THE SHADOWVERSE

Destinies

Half an hour later, the deep-sleepers woke up. The lids of their sleep apparatuses slid open. Ryan sat up and yawned like a T-Rex. For some reason, his brain assumed he was on Earth, and it took him a minute to realize he was far from home.

The rest woke up only seconds later, still dressed in the remarkable outfits the enigmatic Z bestowed them. The brothers and Ryan stumbled out of the room and looked around for Johnny and Sonovan. They found them both meditating on the cliff outside the hideout.

"Whoa, Johnny, what's gotten into you all of a sudden?" Ryan asked, surprised that the Johnny Sparks could actually relax for once.

Johnny opened one eye. "About time you're awake. Sonovan and I have had a blast talking after I took a little nap." He looked over at Sonovan, who was still in meditation. "And he's a pretty interesting and sophisticated guy, by the way."

"Oh, is that so?"

"Indeed," was the reply from Sonovan.

Dustin and Sam chuckled. "The guy even has a sense of humor."

"You should have heard him a few hours ago. I don't even think he meant to, but he was a real jokester."

Sonovan stood, his tone and expression serious. "Now that you are awake, we must train. Follow me." Caught off guard by his sudden change, they followed him back into the hideout.

On the way, Sam turned to Ryan. "What do you think he'll say?"

Dustin put in his two cents. "He'll probably be all like, 'You must unlearn what you have learned.'"

Sam and Ryan chuckled. "Yeah! He could even say, 'I cannot teach them' because, y'know, we're some reckless savages sometimes."

"Aw, come on! We aren't that bad!" Dustin responded.

"Dude, why else would we have been suspended for a week?" Ryan replied. "Do I have to remind you about that stunt we pulled at the studio?"

"Oh, yeah," Sam chuckled.

"The past is the past!" Dustin retorted.

"Yeah, so let's not repeat it, OK?"

"You guys should literally stop talking already," Jane interjected. "Come on."

The gold-dipped light of Herook's parent star shone forth, illuminating the rocky ground. "This will be your dojo. Break nothing, please," Sonovan instructed.

"Or what?" Dustin joked.

Sonovan's eyes pierced into Dustin and Sam. He just stared at them. For the first time, he showed a different side—almost a militaristic discipline and maturity.

"It is time to put away all your immaturity," Sonovan commanded. "It is time to put away everything."

The brothers quickly shut up as the atmosphere in the room shifted.

Hands on his waist and bandana blowing in the breeze flowing through the refuge, Sonovan began speaking. "This is the place where legends are born, my allies. This is the place where discipline and order reign. This place can be anywhere: a bedroom, a field, and even a workplace. No matter the setting, the tradition of the dojo is unchanging.

"You may have learned martial arts, and that is good. It will ease the lessons for you. But now I will train you in the way I was trained. An art that has long been forgotten. A method of ancient times. A method designed by The Shadows. A method of fighting honed by the warriors of old. Men who could annihilate anyone in their way. And soon, with my supervision, you will become the heirs of their legacy. Are you ready?"