Disclaimer: I will never own Ecco the Dolphin! I hope you enjoy the third chapter!

Summary: The Prime Mover finally meets Ecco again, but why does he seem so reluctant to leave her, and what will be her last words to him? Plus, what will his final words be?

Chapter Three: The Confession

"Prime Mover!" I heard the Chosen One call out to me from the other side of the glass separating us. "One of the Circle I met on the way here and your son told me to find you and speak to you."

"They were right to," I answered him. "Ecco, something happened since last we saw you. One moment we were as dumb animals, then we were not! But this intelligence has made us aware of little we understood! And now we are in grave danger! You are within part of some horrible weapon built by man. It is no Engine of Salvation, but an Engine of Death! There are others who can explain the parts I do not understand. Please find them and help us all!" What I was saying was all true; Ecco was within some destructive man-made device, and I understood very little of it regardless of the acknowledgment that has been born and opened in my soul. The Bottle-nosed dolphin eyed me sorrowfully, as if he had great reluctance to leave me once more. But reluctance was not all I saw in his sad expression; I also caught longing, as if he wanted something from me, as if he… Could it be he...? I stopped that thought, thinking that it was impossible that he would have such feelings for me, but I had the notion that this may be the last time we would see each other, so I decided to let it all out, to let him know what burns my heart. I just desired for him to know before we parted. "Ecco?" I was struggling hard to keep my voice steady, to not expose my nervousness.

"Yes?" The Chosen One asked, as if he were hoping he would hear me confess something he wanted me to say.

"I…" It was so hard to let out, knowing that he may not feel the same way, but the hope visible in his eyes made me slightly determined to let him know how I felt about him.

"It's alright… Just tell me…"

"I love you…" I felt so much dread for his reply, but I felt relief, glad that I had finally confessed my love for the Chosen Dolphin.

Ecco's beautiful and caring eyes revealed happiness, as if he has been waiting for this moment ever since the first time we met. "I love you, too," were the four words that escaped from his mouth, so perfectly clear and joyous…and yet sad, probably because he was just about to leave me for good this now. "I'll never forget you, fair Prime Mover…"

"And I'll never forget you, Ecco, for I always thought you were courageous to enter this terrifying weapon from the inside, and to unite us all despite the hardships that would bring… Pilot has told me that he wishes he were more like you, and I'll see to it that in the future he will somehow… I wish you luck when you reach the heart of this machine…"

"Thank you, Prime Mover," Ecco replied sincerely. "You and the rest of the dolphins here will always be in my heart, for after I destroy the Engine of Death, I must return to my own time period if I can."

"But how can you?"

"I will attempt to go through the Temporal Vortex the Portal through Time."

"I hope you do, then…"

"Thank you…"

"No," I said. "Thank you, for you united us all when each dolphin sect has been separated and against each other for thousands of years after man left us…"

"You're welcome… I would do anything for my own kind…and for you…"

"Ecco…"

"Good-bye, Prime Mover," he said in great sadness.

I could feel my heart tear in two, knowing that I'd never see him again, and that we would all live without him. "Farewell, Ecco…" The Chosen Dolphin turned to continue his journey in the tunnel, but then, after a minute or more, he came swimming back, as if he were going somewhere else. The final look he gave me expressed a great deal of what he kept in his heart; grief, relief, joy, and love… I tried to appear as if I were happy as well, and that I was more than grateful for everything he did for us, but I was too heartbroken to show it, sadly having the notion that we would never see each other again. Farewell, my love, I thought. I shall miss you, but I'll try to move on because I know that's what you would want me to do… As his fluke disappeared into the darkness, my heart rose, for the memories I had of him would never be forgotten even though he was gone forever…

Author's Note: By the way, if you didn't know (no offense), fluke is another word for a dolphin's or whale's tail. I really hope you liked this! There will be four chapters in all, I think, or maybe even five! Please review and tell me what you think! But please don't flame me!