Special Conditions

"Well, I'll join as well." Vito had spoken up first between the two.

This was his opportunity, his chance to experience life differently and do much much more.

He never thought he would see Terra again, but he could finally apologize to him properly for trying to kill him. Cyrus had said he would join, making two people he knew who he could spend time with. And he didn't worry about going to school, he was currently at home, sick from the flu. At least that was the excuse being used to cover for him, or so he thought, he didn't really know.

Terra was somewhat relieved and frightened to hear that Vito would join. On the one hand, he is fun, on the other hand, he did try to kill him. But Terra believes that the good in people outweighs the bad. At least he thought this way of Vito only, despite his mixed feelings.

Alex had also been delighted hearing this. He knew that Terra could learn a few lessons from having Vito near him. A lesson of working with a former enemy to attain a goal. This lesson would help him in the future he believed.

The only one yet to join in this charade was Edith who had been thinking hard on the matter.

"I'm sorry guys but I can't join you," she said.

"What!?" Vito asked surprised, he didn't think she would reject such an offer.

"Calm down Vito," Alex said, "Edith you have your choice and I respect it, but might I know the reason why you are saying no?"

Edith remained quiet for a moment and shuffled her arms for a little bit uncomfortably.

Alex noticed this and said, "Very well Edith, you don't have to say anything. I do not regret giving you this decision."

"It's not you Alex!" Edith spoke with a slight incline in her voice but not loud enough to call it yelling, "They are acting like hypocrites!" she said as she pointed at Cyrus and Vito. Not Terra.

"Just this morning we had agreed to never see each other again, to live our own lives and forget we ever met, but yet they are acting as if that never happened. They are so quick to say yes! Cyrus, you had agreed with me yourself, and Vito you hated that I said so," She said.

Edith was not mad at them, only confused. It felt unnatural to her for them to simply act like that conversation didn't happen. She wanted to say yes, but it would be contradicting for the person who said they shouldn't hang out again to say that they wanted to team up. 

"Did you now? That is a very cruel thing, for friends to act like they never knew each other in the first place." Alex said.

Edith wanted to comment on that but couldn't find it in her to argue. To be honest, she kind of did enjoy the moments they were at the bar talking about planets, before the whole Terra killing fiasco.

Vito was a little bit taken aback as it had slipped his mind. After the incident of the tree and cottage by it and him almost falling to his death, it had taken his mind off of what they had said after Terra left.

So Cyrus spoke up to clear the matter, "I am not being a hypocrite, I simply had a change of heart. I had agreed with what you said because I had the mindset that Terra would lose and be killed within a week."

Terra turned to look at Cyrus and he was greatly offended. 'A week? Did he say I'd last a week? What does he make of me?' he asked to himself.

Vito noticing Terra's reaction placed his hand on his shoulder to comfort him. "Don't feel bad, I only thought you'd last an hour so his assumption of you is higher than mine."

Terra removed Vito's hand and took a sip from his cup. He was pouting.

"But now that I know that Terra is going to be properly trained with the time we have remaining and the fact that I have been invited by Alex himself to join, I have new hope that Terra might be able to make it through further than we expected. Besides, why miss out on happiness?"

"Whether he wins or loses, we don't want to regret what we could have had if we said yes. It's better to try and fail than to not try at all. Besides we can take pictures together before the world blows up, maybe an alien will see it and take care of it for us." He laughs as he says that last line.

What Cyrus was saying made sense and Edith couldn't exactly think of a way to argue. In a way she wanted to say YES more than she actually thought she did.

"You make a good point. But there is one more problem," she said.

'Oh, what is it now?' Vito thought to himself. He really wanted her to say yes already. Plus she was the only girl in the group. There needed to be some variation.

"Yes Edith and what would that be?" Alex asked with a cheer on his face.

"It's my father. I can't exactly go two days without seeing him or he thinks I'll be kidnapped." She explained.

"An overprotective parent, I can relate," Vito said.

"No, you don't understand," she said, "If I don't see him within 2 days, he will turn the world upside down looking for me."

"If it is travel then that will not be a problem," Alex explained, "You see that door over there! The one that Ariel had used. It can connect to any other door in the world so long as you know the layout of your destination. And if there isn't a door it will create one that will disappear after being used."

"You see, you will be given keys, one-way keys. They have a one-time use to take you from any location to another so you can use them to get back. Just insert them somewhere and it will open up. Door or not, but it doesn't work on living people."

The whole group was excited, even Cyrus was showing it. A magical key that leads to anywhere? No restrictions? And will be given to them for free? It was amazing!

And as Alex saw their excitement he decided to reinform them on the downside.

"The one-time key can only be used one time. You use it to get back here. and you use the door to go anywhere else. You will only be given one key each per mission and must return them after the mission." He felt the need to remind them lest they get too excited with unlimited travel.

The excitement died down a bit when he said this, but they were still happy about it all.

"Alright, I am in!" Edith said and all the boys cheered for her.

"YAAAY!" They all said.

Edith smiled upon hearing this. "Wow, you guys wanted me to join that badly huh?"

"Yeah, of course, we did, some of us might get lonely without you here," Cyrus said with a smirk on his face as he winked in between Terra and Vito.

"Oh shut up," she said as she punched Cyrus on the shoulder.

As everyone was laughing around Alex decided to bring everyone's attention to him

"Ahem! In case you could not tell, this building is somewhat empty. We are the only ones here, all the other servants have gone on separate missions around the world. I have work to do and will not be supervising you personally unless otherwise. So I asked my three most trusted servants to take up that task while I will be away. Minty and Sasha are unavailable right now so that leaves him." Alex had said as he pointed to the man who had first introduced himself to Vito and Cyrus.

"Hello there everyone," he said.

"Wait!" Edith exclaimed, "Have you been standing there all this time? In that corner?"

"Why yes I have. I did not wish to disturb your discussion so I made my presence as minimal as possible. I hope that does not displease you." He spoke so softly and gentlemanly that Edith actually didn't mind this wild behavior.

"O-o-oh!, n-not at all," she said as she admired his accent.

"Thank you, hearing that makes me glad. Now, normally it would be proper etiquette for one to give out their name, but seeing as how you have met Ariel, an acquaintance of mine with whom I do business, I am inclined to keep my name hidden. You may refer to me as John, the first footman under Alex. It would be my pleasure to serve you." And with that, he bows.

Everyone was impressed with the style and class of this young man. He spoke in such a way that you would wish for him to read bedtime stories to you and this thought itself made Edith blush and shake her head. She was too old for that.

Meanwhile, Vito was unimpressed. 'It was just an act,' he thought. No one would actually talk like that and he didn't speak like this in the first place. He has to be faking it. 'What a fraud.'

"Very well then, John," Alex spoke with a smile on his face, "May you please get my things ready. I will be leaving shortly," he said.

"It shall be done Alex," John said and with that, he walked out.

"What a nice guy!" Edith said still staring at where he went out from. Vito commented, "Yeah, how great."

As they had seen him leave they were surprised to hear footsteps re-enter the room from the direction where he left. But instead of John who they saw, it was a different person entirely.

He was shorter than John and his hair was long and unkept. He was slouching as he walked and his eyes seemed dead, as if he hadn't slept for quite a while.

He sat down at the table, on the empty seat that was supposedly meant for Ariel and he began chowing down some pizza like it was his first meal in three days.

Everyone at the table was stunned, everyone except for Alex.

"I was wondering what time you would wake up. Everyone, this is-"

"Ahh, don't say my name, I don't want to associate with these people!" the stranger said as he took another slice of pizza that was in front of Edith and put it on his plate.

Edith saw this action as if the man had sinned against mankind, his very existence to her should be to beg and grovel at her feet for even thinking of attempting such an act, but before she could say or do anything Cyrus had grabbed another slice of pizza and placed it in front of her on a different plate.

She looked at it, then looked at Cyrus, and then kept quiet as she took a bite out of it, but she didn't let that stranger's action leave her mind.

"I am afraid that I will have to tell them who you are otherwise they might begin to worry. Everyone, this here is Dawn." Alex said.

"Argh! Why'd you have to say my name!! That John guy didn't say his name and you went and said mine! I hate it here." the stranger said. 

At this point, everyone was wondering how this lost animal found itself here.

"There doesn't seem to be anything bright about him, despite having a name like that," Edith said. "Alex who is he?" she asked.

"Well I told each of you at different times, but remember the guy who wanted to kill Terra and then commit suicide? well, this is him and he will be working with you on your missions from now on." Alex said with a big bright smile on his face.

"What!?" Everyone Exclaimed at hearing this.

"Wait! He wanted to kill me!?" Terra asked as he was the only one uninformed about that event.

Unbeknownst to him, Dawn wasn't the only one who had those thoughts and the number would only increase for as long as he was on Earth.