Bonds Throughout Time

Chapter 19: A Much Needed Comfort

Arion and Sophie had been sent, in a time and place unknown and separated from Alicia and Ariana, in a place where Aliens exist in secret with Humans. They searched for a girl called Yuki, who Arion felt had a fear much as his own, but as they stood on top of a hill...they stopped and stared. At the land imprisoned by ice

All around them, and which surrounded the facility with the aliens and the town in the distance, was a land covered, engulfed and skewered in ice. Before them laid a land covered in an icy white and blue, ruled by the ice which laid upon it. The ground was frost covered, buildings although intact were engulfed or impaled by ice and many ice 'trees' dotted the land some towering way over their heads.

Arion just looked with sadness and regret "I've never known a time when I didn't...want to know the answer to the question. The question being 'What could possibly rival the mass extinction of dinosaurs?' just the ice age which has near killed the earth"

"And what's worse" said Sophie who stood in her training mode (of an armoured vest, rocket shoes and visor) "You're exaggeration is actually accurate. No matter how far I scan the terrain...only a single heat source can be detected"

"Sophie" Arion sounded scared "Can I ask...how far are you scanning?" Sophie reverted to normal and sadly spoke

"I can only really see twenty miles with normal sight, and within that range only Yuki's and the people of the town behind us can be detected. I can use infra-red to detect sources of heat beyond that distance. While I can see much further, all I saw was blue...and one small blip of red. My infra-red...couldn't even pick up the sun"

Sophie spoke as delicately as she could "Even if there is life out there, it can't exist in this land. People, and animals, need heat, water and sustenance to survive. They could eat each other...but..." Arion put a hand on her shoulder

"Yeah, I know" said Arion quietly "do you...know which way Yuki is from here?"

"She's about two miles...northeast of here" Sophie pointed out "We should get going...before night sets in"

"Yeah...let's go" the two walked down the lean slope to the icy land below.

Arion just looked out onto the world with great depression. He spoke quietly and miserably "I never thought I'd see it...the once bountiful earth, become a wide spread frigid wasteland. And what's sadder is, I've been terrified of people as long as I can remember...yet right now...I just want to see one"

Sophie could hear his every word, which brought great sympathy to flow through her. To her it felt uncomfortable and made her heart sore

Is my heart...responding to Arion's sorrow? It doesn't hurt...but it's...not pleasant either. For Arion, a human among millions, he must be feeling very alone right now.

 

It was then that she remembered a promise she made "Sophie...listen to my request please" she had once spoken to Ariana, back in the present "I want you to please...watch over my brother for me, when I'm not there"

"Why do you...sound so desperate?" asked Sophie

"My Brother might appear okay...but he still has a lot of healing to do. It's obvious to me, when Arion saved you from drowning, your very dear to him. So...may I ask a favour?" Sophie heard the urgency of her words and nodded

"Of course you can...go ahead"

"Please...be there for him. If there's ever a time, he feels alone and afraid, take his hand...and show him your there for him"