Last Time . . .
“Listen to the sound of my voice.” Dom said, softly but sternly. “It is the sound of dreams, the past, present and future. Hear my words and let them guide you to the land of dreams. You see a strong, brilliant white light beaming out of your forehead; let it connect to the person in front of you. Let the white light disperse any and all fear you may be feeling. Envision the white light spreading throughout your entire body, engulfing you in its strength and purity. As the white light surrounds your every body, let it take you up. Feel yourself lifting off the ground, into the air.” Dom continued to say, now telepathically, as they all went into a deep meditative trance. “As you feel yourself lifting off the ground, see yourself inside the white light, continue to hold on to your guide. Look around; let the white light take you to a magnificent garden. See yourself in the middle of a beautiful green garden. In the center of the garden is a fountain, walk towards it and meet your guide there. See yourself walking towards the fountain, and meeting your guide there. Once you have met with your guide, they will lead you the rest of the way.”
This Time . . .
“Wow!” Justin said taking in the sights before him. “I didn’t think you could look any more beautiful!”
“Why thank you kind sir! But stop, you’re making me blush!” Vanessa said, smiling in her midnight blue peasant’s dress. “Now, come follow me!” She said taking him by the hand and leading him through the garden.
“Where are we going?” He asked, noticing he was clad in nothing but beige linen pants.
“To one of the many temples of time.”
“Where’s that?”
“Right . . . there!” She said pushing a bush out of the way, revealing a large temple with a long staircase leading up to it.
“Whoa!” He said looking up at the purple and red sky surrounding the building.
“Wait till you see inside!”
__
“Cool!” Lance said noticing his surroundings, dressed in a green silk shirt and black leather pants.
“Come on darlin, we got some work to do!” She said grabbing his hand and pulling him through
the garden.
“Where we goin?” He asked, his southern accent a little thicker around his southern companion.
“To the well of time.”
“Where’s that?”
“Right behind this bush!” She said leading him to a large stone well.
__
“So . . .” Chris said, staring at Sonia. “What do we do now?”
“Now I take you to the eternal woods!” she said grabbing his hand. “Come!”
“Whatever you say!” He said looking at his clothes: a black shirt with loose green pants.
“Wow!” Joey said overlooking the garden.
“I said the same thing my first time here!” Sean said smiling at Joey's awe stricken face.
“Awesome!!” He said noticing his attire: a tight, all black jump suit.
“Come on, I have to take you to the Great Wall!”
“Of China?”
“No, of time!”
“Oh . . . Cool, let's go!” he said following his guide.
__
Beryl stood gazing at the water in the fountain when Leo said,
“You ready?”
“Yeah, where are you taking me?”
“The falls!”
“Lead the way!”
__
“Are you ready?” Dom asked, noticing Josh's pensive look.
“Yeah! Let's go!”
“You sure? You looked like you were in deep thought.”
“Just taking it all in.”
“Ok . . . Well I'm ready when you are!”
“I'm ready!” he said noticing his all black attire, black linen pants, and a black tank top. “Where are you taking me?”
“The vertical time pool.”
“Let's do this!”
As the two walked through the garden, Dom led Josh to the foot of a large rocky mountain. Looking up and getting blinded by the sun, Josh put his hand up to block the warm rays of light from shining in his eyes.
“We have to climb all the way up?” Josh asked.
“Not all the way up, just to that first clearing up there!” Dom said pointing up to the first terrace.
“This is taking too much time!” Josh said getting frustrated.
“Josh . . . We're in a state of meditation, time doesn't exist here! Which is how we're able to travel through it. And besides, as long as you don't hold any doubt or negativity in your mind, it'll be as fast as you can say dust! But, that all depends on you though!”
“Ok then, let's go!” Josh said mounting the foot of the cliff.
“Ok . . . See you up there!” Dom said as he disappeared.
“Huh? HEY!”
__
“What’s all this?” Beryl asked as Leo took him to the entrance of a forest.
“The falls lie just beyond this forest.”
“Oh, I get it . . . A test to rid me of my fears.”
“Exactly.”
“Well, I guess I should start on through.”
“Good luck!”
“I take it I go alone?”
“Yes, I will meet you on the other side.”
“Well, see you there!”
__
“Okay . . . how exactly are we supposed to get to this Great Wall, when there’s an ocean blocking us?” Joey asked looking over the cliff Sean had led him to.
“The Great Wall is under water.”
“Um . . . Okay?”
“There’s an entrance somewhere down there that leads into a temple where the wall lies.”
“And how am I supposed to get to that temple?”
“Swim.”
“I can’t exactly breathe under water you know . . .”
“You could if you had gills.”
“How the hell am I supposed to . . . Oh . . . hehe . . .” Joey said realizing he could morph some gills on his skin.
“Now that you’ve figured it out, it’s time for you to start your journey.”
“What about you? How are you gonna get there?”
“You have to do this on your own, I’m gonna meet you at the wall.”
“Okay . . . good thing I’m not scared of water then!”
“Good luck!”
“Thanks . . . Here goes!” He said diving off the cliff.
__
“Whoa!” Chris’ eyes widened. “What the hell is that?!” He said as Sonia led him to a giant pit.
“Jump!” She said innocently.
“What?!”
“Jump!”
“Hell no! I’m not jumping down there!”
“Why not?”
“Cause I don’t know how deep it is, and besides, I’m scared of heights!”
“Use your power, you can teleport bit by bit down.”
“Still . . . where is this gonna take me, and how are you gonna get down there?”
“It will leave you at the entrance of the Eternal Woods. This is a challenge you will have to take on by yourself. I will meet you down there.” She said disappearing.
“Hey, wait!”
__
“Well, here we are suga!” Buffy said as she and Lance reached a long wooden rope bridge.
“What’s this?” he asked looking at the ragged old bridge.
“The first step to the Well.”
“Okay? What does a decaying bridge have to do with a well?”
“It’s a test. You get across the bridge, you’ll be able to get to the Well.”
“Whatever, you’re the tour guide!”
“I’ll see you on the other side!”
“You’re not comin with me?”
“Honey please, that bridge can barely hold you up let alone the both of us!”
“Are you sayin I’m fat?”
“They’re right, you are a girl!”
“Hush up!”
“Bye!”
__
“So what’s this, I thought we were going to a temple.” Justin said as Vanessa led him to the mouth of a cave.
“This is the entrance, inside is an obstacle which you must pass before you are allowed access into the temple.”
“But that’s only wasting time!”
“Time doesn’t exist on this plane; it’s how we’re able to travel through it.”
“Ok then, just stay behind me, and I’ll get us through this!” He said starting towards the cave.
“I’m not going with you.”
“What!? Why? How am I supposed to go back if you’re not there?”
“I will meet you in front of the temple, but I cannot go in the cave with you, it’s something you have to do on your own.”
“Alright . . . well then, I’ll see you on the other side!”
“Good luck!” She said giving him a quick kiss on the lips.
As she disappeared, he entered the mouth of the cave. In front of him was a giant mirror wall that had a grayish tint to it.
“What the . . .” He said walking up to it. “Is it moving?” He thought to himself as he touched the glass and it rippled. He continued to run his hand over the mirror and felt that it was more gel than glass. “This is too freaky!” He said turning to the entrance of the cave. “HEY!” He yelled as the entrance was no longer present, the light from the outside being replace by torches that were placed around the cave. “Freaky or not, the only way to go is through that thing!” He thought to himself. “Here we go!”
He touched the gel again, but this time stuck his hand through it. Holding it there and just staring, he finally got the courage and walked through. In front of him was an endless labyrinth of mirrors, each with different shades of glass, and effects.
“What the hell is this, a fun house?” His voice echoed through the giant hall, the reflections of him in the mirror seemingly mocking him.
He started through the maze and saw himself surrounded by various images of himself. The reflections in the mirror were not only reflecting his current appearance, but all the different looks he experienced throughout his past both in his current lifetime and past ones. He took a minute to look around, seeing the scrawny little kid he was on MMC, the over dressed cowboy he was on Star Search, the scared teenager he was in the group, the lonely assassin he had grown into, but the reflections that really peaked his interests were the ones of his previous incarnations, something which he never had paid attention to. He saw a reflection of him as a knight dressed in mystical armor.
“This must be when our kind all got started.” He thought.
“You are the Chosen Ones!” He heard a voice say, as the mirror came alive.
He continued to gaze at his reflection and before he knew it, he became it. He saw through the eyes of the Knight with his four companions in front of an old man dressed in a blue robe.
“You are the Chosen Ones!” The old man said, his voice deep and resonant. “I have watched each of you for quite some time now, and seen all that you are capable of. Each of you have a gift which I have bestowed upon you. With time, your gifts will expand and give you strength beyond that of any mortal. You must embrace your power and never fear them, for fear is what will lead you to your downfall. You must rely on each other, for through these powers you share a bond greater than any kin bound only to you by blood. You must keep each other safe and protect each other with your lives. You are the Chosen Ones!”
“We are the Chosen Ones!” He said, his voice echoing through the hall of mirrors, along with the four other voices, and then noticed his reflection had changed back to his astral image.
Shaking his head, he continued on through the maze. Trying to find his way through the infinite amount of mirrors, he came to a stop. A wall of mirrors blocked his path, not letting him go any further. There he saw all of the images of himself in a row standing side by side. Directly in front of him was a reflection of him in a black suit, the same black suit that was worn in his coffin. He looked mortifyingly at the reflection in front of him. As he continued to stare in fear, the reflection came out of the glass and walked towards him. He started walking backwards, to get away from his counterpart, but the distance he walked grew longer as the reflection grew nearer.
“You’ll never win, you’re too scared!” the dim reflection said, the voice deep and raspy.
“No!” Justin shouted in fear.
“Just a scared little boy, pretending to be brave!”
“No!”
“Always so scared of everything, THAT’S why you ran! Everything else was just a cover up!”
“No!”
“There’s no where to run now!”
“No!” Just yelled as he turned around and saw that the maze had disappeared, leaving only an abyss of open space. He looked back to see where his reflection was, but as he turned his head, he ran right into a mirror that popped up in front of him.
“Look at you!” the voice rang through the cave. “All this power and you’re still just a scared little boy! Pathetic!”
“N . . . No!” He said kneeling in front of the mirror.
“Just a scared . . . little . . . bitch!”
“NO!” He said, now with courage in his voice.
“How can you save the world, when you can’t even save yourself?!”
“NO!” He said, the courage turning into strength, as he started to rise from the floor.
“How can Josh depend on you, when you’re just a scared little boy!?”
“NO!!!!!” He said shooting an energy blast at the mirror in front of him. “I’m not scared anymore!” He yelled, as he heard Josh’s words ring through his ears. “All this time I’ve been running, running from myself! I won’t run again! This ends here!” He said turning back to the wall of mirrors. “I AM a Chosen One!” He yelled confidently. “I know now who I am, I can’t fight it nor change it, you won’t keep me back anymore!” He yelled defiantly at his corpse. Standing in front of the mirror like it was high noon, he focused on himself and the rest of the reflections stepped out of the mirror. They stepped forward and were all in a line. He took his eyes off of his corpse for a moment to witness all the reflections all slide together to form a glowing orb in front of him. He stared at the sphere, seeing each of his reflections and past lives as a Chosen One, he drew strength from his past and saw what his future held. As he looked up the one reflection that was holding him back, he stepped into the orb, and absorbed the strength of his lost power. Confidence returned, lightning filled his eyes, and he blasted the one mirror that stood in his way, as the rest of them were now filled with his new self. As the mirror shattered to pieces, he saw a stone door with a sundial in front of it. Stepping through the fallen mirror, he stood in front of the sundial. Somehow knowing what he had to do, he raised his hand in front of the dial, and emitted a beam of light onto the ancient clock. As the shadow went around the circle completely, the door unlocked and slid open. As he stepped through the threshold, there was Vanessa as promised, waiting for him.
“I knew you would win!” She said standing next to a pillar.
“Thank you!” He said grabbing her in an embrace.
TBC . . .
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