Abandoned Memories(continued)

Chapter 3

{*A Dream Come True*}



"CIERRA!!!      CIERRA!!!

CIERRA!!!

CIERRA!!!



         Running through the long and seemingly endless pathway, both Alex and

Kage scream for their bold and beloved friend. The grass around them

burns with intensity, practically roaring with smoke and fire.



         Alex Asks retorically, after running through the burnt trail for

what seemed like a lifetime, "where IS she?"



         Kage looks behind them and notices that the willow tree is no

longer visible, due to the giant cloud of smoke surrounding them. "I

don't know but we've been running for a while now. You think this

trail goes on forever?"



         "Who knows, maybe it's some kind of.....", Alex stops and

notices a shining blue figure far ahead of them. Its intense

brightness stands out amongst the fire, while alongside it stands a

shadow of a girl.



         "Thats her!", Kage yells in excitement. He picks up speed and

hurries towards her.

         Another shadow, a closer one this time, races through the fire

around them, and makes an awkward growling noise. It stops both Alex

and Kage in their tracks.



         "What was that?!", Kage panics.



         Alex tries to make sense of the noise,"It's probably a dying

animal stuck in the fire. Let's keep moving."



         "Maybe………", kage replies, now aware that anything can happen

after all of the strange events that have occured so far. He runs even

faster, making sure to avoid anything that might show up behind them.

The blue object ahead of them seems even brighter as they get

closer to it.



         "What is that thing?", Kage asks. He is unable see what kind of

shape the object holds mainly because of it's intense brightness.



         Alex jokes around, "Hahahahahaha, maybe it's a UFO."



         "Dont say that", Kage replies. He doesn't find that at all

funny, and the last thing Kage wants to deal with is a giant flying

disk with a little green monster inside.



         "Rrrraaaaaawwwwwrrrrrr", out of complete nowhere, an 8 foot

tall, wolf shaped beast jumps out from the burning high grass, and

turns around, positioning itself in front of them. It's eyes are

bright yellow, and it's body, pitch black, along with a firey aura

fading away from the dark red mane flowing down to it's back.



         "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!", Kage screams. His heart races, as the

bulk beast tracks his every move, and waits for the opportunity to

strike. His only defense is a fallen branch from the Great Willow Tree.

         Paralyzed with fear, Alex has no weapon, only his friend to

protect him. Hiding behind Kages back, he notices something different

about the great light ahead of them. "Kage, THE LIGHTS DIMMING!"

"YEA, JUST LIKE OUR CHANCES OF GETTING OUTTA HERE ALIVE!"

The beast jumps straight towards them. As a result, Kage swings

his stick, screaming barbaricly, while at the same time, a blinding

light surges from the bright object far ahead of them.

Eyes shut, teeth gritted, Kage opens one eye hesitantly, and

stairs into the eyes of the beast. It's large, drooling mouth is

inches away from him. All of a sudden it's eyes become bloodshot, and

the beast falls to the ground on it's stomach. The giant wolf is

deceased. Kages stick had done nothing. In fact, it was broken in half

by the wolfs titanic force.

         "huh?", Kage wonders, unable to make sense

of the monsters death.

         The blinding light is gone, the monster is dead, and their

damsel in distress is still waiting for them. With nothing to say, and

no time to spare, they both run straight to Cierra and the blue light

with the intentions of getting her and leaving.

         

         Now, standing several feet away from their friend, Alex and Kage

can't help but notice the shining blue sphere floating and rotating

several feet above Cierras head.



         "How beautiful", she exclaims, without any fear whatsoever.

They stand beside her and look towards the sphere in amazement.



         "What is it?", Kage asks.



         "I don't know, but it really doesn't look like a UFO", Alex replies.



         Cierra laughs, "Hahaha, a UFO? You're funny Xel."



         Kage snaps back into reality and announces, "Hey, Alex, Cierra

we gotta go. This, this THING probably doesn't wanna be bothered. It

probably sent that monster after us."



         Without hesitation, Alex answers back, "Right, let's go. We need

to get out of here. It's not safe."



         Alex grabs Cierras hands and looks straight into her eyes,

"Cierra, listen to me, we need to go, now."



         She is unable to snap out of her hypnotized like state, and

replies to him, " They, they're, they're looking.... for you, Xelabus."



         Kage turns around, "What did she just call you?!"



         Alex solemnly replies, "Who knows, she's delirious.

Almost half asleep, Cierra laughs at him. "Hahahaha, no, not

delirious. Just wait here a little longer xel, you'll see."



         "Shes gone crazy!!", Kage yells at Alex in disbelief.



         Alex asks Cierra, "Why do you keep calling me that name?"



         She looks at him with a disturbed expression on her face,

putting pressure on her eyebrows. "You mean Xelabus?", Cierra replies.



         "Yea, that's not my name!", he announces with aggravation.



         "What do you mean? Of course it is silly. Now shut up and wait

for them to come", she demands while smiling and poking him in the nose.



         Kage, with awe running through his mind, blames Cierras odd

behavior on the floating sphere. "What did you do to her!!!!", he

screams while running towards the object with a stick in his hand. He

then jumps, and swings his stick at the floating sphere. A large BING

is heard as his stick makes contact. It retaliates back at Kage

sending him flying backwards. He falls to the ground with incredible

force.

         Alex's eyes wide open, scurries towards Kages hurt body.  He is

unconscious, but still breathing. "Kage, you alright?" There is no

reply.

         He hears a thud from behind him. "CIERRA!!", he screams, as she

falls to the ground, losing consciousness. He runs to her and checks for a pulse. She is still alive, but unresponsive.

         The sphere discontinues it's rotation, causing a huge impulse to

occur, and knocks Alex off of his feet. He is hit hard, but still

manages to pick himself up. Alex walks towards the giant blue sphere.

         

         " WHAT DO YOU WANT?!!"

         

         The object does not reply, although his eagerness for one does

not decrease.

         

         "I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME!!"



         Finally, he gets an answer."Xelabus, do not be afraid", a large,

familiar, atmospheric echo coming from the sphere announces. He

notices that It sounds just like the old man in his dream.



         "Dont be afraid?!! You just knocked out my friends and Im barely

standing.", Alex retorts trying not to show fear.



         It responds again, "Do not worry, we won't hurt you. Come with

us and we will tell you everything you need to know."



         "What do you mean you wont hurt me?! You already did, and what

do you mean come with you?"



         "Xelabus, it is of great importance that you come with us.Trust

us, before it's too late.



         Alex is unable to understand, and continues to question their

friendly behavior,"You got the too late part right. What makes you

think I should trust you?"



         Another voice comes from the sphere. This one sounds younger,

and more anxious. "Xelabus! If you don't get you're butt on this

Sphere Faylex, the organization is going to pick you up instead, and

they won't be so friendly! Please Xelabus, if you`ll just give us a chance, we'll answer all your questions later."



         Alex is even more confused than before, "Huh, what organization?",



         "Just GET ON!!", the young male yells impatiently.



         Alex slowly walks towards the sphere, with very little trust for

what lies ahead of him. He has second thoughts and asks, "What about

my friends?!"



         Another voice comes from the sphere. A girl this time. " Xelabus

what are you talking about? We are your friends."



         Alex cocks an eyebrow, and retorts, "I don't know you, or Xelabus. None of you aliens are making any sense."



         As Alex walks towards the floating sphere, a long, shining blue

stairs pixelates out of thin air along with a bright white circle at

the top.



         "What is this thing?!", Alex asks in disbelief.



         "Its called a Sphere Faylex. Made out of pure magic. Albaxis

made it.", the girl announces.



         Alex hesitantly steps onto the magical stairs, and begins to

think, "This is crazy. Am I being abducted?



         The boy comments on Alex's slow arrival."Finally", he sighs. "I

was beginning to think he would never come."



         Alex retaliates, "don't get your hopes up just yet. What are you

going to do with my friends?"

         

         He doesn't get an answer. "Hey!! Im not getting on unless you

tell me what happened to them!" Alex yells furiously.



         The old man laughs and replies heartily, "Still loyal to your

friends even in this world."



         Before he even thinks about escaping, the stairs pull him up

towards the Faylex at an accelerated speed. He finds himself going

right through the light and into a room full of wierd controls and

operations.

         Alongside them, people. People just like him. People with

pain in their hearts, and smiles on their faces. They look at him with

hope, and their eyes gleam with happiness. The girl especially. With

sparkling blue eyes, and long brown hair down to her elbows, her face

is so beautiful and pure. Only one thing stands out. Her eyes show

pain and suffering, as if something terrible has been happening to

her. Something that has drastically changed her life as well as the

people around her. She looks at Alex with loving eyes, and says, "Xelabus, it's actually you. After all this

time...". She looks as if she is going to cry but surprisingly she

doesn't. Instead she walks up to him and hugs him. She whispers in his

ear, "I missed you."



         Alex, with a warm feeling in his heart, instinctively answers

back, "You too Celest."



         Her eyes widen, and she shrieks with happiness, "You remember

me!??",



         He replies, almost as stunned as she was, "Actually no. I'm

sorry I don't know where that came from."



         The hope within her begins to die, but a withering part of it still

remains, and she retaliates against his bewilderment. "Cmon Xel don't

play games with me. You said my name."



         "No i swear i had no idea." He pauses for a second. "Wait!

You're not an alien. No, not even close. None of you are. You're all

humans just like me. Sorry, but, who the hell are all of you and what

is all of this?!!?



         An old man walks up to him and replies, " Listen to my words

young hero, you are not who you believe you are. Tell me, do you

remember having the oddest dream, where everything seemed so real, but

at the same time, nothing felt right?"



         "Yes, actually I do. Wait, how do you know that?"



         "Hahahahaha, Xelabus please, it's me, Albaxis. You must have a

slight pinch of memory in that mind somewhere."



         Alex becomes increasingly annoyed. "Why the hell does everyone keep calling me that?! Who is Xelabus?!! No, what's so great about him?!



         The old man replies, " Okay then Xelabus, if you wish to talk in that tense then we shall. Xelabus, you, were the 2nd member of Organization XIII, a death defying group prone to the destruction of all “inferior” life forms.

More like gods, each and every member of the organization beat the

hearts, or souls, out of every being who chose not to take their path

into becoming a pure heart, but it didn't matter, because either way

they were destined to be stripped of their heart(soul) one way or

another. We, the Organization, used that heart energy to become even

more powerful. In other words, we nobodies needed a heart in order to

become a somebody, so we strived on the destruction of those that

actually had hearts. We thought that if we couldn't have our own

hearts then the only way to get one was to steal them from those that

had them. Of course, doing this only caused more problems, and instead

of having a heart, we gained negative power. Now, us four nobodies

understand our true purpose, and choose to aid the world we live in,

rather then destroy it. But, the rest of the organization does not

choose to live so peacefully. They are so power hungry that they

continue to greedily destroy that which was already under their

supervision in order to become even more powerful.



         "I don't get it. So what makes me so important?



         "You still don't get it, do you? You were the only nobody with

the ability to express emotion. It showed that you had the potential

to obtain a heart. You had the ability to make other nobodies feel

emotion, which was otherwise impossible for anyone in the organization.”



         "So, I was basically a sappy, crybaby?"



         "Youre not understanding me Xelabus. If it weren't for you, all

of us would have destroyed the very world we lived in by now. Of

course, it is still dying as we speak, but because of you there is  a

chance that we can save it. Because of you we realized what we were

doing to everything around us. We were literally sucking the life out

of our world by attacking and ripping the souls, out of those that

defied us. You must know that there is a balance to the homeostasis of

our world. The more powerful the organization gets, the more hearts it

takes, the chances of our reality blending into a darkened oblivion

becomes even more likely to happen. We will become nothing, have

nothing, see nothing, think nothing. That is not something any of us

wishes to achieve, so we come to you, because we know you can make

them stop, whether it be by force, or by persuasion."



         Xelabus becomes extremely overwhelmed, and replies,"Wow, this is

insane. You expect me to take down 10 of these people? Really, they

sound crazy dangerous! I came with you because I was looking for

adventure, and I believed that you were friendly, but sending me on a

suicide mission like this? There is no way a normal person like me

could possibly take down a whole team of, what are they, soul stealers

or something?!"



         The old man roars with laughter.



         "WHATS SO FUNNY!"



         "Hahahaha Xelabus, you've done it once before, but not without

friends. You're friends will and always have helped you."



         He questions Albaxis,"Tell me old man. Who are my friends?



         "Dont you know? Look around you. We need you, more than you

could possibly imagine."





Ch. 4.



{*Desperate Struggles*}





         "So where we headed?", Xelabus asks Rex, watching him push his

hand onto some kind of glowing button.



         "Back to Xios, Thats where we came from. It's our home."



         Xelabus wasn't sure if Rex meant everyone including himself, or

just them. He didn't bother to ask, but he carefully examined the

space around him. He noticed how the walls of the room curved because

of it's spherical shape, and how the front of the Faylex jutted out

in order to form somewhat of a cockpit. "So how does this thing work

anyway?" Xelabus asks Rex again.



         " Can we just ask questions later? I'm trying to focus here.

Sphere Faylex's are not easy to pilot."



         "Oh, sorry I didn't realize....",



         "Dont worry about it. We`re just glad to have you back again. You

should go back to the storage room. There's someone in there who wants

to talk to you."



         "Alright, how do i get there?"



         "Just keep walking towards the back. You'll find her."



         Xelabus was pretty sure it was that girl again, and felt pretty

bad that he changed the subject when she was so desperate to see that

his memory was back. He knew it would break her heart to find out that

it really wasn't. But, she didn't even have a heart so why would it

matter? As he walked towards the back, he noticed a small glowing door

about his height. He touched the door and it opened slowly, revealing

another room, but this one had bright lights all around it. He thought

this might be the engine room, not the storage room. He also saw a

very recognizable figure talking to yet another recognizable figure.

He knew exactly who they were.



         Xelabus ran up to the two. "Cierra! Kage! What happened to you

guys. Are you alright?!"



         Cierra ran up to him and hugged him. " Were fine. Oh and Kage

thought you were dead.", she mockingly replied to him.



         Kage walked up to him, "So what happened to you? They anal probe

you?"



         "Kage they're not aliens. They're just people like us looking

for help. They're desperate, and they came to me because they need me.

I know it sounds crazy but they said I have some kind of power. And

theyre right. I can't explain it, but ever since I had that dream I

could feel whatever it was just building up inside me."



         Cierra looked puzzled, and asked, "What do they need you for?"



         Alex wasn't exactly sure why she ignored the comment about his

power, but he answered her question nonetheless. "They need me to

bring peace to their world, but I'm not sure if I can do it."



         Kage replies, "Hah, that's what they want you to think. They make you feel all

important, and shortly after they turn against you, and do horrible

things to you, like..."



         "SHUTUP KAGE, you don't know what you're talking about. For one

you haven't even seen them yet, and neither have I. You need to stop

doing that!"



         "Doing what?", Kage asks Cierra.



         "Jumping to stupid conclusions, like how you said me and...."





         BANG! BANG BANG BANG! BOOOOOOOOOMMMMM!!!!



         Cierra is quickly interrupted by a huge explosion coming from the

outside of the Faylex.



         A speaker from the ceiling of the Faylex announces to everyone

inside.  "ITS THE ORGANIZATION! THEY KNOW WE'RE HERE! XELABUS! GRAB

YOUR FRIENDS AND HEAD FOR THE SHELTER! WE WONT MAKE IT IF THEY

CONTINUE HITTING US LIKE THIS!"



         Kage yells, Wheres the shelter?!"  BOOM! bang bang BOOBOOBOOOOM!!!



         The Faylex starts to jerk around, making irrational movements.

So does Kage, who is completely dumbfounded because he has no idea

where the shelter is.



         "GET TO THE SHELTER! QUICK! NEGATIVE ONE! NEGATIVE ONE!"



         Xelabus sees another door towards the back of the Faylex. He

runs towards it and sees four buttons aligned horizontally with the

numbers 3, 2, 1, and -1.

"Its an elevator! GUYS, COME OVER HERE! I FOUND THE SHELTER!"



         BOOOMMMMMMM!!!!





         As Cierra and Kage run towards the Elevator, the Faylex begins

to lose mobility and starts to fall from the sky. The magic that

sustained the spherical barrier around it diminishes, causing Kage,

Cierra, and Xelabus to eject right out of the Faylex, and into the sky.



         "Naaaaaooooooo!!!!!!!", Xelabus yells not just for his own life, but

for everyone elses as he watches the Faylex begin to explode, while he

falls at an accelerated rate to his death. He sees his friends falling

from the sky hundreds of feet away from him. Then, all he can hear is

a huge, explosive cracking noise. He turns his head towards the

Faylex, which falls apart, and all of a sudden, he hears absolutely

nothing. Then, he sees a large bright light, and in the center, where

the Faylex used to be, he sees and hears a large bursting shockwave so

loud it rips at his ear drums, and an explosion so vast, that he loses

consciousness.

         With no hope, no fear, and eyes closed, Xelabus falls

into an unknown world, all alone, with no one to stand by his side, or

so it seems.

         While falling, his body tilts down towards the ground at a 180

degree angle. He continues to fall, and fall, and fall, until he

passes the clouds, and the land beneath him turns to blue. Blue, the

color of ocean, the color of water. As he continues to fall, he

regains consciousness, and notices his descent to the surface of this

new world.



         "ughh, uhh, woah, whats going on? AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!", he freaks

out as he begins to realize he is falling.  SPLASH! He falls right

into the sea, and because of the speed of his fall, he, against his

own will, delves deeper and deeper into the Ocean. Shortly after,

Xelabus finds his balance and swims upright, looking intently up at

the dim light of the sun sitting upon the ocean surface, hundreds and

hundreds of feet away from his position. He swims as fast as he can to

the surface, and after some time, he still isn't even close. Xelabus

thinks to himself, "Wait, why aren`t i drowning?" After several

minutes of worthless struggle, he now notices that he can't, and never

could feel the awful sensation of losing his breath.

         "Woah, what's that!??", he bubbles out of his mouth as he sees a

bright yellow light beside him, urging him to follow some kind of

path. It delves deeper into the ocean, the very place Xelabus was

trying so desperately to escape. He notices that the light comes right

back to him, as if it was trying to urge him to follow it. Xelabus

hesitates, and chooses to continue swimming up towards the surface.



         It makes a high pitched noise, as if showing frustration, and saying,

"Just follow me already!"



         Xelabus, due to curiosity, tails the light, and finds himself

delving deeper into the ocean. As he delves, he notices how the space

around him becomes extremely bright, and his eyesight becomes clearer.

         It leads him into a large, cave, accompanied with several other moving

lights. He notices how they are all different colors, ranging from red

to white, to gold.



         "This is your home", Xelabus thinks to the odd

creature.



         It unexpectedly comes closer to him, bobbing itself up and down,

as if to say, "Yes, you're right. This is my home." It yet again urges

him to follow it's long, but mysterious path. 

         Of course, Xelabus can't help but wonder why this creature would need him to follow it, and how it knew exactly what he was thinking.  Maybe it was angry at him for waking it up, along with the entire underwater civilization of lights surrounding him, or maybe it needed his help. Afterall, looking

upon the old mans words, he could tell that he was pretty well known in

this world. He yet again thinks of something to see if the light would

respond. "Hey, you, light thing. Where are we going?"

         

         It pauses for a second, and makes a high pitched noise again, but

this time, Xelabus wasn't exactly sure what it was trying to say.

         Shortly after, the light moves higher into the ocean until it is no

longer visible. Then, out of complete nowhere, the light shines with

incredible brightness, and the entire place is revealed, showing many

intricate designs and vinyls within a collosal, underwater colloseum.



         "Woah, what is this place?", Xelabus continues to wonder. He

then sees all of the colorful lights from the cave moving towards the

middle of the coliseum. Every one of them combines with eachother to

form something. Something, almost human.

         Xelabus finds it easy to speak, although he is underwater.

“Wow, this is crazy. I wonder what's going on. Woah, is that......?",

he thinks to himself as the creation in the middle of the coliseum

begins to look even more increasingly human. It begins to take the

form of an old man.



         "Hey, Albaxis! Is that you?"

         "YOU ARE MISTAKEN", the creation replies with a voice so intense

It shakes his eardrums.



         "Then who, or what are you?", Xelabus asks, fearful of any form

of judgement he knew could be brought upon by this godly, glowing creature.



         It replies, "LOOK INTO YOUR HEART XELABUS. THINK DEEPLY INTO YOUR HEART. ONCE YOU REALIZE WHO YOU TRULY ARE, YOU WILL UNDERSTAND NOT ONLY WHO

AND WHAT I AM, BUT WHY I AM. FOR NOW, IT IS BEST IF I TELL YOU NOTHING.



         Xelabus replies, "Tell me nothing? How can I help anyone if I

know nothing?"



         "IT IS KEY TO OUR WORLD AND YOUR JOURNEY THAT YOU LEARN THIS

WAY. IF YOU KNOW TOO MUCH THEN THINGS COULD GO TERRIBLY WRONG. LISTEN

INTENTLY THOUGH, FOR THE ROAD AHEAD OF YOU IS BOUND TO BE A ROUGH ONE.

IT WILL BE A ROAD IN WHICH YOU WILL MAKE MANY SACRIFICES, MANY

MISTAKES, AND ULTIMATELY, SEVERAL CHOICES THAT WILL GUIDE YOU

THROUGHOUT YOUR JOURNEY INTO, WHAT YOU NOW CONSIDER, THE UNKNOWN."



         Xelabus yet again becomes overwhelmed, "I don't get it. How come all of a sudden the whole world relies

on me, when I know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!?? IT'S UNFAIR! HOW AM I

SUPPOSED TO SAVE ANYTHING? I mean, it's not like I have any, you know,

powers, or magic, or whatever it is  you need me to protect the world

with."



         "YOU STILL DO NOT SEE IT? AFTER ALL YOU HAVE GONE THROUGH, YOU

STILL DO NOT REALIZE YOUR TRUE POTENTIAL? XELABUS, TELL ME. WHERE ARE

YOU AT THIS VERY MOMENT?



         "Ughh", confused, Xelabus answers back, "Ughh, underwater?" Then

it hit him. He had been underwater this whole time and hadn't drowned,

he hadn't even felt the need to gasp for a single breath.



         "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! YOU NEVER EVEN CONSIDERED IT BEFOREHAND.

FOR SOMEONE SUCH AS YOURSELF IT ONLY COMES NATURAL. YOU WILL SOON

UNDERSTAND.  HMMMMMM. IT IS TIME NOW. YOU MUST REACH THE SURFACE.

THERE IS SOMEONE THERE WHO WILL OTHERWISE DIE WITHOUT YOUR ASSISTANCE.

SHE NEEDS YOU. NOW GO. GO AND PROTECT HER WITH THE POWER I BESTOWED IN

YOU."



         A flash of light blinds him and the old man vanishes, leaving

only the golden light Xelabus had followed. "So you led me into this

mess, huh? Guess there's only one way to get out of it."



         The light made a cocky sounding squeal, as if to say, "Shutup,

Im helping you."



         As Xelabus continued to reach the surface, the light followed

behind him. "Hey, what are you doing?", Xelabus pointed towards the

shining cave below him. "Go back to your home. You can't follow me."



         It still followed him. As he got closer to the surface, he noticed the

light from the sun was no longer visible.  Instead, he saw moonlight.

         "Wow, Ive been down here that long?" Xelabus looked behind him. He saw

the golden light again, still trailing behind him."Fine, you can stay,

and its night time. You mind being my light in the dark?"



         As a sign of approval the creature flew up out of the ocean, waiting for him to reach the surface.



         As Xelabus finally had his head above water, he not only saw his

shining companion, but an island far off in the distance. On the

island, he could see the moon shining on a figure of a person with

long hair, sitting on the shore. He couldn't make out the face though.

It was too far away.



         "Hey, light, go to the island and figure out who that is. I'll

swim there as fast as I can." It listened and flew off towards the

island. As he swam, he could hear something behind him. Something that

resembled the deep squealing of a whale.



         "huh? Cmon no more surprises please", Xelabus pleaded and began

to swim faster towards the distant island, now afraid that something

dangerous was tailing him.





         GROOOOOOIIIILLLLLLLL!!!!!





         "Awww NO WAY!", Xelabus yelled as a giant whale shaped beast

plunged out of the Ocean and swam after him with incredible force,

causing the waves around it's sides to heighten in size. Xelabus swam

as fast as he could but could not shake being overcome by the colossal

beast. It began to open it's mouth, revealing a glowing red diamond

hanging off the back of it's throat. All over it's head were hundreds

of little eyes; everyone of them fixed upon it's hopeless, fleeing

prey.

         Xelabus screamed in terror as it came so close, eventually engulfing

every inch of his body. As Xelabus was helplessly swallowed by the

hundred eyed beast, he found himself being blasted off into the sky by

a huge jet of water. As he fell, he landed on the surface of the

whale, which was headed towards the island.

         Xelabus regained his balance, sitting on the back of the beast. He begins to wonder. "Huh? You kinda spit me out?" 



         No answer. For some unexplained

reason he was expecting it to reply. But, it was a humongous whale

beast, and odds are it probably couldn't speak anyway.



         As it brought him to the island, he continuously thought about why he was expectant of so many things. Things that otherwise, or at least in his world, didn't make any sense.  He was expecting everything and anything to answer back to him, whether it be by words or just a sense of feeling,

brought upon by some spiritual presence lying within the soul of

those around him. He then believes, that the very reason why he was

expectant of such things was because of his underlying hope to

understand all of this insanity. It never ceased to reside within

him. His confusion was great, so he expected this world to answer back

to him, so he could gain the slightest understanding of who he was

meant to be. Why does this world rely on him? What is going to happen

next? After all he's been through, the words, anything can happen,

seemed to fall greatly into place.



         While sitting on the back of the beast, he notices something

shining behind him, something red. "Woah, looks like a diamond or

something." He picks the red diamond up and puts it in his pocket. He

remembers that something similar to it was inside the beasts mouth.

No, not similar, it WAS the object in the back of its mouth, meaning,

that as the beast shot him out of its blow hole, the diamond came out

too.

At this point, the beast came close enough to the island that

Xelabus could make out exactly who the person was. It was Celest. He

asked himself questions, confused as to why she was just sitting

there. Did she know he was coming? Did she just happen to be there? It

Didn’t madder. As long as there was someone else to stand by his side,

he didn't have to feel so alone, and there was something about this

particular girl that he became interested in. It wasn't necessarily

love, but he was happy to see her either way. He felt like he knew

her, but knew that he couldn't. There was no memory, no past with this

girl that he could recall. What was it? There was only one way to

figure it out.



         The beast notioned to him that his ride had ended. He

jumped off of it, splashing into the shallow water and saw her sitting

on the shore. As he swam up to the shore the water eventually became

so shallow that he could walk in it. She said nothing, just sat there,

with her head down, as if she was going to cry. She looked devastated,

but yet, no tears, no crying.

         

         Xelabus finally reached land, and sat with her on the soft sand.



         "Hey, Celest, you alright?"



         She looked up at him with pain in her eyes. "They’re all dead.

Your friends, everyone on that ship died."



         "What do you mean? We're still alive. Maybe they made it too."



         She was hysterical. "Cmon Xel! What are the odds?!! The only

place they could go to even hope for survival was in the

shelter. But you know just as well as I do that if they went to the

shelter then they're all dead! The whole thing just went, Boom!



         "Celest...."



         “Aww, I can't bear it! How come I can't stay calm like you do?!!

I mean, everyone else is probably dead, and you act like you don't

even care!"



         He thought about what she said. It was almost sickening to him,

because all this time he didn't even consider thinking of what

happened to his friends on the Sphere Falex. How could it be his fault

though? He was too distracted to care. He was never even given a

chance to think for himself. None of this seemed fair to him, and he

began to realize just how right Celest was. "Celest, I....I don't know

what to say, except the only thing we can do is look for them and hope

that they survived."



         "There is no hope. It's over. Give it up Xel. At least,..."She

pauses for a moment, "At least when we die, we'll die together."



         Xelabus stood up and clenched his fist. "No, we can't give up

now! How could you say that?!! Celest it's far from over. You came to

me for help. You ripped me out of my own world to save yours, and you

expect me to sit here and wait for the organization to destroy us all?

Sorry, but I'm not going down without a fight. If everyones dead....

Then we'll FIGHT for them! We'll fight for their honor, for their

PURPOSE!"



         The light flew straight towards them, and made a familiar

gesture, and squealed, as if to say, "Yea, Celest, put your head up!

He's right! Now let's go kick some butt!"



         Unfortunately, her sorrow could not be broken, and she

questioned him, " Xelabus! Tell me! What could you possibly do to help

us?! You remember nothing! You don't even remember me! Earlier on the

Faylex, you said my name, but I know... I know it was only for a

second, that your memory had come. I knew it vanished, as soon as I

saw that confused look in your eyes. I really wish....", she pauses

for a second, "Really I can't bear to see you again knowing that you

don't remember the slightest thing about this world, or the people in

this world who's lives you've changed. Xelabus, you don't understand

how important you are, not only to me but to everyone around you.

Everytime I'm with you that light just sparks, and I feel.......

almost as if......as if I had a heart. But it's not just me. You have

that affect on everyone.."



         Xelabus had thought about it before he spoke. He didn't realize

that he had such a blazing affect on everyone. In truth, he felt just

as sad and desperate as she was, but he couldn't tell her that. He

knew it would break her, non-heart if she knew how hopeless he truly

felt. But he could also feel something within him, a power he couldn't

explain in words. Somehow, he knew it had been a part of him his whole

life, but it never felt so great until now. Almost like Celest

described her feelings, it was like a spark in his chest, more

powerful than adrenaline. It was the very thing he needed in order to

achieve the goals expected of him. All he had to do now was to learn

what it was, and how to use it. He replied to Cierra, "Tell me, I'd

like to know what I've done. Please, it hurts me just as much as it

hurts you to not know anything. If I know nothing, then there's

nothing I can do except hope, and it seems, that you, of all people

know more about me than anyone. Please, tell me everything. If you can

tell me what I've done, if you can tell me why I felt a certain

connection with you, and everyone else as soon as I boarded that ship,

then you'd be helping me out more than anyone ever could.



         She looked at him with gleaming eyes. Eyes that showed hope,

rather than sorrow. Then she turned her head away from him. "But, I

cant tell you everything."



         "Why not?"



         "Because, you've done so much. Xelabus, by the time I'd tell you

everything, we'd already be dead."

         They both felt like laughing, but they each held back, releasing only a slight smile.



         "Fine, then tell me one thing that you remember the most."



         She giggles a little bit, and softly replies, " Haha, Xelabus you always were persistent. Hmmm, let me think. Oh, here's......... Aww! Awww!! My head!

Xelabus! The org... Awwww!" She squirms in pain as her head throbs.



         "Celest! What's happening?! Why are you......"Xelabus suddenly

pauses, and turns his head to the left, sensing an overwhelming

feeling of being watched. Low and behold, he sees a tall figure in a

hooded black robe far off in the distance, walking past the waves, and

onto the soft sand along the shore. A black, eerie aura surrounds the

figure as it proudly, and carefully walks itself even closer to Celest

and himself, until it warps towards them, leaving a black mist behind

it as it gets closer. Taking the figure of a young adult, it walks up

to the two, and unexpectedly greets xels arrival into their

world.

         "Xelabus. It seems that you are alive and well. It's great to

finally see you again. I was beginning to think I would never get the

chance to, dispose, of you, just one more time."



         He continues to cause severe pain to Celests head, and Xelabus

can no longer tollerate it."WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HER?!! YOU'RE

KILLING HER!"



         "No, just temporarily disabling her. It's because of you that

the pain grows stronger."



         "Awwwwww, XELABUS! Awwwww! Its....not.....your....awwww!" She

can no longer take the pain and faints."



         "STOP,!", as Xelabus yells, the diamond in his pocket begins to

glow, and the ground beneath him begins to rumble.

         Xelabus and his anger becomes so strong that he effects the

stability of the ground beneath him.



         The hooded man taunts Xelabus, "Hahahaha! Your anger is

growing!  I can feel it coursing throough my veins! It's like your own

spiritual pressure is building up to an extreme. Far beyond climax.

Tell me Xelabus. What is it you fight for?! How does your emotion

bring forth so much power?"



         Several fissures form in all different directions, all aimed

directly toward the hooded man, who jumps at impossible heights and

speeds, dodging every one of the fissures forming beneath him.



         "YOU STAY AWAY FROM HER!", Xelabus yells, unable to control the

erratical anger randomly flowing in and out of him, which causes even

more strange things to occur.



         "More! MOOORRREEE!", the hooded man crazily begs for Xelabus to

continue on with his uncontrolled rage, and gets exactly, if not more

than what he bargained for.



         One by one, thousands of bright yellow, glowing spikes form

around Xelabus, who also begins to glow slightly, and wait for the

opportunity to home in on the unknown challenger. Waiting for the

perfect moment, the spikes continuously rotate in the direction of the hooded man.

"What are you waiting for Xelabus? Hit me with all you...."



         He releases the spikes and they each race towards the hooded

man. The man then forms something. Within the hooded mans palms, a black

and red aura grows larger and larger.

         The 1st wave of spikes almost hit him, but the aura within his palm retaliates against them, bursting, and causing not only the first wave of spikes, but all of them to flail around aimlessly. Some of the spikes head towards Xelabus, who finally comes back to reality and sees the affect of his

rage. He thinks to himself, "Woah, this is crazy! Am I really doing

this?" He sees the glowing spikes heading straight for him, and also,

his helpless companion lying on the ground, motionless. Fearful of her

death, he runs up to her, picks her up, carries her over his shoulder,

and runs away from the random barrage of glowing spikes. As he runs, a

spike crashes onto the ground in front of him, making a small

explosion, with little glowing pieces of it scattering all over the

place. He tries to avoid it by turning around, but gets hit hard on

his left side, and his left arm begins to bleed. Alongside him, he can

see another light, but this light is balanced in the air.



         "LIGHT THING!!", Xelabus yells to the living object, who is just

as fearful as he is as it dodges the barrage of shining, glowing

spikes.

         Still, running, he can hear the barbaric laughter of the

hooded man, who effortlessly dodges every one of the flailing spikes.



         "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! XELABUS! DON'T RUN AWAY JUST YET! WE'VE ONLY

JUST BEGUN!"



         He ignores the hooded mans maniacal laughter and runs passed the

sand, aiming towards the woods within the island in order to hide from

the neverending barrage of giant glowing spikes.



         "Ughh, Xelabus", Celest begins to regain consciousness, and

barely sees the forest in which Xelabus had begun to carry her to.



         Another spike gets too close to them, exploding, and ripping at the

flesh of Xels right leg.



         "Hold on, just don't move. The farther we get you into this

forest the safer it is for you."



         "Xel, your bleeding."



         "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me. Your safety is all that

matters right now."

         He ventures deeper and deeper into the forest,

stepping over broken twigs, and waving branches out of his face. As he

runs deeper into the forest, he notices something far ahead of him. It

almost shines as brightly as the Sphere Faylex he saw landing in his

world. As he gets closer, he notices several bright, yellow lights

circling around a large tree. He stops running, and notices the

wondrous beauty of this mystic place. He sees a circular, open area,

with a large willow tree centered in the middle with several bright

lights circling around it. Xelabus thinks that this would be the

perfect place to rest up.



         "Xel, please......ughh, tell me you remember...... this place.

If there's anything about this world that you should

remember,.....it's the hideout we made here."



         Xelabus sets her down against the large trunk of the willow

tree. He sighhs, and also sits against the tree. "Celest. How are you

feeling?"



         "I feel fine. Xel, did you hear me?"



         "Are you sure you're okay?"



         She gets frustrated."Yes, Xel I said I'm fine. Do you remember

this place or not?"



         "I wish I did. It's amazing. It's so calming here."



         "Thats what it's called."



         "What?"



         "This place. The elders called it The Calm."