Out at Sea

Oct. 22, 1996. It had been over a good year and a half since Mike left Chris and myself. Heck it had been a whole year and nine months since our parents had succumbed to the deadly poison of malaria. What's more it had been a good five months since his training in Europe, and a whole month since he took his long voyage back from the continent across the Atlantic pond. My memory is a little foggy about Mike's adventures at sea, but I think they went a little something like this:

Mike looked out at the Atlantic on a crisp warm afternoon breather after his recent warm up with Sarunai. He saw the sun was beginning to set and blanket the sea with a covering of red colour and hue, as his master said, "We will arrive in America tomorrow. From there you will have to make your own trip back to Edmonton unfortunately." Mike then asked surprisingly inquisitively, "Why? Are you just going to leave me with nothing?" Master Sarunai then said, "Usually, if this were any ordinary day, I would smack you for betraying to trust bond we created a whole month ago. Now I can see even by this day coming to an end I have to tell you. I'm going for your brother, Victor." Mike shocked attempted to punch his master, but he just teleported behind him and held him at his neck. He then replied, "Ah, so the student still has much to learn about fighting." "You monster!! You mean you were using me to get to Victor? How could you? I trusted you? You said you knew my parents!" Sarunai then shook his head as he let Mike go and stared out at the sunlight with his arms over the railing. "How I wish I could tell you.", he replied. "Tell me what?", Mike began to wonder.

Sarunai then said, "I have left you a black suitcase with everything you will need to get back to Edmonton." Mike then replied saying, "If you lay as much as one finger on any of my siblings, I'll…" "Strike me? I know you won't boy. So don't push it. What if your foes were to gaze upon such vulnerability?", his master insisted. "Enemies?", Mike asked. "Of course my boy. Everyone has enemies. Children in a school have teachers, bullies, and the principal as enemies. Capitalism in the 1950s had communism. Even those cartoons you keep watching what are they called?", he asked. "Might and Morphin' Power Rangers?", Mike added. "Don't finish my sentences please. And yes, that's the one. Now listen, to put it simply, your brothers and yourself have been chosen by a greater power to be something more than ordinary. You all have powers that some beings have never even witnessed before. You for example have a special ability of planning four steps ahead of your enemies. Your brother Victor, from what I heard has used his mind for a lot of things. He has yet to face the darkness within though (since this is a month before Victor joins the Training Academy.)."

Mike then started remembering the days he spent out at sea while his master made another one of his long speeches. He never had to remember because he just guessed what he had said and made a witty reply to it. Mike remembered one day that Master Sarunai and himself caught two dozen flying fishes just passing by since they took a detour around the Caribbean then started heading North, since there were reports of icebergs floating by Newfoundland. Mike remembered how he used to play catch with some of the soccer balls that the ship had as well. Some of the first mates lent him some since they gave up playing in soccer leagues and decided to give Mike his shot at it. One day, Mike and some of the crew mates had an all out tournament for a pretend gold cup, which was just a fake trophy painted gold. Yet aside from all of this, Mike felt great about it. His team was the Mighty Boxers and after defeating the High Tight Scorpions and the Mountain Lions they soon came up against the last few of the crew mates. They were known in that single day as the Avalanche Bears. It would take all of Mike's fighting strength to overcome this new challenge to him and his team. They each got about a ten minute practice drill and then as the team huddled together, Mike then said to them, "Well you guys. This is the big one. I just want you to know, that win or no win, we will still be good buds." Although all of the crew mates were three and a half feet taller than Mike's three feet and a half size, they still felt compassion for his kindness and one of them, who bore a red mustache and always wore a Texan hat replied saying, "You have really touched us all Mike. We've met some pretty weird strangers, but only have met one good guy like you. We're winning this cup for you."

So it began. Mike and his other four teammates, including the big fat blonde man they had for a goalie were on the starboard side of the boat and on the port side were the black jerseys worn amongst the Avalanche Bears. They kicked the soccer ball to the left and a whole group of Mike's team ran after them, but the guy bounced it off his foot to his teammate to his right and he knocked it right into the goal keep no sweat. So far it was 1-0 Bears. Mike then huddled the team together and said, "Remember you guys. This is the finals. We can't afford any more mistakes like these." They seemed to understand, but in the end, they managed to make every single beginner's mistake in the book, all except missing the soccer ball. Mike then huddled the group together for the last time and he said, "This time I take the faceoff. You guys trounce the team on a wild goose chase and then I'll snag the ball right in the back of their field of view and do a classic 'Trojan Horse' trick. You got that?" They nodded and then they did exactly as Mike had told them to do. The big guy in white uniform to Mike's left ran the ball near a few crates of cannonballs and gunpowder and the whole Avalanche team closed in on him, leading 10-2 with only just six minutes of play left.

Then the ball was kicked to the guy's right and then the receiver's right and it continued like that for a while. Then Mike snagged it as the last moment and packed in a goal. They kept repeating the format for the next five minutes and tied it up 10 a piece for each side. Each team huddled together for one last plan of attack. Mike told his group, "Now we can't rely on the old trick we used to tie this game up. They've managed to catch on." Then one of his teammates said, "You'd think they would've been able to guess what we were doing after the fifth goal." Mike then grabbed the guy's lips despite his short height and said, "Anyways, here's what we're going to do. When the team gets a faceoff, they all run together in a huge line to distract their opponents. It's a pretty nifty kind of offensive technique I've seen some of the European soccer teams do. They lure the players with the ball and then they corner the player like a fly in a spider web. There is a weakness to it though. Only thing we have do is fight fire with fire. Once we make the same moves as they do, it'll confuse them and then we'll score on the rebound. Got it?" Then the group huddled their hands on top of each other and shouted 'Mighty Boxers!!'

Then, they got their chance. Mike and his team ran in with high hopes. They saw the formation of their enemies and did the exact same thing. Then Mike saw that the goalie was coming out of his post for some reason. He then pulled his team back to see what was going on. The Avalanche Bears grouped together as a single unit to trounce them all like a bowling ball against pins. Mike then yelled, "Charge!!" Then ran in like the Romans did upon Greece and blew their attack away, and as Mike kicked the ball, it seemed to be too high for a goal. Everyone turned to see the ball and its position. Some of the players ran back to stop it from going in. Yet just as it looked too high for a goal, it hit the top end of the post and fell straight down on the line. With ten seconds to go, it seemed as if it were going to be a tie (since it has to pass the line to be called a goal in this tournament.). Yet one of the Avalanche Bears tripped on a broom stick and fell to the ground knocking the ball into his own net because of the impact's vibrations. The Mighty Boxers soon cheered loudly and proudly. They even tossed Mike up and down a few times to show their gratitude. Mike then said, "Awwwww it was nothing." Then his master Sarunai appeared before him to award his team the trophy. He then said, "You have done well Michael. Not only have you led your team to a trophy, but you also proved your leadership in times of great desperation. It's because of your ability to think way ahead of your competition that you will one day see your brothers again."

Mike then asked in curiosity, "This was…" "Another test? Yes my son. I told the crew members of this ship to have this tournament not just so you could relax and get some exercise, but so you could also show me what you have learned.", Master Sarunai replied. "Did I pass?", Mike asked. "With flying colours. You have great destiny my boy. Although I cannot say what it is, in time you will find it and you will dominate it. Never forget though, with great leadership comes great danger and jealousy by those that lack it." Mike then heard his name and asked, "Huh, who what?" "Do you agree with what the risk will be when you arrive in America?", Sarunai asked. "Oh yes master. America is a huge place. I know that getting back to Alberta will be a long stretch, but I have a feeling I'll have to take this risk. Chris and Vic need me. I've been having some pretty bad dreams lately." Sarunai saw the sun go down for the last time together and asked, "About what my child?" "It's my brothers and I, speak of the devil. We were fighting this weird looking creature. He was pale white, wore dark clothing and spoke of Victor and myself looking like that of 'two lone warriors' he fought with in the past. He said that despite his defeat then, he'd vow revenge on us." Sarunai then said, "Perhaps it wasn't a dream, but a vision. I too have had that dream, but instead this creature was telling me that no matter what I did, I could never challenge his power. Enough about me though. What is important is that you get to Edmonton at once. It's very urgent my boy!" Mike nodded and said, "I will master. I will." They then took a look at the scenery of the ocean for one last time together before going to sleep. As the last day came to an end, Mike found himself in Boston, Massachusetts, where he said goodbye to Sarunai and took a train from Rhode Island across to Nevada three weeks later. He then hitched a ride on an apple truck to Montana and then snuck on board a plane from Montana to Edmonton.

He soon arrived and saw it was a sunny as it was when he left about two years ago for Europe. He suddenly felt an odd chill in spine. Almost as if it were foreshadowing a dark event about to happen. He didn't make too much of it and left the airport by a taxi using the money in the black suit case Sarunai gave him to Blue Quill (anyone in Edmonton will obviously know the place I'm talking about). It had been a good two years since his parents died in that same suburb. A new dawn was on the horizon.

(That last line of this chapter is very important. It basically explains the whole story in nutshell, which you will find out as to why when I get near the ending of it. After Chris' saga I'll only do two or three sagas per chapter of course, but they will based on the main characters (Mike, Vic and Chris) in their own individual chapter, since each chapter has been divided out into three ways based on each character's experiences. Note: there will be many crossovers from a bunch of nineties shows, through movies and video games if I can to the shows, video games and movies of the present. The line, 'Almost as if it were foreshadowing a dark event about to happen', is important since it will outline the next six or so main chapters of Mike, Vic and Chris as well and a possible connection to KH BBS in a subtle way. Stay tuned for more.)

(Next Time: Chris's Adventures.)

(Review.)