"To… have form? What does that even mean," Alex asked.

The figure's eyes squinted and it said, "It's… hard to explain, really, to someone who's always had a body to inhabit. I suppose the simplest way to say it is that I haven't had a body for a few millennia and it's nice to be more than a shifting field containing rational thought." Alex's face, illuminated by the blue beams emanating from the creature's eyes, was blank. "Oh," it realized aloud, "you have no idea what I'm saying at all, do you?"

"No," Alex said cautiously.

"Well, it's not at all important to what we've got to do. Do you," it hesitated, seeming like it wasn't sure what it would say next, "know where you are or how you got here?"

"No, not really. There was a, uh, a portal, or something. I, um, I guess I opened it with my radio somehow? And there were these voices, they were asking me… something about leaving? And then I told them that they could leave, I think, and I blacked out and woke up here," Alex explained.

"Do you remember the cycle, Alex?"

"Wait, what? There was some sort of cycle that I was supposed to see? No, I guess I missed it. Why? Is it important, or something? Do I need it to get out of here? Wait, how do you know my name?"

A large group of sparks shot down the figure's body. Two illuminated it's face. It was clearly angry, or at least disappointed about something. "Very well," it said in a masked voice. "Remember this, if you can."

"If I can? Am I going to forget this," Alex asked frantically. The entity seemed to pay no attention. "Hold on, hold on, pause," Alex shouted. This got it's attention. "You're going to tell me what's going on before we do anything! What the hell is this place, what the hell are you, what the hell is going on?"

"All this and more on the next episode of Dragon Ball Z,"it muttered.

"What the hell does that even mean?!"

"I honestly have no idea. It just… felt right, I guess? What is it that you want to know, exactly, in order of significance?"

"Okay," Alex said, calmer. "First of all, what is this place and how did I get here?"

"This place? Not entirely sure, myself. I've gathered that this place is at least called The Void. Makes sense. I've been here for a few thousand years and haven't really seen much to make this place less… empty. As for how you got here, you pissed off a Sentinel, I think. Either that or you've given the time-space continuum for the general area of Edward's Island more holes than a block of swiss cheese. Between the two, I'd hope that time is shot, by the way."

"So don't screw around with a Sentinel, should I see one?"

"They'll probably screw around with you," it answered. "Play along. You haven't known suffering until you've angered a Sentinel."

"What do they do," Alex asked, enraptured.

"I've honestly already said too much on the subject," it answered. "Next question, please."

"Okay. What's going on in the real world? What did I do out there?"

It sighed. "I," it hesitated, eyes flashing for a moment with uncertainty, "can't tell you that. All I can say is that every question you have will be answered in due time. I promise."

"Why can't you tell me?"

"There's a sequence of events that must take place, I think. If I tell you some things, things don't work out how I-we, rather, need them to. That's as specific as I can get on that. Anything else?"

"Yeah. Who, or what, are you? How did you end up here?"

"I'm… an idea. I was created long ago, for a purpose I'm not sure of. I lived once, I think. But then I ended up here somehow, and if I had a body, a life, it withered away in here somewhere. You're familiar, though. I feel like we've met before; it's like there's something bubbling right below the surface with you. It's," it hesitated. "It's long. And convoluted. And it makes absolutely no sense, not even to me. But I remember you, if only a little bit. Like, when I saw you sitting here in the Void, I thought, 'That's Alex. That's the one I've been looking for.' And it was crazy, like absolutely insane, because I haven't been looking for anything, but when I saw you, that was exactly what I thought. Even as I'm just kinda venting right now, it's like being around you is bringing up these memories. Do you think you might know anything about that?"

"No," Alex apologized. "I mean, I don't remember you, at least. Do you have, like, a name, or something like that?"

It was silent for a moment before saying, "Blue. I think. I remember being called 'Blue'. Who called me that?"

"Blue. Well, it fits, I suppose." Alex laughed. "Have you ever seen yourself?"

"No, not really."

"Well, Blue is fitting. So I guess we're going to be getting to know each other pretty well, if there's no way out of here."

Blue sighed. "No, there's a way out. You can leave."

"What about you," Alex asked.

"Doesn't work for me."

"Oh. Well, I can't really just leave you here," Alex said dejectedly. "And how does that work, you not being able to leave?"

"I don't know. But I've tried to leave. Something always stopped me, though. Like I felt that my purpose was in here. But you… I can feel it. You need to leave."

"What about you? You'll just stay here?"

"This place is my purpose. I can feel that somewhere deep inside me. I'm not done here."

"So you're not interested in leaving, but you'll get me out of here?"

"That's basically it."

"Well, thanks, I guess."

"Let's get you out of here," Blue said. Once again, it's skin flared blue, revealing a definitely feminine figure. Her eyes squeezed shut in concentration as her skin began to take an orange hue. She held her arms out in front of her. Alex watched on in awe as Blue's hair burst into a blue flame. Arcs of blue lightning shot from the fire now adorning her head to the ground. The ground began to break apart and chunks of rock shot into the air. A strong gust of wind shot from behind Alex, knocking her onto her hands and knees, and circled around Blue. The wind carried the rocks around Blue in a rotation whose speed was rapidly increasing. All the while, the lightning shooting from Blue's head into the ground was knocking more debris into the air. The tornado forming around her steadily grew in size and strength until she was entirely engulfed by it.

For a moment, the roaring of the tornado and the cracks signalling the blasts of electricity from what was once Blue's hair silenced. The whirling of the storm she had apparently created continued, but it created no noise. And then it all stopped. The air began to shake and vibrate. The radio in Alex's pocket blared static, where before it had picked up no frequencies. The whirling of the storm stopped and it compressed violently inward on Blue. Blue staggered and fell to her knees. Blue was lying on the ground gasping, skin shining with the intensity of the sun. She scrambled to her feet and once again held her arm before her. Focusing intensely on her fingertips, she chanted. The orange glow drained from her extremities, seeming to flow to her right hand. She screamed in agony, but continued the chant.

The hand she held out was shaking as more and more of Blue's skin drained of color. It was becoming so bright it was painful to look at. After a minute of this, all color had drained from Blue, and her hair, eyes, and mouth were once again the only things visible. Other than the hand, of course, which was a beacon, bathing an area for miles around in an orange glow. She clenched it into a fist and acted as if she were throwing a stone. The color left her hand and formed an unstable-looking orb that floated a few paces away. A small flicker of flame still remained in Blue's hair. She concentrated and it, too, left to join the orb in the form of a static crack. The orb shifted into a triangular window. Waves of energy emanated from it and a field with a lighthouse stood on the other side.

Alex stared in awe for a moment before clearing her throat and saying, "So, I guess this is the last I see of you, huh?"

An exhausted Blue said between pants, "Yeah. Hopefully… you don't… end up… here… again."

"If there's a way back, I'll come back for you," Alex said.

"No… don't say that. But… remember me… in case… things go wrong… you must remember," she said back.

"If things go wrong?"

"Don't… worry about… it… for now. I'm tired… need to rest. But remember this… as… a safety measure."

"Are you trying to reassure me? Because I don't feel reassured!"

Blue had finally caught her breath. "Listen. You are going to go out there and live the rest of your life happily. But you're going to remember me. As a form of protection in the worst-case scenario. If you remember me, I can help you. The worst-case isn't going to happen, but I need you to remember me anyway. Got it?"

"Okay. Be happy. I can do that, I think. And remember you. Not too hard on that front, either. Got it."

"Well then, let's get you out of here. You just step through that portal right there and you should wake up in… looks like Epiphany Fields, somewhere? Crash course: go out there, remember me."

Alex laughed. "Thanks, professor. Anything else?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. If you notice anything cycling, looping, recurring, any of that, you pay attention to that shit. Because it's generally an indicator of bad things to come."

"Looping? Got it, I guess. Well, thanks," Alex said as she stepped through the triangular hole.

Alex woke up next to Jonas with a strange sense that she was missing something. That she'd forgotten something. Of course, she'd have no time to consider this. We all know what the rest of that night held for them all, and especially Alex. So, she forgot it all. Who could blame her?