?Well, Alex? Are you ready??
?As ready as I?ll ever be,? he replied.
?This portal will take us back to Asgarnia, and we can get to Glacia from there.?
?It?s at least a day?s walk to Glacia,? Alex said. ?So I?m going to have to load up before we head out. Still have the P.C.S.??
?Of course,? Midna replied. ?I?m still holding on to it. As soon as we return to Gaian, you might want to revert to your human form so as to not draw attention. I?ll give you your suit back on the other side.?
?Sounds good,? he said. ?Make it happen.?
With the flick of her wrist Midna formed a portal back to the lands Alex called home. The swirling black-and-blue vortex opened in the ground, beckoning them to step through. She floated over the portal.
?Take my hand,? she said.
The same way they arrived here, the two Twili were disassembled into glowing black particles which were promptly sucked into the vortex. To them it all appeared to be a blinding flash?
The sun was rising on the Asgarnian cityscape. It was an average morning fitting of the summer months, warm and moist, storm clouds roiling off to the west, which would soon find themselves descending upon the city late in the afternoon. But now, the skies were clear and navy, becoming ever bluer as the solar disk rose above the horizon. In the clear skies the dark Twilight portal formed, a few hundred feet off the ground. Doing its job, it deposited Alex and Midna precisely in the same spot where they had left the night before. Even the same poison headcrab corpse remained, slumped in a corner. Alex, fully reassembled, shielded his eyes from the bright light.
He moaned. ?Now I see why you hang out in the shadows so much.?
?Quite so,? Midna replied, also shielding her eyes. ?You might want to change back to human now.?
Naturally a good idea. Within moments Alex?s Twili garments were replaced with his jacket and slacks, his skin color normal, his red eyes cerulean once more.
With a flick of Midna?s hair-hand, Alex soon found himself shrouded over the P.C.S. Mark-II tactical system again. The ebony metal shell encased him as it did those many hours before, hiding his face and body from those who never saw it.
?Come on,? Alex said, his voice filtering through the helmet, ?we should head back to the rebel camp and ensure them we?re all right.?
?Right with you,? Midna said, taking the form of Alex?s shadow as he began his dash to the camp.
?Oh dear, Sam, I?m at the end of my rope!? Kleiner complained. ?I don?t know what to do!?
?It?s all right, Izzy,? Vance assured him. ?I?d bet my other leg that Alex?ll be back any moment.?
?Sam, you?ve been saying that for the past three hours now,? Dom said. ?To be honest, it?s starting to get annoying.?
?Dom, hush,? Ilia scolded. ?We?re all hopeful, don?t ruin it.?
A rebel came running in from inside, out of breath, but obviously excited, as evidenced by his cries:
?He?s back! He?s back! Alex has returned! Here he comes!?
All through the compound it felt as if a heavy weight had just been lifted from the rebels? chests.
?Alex is back?!? Kleiner cried. ?Dear me, I knew he wouldn?t forget us!?
?Thank God!? Ilia sighed. ?I was worried for him!?
?It?s about time,? Fenix said.
With the greetings fitting of a saint, the armored rebel stepped through the doorway, rifle strapped onto his back, looking like none of it ever happened.
?Alex!? Ilia nearly burst into tears as she threw her arms around him. ?We thought you were never coming back!?
?It?s good to see you again, buddy,? Fenix gave him a playful punch on the arm.
?Yes indeed,? Kleiner replied. ?We had given up hope of ever seeing you again! Pray tell, Alex, where were you??
?It?s a bit of a long story,? Alex replied. ?Sit down and I?ll tell you. Just give me a sec over here.? He stepped out into the hall, knowing Midna wanted to talk to him.
Midna emerged from his shadow and faced him.
?We might as well tell them the whole story,? she replied. ?No sense in keeping them in the dark any longer.?
?Agreed,? Alex replied. ?For the meantime, let me do the talking.?
She took Alex?s shadow as he re-entered the room.
?Get comfortable,? Alex said. ?I have a lot to tell you.?
?So I heard Lieutenant Carmine was assigned to de Sade during his job??
?That?s right,? Commander Armand replied. ?Though I feel sorry for him. Poor bastard was just transferred from Kandarin a month ago and now he?s going to up and get his head blown off. De Sade never was one for anger management, if you know what I mean.?
Commander Stroud stroked his bearded chin. ?You think we did the right thing, calling de Sade back to help??
?Who gives a shit about doing the right thing,? Armand sneered. ?As long as Alex is dead, what difference does it make??
?But Damien wanted him alive,? Stroud noted. ?If de Sade kills him outright, Damien will have all of our heads. Bear in mind, Armand, that de Sade is not technically part of the Sovereignty anymore, and hence, does not possess ranking priveleges.?
?That doesn?t mean he won?t rip us apart limb from limb for trying that technical shit on him,? Armand shuddered. ?I?ve heard that whoever he touches collapses into a pile of ashes, nothing more.?
?I wouldn?t be surprised,? Stroud replied, shuffling his cap. ?That guy has a past I don?t even want to think about. They say it gives you nightmares just to talk to him.?
?I think I?m going to get nightmares from talking to you about talking to him. Stow it.?
?It all started back in the Industrial District,? Alex began, narrating the events leading up to now. ?When a misfire with a cannon brought me dangerously close to death. My vitality fading, I had some kind of hallucination where my old mentor, Caulus Zalridge, came to me in a vision.?
?And what did he say?? Ilia asked.
?He told me to seek out Midna. You may know her as Princess Midna, ruler of Asgarnia before the Seven-Hour War. Once I tracked her down, she offered me a deal. She would resurrect me back into my body if I helped her with her task. At the time, I had no idea what I was in for, and blindly accepted.?
?Dear me,? Kleiner said.
?Then she told me to infiltrate the Citadel and take on Damien. Unfortunately, I was less than prepared, as evidenced by what you saw yesterday afternoon. Luckily, it didn?t take long for me to recuperate. As for the rest, I?ll let Midna herself tell.?
The imp emerged from Alex?s shadow on cue, much to the shock of the others.
?Goodness!? Izzy cried. ?P-Princess Midna.? He bowed, along with the others.
?As you were, Isaac,? Midna said. ?Anyway, I knew Alex couldn?t take on Damien in his current state, so I passed my prowess in the magical arts along to him, which he picked up quickly. With his help, we were able to temporarily cripple the Kandarinians in Asgarnia, and defeat Damien?for the moment.?
?For the moment? What does that mean?? Fenix asked.
?You see, as long as Damien survives, so does the curse he placed on me. That dark magic is what shrouds me in this imp form. As soon as the curse is lifted, I can take my spot alongside Alex as the Twilight Princess.?
?The prophecies proclaimed that the first-born son of the ruling Twili family would be imbued with the power of the legendary Twilight Warrior,? Alex went on, ?who, along with the Princess, would eventually destroy the greater evil. Seems that I managed to fit the bill pretty well.?
?You mean?? Ilia gasped.
?That?s right. I?m the Twilight Warrior.?
Suddenly aware that two powerful beings were in their presence, the scientists bowed once more.
?Please,? Alex said.
?Alex, this changes everything?? Izzy replied. ?You have our word that we will do whatever we can to help you. Anything in the world, just name it.?
?A generous offer, Izzy,? Alex said. ?Right now, the most helpful thing you could do is allow me to leave for Glacia. Torn pages from a Twili spell book have been spread across this continent, and we need to collect them to prepare for the confrontation with Damien to come.?
?I understand,? Izzy said. ?We?ll hold Asgarnia while you complete your mission. You have our word.?
?We can do it,? Ilia said happily. ?Sam? Dom??
?You won?t be disappointed,? Vance replied.
?You?ll have a city to come back to,? Fenix assured.
?Much obliged,? Midna said. ?Alex, we really need to get going.?
?We?ll be back hopefully within a day or two,? Alex said. ?Just keep the city safe.?
?We won?t let you down,? Izzy said, shaking Alex?s hand.
After saying their goodbyes, Alex and Midna soon were bound for the mountainous Glacia Commonwealth. One Twili portal later they found themselves at the snowline. It was a nostalgic feeling for Alex.
?Something wrong, Alex?? Midna asked, noticing he was faltering.
?You know, I walked this path eighteen months ago,? Alex said, ?in hopes of finding a way to make a living. Glacia just wasn?t doing it for me. Now I realize all of those I left behind, friends I deserted, loved ones I forgot about, drowned out with obsessions of war.?
?I know it?s not easy,? Midna replied. ?But despite it all, it?s important to keep on pressing on, regardless of what happens. I?m sure your friends are all safe and sound. There?s nothing of interest in Glacia to the Sovereignty anyway.?
?Despite the fact they know the great Twilight Warrior originated there,? Alex mused. He looked up the mountain range to the glowing lights of Glacia City. ?The city itself remains untouched??
Alex remembered everything about his past life, his past existence in Glacia. He remembered why he had gone there in the first place. To get away from the war, the violence, the hell. Now he would be returning for the very reason he left. As the two climbed, the never-ending snow once again fell gently on Alex?s metal shell, covering his shoulders and head with a fine white powder that dispersed when he jumped across thousand-foot deep crevasses. There was no denying it. He was heading for home.
Though he would realize a lot more had changed than he thought.
