Chapter Three - Memories as Clear as Day

"Oww... Where am I?" Raya wondered as she woke up inside her seat.

"Not sure, but at least we're in Astros," Nick said handing Raya a bottle of water.

"Astros? Oh, yeah... ARE YOU INSANE!!!" Raya yelled angered by Nick's past actions. "WHO THE HECK THINKS IT'S A GOOD IDEA TO TURN A HELICOPTER OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SKY!?!? HOW IS IT EVEN POSSIBLE?!"

"Well I graduated top of my class, I know a lot about aircrafts'." Nick nonchalantly stated as he took a seat next to the girl who was now ferociously chugging her water. Her mouth got dry from all the screaming she did.

"How are we even still alive?" Raya questioned as she finished her water and calmed down a bit.

"When going from your realm to Astros, time stops in the midst of it all. Basically, our fall got softened once we fell through the Alizeh clouds. Not to mention, every time you come here, no matter from which realm, you always land in some body of water. It's a good way to help soften your fall." Nick told Raya as he closed his eyes. He looked as though he was remembering something from the past.

"How do you know all of this stuff?"

"Let's just say I might not be from your world..." Nick said, opening his eyes, looking toward the Magent haired girl. He had soft eyes, they looked as though they were filled with nostalgia. "Anyways, no time for dilly-dallying! First thing we should do is find out where we are, then after we can go look for your friend." Nick said standing up and looking out of the helicopter's door. Raya decided not to question him, everyone has their reasons for not saying things. She'll just have to earn his trust.

"So where do we... at this point why am I surprised?" Raya sighed as she looked out the aircraft's door. Outside the helicopter's door was a bright blue sky, with no land surrounding them whatsoever. The clouds looked closer to the ground than usual, almost like they were in the clouds. The water the helicopter was somehow afloat on was as clear as a cloudless sky.

Inside the water, you could see small fish swimming around with very light colors and beautiful rocks. You could see everything down in the water. It was probably the most beautiful scene Raya had ever seen. This immediately made her think of her best friend and all the stories Serene would tell of her mother.

"Raya! Guess what my mom told me today?" An excited younger Serene said running up to a younger Raya. They were wearing their elementary school uniform.

"What'd she say, what'd she say!" Raya said bouncing up and down from excitement. Like Serene, she enjoyed listening to the stories of Astros.

"She told me about the bodies of water in Astros! All of them are so clear you could almost see what lies on the bottom. She told me the clearest sea in all of Astros was called Cordelia, it's found in the city of Cerulean. Apparently, you could see straight down to the bottom where all the rocks and fish are! They're said to have the most beautiful fish!" Serene excitedly told her friend.

"What else did she say about the oceans? Do they look just like you're floating on air?" Raya squealed.

"Yep! She even said the oceans and lakes are more beautiful at night. They almost always reflect the stars that are higher up in the night sky!" Serene said with a shine in her eyes as the two girls walked down the halls of their elementary school. "I wish I could someday go there and maybe we could see the oceans together!"

"Well, I do know one thing!" Raya stopped in her tracks as Serene continued walking forward before stopping.

"Oh yeah? And what's that?" Serene questioned with a smile on her face as she turned around to face her friend.

"That no matter where you go, I'll always be one step behind!" Raya proclaimed with a smile on her face.

Raya snaps back to reality after remembering the flashback.

"If you're wondering how were floating, water works differently in this realm," Nick said turning back towards Raya. He already knew what she was going to ask.

"So... you're saying I could walk on water in this realm?!" with this, Raya excitedly ran outside of the helicopter and onto the water, or, well, into the water. Clearly, water isn't that much different from the one on Earth. The poor magenta-haired girl learned this the hard way. Nick on the other hand was laughing at her for jumping in without a second thought.

"Whe-When I said water works differently here... pfft... I meant aircrafts' can float on water. It's not as good as a boat, but at least they can keep you afloat." Nick informed while trying to hold back his laughter.

"Whatever just help me get back up, it feels like I'm floating in the sky and it's starting to creep me out. Don't get me wrong, It's cool, but it's freaky." Raya muttered the last part underneath her breath.

"Anyways, I just figured out where we are," Nick told Raya as he helped her back onto the craft.

"Let me guess, we're in the Sea of Cordelia, in the City of Cerulean."

"Woah how'd you know?" Nick queried.

"I have my secrets," Raya stated with a soft smile. It seemed as though what Serene mentioned was true...

"Oh, and another thing!" a young Serene announced as she continued to walk down the hall with her best friend. "My mom told me The Sea of Cordelia is rumored to bring people nostalgia whenever they're near the sea or swim in it. Its name is said to mean 'The Heart of the Sea's Daughter'. They gave it that name due to an old folks tale."

"What was the tale about?" Raya wondered.

"It was about a mother who lived near the sea's shore with her daughter and husband. The daughter always admired the view and would always play near it with her parents. One day the little girl fell ill and eventually died. They decided to bury her body in the sand. The parents continued to morn for their daughter until one night the two had finally found peace."

"They died too?!"

"No! Not yet at least. That night, the father and mother heard their daughter's laughter coming from the shore and looked out the window of their house. There they saw their daughter, Cordelia, happily playing in the sand. Once the parents died the family was happily reunited. Every once in a while people who would go down to the sea would see the family happily playing on the shore. They would also get hit with intense nostalgia." Serene answered.

"That's still sad, at least it had somewhat of a sweet ending. Anyways This is where we part ways, don't be late for Science again." The two girls hugged and soon parted ways.

And with that, the memory fully came to an end.