"That wasn't me." Suddenly, the temperature dropped. It was extremely cold in the room now, much colder than it usually is in Matt's house. Alfred drew his jacket closer to him.

"Alfred? Is it cold in here or…" There was a knock on the window. Both boys glanced at each other, for a second, worried.

"Very funny Matt!"

"Alfred, that wasn't me." Matt said tiredly. Why did he get blamed for everything?

"So what was it?" Simultaneously, they turned around to face the big picture window behind them.

And what they saw made them scream like little girls.

It was a giant beast, like one that you would read about in a fantasy novel but this one was, well, to be frank, real. Its fur was such a shade of blue it was almost black and the hair clung to the creature in large clumps in certain parts and hung wildly in others. It snarled, showing its long yellow teeth and fangs. Its yellow eyes glinted in the moon light, red pupils giving a sense of terror. The beast howled and in the distance something howled back. And for some reason, a chill from the past ran down Matt's spine.

He recognized this creature.

In one swift movement, the beast swung its arm into the glass of the window, shattering it into tiny bits on the floor and sending Matt and Alfred ducking and covering under the couch. It jumped into the room with such great force it made the house shake like a leaf on a breezy day and caused a few objects to fall from the shelves. It sniffed the air, and then extended its claws underneath the couch to flip it up and out of the house, furthering the damage done to the window and mental scars that would plague the twin's dreams from time to time.

"Fret not, twins of the legend, for I am not an enemy." The beast extended a muscular arm, moon reflecting off of the fur and illuminating its claws. Both boys sat up and were slack jawed at the sight of a giant creature looming before them. The beast wore no more than dirt colored, ripped pants. On its back was a bow and arrow that was strapped to him by a leather strap going diagonally across its chest. It kneeled before Matt.

"Moon twin, I am your humble servant." Alfred looked at Matt, who really didn't understand what he was saying.

"Y-you're the keeper of the night?" He asked, timidly.

"Yes, I am Knox, leader of the wolves, and keeper of the night. I have been sent to you from Mother Amerika to tell you what she has given me to say."

"Mother…Amerika?" Alfred asked. 'Uh, I'm a dude,' Alfred thought, but didn't dare say. There wasn't any telling what this thing would do if he said anything more.

"Correct. She asks me to tell her twins this important information." He paused to get a piece of paper out of his back pockets. He cleared his throat and began to read in his deep voice:

"To my dear Twins: This may come as a shock to you, but you were not created to way you were believed to have been. Your story is quite different from the others. This is not the time for that story now, now is the time for your destiny. On the day of May the fifteenth, you are to meet Ouranos the Great and show him the ocarina. From there, he will tell you as much as he can, and once again our paths shall cross. On the way, the Bringer of Light will guide you along and show you how to get to Ouranos. Do not stray from the path, don't damage the ocarina, and please, PLEASE, don't talk to anyone who asks about the ocarina. All will be explained in time. I love you boys more than words could say. Stay safe! The location of the Pathway to Light is enclosed, and the notes to the song. Matthew, you've ten days to learn the song by heart and play it for Ouranos. Only you can do this. Don't let me down!

All my love,

Mom."

The last line made Alfred laughed out loud. The beast looked up at Alfred curiously.

"Is something wrong with him, Moon twin? Has he the plague?"

Matt gulped at being addressed by Knox. "Uh…no…it's just…"

"We don't HAVE mothers! Obviously this chick is insane, whoever she is. Is this a prank? Germany, is that you in that costume? I swear, it Cuba put you up to this…" Alfred stood and put his hand around the town fangs that stuck out of Knox's mouth and pulled. Hard.

Knox growled and threw Alfred across the room. Matt gasped and ran to him, kneeling down as Alfred began to try and prop himself up.

"Moon twin, has your brother no respect for the Elders?" Matt frowned, what was this guy talking about?

And then it hit him.

Once, a long time ago, before Matt was found by the nomads of his land, the Elders of the Earth oversaw him and made sure he was safe. They were not the highest ranking creatures that existed, but they were the ones who kept nature in harmony. Matt was a child of the land, as they had told him, and it was their goal to make sure he was safe. He remembered them all, give or take a few, since they had been like parents to him.

Matt slowly turned around to face Knox. "The…Elders?"

"Do you not remember young one?" said Knox, bowing his head.

"I-I do, but it's been so long since I've seen you guys. Where have you been?"

"Narnia." Alfred said, dazed. Matt looked down at his brother, frowning. Knox shook his head and extended his arm for Matt to grasp the paper with trembling hands.

"After so many years here on Earth and what with you not needing us anymore since you had found more you're your kind, we left." Knox bowed his head. "We were banished to the in-between, the place where all lost souls go."

"You should have gone back to the Kingdom in the Sky." Matt said, remembering. Memories flicked across his vision fast and free. "What happened?"

"Europa."

"And she is…?" Matt asked, bending over to pick up Alfred and prop him up on his shoulder. Alfred giggled at the touch, Half unconscious from the blow.

"Not the time for that." In the distance, wolves howled. Knox howled an earsplitting howl back after that, causing Matt to cover his ears for a moment. "Moon Twin." Knox said, peering at Matt with his bright yellow eyes, "If you should ever need me or any other the other night beasts, play the song of the night and we shall be on our way in no time." With that, He jumped from the living room to the outside through the shattered window.

"But wait!" Matt called, and Knox turned to face him once again. "I don't know the Song of the Night!"

"Yes you do. Look deep within yourself." And with that, he took off into the dark forest, and the power came back on. Matt sighed, and set Alfred on the chair in the corner and threw a blanket over him. He surveyed the damage. Nothing too important was broken besides the window, and most of the items on the floor could be put back together with super glue. He'd have to call the glass company in the morning. THAT was going to fun to explain. Matt inhaled as Alfred stirred, sitting up to rub his head.

"What happened?" He asked, looking at Matt curiously.

"Big wolf knocked you out and told me what we have to do to find our mom."

"Mmkay." Alfred said, laying back in the chair and sinking down into the plush chair. He shut his eyes and pondered for a moment. Mom.

Mom?

Alfred sat up quickly, eyes snapping open to look at Matt. "Wait, what?"

"Alfred, it's late, we'll talk about it in the morning. Okay?" Matt said, hand on the light switch.

Alfred sighed. "Fine. Whatever." His head hurt like hell, he didn't feel like arguing at the moment.

And with that, Matt shut off the light and headed upstairs. When he go to his room, he shut the door quickly and quietly, paper still clutched in his hand he set it down on his bed side table and opened the drawer. Inside was the ocarina, and as matt reached in to pick it up, it began to glow silver.

He sat on his bed, legs crossed, paper in his lap and ocarina in his mouth and began to play, soft and sweet.

-----

Amerika shut the door behind her quietly. She looked around and sighed. Everyone must have been in bed, or out. Quickly, she ran to the stairs of the great empty room and made a mad dash up them.

"Where have you been?"

She froze.

"Uh…nowhere." She bit her lower lip, golden curls bouncing at every movement.

"Oh really?" She turned to face the figure, her older sister. Europa stood in her usual wear, black dress with red running through it. Her feet were clad with black sandals that made a tap-tap-tap noise as she beat it against the floor in aggravation. "You weren't, oh say, looking for the ocarina were you? Because you know that if you found it and don't give it to me, I'll fucking kill you." Amerika gulped.

"No, I was having dinner at the quaint little restaurant out in Western America." She said nervously. "It's quite nice, you should go there sometime." Amerika climbed a few more steps.

"Are you sure? Now, why would you go to dinner on the day that the passage between the in-between and Earth is open? You see," Europa said, beginning to climb the stairs, "I think you were getting the Elders from their prison."

"Was not."

"Really? Well than it must have been Asya who let out Knox and Helios." Europa barred her teeth and dashed up the stairs for her sister. Amerika ran up the stairs as fast as she could, but Europa was faster. She grabbed her younger sister and pulled her into a headlock.

"Listen here you brat, I know you know where the ocarina is. And I want it. Now."

"I…I don't have it." She said.

"Where is it?"

"I'll never tell you!" Amerika broke out of the headlock and ran straight down the long hallway.

"Fine! Be that way! And when your precious twins are bleeding red on the surface of the New World you'll regret this!" Europa shouted. Amerika stopped.

"You wouldn't."

He sister grinned.

"I would." Slowly, she walked towards her sister, taunting her.

"You see, unlike me, you had to go and whore yourself out to the nearest spirit who made you feel loved just because your older sisters were busy. " Europa said loudly. "You poor girl, all alone on that vast land of yours and no one to play with."She said with fake sympathy in her voice. In a snakelike manner, she pulled her sister into her arms with such strength that it knocked the wind out of Amerika for a second. Europa picked up her younger sister, and despite all the thrashing and moving from the smaller being , slung her over her shoulder.

"You can't do this! My boys will surpass your powers, Europa! You're a terrible sister and mother!"

Europa stopped dead in her tracks.

"I'm no mother to these…creatures. They're merely divinations of me to take care of the land and keep me pretty. Oh no. I'm not a mother. You're the mother here, you little tramp. You're the one who got pregnant with some random god and popped out a set of twins!"

"Shut your mouth!" Amerika said, with a swift kick, she kicked her sister, but it didn't faze the older woman. Angrily, Europa flipped Amerika over and gripped her by the collar of her tunic.

With a flick of her wrist and a push of her will, a door appeared in front of them, a deep black color. She waved her hand and the door opened, and she dragged her sister on the floor and threw her easily into the door.

"If you won't tell me where the ocarina is, I'll find it myself, even if I have to pry it from the cold, dead hands of your nations!" She said. She let out a cackle and slammed the door tight, locking it and using a magic barrier so her sister had no way of getting out.

Amerika looked up at the door, and smiled.

All according to plan.