2: Sundown

It was a Sunday afternoon on Sailfish Avenue. A sleek red Toyota Solara SLE convertible was parked outside a sun orange colored two story concrete townhouse. The exterior of the house was minimally decorated with bronze stencil decorations of the sun and a garden flag that had an astronaut waving on the moon while greeting ‘Welcome Home!’.

Helios was seated on his eclipse grey futon, sending out invitations to his crewmates and possibly to Gingka and his friends as well. He added a small thank you note to Gingka for saving him from the clutches of his wicked grandfather. The silver haired blader assumes he’s still locked behind bars. (a lengthy 3 years has got to be worth it for the old man.) 

A black square object was there next to him. Helios briefly remembered he borrowed one of the heat shield tiles from poor Atlantis II, having written down its important specifications while designing a blueprint map of the shuttle. On the back of his mind, he had to return it to KSC ever since it was NASA’s property and not just a random carbon fiber tile he plucked out of the composite material dumpster.

He tapped the tile against a small sketch diagram on his notebook, leaflets of handwritten complex math formulas tumbling out. Standing up with a small stretch, he smiled proudly at his party set up around his studious living room and kitchen.

Dimly lit by two studious ivy leaf lamps, orange space banners with a custom Sol Blaze emblem were hung across the white paper walls. A jet black and scarlet red rug layered over the light acacia wood floor, a 50” Samsung flatscreen topped over a basic black center console which held a PS2, several space documentaries and surf movies on DVD, a MFB (Beyblade) movie with himself in it, and small generic figurines of an astronaut and a space shuttle. 

Helios sweeped by the kitchen counter, keeping his menu inventory in check. Aluminum trays of Moon Bread, Space nuggets, Planetary Pizzas, Baked Beans, Constellation cupcakes, and Cosmic Popcorn were neatly lined up against the marble surface. A glass pitcher filled with Cosmic Solar Lime sun tea stood nearby, a stack of watermelon themed paper plates, napkins, and red SOLO party cups towering over the appetizers. His sapphire blue eyes gleamed in anticipation, measuring the perfect amount for everyone invited. 

The silver haired blader spotted an unattended Sunflower on the peppered granite counter, twirling it in delight. He dropped the lonely flower in a glass vase along with the others, each flower reminding him of his glorious days with the STS-136 crew. It was 2:56 PM. Any moment, they should be arriving.

The doorbell rang, swiftly catching Helios’ attention.

All of his energy drained like a thermometer at the sight of Yureneva Brezenska, the only Russian astronaut on the team. Considering her short height and chubby appearance, Helios wondered how she was qualified to become an astronaut in the first place. With her chestnut brown hair tied into a fashionable bun, her energetic puffy face held a good amount of joy, her brown eyes squinting behind her square framed glasses. Casually dressed in a space blue XL NASA polo, khakis, and flip flops, the chubby woman locked him in a tight hug. “Helios! It’s been a long time since 136!”

Yureneva muttered words of joy while swinging him left and right, her extra layer of blubber from her arms flapping in sync. The silver haired blader felt like he was being hugged by a friendly but secretly dangerous bear from the Siberian Wilderness. As strange as it seemed, Brezenska forgot to forward the invitation to Team Lovushka, Russia's famed Beyblade / Space team participating in the so-called Space Race. Their leader, Aleksei, allowed Helios to leave for the US when they needed another astronaut on the scene for their latest mission to fix and code several inputs to the Solar panels of the ISS and the installation of the Mini Research Module 1. Lera and Nowaguma weren’t satisfied. They said that Russia needed another teammate for their space race. And that’s how Yureneva, out of disproportionate value, was oddly chosen for this task. 

Helios wondered how everyone on board the ISS refused to perform an EVA spacewalk. Brezenska’s feet barely fit into the foothold platform of the Canadarm. 

“Yure-neva.” Helios could barely breathe. Released from her death hug, the silver haired blader caught his breath and playfully glared at her. “That’s not the proper etiquette to hug someone.”

Brezenska’s joy surged within her. No matter how many times there was an attempt to offend her, she fails to understand anger. She dropped her bag to the ground, immediately pouring over the buffet line. Her eyes wistfully caught the sight of Constellation cupcakes and Cosmic popcorn on display. She tentatively picked up the Pegasus one, pushing one of its decorative stars, Alpheratz into the blue green icing. “But in my city, it's an obligation for everyone including me. Can I? Pretty please?”

She ended her immature request for the cupcake by popping her icing covered finger into her mouth with an awkward stare. 

Helios rolled his eyes with a deflated sigh. “Whatever, go ahead Brezenska.”

Yureneva gloated with a squeal and finished off the remaining chocolate cupcake she handled with. Helios patiently waited for his remaining crewmates to arrive. Perched on the futon, he started to watch his favorite surf tuber on Youtube, Brad Jacobson, where he records every whimsical moment of random surfers colliding into hysterical wipeouts over the surging waves of Malibu. Brezenska wiped her hands with a paper towel before sitting down next to Helios. “Aw, cheer up sun boy. After all, you’ll be packed with a big fat paycheck and a smile as big as the sun.”

Helios gave out a mellow smile, “I’m grateful to be an astronaut and mission control director. Houston, we no longer have a problem.” 

A knock was heard on the door, raising curiosity. 

It was Skye Robinson, mission payload specialist and flight engineer of STS 136 and Atlantis II. As an average African American female, she had puffy scarlet brown hair, a lime green top decorated with silver rhinestone diamonds, Levi’s jeans, and silver kitten heel shoes. Her dark almond brown eyes and bright smile twinkled in delight. 

“Hey y'all! It’s good to see you two!” she twirled around, tassels flying. In her hands was an extra lime green Publix grocery bag, carrying a Pyrex casserole dish. She set it on the counter, lifting the glass lid. The warm scent of burger sliders wafted from the crisp golden bun. “I brought some sliders along for us to enjoy! Plus, you’ll never guess what I did for the patty.”

Robinson lifted a bun and both Helios and Yureneva blinked in awe. Well, Brezenska gasped in excitement. Layering the lower bun was a beef patty in the shape of NASA’s meatball logo. Every little detail from the red aerowing to the signature comet curving around the glittering stars. The letters N A S A were embedded into the patty as if the aerospace company stamped it for approval. It looked very phenomenal and appetizing.

“It took me about an hour to complete all 30 sliders, thanks to my two energetic kids.” Skye blushed in laughter. Her curls waved around in joy. 

Yureneva immediately stuffed one in her mouth. Her eyes widened like saucers behind her focal glasses. “I feel-f like-f I’m dying vnow.”

“You do feel like dying now.” Helios remarked with a light chuckle, sipping on a Celsius energy drink. He gave out an excusable belch. 

“Helios, is that your 2nd can of Celsius?” Skye remarked in confusion. Everyone knew of his irresistible habit over energy drinks. The silver haired blader adored Celsius when he first was introduced to surfing by watching a group of surfers on Dawn Patrol, clinking cans in joy after their first wipeout during sundown. 

“Is that a problem?” he remarked in concern, raising a silver brow in return. Robinson blushed and gave out her daddy dental smile. White as an expanding bright supernova star. “I was just curious. Is that the Galaxy vibe flavour?”

“Astro vibe. Since I’m in a space themed party, I decided to buy the 24 can party pack for $20. Snap deal.” Helios reached in from underneath the futon and pulled out the box, 24 cans of assorted Celsius flavours clinking in unison. A small Post it note fluttered out of Helios’ hands. Both Yureneva and Skye scrutinized the complex math formulas and diagrams as if Helios was avid at scientific inventions. It really was his very own invention ever since he was inspired by various composite materials and how matter functions on different planes on the Earth. It was a drawing of a Celsius can in the first frame, surrounded by chicken scratch labels and a cluster of formulas. In the second frame, the can explodes, forcing out pressurized gas clouds. Carbon Dioxide (CO2), Nitrogen, and Argon bursted in different directions. Not to mention the glorious fake sugar known as Sucralose can make anyone sticky once they are doused. 

“Ignore that. Just something I was working on lately.” Helios blushed lightly, folding his invention and quickly pocketed it like a winning lottery ticket worth millions of dollars. Both female astronauts immediately clamoured in awe.

“Oh no, that’s actually an amazing weapon! Where did you learn to do this?” Robinson asked in amazement, speculating at the can from all sides. Yureneva copied her crewmate, her finger lacing around the pull tab. Attempting to crack one can open resulted in a sweet mess in Helios’ sight. He immediately grabbed the can before any explosive liquid burst out like a fire hydrant. 

“Did I mention that there was a warning label on it? It’s a prototype that shouldn’t be messed around with.” Helios glared lightly at Yureneva, snatching the can from her hands. His crystalized blue eyes glowered in annoyance, the can felt cool to the touch. “Celsius and the composite materials lab at Blue Origin were the only source of my inspiration behind the Celsius grenade.” 

The AC clicked on, sending in a blast of cool air to circulate around the living room. Helios, named after the Greek god of the sun, was able to breathe through the unbearable heat season, a rare condition he was discovered with since he was young. ‘It’s like breathing in several degrees of the sun. The solar light and blazing fire all roll into one.’ A saying he always heard from his parents before they passed away. However, the others could not handle the heat and were immediately relieved by the cool air draft. 

Helios’ playlist kicked in: a blend of Dream Trance and chilled genres by Illenium softly pulsed around the walls and into the open space. Illenium’s Other Side was first on the list, toning to the relaxing and fun atmosphere of the party.

The doorbell faintly rang over the loud music and joyful chatter. Helios meandered over to the door, overwhelmed by the sight of his last crewmate. Ryan Henderson, technician and Payload Commander of STS 136 and Atlantis II. Scarlet auburn curly hair, rectangular framed glasses, and a goofy smile was his trademark appearance. He swept in, clad in a light blue Hawaiian polo, cargo shorts, and pearl white and gold Onitsuka Dragon sneakers. Held in his hand was NASA’s RPG tabletop game, The Lost Universe. The cover took place on the evening mountain terrain, a large green japanese dragon propped against the night sky, curled ouroborus style around the Hubble Space Telescope. “Hola! Henderson has finally arrived! And look what he brought with him!”

Ryan unleashed his goofy smile, setting the game before them on the coffee table. (And being careful not to knock over Helios’ plate of sliders and baked beans). 

“The Lost Universe?” Helios inquired with a puzzled brow. He scrutinized the complex gameplay, briefly finding it gobbledygook.

“No way, I’m genuinely shocked that you didn’t know about NASA’s first tabletop game?” Ryan’s mouth hung agape as he stared critically at the silver haired blader. Helios returned a blank gaze. “What?”

“Ok! Ok! We now have to educate poor Helios on RPG tabletop games. Let me get everything set up.” Henderson scrambled across the coffee table, removing the lid to the game. Helios, Yureneva, and Skye weren’t satisfied. 

“That’s it? Just sheets of paper?” Skye twisted her face into pure confusion.

They furrowed a brow in confusion at the sight of a paper stack snugged in the box. Helios figured they were instructions to the cleverly hidden board and pieces that were right underneath. Instead, Ryan lobbed a 7 sided forest green dice similar to the ones used in Dungeons and Dragons. 

“Yep! Everything is on paper! And we track down our characters and adventures with a dice, paper, and pen!” Henderson gave his crewmate their respective materials to play the game.

Helios deadpanned, feeling entirely lost throughout Ryan’s elaborate instructions. Henderson was a board game geek, known to have crowdfunded his $1k board game, The Secrets of Atlantis. The Sol Blaze blader found the name too nostalgic for his search of the actual city and recommended Henderson to spice the title. Galahad: Legend of the Quasar Star. The cover impressively depicted Quasar Galahad, a white alicorn from space, rendered from the burning heavens by Zeraiya, a celestial dragon of the Delyran cosmos. It looked magnificent and divine: 3 purple wings, turquoise mane and tail, and an emblem depicting the 3 Trinity Rings (or Borromean Rings) appeared on its flank. The alicorn is assisted by both Falchion Nagariel, a harmonic leafy sea dragon hailing from the fluorescent nature of Pleura, ruled by the  Divine Dragon Naga, and Oblivion Manticore, a rebellious but selfish spider dragon harbored from the depths of Dranon, ruled by the Imperial Dragon, Akallon. Numerous companies started to take interest in Ryan’s board game, offering him a good amount of money in exchange for the sales. Henderson declined. Whatever you find and create is what sticks to you. 

He always had a good reputation in reminding his crewmates with his quote. It always meant to never fail in life and keep moving forward. 

Yureneva cooed in excitement, spinning the dice like a poker chip. Skye was intrigued, all ears towards Ryan’s lecture about the game. Helios contemplated in silence, still trying to grasp the rules. It was complex in terms of gameplay. Everyone roleplayed as a character, cracking down a dark mystery that has settled over the city of Aldastron on the rogue planet of Exlaris. Researchers dedicated to studying the cosmos have disappeared, and the Hubble Space Telescope has vanished from Earth’s timeline. Only an ambitious crew of adventurers can uncover what was lost. Stolen by the 70 year old chaotic Fell Dragon, Isilias. 

“That dragon is the same age as my grandfather.” Helios scrunched with a chuckle.

“Wait till you see the locations. Everyone will start in a location that will represent a certain science field: Aldastron for Astrophysics, Beska Pereya for Biological systems, Paleridon for Planetary Science, Arketnum for Aeronautics, and lastly Sarthelios for Solar Science.” 

“Sart Helios?” The only crew member with that name twisted his face into awe and confusion. Henderson nodded enthusiastically.

“More like Fart Helios.” Yureneva leaned back in laughter. The others followed after. Helios blushed lightly in embarrassment, remembering his accidental moment during his EVA spacewalk.        

“Anyway, let’s get this game on the road! I warn you, it's a lotta reading so I don’t know if anyone is up having all ears.” Ryan conducted the game like a board game geek instructor. After 20 minutes of encountering orcs, elves, hybrids, humans and binary human NPCs, Brezenska immediately cut the game short, her attention completely affixed on Helios’ sea gear. Even Isilias the dragon wasn’t satisfied since he was still waiting on his fearsome encounter with their characters while scoping the lands of Aldastron with the Hubble Space Telescope.

“Is that your surfboard collection?” Yureneva glowered over the stack, running her hand over all 6 decks. Helios nodded and sauntered over to her side. “Yes. I occasionally surf the waves on Cocoa Beach. It’s relaxing.”

“Can I try one out? How do I stand on the board?” Brezenska beamed in curiosity. Helios nodded and scoped over various surfboard brands: Channel Islands, Fire Wire, Pyzel, and a Storm Blade SSR before plucking out the Pyzel Shadow board. It was made of carbon fiber with striking details: The Sol Blaze solar star logo, Helios’ name custom etched across the nose.

“So this is what you do when you’re not on recon duty for Mission Control?” Yureneva gawked in joy, her smile stretching across her pale face. Helios noted of her uncontrollable excitement and held her down to maintain her composure. 

“Pretty much since I was first introduced to surfing by a couple nice guys during their evening Dawn Patrol over the orange waves of Cocoa Beach.” The Blader of the Sun (his nickname given by Bakim) carefully held the chubby female standing across the board. “There. There. You don’t want to lose your balance while your board bops across the waves. The force of the water pushes you and your board forward. The trick is to never lean forwards or backwards unless you want a horrible wipeout.”

“How many wipeouts did you go through?” Skye questioned, pursing her lips into a suppressed smile.

“Over a million times and counting. Salt water and sea weed is a horrible combination to taste. Which is why I occasionally wear wetsuits as well.” Helios held up his Ocean Tec suit, the eclipse grey neoprene material glimmering against the ceiling light. 

“That’s impressive. I wish I could go surfing across Malibu. That’s officially on my bucket list for next year.” Ryan wistfully watched Yureneva lay down cobra position on the board. Her restless confusion caused her to splutter out in puzzled awe, “What do I do now?”

“Use your arms and legs to prop yourself up the board, positioned diagonally while facing forward. Like this.” Helios demonstrated switching positions from paddle to stand in a matter of seconds. He looked like a professional surfer, confident enough to drop into a 6 ft. wave across the Banzai Pipeline in Oahu, Hawaii. 

Belly on board, Brezenska attempted to copy his movement, releasing a tiny drag. Helios, Skye, and Ryan laughed in hysterical joy at the sound of the chubby female’s accidental fart.

“That was not intended! I sound like a small foghorn!” Yureneva continued to uncontrollably laugh. It seemed Brezenska was aware of her bean quantity and how that had an unintentional impact on her. No lie, Lovushka did make a great astronaut selection for STS 136. Almost everyone in the Mission Control Center at KSC was dumbfounded by Brezenska’s unproportionate appearance. Nowhere in the astronaut requirement list did it say that slightly fat people were forbidden from riding space shuttles.        

“You apparently ate too much of the beans. Which surprisingly NASA forbids on recent missions.” Helios added with a playful sarcasm. 

“Oh yeah? What about the time we all declined on that EVA spacewalk to install the tarp over the MRM1?” Yureneva countered back, “And then you returned suffocating in difficulty?”

Helios rolled his eyes, knowing that was the truth. It was awkward, embarrassing, and very well burnt into his mind. He snapped to attention, forcing himself to change the subject. No matter how many times he was ridiculed with his silly memory, Helios wasn’t going to be reminded of this moment in the mission promo video the crew was going to rewatch. 

The opening movie depicted the summary of the mission accompanied by the ambient Illenium x Said the Sky track, I See You. The azure sky flickered with the deepest shades of cerulean and startling fuchsia. Atlantis was mounted on its launchpad. All 4 members of STS 136 walked confidently towards the camera. The T-minus countdown. Blasting off from the launch pad and flaring through the sky. Tearing through the atmosphere, soaring over the hurricane swirling clouds that snugged across the surface of the Earth. Atlantis II’s payload doors open, docking at the section of the International Space Station. A blur of dark grey stars glitter across the screen, the transition showing the silly but memorable moments of the mission.

“The return of the socks!” Everyone aroused in laughter as Yureneva dwindled her pink fuzzy socks on screen, somersaulting in place. 

“Those never seem to get out of foot, don’t they?” Helios shook his head with a chuckle.

Ryan mentions how he ended up in a tangled mess with the cables that were hooked to the control panels in Truss 0. 

“The way we untangled you like spaghetti was really tedious! A tangible solution to the MRM1 connection was indeed rare right there.” Skye pointed out curtly with a small smile.

“You got that right!” Ryan caterwauled, clutching his glasses.

Helios follows last, an audible chuckle escaping his throat. 

A quick glimpse of the HDG radar on the front nose cam displayed the shuttle’s current elevation from the runway along with coordinate numbers rapidly sliding up or down depending on the orbiter’s aerial turns on its delta wings.

“Welcome back to Earth, 136!” 

The shuttle sped down the runway like an airliner. The parachute wiggled madly in the wind behind its orbital thrusters, ejecting its brake as it slowly rolled to a halt.

“Engaged and deployed parachute brake. Atlantis II has finally landed.” Yureneva brightly replied on the intercom. Service vehicles started surrounding the shuttle. The STS-136 crew exited the shuttle and gave out a memorable speech during their expedition to the ISS in their short press conference. 

They later entered the Astro van (aka the silver hippie camper van) and drove to the Neil Armstrong center. The promo video ended with a 3D wireframe polyhedron model of Atlantis II, a blender of neon blue and magenta colliding across the runway, the shuttle zooming towards the viewer.

Everyone applauded in joy as Helios exited the video player. Centering the screen was a video call from Aleksei himself. The Russian captain of Team Lovushka nervously smiled as he greeted in delight. “Greetings STS 136. Well, except for you Brezenska.” 

A soft laughter aroused around Yureneva. She slightly held her hand behind her head while blushing, “Thanks for the compliment, Aleksei.”

“What’s our input this time? The MRM1 is a success.” Helios informed, his crystal blue eyes gleaming at brown haired Wolf blader. 

“MRM1 is a success.” The kid in the astronaut suit, Nowaguma, nervously repeated. Pushing him out of frame was a teen female with auburn pink ponytails that seemed to stick upwards like air traffic cones. Her tone was laced with pure carelessness and obnoxious high pitched sounds, “Nowa, it’s not necessary for you to repeat everything they say. Now get your astro butt here and help me with some training. We’re launching one of our rockets using SETH.”

“SETH?” Skye inquired, her eyes squinted in prolonged confusion.

That’s when Alexei took over, “Spatial Enigma Time Horizons. I’m surprised you weren’t aware of this module until now. Similar to the MRM1, Lovushka, Roscosmos, and NASA have teamed up to send this orbital piece mounted on the SpaceX Crew Dragon. SETH is going to probe the Sun’s solar flares, recording existential data and possibly formulating a light space portal. It takes a lot more than complex math to know and build this phenomenal module.”

“Interesting. Keep us updated when Crew Dragon’s ready to launch.” This line deeply hurt Helios as he ultimately wished it was Atlantis II’s turn to deliver and launch SETH instead. For the time, NASA was allowed to invite and partner up with Lovushka, knee deep into their extraordinary designs. He had to accept the fact that the shuttle program ended after the original Atlantis retired and the billion dollar aerospace company reserved Atlantis II for certain light duty missions.

“No worries. We will! Go get 'em, Tiger. NASA, Roscosmos, and Lovushka will always be by your side, 136! ???????? Proshchaniye! (Farewell!)” Aleksei bowed and waved in respect, ending the call.

Helios leaned back on the futon, clearly contemplating. Yureneva hoggled on the remaining cupcakes, pocketing some to reserve for later. 

“I would love how SETH rolls out against your Beyblade’s Solar Flares.” Skye inhaled in awe, imagining streaks of red fused with orange blazing across the empty planes of space. She sat down next to him and lightly nudged his shoulder. 

The silver haired blader smiled mellowly before nodding in agreement. His eyelids lowered but managed to stay awake after 2 cans of Celsius. Ryan on the other hand clapped in excitement, snapping Helios to attention.

“Whoo! Can’t wait to see SETH in action! Pretty cool to see that module sweeping over the sun like this!” Henderson picked up Sol Blaze V145 AS, a small brush stroked over the facebolt, clear wheel, and fusion wheel as if it were a smartphone having dust brushed away. Helios wordlessly smiled. “C’mon pal, lighten up! After all, we should hang out another time! Looks like Skye and Yureneva are ready to go as well!” 

It was 10 PM. The red clock in the shape of Sol Blaze ticked in harmony. Helios stood up with a light stretch. “You too, Ryan. Everyone, I appreciate your visit to my small summer party after our successful mission. Let’s meet up at the stands beside Launch pad 39 and watch Crew Dragon take off with the SETH module.”

“I’ll re bring the cosmic muffins if anyone wants them!” Brezenska waved a few, efficiently dabbing chocolate icing on Helios’ face. 

“Thanks Yureneva.” he muttered flatly, his chin resembling his grandfather Bakim’s beard.

“Heeeliiioooosss!” Skye sauntered over, waving her arms as if she was performing a dance. After a cheerful hug, she once again unleashed her daddy dental smile, “I guess it’s time to say goodbye. Listen up, I've got a flight to catch the day after tomorrow. Going to Minnesota for my grandson’s birthday. I’ll tell Kayden that you said hi!” 

Helios gulped, “7 hours just for flying there?”

“Yup, I’m never gonna regret the 45 min layover in Dayton, Ohio. Thanks for the rocket cake toppers! He’s gonna love those!” Robinson whisked away with a celebrity wink and a wave. Helios glowered as if love struck. 

Assuming Ryan and Skye have already left his driveway, the only one that remained was Yureneva. Helios expected her to naughtily kiss him goodbye even if there were gray areas in the Sun Blader’s relationship status. He found her absent from the living room futon. Cupcakes, muffins, and portable cups of Cosmic Solar Lime sun tea vanished from the party site. 

Helios swore to the Sun God that he did see a faint shadow from the corner of his eye. Exhaling while extracting his bizarre thoughts, he took one last sip of Celsius before crushing the aluminum can. The CRUNCH sound felt so satisfying, he decided to set the used cans in a small recycling box. One time he did have a bad experience with one of the cans, the pull tab sliced through the tip of his tongue. A slit expanded and a small bubble of blood poured through. Nursing his tongue with a tissue in his open mouth, Helios decided that was idiotic of him to lick the last drops of Sucralose off of the surface of the can. Never again. 

He gathered up leftover food, plates, cups, and space confetti, and disposed them off in a glittering star patterned trash can. Sighing while grasping a long, tiring, but enjoyable day, Helios walked into the bathroom, clicking on the light. Hands spread in an A frame across the black granite counter, he lightly contemplated in thought. What has become of himself? Where was his true relationship with his family? Did he ever have a strong relationship with his parents before they mysteriously vanished? Allowing Bakim to take over his life? It was like a blackhole, a whirlwind of thoughts roaring through his mind.   

After a short bathroom (pee) break, he finds a mysterious girl sitting on the futon. Startled, she looked scared and avoided any eye contact. What was her purpose here and how did she appear in Helios’ townhouse?

“May I help you?” Helios walked closer to the girl, being careful not to startle her. She looked shaken as she already did. Her blonde ponytail swished around her shoulders, her stark blue eyes welled up in slow tears. She wore a light cream sleeveless vest, a small insignia of a moon patched on the upper left section. Ripped denim shorts and black combat boots completed her profile. 

Her eyes clutched shut, refusing to look at Helios. After a second, she let out a soft exhale and finally stared at him. Timidly.

“I’m currently escaping whom you might know the wicked cult of Atlantis.”

Helios’ ears ran red. He knew what she was going to say next.

“My name… is Krista Lenz. And I’m not part of the Sunfoot Soldiers.”

---

To be honest, the can fiasco happened with me as well when I was trying to swipe some remaining Celsius with my tongue. Nursed it with a tissue like Helios did. 

Who's Krista Lenz? And what's her connection with the Sunfoot Soldiers?

Falco276 out! :)

3: Stars in the Sky

It's been awhile since I updated this story! Been busy with my work, studying, and family. 

Enjoy!

---

Krista nervously and wordlessly stared at Helios as if he originated from another planet. The clock on the wall measured their tranquility. Outside the living room window, a car quietly rushed past as if to break the awkward silence. A dim orange glow from the streetlamp began to cast over them as if Lenz had a confession to make. 

“So you don’t know where you came from?” Helios narrowed his sapphire blue eyes at her. The girl nodded while shaking her head, her hands feebling with the heat shield tile. Embarrassed by the awkward fiddle with his personal belongings, Krista placed the tile on the coffee table, knocking over a pile of envelopes. A cluster of Brevard County tax bills and a lonely Space X brochure spread into view. 

The Sun Blader urged her to speak up, noticeably intrigued by her presence. The girl continued to stare affixed at him, mesmerized by the sun emblem on the sleeves of Helios’ brown jacket. Draped on a hanger and hooked over the silver closet knob. 

“You said you weren’t part of the Sunfoot cult. Do you recall your connection with them?” Helios maintained his composure, trying to connect with Krista’s hazy memories. The girl shook her head. That caused Helios to lightly sigh. He thought of introducing himself. That way, she would open up to him as steady friends and possibly a romantic relationship. What would his crewmates at STS - 136 think of Krista? Yurenava would be excited over a new friend. Followed by Skye. As for Ryan’s case, he would find her backstory interesting (only if Helios knew about it first). 

“I’m Helios Ryuzaki, astronaut of STS - 136 and NASA’s Mission Control Director at Kennedy Space Center. My hobbies are surfing and attending EDM concerts. You might have noticed my undying love for Illenium thanks to my recent attendance in Indonesia.” Helios chuckled as he pointed to one of the album posters framed to the wall: Illenium A F T E R L I F E ft. Echos in brown text hovered over the tilting shadows of overhead islands, the sun’s intense shine blotting out half of the poster. 

Krista gleamed curiously at the poster as if mesmerized by its intricate colors. “What were you doing there?”

Helios wistfully smiled, remembering the key moments: the large phoenix statue pulsing out Illenium’s logo in a checkerboard pattern, light orange fog waving through the bopping crowd, white sparks streaming in between the only DJ himself, Nicholas Daniel Miller. “I attended the Djakarta Warehouse Pro concert with a friend in Jakarta, Indonesia. Thought you might fit into the crowd the way you’re dressed.” 

Krista began to open herself up into conversations. Helios was pleased with her conversion. She was soon going to be a full fledged extrovert, tumbling over Helios in overloaded joy and socializing with people whom she knew. It was still a mystery to what happened with her family. Helios cleverly noted to continue digging her past and what her possible connection to the Sunfoot cult was.

She blushed with laughter, “I can say the same for you as well, Helios. You’re an interesting guy for space, surfing, and EDM concerts.” 

“Thanks. Mixed emotions are in my blood, so joy is one of them.” Helios began to clean the pepper granite kitchen countertops, clicking on his Illenium playlist. Jon Bellion - Good Things Fall Apart softly played through his JBL speaker. 

Krista stifled a soft smile. They barely knew each other, lest alone her mysterious escape from the Sunfoot soldiers. What they wanted from her was a deep mystery to Helios even if he knew that Bakim was still in jail after he got arrested by the WBBA and local police.

A puff of silence drifted around the living room. All Krista could hear were the ASMR clinks and clanks of various steel baking trays, a rush of water over the slope in the sink. With the tap clicked off, Helios then wiped his hands with a towel before tilting his head at the girl. “Is there anything else you want to say?”

Krista hummed in deep thought. Her bright blue eyes clouded in concern. “I really have nowhere to go. Is it alright if I stay with you for one night?” 

Helios rarely had anyone over for the night in his townhouse. Krista was the first stranger turned into a complimentary guest, harbored by his kindness and handsome appearance. “Sure, considering you have had some kind of persecution from the Sunfoot cult? Same here.”

Helios excused himself as he whisked away outside with a flexible trash bag, a cluster of Celsius cans clinking in unison. 

That caught Krista’s attention. She was intrigued by Helios’ past and how his story with the Sunfoot cult turned out to be. Knowing his limited boundaries with certain points in his childhood, Krista decided to recall her visit to Kennedy Space Center, overjoyed at the sight of Atlantis II’s arrival from the ISS. 

The front door opened, fazing Helios into stunned silence. 

---

Waiting intently, Krista had her hands clasped together over her chest as she scanned the cloudless morning sky. Her blonde strands of hair obscured her vision slightly, and she swiped them away.

I really should’ve brought binoculars, she thought. Krista considered sprinting back to the beachhouse to get a pair, but she didn’t want to run the risk of missing the landing while looking for them. Adjacent to her was her younger brother, Harper Lenz, sitting down in a beach chair, nose deep in one of his airplane books. He had developed a strong interest in aviation since arriving in Merritt Island, Florida earlier that year, and was well on his way to read every book they had on the subject. Both of them stood at the end of the shuttle landing facility, facing to the northwest. Normally, her parents would’ve been there with them, but for whatever reason, they were feeling too under the weather to leave the house. 

 “I’m really sorry, I’m supposed to be there. I’ll make it up to Atlantis II somehow,” she had said to Harper. Their parents were always present for landings when it was possible. She had promised herself to not miss any, but unfortunately she was going to have to this time.

Krista placed her hand over her friend’s chest covered in blankets. “It’s okay, you don’t have to make up anything,” she responded. “Harper and I will watch for him, and we’ll tell you if anything’s wrong. I’m not gonna drag you outside when you’re feeling like this.”

“Thanks.” Her friend expressed her gratitude before Krista left for the runway.

Atlantis II was on its way back to Kennedy Space Center from deploying a fourth Tracking and Data Relay Satellite into geosynchronous orbit. The satellite was part of a network of platforms dedicated to supporting the shuttle program and other major scientific assets. It may not have been as exciting as deploying a deep space probe or recovering a satellite, but it was crucial in getting information from active missions to earth, which in turn, could lead to important scientific advancements. On top of the TDRS satellite, the mission had been extended by nine days for biomedical and scientific experimentation, much longer than Krista would've preferred. She always missed the others whenever they were in orbit, but shorter missions gave her less time to waste worrying about them. Krista had spent a good fraction of the last week talking to him over the radio in their room, which they had nicknamed The Northpointe Beachhouse Loop. 

The Northpointe Beachhouse Loop had been established in the early 60s as missions grew longer in duration, having been used by the Mercurys, Geminis, Apollos, and now the shuttles. Harper and his parents chatted to him along with her and by themselves, although she spent the most time on the frequency by far. Hearing his voice was significantly reassuring, but it could never be the same as physically seeing him. After a while, one of the crewmembers of STS - 136, Helios would get tired and want to be by himself for a moment, and Krista would reluctantly respect his wishes. 

It was a challenge managing her time off the radio. Whenever she wasn’t bonding with the other two, she found herself pacing aimlessly around the house or staring out the window longingly, which didn’t help anything. Eventually her mom would tell her to knock it off and do something productive. Even when Atlantis II signed off for the night, she lay awake for nearly two hours before falling asleep. Krista was tired of feeling this way. There was nothing wrong with being concerned for her family members, but this was borderline harmful. She wondered if these feelings would always be a part of her.

Her arms returned to their normal position resting on the sides of her body. She adjusted her footing on the grass.

“When's he getting back?” Harper asked.

“Shortly, Harpy.” his sister responded.

“You know when exactly?” her brother asked any further.

“I don't know for sure.” Krista did her best to answer. “Sometimes it’s sooner than scheduled, sometimes it isn't.” She turned her eyes back to the sky.

This was different from other flights, as the KSC was arranged as Atlantis II’ primary landing site. Rather than landing in a desert on the opposite side of the country, he’d be coming right back to their home in Cape Canaveral. She wouldn’t have to wait an extra week or more to wrap him in her arms. Some engineers had issues with this, saying that all flights should land at Edwards until a stronger landing gear tire had been made. Krista knew this firsthand, as the shuttle’s tires had been damaged when they landed in a crosswind on their most recent flight. While those criticisms were valid, and it was great to know there were those in the organization not afraid to speak up about problems, she was just glad to have the crew of STS - 136 home early.

Krista found the runway comforting. After braving the intense heat of reentry, there was nothing more hopeful than seeing the 15,000-foot long concrete carpet sprawled out in front of her. It meant you had made it home. It meant you were safe. She loved the euphoric feeling she had when the wheels to Atlantis II came to a stop and her family welcomed them home. She knew Helios felt the same way, even if he tried his best not to show it.

Krista had last heard from her brother over the radio a few minutes earlier before the reentry communications blackout, which prevented her from contacting him until he had completed his landing. Those few minutes felt a lot longer than they really were. All the thoughts circling in her head must’ve been speeding up her perception of time.

Did he make it through re-entry? She wondered. Krista knew how fragile their lives were. Every mission was a huge gamble. Even if the engineers raised concerns, there was no telling if the higher-ups would take it seriously or not. It angered her how even after Challenger’s death, NASA was noticeably slipping back into the complacency that had doomed her. Saying they’d learnt from their mistakes was nothing compared to actually showing it.

Is there any tile damage I don’t know about? Nah, that's silly, he would’ve told me. He’d never keep something like that from me.

She could feel her chest getting warmer as these negative thoughts clouded up her mind.

“Is he alright?” her little brother asked again, snapping her out of it for a moment.

“I told you, Harpy, I don’t know.” Krista responded, agitated. Harper flinched ever so subtly, and she immediately regretted taking that tone.

“S-sorry. I’m just anxious,” she clarified.

“I understand,” Harper responded before returning to his book.

Krista looked back to the skies, staying hopeful. The minutes continued ticking by, still with no sign of him. Why do I feel like this? You have nothing to worry about, he’s done this so many times before, she reassured herself. He’s going to be fine.

As if on cue, the fearful side of her responded; But what if he isn’t?

There was always a possibility. Always. As much as she hated to ponder it, it was still healthier than pretending it could never happen. Not that she could pretend. After STS-135, she knew now more than ever that wasn’t true. She remembered the feeling of powerlessness as Atlantis II put his damaged body at the mercy of the atmosphere. It was a miracle he landed at all that day. Her chest got warmer, her breathing picked up speed. She wanted so badly to know if he was okay. Something terrible could’ve happened to him, and she would never know until it was too late.

This could be it. I never got to say goodbye to him.

BOOM-BOOM.

A pair of sonic booms shattered the mid morning serenity. A tidal wave of relief crashed into her and swept all the doubt away from her core.

“Ah, there he is.” Krista announced excitedly. Atlantis II had made it through the atmosphere unscathed, and was gliding over the Florida panhandle. Her breathing returned to normal. Harper put down his book and walked up beside her. Krista put her left arm around his shoulder and gave him a smile. Her little brother glanced at her and smiled in return. Not long after, Atlantis II swung on the heading alignment cone and lined up with the runway for the final approach. A quick glimpse of the HDG radar on the front nose cam displayed the shuttle’s current elevation from the runway along with coordinate numbers rapidly sliding up or down depending on the shuttle’s aerial turns on its delta wings.

Doing good, doing good, Krista thought. The shuttle was on a glide slope of 20 degrees, much steeper than a commercial airliner. The shuttle’s nose began to lift upward with around 2,000 feet between him and the ground.

Almost there. Atlantis II’s landing gear neatly folded out and locked into place as he flared up for touchdown. Vortices streamed off his wingtips like synthesized ribbons.

30… 15… 10… Krista mimicked the altitude callouts a pilot would typically make. The main landing gear kissed the runway in a puff of smoke, followed by the nose gear after the airbrake on the dual fin rudders and the deployed parachute began to slow him down. Atlantis II bled off speed more and more until, at last, he rolled to a complete stop a handful of yards in front of Krista and Harper. She couldn’t wait another moment. She ran up to the spacecraft as Yureneva Brezenska, Skye Robinson, and Ryan Henderson were the first to exit the shuttle. They felt refreshed to be back on earth, smiling and laughing in joy. Helios emerged from the flight deck, a weary expression on his face, catching his breath. His blue flight suit looked a little raggedy, too. The silver haired blader hadn’t even looked up when Krista locked him in for a tight hug, pressing into his left shoulder.

“Yep, there it is.” Helios said, his mouth curving into a grin.

“Welcome home, buddy,” said Krista, more than relieved to hear his voice not through a radio for the first time in days. She released him after a second or two when she noticed Aleksei walking up in her peripheral vision.

“Welcome back.” Aleksei also said as he hugged Helios, although for briefer than Krista had. “Good to see you too, Harper.” 

They followed it up with a fist-bump.

Helios turned towards Yureneva and exclaimed in confusion “I thought you said you’d wait until the ground crew pulled up.”

Brezenska naughtily crossed her arms.

“Come on, I could never promise that,” she responded with a cheeky look on her face and her head tilted. Helios snickered. He was just as glad to see Krista as she was to see him. In spite of everything he had to endure, it was always worth it to see her smile again. He slung his arm around her as the reunited friends walked home, with Harper alongside them.

“Wanna look at this with me?” Harper spoke up as he displayed his book to the silver haired blader.

“Sure,” Helios responded. He gave a low yawn before facing Krista. “I’m, uh, just gonna need a little rest,”

“Now that, I can honor.” Krista beamed in joy as she leaned into her brother, safe and sound. A gentle breeze blew over the Floridian panorama, concluding the mission of STS - 136.

---

“So you were there to see me after all.” Helios remarked in realization, completely unaware of her the first time. Krista nodded reluctantly and lightly blushed, sensing a Sunfoot connection between the two of them. 

A new beginning to their relationship.

---

Helios took liberty to introduce Krista to Kennedy Space Center. Though she has toured the visitor complex with her parents and her younger brother, Harper, at a young age, she suddenly forgot the tender moments of meeting Helios face to face during the crew’s arrival back to earth. There was a gap between her memories, an amnesiac puzzle hole to her brain. Deep down, she remembered Helios from STS - 136 yet as she grew up with her parents and her younger brother, her sight of the crew and her family vanished before her eyes. Her parents were mysteriously abducted by an undefinable group. Her brother followed the same trace. Feeling closer to Helios, she fulfilled her wish lightly, vowing mentally to stay close to him until she could find her family again.

The red Toyota Solara halted in front of the employee booth, Helios presented his NASA ID. The guard granted him access, wishing him a nice day. They drove through strips of grey roads, a blanket of green emerald grass and clear blue water ways running through the massive Floridian landscapes. It was like a carbon copy of the Everglades with a cluster of space buildings and hangars occupying the perimeters.

Parking at the visitor complex (Helios was lucky enough not to pay $10 since he is an employee), they both faced the Visitor Complex gate. Tour buses rumbled through the pick up areas. Right on instinct, Helios grasped Krista’s shoulders before she could send herself through a terrible collision. 

“Thanks. Being out into a crowded place is not to my liking.” she whispered in gratitude, closing her eyes in comfort.

“You don’t see me saving a young and innocent girl from danger everyday.” Helios winked while they walked past the ticket gate. (Once again, he was lucky to be an employee. $70 would have eaten his wallet already). “Besides, I know my way around the Visitor Complex. It’s been years since I assume you visited Kennedy Space Center.”

Krista nodded in agreement, resting her head against Helios’ lithe shoulder. The Sol Blaze blader noted of his relationship with her starting to develop. They walked past an American Flagpole that centered the ticket area, accompanied by their next monument: A studious water fountain, jets of clear blue water streaming across the granite basin. 

Their first attraction on the list was Astronaut Encounter. It was an opportunity for visitors to talk to famed astronauts that visited space and how their enthralled experience affected their aerospace careers. Helios was no stranger to this. He and the STS 136 crew were sometimes called in to stay and meet visitors of all ages. They shook hands and even had a 4 star cuisine with them. Helios remembered that day when he demonstrated a shuttle launch using a toy replica of Atlantis II. He unfortunately (and idiotically) landed the shuttle into his own food, causing the little girl to hysterically cry over her ruined moment with her toy. Her mother rated Helios a 2 star experience, vowing to never return again.

“So, you had a bad experience with kids?” Krista timidly asked, proceeding to shake hands with another female astronaut. Helios rubbed the back of his neck and blushed nervously, trying his best not to reveal his embarrassing reminder to the other staff members. 

“Let’s call it an accident in outer spaghetti space.” 

That caused Krista to laugh. Helios felt warm hearted after her first laugh. It was great to see her smile again after her caged emotions: sorrow, envy, and isolation. 

“Oh, I think I remember the rocket garden! Let’s go there!” Krista pointed towards a cluster of Apollo, Gemini, and Mercury rockets dotted around a sandstone concrete plaza. Unfortunately, the largest colossal rocket, Saturn V, had its own hangar.

“Last attraction for today. Just wait until Movie night, you’ll love it.” Helios chuckled as they both walked towards the rockets suspended with wires to the ground. The silver haired blader observed Krista hop from rocket to rocket, begging Helios to snap a picture. As soon as he pulled out his phone, Helios accidentally collided elbow to hip with another elderly woman nearby. 

In her 60’s, her long grey hair framed her wrinkly face, brown beady eyes judged every move. She wore a disapproving frown. To theme in with space, she wore a light blue tye dye shirt that had the faded NASA meatball logo in the center. This woman looked like she could snap Helios apart at any second.

“Watch it, klutz. Take your girlfriend somewhere else. I’m trying to watch the rockets lift off.” the woman sneered, hawking an eye on the couple as if they were to be kicked out of the park.

“They don’t…. take off. Are you aware they are held by metallic wires from toppling over frail people like you?” Helios awkwardly but helpfully countered, trying to demeanor as kindly as possible. 

The woman showed no mercy and continued to ignore Helios as if he came from another planet. This time Krista spoke up, “Um, there are hundreds of people that visit the complex every now and then. You can’t kick us out just for invading your privacy.”

“So? It’s not my problem that you didn’t purchase any tickets.” The woman’s wolf-like tone sent Krista backing away a step. She disliked conflicts the same way it served her a reminder to the Sunfoot soldiers in the past.             

“Let me deal with this.” Helios stepped forward and presented her with his NASA ID. “Official NASA employee here. Astronaut of STS - 136 and Mission Control Director, Helios Ryuzaki. There’s nowhere written across Park Guidelines that employees escorting visitors are forced to pay for a ticket upon entry.”

“What are you? The police or park security? Where does it say that? I wanna know.” The woman roughly gawked as she sternly gazed at Helios, placing a (threatening) hand to her chin.

“What’s your name, maam? Just curious.” Helios asked, furrowing a silver brow. 

The woman scoffed as if she got offended, “You wanna know my name? It’s get the f**k outta here.” 

“That’s deep.” Krista whispered cautiously. 

Helios sighed and called park security, “Helios here. I need security by the Rocket Garden pronto. An elderly karen falsely accused us of invading her privacy and she claims that I and another guest didn’t purchase any tickets.”

On it. A female voice crackled on the other end of the line. In a span of less than a minute, two male guards escorted the woman out, banning her next visit to KSC.

“You’re a hero, Helios. Just how did you pull that off so easily?” Krista’s eyes sparkled in delight. A warm glow resonated in his heart. 

“That’s the perk of being an employee for NASA. Kick the annoying karens out that wreck havoc across personal space.” Helios checked the time on his phone. It was 9:50 PM. Visitor complex was open until 10. The silver haired blader took his schedule lightly and headed back to the parking lot. 

“You make me feel very warm, Helios.” Krista once again rested her head against Helios’ shoulder. The two of them walked back to the car, feeling overwhelmed at what just happened.

"I’m glad to hear that.” 

---

It was an uneventful 22 minute drive from KSC to his townhouse.

A few drops of rain pelted the windshield as Helios wordlessly cruised down Sailfish Avenue, parking the Solara neatly on his driveway. The rain started to increase, surging like a roaring current. With a spare orange Sunflower print umbrella in hand, he quickly ran inside with Krista, sheltering her protectively from the crying clouds. 

Helios tossed the wet umbrella on the futon as he began to walk up the eclipse grey carpeted stairs to his room. Krista timidly followed him like a curious mouse. Once on the small landing, she found three doors: two for the bedrooms, one for a bathroom, and the other was a spacious closet. 

“Stay downstairs. I’m going for a quick shower.” Helios entered his room and began to pick out his fresh pair of clothes. Krista nodded, still feeling intrigued to watch Helios like a curious cat. She eagerly watched him pick an average selection: An Atlantis II crew graphic shirt, Illenium printed grey joggers, grey socks, dark blue underwear, and a light orange beach towel. “Be right back.”

The bathroom door shut as the tap clicked on and the sound of water rushed from the shower spout. Krista spotted the rest of Helios’ original attire, the day he worked for the Sunfoot soldiers and hunted down Gingka and his Pegasus. His signature red bandanna that he always kept snugged around his neck was now neatly folded on his studious dresser. His olive green tank top and brown jacket were on hangars in his closet, including his pearl white pants with a red chain dangling from the side pockets. His ring buckled brown boots were set on top of the shoe box, an array of Sun wax containers avalanched across the closet floor. 

Krista decided to sit down on his eclipse grey bed, nudging her arm into an Illenium phoenix pillow. She opened a drawer to his dresser. An anodized red 3 Segment Launcher Grip sat inside, waiting for it to be picked up by Lenz. Curiously, she gripped the black Beylauncher’s / string launcher’s handle and extended the string, the prongs rotating slowly. Occupying the Beypoint card slot was an orange card that had the motif of Sol Blaze on it. 

Blinking in awe, she picked up Sol Blaze and speculated at the sun god beyblade. It was legendary yet breathtakingly terrifying. Like a flaming Divine Dragon roaring in fury. Gold, Red, and Orange. 

The shower spout clicked shut. Krista’s heart leaped twice as her startled eyes fixed on the opening bathroom door. Helios walked in, toweling his hair dry while wearing a silky yukata. It was velvet red with the Brand of the Solar Star (Sol Blaze’s sun emblem) lining the sleeves and back. The Solar Prominence designs trailed the lower section of his robe while an orange silk ribbon laced around his waist. 

“Go ahead. I’m not mad at you for appreciating the sun god.” Helios' sharp but friendly comment warmed Krista’s mental mistake. 

“Sorry. I was quite curious about it.” Lenz apologized and returned the beyblade back to its drawer. Helios wrapped his arms around her small chest and faced her with a glowing smile.

“C’mon, bring Sol Blaze with you.” he whispered sensually. Krista blinked in anticipation, a blender of internal emotions churning within her. 

---

The microwave beeped as Helios grabbed the bowl of popcorn and 2 bottles of Landshark beer in hand. Krista eagerly watched the silver haired Sol Blaze blader set down the popcorn and beer for movie night. Flashing through the Samsung flat screen TV was the first movie, Gravity, starring Sandra Bullock. 

After a catastrophic collision in the asteroid orbit path with the space shuttle Explorer, Lenz hugged her knees in anticipation, her eyes widening at the sight of a lonely female astronaut drifting through space. She was eventually helped by another fellow astronaut, using his jet pack to thrust across space while Sandra trailed behind him with a cream colored safety tether, safely secured to her waist. After losing her crewmate, Sandra was latched onto the ISS for dear life, scrambling into the Soyuz escape pod. She navigated her way to Tiangong, the chinese space station that orbited earth, she proceeded to successfully do the tri module separation, an array of debris from the erupted Tiangong sent her shattering past Earth’s atmosphere, successfully kissing the surface of the ocean and the rigid soil of an undisclosed island.

Krista imagined how it was like if Helios was in that scenario, the rest of STS 136 scattered across space. Using his survival and tactical thinking to drift through space alone without his crewmates in sight.

The silver haired blader sipped on his beer, his crystal blue eyes sharply focused on the screen. 

The second movie, I.S.S, was frankly worse in Krista’s opinion. During an unintentional and terrifying war between the Americans and the Russians on Earth, the crew aboard the International Space Station resolve to find peace with each other in space. Their peace soon takes a dark turn as each crewmate attempts to murder each other, devising an array of gruesome plans and distractions to lure each other into a killing spree. 

Helios imagined how it would be if he and the rest of STS 136 along with Lovushka turned against each other. Yureneva protectively shielding both Skye and Ryan while Nowaguma wrestles her through the narrow corridors. Lera drilling through Skye with an automated screwdriver. Aleksei controls the ISS’ Canadarm, swatting another US payload technician spinning away from the Truss 5 segment. An attempt to finish off Ryan was soon halted as Aleksei drifted lifelessly through the corridors, stabbed with a custom hunting dagger by a breathless Helios.

Briefly shuddering at the wicked thought, he and Krista rested heads on shoulders for a minute or two. Contemplating through the starless space. Krista hummed lightly in comfort as if she was vividly dreaming about their relationship.

The movie ended as the credits rolled on screen. Helios leaned forward and grabbed the remote, shutting the TV off. 

It turns out that in space, they can hear you scream. Helios chuckled lightly at the movie’s tagline. A stellar ensemble that raised his excitement and leveled his brevity and wit. A spark of teamwork and love converted to depravity and raging chaos. 

With Krista lightly asleep, Helios exasperated a light sigh through his nose. His phone buzzed across the table, alerting him with a text message from Skye Robinson.

 

SKYE ROBINSON

11:29 PM

“Made it in town! Rochester, Minnesota is looking great! Lots of stuff to do! Here’s a selfie on Lakeridge Drive! Kayden loves his rocket toppers. Thanks Helios for hosting your party! Glad to have been invited!”

 

Followed by another buzz was an image of Skye and her family standing in front of a olive green vinyl paneled two story house in a peaceful neighborhood frolicked with bright green lawns and crystal concrete driveways. 

Helios smiled and typed out his reply:

 

HELIOS RYUZAKI

11:30 PM

“Glad to hear that you made it safe, Skye. Yureneva would sure be jealous of your out of state vacation. Just watched two space movies with Krista. She voted Gravity over ISS, seeing that she wasn’t a fan of crewmates killing each other abroad the enormous space lab. Haha. Speaking of a vacation in space -”

 

RYAN HENDERSON (BOARD GEEK NERD)

11:31 PM

“Hola my Earth friends! I’m right now at the US Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama! Geez, I’m getting a kick out of the Multi Axis trainer and gaping in awe at the Apollo 11 VR! Don’t tell Lera that it's better than ESSA and JAXA’s* training centers in Moscow! *wink*”

*Pronounced JACK-SA. Get it right, you goofs.

 

SKYE ROBINSON

11:31 PM

“Hold up, you’re in Alabama? Lucky! Now I’m jealous!”

 

YURENEVA BREZENSKA

11:32 PM

“Double lucky! *Whining emoji* I’m stuck here with Lovushka back in Moscow. Nowaguma is such a lousy prick. He refuses to let me ride the multi axis trainer. Aleksei and Lera are doing fine as well. They recently sent out emergency patch tiles made out of Tegris for the SETH module to KSC. Hoping NASA is satisfied with our unique and technical builds for their missions.”

 

HELIOS RYUZAKI

11:33 PM

“Let Aleksei know to keep me updated with SETH. I’m intrigued to see Crew Dragon launch with Lovushka’s new module. Good luck with your out of state vacations, Ryan and Skye. As for you Yureneva, keep doing what you do for both 136 and Lovushka. I have a certain someone to take care of.”

 

That caught their attention. Helios braced himself for the exploding replies that instantly swept the chat like intrigued mice.

 

RYAN HENDERSON

11:40 PM

“Don’t tell me, dude. You have a girlfriend.”

 

SKYE ROBINSON

11:40 PM

“Wait, since when did this happen?”

 

YURENEVA BREZENSKA

11:41 PM

“Now I’m so jealous, Helios. Rip that big fat paycheck from the sun. Did you find her on Triton?”

 

Helios eagerly glanced at the girl, fast asleep. Her blonde locks intertwined past her shoulders. Blinking in thought, he carefully exasperated a sigh, his fingers slowly typing across the screen.

 

HELIOS RYUZAKI

11:42 PM

“I never knew that she had a derelict past just like mine. I guess we both share some sort of identical past.”

 

A heavy pause spanned across the chat. Helios gave in and finished his reply.

 

“Her name is Krista Lenz and she’s fleeing from the Sunfoot cult.”

---

Ooh, cliffhanger again! 

I agree with Krista. Gravity is better than ISS and I have watched both of those movies!

Plus, I finally found Helios' theme song! (Sound Garden - Black Hole Sun). Thanks to Erin1234 MFB on Youtube, you can watch Helios' AMV here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VR6nHG5JYrM

Falco276 out! :)

4: Blue Wave

It's been so many weeks since I got this chapter posted! Work, family, and other things have been holding up my time from writing this story. You don't wanna know how I did it, but it's finally here. 

Enjoy!

---

Krista shifted around the grey futon, waking up from her nap.

It was 10:00 AM on the red clock above the living room wall. The faint hum of the AC blew through, lightly pricking at her blonde hair. Inhaling through her nose with a long and comfortable stretch, Krista lightly yawned and adjusted her vision at the scene before her.

“You’re awake.” Helios sat crosslegged on the floor, carefully waxing his Channel Islands Pro surfboard. In his hands were a pair of new FCS Fusion II fins, marine blue with eclipse grey rubber slot grips. A pattern of white hexagons were printed behind the logo on the fins, establishing a futuristic theme. “Today we're gonna go surfing.”

Despite the sun blader’s love for surfing, Krista wondered how in the world he’ll be able to help her conceal her secret away from the Sunfoot cult. Knowing that he too used to meddle with the cult themselves, perhaps it was a crucial mistake to seek refuge in her enemy’s townhouse. Who knows? He would call up his buddies and together they’d abduct her swiftly back to Bakim’s Space Ark again. Then they’d make her do crucial chores such as cleaning the animal stalls (ew) and keeping expensive art in check. (Yes, the David statue is still nude. What a world record!)

Lenz shuddered in fear at the mental thought swimming around her mind. Her gaze fell upon Helios. The Sol Blaze blader tilted his head in confusion.

“What’s wrong? Do you possibly have aquaphobia?” Helios leaned forward and waved a hand in front of her face. Maintaining her composure, Krista swallowed and shook her head excusably.

“I’m fine. Just thinking, that’s all.” 

Helios, conscious of her family, crawls forward with a timid stare. He finally sighed, smiling warmly at the end. “You know. It’s hard to think about the past. Which is why I try my best to avoid conflicts rather than spread it across the world.”

He lightly nudged her, attempting to cheer her up. Krista unveiled her fake smile, trying to topple over her negative emotions. “C’mon, we have several waves to catch.”

---

Cocoa Beach was sprawling with a crowd.

Krista didn’t know where to start. 

Gripping her surfboard, she glanced at Helios who seemed confident about his surfing skills. Everyday, he would always visit Cocoa Beach, inhaling the sounds and sights before him.

The sun's ray struck across the calm lakes and lagoons of the beach, glistening with a sparkling effect. Herons and Egrets called from a distance. Raccoons wandered in the deep sloped forests, nestling inside the trees beside the waters. Seagulls flew over empty parking lots, screeching across the sky. People found it a very good day to fish at the wooden piers, their backs turned towards the roads as they waited for fish to struggle across the water. Their pick-up trucks were piled up with a large kayak, and other outdoor equipment. Some local families took their children on a Sand dollar and shell hunt, walking on the crystal sands, smiling and laughing with joy. Other people decided to take their pets to the dog park and rent out camping tents to stay overnight, having evening BBQs or watch the dolphins swim around sunset.

The Sol Blaze surfer was already dressed ready in his OceanTec wetsuit, squinting at the waves to measure their depth and trough from a distance. Gripping his Channel Islands Pro board, Helios smiled in satisfaction, “Ready? I’ll show you a few practice sessions on the board before we shred the waves.” 

Lenz inwardly sighed as she shifted around with her (heavy) StormBlade SSR board. “Ok, I’m ready.”

“Just like I showed Yureneva.” 

They found a spacious spot in the sand, away from local beachgoers. Helios demonstrated the basic positions during paddling. Krista struggled to get her balance. The Blader of the Sun (his nickname given by Bakim) carefully held the female standing across the board. “There. There. You don’t want to lose your balance while your board bops across the waves. The force of the water pushes you and your board forward. The trick is to never lean forwards or backwards unless you want a horrible wipeout.”

Krista gulped at the thought of a salty surging wave barreling across her. 

“Use your arms and legs to prop yourself up the board, positioned diagonally while facing forward. Like this.” Helios demonstrated switching positions from paddle to stand in a matter of seconds. Folding up her nervous feelings, Krista wrangled her unbalanced confidence and tried again. 

“Doing good.” Helios analyzed her performance on the board, the sand wedging under Lenz’s weight. He picked up his StormBlade SSR and gave it to her. “Now we ride the waves.”

Krista gulped as if she was hit by a rock to the head. Uneasily toeing on the lapping shore, she gazed across the ocean activity. A cluster of surfers, people paddling on SUP (Stand up paddle) boards and small kids on inflatable tubes bopped across the small jolting waves. Helios chuckled at the thought of Brad Jacobson introducing his viewers about the world’s very first Tesla Cybertruck surfboard. 

A board that could skate and surf while in the shape of a Cybertruck. An idea that could possibly attract Elon Musk in concern with marketing the futuristic metal trucks to the world. Now available on water as well. 

Helios wished he did the same with his Sol Blaze. Surfing on the Sun God Beyblade would visually be hysterical to the public eye. Kids would crowd around him, praising for his colorful efforts. NASA would give him a timely engineering award. His crewmates would glamorize in awe at how talented he was at creating bizarre surfboards.

“Doing good, Krista. Just imagine yourself as a Libra scale, balancing yourself across the surface.” Helios carefully watched her catch a small wave rolling across the water. The silver haired surfer helpfully swayed his board left and right, allowing Krista to accelerate smoothly through the mini pipeline. 

“Whoa.” She breathed through her mental awe, feeling the ocean breeze flow through her like a bluebell flower swaying to the wind. She closed her eyes to atone with the moment. Helios bit his lip in distress. It was too late to warn her. Failing to grab her waist, Helios bit back in regret. 

Krista yelped as she accidentally collided against another surfer paddling his way up to the zone. Her mind barreled over like the wave that plowed through her like avalanching snow. Her StormBlade SSR flipped over the sea spray, fading into the wash. 

“Krista!” Helios dismounted his board and immediately swam to her. The girl furiously spat out salt water that stung her taste buds. She could barely open her eyes. Salt really does sting to the core. “Hey, it’s ok. I’ve got you.”

“Dude, I’m so sorry. Is she ok?” a young local the same age as Helios waded across to them. Long blonde hair, tied in a ponytail, was wet to the fringe, the tip trickling the back of his neck. He was semi built, like a gym attendant. Stark blue eyes, slightly pointed nose, and a soft warm smile was all that Krista could see so far through her slit eyelids. His soft Danish accent soothed Helios’ ears as both men helpfully guided the girl to the sandy shore. 

“I’m fine.” Krista rasped in a coughing fit. 

“Saltwater is surely a surfer’s nightmare.” Helios chuckled as he checked her vitals. Her heart was beating normally. Check.

The local blew a sigh of relief, “I’m glad she’s ok. For a second, I thought she passed out from that tiny wave. First time surfing?”

Helios nodded, “Yep, I was teaching her the basics. As for me, I’m an experienced surfer. Still trying to learn the 360 and the hang 10s.”

“Name’s Yuval Skaendera.” he extended out his hand. 

The Sol Blaze surfer shook it in return. “Helios Ryuzaki.”

Krista slowly stood up, snapping to her senses.

“Welcome to Cocoa Beach.” Skandera smiled with his hands on his hips.

Lenz deadpanned towards Yuval as if he originated from another planet. 

“Krista, this is Yuval Skandera. The guy who accidentally collided with you on the killer waves.” Helios’ silver eyebrows crested playfully. The way he emphasized ‘killer waves’ made it sound like Lenz was violently mauled from the ocean. Trapped within a cage underwater, a cluster of great white sharks circling predatorily around her. 

“Nice to meet you.” The flustered and nervous smile.

“She’s one brave surfer. Most people would chicken out.” Yuval chuckled with a soft laugh.

Krista’s cheeks blushed slightly red. She held Helios’ hand as if they were in a relationship. Ryuzaki noticed that she was finally blossoming up to their intimacy. “Thanks.”

“Say, Helios. I know a good place not far off where we could eat out and talk.” Yuval checked his Pebble Smart watch. 5:30 PM. 

That hooked Helios on edge since his crewmates were on out-of -state vacations. Yureneva spent time with her family, celebrating a Russian holiday (How ironic. It’s actually called Russia Day) that sure brought smiles. Ryan came back from Alabama with lots of gift shop goodies. Skye and her family were splashing out at a waterpark in Rochester, Minnesota. 

Despite his hardship with Krista in regards to their derelict past, the two of them vowed to build their relationship from point A all the way to point B: a successful resolution. That could mean the disbanded Sunfoot cult and Bakim once again behind bars for his unmonitored crimes. 

The group drove to Tiki’s Bar and Grill, located near North Atlantic Avenue. It was a Polynesian themed restaurant so the group found an array of items that toned in with the little bar: large chunks of palm wood shaped into a Tiki hut, strands of light yellow straw framed the roof of the building, a string of LED lights dangling over the outdoor seating area. A Tiki statue stood by the entrance. Krista gulped at its ferocious expression: the slit intimidated eyes while garnishing a wide pacifier shaped mouth with gritted teeth. It held up a black chalkboard framed in warm amber lights, Happy Hour written in white. 

The studious waiter wearing a black apron approached them and kindly directed them to their table. He whisked away for their orders as soon as the group took a seat and requested their beverages.

“As you were saying Helios. You’re an experienced surfer. Since when did you start surfing?” Yuval’s blonde eyebrows raised in amusement. 

The silver haired blader / surfer coughed lightly before gazing at Yuval, “I started taking interest in surfing when I watched some random people shredding across the waves during Dawn Patrol. That’s when I vowed to learn all of the fundamentals and tricks in surfing for fun. I bought my first board - a Channel Islands Dumpster Diver - and started to shred across the waves. Honestly, it's something I’d rather do if I were not in the ISS now.”

“Wait did you say ISS? Like the International Space Station?” Yuval’s mouth gaped as soon he saw Helios held up his NASA ID card. “You work for NASA?”

“Mission Control Director for now at the Kennedy Space Center. I was an astronaut for mission STS - 136.”

Yuval inhaled shock and awe while pointing a finger at Helios, “Oh! Yes, dude. I saw Atlantis II launch through the news! And you were part of that special team?”

Helios nodded with a small smile. That caused Krista to giggle lightly. Yuval was still taken away as if he was windswept by a tornado.

“You’re phenomenal. A Space freak with the heart of surfing?” Skandera shook his head in disbelief. “That’s wild.”

“Here are your drinks.” The waiter came in with a platter of 3 cups of coke and water. A separate can of Celsius was handed to Helios. He muttered a thanks and popped the can open with one finger. 

“I’m just gonna go to the loo.” Krista blushed as she excused herself for the nearby bathroom. 

“Who’s the 3rd one for?” Helios noticed an unattended cup of acai flavored sparkling water on the table. 

“My girlfriend, Heather. She’s a real beauty. Takes me out on the best locations around town. The Tiki Bar and Grill was actually her recommendation.” Yuval topped a slice of lemon on the rim of the cup. “So you said that you were half greek? How’s it like living in Greece?”

Helios blinked, mentally rearranging his words like a puzzle. He did not want to tell a lot of people that he was part of some sort of fanatical cult that worshiped the Sun God and God of the Sea while resurrecting Atlantis. Or Bakim’s silly plan to wipe out earth with an enormous asteroid while escaping on Atlantis II. But since he earned Yuval’s trust based on his friendly personality, Helios gave out a deflated sigh.

“That was years ago during my childhood. My parents are a mystery, and I was raised by my grandfather. Long story short, I used to be part of an occultic group with my grandfather. He was pretty villainous, as he attempted to wipe out earth with an asteroid while escaping on Atlantis II.”

“The shuttle wasn’t made by NASA at all?” Yuval widened his eyes in confusion. 

“NASA acquired the shuttle as their property after retiring the original Atlantis. It was actually first made and constructed by the group I was in, the Sunfoot cult. My grandfather’s foolproof plan failed thanks to me and another hero and friend of mine launched into space to destroy Adonis. All of the raging weather disasters used to be caused by an ancient beyblade relic that we mined from the lost city of Atlantis years ago. I still have it to this day.”

Helios reached into his pocket and pulled out Sol Blaze V145 AS on the table. He set it on the table, the red anodized Sol wheel glistening against the tiki torch’s flames. 

“Dude, you still have this earth shattering thing?” Yuval held his breath in awe as he cradled the beyblade like a prism cube. 

“Sol Blaze Variable 145 Around Sharp. An ultimate balance type beyblade that unleashes raging flames upon my command.” There was a glint in Helios’ crystal blue eyes. Yuval exhaled, physically moved by the appearance of its special move, Blaze Execution.

“That’s so wild. Just by imagining how many forest fires you could start with that thing in your hand.” Yuval chuckled jokingly as he handed the red and orange beyblade back to Helios.

The silver haired followed after with a small chuckle. “I’m lucky to have a piece of Atlantis with me. After the asteroid fiasco, the Sunfoot group was arrested by the WBBA and the local police for their crimes.” 

“Hi, did I miss anything?” Krista arrived back with a smile.

“You just missed Sol Blaze.” Yuval smoothly sipped his coke. 

“Helios told me about his beyblade. I have a beyblade as well. I don’t know if it's popular like Blaze. It’s Vesper Luna.” Krista set her personal bey on the table. It was designed to look like a rabbit. Its facebolt sported a fierce armored rabbit with whiskers. Its clear wheel was dark brown / grey with purple highlights. The Fusion Wheel, Vesper was a hybrid of Sol with serrated edges. Bizarrely, it was equipped with an identical track and tip just like Sol Blaze. Helios took that in account. What a shocking coincidence. 

“You’re a blader just like him?” Yuval questioned in quick awe.

“We vowed to have a few practice rounds.” Krista suppressed a smile before averting her attention on Helios.

The silver haired blader cleared his throat. “We did say that right before we came to the beach, surfing. What I wanted to say was, after lunch I’m driving an hour to SeaWorld for a bit of coaster fun with Krista, then I’m headed to the Orange County convention center for an Illenium concert. Tickets are already sold out so 120 dollars for the both of us was worth my time.”

Helios secured his printed ticket in his crossbody bag. That caused Yuval to agape even more. 

“No way! That’s where I’m headed too!” he enthusiastically held up his e ticket from his phone, a bold barcode sprawled across the screen.

“Just what I needed.” Helios sipped on his Celsius can, feeling entirely relieved at extra company. He expelled a small fisted belch before continuing. “Fun fact: last year I went to the 2022 Djakarta Warehouse Pro event in Jakarta, Indonesia with another friend of mine. It was phenomenal.”

“Hold my coke, dude. What was it like? 

The waiter handed them their lunches: Kahuna burgers, glazed chicken wings, Hamachi sushi rolls, Kohna Poke bowls, and Molten Chocolate Cake for dessert. Helios mentally chuckled at the thought of his only fat crewmember on board. Yureneva Brezenska would faint in awe at the sight of all of this mouthwatering food.

Helios wistfully smiled, remembering the key moments: the large aztec style phoenix statue pulsing out Illenium’s logo in a checkerboard pattern, light orange fog waving through the bopping crowd, white sparks streaming in between the only DJ himself, Nicholas Daniel Miller. “It was breathtaking. A heavenly blend of trance, psytrance, electro house, and hardstyle all in one. 2 hours of pure EDM blazing across the crowd like wildfire. Lights and lasers piercing through the air, burning the shadows. Fog rolling across the stage, uplifting hearts from around the world.”

“That’s exactly why I want to go. Bring Krista along.” Yuval winked, tapping her hand. Lenz snapped to attention with a timid ‘hm?’.

“You seem to space out a lot. No pun intended.” Yuval chuckled in joy, chucking a balled up napkin into his empty plate. He signaled by standing up rather fast. “Hey, I’ll see you at SeaWorld. Gotta pick up Heather on the way. Good luck on your drive to Orlando.” 

“You too.” Helios watched as Yuval waved in farewell while spotting him a 20 for the bill. The silver haired blader kindly paid the waiter for the lunch and hoisted his crossbody bag on his shoulder. He extended his hand out in front of Krista. “Coming along?”

“Sure.” Krista blushed as she stood up and together with her boyfriend, the both of them walked over to the Solara. Lenz watched as Helios rearranged his surfboards horizontally to provide more room for extra storage in the footwell.

He paused, staring at her from across the car. 

“You don’t have a fear of heights, do you?”

---

Krista wondered what Helios meant about ‘fear of heights’ 

She had been to a plethora of theme parks that strictly excluded roller coasters. Kid friendly parks that involved family oriented activities such as berry picking, nature explorations, and arts and crafts. The kind that made her little brother, Harper exclaim in joy. 

This was her first time on a roller coaster, visually imagining the feeling of rising on a steep incline then in a heartbeat dropping down in rapid speeds. Just like surfing but 100 times crazier.

And today she was going to experience the combination of both surfing and ‘coasteering’.  

Walking across the sun lit parking lot, both Helios and Krista approach the ticket booth. The kind lady dressed in a blue polo and a black bandanna from waist high greeted them with a kind smile, handing them sea blue tickets for 1 day admission that cost 30 dollars. 

The park was packed with people, sea animals in their respective exhibits, small coastal themed cafes, and kids’ obstacle courses (fun for adults too!). 

From a distance, Helios spotted out a Galaxy grey mica 2007 Mazda 3 sedan. To his surprise, Yuval gripped his promise and appeared in SeaWorld just in time with his girlfriend, Heather. She looked about the same age as Krista, decked out with the latest street attire: a cute snapback hat with kitty ears, an elongated blonde ponytail, sea blue eyes, a sparkling white smile, a Denver Broncos football jersey, the shortest jeans with rhinestone buckles, and black converse shoes with neon sea blue waves patterning the sides and heels. 

“Hi Yuval and friends! I’m Heather Skandera, Yuval’s girlfriend.” They exchanged handshakes. She then goggled an inquisitive eye at Krista. “I assume she’s your girlfriend?”

“Kinda. It’s a long story.” Helios exhaled with a blush. He wrapped his arms around Krista, making her feel playfully uneasy. She flustered out a smile. “We met a few days ago at my townhouse on Sailfish Avenue.”

“And I met him surfing at Cocoa beach. Saved her life. Fun fact: This guy right here works for NASA and is a die hard Illenium fan. He even has tickets for the Rise Above event starting in an hour.” Yuval grinned ear to ear like a goofy idiot. Helios rolled his eyes in light annoyance.

“Wait, it doesn’t end there. He has a cuckoo grandfather that almost blew up the world with an asteroid. Thankfully, Helios and another friend of his managed to destroy the space rock with their beyblades.” Yuval enthusiastically reached into Helios’ pocket and pulled out Sol Blaze. “This red and orange beyblade has the power of the Sun. It can summon up some nasty blazing flames you can imagine!” 

Heather laughed in delight, “That’s a lot to see. What’s our first attraction?”

---

Krista gulped. All 4 of them were locked on a roller coaster car shaped into an orange and yellow surfboard painted with slick Hawaiian sharks, flowers, and tribal waves. She had heard of plenty daredevil coasters gossiped around her friends, a list of ‘keep your head high until it chops off by the wind’ coasters. The Oblivion in Alton Towers, Space Mountain in Euro Disney, the Knightmare in Camelot, Thunder Dolphin, and Air Drift were the ones that she vowed to never see or be on.

“Hey, it’s ok. Hold my hand.” Helios gripped Krista’s hand to drown away her fears. Lenz blushed in gratitude, thanking her boyfriend. 

“I've been waiting for this my whole life.” Yuval exhaled, gripping the shoulder bars that secured the top half of his body. 

“Silly goose. I knew you’d say that.” Heather winked, unleashing a teasing smile. The silver gates opened and the coaster began to lurch forward across the turquoise steel rail at 15 mph. After crossing the brake fin: slow moving horizontal wheels in the coaster’s shaft tracks, everyone began to chorus a murmur of confusion. 

“This is gonna be worse than Kraken.” Yuval chuckled under his breath. The group braced themselves for their sudden launch.

60 mph. 

Krista screamed in delight and fear. 

Expecting a slow climb over a steep incline, this coaster was wayyy different enough to blow her socks off. Wind madly whipped her blonde hair around as the coaster began with a horizontal spiraling loop. The sky slowly barrelled around like a camera free falling from an accidental skydive. Helios and Yuval felt their feet bop in sync to the coaster’s insane speed, mimicking the typical vertical surfing action. 

The coaster plunged beside the glittering lake framed with splash rocks. A cluster of herons flew near the tracks (and very narrowly avoided Helios’ platinum spiky hair). It glided across a makeshift pond with sea blue water and pillars of decorative stones. Another loop sent Krista leaking in tears. She wasn’t sure whether she should have gotten on this ride. Despite her ultimate fears of heights, she broke her barrier. Wrangling her bravery, she confidently opened her eyes. 

Another small upward incline sent the coaster curving diagonally right, then to the left. 

“For Sol Blaze!” Yuval exasperated in excitement. His shrill yell of joy caught the attention of a group of park visitors below. “And for Illenium!”

One of them waved in return, holding up the Shaka hand gesture.

Helios chuckled in agreement to his friend’s random outbursts. Expelling a random string of words really helps the rider calm down against the ferocious wind. It was as if Yuval was comically dueling against an invisible force. 

After two more smooth diagonal curves, the coaster slowed to a halt beside the waiting line. 

“That was Akaw! Akaw! The crazy loops and glittering panoramic views of the park. How’d you feel, Helios?” Yuval gawked in playful concern. 

“Better than a wipeout. This is going to be my surf therapy if I get diagnosed with Surfer’s Knots. Stepping on painful bumps across your feet is not worth it.” Helios beamed in reply. Though he admitted to his crewmates (mostly to Ryan) that he was close to getting a Surfer’s Knot. The moment? A heart beating slip, falling forward on his board, close to scraping and gashing his forehead by an unsuspected rock on the shallow sea floor. More like a Surfer’s Concussion for sure.

The group headed for a small snack and beverage break. Heather voluntarily bought Mrs. Fields cookies and spring water for the whole group. 

“Journey to Atlantis?” Yuval grinned, pointing to the full color map of the park. 

“Seriously?” Helios narrowed his gaze towards Yuval. The Sol Blaze blader / surfer gave him a blank stare. The blonde local gave out a fake shrug, “Isn’t that what you were looking for all along?”

Krista hoped that this coaster was not so scary like the Pipeline Surf. If it was, she would kick Skandera’s butt for it. She felt slightly dizzy but not super nauseous. 

“I’m fine. Just a bit topsy turvy.” Krista knew she had it all it takes to overcome a simple coaster ride. That simple was about to get simpler - er.

Helios and his group halted in front of a sun stone barrier, heat lightly beaming across a Parthenon tower crafted similar to the one Helios saw on Atlantis Island. Colored identical to the barrier, the structure was 50 ft tall, the roof topped with a turquoise ancient dome. Striking details of the same color followed for the tilting roof in the shape of a triangular Parthenon. Centered in the middle were insignias of water horse chariots galloping across the waves. 

Helios indeed found it a bit nostalgic to see a Greek Parthenon since it had two of his favorite symbols: The Sun for Sol Blaze and the water waves for surfing.

“Look, dude. Mermaids!” Yuval pointed to a sun scorched wall painting. It depicted 3 women with circling fish tails hovering over a layer of sky blue water. A faint orange sun cornered the upper left side of the frame. The paint was purposely chipped off to make it look as if they were in an authentic town in Greece.

A wooden cross bar box sat in front of the mural with a high duty boat rope coiled like a resting snake on top. 

“I haven't seen those in a long time!” Heather lightly laughed at their sprightly appearance.

The line for the ride resembled as if the group were in a small coastal cafe in Greece, ordaining typical elements: Stone arch pillars, dozens of ceiling fans, an overhead wall mounted TV, and orange lights dimly lit at the front entrance. Yellow tape in the shape of a tab sticker marked 4 sections behind the gate, where the group respectively stood on each numbered tab. 

They all climbed into a sturdy boat enough to seat 8 riders. It was another log flume ride, but sea themed. As the boat started lugging forward, Helios could not help but think of Yuval’s recommendation of this ride. Was it because at that time he was part of the Sunfoot cult, traveling by boat to discover the city of Atlantis hidden 5,000 ft. deep under the depths of the Atlantic Ocean? It felt familiar, yet surreal. 

“Oooh, spooky.” Yuval grinned as if they entered a haunted tunnel ride. Helios shook his head in playful disbelief. Krista and Heather glamoured over the ghostly appearance of the city, splashed by irregular shaped shadows while lit halogen blue. The lights in the model town were surprisingly on, letting everyone know that life still sprouted in the city of Atlantis.

The boat moved through a star lit tunnel. Krista gasped in joy as they were surrounded by bioluminescent sea corrals of different shapes and colors. Heather snapped pictures of endless corrals with her waterproof camera. Helios pointed out that she accidentally snapped the EXIT sign as well, in which it wasn’t supposed to be there. Yuval thought it was a prank from one of the park employees, implying that something perilous was going to happen.

They reached the next section of the ride: A royal sea temple with flames in hanging plant pots suspended from the ceiling and an overhead balcony. The group yelped as they all got slapped by a soft jet of water spewing from the wall mounted nozzle. The boat continued to drift through the endless hallways of the temple, many people remarking about its fine lavish appearance. Softly glowing gold on the pillars, a shadow of blue halogen lights resembling a water web swished back and forth against the arch shaped ceiling. A miniature fountain was placed to the right of view. A galleria of pearls pulsed through the darkened tunnel.

In the distance, they saw an incline lit in dark neon blue, as if it was the stairway to heaven. Krista gulped, gripping onto her fear of heights like it was the end of her life.

“It’s a stairway to Heaven!” someone yelled in joy behind Helios.   

Once the boat neared the incline, Krista held her heart in her hands. The sheer speed sent the boat whooshing down the steep drop, creating a majestic splash across the river.

As the boat slowed down to a halt beside the line, the group exited the ride with mixed feelings. Krista felt relaxed, glad to have only yelled in joy at the sudden drop of the ride. The others were drenched from head to toe. 

“That wasn’t too bad, was it, Helios?” Yuval complimented with a goofy grin. Heather softly laughed. 

Helios shrugged, “At least the waves were not wild like the ones on the Atlantic Ocean. Trust me. It was worse than this ride.”

Yuval chuckled halfheartedly, sipping on his water bottle, “You know what’s gonna be worse than your journey to Atlantis? My sudden appearance in a crowd of over 30k people. If I lose sight of Heather in that split second, it’s gonna take years to find her.”

The blonde female cleared her throat with a serious but playful gaze.

“I regret saying that.” Yuval blushed in embarrassment, conscious of his girlfriend’s vivid empathy. She gave him a doubtful look before popping peppermint gum into her mouth.

They halted at a meeting point, surrounded by park goers either taking a break by the benches or walking along. 

“We have about 10 min until Rise Above starts. It’s only a 6 min drive to the Orange County Convention Center.” Helios checked his smartwatch which displayed 9:15 PM in white letters behind a neon background. "I've reserved some VIP spots near the stage."

Krista wondered how it was like to attend an EDM event. The way Helios described it from his point of view seemed intimidating, daring, and overall memorable. 

He suddenly started speed walking to the exit park. 

“Dude, wait up!” Yuval called out as he dashed after him. Heather jogged right behind him. Krista knew she had to run after them but she felt startled by someone or something in front her.

The stranger: a burly male twice her size grunted in annoyance. He wore an Excision baseball jersey, cargo shorts, and oversized Jordans. He barely said anything. His cold eyes only hawked down a glare on poor Lenz. 

“Hi. Nice to meet you?” Krista squeaked in surprise. Then that’s when she saw it. Her heart leaped twice in grief and fear. Which almost sent her barreling across park goers. 

She had to tell Helios. 

Fast.

Since when was a Sunfoot Soldier spying on her?

---

Another cliffhanger galore! I decided to split the part where Helios and the group attend the Illenium concert for next chapter.

Also, its been long since I've been to Sea World! The last visit was waaayyy back in 2006. Geez, I imagine my 7 year old self watching my brother go on his fav ride: Kraken, fell in love Shamu and Killer Whales, and much more.

I might have rushed the ending a bit. Gonna overlook my mistakes and fix them soon.

Falco276 out! :)

5: Out on a Rush

I’m back with another chapter! The moments between Helios and Krista are going to build up during the Illenium concert. There’s a pesky Sunfoot Soldier hot on thier trail! 

Enjoy!

---

It was time. 

The moment both Helios and Krista were waiting for.

The exhilirating moment to Rise Above.

The Solara softly growled as Helios neatly parked next to Yuval’s Mazda 3. 

“Oy! Welcome back brother!” Yuval exclaimed in joy, arms locking him into a hug. 

“Not now, Yuval. C’mon, everyone. I’m getting excited the moment we step closer to the venue.” Helios double checked his group’s attendance. 4 people. Check off the list. 

Together, they speed walked across the parking lot. Krista spotted other clusters of people dressed in Illenium baseball jerseys, laughing and talking amongst themselves. Some of them wore an array of colorful glow sticks illuminating their necks and wrists. Helios, Yuval, and Heather were already dressed in their respective Illenium jersey: Carbon Fiber black patterned with an array of neon pink and blue brush strokes morphing into a majestic phoenix, Illenium’s signature spirit animal.

“Here. Wear this.” Helios purchased an identical jersey for Krista. $30 covered her comfort and curiosity. She blushed, muttering thanks. The silver haired blader resonated a glow and a warm smile, “You’re welcome, my dear.”

They approached the crosswalk where Krista spotted a nice black 2015 Audi Quattro SUV pull up to the curb as if it was a 5 star class bachelorette party. A 15 year old girl dressed in another fancy Illenium jersey, army green Angel Kiss cargo pants, and Converse sneakers hopped out excitedly, exchanging a few Japanese words with her driver. 

“Arigato!” she replied in excitement, waving at the car in farewell. She turned around on her heels, heeding unpaid attention at Krista and her group. Lenz timidly watched her present her ID and ticket at the gate, hollering in joy as soon as she was accepted. “Whoo! Let’s go!”

“Here’s our tickets, sir.” Yuval fanned out his ticket and ID card as if he presented the guard a magic trick. The older man grunted and waved both Yuval and Heather in. 

Krista gulped in concern. Did she even have an ID? What happens if she gets denied into the event? Her fear crept closer as she inched closer to Helios for support.

“She doesn’t have an ID. I bought tickets for the both of us.” Helios curled his lip as he presented his ticket, driver’s license and an extra ticket for Krista. The guard carefully scrutinized the girl before giving out a nod. 

“Follow me.” Helios signaled as they entered the modern glass building. Upon entry, they were greeted with elements that every convention had: grey carpet sprawled across the massive indoor walkways, oak paneled walls and doors, and banners displaying different events that were held today. 

They scaled the escalators to 2F at section 1C where they spotted Illenium Rise Above banners framed around two massive doors. A cluster of people began filing through the doors. A faint scent of smoke snaking from the fog machines trickled their nose capillaries. 

“Yo, dude. This is massive!” Yuval gasped in joy, shocked at the overcrowded population. A total of 30k people meandered and occupied the expansive convention floor, chorusing random jargon. 5 special hexagonal strobe lights were placed in the formation of the number 5 on a dice. 3 wide main screens the size of a sports stadium jumbotron faced the crowd, an array of blue spotlights streaking through the air. An enormous statue of a Phoenix was suspended from the ceiling as if soaring over the crowd.

“Fun fact: I attended the Illenium Trilogy event at the Denver Broncos stadium. 2 hours of pure Nick on stage, tweaking those turntable knobs and hollering in excitement.” Heather winked.

No lie, Helios wished he was there. Just a simple text of his activities would make his STS 136 crewmates jealous. Especially Ryan Henderson. As he explained to Krista, his memorable trip to the JIEXPO KEMAYORAN where he attended the 2022 DJakarta Warehouse Pro, an open air rave festival together with Wang Hu Zhong member, Chao - Xin Mao.

Though he attended other sets in Europe, Chao Xin described Armin van Bureen’s set as a Winter Wonderland. “Oh I’m playing out Armin Van Buren’s Tommorowland playlist! I got so inspired by the Horus statue from the 2024 Crystal Garden concert. It was so cold up in the snowy mountains, but I had a hell of a lot of fun!”

A massive silver statue of Horus himself posed behind Armin, wings spread, its majestic falcon head staring fiercely down at the roaring crowd. The falcon’s massive wings sparked with ice blue luminescent feathers, pulsing to the beat of each track. The electronic beats tore across the rigid snowy mountain slope, magnetically attracting young people to the event. 

Chao - Xin was pleased.  

Evening fell over the ski resort like a starry night. A frigid cool breeze sliced through the crowd, stimulating their energy over the frostbite cold. It felt humid, a perfect blend of warm and cool swirled around the event.  A blend of digital purple and neon blue spotlights danced across the uplifting crowd, roaring in delight. 

An event that the chinese Virgo blader would never forget. 

“Bro, I’m so excited!” Yuval squealed in joy, inhaling the smoking atmosphere. The room was completely stealth black. He could only see Heather’s bright neon Illenium jersey. A light strip hued purple blazed across the stage, a cluster of blue laser lights flickered erratically over the crowd. 

“Orlando, time to screech this shit up! Let’s fuckin hear it!” Nick Daniel Miller, the DJ behind Illenium, the man, the myth, the legend appeared at the turntable booth, raising his hand in greeting. The crowd went nuts. A heavenly blend of trance and hardstyle tore across the crowd. Fan favorites such as Crawl Outta Love, Luv Me a Little, Sideways, All that really matters, Shivering, Back to You, and Feel Something blared loudly from the 4D speakers surrounding the crowd. 

“Let’s go!” Yuval yelled on the top of his lungs, waving a glow stick. 

So this was how it's like to be in a raving crowd, Krista thought as she breathed in her surroundings: a fleet of laser lights flashing above her head, pillars of fire spewing from each respective hexagonal pod, LED strips pulsing out, and confetti raining across.

Helios roared in excitement as the remix to Starfall faded off. Annika Welles came up on stage, leading Without Me in a hue of blue. An orange beach ball was tossed backforth, bopping on unsuspected heads in the crowd. 

“Thank you, Orlando!” Annika kissed her hand and showed it to the crowd as she exited the stage. Nick took over drums as Excision and Wooli - Name Drop blared over. The lights immediately turned stealth red as everyone started to headbang like crazy. The lights flickered erratically to Valentino Khan’s Womp Womp. 

“It’s fuckin Shivering!” someone yelled in the crowd. 

“What do you think so far?” Helios loudly called over the crowd. Krista’s thoughts spanned like the blue laser lights that waved left and right over the 30k heads. It was pure never ending joy. 

Scenes from Illenium’s movie Starfall illuminated the atmosphere. A cluster of metal guitar riffs behind the hardstyle remix of Shivering began as blue flickering laser lights danced across, sending everybody to a fierce head bang. 

As Said the Sky’s Where did you Go flared through, Krista spotted a mysterious stranger. Her heart leapt in fear, mentally conjuring the Sunfoot Soldier disguised as an Excision fan from earlier at SeaWorld. Brushing off the thought, Krista exhaled, searching her words.

“Let’s switch this shit up!” Nick yelled as Jxdn - Lifeline remix sent the crowd screaming in joy. Pillars of orange flames shot up into the air accompanied by blue laser lights moving through the fog.

“Um, is it ok if I can go to the bathroom?” Lenz nervously hugged Helios. The silver haired blader recapitulated with a perplexed gaze at her. His hands gripped her shoulders protectively.

With all my Heart played in the background. A set of gold confetti rained across the stage like a ceremonial event. Helios smiled, “Sure. You seem to go too much, thanks to the Celsius.” 

Lenz gave out a small smile as she excused herself and started pushing through the crowd. Avril Lanvegene’s Eyes Wide Shut began as a soft set of yellow lights pulsed in and out through the room. A scene from Starfall depicted the main characters discovering an ancient tome that held the legendary power of the Phoenix. 

The Sunfoot stranger’s cruel eyes tracked down Krista’s every move. From a distance, he spat out his gum and pulled out his phone. He snapped a few pictures of Lenz, and sent it to a mysterious man from the other side. 

Annika Welles’ Other Side flowed through the room as the Sunfoot Soldier began a conversation with his loyal leader of the cult. “I spotted her. She’s with Helios at the rave event in the Orange County Convention Center.” 

“Orlando! How we feelin!?” Nick called out over the laser lights. The crowd waved and screamed like a cluster of echoes. Kameron Alexander’s Pray flared across the room.

The leader paused, seated in front of the image of Krista in an undisclosed room, a set of computers beeping and humming. He gave out a sinister smirk, “I’m proud of you Gecko. I can’t believe my damn grandson is at that wretched festival. I expected him back in the Sunfoot cult. Seeking to revive Atlantis to its former glory. I order you to follow her. Don’t look too suspicious.”

“Yes, sir.” Gecko exhaled in agreement, and hung up. He carefully stifled through the crowd, keeping his gaze on Lenz exiting the venue.

“Somebody scream!” Nick hollered out while giving out a hand gesture. Affixed on Excision and I Prevail’s Feel Something, Helios shrugged at the absence of Krista and continued to rave at the hardstyle drop, the screen displaying the orange backdrop of a blazing fire sunset, a lonely bare branch tree perched in the middle. An intense fray occured between Excision’s T-Rex and Illenium’s Phoenix as pillars of orange fire shot out one by one across the stage. 

“Orlando! Let’s fuckin see this shit!” Nick once again hollered as the hardstyle drop sent everyone screaming in joy. The lights spun like a propeller from a solar powered windmill. 

---

Krista caught her breath, panting in fear. She rounded a corner, peeking behind her. A group of people were hanging around, exchanging alcoholic beverages. She nearly backed into a door, leading into the expansive balcony. She felt bad lying to Helios about going to the bathroom. Instead, she had to flee from the Sunfoot soldier stalking her with a sharp gaze. 

The air felt cool and refreshing despite her mind wrangled with her conflictions with Atlantis’ cult. Staring at Orlando’s evening city skyline, she accidentally bumped into another girl. 

Lenz blinked and knew it was the same girl from earlier.

“Oh my gods, are you ok?” Her sharp brown eyes clouded with kind concern. Her beret with cat ears told Krista that she adored anime fashion. This girl definitely had a geeking gossip about Japan wherever she went. 

Krista caught her breath, steadying her breathing. “I’m fine. Just enjoying the event.”

“Illenium Rise Above? You go girl!” The Japanese teen smiled brightly as she pulled out her lunar green colored Vaporesso vape stick. She took a quick puff before exhaling a soft cloud. “You thought I was here for the Anime EXPO, huh? I’m here for Rise Above as well! Nick’s so badass with his Phoenix. His overall sets are overwhelming and memorable. Aside from both Ember Shores and Trilogy, this is my favourite one so far.”

Krista flustered a smile, the kind that she showed attentive concern in a conversation. 

“Name’s Haley Nagamatsu. Daughter of the fifth Naga Miru divine dragon dynasty. Nagasaki prefecture. Long title, I know. Am I supposed to have a royal title in the first place?”

“I don’t know. Are you supposed to?” Krista questioned, looking now and then to spot the Sunfoot culprit. 

“Nevermind that. I’m just here to chill and enjoy Illenium’s colorful sounds that flare through my heart. Big time fan. Was dropped off by my royal servant. What about you?” Haley juggled with her keychain katana. Krista eyed the katana as if Nagamatsu was a secret serial killer.

“Came here with my boyfriend and a couple of other friends as well.” Krista grabbed Haley’s hand and started to speed walk away from the corner. Nagamatsu raised a confused eyebrow. But she even then asked about Helios.

“How’s he like? Cute? Charming? Scary? Badass?”

---

“Oh god, not Taylor Swift.” Yuval grumbled as Anti Hero came up next in the list. He glanced at Helios who sent a quick text to Krista.

HELIOS RYUZAKI

[11:05 PM]

“Are you ok back there? Should I come get you?”

The silver haired blader patiently waited for her response. 

Nothing.

“Bro, where are you headed off to?” Yuval followed after him. 

Helios halted, “I’m off to search for Krista. Wait here.”

Yuval watched his friend excusably push through the crowd in search of Lenz.

15 minutes passed by and Krista was not in sight.

Helios thought about asking reception about her whereabouts, but that would already defeat the purpose of inviting people behind her back. He tried calling her. No response. 

Just by luck, he spotted Heather exiting the bathroom. 

“Have you seen Krista by any chance?” Helios’ voice cracked in a blend of concern and worry. He glanced over her shoulder to find a girl that closely resembled her but was slightly off with her braided blonde ponytail. 

“I honestly have no clue. Did you see her exiting the venue?” Heather glanced hopefully at Helios, wondering if they both had to dispatch a message to Yuval regarding Lenz. Jxdn’s Lifeline faintly pulsed through the walls of the convention building.

“She told me she went to the bathroom.”

“I didn’t see her there. Yuval should know about this?”

---

“Where in Naga are we heading to? I’m missing out on the best fiery phoenix Illenium tracks!” Hayley raised a confused eyebrow at Krista. The blonde haired girl pulled her into a storage closet, conscious of Gecko close by. 

Awkward minutes passed by as Teddy Swim’s All that Really Matters softly pulsed through, each beat pulsating drops of water into a bucket. Hayley’s eyes brightened at the silver bucket gleaming in the dark. “You know we have a Japanese proverb that exactly describes that bucket over there. ???? Mizu-ni-Nagasu. The Water Flows. I have tons that I remembered from my childhood. Wanna hear them all?”

Krista deadpanned at her spastic grin. Now that they were in a storage closet, she had the freedom to elaborate her troubled tangle with the Sunfoot Soldiers. But Sueco’s Story of my Life began interrupting her critical arrangement. 

“Damn.” She mentally cursed at her words, snapping her eyes shut to start over. 

“Oh I see. ???????Keizoku wa chikara nari. Don’t give up.”

Hayley guessed with a sparkle in her eyes. All Time Low’s Back to You beat through the walls, causing the bucket to shiver. 

Krista snapped to attention, gripping the other girl’s shoulders, “There’s a freaky cult in hooded robes chasing after me and my boyfriend.”

“A satanic cult? Badass. Sign me up.” Hayley’s eyes mischievously glinted as if she had something wicked plotted in her mind. 

“Not really. It’s the Sunfoot cult. I don’t know what they really want from me since their leader claimed that I had the remaining powers from the lost city of Atlantis.”

“Who’s your other half? Your boyfriend I assume?” Hayley questioned, carefully echolocating stray footsteps outside of the closet door. Motionless in White’s Nothing Ever After tore through the building. 

Krista felt like tugging at the strings of her heart. She hoped that Helios was ok, pitted in a cluster of 30k raving Illenials. She stuttered the same way the bucket shivered in fright, “Yes. He also had an affiliation with the cult. Brainwashed by his malicious grandfather who attempted to wipe out Earth with an asteroid.”

“Hoy Ehh! That’s sick! I wanna someday see a speeding meteor kiss the Earth in a flurry of flames.” Nagamatsu’s eyes wistfully wondered how it would look like to see a cluster of asteroids raining down to Earth. Disastrous but badass for sure. 

“It’s crazy to see what he was up to. Either way, they aren’t going to find me now with Helios close to my side.” Krista confidently raised her head, unleashing a bright smile. A smile that told Hayley she had guts and integrity to outlive the Sunfoot cult. 

“???????Ku areba raku ari. No Pain. No Gain.”

Together, they walked out of the closet, speed walking across the hallways of the convention. 

---

Helios and Heather jogged past a group of people talking amongst themselves and helping themselves to several cups of coffee. The silver haired blader wasn’t a huge fan of coffee, especially since he already was fueled on caffeine thanks to Celsius. 

The two of them rounded the corner as Nina Nesbitt’s Luv Me a Little flowed through. To their surprise, they found Krista and Hayley heading in their direction. 

“Krista!” Helios ran forward and hugged her.

“I’m fine. Just a bit of a tangle from spotting out a Sunfoot Soldier.” Krista suppressed a fake smile. 

“Who’s this?” Helios goggled an inquisitive eye at Hayley, decked out in Harajuku fashion. Her Illenium jersey was custom with her name and number in orange Japanese katakana on the back. 

“Hayley Nagamatsu. I’m off to finish Rise Above. Remember me with a Hoy Ehh!” the girl gave out a gloved peace sign, dismissing herself up the escalators to 2F.   

The trio were bewildered at the sight of Nagamatsu displaying her happy side. The finale track of the event,Nightlight, brought everyone roaring in anticipation. It was so boisterous that Helios and the others could easily hear them through the oak paneled walls. Annika Welles sang with passion, sending Krista to a lighthearted swoon. Damn, Illenium is really good at making his fans emotionally damaged from his songs. 

Meaning, they were so damn good to listen and to feel as if they were up in the luminescent clouds pulsing in shades of neon colors. 

A few moments later, Helios spotted Nick exiting the venue. 

“Dude, it's the legendary Phoenix himself! Go get an autograph!” Yuval pushed Helios forward in anticipation. 

“What’s up, fam! We had a fuckin blast tonight! How bout some kickass autographs?” Nick announced with enthusiasm, sending the crowd hollering in delight. Helios, surrounded by young teenagers, felt his spirits rise like an excited child. He gripped a book in his hands, feeling confident and overjoyed to approach Illenium face to face.

“Nick, it’s such an honor to meet you.” Helios bellowed in joy as he shook hands with him. The guy was dressed in an identical jersey, complete with jet black shorts, and skate shoes. He always wore his snapback hats the opposite way, following the trend where every cool guy had reverse snapbacks for show.

“Whoa, there’s no need to get that hyped about me. I’m just glad I have a diehard fan on my list.” Nick chuckled as Helios brought out Illenium’s graphic novel version of the song, Starfall. The cover sported Nick and Ash holding hands while an orange phoenix illuminated in sheer fury behind them. 

The graphic novel took place in a cold totalitarian society where survival of the fittest is the golden rule. A young man named Nick has put his full faith in the warrior way. His only weakness is a reliance on regular injections of substance, the potent elixir that his malignant overlord rations out to the loyally subservient.

A mysterious woman known as Ash exposes just how fragile his worldview is by sharing tales of a time when human and phoenix peacefully coexisted, using their mastery over fire to build a warm and wondrous society. Nick will have to move past the demons of his addictions and open up to Ash so that she might share the secrets of... Illenium.

The 30 year old DJ from Denver, Colorado voluntarily autographed the front page with his signature. He then noticed Helios’ red bandanna with his phoenix logo on it. “Is that my phoenix on your bandanna? Man, that looks fuckin sick. I’m glad you’re my number one fan, Helios. Keep exploring my world of music. It’s a game changer in everyone's lives.”

The promising wink from the popular EDM DJ sent Helios in a faze of warm comfort and joy. 

“I just got mine signed on the Fallen Embers CD. Dude, you ok? It looks like you’re starstruck from Nicky Danny Miller.” Yuval waved his hand in front of Helios’ face as if he was hypnotized by an array of pendulums. 

“I’m fine. Let’s go.” Helios snapped to attention as he gazed at everyone with an awkward look. Everyone surrounding them chattered and screamed in delight, raising hands and smartphones to capture video on Nick’s presence in front of the autograph banner. The others followed the silver haired blader towards the exit.

Krista wondered where Hayley was, considering that she had her autograph 15 minutes before they did. While they approached the silver doors, a trendy station served sparkling water. Helios and the others shrugged and approached the small booth, curious about the sudden commotion. Krista, Yuval, and Heather grabbed a cup of sparkling water. They sipped, delighted over the enchanting taste. 

Only Helios’ sparkling water was served in a wine glass. 

“Thanks?” he inquired, raising an eyebrow at the young female dressed as the event crew for Rise Above. Helios was unaware of an undiscovered powdered substance swirling around the liquid. Resembling like starry white glitter. The next thing he saw was free bottles of the sparkling wine gifted to Krista. Why only to Krista and not to Yuval and Heather? 

Helios felt numbed for a second. Completely puzzled at the sight of sparkling water presented to him and his girlfriend. The next thing he saw: the young girl who served the water was now winking to an empty wall. Helios blinked and rubbed his eyes. He swore that there was another crew member watching from a distance before quickly vanishing out of sight. 

He snapped to attention, grabbing Krista’s hands. “Let’s go home.”

The group exited out of the Orange County Convention Center through the silver doors. The bars clicked as they continued walking out into the parking lot. Many people who attended the event either left to go home or stay behind and chatter. 

“Dude, are you ok?” Yuval remarked in concern. Helios felt his eyelids slowly lower as he staggered in difficulty. His vision slightly blurred, his throat growing warm. A slight buzz rang through his ears. 

“Here. Drive for me.” Helios fished his keys out of his pocket and handed them to Yuval.

His friend exhaled nervously, gripping the keyfob to the sun blader’s parked car. “I promise not to wreck your Solara.” 

“Helios are you ok?” Krista worridly approached him, cupping her hands around his face. His facial cheeks felt warm. Perhaps he contracted a cold? It was impossible since she barely heard any coughing over the loud beats. 

Lenz clambered into the silver Mazda 3, Heather behind the wheel. They followed the Solara through the late night hours on International Drive. She thoroughly searched for answers. Shivering like the silver bucket, Krista recalled Hayley’s proverb.

???? Mizu-ni-Nagasu. The Water Flows.

The clue was in the sparkling water that was served to Helios.

She slowly peeled away the blue and white label.

Her eyes widened in horror at the words Ketamine and Fentanyl.

---

Okay, I guess that Japanese proverb wasn't useless at all! Yep, another cliffhanger! I'm spicing up this story minute by minute. It's shivering here in TN (Get it, Shivering?) and I'm currently cozy warm in my Tanuki Red Panda blanket poncho, fuzzy socks, and a cup of Ito En Green Tea. I heard that back then, in order to get the Eclipse version of Sol Blaze, one must purchase Ito En products, cut out a barcode and redeem them at any convenience store only in Japan. Sad that I wasn't able to do that. Missed out.

In other words, the Illenium Rise Above event is based off of Set 3 of the Trilogy event in Los Angeles, CA. Thanks to DerekD2 for uploading the whole thing! 

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljgvbZrHZeo&t=4438s

I heard this livestream on a record over 15 times already. 

Falco276 out! :)