Chapter Thirty: three days away. (Part two)

part two of two for "three days away"

kenziel couldn't believe his eyes; amelia and a winged yellow feline stood a few metres away from him, on his CLOUD.
that didn't even make sense!

"how... the... what's going on here?"

amelia was panicking "i- i don't know!"
he looked closer, and noticed that she was being held above the cloud, while the winged feline stood on it.
"don't you dare drop her..."

"i won't... dad."

"did you just call me 'dad' kid?"

he nodded "i'm velian keroso buckler. your son."
amelia looked frightened "wait, you're saying HE'S your father??"
"yes... mother."
kenziel stared, shocked "amelia and i... are your parents?"
"yes. i came from fourty years into the future.... i think. it's either 20 or 40 years from now... i forget which one." velian admitted.

kenziel narrowed his gaze "amelia... do you... do you really...?"
she looked both frightened and nervous "a- actually... i kinda... do..."
he blushed "well... i..."

velian cleared his throat "uh, don't you want to know WHY i came back in time?"
kenziel rolled his eyes "no, nobody ever goes back in time with GOOD news, it's always bad news."
velian sighed in exhaustion "my arms're getting tired..."
he went to put amelia down
"NO, DON'T!! SHE'LL FALL THROUGH!!!"
too late.
she screamed as she fell through the sky
"ohhhhh... crap." velian moaned

"DAMMIT!" kenziel yelled angrily, and dove beneath the clouds.
he tucked in his wings, weighting himself, and hurtled toward her like a glowing purple bullet.
he collided with her in midair.
"I'VE GOT YOU!"
she gripped him tightly
"pl-please, help!"
he pressed her head to his chest, and nearly constricted her in his arms
"HOLD ON, AND HOLD ON TIGHT!!!" he demanded
she obeyed without question.
he flung out his wings, and was yanked back abruptly

amelia clung even tighter as he began to glide through the air
"we're safe now, but don't let go."
she made a pathetic noise.
"it's okay, it's okay, i've got you, and i'm not letting go, don't worry."
"b-b-be s-sure y-you d-d-don't!"
he began to rub the back of her head "calm down... you should take a look at this."
she opened her eyes, and...
she couldn't describe it...
she saw the whole planet sprawling out millions of miles below her, she saw the sun rising over Fira Deralo.
"a-a-am-ama..."
"amazing?"
she just nodded helplessly
"so... you like me? guess i shoulda guessed, every time you hit me, you seemed to be having fun, and when someone else'd try to, you'd give 'em the 'mega-deathstare of doom and destruction' i should've guessed!"
"i-ia... k-ke... ken..." she stammered feebly
he smiled "alright, alright, we'll continue talking on solid ground."
he altered his pitch, and began to glide down to Gentiki.
velian flew up beside them "sorry..."
"you could've killed her!" kenziel snapped.
"well, i'd've unexisted then, wouldn't i?" he answered back, before looking apologetic again "just so you two know, when i'm under ten, make sure to take 'grounding' me LITTERALLY."
amelia looked at him, breathing heavily "you... mean... no... flying... AND... no... privliges?"
he nodded "i remember i was kinda hyper back then. you should remember that, by the way."
"thanks... for the... heads-up"
"why DID you come back?"
"to set in motion the events that'll cause ME."
they looked at him, confused.
"you always told me this: you came back, and did something very stupid, but that stupid thing brought us closer, and eventually, we had you"
they touched down atop the library.
kenziel sat amelia down, and turned to his 'son'
"prove you're my son."
he plucked one of his own feathers, and handed it to kenziel.

kenziel saw brief moments go by, happy memories of the three of them, christmases, birthdays, the first day of school, velian's graduation... and a still image, a family photo, showing himself, amelia, and a yellow kitten with litle white wings.
they were all smiling.

he came back to reality.
"okay... that was... definitely not a lie..."
amelia covered her mouth "so... that means..."

velian chuckled "it's okay. wanna know how you shared in her life?"
kenziel looked at him "tell me... now..." he pleaded
"you cloned yourself, the copy acted as watcher, and you lived with mother.
"so... my copy acted as 'kenziel the watcher' ... and i was free to be 'ian buckler' ?"
he nodded "i need to go."
velian glowed red, and flashed.
gone.

kenziel walked over to the cat sitting on the roof.
"amelia.... i love you. i've admired you ever since you met me in the past."
"i know, i read the journal."
"oh ho ho! have you now?"
another kenziel split from him, and flew away.
he withdrew his angelic features, hiding his glow, his halo, retracting his wings, and his robe morphed into his casual wear.
"and... i want to spend eternity with you..."
"what'll happen... when..."
he hugged her "when your time comes, i take you up to my home, and let you be among the angels."
she raised an eyebrow "what about that fiance the book mentioned?"
"Tythiel... she..."
an angel woman landed nearby "is fine with this, she's had her eyes on someone else for the last 200 years anyway, kenziel... no hard feelings?"
"none, Tythiel. still friends, though?"
she lifted off, hovering in the air "certainly."

"so... do i call you 'ian' or 'kenziel' now?"
he smiled "ben gave me that name... it's something i treasure... so, sure, call me by my human name."
they stared into each other's eyes.
"do you love me back, amelia?"
she burrowed her face into him "yeah..."
Tythiel removed her necklace "kenziel, you can have it back, you'll clearly need it!" she said warmly, and tossed the necklace.

he caught it "many thanks, my old friend!"
she smiled and flew off.

he put the necklace on over amelia's head, it was a gold chain, with a rainbow coloured gemstone hanging from it shaped like a shield.
"it's called a palladium"
"it's beautiful..."
he sighed "but you're more beautiful."

---

-carl and syrus' apartment-

carl lay out on the couch, wearing his denim jeans and no shirt. a game controller in his paws.
syrus sat on his chest, with a smaller controller, he was wearing track-pants and a singlet.
carl began mashing buttons "no no no!"
syrus laughed mockingly "oh.... YES!"
on screen, an armoured soldier stood in front of a pirate, the pirate was trapped in a stasis beam originating from the floor.
"tough luck, cappy!"
syrus pushed a button, and the on screen pirate was hit with a lazer arrow to the head
""FUTURE-HEADSHOT!! -- Great Captain Liger77 down!"" the game announced
the pirate flopped down dead.
the futuristic soldier took a victorious stance
""GENERAL OTRZ-RULZ566 WINS!""
syrus smirked as the giant's annoyed gaze turned to him
"hey, i played fair!"
carl's mouth curled up into a smile "alright, fine!"
""PLAY AGAIN?""
carl looked annoyed
syrus clicked 'no' and returned to the main menu.
"you okay, carl?" he asked, concerned about his boyfriend.
carl sighed "i failed the exams, sy. i'll never get into the industry at this rate."
syrus put down the controller, and patted the leopard's chest "hey, it's okay--"
"no it's not. you know what that job means to me..."
carl looked out the window somberly. "but with the score i got, i'm useless"
syrus stood up, and tapped a paw in annoyance.
"i'm worthless, sy... i can't even get into university with such a low score..."
the otter padded up to the base of carl's neck
carl turned his head back, just as the otter leapt up onto his face.
he was glaring angrily, arms crossed, tapping lis left footpaw against carl's nose.
"sy?"
syrus continued glaring, and crouched, grabbed hold of one of the leopard's whiskers...
and yanked on it.
"AGH! sy, what're you-?!"
he pulled again, harder.
"OW! what the hell's your problem?!"
the otter stood and stomped up to carl's left eye
"my problem is a freaking idiot of a leopard, thinking he's worthless...!" syrus yelled.
he pointed at the huge eye "...When i know that ISN'T the case!!"
carl tried to speak, but syrus cut him off imediately "Don't you get it?! YOU are NOT useless! you're better at sports than most felines, you're one of the smartest people i know, sure, you can't do calculus, but WHO GIVES A DAMN?! you're an amazing guy, carl, and DON'T you DARE think i'll let ANYONE say otherwise! especially NOT YOU!!" he screamed, tears forming in his eyes as he yelled at his boyfriend.
carl stammered, at a loss for words.
syrus fell to his knees, weakly pounding against carl's nose "and don't... you... fucking... forget... it!" he wept, his tears falling upon the bridge of the leopard's nose.
"EVER."
carl closed his eyes, he continued to lie down on the couch, and no words came, there was no sound except for the game's menu music, and the little otter's crying.
carl finally moved his paw, and pressed syrus gently against his face, saying nothing.
syrus sniffled "you... got it?"
carl opened his eyes slowly "message recieved, loud and clear, sy."
he smiled, and lifted the otter from his face, depositing him back on his bare chest "you.... you're right... i shouldn't be so hard on myself... but whisker pulling is going too far..."
the otter shook his head "would you have really gotten my point without it? not like i can slap you in the face, can i?"
"ah, size equivilants."
syrus reached up to his own face, and yanked on one of his own whiskers.
"ow. okay, that does hurt more than you'd expect it to." he admitted
carl extended a finger out to syrus, and gently prodded him in the chest, winding him.
"oof! cough yeah?"
carl smiled broadly "you're a very stupid little otter sometimes."
although keeled over, syrus grabbed the huge digit "yeah-cough- but you're always cough forgetting how hard your 'gentle' is..." he groaned
carl slipped the finger beneath syrus' arms, and lifted him up, helping him stand.
"sorry about that." carl chuckled
syrus still clutched his midsection "jerk..."
carl grinned happily "aw, you always know how to cheer me up!" he said mockingly
syrus rubbed his pained body "who'd've thought you thought putting your boyfriend in pain was funny?" he retorted in annoyance
"okay, point taken."
"at least the moron knows to keep his claws sheathed." he groaned, adding poison to his words with "or he'd be cleaning someone off himself!"

carl's eyes widened "g-good point... i should be more consious about that kind of thing..."
syrus smirked, and lunged at the finger, hugging it tightly "moron."
"little idiot."
"big bruiser"
carl lifted him away as he sat up, and put him on his left shoulder.
he searched, and found the tiny controller upon his thigh.
delicately, he picked it up, and brought it up to his little passenger.
"Co-Op?" he asked
syrus hit a button, and the campign menu came up "how else would we play?"
carl laughed, knocking the little otter around.
"of course, you're right!"
syrus entered his username and password "just don't use capitain pointless this time."
carl raised an eyebrow, and glanced at syrus as he sat down on his shoulder "that's Great capitan Liger77, you mean"
syrus snorted "he's way too underleveled! only LV 50!"
"bah, not like your guy's any better!"
"General OTRZ-RULZ566 is LV 125, carl, he's far better."
carl opened his mouth to speak
"AND, carl, he has better weaponary, more than a medium range pistol and a cutlass."
carl closed his mouth, groaning.
"besides, the area's average level is LV 100, they'll kill you in, like, two hits, minimum."
carl put in the username "Penultimate Puss 976"
a shogun-looking cat with a chaingun and orbiting swords came up.
"level 110. not bad." syrus admitted, and typed in a different username
"outrageous otter QL5"
a red devil-horned brown furred otter appeared, carrying countless guns and cannons.
"level 119, it'll keep things from being over too quickly."
they both hit start, and came out onboard a burning aircraft carrier.
the stage bio came up
[you're under attack! repel the enemy and keep the cargo safe, soldiers, we can't afford to lose it!]
[Special Event-victory conditions:
-fight onboard VLX military aircraft carrier.
-repel rogues (AIs).
-protect secret cargo.
-beat Elite Player.
-losing conditions:
-both players die.
-rogues steal cargo.
-the ship is destroyed.]

[Outrageous Otter QL5 and Penultimate Puss 976 spawned]
the shogun and the fiend touched down onto the deck.
the game brought up a message [WLAN play requested, call ally?]
syrus looked up at carl "who's handle is it?"
"invincible 01"
"who the hell? whatever, let 'em join."
a smartly dressed white canine appeared, and syrus and carl put on their headsets.
""hey guys!"" collin's voice came through
"yo, co- ahem so you're invincible 01?" carl asked
""yep, and check this out!""
his character strteched it's arms out, and a high green wall appeared.
"ah..." syrus realised "01's an enlightened, is he?"
""so, what're 976 and QL5?""
syrus chuckled "mortal, and fiend"
just then, a huge wave of enemies stormed out onto the deck
"dammit, WASTE 'EM!!" syrus growled
penultimate puss 976 dashed forward, ripping through groups of enemies, while outrageous otter QL5 buffeted them with heavy gunfire.
invincible 01 flew forward, and leapt off of any solidiers in his way, they evaporated as he jumped off of them.
""YEAH! we rule!""
suddenly, energy arrows rained down on them, and all of the soldiers were slain.
they turned the camera up, and saw a floating human atop the comm tower.

""hello, everyone.""

syrus groaned "that 999 guy plays this game, too?!"

""yes, in fact, I'M the elite.""
his username appeared "KingDogMan X"
he leapt from the tower, firing a barrage of energy arrows.
invincible 01 raised his shield, and the arrows crashed upon it.
but suddenly, KDMX was in front of him, bow trained on his head.
""SHIT!!"" collin exclaimed
thwip!
collin's character flopped to the ground.
""dammit, sorry guys!""
KDMX appeared in front of syrus' character, same position as the last time
"no!"
a bullet collided with KDMX's shoulder, and he turned...
just as a german shepherd in 17th century clothing landed a kick to his face.
""Masterwlf kicks you face!"" came an older voice, with a firan accent, that of an adult's.
"who's that?"
Masterwlf pulled out a Rapier, and plunged it into the downed man's right arm.
""need know basis""

syrus checked their levels:
KingDogMan X LV: 300
Masterwlf LV: 300

carl's character ran "shit, he's too strong!"
and another bullet ripped through the feline shogun's head.
"fuck."

syrus put in a 10-button combo, and a huge cannon extended from his character's armour "eat on this!"
"w-wait, s-" carl tried to warn him... but...
""shi-""
[Masterwlf has logged out]
BOOM!!

a message popped up
[ship destroyed]

999's voice laughed through his headset ""oh, man! you DQ'd everyone! ha ha!""
collin's followed ""easy mistake to make, though. besides, a certain someone lied about his level!""
carl scoffed "true enough, dificulty level 100, my furry ass! you're a goddamn level 300!"
""tch, whatever.""
[player 'E.wolf' has logged out]
""later you two"" collin said through the headset
[player 'N.wolf' has logged out]

carl and syrus logged out.
"sorry, carl."
he bumped the little otter with his head "hey, i'd already been KO'ed, it's okay, sy."
syrus sighed "okay, okay. i was right though, wasn't i? your pirate wouldn't have lasted long."
carl laughed heartily, and the little otter had to grab onto his facial fur to stop himelf from falling down from the perilous height he was at.
"true, sy, true!"
"caaaaAAAAAARL!" syrus yelled annoyedly, hanging from his boyfriend's face as he leaned forward.
"oop, sorry!"
he cupped his paws beneath his face, and the otter landed in them safely
"PLEASE. be mindful of me. PLEASE." syrus said through clenched teeth
"sorry!" carl laughed, and turned the TV and game console off.
"maybe i can get some kinda harness...?" he suggested.
the otter shook his head "nobody sells 'em, they're all belt attatchments."
"hm. i'd prefer you up higher than that."
"so would i, if you let one rip, i'd die!"
carl looked down at the otter in his paws with a bemused expression "what're you tryin' to say?"
syrus reclined in the soft paws "oh... nothing." he smiled "nothing at all."
"whatever" carl chuckled "let's go to bed, it's late."
syrus raised an eyebrow "10:15PM isn't that late.
carl smiled suggestively "i know..."
carl's words' meaning dawned on syrus
"ohhh... i get it now... be gentle though, kay?"
still smiling, carl nuzzled the little otter "i'll try."
he smiled back, as the giant leopard walked out of the lounge area, and into their bedroom.

---

-exact location unknown, somewhere in the strells-

patrick ran across the cold snow in canine form, followed by his father.
he jumped onto a snowboard, and started down the mountain.
Aeon grabbed the board attatched to his back, and followed his son down.
"i'll catch you soon, patrick!"
the young black canine laughed "yeah, sure... as soon as i turn green!"
"but you're not going to tu- oh, i get it."

he carved his way down the slope, dodging trees and boulders, keeping distance between himself and his father.
"ahem left."
he looked left, and Aeon was only a meter out from him.
"what the-?!"
"i have snowboarded before, son." Aeon said with crossed arms.
he reached out to tag him...
and they clipped a boulder.

time seemed to slow down as they both looked down at their boards.

"dammit." they said in unison.

they tumbled through the air, falling from their snowboards
patrick concentrated, tying the thread to himself and his father...
he concentrated even harder for an exact location...
whump

they crashed onto the fresh powder outside their temporary home.
Aeon's was face down in the snow
"verona, we're home!" he called, muffled by the snow.
the black feline woman stood inside the doorway, arms crossed "honestly, Aeon..."
"hey, at least i'm bonding with him like you asked!" he said, still muffled by the snow.
patrick pushed himself up "sorry, mother..."
she waved a paw dismissively "it's fine. now both of you get inside, it's minus 30 degrees out there!"

once inside, she ordered them to sit in front of the heater.
patrick returned to feline form, and looked up at his father "you almost got me." he admitted "but almost isn't good enough, though."
"well" he chuckled, looking down past his arm to his son "i'd have tagged you if it weren't for that boulder!"
"yeah right."
"don't be a moron, son, we both know i'd've caught you."
"you're the moron! there's no way you'd ever be able to catch me in mountain tag!"

"you're both morons"

they turned and looked at the white wolf sitting on the top of the fridge.
"who cares who caught who, and who failed. it doesn't matter!" collin said annoyedly, as he turned the page of the novel he held.

patrick laughed "what chapter're you up to?"
"seven thousand"
"really? in one hour?"
"no you idiot, two" he said annoyedly "besides, there's no way this could have 7000 chapters." he added
Aeon laughed "chapter two in one hour? how slow do you read?"
"one: long chapters. two: i'm being annoyed and distracted right now aren't i?" he said gruffly.

verona re-entered the room "dinner's ready!"
Aeon put his paw out and patrick climbed on, and he walked to the dining area.
collin remained where he was.
his phone buzzed
"urghhh, what now?"
he read the text message, and he dropped his book.
he stood up, and leapt off the fridge "OH MY GOD, YOU GUYS NEED TO SEE THIS!!"
he ran into the dining area, and leapt up onto the table
"what now?" patrick asked dryly
"i just got a text from kevin!"
"so?" Aeon shrugged
"so, in three days, after kevin's 18th, he and Oriado are getting MARRIED!"

---

999 stood atop the pin-like pinnacle of a mountain, unmoving, his purple cape billowing in the wind, eyes closed. he was meditating.
he breathed deeply through his nose.
"inhale... and, outh- i mean, exhale..."
he breathed out through his mouth.
he bowed his head, the crown almost falling off his left ear.
then he raised his head, pointing his muzzle to the sky
"inhale... and, ou- dammit, ... exhale..."
his eyes scrunched "screw it, i'll just howl."
he took a deep breath, and loosed a long, low howl into the night air.
far away, he heard another howl, this one high and short.
and then many other howls.
it was annoying.
"SHUT UP!!!!" he yelled, and the howling stopped.
"you shut up!" called one of the howlers from before, far off.
"HOW ABOUT I COME OVER THERE AND MAKE YOU STOP?!" he yelled back.
"ooh, come try it!"
he threw a bolt of energy.

"ow"

"NOW SHUT UP!"

"okay fine!"

He breathed deeply again, calming himself.
a bird landed on the tip of his right ear
"go away bird." he said calmly.
it lifted off and flew away.

he felt a tickle in his nose.
(don't you EFFING dare!)

he sneezed, and fell down the mountain, hitting numerous obstacles.
"ow. dammit. fuck. another ow. aaa. oof. ow again. shit. crap. gah. AGH, my tail! ow yet again..."

he landed with a faceplant onto the hard ground
"add another ow." he said simply, seemingly bored.

a red haired man sat on a stump nearby, he wore a grey trenchcoat and denim jeans, along with biker boots.
he opened his eyes, his left was blue, while his right was yellow.
"you should be injured after all that."
999 rolled onto his back, and looked up at the stars "nah, just bored. the emperor's more durable than i like to let on."
the red haired man stood "really?"
"yes, Z, it is." he sighed
"have you determined his location?"
"he's using an avatar, so no. whereas i immediately found you, Celestial Avatar zedin."
zedin chuckled "maybe i should go by 'caz' in this form?"
"acronyms? whatever."
"well, all he can do would be 'Da' as an acronym, so i'll use 'Caz' as this form's name."
999 yawned "i don't care."
"you care not for the safety of this planet?"
"no, i care not for your unceasing blabber about acronyms and potential names for yourself, avatar zedin. i've been trying nonstop to find Densro's Avatar since i found you."
"untrue, you played a videogame a short while ago."
"mortals... need... breaktime... zedin."
"you are a demigod"
he changed back into his base wolf form "well, now i'm not"
zedin sighed "very well. i will return to you tomorrow."
and he vanished.
"no not t-! agh dammit he's gone already..."

999 groaned "freakin' deities."
and then closed his eyes and slept.