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Chapter 27 - Dreams of the Disillusioned

Howie tapped his fingers against the smooth surface of the silver table. AJ and Jamelet silently sipped their drinks. It was obvious that Ana had taken a complete dismissal from the conversation. Howie could feel the frustration raging inside her exhausted body. Howie felt slightly embarrassed as he watched Ana from the giant bay window in the kitchen area. She sat on the porch with her headphones perched overtop her ears. She blasted ancient melodies to calm her aching soul. Howie felt so lost when it came to analyzing Ana’s personality. She had changed drastically since the war.

“Are you okay, Howie?” Jamelet’s voice called out, breaking Howie’s thoughts.

He shook his head gently, trying to clear his thoughts. He didn’t know how to explain what he was thinking. Everyone was so odd and always spacing into their own worlds. Everything was so different. He sighed heavily, running his index finger against the top of his glass. “I’m sorry. It looks like Ana has taken a break from trying to figure this stuff out. I really hope that you’ll forgive her. She’s been so different since those accidents at the war camp—”

“Accidents?” AJ asked with surprise.

“Oh, yes, they were on the news, but the crew didn’t release her name. When Ana met the twins, she

had a flashback of some sort with the girl. She was really surprised and broke off away from us. When she returned to the camp, she was drenched with body parts and blood. It took her only a few short hours to kill thousands of men. Then she was attacked by another group of men, and killed them, also. She was on a rampage there, and couldn’t tell me why. She loved the idea of being there. It scared me.”

“Wow, that’s amazing,” Jamelet whispered in awe.

“It’s not that grand. She started speaking in a different tongue at night. She’s completely changed. She used to be so loving and open, but she’s a mere shell of her old self. I just can’t get her to open up to me like I used to,” Howie explained softly.

“You always were her knight in shining armor,” Jamelet whispered, reflecting back to their ancient lives. Her smile confused Howie greatly. He raised his eyebrows in curiosity at Jamelet. AJ nudged Jamelet’s arm, urging her to speak what she was thinking. Jamelet blushed faintly. “I just remember that when you two were younger, you always ran to her rescue. When she got trapped in the ocean on that boat that Kevin made, you rallied her favorite dolphins to her rescue. She trampled you once she reached the beach, thanking you for days. She was extremely stubborn and independent, but you always calmed her toiling soul.”

AJ nodded thoughtfully, also remembering that occasion. These memories were so frequent that he found himself with a large headache. He continued to wade through the sea of emotions and memories with Jamelet. He watched as Howie’s eyes grew wide with recognition. AJ smiled faintly. “You remember that, don’t you?”

“Yes, and I remember living in her castle while my mother went out exploring. She was a fantastic companion…and…” Howie’s mind began to space. Suddenly, an image conjured within his eyes. He blinked in utter surprise. He watched within his mind as two young children chased Ana out toward the ocean. Those children resembled the twins. The vision vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Howie moaned in agony, clutching his head. Jamelet frowned with worry as he blinked out the pain. “Oh my Lord… Mercy… Those two children were those twins!”

“Excuse us?” AJ asked with complete confusion.

“Those twins really are her brother and sister!” Howie blurted, almost knocking over his drink. He moaned again with regret. The image of Ana throwing the boy by his ankle flashed. He winced with regret, knowing the damage Ana must have caused to those two emotionally. He sighed heavily, trying to conceive the ideas of Ana’s doubt.

“It’s what the letter said, and the twins believe it to the fullest extent,” AJ explained, agreeing with Howie’s conclusion. AJ had been the first to refute the idea of the twins being related to the woman, but after speaking with Ana it was impossible to doubt the association. The twins mirror so many of Ana’s unique characteristics. Jamelet had agreed with that, although Ana had quite a destructive behavior developing that no one saw in the twins. “She seems to act just like them in many ways.”

“How are they doing?” Howie asked, demonstrating his nurturing personality.

“They’re fine, I suppose. Nick was extremely torn up at Ana’s dismissal of them. Rose was overreacting to her brother’s accusations. They’re quite the pair when angry. They’re both deeply troubled that Ana won’t give them the time or day,” Jamelet explained. She was about to continue, but her phone rang shrilly against her side. Howie nodded as she flipped open the small communicator and began to converse with the other person.

Howie gazed out the window as Jamelet spoke. His eyes blurred as he concentrated on Ana’s broken image. She seemed so lost in this world as she sat on the porch, gently tapping her feet to the beat inside her ears. He wanted to draw her into his arms and never let her go. His mind fixed upon an image of kissing her under the soft lighting of several moons. She laughed at him as she pushed on his chest, causing her to fall on top of him. A feeling of overwhelming contentment settled against his soul at the image. They were happily in love, or so it seemed. He felt as if she belonged to him – somehow.

“Okay! Kevin! Calm down! We’ll be there as soon as possible. Put Nick, Rose, and Alison in opposite rooms or something! I’m sure Kimberly will bring back Brian in one piece. Please! Yes, I’m leaving right now. No, no, no! Kevin! Calm down… Yes… Nick will get over it… Rose will calm down once she figures out Nick’s sincere… Yes, I’ll make sure Rose apologizes to Alison… If you would hang up the phone I would already be there! Yes, Kevin… Yes… Bye,” Jamelet’s quick blurbs of voice caused Howie to focus upon her. Jamelet looked flustered as she dropped her communicator into her black purse. She nodded at AJ, rising from the table. “That was Kevin, there’s been a hysteria break out at the house with the others. We need to be going.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, but may I ask a question?” Howie asked as he rose with them.

“Sure,” AJ laughed.

“Others? There’s more than just us and those twins?”

“There’s four more. We’re all connected somehow, but the letter didn’t say how or why. I was really hoping that we could convince you and Ana to come along with us later and meet them. They have many questions about you two, and it would be easier for you to explain the answers. I didn’t know if I was successful at this task though,” Jamelet answered with a faint blush.

“I would love to meet the others,” Howie insisted.

“Do you believe us, then?” AJ asked in disbelief.

“Of course I believe you. It’s just hard to sort out all the facts when Ana is so mistrusting,” Howie sighed sadly. He wanted Ana to be a part of this. Leaving her in the dark seemed like a betrayal to her, and he loved her most. He didn’t want her to hurt anymore.

“You can bring her along if you like,” AJ suggested.

“I definitely want her to meet the group,” Howie insisted.

“Then what’s the problem?” Jamelet asked curiously.

“The problem is getting her there! If you give me an hour, two rolls of duct tape, one gag, tons of rope, and some other things I can do it,” Howie muttered sarcastically. He noticed the looks of confusion upon the other two faces. He smiled warm-heartedly. “I’m going to have to trap her, tie her up, gag her, and drag her there by force!”

AJ burst into a tight fit of laughter. “Maybe we can tell her we’re going for ice cream and just go to the other place.”

“Can I gag her and tie her up before we tell her we’re going for ice cream? Just as a precaution, because she hits like a man!” Howie moaned. Jamelet and AJ smiled at each other and began laughing again. They wrapped their arms around his shoulders, pushing him toward Ana’s nesting spot. They were determined to take Ana and Howie with them. Uniting the group was their only chance.

*~*~*

Kimberly hurried out of the house, right upon Brian’s heels. The boy was running as if he were in a marathon race. Kimberly’s lungs gasped for air as she stumbled into the cold night. Her anger began to build as she continued to scream out Brian’s name. He was being so foolish. A simple fight with two girls and he was screaming like a child having a tantrum. True, Brian was a gentle soul, but he needed to get a grip on reality.

“Brian Thomas! Get the Hell back here!” Kimberly screeched, hurrying toward the gates that enclosed her and Kevin’s home. Brian leapt over the gates as if he had wind beneath his feet. Kimberly’s eyes grew wide in utter surprise as she sped up, pushing herself through the gates. She watched Brian head for the long road that led to the inner city. “BRIAN! DON’T YOU DARE DO THIS! BECAUSE WHEN I CATCH YOU – IT’S GOING TO HURT!”

Kimberly’s anger welled inside her soul. She wanted to lash out at him and hurt him for being so selfish. Alison was in tears back at the house, believing that Brian hated her. The girl seemed lost within her world as she cried into Kevin’s arms. Kimberly never thought she would see the day where Brian would forsake his favorite cousin for a woman he hardly knew.

She glanced at Brian’s body, for an instant she could see the energy growing within his muscles. She concentrated on the energy, which was a burning ball of orange light. Her mind compressed the energy, slowing changing it to a deep red, and then to an icy blue. As soon as the blue formed, Brian hit the ground. He moaned in agony, barely able to lift his head. Kimberly’s eyes grew wide as she tumbled down onto the ground beside Brian, loosing her footing. She immediately peered over him. “BRIAN! What’s wrong?”

“I’m tired,” he moaned, lying extremely still.

“Tired?”

“I… I…” He couldn’t even manage to finish his sentence. His eyelids fluttered, trying to control the overwhelming since of tiredness. His muscles ached with fatigue. His whole body seemed to burn as Kimberly glared at him. Brian moaned again as tears trickled down his cheeks.

“How could you do that to Alison?” Kimberly accused, ignoring the fact that she had completely dissolved Brian’s energy. Her eyes were fiery as she made him look into her eyes. She was so angry with him. “How could you possibly let Rose treat Alison so badly. She was trying to defend herself, and you took Rose’s side! Alison is our cousin, our flesh and blood! How dare you do that to her?! What in God’s Holy name were you thinking?”

“Rose… Kimmy, I love…” Brian softly let the words fall. He felt guilty for leaving Alison in that predicament. His mind swirled with large amounts of plaguing guilt. Tears began to drip from his salty eyes, but he didn’t have the patience or energy to wipe them away. Within minutes, Kimberly was clutching Brian to her side, holding him. Hot sobs burst from his throat. “I never want to hurt, Ali! N-N-Never, Kimmy!”

“Calm down, Bri,” Kimberly winced, rocking him back and forth in her arms.

“I’m so confused! S-S-So many emotions… I just can’t breathe anymore! Help m-me, Kimmy. H-Help Ali. I’m so s-s-cared. Nothing seems r-r-ight anymore. I just w-want to go home,” Brian heaved, collapsing against Kimberly. She went silent as his breath turned into the soft shallow breaths of slumber. His body had given up all its energy. Kimberly sighed as a few stray tears of hers fell upon Brian’s tanned cheeks.

“I thought we were home, Bri,” she whispered faintly.

*~*~*

The King smiled as he conjured up the image of the mysterious death angel. She sat upon her porch, swaying with the beats in her ears. Her mind seemed to drift beyond the music into another galaxy. The King wished that he could see what lay within her mind, and if she knew anything of the lost Princess of Darker Elitions. She seemed so similar to the lost Princess.

“Sire, did you find her?” a minion called out, breaking the young man’s thoughts.

He whirled in surprise, staring darkly at the minion. The small man cowered in fear as the King’s hand settled upon his blazing sword. His dark eyes traveled back to the image of the beautiful woman. He reached out into the shimmering pool, caressing the woman’s soft face. The image rippled against the caress, disappearing. “I need to find this woman as soon as possible, but I know better. I need to find out whom she communicates with, and if she’s the true lost Princess. I need so many things, but I do not have enough time to do them. Her father grows impatient, although my slaying of mortal souls provides him entertainment.”

“I understand, Sire, but—”

“QUIET!” the King roared, unsheathing his sword. He descended upon the minion with heated fury. The tip of his sharp blade was centimeters from the man’s delicate throat. The man whimpered and gulped down as he scrambled upon the black tiles. His wisps of thinning black hair fell against his large gray eyes as he continued to crawl for his life. His skin was the color of a murky gray. His long hands and feet made him resemble a lizard of some sorts. “Do you understand the importance of this angel of death, minion?” the King sneered.

“Sire, I do!”

“Then what is it, tell me!”

“She might be our long lost queen! She can restore the throne to tremendous power and reign over the entire galaxy systems! She will be the most powerful woman in all the worlds! She will finally give you the power you need to destroy everything! She will give the Old Sire relief and allow you full control! I know, Sire! I truly know!” the minion screeched in terror.

“Precisly, minion, and now you know your job,” the King smirked.

“Pardon me, Sire?”

“Follow this woman, tell me if she’s the one. You will discover the truth about her. Look for the marks of royalty. Befriend this woman. Find out what she is about and what she fears. Find out her core powers. She will find chaos wherever she lurks. Her anger will rage beyond all the suns in the skies and destroy those around her. When the right time comes, seize her. And I will make the final decision of her fate.”