Kyle's POV

DREAM SEQUENCE

"Kyle."

My eyes snapped open to find Kevarix suited in his golden-spandex glory as we're both back into the void. "Kevarix," I greeted, noticing that I was back to my old version: skinny, slightly muscular with a bit of fat, and everything that my father stood against. "What are we doing here?"

"You're dreaming and fast asleep after a heavy day of combat training and living your life in the way that's destined for you," my new alter-ego commented. "And that's a good thing because this is where you and I need to make things official for each other."

"What makes you say that? I mean, I know that Dad, Marcel and his brood and the other Titan Club members alongside the allies have me wrapped up in this mess," I couldn't help but comment. "And while I wanted to fight back and reclaim my old life, it was impossible because I felt-"

"Suppressed?" Kevarix interrupted. "No, Kyle. You needed a liberation from your old life. You needed to unleash your real self and you know that your old life was dragging you down. Had your father never brought you to Berkeley and you never crossed paths with Marcel, you'd still be living a lie and only hurting yourself."

I couldn't help but scoff lightly, which made my all-American athlete self glare at me. "But what if I was happy being cynical and sticking to what I knew best?" I asked. "What if I wanted to go my own way and live how I wanted to live?"

"As I said, Kyle, you'd only be hurting yourself," Kevarix replied sternly as he stormed over to me before leading me to the TV set that appeared out of nowhere. "Look and see what might've been if things never came to fruition without Marcel and the others."

The screen turned on and I saw an older version of myself working at a convenience store, my frame now more lithe and frail as I served customers without mirth yet keeping my words unspoken. The screen then changed to me coming home to a dinky apartment with no one greeting me as I sat down my groceries and put everything away before noticing an eviction notice. "Damn," I said hotly, my voice aged with contempt and bitterness. "I gotta speak to Jim about an extension before-"

BANG! BANG!

"Oh, my God," I breathed as I watched my older self being shot dead twice, two bullet holes now piercing through my head as the gunmen came out of hiding and began ransacking my place. "This can't be."

"Oh, but it is, Kyle," Kevarix intoned as I saw the screen change to a graveyard setting with my state-prepared funeral in place with no one other than a preacher instilling the last rites just before Dad (as his superhero persona) tossed a single lily into my grave before the undertakers came to fill in the hole. "This could've been you if you never came to town. Keep watching."

"We all had high hopes for you, Kyle," Dad sighed nonchalantly as he stood over my grave, his forever-youthful body hovering over my dead self. "If only you weren't so stubborn and caught up in that cynical mindset. But, you chose to leave town with your grandparents when you found out the truth and severed ties with everyone. Now, look where it got you- dead with no one other than me saying a last goodbye. But, it is what it is. Hope you're happy with your choices, boy. So long and enjoy the afterlife."

He turned away just as the undertaker put the tombstone in place, my heart sinking low as I saw the inscription.

Kyle La'Van Jan'Twaine York.
19xx-20xx
Gone. Forgotten. Bitter. Alone.
He got no more and no less than what he deserved.

The screen turned black as I stared at Kevarix. "Why are you showing me this?"

"To make you see that your old life would only bring you nothing but bleak futures, deferred dreams, and contempt against any forms of change if you continued to hold on to your past," he intoned. "But you've got a lot of stake to claim now that we're now one. This is the time when you need to fully embrace the new you- the new us as one, Kyle. You have so many reasons to not want the opportunities that you can have as a Titan, but you haven't gotten one good solid reason to fully reject it. Everything can be better or worse by living life instead of looking at it with scorn. Don't be afraid of things not being perfect but be afraid because everything won't be."

"But what if everything does go to shit and I end up back where I started?" I couldn't help but defend weakly.

"You're not going to be left alone, Kyle. I'll be here every step of the way, but only if you'll embrace me fully and the new life that's meant to be for you."

"And the serums that Marcel and everyone keep injecting into me?"

Kevarix huffed a deep breath. "You weren't supposed to know of this, but it's more nanobots that rewire your memories that take away everything that involves your old life and replaces them with what you can have with your family, the Dermotts, Lita, Diane, and everyone who wants the best for you. And the nanobots also help you unlock your powers and recalibrate your body."

"That explains everything," I replied. I took a deep breath. "I'm just scared, Kevarix. Now that I've seen what might be if I hold on to my old life and try to fight back, I'm just worried about Kelante and his family, my grandparents, and even the last of the Outcasts- Tamarious and Tiffany alongside their families."

"All will be made clear in the days to come, but you can only stay in your lane and focus on you," Kevarix said gently. "As I've said, you're not going to be left alone. I'll be with you every step of the way, but only if you accept this willingly. No need to fight back and hold on to the past like a life raft. Let go and embrace the change."

I nodded slowly, allowing him to hug me as our clothes disappeared and the dense fog beginning to fill the room. My head began to throb as I looked up in the sky to see the last few memories of my old life were being erased permanently. I saw my school picture from junior year, my eyes tearing up to see the young man who was raised to hate change for the last time.

"I'm letting you go, kid," I said before my eyes grew heavy. "My old life is done. I gotta set you free. If I want to be who I can be, I have to break free from the walls that keep me away from the future."

"Let it all go, Kyle," Kevarix murmured as his hands rubbed my back. "The best is yet to come. Let it all go."

I felt the tears fall as I saw my junior year being erased, more and more of my old life being cleansed down to the moment when I entered into the world. "Goodbye Kyle York," I sobbed. "Goodbye forever."

"I'll be with you, Kyle."

And then the darkness swallowed me whole.

Wow. What. A. Chapter.

Coming up next, Kyle confronts his parents, his fiance, and the other Titans and allies before making one final move to accept his new life. And from there, this story is going to get bonkers and chaotic!

Dedication: E_Manawari. Song: "Sally Ride" by Janelle Monae.

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