

Garet slowly came up behind me, "Isaac… They look scary…" he whispered.

The two strangers glanced at each other and nodded. With a tenacious smile, the woman pointed at me and said, "You little brat, forget everything you heard. Or…"

"Or we'll help you forget!" the man finished for her.

Surprised by their sudden attack, I had no time to react when they rushed at us. The woman attacked first, knocking Garet over the head with the handle of her weapon. With a small cry of pain, the boy collapsed face-first into the ground and didn't move.

Before my fear could turn to rage at what she had done, I saw a glimpse of the blue-skinned man in the corner of my eye before feeling something heavy slam into my head. Pain blinded my sight and all I saw was complete darkness. What I felt was my body falling and after that… I did not know.