Forum > Tuber's secrets > thread

The loud stranger closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. Red, orange and yellow smoke materialized as some music radiated from it, just like Vivian's purple mist. What had he said? 'I knew I wasn't the only one.' His eyes opened, glowing orange. He looked at the stunned Vivian and gestured for her to stand back.
"Take a number, dear. Wait your turn and don't get out of line." He faced the cloud.
"Every thing you fear,
Paint it black in the back of your mind
You just go on breathing... Repeating-
Heads up, hearts down
Steady as she goes
Don't break step
Don't make a sound
Heads up, hearts down
No one ever knows
What started this exodus
Onward bound!"
He broke into a run and jumped. This smoke seemed to bend to his will, and it formed into small clouds that the stranger could land on and jump off of. It was almost like he was bouncing on inflated plastic bags. He leaped onto one after another, stair-stepping, until he was level with the hostile vapor. The angry eyes looked a little worried. The man tilted his head, his face a picture of mock sympathy.
"Your composure slips
Twenty-two and nothing left to do."
The small clouds he stood on began to merge with themselves, getting bigger.
"But resign to this
Bonafide, pilgrim pride*, tried and true
So you don't question
This lesson-"
The clouds attacked the glaring vapor, bashing into it from all sides. Hard to imagine, I know, but it was like colored water. The Amazon river drives a streak of fresh water 200 miles into saltwater. The red mist was doing a pretty kick-ass job, smashing into the black vapor.
"Heads up, hearts down!
Steady as she goes
Don't break step- Don't make a sound
Heads up, hearts down
No one ever knows what started this exodus
Onward bound..."
The vapor seemed to have a vague shape. Every time the mist bashed into it, the effect was limited. Something was inside it, and the smog shrouding it was like a plastic bag. The 'bag' was not going to be blown away, and it obscured the thing inside. Jason still couldn't see what 'it' was. The flaming eyes had retreated inside the smokescreen, but then they appeared again, livid. The entire black mass charged at the man, who tried to pull the clouds of orange mist back to himself. Only a fraction made it to him before the black closed in, completely enveloping him.
"I try to find my strength inside the sound
But I can't fight the darkness all around
I'm bleeding 'till I drown..." Then blue light (very much like the light that had shined from Justin's hands), shot from the sky and punctured the thick vapor. Nothing happened for a moment, but then 'It' screamed in pain. After that the creature (still in its 'plastic bag') was blasted away and the man inside dropped down, and the clouds that could not reach him before clustered around him, all but stopping his fall. The creature tried to ram into him, but he used his smoke to redirect its path, catching it like a slingshot and swinging it around. He released it after a full circuit of gathered momentum, and it shot out of the city's dome. The clouds of smoke supporting him gently sank to the ground.
"Heads up, hearts down
Steady as she goes
Don't break step
Don't make a sound
Heads up, hearts down
No one ever knows what started this exodus
Onward bound..." The smoke dissolved into nothing, leaving only the stranger, who stood alone.





*America is 'land of the pilgrim's pride', also "home of the brave and the free". The 'brave' part was 'tried and true'. Try to ignore that for now. The band I Fight Dragons is American.
Maybe this stranger has an American ancestry, to make the story work. Heads up, hearts down means (to me) to keep your wits about you, and keep your mind clear of everything but (fill-in-the-blank), and to ignore your pounding heart and inner fears. But that is just my personal opinion.

Vivian stared. She would've glared if he had attacked it with something enchanted, because that was what she had planned to do anyway, and she had first dibs. It was her right to avenge Cyrus. She would've been awed if she hadn't experienced that music/mist/whatever. She wasn't too impressed by that colored smoke. He was able to control and manipulate it, but she dismissed it as something she could learn, and thus remained impassive. The stranger swayed on his feet, then shook his head. His eyes returned to a honey brown. "I never get used to that." he said, blinking hard. His eyes settled on Vivian. "Where's your guardian?" She decided to glare. "I'm a legal adult," she lied. "I don't need one." He shook his again, losing his dazed look. "I'm not talking about a legal guardian. I mean your guardian." He began to pronounce the first syllable of Cyrus, but didn't get farther than C. "C... Cecil. No that's not it. C... Cedric..." He looked at her hopefully. She kept glaring. "That's not it either." he surmised, and kept guessing. "C... Cyrano... I swear, it's right on the tip of my tongue..." She rolled her eyes. "Cyrus was my friend. Are you trying to say that he was assigned to me?" Her tone of voice clearly implied that she would inflict physical harm to anyone who dared defy. If he was assigned to her by someone, someone wanted her protected. She already had adoptive parents, so someone else would have to be responsible for sending a guardian, and that would mean someone knew about the weird mist. If Cyrus had been her guardian, he would have to have known. The stranger was pretty stupid to continue. "Sort of. His job was to take care of you until-" "YAHHHH!!!" She yelled as she brandished her knives and lunged for his throat.

"YAHHHH!!!" The man lurched backwards reflexively, dodging her knives by an inch. "Have you lost your mind?!" Jason yelled as he and Logan grabbed her arms, restraining her. She struggled rebelliously, and Jason actually had difficulty keeping his grip. She didn't look strong enough to put up as much of a fight as she did. "What is wrong with you?" She twisted around and bit his arm. Jason refused to let her go. "Take that back!" she shouted at the stranger. "Or so help me, I will snap your neck!" The man looked at her, shocked by her reaction. "Didn't Cyrus tell you?" he asked softly. She squirmed, trying to escape. "You liar! Cyrus was my friend. We told each other everything, from aliens to philosophy. He even gave me the talk! He'd never keep a secret like that from me! NEVER!" He looked at her with pity in his eyes. "Where is Cyrus?" he asked gently. "Dead," she spat. "He's dead, and you think you can just waltz in here and destroy the only chance I had at avenging him! You didn't even kill it! Now how am I supposed to find it?!" Her fighting slowed as she weakened. The man stood face to face with her. "I'm sorry. I know how you feel." She scoffed bitterly and looked away. He cupped her chin and make her look at him. "My guardian is dead as well. And he was my only friend."

I am not going to cry, I am not going to cry. Vivian somehow conquered her tears of rage and pain. She was absolutely sure that she was going to have fingerprint bruises on her arms, for one thing. Remembering Cyrus's death was emotional torture. All that fear and adrenalin and anger was not just going to disappear, so her body tried to expel the negative hormones in the form of tears. Unfortunately, she had refused to cry in front of anyone since she was six, and was not about to start again in front of these men. She managed to release just enough negative energy to remain in control by yelling at the top of her lungs, and fighting Jason and Logan. She was fully prepared to engage in a shouting match with the strange man to distract herself from her anguish. But he didn't yell at her. The man spoke quietly after she attacked him. Softly. Gently. No one, not since Cyrus, had ever used those tones with her. She was used to idiots screeching in her ears, angry people roaring at her, and had desensitized herself to the point where the worst insults rolled off like water on a duck's back. This new attitude caught her completely off guard. It felt... nice. No! part of her screamed. Stop it! The closer they get, the more they hurt. He doesn't have the faintest idea of what you've been through, and he'll just hurt you later. Vivian had done this before, every time she thought about making friends or allies. She often argued with herself until she reached an answer. This particular subject argument went something like this; It's for your own good, he'll say as he forces you to go to a therapist, or worse. Humans make mistakes. You can't trust anyone. And he didn't know Cyrus like you/I/we did- how dare he accuse Cyrus of being a liar?! How DARE he take away sweet revenge?! But you/I/we don't have any friends. Or allies. You don't HAVE to trust the people you are friends with. Maybe it's time to try. No! Once you use their first names and greet them in passing, you start getting attached to them. Then they start to share stories about childhood, and you're left with three choices; One, you don't say anything and become an outsider within the group; Two, you leave; Three, you lie. You/I/we know as well as anyone that you can't lie all the time. Get someone to talk long enough and they will slip up, revealing the lies. You will have betrayed your so-called friends. Or you have to separate yourself, just as you/I/we are close enough for it to hurt. Why would you put yourself through that? Answer: She wouldn't. End of story. She knew every word of this argument, and it took less then three seconds to go over it again. However, she had more variables to consider now. He had information she needed to know. As long as the mist can overpower me, I need to at least know how to control it. I should know how to use it anyway, so I can SOMEHOW grab that thing in the vapor and wring more information out of it. What was it? Why was it attacking her? More questions would surface once the other two were answered, she was sure. First, she had to cooperate and let the stranger speak, then roll with it, but she would always keep her goals in mind. This would be her plan until further notice.
All this flashed through her mind as Jason and Logan squeezed her arms, and the stranger held her gaze. The man released her chin. "I appreciate your help, but I think you can let go of her now." he admonished the two. They let go. Vivian put her hands on her hips. "I don't need your pity," she said, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "But we need to talk." "As you wish," he replied. Then he hesitated, and glanced at the others. "Here, now?" She paused. Dylan was indignant. "Where else? I think we deserve to-" "That's enough." Justin cut him off. "We will respect your privacy." Vivian closed one eye, as she did when was thinking. These men had pulled her out of the mud pit, saved her after the dragon knocked her unconscious, protected her from prying eyes after her seizure, and Justin's hands had almost burned away. Yet, Justin did not demand an explanation. And that was exactly why she nodded. "Here. Now."

"It's a long story," The stranger began. All the warning sirens had been silenced by his musical smoke, and some bright spark had turned them off. Now, they screamed to life. The man shouted over the shrill, deafening, unending sound. "We should find a better place to talk! The authorities will be here soon!" Justin spoke for his men. "Agreed!" Jason just nodded, covering his ears. Vivian waved, then pointed to the woods, where she had escaped from the archery field. She began to run that way again, motioning wildly for them to follow. "Keep up or be left behind!!" she shouted over the horrible din. The man followed without hesitation, Justin followed him, and Jason stayed at the rear. She ducked under branches, hopping over almost invisible objects. Almost invisible until Jason stumbled on them, that is. Perhaps it was just his imagination, but the vegetation seemed to part for Vivian just to close behind her, tripping everyone else. She began to pull ahead while Jason and co. tripped over tree roots and small bushes, getting tangled in the crawling vines. "How does she do that?" he muttered, unheard. "Wait for the rest of us!!" somebody yelled. She stopped and turned. She looked surprised that they were lagging so far behind. "Hurry up!" As they fought onward, she waited near a seagrape tree. She stroked the bark of the tree, leaned against it, almost touching it with her lips, and murmured something to it. A vine that had wrapped around Jason's boot suddenly fell off, like it turned from a tough rubber curl to a twisted silk cord. He fell over, since he had been pulling on his boot when it let go. Branches didn't seem quite so low after he got up. The bushes looked bigger, fewer, and farther apart. Rocks stood, unshadowed and easier to see. Jason could practically see a path going straight to Vivian. "Come ON!" she shouted impatiently. She turned and sprinted, the forest opening up before her. Jason shook his head, afraid that he was seeing things. Only when a tree actually shifted 1/2 a meter to the side did he realize that it was not just him. The forest really did somehow respond to her. The small tracker, Evan, had gotten bumped to the rear of the group and fell into step with Jason. "Oh, well, THAT explains it!" he panted. "Explains what?" Jason yelled over the sirens. "It explains why she's so hard to follow! Everything kept tripping and wrapping around me!" Vivian heard and glanced back at him. "Ya did WHAT?!" she hollered. "Talk... LATER!" The man bellowed. He was still the best shouter of them all. "The HECK is your name, anyway?!" Well, Vivian was doing her best, which was not bad. "ZACHARY! CALL ME ZACK!" Zack was definitely the best-- and loudest. "LESS TALKING, MORE RUNNING!" "Use your stupid mist, why don't you?!" Vivian snapped.
"What?!"
"The MIST! Use it!"
"HOW?!"
"Um, to FLY! Duh!"
"It DOESN'T WORK LIKE THAT!"
"WHATEVER! Sue me for trying to help!"
"Do you ever SHUT UP?!"
"NOT REALLY!"

The alien watched the humans on its screen in disbelief. It would have quite a report to present to its superiors.

The alien's tentacles flashed, stabbing the keyboard at lightning speed. A small mechanical orb down on earth responded, invisibly following the odd humans. Most strange humans, indeed. The alien was breaking protocol, leaving its usual rounds to investigate these strange events, beginning with the archery contest's dramatic conclusion. They would be well worth hearing, it hoped. The human media had gone mad with the video from a spectator's cell phone. One of the alien's screens was devoted to the most accessed/watched videos on the internet, therefore alerting the alien to current events. The actual media tended to be untrustworthy. This particular footage ran rampage, hitting 1000 views in under 30 Earth minutes. Intriguing. Of everything the alien had seen on Earth, most strange was this girl. She did not follow social protocol- at least, not that the alien had seen. Her powers were loose and undisciplined. That was to be expected. The older she grew, the more powerful her powers would become. And unless she learned to control and exercise her newfound abilities, the more frequently her powers would seek an escape. The alien gently prodded a touchscreen and accessed a certain file, to brush up on its limited knowledge of these powers. This had occurred before, but very rarely, and so was not a need-to-know priority, exactly. The reports of these events were so rare and often unseen, they sadly lacked enough data to interest the Superiors. The alien's interest in these phenomena had been piqued long ago, and was refreshed anew. The alien paused to stroke a glass dome in the wall of his ship. Inside, a white Earth rose bloomed, frozen in time. Literally frozen, ice and all. Let's have a look, shall we? 6 times this had occurred, it believed. Each time, 5 humans were affected at a time, within the space of 5 Earth years. These powers were believed to manifest, though this was a very crude estimation, at the age of 18. The computer file confirmed its memory. Each time, Earth had been in danger of some catastrophe at the hand of one or more of these individuals. Earth history was nothing if not predictable. Each time, some gathered to fight a monster they laid claim to. Others happened to be in the right place at the wrong time. Somehow, given enough time, the heroes would meet. Occasionally they would hate each other for various reasons, but always fought the one. The alien knew an Earth saying that fit perfectly. The Enemy of my Enemy is my Friend. The evil one never prevailed, but often when the heroes refused to work together, thousands of lives were lost. When they did work together for the greater good, a sacrifice would ultimately win the day. More often though, if the evil one was not killed, or did not genuinely repent, he/she would vanish for a number of years and plot revenge. The cycle repeated until it was resolved, usually in the accidental or suicidal death of the evil one. Only one or two heroes completed the act with a suicide/sacrifice, taking the evil one with them to greet the face of death at the first opportunity, saving countless lives. The alien was saddened, thinking of the girl's behavior. I am afraid she may refuse to cooperate until a great tragedy occurs, it said to the frozen rose.

The sirens stopped wailing, but Jason's ears kept ringing. Matt rubbed his ears. "Thank the saints for that." They stood at the edge of the woods. One of 4 gates stood before them, the massive archway shimmering with energy. An invisible force-field blocked the entry. Two touch-pads were attached to the frame on either side, for the purpose of opening the force-field. To open the way, fingerprints had to register and be recorded. Vivian's voice was scratchy, probably from all the yelling. "Here's the plan. One of us opens the gate while everyone else gets through, but it has to be in twos and threes, just to remain inconspicuous." "But nobody's there. Why bother?" Jason asked. Vivian gave him a condescending look. "Because I pay attention to current events, I know that the higher-ups have passed a law, enabling them to install cameras at every gate. There are two looking down right now, at a slight angle so as to see the faces of those coming and going. If we go through in one or two large groups, someone will get curious and take a closer look. Do you really want to be seen with me?" No answer. "I didn't think so. When I tell you to do something instead of suggesting it, I usually have a good reason to do so. Pair up." She went over to Zack, identifying herself as his partner. Jason didn't really belong with the hunters, so he joined them. The hunters split themselves into groups. They exited the city without any unwanted attention.

"How much farther do we have to go?" Tim complained. "Stop whining. We're almost there." Vivian said. "Who died and made you queen?" Evan muttered. She tossed an annoyed glance back at him. "Feel free to leave anytime." "Where are we going?" Jason asked. His feet were starting to ache. He was sure he had walked at least 11 kilometers. "I think this is far enough," Zack said. He looked twice as tired as anyone. Vivian, on the other hand, hadn't even broken a sweat. She looked around at the overwhelmingly dense, compact vegetation. "I suppose this is as good a place as any." she said, obviously dissatisfied with the place. Almost all the hunters collapsed on the ground, Jason and Zack included. Jason heaved a sigh of relief. Avery took out his medical supplies to treat Justin's hands. He poured some water over the popped and bloody blisters to wash any grime away, then he popped a cork out of something. A familiar, nauseating smell wafted into the air. "Oh, Avery, must you?" Tim asked, pinching his nose to block the offensive smell. Avery glared at him, then slathered the gunk over Justin's hands. Justin's pained expression relaxed. "Avery, never again will I complain about your herbal remedies." Logan gagged. "That doesn't apply to the rest of us, does it?" Vivian rolled her eyes. She bent down and plucked a spearmint shoot. "Here. Smell this," she said, giving the fragrant plant to Logan. "Crush it in your hands. It should overpower the stench." Logan did. "I can breath again!" Everyone began searching for the little plants. "Thanks, Vivian." Dylan said gratefully. She shrugged dismissively. "Just a trick I picked up in my travels. Zack, now would be the time to-" Zack had fallen asleep, sitting with his back against a tree, leaning on a rock. Another hunter began rummaging in his pack, digging out a strip of dried meat. He caught Vivian's irritated look. "What? I'm hungry." Somebody's stomach growled. "And that wasn't mine, by the way." She sighed forcefully out of frustration. "Fine. Set up camp or something. We can talk in the morning." She reached up and grabbed a branch, swinging herself up. The tree bent around her, its branches cradling her form like a mother's arms. "See you tomorrow."

Jason woke first. He rubbed his eyes. He had just closed his eyes... hadn't he? An obnoxious bird began to sing loudly. Several people rolled over or covered their ears. Logan had fallen asleep on his stomach with his face in his arms, and his voice was muffled. "I'm going to shoot that bird if it doesn't shut up." As if they heard, more birds began to add their sound to the first's. More than anyone could shoot. Logan raised his head, still drowsy. He looked straight at the troublemaker that started it all, then reached for his bow. The culprit immediately flew away to a safer perch, to continue its singing. "I hate birds." Jason saw, through the haze of sleep, the stunned bird drop out of a tree. Vivian's voice drifted down. "I hate them, too." She dropped down lightly and landed in a crouch, then stood without toppling off balance. Jason would've been impressed if he had been fully awake. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the morning air, which was still misty. She ran her hands through her hair and looked at Jason. "You're disgusting." she said dispassionately. He blinked. "What?" "You're covered in dew and you drool in your sleep. It's repulsive." Her words didn't confuse him. It was the bored tone, like he was uninteresting. Why would she bother to insult him when she clearly didn't care? Somehow, it was even more insulting than the insult. She gazed at him while he processed the signals, watching his face carefully. He had just woken up, so he was not in complete command of his facial expressions. She was confusing him by sending certain verbal and nonverbal signals. Then he realized she did it on purpose. And THAT was insulting. She was playing around with his mind before he could fend her off! As soon as he finished his train of thought and registered the ALL the insults, she grinned. "I'm kidding. Did you know that Dylan talks in his sleep?" He just stared at her as the mental fog lifted. You really need 15 minutes to fully regain your mental faculties, don't you?" He rose from the ground. "I do not need 15 minutes. And messing with someone else before they're conscious is not nice." She just smirked and poked Evan in his side. He flinched in his sleep. Jason shook his head; berry juice was painted on Evan's face, like lipstick, blush, and eyeshadow. Matt had leaves artfully woven into his hair. Branches were propped against Tim. When he woke and moved, the precarious balance would be upset, and he would be lost in a massive shower of sticks. Small, harmless pranks were set up on everyone except Justin, Zack, Logan... Jason looked at himself. His sword belt and sword had disappeared, and a chain of flowers was in its place. His black trench coat was missing, too. He slowly looked up at Vivian, with what he hoped was a terrifying glare. She emitted a strangled noise, trying not to laugh. Zack woke abruptly, grabbed a rock and threw it at a particularly loud bird. "Alright! I surrender! Just shut your beak!" He missed. He opened his mouth to speak, then saw Jason glaring and Vivian shaking with suppressed laughter. Not really what one expects upon waking. "What's wrong with you two?" "Take a look around. I'm sure you'll figure it out." Jason growled, not taking his eyes off Vivian. He did. And he began to laugh. "Did...(Laughs) Did you just...(Laughing) Why would you...(Laughing harder) I just... I can't..." Jason transferred his glare to Zack, who continued laughing uncontrollably. Vivian gave up trying not to laugh and joined him. Together, they woke everyone else. "What are you laughing at?" Matt asked, unaware of his leafy Afro. Tim yelped as the fragile balance of the sticks failed and toppled on top of him. Then he stood up, pulling twigs out of his chestnut brown hair. "You're a fine one to laugh, Matt! You should see yourself!" Evan stretched. "Oh, stop, both of you. It's too early for this." Matt snickered. "Of course... Milady." No sooner had Tim uttered the joke than he fell to the ground, clutching his sides for laughter.
About 15 minutes later, after a good long laugh from everyone, all signs of the mischief had been fixed. Jason got his things back, Matt pulled all the leaves out of his hair, Evan washed the berry juice off, ect. "Okay, back to business. Zack, it's story time." Zack promptly recounted everything about the aliens that Vivian already knew. "So then some people woke up accidentally, and wandered around the ship until they ran into an alien on patrol. Everything was explained to them, and they were sent back to sleep. Those people, one per city, told the story to everyone upon waking. Over the years, as people became self-sufficient and the persons who saw it with their own eyes died, one generation became doubtful that there were aliens in the first place. The next generation was convinced that super-genius(es) built the domes and the gates, and mapped out the sectors. Soon, the awesome facts became myths. It was just too fantastic to be true. A few vowed to protect the truth, and to tell the real story to anyone who would listen. Our guardians were two of them. And here we are." Vivian threw a small stone at his head. "What was that?? 'Hi, I'm me, and I have told you everything you already know. I also beat up the thing that killed your best friend, but I didn't kill it. See you never!' What the heck, Zack?" Cue the extremely passive-aggressive stare. Which meant she was angry, but willing to listen. Zack continued as though she hadn't said anything. "That's what they tell us until we turn 16. Then the story changes a little bit. "Well for one, there's an alien watching us now. You just can't see it because you haven't been trained to notice." He threw a rock with amazing speed and smacked something. A mechanical sphere fell into Dylan's lap. "Ahh!" He jumped up and the orb fell out of his lap, and rolled to a stop at Vivian's feet. She opened her mouth, but before she formed words, something shook the world. Drumbeats caused the stones on the ground to dance. Greens and shades of black flashed across the sky. "I'm detecting a pattern here!" Vivian shouted. Everyone pushed out of the thick clump of woods, but the source of the power was IN the forest. The greenery began to grow faster, as though years of growth passed in seconds. A sapling grew to a 50 year-old tree in moments. Green mist crept out of the forest, clinging to whatever it touched. The forest grew faster and faster as black lightning shot across the sky.
Blind Guardian - Fly
"Stop
Be quiet now
Out with the light and
Then up and down it goes

Fly
Out with the light

There at the door
The inspiration I've looked for
The spirit of the youth appears

No one ever dares to speak
It's nothing else but fantasy
It's make believe
Make believe
No one ever dares to speak
It's nothing else but fantasy
But one day
It all will come to life

Step out of line
And I'll teach you how to fly
Then away we'll go
Leave your mark land of mine
Leave your mark
In the land of mine

The second one to the right
And then straight on
Until morning light

Stop be quiet now
No irritation
No not the slightest doubt

We go at once
Quick - We better hurry
There from the road I sense
The end of fun gets near
Wonderful thoughts
And imaginations
These things will lift you up

What is it like?
You ask me, my dear
Will there be fairies
Or things to fear?
For fairies sake I'd say
You better come with me
So soon you'll see
Now up and down it goes
And round
Round and round and round

Praise
To my cleverness
They all follow me
All praise to innocence
That's everything it needs
Fly in
Fly out
They'll leave it all behind

No one ever dares to speak
It's nothing else but fantasy
It's make believe
Make believe
No one ever dares to speak
It's nothing else but fantasy
But one day
It all will come to life

Step out of line
And I'll teach you how to fly
Then away we'll go
Leave your mark land of mine
Leave your mark
In the land of mine"

Green light flashed from somewhere in the center of the forest, blunted by the trees in all directions but up.

"Life is a map
And it is quite confusing
The lights are up
Now let the play begin
She flies, she flies
Into the light she flies
No words like "Just" in mind
She's finding Neverland
There on the day she dies
Don't stop it now
She still enjoys the scene
Don't stop it now
Don't stop it now
Don't stop it now
Don't stop it now, now, now

No one ever dares to speak
It's nothing else but fantasy
It's make believe
Make believe
No one ever dares to speak
It's nothing else but fantasy
But one day
It all will come to life

Step out of line
And I'll teach you how to fly
Then away we'll go
Leave your mark land of mine
Leave your mark
In the land of mine!"

Abruptly, everything quieted. Vivian and co. stood in the only clearing for at least two leagues.

"That was weird." Jason said into the odd silence. "I am so sick of doing this," Vivian said angrily. "Always, ALWAYS, when ever I start to get anywhere close to a straight answer something huge and weird that makes absolutely NO SENSE just BAM! There it is! Like a huge billboard screaming, 'Your sanity is slipping! WHY ME?!" her voice rose to a frustrated scream. "EVERY - SINGLE - TIME! With Cyrus, with Zack, with Alyssa..." She went on to list almost a dozen names, "and NONE of them ever got to the POINT! WHY?!" Zack stared at her. "What are you talking about?" She looked at him like she was going to start screaming again, then stopped. She took a very deep breath and let it out slowly. "Sorry. I've had a stressful life, and it's starting to go to my head. You'd think I'd be used to it by now." Jason was getting used to all her yelling. "Yeah. Go figure." "Oh, bite me, Jason." He was a little surprised that she remembered his name. He hadn't heard her use it before. She paid more attention than he thought. She looked at Zack. "Okay, Zack. What, exactly, do aliens have to do with the colored smoke? Tell me now, before whoever pulled this-" she gestured at the freshly grown forest, "-little stunt shows up to admire his or her handiwork." "Right. So the supposedly 'random' people who woke up from cryogenic stasis were people who controlled the Mist. Some of them knew it and some of them didn't, but they found out pretty quickly. The aliens scanned the earth in sections before they wiped it clean, to replant or to rebuild. They scanned several life-forms frozen in the Arctic, like the humans who discovered woolly mammoths in glaciers. One human, frozen to death, was found clutching a small book. The book was steamed open because the pages had frozen together in a solid block. In it, she had written her story, but only bits and pieces survived. The rest was smudged- I'd say waterlogged, but it was icy. I have digital images of the book, and a typed copy of what was understandable at home. I'd be happy to-" "Unnecessary." A man's voice said from the forest. "Oh, for the love of-" Vivian broke off. The deep voice carried a tinge of confusion. "What?" "I'm cursed. That's the answer, isn't it?" She looked almost... giddy. "I was cursed to never have a complete answer, and I will never have one until I learn to accept my fate, at which point the spell will be broken." She looked at the sky. "I'm right, aren't I?" Her voice was triumphant, a self-satisfied look on her face. The voice came closer as his footsteps rustled the grass. "You are a strange girl." "So I hear," she said. "And you do not care that most sentient beings avoid you like the plague?" "If they judge me like that, they aren't worth talking to." The tall man emerged from the green curtains. He wore a gray cloak with a hood, clasped at the shoulder with a green and gold scarab. His staff was twisted, dark wood. He looked curiously at her for a long while, then said, "You judge too quickly." He glanced at Zack. "As I was saying, I have the book on this jumpdrive." He dangled the blue USB flash drive on a green cord. "So it would be unnecessary to travel to your home." Avery couldn't resist asking, "How did you do this?" He pointed to a plant that used to be a green sapling that was now a huge tree. The man smiled mysteriously. "You'll see soon enough when the others arrive." "What others?" Jason asked. "You''ll see."

This is my last post for at least 2 weeks, if not longer, because I will not have access to a computer. In the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger; "I'll be back."
...Eventually.

"You'll see this, you'll see that, why can't you just tell me now?" Vivian asked. "There is no point in telling you one by one. I will answer all your questions at the same time." Vivian flopped on the ground. "What's your name?" He said nothing. She tried again. "Okay, how many people are we waiting for?" Still no answer. "Seriously, what's your name?" Silence. He was ignoring her. There was nothing she hated more than being ignored, unless... Vivian looked closer. The hood of his cloak shadowed his face and the cloak itself hid the rest of him. He was totally hidden, a trait of the mysterious and silent. Silent people never speak unless they have to. When they do speak, it's worth listening to. He was probably formulating his response in his head, editing, refining and saving it to use later; for 'all of them.' Vivian understood this, and it was why she did not demand an answer right away. "All right, fine, I get it. You won't tell me anything before you think it's time." "Correct." She squinted, looking at the scarab clasp on his shoulder. "Why do you wear an Egyptian scarab?" He tilted his head to the side curiously. "You ask about jewelry, though it is not related by any means to what you wish to know. Why?" "Because it confuses you." She turned and began to retrace her steps back into the forest. "Where is she going now?" Jason wondered aloud, as if she couldn't hear him. She answered, as if he had asked her. "Because I haven't forgotten the, uh... Alien thingamajig." "The alien surveillance and observation probe." The man corrected. "Yes, the flying invisible alien camera thing." she affirmed dismissively. "The one that Zack grounded."


The alien stabbed the keyboards and jabbed the touchscreens, frantically resetting the controls and rebooting the the probe, trying to achieve liftoff. Nothing was responding. The probe flickered one final time, then died. The alien stared at the screen in disbelief. Two words summed everything up: Catastrophic failure. The alien was going to rue the day it came into existence before the Supreme ones finished with it, for allowing the probe to be lost- and among humans, of all creatures! A probe it was unauthorized to launch. This was all wrong. The probe was supposed to return before the alien's time was up. Before it's researching career ended. Before it had to return to it's home planet, enduring the mixture of pity, disgust, mockery, and the scholarly equivalent of I-told-you-so. Never to return to this fascinating planet of color and imagination, where everyone had a choice for what they would or wouldn't do. At this point, the alien would be better off on Earth. Far better.



There you are. The probe lay on the ground, nestled in the grass. Vivian crouched down to inspect the mechanical sphere. The slick black exterior had a major indentation that split, spilling wires that were so thin, Vivian could barely discern one from another. Evan was the quickest when moving through a tangled jungle, so he caught up first. "Where's the fire?" he panted. "Say again?" she asked, looking up from the probe. "I said, what's the hurry?" "That is not what you said. And besides, the question is 'why are you hurrying', not 'what's the hurry'." He gave her a odd look. "It's what I meant." "Maybe, but I didn't hear you the first time you said it." Evan blinked twice, then decided to let it go, and switched subjects. "How do you move so fast?" What is he talking about? He's seen me mid-sprint. What's weird about it? Vivian allowed her thoughts to show in her expression. "Let me rephrase that," he said. "How do you make the trees move for you?" Okay, now this is getting personal. She had already mentioned the fact that her mother was a dryad. Her mother was a human tree. She thought that was pretty self-explanatory. At any rate, she flipped the focus on him, about something that had been bothering her. "And on a different but more important topic, were you following me yesterday?" "Umm... Oh hi Jason, maybe you should look at that big black thing on the ground there." Evan scooted behind Jason.


Jason was surprised when Evan used him as cover, slipping out of Vivian's line of sight. "Is there a problem?" "If you consider cowardice to be a problem, yes, Evan has a problem." "What did you just call me?" Evan voice squeaked in indignation. Vivian looked amused. Evan was turning red. He was a small guy with a smaller-than-usual Adam's apple, so he probably didn't mean to squeak. Vivian's smile wasn't exactly... normal. It was accompanied by an odd glint in her eye. Jason didn't like it. "What just happened here?" he asked, hoping that Vivian would indulge in one of her speeches. He felt like he had missed something, just like the times his father used to laugh at a joke Jason didn't understand when he was little. His mother would then gently slap his father, who would continue laughing. Jason didn't appreciate it when something was held over his head, just out of reach. Vivian gave him a look that said, it's my little secret. "Oh, nothing, Jason. Nothing at all."

Tim and Matt had raced each other to the spot where the probe landed. Matt won. "Did Tim beat me?" he asked breathlessly. Vivian shook her head. "No." "Good; he said I'd lose. Why is Jason glaring at you again?" Jason answered for himself. "Because she knows something and she won't tell us what it is." "Won't tell you." she corrected. Matt shrugged. Vivian supposed that he thought it didn't matter, and he didn't care. Tim burst out of the green curtains and saw that Matt had won. He didn't say a word to him, and instead asked Vivian a question: Did she recognize the green plants that now covered everything? She did. "Kudzu." "What's kudzu?" Tim asked, instead of gloating over his victory. "It's a plant that came from a place that was once called Africa. If you see it wrapping around your leg you have about 30 seconds to escape, before it engulfs you completely. It grows anywhere and everywhere. If you watered it, it would probably grow on the moon." Matt didn't miss a beat. "What's Africa?" "It used to be a continent. Then area this and subsection that, with numbers for names. I don't remember what areas are which, I just know where I've been." She pulled a small map out of a hidden pocket, unfolding it. "This is a copy of a very old map, and I've laid a grid of area numbers over that. Africa is here," she explained, pointing at it. "And we're in some place called 'the Bahamas'. It's right up there with the 'Caribbean' in terms of vacation. Or it was, until the dragons decided to move in. Not all the animals were happy with the home the aliens prepared, and a lot of territory shifting was done. The aliens tried to help by replanting food sources for the small animals, who were run off by the bigger ones. The entire Earth was a bit... scrambled, to say the least. It's gotten a lot better, over the years." She looked up. The cloaked stranger was standing there, studying the map. He was completely silent. "You're a ninja." she said. He looked at her. Just looked at her, as if to say, If he were really a Ninja, he'd have to kill her. It's the code of the Ninja. So of course he wasn't a ninja. Vivian smirked, as if to say, I know. I'm just confusing you again. Justin and the rest caught up. "What do we do while we wait for these other people to show up?" Logan asked. There was a moment of quiet, as nobody really knew what to say.


Okay, if ANYONE is reading this, PLEASE help! Even if it's just a bunch of random words, like armadillos or sushi or magic carpets or robots- SOMETHING.