Jason and the Prophecy of Exploration

Prologue

From the moment Gregor left the Underland, he knew he could never go back to how he lived before. Nothing could be the same. Larry and Angelina had started to ignore him more and more often. They never questioned the scars, the lame excuses, the outbursts of anger. But they kept their distance. He could see it in their eyes that he was creepy. Randomly disappearing, popping up months later depressed and moody. He couldn't focus in school. His grades dropped from lack of attendance and the inability to concentrate in class; Straight Bs and As down to consistent Ds.

Gregor had unknowingly adopted a brooding look that now dominated his facial expressions. And it often got him into trouble. He knew he was walking a tight line, and suspension was only a few hairsbreadths away. With all the fights he was getting into, he was just waiting for another call to the principle's Not that it would have mattered much to him. His parents would be upset, but he would be relocated soon. He'd have a fresh chance to try controlling the Rage.

Things only got worse once his grandma died. Now that nothing was holding them down, Gregor's parents were now determined to move to Virginia, to start a new life. One not filled with freakishly pale, purple-eyed people, or with giant rats, spiders, bats, cockroaches or mice. No more wars, quests, plagues. Especially plagues, his mom would add. At the end of the school year, everything had either been packed up or sold, and ready to move. Despite Boots' and his mom and dad's cheerful attitude about the whole trip, they failed to notice Gregor wasn't the only one not in favor of moving. Lizzie had become especially quiet and somber. Gregor guessed it was because she missed her friend Jedediah. And of course Ripred. Boots had abandoned talking about Temp, the baby 'mouses', and Dulcie all day. Now she chattered on and on about farm animals.

Gregor's uncle Jeff had taken in the Neely family gladly, giving them a warm welcome. He spent most of his time there recalling his adventures in the Underland and writing them down. It helped to ease the pain a little. What helped the most was track and field. He'd joined the High school cross-country team, and the wrestling team. When he'd shown up to the first meet, the coach looked at him skeptically, given Gregor's lanky build, but soon learned he was stronger than he looked when he choked-out one of the Juniors on his back in twelve seconds flat. Luckily, it didn't trigger his Rager sense. While wrestling, he could feel it humming inside him, waiting to activate at any sign of real danger. High school wasn't as bad as Gregor thought it would be, even though he hadn't made any friends by the end of his third year. He sometimes hung out with some guys from the cross-country and wrestling teams, but they weren't really friends.

He'd mostly managed to block the Underland from his mind. There was no way he could get through each day knowing he wasn't home. Gregor forced himself to forget everything until he had a chance to go back. And for the most part, he succeeded. But one thing managed to squirm through his defenses and reside in his mind: Luxa. There was no forgetting her. She was an ever-present memory in his brain. Gregor thought he'd moved on from her, but sure enough, deep down, his feelings had only grown. Though he denied it to himself every day. When asked why he never accepted any dates from girls, he would only shrug. But his subconscious knew the real reason.

Gregor needed to go to the Underland. He was so desperate to be there, with Luxa, with Vikus, with Mareth, Howard, Hazard . . . everyone he loved. The summer of his Junior year he asked his parents to visit New York City. His mom freaked out, practically having a mental break down. The whole summer she never let Gregor out of her sight, for fear he'd somehow run off. Those months were hard. But something resolved inside of Gregor. He'd seen the terrors of war. The loss it caused. He wouldn't have wished war on his worst enemy. Gregor strove to learn all he could about peace, and what caused war, to prevent conflicts. In hopes that his contribution to the world, however small, would impact the world for peace. He studied government, psychology, sociology, and other similar sciences. Knowing future generations would encounter the same problems that had been met by people in the past and the present, Gregor committed himself to this, promising to educate the public.

That was how he got through those hard, long years away from his real home.