Episode-07: A Familiar Feeling

Date: November 24, 3008
Time: 06:30
Location: New Leaf City

~Michael~

The blackness of the night gave way to the shadow of the day. Hours after midnight now, the new sun rose with practiced bravado, feigning its ineptitudes with radiant rays of light that started to arise from the horizon. The sky was still a murky grey, casting doubt upon the city which had turned into nothing more than a field of rubble.

The streets were now clamoring with activity as men in black combat gear jumped out of APCs and Tanks, their rifles clacking nervously as they quarantined the city. Amidst the echoing footsteps and muffled yelled commands, Michael found himself losing himself from all of that, turning his back on the broken city. His group of five walked back to the docks where only a few hours ago, the monster had sunk all of the ferries with a slash of its tail and a stream of fire.

Distant storm clouds loomed ominously, threatening rain to quash the random conflagrations that still burned with enthusiasm. But they were teardrops on the fire, unable to quell the uneasy feeling inside of Michael’s heart. For some reason, there were far more unpromising things ahead of him than mere grey clouds.

“We’re here,” Naz said as he halted in front of the blue waters that lapped around the dock’s wooden supports.

“We’re where?” Maldran asked curiously as he scanned the ocean, trying to depict anything of importance out of the monotonous, undulating waters.

“We’re right here,” Naz replied with a fiendish grin etched upon his face. Then, without looking back, he took a deep breathe and jumped feet first into the water.

Michael blocked a spray of white sea foam as Naz’s black outfit disappeared into the infinite azure. The waters quieted down, returning to its timely roiling, as if nothing had happened. Michael had almost decided to jump in to see what the hell Naz was doing until an odd mechanical whirring filled the air. It was coming from right below his feet.

The submersible broke the surface of the water, sending a mist of salty water into Michael’s face. It was all black, and looked big enough for only a few people. The cockpit’s windows slid open, revealing a very wet Naz at the helm. “Jump in, we’re going for a ride.”

Having no choice but to follow him, Michael waited as Felix and Maldran helped Nova into the craft. He looked over his shoulder at the city. The skyline was now missing a few key elements, which did not seem quite right in Michael’s eyes. Scanning the rooftops from east to west, he saw the storm approaching with great speed. Michael could already see the blurry black lines of the rain pounding the ocean as it charged forwards with full speed. Then, he hopped into the ship and the visor slid close with a hydraulic whirring.

As Michael took the last seat in the tiny submersible built for five, Naz suddenly nose-dived forwards, making Michael slide all the way back in the chair. The water gushed over the visor and he suddenly found himself looking into a foreign underwater world of all sorts of fish and other abnormal creatures.

The waterworks curiously filled Michael with appreciation of the natural ability of the planet to sustain life. Countless fish swam by, ranging from large and formidable Sharks to lazy Bubble and Flower Fish, to the immobile black Pinbooms of the ocean floor. A Dolphin swam by, circling the craft playfully before dashing off with joyful clicks.

Suddenly, the ship lurched forwards, as if something had hit it from behind.

“Sh**,” Naz mumbled as he flipped a few switches on the control panel, “It’s here…”

“What’s here? I don’t see any… WHOA HOLY SH**!” Maldran spazzed as an enormous tail-like entity swung over the ship’s bow. It seemed strangely familiar. Then, as if to drive a wooden stake into the point, a deafening yet familiar roar reverberated throughout the ocean, giving Michael a chill like no other.

“Sh**, MOVE!” Michael yelled right as the ship sped forwards. They could find no escape from this accursed beast. The control panel’s many lights flickered and beeped in protest to the ship’s speed. Underwater currents rattled the hull so much as they sped through that Michael thought they were going to disintegrate.

But the emergency lights were still buzzing annoyingly, signaling that the monster was right on their tail and gaining fast. Naz dived down into a deep ocean trench, trying to out maneuver the behemoth, but to no avail. Every little obstacle that Naz piloted skillfully through, the monster smashed into tiny fragments. The force of these underwater explosions reached the ship in short bursts, making Michael’s heart beat furiously.

The whir of the ship’s engines was at its peak, whining agonizingly, as if saying it could take no more. But Naz forced it onwards nonetheless. Sweat dripped down from Michael’s forehead onto his front, and he felt sickly in the hot atmosphere. That coupled with Naz’s nauseating piloting combined to form for a perfect formula for sea-sickness.

Michael promised himself that if he didn’t lose his lunch right then and there, he would treat himself to a good long break as soon as this bloody mess was cleared up. As Naz drove through an underwater stone arch and back up out of the trench, the engines finally sputtered. Swearing under his breath, Naz shut off the main engines and switched to auxiliary power. The monster was sure to gain on them, and once it did, it would make short work of the submersible with a single bite of its tooth-filled jaws.

Yet the beast never emerged from the abyss. The expected roar of a fuming behemoth was only filled with a tacit of the sea as they droned forwards, undisturbed.

“Where’d it go?” Nova asked quietly to no one in particular as she looked out the front windows. From her concerned face, Michael could tell she was trying to scan the ocean trying to find the creature before it swam out and surprised them again. However, everything remained still; the tiny fish drifted by as they basked in the early morning sun.

They finally broke the surface and found themselves not too far from yet another island; the sun shined brightly upon the surface of the earth, smiling at their reappearance. The isle was covered in green shrubbery and trees. There were mountains in the distance, looming up above the tree-line. Behind them, the storm clouds were gone, vanished along with the accursed city as well as the treacherous monster.

“We’re here,” Naz sighed in relief as he opened up the front windows. He jumped down into the shallow clear water which reached his waist. Wading forwards, he finally made his way to the beach just as Michael himself splashed into the ocean.

“What about your craft?” Felix asked uncertainly as he took a step into the white sand.

“No one ever comes by this place,” Naz said reassuringly as he drew out one of his katanas.

“Then what do you need that for?” Maldran asked uncertainly, eyeing the steel blade hesitantly.

“This?” Naz chuckled as he examined his blade, “This is for reassurance.”

“Naz,” Nova’s voice suddenly broke the sea of males. Michael turned to look at her; she was staring out into the distant mountains. There seemed to be black spots etched upon the grayish rocky surface. “Is this where I think it is?”

Naz scoffed and replied in an exuberant tone, “Such a smart girl, of course this is!”

Michael’s countenance twisted in confusion, but then, it hit him as well. He couldn’t believe he was so stupid. After the longest few days of his life, it was hardly possible to forget the island that had made him into what he was today. Navasota Island was both a blessing and a curse.

Suddenly, something rustled in the underbrush. Michael quickly slid his S-16 off of his shoulder and aimed it into the trees. It didn’t take a telepath to know there was something in there. Next to him, Nova had her own rifle trained at the exact spot of the disturbance, but she had a worried look upon her face nonetheless.

“It’s ok,” Naz broke the tension. He raised his katana high into the air and right before Michael’s astonished eyes, it burst into flames. But the fire did not burn the steel, but rather encased it in a reddish orange aura. Stupefied by the amazing spectacle, Michael almost did not notice the sudden bolt of lightning that streaked up into the sky from within the trees.

Naz, is that you? A feminine voice suddenly boomed into Michael’s mind. Michael was really getting annoyed at these Shadows.

It’s me, stand down, Naz replied telepathically.

The bushes rustled again and the parted, revealing a slim and stunning figure dressed exactly like Naz, except in pure white. She also wore two katanas on both sides of her hips, coupled with a pair of futuristic-looking pistols. Her waist-length silvery white hair streamed down the sides of her head like a silky waterfall, complementing perfectly her silver eyes that matched identically with Naz’s.

“Welcome to the jungle,” she said with a warm hostess-like smile. “I am Lillian White, but you may call me Lily.”

“What,” Maldran scoffed clumsily, trying to hide the fact that he found himself very attracted to the beautiful woman, “Like all of you guys are named after colors?”

Lily tilted her head to one side in curiosity. Slowly, she strode forwards; Michael noticed that with every step she took, the sand below her feet would seem to float in her wake, carried by an unknown breeze. As she stopped no more than a foot in front of Maldran, even Michael could feel Maldran’s heart beating furiously as he tried not to stare.

“You’re name is Maldran Argali right?” She whispered in a seductive tone and stroked his cheek with a white-gloved hand. Michael fought back a laugh as Maldran nodded his head enthusiastically with a broad grin.

“Then based on your past history, you’ll never get some.” And with that, she whipped around and seemed to float majestically back to Naz’s side, leaving Maldran gaping at her rejection without even a question being asked.

Shaking his head in the brief moment of comic relief, Michael wordlessly followed the two Shadow Templars deep into the jungles of Navasota. Though it had only been a year, Michael was astonished by how much the plant like had rejuvenated. Much of the scarring the war a year ago had left had been covered up by renewed life. As they strode through the tall grass, Michael was amazed by a herd of wild boars roaming around, completely unaware that at that exact spot a year ago, thousands of soldiers lied dead upon a charred battlefield.

Overhead, the sunlight could barely shine through the thick canopy, creating a familiar stifling environment. The tall grass soon parted away into the plains where the fontal attack had happened a year before. Seeing the field again brought back so many painful memories, that Michael pressed a fist into his temple, trying to block everything out. All of the deaths, of friend and foe alike.

Naz and Lily stopped as they neared a large boulder protruding awkwardly off of the lush grass surrounding it. They each unsheathed one katana and seemed to stab into the rock with the blades. A sudden blast of blue light emerged from within the face of the grey slab, forming into a rectangular door-like shape. Without another word, the two of them stepped in at the same time.

“What the hell?” Michael mumbled to himself as he himself strode into the portal. Then, he did a double take as he emerged on the other side, for staring directly at him were the intimidating pitch black eyes of Mikhail Shale.