1 - 5

This time, Roxas returned to his first life. He delibrately messed up his exams, delays his enlistment, following everything with accuracy, with some changes. This time, he finally asked Aqua out. Sadly, the first sign that his body was breaking down first manifested while in National Service. He collapsed while delivering some documents, and needed a defibrillator to restart his heart. Doctors could not figure out the cause, but Roxas knew better. The sands in the hourglass were trickling away more quickly than anyone else's. Black outs were common now. He dedicated much of his time to his love and friends. He finally reached the time when he had first met the mysterious man on the bus. Roxas's body was at it's limit. He fell for the final time, just as he ended work. A voice rang out,"Are you truly happy now? Do you regret your choices?" "No," responded Roxas. "This is what it should be. I only wish that I had realise this earlier..." With that, Death claimed Roxas.

A funeral procession brought a coffin to an empty grave. The priest gave a final blessing, with prayers said. The coffin was laid down, together with tears, and the grave was filled. People in black paid their respects and left.

6 months later....

A metallic object cut a swath through the warm night air, igniting gases in the cemetery and leaving a trail of ghostly green fire*. Hovering above a grave, a mechanical voice rang out:

"Roxas Mao of Earth, RISE."


*This phenomena is also called will-o-wisp, jack-o-lantern, hinkypunk, ghost-light, spook-light, fairy light, friar's lantern, hobby lantern or corpse candle, depending on the country and village. Due to phosphine and methane produced by decomposition of dead bodies, they oxidize in the usually cooler temperature night air(compared to day) causing combustion a thus burning up. Phosphine provides the greenish colouring, while methane as a fuel. Older times thought that they were spirits of the dead, and is quite unsettling to see.


SURPRISE UPDATE! And thus ends the first chapter. Hope you have enjoyed it. Do note that the next one will start the second chapter. As the ending of chapter 1 suggests, it will very much darker. There will be some fairly detailed descriptions of torture(yes, I'm a disturbed person). Some characters might resemble some people you may know, because it is intended. No, I don't hate them, as later parts will show. It's all for the story! Please do not be offended if you think the character may resemble you.

1-4

One day, Roxas decided to pop by the local thumbdrive store.* Sifting through the many albums by various bands and singers, Roxas shook his head sadly. Heavy or Death metal music was prevalent now, so unlike the time when he was much younger when companies still produce the occasional decent music. Rock was rare now. Orchestral was virtually extinct. Instruments like the violin and piano no longer existed. Mentally shaking himself from reminiscing, Roxas head for the favourite section of the store: The clearance section. Gems from his generation were still available here, which no one of the current era wanted anyway. Roxas picked a thumbdrive, and previewed the songs. The first song started playing, and Roxas recoiled like he received a slap. The song** had finally answered what he was always pondering over. Friendship. He had given up friendship in this new life in exchange for incomparable success. He had few friends, none of whom he was close to. He remembers the old and happy times back at MoonCentral, grumbling about outbound cases, sharing dispute experiences, or laughing at a colleague's Bodypage posts on a friend's status update. Grinning while musing over the past, Roxas did not notice that time had come to a halt, A fly froze in mid-flight, drops of water floating eerily in mid-air. With a puff of smoke, the mysterious man from the bus appeared at the store's entrance.

"Child. Are you satisfied with your life?"
Roxas jumped, shocked and surprised. Never did he expect to see the man again.
"Yes. Yes I am"
"Then why do I see regret in your eyes?"
"Nothing escapes you, does it? Yes, I do regret. I regret the sacrificing the friendship and bonds I once had. Great people I had met through the circumstances of life. All my luck has been used to meet the right friends. In a way, they are responsible for this life."
"Would you like another chance?"
"I would. I will follow my former life's path. I will meet and befriend my friends again."
But what of your family? Your wife? Your daughter and your son? The human body is not meant to handle the energies needed to transport your mind, heart and soul back to the past. This time could possibly kill you."
"Aqua, my dearest wife... My adorable daughter Anveena... My cute son Reks..."
Tears were flowing down Roxas's face. Wiping them away and facing the man, Roxas replied,"My daughter and son will never have existed. Yet I cannot continue this farce of a life. How can I face my children with the knowledge that I have sacrifice what is truly important for mortal success? No. Take me back. I will fix this lie."
The man nodded. "Very well, I wish you all the best." A blinding whilte light engulfed Roxas. The next time he opened his eyes, he was in a certain room, ready to take a certain exam...

*The future doesn't use CDs anymore!
** Here's the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kjvlnAlkSE



Ah late late update. Had many stuff to complete. But here it is, better late than never. Leave some comments if you read this!

1 - 3

"LATE LATE YOU ARE LATE LATE LATE YOU ARE LATE" Roxas flipped, only to realise too late that he had actually flipped out of bed. His head was pounding, ears ringing, as if they were adjusting to an unfamiliar environment. Even his sense of smell was messed up. Most importantly(to his great surprise), Roxas retained all of his memories. "ROXAS! GET OUT OF BED THIS INSTANT OR YOU WILL BE LATE FOR YOUR PSLE!" "Yes Mother!", Roxas instinctively replied. It was then, did the words register in his confused mind. PSLE? Not only that, he was in a room he had not seen in 13 years. Even his precious grandfather's White Tigerzord gift stood proudly on his desk! Confirming the reality of the situation with his reflection, he was once again 12 years old.

Roxas aced his PSLE(obviously), considering all the knowledge he had. O'levels were a breeze as well. Deciding to take the JC route for a change, he worked harder, harder than anyone else, appreciating the once-in-a-million lifetime opportunity. Roxas had also finally found the courage to ask the girl of his dreams, Aqua, out. Life was a series of success followed by more success. He had achieved the highest educational level, found cures to various diseases, such as cancer, and he was rich, successful, powerful and influential. Most importantly, he had a beautiful wife and two adorable kids. Yet somewhere deep down, he felt that something was still lacking, or rather, he had lost something he once had. Roxas spent much time and thought on this, but has never been able to come to a conclusion. Fortunately, Lady Luck would once again smile on him.




Notes: Hi folks. People who read this have been asking me when I update this. While I promise to update it each week, the day will depend on my work schedule. Enjoy! Again, leave me comments on what can be improved.

Preview!
1: Roxas finds something!
2: Roxas meets the mysterious man!
3: Roxas gives up everything he has!
Stay tuned for the next part!

Chapter 1 - 2

"Bye guys, see ya tomorrow. I'm heading to Hougang today." Another end to yet another uneventful day at work, Roxas thought to himself. Waving goodbye, he headed for the bus-stop. After a ludricous one hour of waiting, the bus finally arrived. Oddly enough, the double-decked bus was empty. Paying no mind to the weirdness, Roxas boarded and took a seat in the second deck. After three stops, a man in a fedora boarded. This man looked like he was in his early forties, and was giving off the aura of one who had seen and done many things. Roxas's curiosity was piqued, but soon turn to nagging suspicion as the man set beside him, despite the many empty seats.

"Child." Roxas was shaken out of his reverie. Wondering who on earth would call him a "child", he looked around. The bus was still empty, barring himself and the man beside him.
"Are you speaking to me, Mr?"
"Excellent powers of observation young one. Indeed child, I am speaking to you. You don't see anyone else do you?"
"But I am not a ------"
"Child? Minor details, minor details. Let's not get our hair in knots shall we? I'm here to gove you a chance to turn your life around. To fix all past mistakes you have ever made. A chance to alter the past, to change the future. Will you accept?"
"Why me, out of so many people? What is the price I must pay?"
"Why you? I flipped a dice, so to speak. Randomness has decided that you got lucky, nothing more. No price, no sacrifice is needed. This will be the one time where lunch is free. Now, will you accept?"
It was the chance of the life time. Many people would kill, or worse, just for such an opportunity. Turning to the mysterious man(if you can call him a man), Roxas told him," I accept."
"Very new journey begins... Now!" Tapping Roxas on the head, the man stood up and left. Roxas started to blackout, wondering if this was all a horrendous mistake, with the last words from the man ringing in his ears: "Humanity will soon face its greatest tribulation. I pray this will be enough..."

Chapter 1

Roxas. A guy like every other ordinary person. With hopes and dreams, yet unable to achieve any, either by circumstance, ability or simply Fate's cruel hand. Each day, he gets up, goes to work, gets home, eat, logs onto Bodypage, checks out his pals' latest status updates, read some random stuff and heads to bed. Typically generic, also completely boring. Roxas yearns to do something, to shatter his clockwork universe, yet he does not know how to.

This tale, is Roxas's tale. It is a tale of one guy who changes his outlook, his perspective. It is a tale of how one person finds his values, and learns what he truly considers to be of importance. It is a tale of change, tragedy, adversity, and most of all, friendship and redemption.

Part 2 tml!

PS: If anyone can do better writing than me, pls tell me and i'll dump the ideas on you while you flesh it out.

First Post!

Nothing much. Just declaring this a place to store all my ideas before I forget em. Updates are not on a consistent timing. Leave your suggestions to improvements that I could possibly add(better be constructive!). I'll try to update something once every 2 weeks or so. Do check back!