Brothers of Chaos (The Unstoppable Titans Book 1) (22 page)

Daniel still didn’t know where
he was, though he did know he was no longer alive. He was in an eerie, silent
world of gold and black that shimmered all around him. The strange energy
actually formed shapes, however, and he couldn’t help but feel he was in some
bizarre landscape, like a canyon.

There were
hills and pillars, but no wind or sand or grass. The ground was firm, and every
time he took a step, there was some ripple effect just under his feet. When he
looked up, he saw a large golden sun that radiated no heat whatsoever.

“Where am
I?” he asked himself.

He stood in
place and looked around to get his bearings. He wasn’t sure how long he’d been
in this place, but he felt like he wasn’t alone. In fact, he kept seeing
shadowy forms in the corner of his eye. Whenever he actually looked straight at
them, however, they vanished.

“Hello?” he
called out loud. His voice seemed to fall flat on the glimmering landscape,
though. He waited for a moment. Nothing.

Then,
“Daniel?”

The voice
had come from straight ahead, just over the hill directly in front of him. A
moment later, she appeared.

“Alyssa!” he
screamed as he ran to join her.

They
embraced for an eternity. When they stopped hugging, Daniel felt like it hadn’t
been long enough.

“I can’t
believe you’re here,” she said to him.

Daniel
looked her up and down; she looked exactly the same as he remembered her. “I
never thought I’d see you again,” he said as the tears flowed down his cheeks.

Alyssa
cupped his face in her hands. “Well, then, shame on you.”

He smiled.
“Do you know where we are?”

She looked
around. “I have no idea. I’ve seen others. I can’t talk to them or touch them,
though. I feel like I just got here, but at the same time, I feel like I’ve
been here for a while.”

“We’re dead,
you know.” Daniel tried to say it as gently as possible.

“I know,
Daniel.”

“So, do you
think this is heaven?”

“Maybe. Feel
like exploring?”

He nodded.
She took his hand and they went over the hill together.

Even though
they walked for what felt like a significant amount of time, they saw the same
old black-and-gold landscape. Daniel felt like they were getting absolutely
nowhere. He was thankful his feet didn’t hurt; he wasn’t out of breath either.
Was he even breathing?

“Have you
seen Owen and Chris?” Alyssa finally asked.

“No. They’re
not dead, are they?”

“No. I saw
them, though. When they were racing home to save you from Michael. I don’t know
how, but I saw them when I closed my eyes and focused. I was afraid they were
going to get caught up with red lights or cops and I didn’t want that and …
somehow they made it without trouble.”

“Not in
time,” Daniel said quietly, remembering the fight with Michael.

“I know,”
she replied. “I’m sorry.”

He stopped
walking. “Oh, no, I don’t blame you at all. I didn’t mean—”

Alyssa shook
her head, her eyes watery. “I know what you meant. I’m still sorry you died.”

“I’m not. If
I hadn’t, I wouldn’t be here with you.”

She smiled,
grateful. “This place isn’t all that great.”

“As long as
we’re together, it’s better than it was.”

“Thank you.”

They stared
at each other for a moment. Then Daniel said, “They never found your body, did
they?”

“They will.
I know they will.”

“I feel bad
for Owen and Chris,” Daniel said as they started walking again. “They’re all
alone.”

“They won’t
be for long.”

“What do you
mean?”

Alyssa
smiled. “The Unstoppable Titans will live on.”

“How do you
know?”

“I don’t
know how I know. This adventure we had was just the beginning. Even though
we’re dead, that doesn’t mean we can’t help out in the future. We’re still part
of the team.”

“Really?”
Daniel closed his eyes. “You said you thought of Chris and Owen real hard and
you saw them, right?”

“Yes,” he
heard Alyssa say.

So Daniel
thought of his friends. What he saw in his mind startled him. “They aren’t
together. I see Owen, but Chris is … I don’t know where he is.”

“I saw that
too,” Alyssa replied as Daniel opened his eyes. “They won’t be separated for
long, though. I don’t know that for a fact, but I truly believe they’ll find
each other again. Until then, we’ll help them whenever we can.”

“We can’t
help them now?”

“I don’t
know how.”

Suddenly a
bright light appeared next to them. Daniel was amazed he could look at it
without hurting his eyes. The light was in the shape of a person. It began to
dim and Daniel saw a beautiful woman in a white dress standing there. She had
long brown hair that reached past her shoulders.

“You’re
right, Alyssa,” the woman said. “You will be able to help your friends, and I
can show you how.”

“Who are
you?” Alyssa asked.

“My name is
Seneda
. I’m Owen’s mother.”

Daniel was
speechless. He didn’t know much about her because Owen had never spoken often
of his mother. Nor had Daniel ever seen a picture of her. He believed her to be
who she said she was, though.

“It’s a
pleasure to meet you, ma’am,” said Alyssa.

“Yeah,”
Daniel said simply. It was all he could manage.

“Likewise,”
Seneda
replied. “As you’ve already figured out, you aren’t
alive anymore. This is a place where the life force goes when its shell is
destroyed. I know that sounds a little crude, but it’s the best way I can
explain it.

“You see,
some people on Earth are special. They were created by a force. Once those
people die, they go to a special place.”

“Here?”
Daniel asked, skeptical.

“No, not
here. There’s a better place. I came here to escort you there.”

Daniel and
Alyssa looked at each other. And then they took each other’s hand once again
and followed
Seneda
. A door made entirely of light
opened before them.
Seneda
stepped through and
disappeared.

Daniel
stopped before the door, dragging Alyssa to a halt. “I’m scared,” he said.

“Don’t be.
We’ll be together, no matter what.” And then she kissed him on the lips.

He
brightened at that. Finally, they stepped through the door together. What they
saw on the other side was beautiful beyond anything they could have imagined.
They would gladly wait there until it was time to help their friends once
again.