Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN GOLDEN SUN!!!

A/N: Another longer one! I'm on a roll.

WAKE UP, sleepyhead! Flint mentally yelled at me. I yawned and glanced at the hourglass on the wall. 6:00! I got up quickly.

Ivan was missing from his bed, but Garet was still sleeping like a rock.

"Wake him up!" complained Forge, climbing up onto Garet's head. "I can't get him to wake up!"

I yelled. I shook him. Finally, I had to go to extreme results.

"Earthquake," I muttered. Garet was promptly flung out of bed by the quake.

"Wha-? What happened?" he asked sleepily.

At the exit to Bilibin, I gave one last look at the tree.

"What are we going to do, anyway?" wondered Garet.

"We're going to try to get through that barricade, of course," answered Ivan before I had a chance to open my mouth.

After a half-hour extremely boring walk, we saw the barricade.

"We can get through that, easy," Garet said confidently. I agreed-the barricade was only a few crates piled on top of each other.

"I think if I push that one this way..." I concentrated on Move. The box moved without destroying the barricade. I Moved it back to its place when we were safely on the other side.

Another group of the tree-people were standing there, on top of each others' shoulders. I passed them with a shudder.

We continued past Kolima Forest. Ivan stared at me. "Shouldn't we go in there?"

I shook my head. "No, let's go to Kolima the town first."

Entering the town, Garet shivered. "It's so quiet."

The houses were built out of trees, and tree-people were frozen in place in various parts of the village. Bits of sparkling something were shining in places around the town.

"Deathly quiet," I agreed.

Ivan walked over to the nearest tree-person as if in a trance. He bit his lip and concentrated on the tree. He looked alarmed.

"What's wrong?" asked Garet.

"This tree was a person..." he murmured.

"Well, yeah!" said Garet. "Everyone in Kolima has been turned into trees. Why? Do you know why this happened?" he asked me.

"No, of course not!" I answered, confused. "How could I?"

Ivan turned back to the tree-person.

"What is it now, Ivan?" asked Garet, annoyed.

"That sparkly stuff all over-what is it?"

"I don't know!" I exclaimed. Suddenly, the sky turned dark. I could feel Psynergy that was not my own flooding through my body.

"What's happening?" cried Garet.

"My mind! Someone is attacking my mind!" shrieked Ivan.

"I...can't...take it..." I grunted. I felt like every bone in my body had been broken. And not just my body. My mind felt like it was being ripped apart. There had to be some way to stop it!

Garet and Ivan collapsed also, hugging the ground fiercely, hoping it would stop.

"What's that?" wondered Garet. "Something is falling from the sky!"

"It's sparkling!" Ivan exclaimed.

"You mean..." My voice trailed off. I didn't have enough strength to continue speaking.

"This could be the stuff that...we've got to...get out of here!" Ivan struggled to get up.

I imitated him, but no luck. We were stuck fast, too exhausted-feeling to move.

I could feel a strange pulse in my mind and throughout my body. I could see a Psynergetic dome around me. I braced myself for the transformation into a tree. But nothing happened.

"Isaac? What just happened? That barrier, did it save us?"

"Yes, it did. I don't understand it, but it did."

"I think so, too." agreed Ivan. "I think I know what those domes were. It was our Psynergy."
Garet hopped up. "You're crazy! I didn't use any Psynergy!"

"Garet," I requested. "Just listen. I think it makes sense..."

"Hey... I can stand!" realized Garet. "Ivan, Isaac, it's okay! Get up!"

I thought it was ironic that now he was ordering me to get up just like I had done this morning. I transferred my weight to my hands and sat up, yawned, then stood up.

"Those barriers," continued Ivan. "We thought that Psynergy was only used when we concentrate, right?"

"Uh-huh," I agreed.

"Anyway, I'm sure it was Psynergy. That must mean that some Psynergy acts only when you need it."

"You mean, like when we're in trouble or something?" Garet looked startled.

Ivan nodded.

"It's like when we strike critical hits in battle," I compared. "It's there when we need it."

"Wouldn't it be something if we could use this at any time, huh, Isaac?" Garet asked excitedly.

"Yeah."

The sky turned dark again and the sparkles started falling.

"Watch out!" warned Ivan.

I could feel the barriers reappearing.

"Hroom! Why? Why don't they turn into trees?" demanded a mysterious, deep voice.

"Who are they?" asked another voice, female and gentle. "What people are these, who are immune to Tret's Glamour? Have they come to save the village with these powers? It will not be enough to save those of Kolima."

"They have earned their fate." grated the first voice. "Kolima took their axes to me, and I shall take mine to them!"

"You children may not know this...but we are dying," the second said sorrowfully. "And Kolima Forest will wither and die when we are gone."

"We are not the only ones who will die, Laurel," continued the first. "Once we are gone, they will go, also!" He sounded rather happy at this pronouncement.

"Tret was once a kindly forest king." explained Laurel. "But he is slowly dying, and his heart has been torn in two...His wrathful side turned the people of Kolima into trees. The kind Tret speaks no more."

"The kindly heart invites destruction!" pronounced Tret.

"If you wish to save those who have been turned into trees you must reawaken his gentle side. Look for Tret deep within the forest."

The sky turned light, the sparkles stopped falling, and our Psynergetic domes went back down.

"Isn't there anything we can do?" worried Ivan.

"We can try to save Tret," I said doubtfully. It seemed rather hopeless to me, but I wasn't going to say that aloud after Ivan's breakdown in Bilibin.

"How?"

"I really don't have any ideas right now," Ivan looked upset. "But I'm sure we'll think of something."

"Let's get on with it!" exclaimed Garet.

Walking around Kolima was very disheartening. And then I spotted a Venus Djinni, hidden in a fence.

Go get him! cried Flint silently. Go on! It's a Venus Djinni!

I found a secret back entrance to the nearby house and went down the ladder. It led down to another cave. At the end of the tunnel, we found steps leading up to the surface and to the Djinni.

Flint popped into visibility.

"Granite!" he squeaked excitedly. The Djinni turned to us.

"Flint?" he asked in disbelief. "I can't believe it's you! Some lumberjack took me from the forest and hid me here and oh I'm so glad to see you and are there any other of us here?" He said all this very quickly. I groaned. A Flint clone, I thought, just what I needed.

"Granite's my best friend," Flint explained to me, then turned back and started chatting with Granite again. "No other Venus Djinn, but Forge and Gust are here!"

At the sound of their names, the Djinn put themselves on standby.

"Granite! Oh! How great to see you! I haven't seen you in so long! Isn't this neat! Goody!" called Gust, fluttering around madly.

"Hi, Granite." said Forge unenthusiastically, looking as though he wanted to run quickly in the other direction.

"Hi, Forge! Hi, Gust!" greeted Granite. "So...Flint! Show me where I'll be!"

"Sure!" exclaimed Flint happily.

Granite looked up at me. "By the way, I Create a mighty earthen barrier! See ya!"

I could hear them jabbering madly in my head.

I hope we find Quartz next! cried Granite hopefully.

Vine first. corrected Flint. He laughed. Speaking of Quartz, wouldn't she love to know this?

Most definitely! agreed Granite. This'll be fun...

That's exactly what I think it won't be, I thought to myself...