Chapter 4: A Whole New World
He felt the sand beneath his body. The sand felt familiar somehow. It wasn't grainy, rocky sand. It was smooth, comfortable sand. Alex Bane opened his eyes. He was lying face down. He stared at the sand. The sand was white with a hint of brown. He knew where he had seen this sand before. Alex slowly stood up. He closed his eyes. Scared of what he might see. He eventually opened them and gasped.
He was here. The place from his dream, only this time he knew he was truly there, not in some nightmare. He looked out at the ocean. Sparkling blue and calm, just like he remembered. He ran to the water's edge. He stared down at his reflection. His face was still bloody and cut from his brawl with Dark Alex. His entire body ached and he wished he hadn't had stood up. He didn't know how he got there. The last thing he remembered was a beam of light pulling him into the sky.
Alex started to cry. His family was dead, his girlfriend was dead, he looked like a human punching bag, and he wasn't even sure where he was. He just sat there on the beach, crying his eyes out. He cursed Dark Alex with every single cuss word he knew. He punched the sand in anger. He knew it wouldn't bring anyone back from the dead, but it still felt good. He then had an urge to explore his surroundings a little bit more. He turned around and finally realized that he was on an island. A strange island at that.
The layout was like nothing Alex had ever seen. Right in the middle of the island was an enormous tree. Alex had to raise his eyes up to see the top. A series of platforms were jutting out of the tree. Alex guessed this was so people could reach the top of the tree. This road of platforms was wooden, which meaned that someone built them. Alex gulped. That means that people actually do live here. He hoped they weren't cannibals. That would be bad. The road of platforms started to the left of the tree. Even farther left were two smaller trees. They were separated by a wooden platform with wooden railings. Alex recognized that as the platform where those weird kids asked him questions. One of the trees was in the water. A little closer to Alex was a dock. The dock was wooden too. It was about six feet off the ground and twenty feet across. Alex knew that it must be where whoever lived here parked their ships. To the right of the gigantic tree, was a little waterfall coming out of the rock. It emptied into a little pool that had the same blue water in it. Even farther back was what looked to be a crack in the bottom of the tree. It seemed to be the entrance to a small cave. Even farther to the right was a small wooden shack. Alex figured the purpose would be to hide from rain and it was a passage to a rock platform higher up. The small rock platform had small trees that blew in the wind. Starting from this platform was another wooden road, like the dock. This one was bigger and lead to a little plateau that jutted out of the water. This plateau was circular, but the most outstanding feature of it was the tree. The plateau had many trees, but the one on its side was leaning horizontally, parallel to the ground. Alex wondered how it got in the position. It looked like it would be a nice place to take a nap. The beach reached further out and Alex walked under the bridge connecting the plateau and the rocks. There was a rock wall. At the bottom of it, was a wooden door, which led somewhere.
Alex took all of this in. This place was incredible. He couldn't see how people lived here though. He saw no signs of life. The only house he saw was the shack and it wasn't big enough to be a house. He started to hyperventilate. He became dizzy and lost his balance. He just couldn't deal with all of this. He felt a pressure in his chest and he threw up. He knew he was going to faint.
"Hey, are you okay?" Alex turned his head. He saw some figures getting out of boats. He started to run away. He didn't get very far because he threw up again.
No! I don't want to be eaten. I like my body, Alex thought.
He lay on his back, no energy left in his body. He saw the figures coming and closed his eyes. He waited for the end.
"Hey are you all right?" Alex looked up and gasped.
There were two kids about his age. One of them looked like he had a porcupine on his head. His hair was brown and spiky. He had a gentle face, thin arms, and was wearing shorts and a white tee shirt. The other one stood out to Alex the most. This kid had long aqua blue hair, tall, and muscular. It was the same kid from Alex's dream.
Alex began to pass out. Just before he lost consciousness, he blurted out the first thing in his mind.
"You guys got great hair," Alex passed out.
Alex woke up this time on a nice comfortable bed. He could hear the sound of the water going back and forth. It was just as peaceful as he remembered. He opened his eyes slightly. He saw that he was in a small room. The room had a red carpet that looked hand-woven. Alex got out from under the covers. He wasn't wearing anything.
Who the hell undressed me, he thought.
He shook that disturbing thought out of his head. He went over to a small wooden dresser to pick out some clothes. He chose a white tee shirt and khaki shorts. He found his sneakers near the bed. They looked brand new, like someone washed them. Alex found some clean socks and put his shoes on.
The house was made out of white brick. Alex guessed that the bricks were made from the sand because they were the same color. He went into the main room, being careful to look around corners in case he was a prisoner. No one was in the house. Alex found that to be a bit odd. He would have at least thought there would be guards preventing him from leaving. Alex opened the front door and stepped outside.
The breeze felt like silk on Alex's skin. He could feel the faint heat of the sun on him. The sky was a mix of red, orange, and pink. It looked like the sky had been painted with liquid fire. It was sunset. It was exactly like the dream. Alex smiled at the sight of it. He wished his family could be here with him to see this. Alex immediately tried to think of something else. Those images were still fresh in his mind and he didn't want to appear as a blubbering fool.
He was standing on green grass. The grass was only centimeters tall. All around him were houses just like the one he was in. The grass was part of hilly fields that seemed to stretch on forever. He could see mountains in the distance. This island must be pretty big. Alex turned away from the mountains to look ahead. He saw the beach. The beach was divided from the grass and homes by a white picket fence. He saw a dock just like the one he had seen earlier. He even saw a couple of wooden boats.
Are these guys cavemen? he thought. Do they have no technology at all?
He looked out at the ocean and saw something that made him gasp. It was the island he was on when he first got here. It was out farther in the ocean.
So that's why that island had a dock, Alex thought. He realized that he must be on the bigger part of this small archipelago.
He heard a commotion on the beach. He turned to see a group of kids. Three of the kids seemed to be ganging up on one other kid. Alex decided to take a closer look. When he got closer his jaw dropped, but at the same time he had been expecting it. The three main bullies were the same kids who had asked him those weird questions in his dream. The sandy-blond haired one was wearing a white and yellow jacket that exposed his muscular chest. He had on blue shorts and was holding a red stick that was curved at the top. The girl with curly hair was wearing a yellow dress that came down just above her knees. She was wielding two small two-by-fours that were connected by a short rope. Alex recognized the weapon from karate class. Nunchuks. Alex thought that was kinda hot. The last kid was the one with the hair gel lock. He was wearing a white muscle shirt, yellow baggy pants, and was holding what looked like a volleyball. It appeared to Alex to be a random act of bullying. He decided that he might as well make a first impression by stopping them and ran down the beach.
"Look just give us your lunch money and no one's gonna get hurt," the sandy blond haired kid said.
"Tidus, I swear I'll have the money by tomorrow," the scared kid said.
"You said that yesterday," Tidus said. "I'm beginning to think that you are holding out on us. What do you think Selphie?"
The girl Selphie answered,"I think we need to teach this creep how the rules play around here. What do you think Wakka?"
The other boy Wakka answered,"I totally agree, ya. This punk needs to learn who's boss. Why don't we teach him, ya?" Wakka had some sort of Caribbean accent.
"No, please don't," the boy pleaded.
"Hey hold it right there you jerks!" Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie turned around to see Alex. "Why don't you leave this guy alone? Don't you have anything better to do with your time, like educating yourself with pop-up books?"
"Who the hell are you?" Tidus asked.
"He's that guy they found on the beach," Wakka answered.
"Wow he's cute," Selphie grinned at Alex. Alex grinned back.
"Why don't you move along, ya," Wakka said. "This is none of your business."
"Ya, it is," Alex said in Wakka's accent.
"This guy is starting to get on my nerves," Tidus gritted his teeth. "Why don't we teach this punk how the rules go around here?"
"Well I'm sure the rules don't include taking advantage of littler kids. This stops right now," Alex declared.
"Oooooh, I like confidence," Selphie grinned.
"That's it punk," Tidus growled, pulling out his stick. "I'm tired of you talking. Let's fight."
"You're getting tired of me talking," Alex mocked. "Should I use smaller words? Ooo wait, we can talk this over. I know how to communicate with you. After all I'm fluent in the three languages you speak. Which one should I go with: idiot, nicompoop, or my personal favorite, dumbass?
That was enough for Tidus. He ran at Alex, raising his stick. Alex got into a fighting stance. Tidus swung the stick. Alex stepped to the side, narrowly dodging the stick. He ducked a horizontal strike from Tidus. Tidus struck vertically, but it was a fake and Alex got whacked in the stomach. Alex blocked a blow with his arm, which stung and jabbed Tidus in the mouth. Tidus growled and came at Alex even angrier. He knocked Alex on his back and threw himself at him. Alex caught Tidus with his arms and legs and used his momentum to somersault Tidus completely over him. Tidus landed on his back with a whoosh. Alex got to his feet only to be hit in the face with something.
Alex fell on this back, thinking that he had been clotheslined by The Rock. It turned out to be Wakka's volleyball.
"That was a good hit,ya," Wakka grinned.
"Dude, didn't anyone tell you that volleyball is for girls," Alex mocked.
"This isn't a volleyball. It's a blitzball," Wakka explained. "It's the greatest sport ever invented."
"Sounds like a game my cousins made up in the backyard,"Alex said.
Wakka obviously took offense to someone insulting blitzball. He threw the ball at Alex again. This time Alex saw it coming. Instead of dodging it, he caught it.
"Oh I'm sorry did you need this?" Alex asked.
Alex got cracked on the head by Tidus' stick. Alex had forgotten about him. He blocked another strike with the blitzball and kicked it at Tidus. The ball caught Tidus right in the gut and he felt all the breath leave him.
"GOAL!" Alex yelled.
Tidus recovered faster than Alex anticipated and punched Alex in the jaw. Alex fell back only to be hit in the side with the ball again. Wakka was back in. Now he was getting double teamed. Alex dodged Wakka's ball and rolled on the ground to dodge Tidus. He swung his legs out which swept Tidus' legs out from under him. He grabbed Tidus' stick.
"Not so good when the shoe's on the other foot is it," Alex smiled.
Tidus just grinned. He ran forward and Alex was ready for anything he did. He wasn't ready for Tidus to defy the laws of gravity. Tidus ran forward and did a backflip, kicking Alex right in the face. Alex was launched backwards and was hit in the gut by Wakka's ball. He had taken alot of damage in just two seconds. Tidus caught the stick in the air, grinning. He rushed at Alex and swung down. This time Alex did something Tidus didn't expect. Alex did a backward somersault, dodging the stick by inches, launched off the sand and hit Tidus with a double punch. Tidus was caught completely off guard and flew backwards. Alex stood there wondering how in the hell he had done that. Was this what his clone was talking about?
"Hey kid from the beach!"
Alex turned to see the kid who they were pestering.
"Give them hell for me okay," the kid said and threw something to Alex. It was a wooden sword. Alex gripped the circular handle. Now he had a weapon.
"Oh wow, you have a sword," Tidus got back up. "Bet you can't use it.
Tidus had a point. Alex wasn't a student of swordplay. But somehow, the sword felt good in his hands. He felt confident with it.
Tidus leaped at Alex, eager to get this fight over with, but was surprised when Alex blocked with the sword. Alex countered with a vertical strike. Their blades cracked with each and every blow. Alex lunged. Tidus blocked. Alex quickly flicked the sword and cut Tidus' face. He smiled in victory, but was hit in the head by wood. He turned around to see that Selphie had joined in too. Now he was triple teamed. Selphie whipped the nunchuks at Alex. Alex blocked a strike, but was hit in the side with another. She swung at his legs. He jumped, but was hit by the other wooden part. Selphie changed her grip by swinging one side of the nunchuks in the air like a whip. Alex dodged and blocked her strikes. He ducked one and was then tackled from behind by Tidus. The two rolled on the ground. Tidus whacked Alex, only to be kicked in the chest. Alex batted away Wakka's ball and stuck his sword in the sand. He thrust it upward which threw sand in Wakka's face. Alex then rushed him and tackled Wakka. Wakka delivered an elbow strike to Alex's face. Alex rolled over quickly, dodging another strike from Tidus. He got hit on the head by Selphie and her other strike wrapped the nunchuk around the sword. She pulled with all her might. The sword fell out of Alex's hands. Alex tried to get it but was blocked by Tidus. Tidus dodged Alex's sidekick and hit him in the face. Alex retreated to the edge of the water.
"Yeah, that's right. Run you coward," Tidus yelled.
The three had Alex backed up into a corner. He didn't go in the water. He was about to be pummeled by these bullies.
Alex realized right then that he had been going about this all wrong. He had been trying to defeat these guys with his own weapons. It was then that he realized that his weapons were standing right in front of him. He was going to turn their weapons against them. Alex prayed that the power that was in him would help. Alex closed his eyes and concentrated. It was there! He felt the power.
Wakka threw his ball at Alex. Alex caught the ball, but didn't stop there. He twisted his body all the way around and threw the ball at Tidus with great strength. The ball hit Tidus straight in the groin. Tidus managed to let out a high pitched squeal before passing out. Wakka stood there looking dumbfounded, but retrieved his weapon. Alex quickly ran and picked up Tidus' stick. Wakka threw the ball at him once more. Alex didn't catch it this time. He used the stick like a baseball bat. He sent the ball straight back to Wakka. It hit right in the face. Wakka was down for the count. Selphie swung her nunchucks. Alex caught one side, quickly wrapped it around his arm, and tugged. The force sent the other side and Selphie toward him. He grabbed Selphie and pulled her to his face.
"Now you wouldn't hurt me would you," Selphie smiled playfully.
"No I would never hurt you," Alex said. He decided he'd take a reward for his troubles. He pulled Selphie closer and kissed her. Selphie didn't object and threw her arms around him. They kissed violently for about half a minute before Alex pulled away on account of his mouth was aching.
"Oh my," Selphie whispered. "You're pretty good."
"You're not so bad yourself," Alex smiled, right before hitting her head with the butt of the stick.
"I never said anything about not knocking you out," Alex laughed.
He looked around at the unconscious bodies of the three bullies. Alex had tapped into the power that lay within him. He wanted to say that the reason he fought them was out of good intentions. But he couldn't fool himself. The reason he engaged in that fight was because he was angry. At them, Dark Alex, angry at the world. He didn't enjoy what he just did. He kissed Selphie just for the hell of it. He didn't even enjoy that. Ashley was still fresh in his mind. He started to cry and walked away.
The very next day someone came to visit Alex. He had just woken up and was getting ready for a day of not coming out of the house when someone knocked on the door. Alex went to the door and opened it. It was the blue haired kid from the dream. He was wearing a yellow and black muscle shirt, blue baggy pants, and blue and white sneakers.
"Hi. Can I come in?" he asked.
"Sure," Alex replied. He stepped away from the door to let the boy in.
"I gotta say, you are one strange character," the boy said, smiling. This coming from the guy who has long, blue hair, Alex thought.
"What do you mean?" Alex asked.
"You show up on our beach half-dead," the boy started. "The very next day you defeat Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie in a full on brawl which nobody has been able to do before. Except me of course."
Alex was starting to get the feeling that this kid was a bit full of himself. His way of talking was similar to that of Dark Alex. He didn't like it.
"They had it coming," Alex growled.
"Oh I don't doubt it, " the boy said. "Those guys can get pretty annoying. But now that you've beaten them, I don't think they'll be doing something like that again. You should feel proud."
"More like sick to my stomach," Alex replied.
"They said that you pulled some crazy moves out there," the boy said. "Do you think you can show me?"
"I kinda just winged it," Alex replied truthfully.
"It doesn't matter," the boy said. "The real reason I came over here is because I want to know the answer that everyone wants to hear. Who are you and how did you get here?
Alex of course wasn't going to tell the truth. The kid would look at him like he was crazy. So he decided to lie.
"I don't know. I've lost any memory I had," Alex said. "All I do remember is my name for some reason. It's Alex. Alex Bane."
"Well, nice to meet you Alex," the kid said. "My name is Riku." For some reason the kid looked disappointed. As if Alex held some great secret that he couldn't get too.
"Come with me," Riku said. "I'll give you the grand tour."
Alex agreed and the two of them set off. Riku said he needed to meet up with someone first. Alex followed Riku to a house not too far away from Alex's. Riku knocked on the door.
"Hello," Riku yelled. "Sora get your butt out here."
Sora turned out to be the spiky headed kid that was with Riku when Alex was found. He was wearing a black and white jacket that was blue on the inside. He wore a red shirt underneath it and red shorts with a blue belt around it. He wore black and yellow sneakers that looked way too big for him. He wore a necklace around his neck which was a silver chain attached to a silver crown. Alex thought that to be a strange medallion, but he didn't ask questions. He gave Alex a cheery smile that gave Alex the impression that this guy smiled a lot.
"You're the guy from the beach aren't you?" Sora asked.
"The name's Alex Bane," he said. "Nice to meet you Sora."
"So are we gonna take him on the grand tour or what Riku?" Sora asked, excitedly. Riku just rolled his eyes. To Sora that meant yes.
"Okay let's go," he said.
"Wait," Alex said. "Before we do anything, I just need to know, what is this place?"
"This Alex," Sora said. "is Destiny Islands." The name seemed somewhat appropriate to Alex.
"It's a regular paradise on Earth," Sora smiled.
"It does get boring sometimes though," Riku sighed.
"Don't listen to Riku," Sora whispered. "He thinks he's too cool to have fun. But even he has a good time here. He just won't admit it."
Alex believed Sora on that. Riku did look like the kind of person who thought he was too cool to do stuff.
"Let's take him to meet Master Zangan," Sora suggested. Riku shrugged which meant yes.
The three of them began the trip to Zangan's place. Along the way, Alex got to learn a little bit more about his new friends. Riku was 13. Sora was 12. The both of them loved sword fights. They trained once a day. Apparently, Riku was the better one although Sora refused to admit it. The two of them had been best friends since the day they were born. They were as close as brothers. Alex asked who Master Zangan was.
"He's our master," Riku replied.
Alex took that as an insult to his intelligence, but didn't say anything. The three of them continued through the hilly fields until they came to a huge one story house. It looked like something out of a kung-fu movie. Sora walked up to the door and knocked. The door opened. Master Zangan was a young Chinese man that wore a robe and a baseball cap on his head. Alex thought those two things kinda clashed.
"Sora, Riku," Zangan smiled. "Welcome. And who is your friend?"
"Alex Bane sir," Alex replied.
"Ah," Zangan said. "The boy who washed up on the beach. Curious indeed. And you have brought him to me, why?"
"Zangan," Riku began. "Alex defeated Tidus, Selphie, and Wakka three on one yesterday. They told me that he pulled some really crazy moves out there. We were wondering if you might like to examine him."
"I see," Zangan nodded. "And you also think that I could help with his memory."
"Yeah," Sora finished.
"Very well," he said. "Alex come with me."
Alex looked at Sora and Riku. They gave him reassuring smiles. He gulped and entered the house. The house glowed orange and was made out of the same white rock. He followed Zangan through some hallways until they entered a wide room. The room had smooth wooden floors. It also housed many weapons leaning against the walls.Swords, spears, you name it.
"This is a dojo," Zangan said. "It is where I train my students."
Alex recognized the look of the room from his own karate class. Zangan pulled out a wooden sword and tossed it to Alex. Alex recognized this as well. It was called a bokken, a wooden sword that was used for training. This one was in the shape of a katana. Zangan drew his own.
"Whoa, hold on a second," Alex said. "When they said examine, I had no idea they meant fight."
"Do not worry Bane," Zangan said. " This is but a test of skill. I will not hurt you. Just come at me with all you have." He held the sword in a stance.
Alex didn't see any way to get out of this so he decided to grant his request and charged.
Their wooden swords cracked. Alex lunged with the bokken. Zangan performed a simple parry. Alex brought the sword to his face to block Zangan's bokken. Alex pushed the sword off and slashed. Zangan blocked, but it was a fake. Alex quickly changed the sword's direction and headed for the legs. To his surprise, Zangan blocked that one too. Alex swung the sword wildly. Zangan blocked each and every strike. Alex lunged again. Zangan brought the sword under Alex's and thrust it upward so Alex lost his balance. Alex fell on the dojo. Zangan just waited patiently for him to get up. Alex knew why they called him master. He could block any strike thrown at him. He decided to play a little more defensively this time around.
This time Alex waited for Zangan to come to him. Zangan swung his sword, with the speed of a tiger. If it wasn't for Alex's heightened reflexes, he would have been whacked long ago. Alex parried the blow and countered with an upward slash. Zangan blocked horizontally and jabbed at Alex's face. Alex actually saw the blow coming and caught it with his left hand. Zangan quickly twisted out of that and tried to hit Alex with a crescent kick. Alex wasn't going to fall for the same thing Dark Alex did. He ducked the kick. Dark Alex! That was the reason he was here. The images of his dead family began to run through his mind. Alex gritted his teeth. He became angrier and angrier. He screamed and charged at Zangan. Zangan leaped back in surprise. Alex's blows came even quicker this time. Zangan dodged two lunges to his face, flicked aside another, and ducked a horizontal slash.
Zangan could always tell the state of the opponent from the look in his eyes. Alex was not in a good state at all. He could see that there was a lot of pain behind Alex's eyes. Something in his past. He blocked a front kick from Alex and hit him in the chest with his palm. Alex went flying across the dojo. He slid across the floor on his back. His sword went flying out of his hand. Zangan had beaten him. Alex took some deep breaths. He had really lost it back there. Zangan offered Alex a hand. He took it.
"I sense much pain in you Alex," Zangan said. "And I can also sense much anger."
Alex knew he was right.
"Alex if you want," Zangan began. "I can teach you how to control your anger and confront your fears head on with a clean conscience. You are gifted in the art of combat, but you still have a long way to go. I can teach you that too."
"I just want to go home," Alex pleaded.
"Alex," Zangan said. "This is your home now.
Alex bowed his head, trying to hold back tears.
"Alex," Zangan said. "There are a lot of good people here. You couldn't ask for better friends than Riku and Sora. They want to help you."
Alex nodded in agreement. He also realized that he just gave away that he lied about having no memory.
"Don't tell anyone please," Alex asked.
"You have my word," Zangan assured him. "I must warn you though. Keeping secrets, any kind of secrets, is always going to come with consequences. I just hope you understand that."
Alex nodded and headed towards the door.
"I'll accept your training," Alex said. "I don't want to be consumed by my anger. And learning how to fight seems pretty cool."
Zangan nodded and led Alex out. He met Riku and Sora outside the house.
"What happened? Did he say anything to you? Did he fight you?" Sora pelted Alex with questions.
"He just asked if I wanted to train with him and I said yes," Alex admitted.
"All right," Riku said. "You must have really impressed him. It took me and Sora two years of whacking each other with swords before he would even invite us into the house. You get to train with us now."
"Nice," Alex grinned.
"Alex we want you to meet our other friend," Riku said. He turned around. Alex did too and his jaw dropped.
A girl came out from behind a tree. But not just any girl. It was the same girl from his dreams. She was even more beautiful closer up. Her short red hair danced in the wind. She wore a white tank top that just barely showed her belly button. She had a short, purple skirt that was a couple inches above her knees. It was attached by a purple belt. She was wearing white sneakers.
"Hi Alex," the girl smiled. "I'm Kairi."
"Nice to meet you Kairi," Alex meant it too.
"The guys were just telling me about your little fight on the beach," Kairi smiled, which made Alex's heart do backflips.
"Aw it wasn't nothing," Alex bragged.
"Yeah right," Sora teased. "They said they were close to beating you. You just got a few lucky hits in."
"When I saw Tidus," Kairi said. "his voice was really higher than I remember. Did you have something to do with that?"
Alex put his hands behind his head and grinned,"Well I might have had something to do with that."
The whole trio laughed.
"I'm never gonna let Tidus live that down," Riku laughed.
"That's freakin hilarious!" Sora had his hands on his knees.
The four of them began to walk back to their houses. Each of the houses weren't too far away from each other. Alex said good-bye to his new friends, as they promised they would hang out tomorrow. Alex made his way back to his house. On the way, he passed Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie. The three of them were sitting around chatting. Tidus and Wakka didn't even acknowledge him when he passed. Selphie smiled at Alex and blew him a kiss. Alex smiled to himself and entered his house.
He got in bed. It had been a long couple of days. Alex looked at himself in a mirror.
"You didn't ask for this. You weren't told about any of this. It just happened. You may not like it, but this is where you are now. You need to learn to stop dwelling on the past. Zangan is right. This is your home now. I'm not saying that if you find a way to get back home that you shouldn't use it. I'm just saying that for now you need to suck it up and live in the now. Get it? Got it? Good."
Alex turned off the lamp next to his bed and went to sleep, eagerly awaiting the next day of the rest of his life.