One day, Sora and I were out training away from the house when I heard something odd. At first I couldn’t place the sound. As the sound got closer, I realized what it was, even though I hadn’t heard it in twelve years. It was the sound of a motor; specifically a motorcycle. No one ever came out that far so I wondered who they were and what they wanted.

Sora asked me what the sound was but I didn’t answer him. I jumped up into the trees and decided to follow the sound. Sora came up after me. We jumped from branch to branch like monkeys on speed. We finally caught up to the source of the sound. It had been easy to catch up to them because they were actually headed in the direction of our house. I was about to cut them off when Sora jumped down in front of the motorcycle. The person slammed on the brakes and then pulled out a gun. I saw the gun and jumped down to help my brother. I got between them and that was when they fired. I fell to the ground and screamed in agony. She had shot me in the head and then I thought about it. She had shot me and I was still fine. Not only was I fine, but I was still alive. I guess all of that training had truly paid off. If I were still an angel, I still would have been severely hurt.

The girl pulled off her helmet and came over to where I was laying. Sora was about to hurt her for hurting me, but I stood up and pulled him back. “I’m fine Sora, so don’t hurt her all right?”

“I’m so sorry. You came out of nowhere. I thought you were some wild beast coming to eat me.”

“Well, Sora here is pretty wild, but he would never eat you.”

The girl smiled. “I see that now. I’m so sorry. Are you hurt? I thought that I shot you in the head.”

I pulled my hand from where she shot me and there was blood, but the wound wasn’t severe. All of that training really toughened me up. There was barely a scratch. “I’m fine, really.”

She was flabbergasted. “How is that possible? You’re just a kid and I shot you in the head. How are you still alive?”

“It’s a long story, but speaking of kids, how old are you? You can’t be more than 14 or 15 years old.”

“Actually, I just turned 16.”

I brushed the dirt off of my clothes and Sora checked me over to make sure I was fine. “What are you doing way out here; and why are you by yourself?”

Sora chimed in. “Yeah lady, why did you hurt my brother?”

“Wait a second; the two of you are brothers?” She was scratching her head in confusion.

“Again, it’s a long story. So, are you going to answer my question?”

“Oh right; I’m looking for some magic stones. They’re supposed to grant you wishes. I made this tracking device to find them and I tracked one to this area.”

She showed us the device she was talking about. It looked like an etch-a sketch, only a little smaller and green.

Sora looked at me and I nodded back. She had to be referring to the wizard’s stones. If that was the case, I knew who the girl was. She was pivotal to the progression of the story. “Considering you’re coming to take our stone, we should probably get the introductions out of the way. My name is James and this is my unkempt brother Sora. We live around here and we have what you seek. You’re looking for the wizard’s stones aren’t you?”

The girl stepped back and gaped in surprise. “How is it that you know about the wizard’s stones?!”

“I’ll tell you when we’ve been properly introduced.”

“Oh yeah, sorry; I’m Betti…Betti Coates.”

“It’s nice to meet you Betti.”

Sora put out his hands for a handshake. “Yeah, it’s nice to meet you…um, Betti. Your name is really weird.”

“Sora, that is very rude to tell someone.” I gave him a slap on the shoulder.

“That’s all right. I get that all of the time actually. Though tell me something, why do you speak so properly? I’ve never met a kid who spoke so adult-like. Are you a genius?”

I smiled. “Well, out here, we don’t have school, so I’ve never been tested. My father’s gave us school lessons at home since the nearest town is like 500 or so miles away.”

“James is really smart. He’s always teaching me stuff; like how to talk good.”

“It’s ‘speak well’ Sora; and I am always doing that.”

The three of us talked some more and got to know one another. We then took Betti home with us to meet our dads. Introductions were again made and then I brought out the wizard’s stone so Betti could see it. It was clear she had never seen one before. She was totally awestruck.

Despite the stones size, it wasn’t heavy. Even Betti was able to lift it, though not for very long. After the stone was set aside, Betti let our dads know what she had already told Sora and I. She was on a journey to find the stones so she could help her sick mother. Betti’s family had been to see every specialist and not a one could help with the illness. Betti had remembered hearing the story of the wizard’s stones when she was a little girl and figured this might be the only way to save her mother.

Sauza and Todrick were moved by Betti’s story. They told me and Sora to help her with her quest. Sora threw a fit. He didn’t want to have to leave home. I myself didn’t want to go either. I knew what was in store for us. Of course, considering how the last twelve years went, there really was no telling how things would turn out. Also, I needed to find my future husband, Jason. I still didn’t know where he ended up and it had bothered me greatly.

I decided to go along with their plan…for now. Sora didn’t like it all, but he said he would do it just to keep me safe. He really was the greatest friend and brother ever. Speaking of friends, I wondered how Jean and Matthew were. Was time moving in that reality? I so could have used their input right about now.

Sauza asked if Betti would spend the night with us so we could get a fresh start in the morning. When Sora and Betti had fallen asleep, Todrick came in my room to have a fatherly goodbye chat; well, that’s what I thought it was going to be. He told me something really disturbing instead. He said that he and Sauza were dying and that they would probably be dead before the night was through. I could only guess that this was the reason they had become very distant. I asked my daddy (yes I called him daddy even though I was eons older) why they had never told us before. Todrick said that he wanted to protect my brother and me from getting hurt. They then told me the story of why they were dying.

When they were just starting out as martial artists, or rather, when they had learned as much as they could from Master Chow, Sauza and Todrick decided to travel the world. They considered it a life-long honeymoon. They were going to help people that needed help and right the wrongs that needed righting. Todrick said they had done this for about a decade. The names of Todrick Knoll and Sauza Patel were known around the whole planet. They had reached Master Chow Panushi’s status even if they weren’t as powerful as he was. A dictator had risen to power in one of the local provinces and Sauza and Todrick took it upon themselves to silence him. Officially they were diplomats for the central continents king so they were allowed to have peace talks, but the talking led to fighting. This dictator was a martial artist as well and he was very good. My dad’s fought him, and they lost horribly. He left them mortally wounded, but because of their training they survived the fight. However, since they never truly completed their training, the most they could do was briefly stave off death, but it had caught up to them. They tried to get help from Master Chow but they had arrived too late for him to do anything. He was only able to help them prolong their lives. He told them later that the dictator they fought was a former friend and they had trained together in the same martial art style centuries ago. It seemed he was trying to use his powers for evil. That man was still in power today, but Todrick and Sauza never went against him again. Obviously they were stronger now than when they first fought him but Todrick said that they wanted to spend their remaining days happy and away from the problems of the world. I could relate to that. I often wanted to escape my life and get far away from people too.

When Sauza found Sora and I, he figured this was his last wish coming true and he could die leaving his legacy behind. However, raising kids took its toll and it hastened their inevitable demise. I asked Todrick why he took us in knowing what would happen and he said that he fell in love with us. I nearly lost it when he said that. If Sauza hadn’t come in at that moment I would have started to bawl my eyes out.

Burdened with this new information, I now had to leave my fathers of twelve years to start this journey. The sad thing was I wasn’t going to be there for them like they had been for me. I wondered how Sora would take the news, but Todrick told me not to tell him. I knew he would find out eventually, but he should still know the truth. The real question was how and when would I do it?

The next morning, I walked outside with Sora while Todrick brought out the stone. The stone was huge. There was no way we would be able to carry that thing with us everywhere we went. However, there seemed to be another change from the show, because when Todrick handed me the stone, it shrank to the size of a grapefruit. I asked, “What just happened?”

Betti just smiled and answered saying, “The stone senses when they are about to be joined, and when they are en route to the next stone, they shrink. It’s all a part of the legend, though I guess it’s not legend if it is real.”

I put the stone in the backpack I had prepared the night before for the trip. Neither Sora nor I were taking a lot of things. We just had a few changes of clothes and some food. Considering how long the journey would most likely take, and the fact that we would probably be going through towns, we decided to pack light.

We all gathered outside and began our goodbyes. Sauza went over to Sora and gave him a big hug. Todrick followed suit. They then both came over to me and gave me a fierce hug. Tears were streaming down my face. Sora looked at me but he couldn’t figure out why I was crying. I just shook my head and smiled to reassure him. I sent him a thought message. I really hate goodbyes; that’s all. It’s nothing to worry about big brother.

Well, all right then; but don’t scare me like that. Sora smiled back and then walked to Betti’s motorcycle.

James, can you hear me? It was Sauza.

I wondered why he was speaking telepathically. Yes father, I hear you…what’s up?

Todrick and I are both really sorry that you had to find out this way, but we wanted you to know that we don’t regret raising you boys.

Todrick spoke next. Finding you two was the greatest thing to ever happen to two old men like us. Hopefully it won’t be soon, but see you on the other side. Oh, and take care of your brother. He may be strong, but his kind nature could be his downfall.

I didn’t trust myself to say anything, let alone think anything. I just gave them both another huge hug and then ran to the bike with the others. My fathers waved to us and then they went inside the house. I turned around and wiped the tears from my eyes. “So Betti, how are the three of us going to fit on this contraption?”

“I put a side-car inside for situations like this.”

Betti pushed a button on the bike handles and a box moved on the right side and started to open up. Within a couple of minutes, there was a side-car attached to the bike. “Wow; that was amazing! Did you invent this?!”

“Yeah I did. I made the wizard stone scanner as well. That’s how I was able to find you guys way out here.”

Still having my sassy nature intact from my previous life, I put my hands on my hips and said, “So you’re a bit of a genius then; that’s good to know. Where are we headed first?”

Betti pulled out the scanner and then turned it on. Four circles appeared in different locations on the screen, but one of the circles was in the center. That one had to be the stone currently in our possession. “You’ve probably noticed already that this center object is the stone we have. This one right here in the upper left corner is northwest of where we are but still a great distance away. These two that are next to one another are east of here. They seem closer, but they are still hundreds of miles away.”

“I think we should head for the closer ones first and stop in a town on the way so we can restock our food supply when needed,” I said. “We don’t have much money so that may be difficult. However, Sora and I can hunt when we are outside of towns.”

Sora piped in. “Yeah, that’s my specialty.”

Betti pulled out her purse and took out her wallet. She opened it and showed us she had lots of cash and a bevy of credit cards. “Don’t worry about the money. I’m just glad I have strong guys with me, even if they’re both kids,” she said with a smirk.

“I won’t take that as an insult,” I said grinning.

We packed the bike and got in the side car. Sora sat in front of me in the primary seat. It was a really big side car. Actually, the whole motorcycle was pretty sizeable. It was practically a three-wheeled dune buggy.

Betti got on the bike and then started it and we set off to begin our crazy journey. Well, maybe crazy was the wrong word for it. It started off more kooky and zany and didn’t get crazy until much, much later.

The three of us rode for several hours through the woods and we got to know one another a little bit. Sora told Betti our history minus the crash landing on the planet part. Actually, he didn’t know about that so I didn’t mention it. Neither my parents nor I felt it would help anything. Also, we moved the ships just in case he wandered to the area of the crash.

I explained to Betti how though we called ourselves brothers, we obviously weren’t related. Since we were found at the same time we considered ourselves family. Betti then told us her story. She finished with grade school early, though she had a twin brother and he was still in school. He was smart but not on her level. She wanted to take a break before going to a university but then her mother got sick with a rare disease the year before. Betti’s family hired the best doctors in the world but no one could help her mother. In her search for the cure, Betti stumbled upon the legend of the wizard’s stones. She didn’t want to invest in pipe dreams so she studied everything she could to find more on the legend. When she found material describing the energy signature of each stone, she made the scanner. The first time she saw the stones on the scanner, she wept tears of joy. She had brought new hope to her and her family. Her father Dr. Wool Coates, asked Betti to go and find the stones. He and her brother would stay and take care of her mother. Betti had set out for the stones a couple of months ago and it finally led her to us.

I know I’ve said this before, but everything was very different from what I knew. This story alone proved that. It was not part of the mythology of “The War of the Stones” TV show. My being in this universe has greatly augmented these people’s lives. Sauza was supposed to have been killed by Sora when he transformed, not have a terminal injury. Betti’s mother was never hurt during the show; ever. Now, she was dying of….a terminal illness. Was this the start of a pattern? Since I didn’t have my psychic powers, I couldn’t know the future so it seemed that I just had to go along for the ride. Sora was so moved by Betti’s story that he vowed to do anything to help out and I did the same.

We stopped to make camp in the early evening. I gathered wood to start a fire and they set up the tents. After we had dinner, we sat around the fire getting to know one another in greater detail. It’s hard to talk on a bike when the wind is blowing all of your words away. A couple of hours later, Betti and Sora had fallen asleep next to the fire. They looked so peaceful sleeping like that so I left them both there. I walked over to my tent and opened the flap. I sat on the edge of the tent and just stared at the fire. Tears had started to form in my eyes and I began to cry. I was trying to keep quiet when I heard, Goodbye James. Take care of your brother Sora for us. We love you both so much….. I completely broke down after I heard their last words. I had felt a sudden absence and knew that Sauza and Todrick had just passed. So, this was what it was like to lose a parent. It felt like hell.

Still thinking about Sora, I tried to keep my crying as quiet as possible. I also didn’t want to wake anyone up. Betti must have heard me anyway because she had gotten up from the fire and was walking towards me. She sat down outside of my tent and grabbed my hands.

“James, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

I kept crying and couldn’t get the words out.

“Are you having a hard time because it’s your first time away from home?”

I shook my head but I still couldn’t speak. She came closer and held me. We were in that position for a few minutes until I finally got control of myself. I looked up and gave her hands a gentle tap of affection. “Thank you so much Betti, but that’s not the reason I’m crying. My parents just died and I couldn’t hold the tears back any longer.”

She pulled away from me with a perplexed look on her face. “What are you talking about? We left them this morning and they were fine. How could you possibly know that they were dead?”

I told her what Todrick told me that morning about the injury that they sustained centuries ago and how much longer they had. “They just sent me a message telepathically saying their goodbyes. After that, I could no longer feel their minds. I just didn’t know…how…to…take it.” I broke down again and she held me tightly. I recovered and told her how much I had looked up to them. They might not have been my real parents, but that didn’t diminish the love I had felt for them.

Betti was still having a hard time believing me despite the state I was in. I explained to her how my telepathy worked. “As I get older, the range of how many thoughts I can hear increases. When I was a baby, I could hear for about 100 miles. Since there weren’t many people in that range, I was able to control it. Now, at the age of 12, I can hear a third of the planet. That includes animals.”

“How can you stand listening to so many voices in your head? Doesn’t it make you crazy? And really; you can hear animal’s thoughts?”

“Animals don’t think in the same way, but yes, I can hear them too. And, it did get a little crazy at first, but I know how to keep it in check. Think of your brain as a giant warehouse. Well, I can go into that warehouse and push everyone’s thoughts into a special room behind a strong door. Whenever I need to pull a thought out, I just mentally go into that room and pull out the thought I need. Obviously it’s not really like that, but that’s the best way to describe how I do it. Another thing about the thoughts is if the energy from one of those peoples’ thoughts ceases, then I know they are not in this world any longer.”

“Then I am really sorry for your loss. Is this why they sent you and Sora with me?”

“That’s it exactly Betti. Sauza and Todrick didn’t want Sora or I to witness their demise. For that, I’m thankful; but I wish I could have been there.” I looked down at the ground and sobbed a little bit.

“I am really sorry James, but I am glad you came with me. I don’t think I could have done this by myself.”

We talked a little more before I started yawning. She smiled. Betti put me in my tent and tucked me in. I fell asleep a few minutes later. Little did I know that someone had been listening to the conversation. Sora turned over and wiped a tear from his eyes.

Next Chapter: Jackson Yukon