Renegade Reborn (38 page)

“Wind! Wind style! Very good! Absorbing the energy, then manipulating it to your own desire! Well done!” Vadid said, and, like a leaping frog, he jumped forward and charged again, only this time, Gisbo charged quicker, racing Vadid, and beating him as he stepped into Vadid’s charge space, his arms crossed and leaning forward, giving Vadid no time to mount a defense. Gisbo took full advantage of this as he unleashed a series of rapid fire aggressive combinations, hitting Vadid in the stomach, the right of his face, and finished off the combo with an upward palm strike, landing right beneath Vadid’s chin, causing him to tumble backward into a tree, which stopped his momentum.

“And finally, Fire Style! Taking away an opponent’s space and using constant aggression as a constant defense! Flawlessly executed, Gisbo! Maybe you’re not such a Sally after all!” Vadid said as he pushed himself off the tree, ready to go again. Gisbo was taken aback by the man’s fortitude. Each time he struck his Grandfather, it felt like he was striking a slab of iron. This time, however, Gisbo met his charge, and was about to send him back into the tree, when Vadid halted himself, and rose up a hand.

“What, why are we stopping?” Gisbo asked, coming to a stop, a little out of breath.

“Oh, we’re not stopping. I just think that now you may be ready to fight me for real, with fully charged essence. Ready?” Vadid asked. Gisbo was amazed. The man didn’t have a bit of a choke in his tone. He wasn’t out of breath at all. If anything, he seemed livelier than when he started. Gisbo was about to respond when Vadid ignited his essence in an explosion of energy that nearly knocked him on his rear.

The pressure of it was immense, but also familiar. He had felt the same way when he faced off against Drakearon, but that’s where the similarity ended. Vadid’s essence was vastly different. Where Drakearon’s felt oppressive and artificial, Vadid’s had a tugging sensation to it, like a planet with its own gravitational pull. His energy, it felt natural, earned, as if blood, sweat and tears created every fluctuating particle.

“Come on, Ashley, give your Granddaddy another one of those punches of yours,” Vadid said, this time taking on a more reserved stance. He wanted Gisbo to make the first move, and Gisbo gladly obliged as he ignited his own roaring essence and flew at his Grandfather, striking him with all he had, only to have it all rebound back at him, just like the time he struck Ranto during the test for his second band. Gisbo didn’t just fall back this time though, he flew back, straight into a tree, shattering it as if it were a tall vase.

All breath fell out of Gisbo now. He wheezed, trying to get it back, and felt as if he had just sprinted head first into a stone wall. Everything in his body spasmed and he felt his innards squishing and squirting about inside him as the Drakeness healed his internal damage. He then, for the second time that day, saw his Grandfather’s hand lowered to him, ready to help him up, and Gisbo gladly took it.

“Easy does it. Seems we still have some more work to do,” Vadid said.

“Three years, and I still can’t even break through?” Gisbo sputtered out, his voice hoarse and ragged.

“Good thing we have two more,” Vadid said, throwing an arm around his grandson and helping him walk. “Don’t worry yourself. You just woke up, like, what? Fifteen minutes ago? I wanted to test you, see what you learned. You got the technique and mindset down. Now, we gotta work on your body and power, so we can turn those base styles into something new, and totally yours, but first, let’s take a break. I want to show you something,”

“It’s just, so frustrating when that happens. It felt like I just attacked a boulder.” Gisbo said.

“Pah, boulders can break, but the heads of us McCarley’s, Gizzy? Even boulders roll in fear of our noggin’s fortitude!” Vadid said, knocking Gisbo’s forehead playfully. “Anyone home?”

“Don’t make me laugh, it hurts!” Gisbo said, pushing the hand away. “So, where are we going?”

“Ever wonder where we are exactly?” Vadid asked.

“Um, a forest?” Gisbo asked. Vadid sighed loudly.

“You’re killin me, Gizzy . . .” Vadid said.

“What? It’s true!” Gisbo said.

“You know that’s not what I meant. I meant, where is this forest located?” Vadid asked.

“All I know is I’ve been here many times before, in my dreams. A, a monster was chasing me and it turned out that this monster, was the Phoenix, talking to me, and,” Gisbo said.

“Stop here, this is it,” Vadid said.

“What’s it? I . . . oh,” Gisbo said, dumbfounded. Suddenly, the trees stopped and before them was nothing but blackness.

“Put your hand out,” Vadid said. Gisbo did and suddenly he felt something solid and warm, and suddenly, the outline of a door flashed in white light, then, opened revealing a familiar, black, sparkling hallway, and at the end of it, lay an equally familiar elevator door.

“Recognize where we are now?” Vadid asked.

“This . . . we’re in the black tower! The only thing standing after Heaven’s Shelter . . . blew up . . . but, but how?” Gisbo asked.

“Because as long as a Man-Phoenix lives, it cannot be destroyed.” Vadid said. “But, this place, it is more than just a simple tower.”

Together they walked toward the elevator and stepped inside.

“You wondered how I found all those spaces in time across Thera? Well, this tower helped lead me to them. Doorways open and close across Thera all the time. Time and Space, they are living, breathing entities linked through the Phoenix and the Dragon, and every so often, spaces open to breathe and let time flow. This tower, you can say pretty much anything within reason and it will take you there. Those offices you traveled to? They’re just pocket dimensions in Time and Space, and as far as I know there are an infinite number of them. Most of the time when you visited my son Narroway’s domain, in my old office, it wasn’t where you were, but possibly, when you were. Each room and each pocket dimension is linked to the person who owns them. Only a special few were allowed within my personal home, my personal tower, and their pocket dimensions became whatever the owner wanted” Vadid said.

“You . . . I think you . . . my mind just broke . . .” Gisbo said.

“That forest was a pocket dimension of my own design, to hide away from Drakearon all these years, and I did need to hide . . .” Vadid said, his voice ashamed, but also full of frustration.

“But, but why?” Gisbo asked.

“It will be a story you will have to hear and have to hear soon, but not now, not yet.” Vadid said, then he paused and looked to the ceiling. “Man-Phoenix Domain!”

Just like the last time, the elevator flashed and shot straight up, moved right, then shot back up again before finally halting, and with a ding, the elevator opened.

“Come on,” Vadid said. Together they walked down a new black hallway to a blue white shining door at the end. Vadid put his hand on the doorknob, then, turned to his grandson.

“This room, Gisbo, you may change it when it is your time to take the Man-Phoenix mantle, but, I feel, you may not want to. I’ve been preparing this place for you. Being Man-Phoenix, the responsibility, the sheer weight of the power, it can be . . . I’d like to say stressful, but, as you will understand, it’s far more than that. You will need a place to gather your thoughts, have some downtime . . .” Vadid said, pausing, and sighing. “. . . and, I’m sorry to say Gisbo, but in Thera, there’s no such thing as a secret identity when it comes to the Man-Phoenix, not anymore. This isn’t a Man-Angel comic book. Everyone knows who you are. Your secret is out, and your life, it’s never going to be the same again . . . but you won’t be alone, not while The Renegades are around, no sir!

But, enough of my blabbing, I just, something tells me, I’ve done good here. I just know you will love it, and until you come up with a better name, welcome, to the Man-Phoenix Domain!” Vadid said, as he opened the door, and together, they walked inside.

There was a flash of light, and it took Gisbo a few moments for the sparkles in front of his eyes to stop dancing about, but once they did, and his vision became clear, he was able to only mutter one word . . .

“Whoa . . .”

“Everything you’ve ever dreamed? Of course it is,” Vadid said, smacking him on the back.

Gisbo turned his head all about, trying to take in his new surroundings, and trying to accept that what he was seeing, was indeed real.

Above him, like a ruby, the sun was set just set over the treetops, bleeding out over the skyline, and giving the atmosphere hues of pink, purple, and orange, and just above the sun, clearly visible, waiting to light up the oncoming night, was a full moon, shining beautifully. Gisbo’s eyes watered just looking at it, something inside him moved and wept, but not out loud, as he was distracted by what lay beneath the beautiful skyline, a peaceful pond that sparkled in the setting sun, reflecting the sky like a moving, watercolor painting.

Gisbo walked toward the pond right to the edge, where an arching bridge lay, connecting to an island at the center of the pond. He walked over it, slowly, admiring the beautiful craftsmanship and the runes carved into the handles of the woodwork. When he reached the other side, he found himself in a beautiful, familiar garden. He tried to place the decorations and the setting, and then it hit him. It was the same style of garden that he had seen while walking in the shoes of Miyomoto Musashi and this made him smile. All about him were a variety of tea leaves, cherry blossom bushes and trees, and bamboo water pipes that clinked and clunked, by little streams running throughout the garden, and around various pathways and resting stones.

And then he saw it. In the exact center of the island stood a giant, oak tree, and resting in the tree’s ancient leaves and branches, sat a treehouse, but not just any treehouse . . . it was his treehouse, the very same one from Heaven’s Shelter. Gisbo’s heart leapt in his chest as he bounded up the stairs circled around the trunk, and arrived up top to find the same deck, furniture, and grill that Falcon had cooked over.

“What do you think?” Vadid asked, reaching the top of the stairs.

“This place, it’s as if you plucked it from my head. You, you made this? For me?” Gisbo asked.

“The Phoenix Domain changes with the person. It is a reflection of the heart. I just used my powers to reflect your heart, instead of my own, and added some . . . alterations . . . inside the treehouse mostly, wanna see?” Vadid asked.

“Vadid . . . Grandpa . . . whatever, I . . . just, I just . . .” Gisbo started.

“You’re not gonna cry on me are you?” Vadid asked.

“NO!” Gisbo said, sniffing back a tear.

“Guess I done good for an old bugger, eh?” Vadid asked. He then placed a hand on Gisbo’s shoulder. “Oh, Gizzy. You deserve this place as much as it deserves you. We’ll be coming in here during our breaks to train your mind and keep it sharp.” Vadid said. Gisbo’s eyes rolled at this.

“No math, promise,” Vadid said, quelling his fear.

“Ok, you really do know me, but, before, when you say you’ve been watching me, what about all those times when I was taking a dump or, or when . . . when I had my door closed and, YOU PERV! YOU OLD DIRTY . . .” Gisbo started.

“Whoa, whoa! Not like, every second of the day dummy! I mean, like the big events, you know? We’re connected. When your heart moved in a certain way, I was there, with you. And, the hell’s the matter with you? Why would I ever wanna see you playin’ five against one?” Vadid asked.

“Ok, next subject. Is there beer?” Gisbo asked.

“Beer in the treehouse?” Vadid asked.

“No, beer in my pants, OF COURSE I MEAN THE TREEHOUSE!” Gisbo said, waving his arms.

“What do you take me for? A man who enjoys sobriety? Come on,” Vadid asked as he walked toward the door, and paused, turned to look at him, and pushed the door open with a, Ta-Da!

Gisbo walked in. His room was just the same as he remembered it, except a whole lot cleaner, and this time, with a few added additions. All throughout the place, lining the entire tree house, imbedded into the walls, were wooden kegs of beer each with a tap at the bottom, and labeled with a different brew. Gisbo walked up to each of them, running his fingers over the labels. There were ales, IPA’s, lagers, light Beers, fruit beers, dark beers, and others Gisbo had never even heard of.

“This was my little addition to the place. Brews across worlds, Time, and Space! What’d you think?” Vadid asked. Gisbo felt his knees buckle, and he fell upon them in awe, his eyes huge and moist. He then managed to turn to his grandfather, looked up at him, and a few tears rolled down his face.

“It’s . . . it’s beautiful,” Gisbo said, as he jumped to his feet and threw his arms around his Grandfather in a big hug. Vadid embraced him willingly.

“So, not the sunset, not the asian garden, not the nostalgia of the treehouse, but the sight of beer that brings tears to my Grandson’s eyes?” Vadid asked, pulling Gisbo away, then looking about at all the kegs he had installed.

“It . . . it is beautiful ain’t it?” Vadid asked as his eyes began filling with moisture, and then, together, Grandson and Grandfather went at each keg, armed with a frozen mug from the ice box, and attacked each keg with a thirst even Camlin Ayver McCarley would appreciate.

The next morning, Gisbo’s eyes opened to a sight that made him smile, a sight that he never thought he’d see again . . . the ceiling of his treehouse.