Wild Sun

"Tell me again how she looked?" Shanice asked as they smoked air from ZOA4.

"She was even better than on the panels." Noeli smiled as the cosmos above them.

"I wish Julie and Axel were here, I can't believe you made it all the way that high." Bright smiled as they all looked up at the violet stars.

"If you tell Axel you saw or even spoke to the Soul breaker, he won't believe you." Shanice looked at Noeli.

"There you go worrying about Axel again, and He won't even send signal," Bright said annoyed while smoking.

"Come on! Don't be like that." Noeli tried to keep the peace between the twins.

"No, he is right, even stupid heads like you make sense sometimes," Shanice tried to pull on her brother with a teasing tone. "But this is not about Axel and I."

"Did Yho tell you what soul breaker was doing on ZOA4?" Bright said after a while.

"Nop! He comes and goes with the wind!" Noeli said sitting up.

"Look, I know I am not Julia but it's going to be fine," Shanice said, Sitting next to her "Soul breaker will see you are ready, I am sure it was a mistake."

"Yeah, because Soul breaker is known for making mistakes," Bright said, being sarcastic.

Noeli was hurt by that, but she always expected brutal honesty out of Bright. She noticed the ugly look Shanice gave him, but they all knew the truth. She could only hope Yho would speak on her behalf.

~~~~~~~~`

X watched the video replay, and in the back of his mind, hope died over again as he watched his Wild sun move against the regiment guards. He had just returned from ZOA4.

He had hoped his warning would be enough to stop her from getting to this point even if it killed him to cause her pain, but he expected her to do something drastic. She had always been a supernova, X knew what was next, Elaine didn't have to say it.

"You were right as always," Elaine said walking into the great hall, "She is strong of body."

He followed her in silence hands behind him, listening was easier.

"She is also determined to get her trial" Elaine touched the golden round table, watching her chair. "You should have given her a chance in the Box, maybe then...how is the ZOA4?"

"Ask what you truly want to know." He said.

"I don't need to ask, I can see it in your eyes," Elaine said, looking at him.

"I am in control, Elaine" X reassured her.

"But of course you are, until you are not." She said, "You don't have to do this trial."

Elaine knew her answer as her defender turned away from her and looked at the world outside.

"At least, promise me..." Elaine said before leaving the hall.

"I will be at my lowest capacity, Col. Yho" He answered the silent question.

~~~~~~~~

X couldn't hear anything. He drowned his emotions as he was set still inside the chamber, He focus on his breathing and heartbeat, his mind was empty.

Noeli walked into the chamber, slamming him back to reality. She was a vision, and he despised the fact that she was oblivious to how truly remarkable she was in his eyes, But luckily he didn't have to feel the torture of looking at her and not being able to have her.

"Ltnt. Rivers squadron M 412, sir" She spoke first as she proceeded to lay down on the resting chair.

"Ltnt. Rivers" X said as he got to his feet. "Stand."

Noeli seemed surprised by the request, but she complied, standing a few feet in front of him. He motioned her to get close, and she toke a few steps closer until she was right in front of him. X notice how much smaller she was compared to him and for a brief moment he recalled Elaine's words pleading with him not to do this, but he couldn't feel anything now.

X placed both his thumbs on her temples without a word, and her mind was instantly driven away, leaving her body behind. He knew he shouldn't have done it, but he let her body float in the middle of the room, as the lights dimmed down he observed her face resting peacefully before closing his eyes.

X was used to this place it was his world, but hearing her scream in pain and agony as the shriek of millions of voices exploded in her mind and she fell down an ocean of dying stars, even when he was numbed out she forced emotion out of him.

He still needed to accompany her as she drowned in his world, freezing and burning simultaneously. It was cruel, but he elevated the voices higher as she died and breathed again, any defender of Auraos needed to be strong enough to endure his universe.

After a while, he swam back out he knew he needed to make sure her body was secured, an instant in his world could be too long back in Atlas. X opened his eyes and as he predicted, his sand screen counted four hours missing.

Even at his lowest capacity, he could still destroy without measure. Her body was still floating where he had left it, he considered leaving her there but stopped midway out of the room as he heard her scream for mercy on the other side. He didn't predict her to last that long, he notice the effects of Rio's Elixir were wearing off.

X walked back to her body and carried her as he brought her mind back to Atlas.

She laid unconscious in his arms and he set her back on the resting chair, a few moments later she woke up. She was shaken and hyperventilating but she tried to remain firm and controlled even as the tears in her eyes betrayed her, X knew she was trying her best to be strong and he didn't like that, she likely didn't know he had swimmeret down with her.

"You're not done Ltnt. Rivers." he said.

"But, one trial should be enough for you to judge." her voice was shaken and weak and she held on to the chair.

"I tried to warn you Noeli," he said, "But you decided you knew best" X lowered himself to her eye level. "I need a total of five retrials, Ali."

"Why are you doing this?" the anger in her eyes burned through his mind.

"Did you think my sister would help you?" the amusement in his words didn't show on his face.

X felt the slap across his cheek, and it mildly burned, but he did nothing. He had achieved his goal.

"The next trial is tomorrow, Ltnt. Rivers" he said, standing up and away from her.

"No! Let's get it over with right now." Noeli said "We both know this will drive me insane anyway, If you think you will turn me away from my dream I guess you should do your worst soul breaker." standing up to him her whole body shook with fear.

"Know your place Ltnt," He said "You don't control this trial."

Noeli slowly sat back down defeated, and his feelings were back. X wished she could just obey but if her spirit was broken he couldn't live with that, maybe Elaine was right and he had crossed a line. He fought back the need to comfort her, as his sand screen alerted him, and he was relieved as he walked out of the chamber.

~~~~~~~~~

X was alone in his bed, and all he could think of were her tears, he imagined her smile instead. He wondered if she would come back tomorrow, he wanted to think she would. She had always been his wild sun, he wanted to think she would shine no matter what, but his duty was to defend Auraos even if it killed him not to be with her.

After the tragedy in the MagnusTII wars, he was not ready to lose control like that again. If it wasn't for Elaine's power he didn't know what would have happened, he swore to himself that neither Noeli nor anyone would ever see the extent of his destructions.

He considered calling Rio back; he needed to feel numb again, but it was late and he needed rest. He closed his eyes and pictured her, running free in a field. Where would chase after her, and she would let him catch her.

X imagined touching her hair, looking into her golden brown eyes, kissing her cherry-plump lips as his tongue testing hers, she would moan.

He would lay her down among the flowers, and his hands would caress her body and find a way between her inner thighs. But as always he would spread his darkness into the ground and her skin would die along with everywhere he touched. His vision was shaken as the darkness and screams got louder.

The Vibration from his sand screen brought him back to the present, he was alerted one of the Titans was off course, and venturing into Delane7B64, he wasted no time. Within the next few minutes, he was off with 10 of his best defenders, as his ship left Atlas's orbit, he felt a pain in his heart. Perhaps today would be the last time he would see Ali.

X expected it would be, but a quiet piece of him wish it wouldn't. And she would be waiting for him when he got back.

~~~~~~~~~~~

X was disappointed and anxious to get back to Atlas12, he didn't think it would be possible but the Titan that was lost had completely been destroyed by the time he made it to Delane7, this planet was a nightmare of glass storms and stone.

The Titan had no chance against the winds, but he needed to know what had caused it to venture off in the first place, he knew it couldn't be the sand screens, there had to be something else attracting the Titan to Delane7's death trap.

He had been in this galaxy for weeks, examining the logs left by the Titan's sand screens, and there was no way he would return to Elaine without an answer. He called for more defenders to study Delane7's surface and everything to do with her unusual behavior.

He tried to quiet down his mind over and over whenever he was off Rio's elixir but all his thoughts would usually lead to his wild sun, he wondered what she was doing, and if her friends were helping her get better, he knew how determined she was to get to Magnum TII and work with Elaine, X knew he shouldn't have done it but he called for the return of Ltns Julia and Axel back to Atlas12.

If he was not there for her, he needed all her friends to be. X needed to make sure she was alright, even if he knew Elaine would figure it out eventually.

"We been here a while" Rio complained again "This planet is awful, think you could destroy it?"

X looked at him with disdain.

"Fine! We will stay here" Rio rolled his eyes and looked back at his screen. "The Victoria moon will be celebrated soon, maybe we can go and come back? I will go to ZOA4 and you can go to Atlas12 with your Col. Yho."

X continued to ignore his second in command.

"Sir, If something was wrong on the surface we would have noticed it by now, all I see are storms of stone, glass, wind and fire." Rio continued.

X said nothing, but he felt the triumph in Rio's mind, they both knew X would have to go back sooner than expected. Rio's elixir was the only thing keeping him from losing his mind thinking about Ali, and having to feel emotions at all.

X doubled his efforts, he knew he was running out of time, so instead of looking down, they started looking up. He figured if it was not the planet itself, there had to be a black hole massive enough to attract the Titan. He tried to hide his relief when Rio's defenders spotted it.

As he and Rio traveled back the uneasiness would not let him be, as he watched the movement of the hole it looked a bit familiar to the ones he had created back in the wars. While this would be an explanation for Elaine, he would continue to investigate it. Something inside him knew this would not be the last time he would see a black whale that size.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

X was back to Atlas right in the middle of the Victorian moon celebrations the streets were adorned with violet, and everyone celebrated as the moon showed its unusual colors. The first thing he had done was report back to the Regiment and Elaine.

X had ordered Rio to go back and make more Elixir, but he had decided to take his time and celebrate in ZOA4.

X wanted to control himself, but he just needed to see her. He told himself this would be the last time, as she hadn't been back to the Box since the last trial. But as soon as he saw her laughing and smiling with her friends while they raced in the dunes. He realized all the Elixir in ZOA4 could not stop him from craving her.

He had tried to satisfy his need with many others in his bed, but just a smile from her was enough to bring his mind and body ablaze.

All the fight he had done to keep away from her was erased as he followed her and her friend home after the race. He was glad Julia was staying behind with her as they all said their farewells for the night.

X levitated up towards her oval-shaped window, He didn't want to be selfish, he had tried so hard not to feel anything. To pretend and be the protector Auraos deserved. He stared at the darkness of the room, she was still downstairs with Julia and all he had to do was leave her again, but his heart just refused to listen to reason. His mind knew the risk he had already taken was huge, but as she walked into the room and the light came on, he completely lowered his capacity, and he entered the room through the glass window.

Noeli walked around the room, unable to see or hear him. She was getting ready for bed as her sand screen prepared her a bath, she let her black hair loose. He toke note the room smelled like the magenta flowers from Erin0J44, and it calmed him, too.

X stood in the corner of the room as she walked around picking up discarded garments and getting ready. Noeli undressed and placed herself into the bathtub, she looked so relaxed as the water washed away the blue sand. She ordered her sand screen for her favorite tune.

X waited outside until she was completely dulled out before he entered the room and bent next to her, whispering into her ear,

"I can make everything better, my Sun," he told her, "I am sorry I left you with the nightmares." He meant it, her smell bewitched him "I know it hurts, I can make it better," he said, caressing her shoulders. "I didn't want this for you, I tried to stay away to protect you, but I am failing." His eyes glowed and burned, and he knew he was losing it.

X didn't want to tell her, all he could do was watch her as she laid her head back and breathed out. He placed his thumbs on her temples and her mind was driven away from her body.

X brought her back to the field he had always imagined.

"Is this real?" she asked, as she looked at the sun above them and the flowers moved like waves on the sea,

X showed himself to her.

"You! What are you doing here?" She said, stepping away from him.

"I wanted you to see this place," he answered her as he touched the flowers.

"This is not a dream! Get me back to my body now!" She said. "You won, you soul sucker! I won't leave Atlas".

"It's safe here" X responded, "I just came to replace what I created."

"Where are we? This can't be my mind, I have never been anywhere like this before" she said looking at the endless field. "I have been in your mind, and this is not possible over there."

"I wanted to give you this place before I go, I will take everything else with me," he said looking at her.

"So now you can feel things?" she said as she walked away.

"I did, but I won't anymore, At least here you get to be safe, free, and happy for a while, no more nightmares from the box." he said walking beside her.

"You're not known for your humor, Capt. X" she replied with a faint smile.

"I am giving you what is rightfully yours, you've inspired me to create this," He said.

"Is that you hate me so much? In the infinity of your darkness and chaos, I helped you build something new." She asked.

"What is hate?" X said, giving her what he hoped she would recognize as an innocent look.

"If this is your mind, you could do anything here?" she asked as the wind blew.

"I want you to keep it." He said.

She stopped on her track and turned to him.

"So I inspire a world, but nothing more?" she said, looking up at him. "Take me back to my body."

X looked around at the field, he couldn't deny he was hurt, but he also knew down here was the safest and most peaceful place he could be.

He didn't want to go to a body he knew he couldn't control anymore, but he still swam out.