17

Part 2

Jax looks at the boy and hugs him tightly "I thought you were dead Kai!!"
He starts to tear up as he studies his old friend's face and continues to hold him in his arms, not wanting to let go because he feared losing him again.
Kai smiles at Jax and speaks softly, "We can go back to my house and talk about the past year and a half if you want to."
Jax looks at Kai suspiciously and slowly nods and follows Kai through the crowded streets of Dalmasca to his house on the corner of a small street.
They went inside of Kai's house and Kai cleaned Jax's wounds thoroughly, occasionally Jax takes a deep breath to keep from whining about the pain. Finally after about 20 minutes Kai was done and Jax was bandaged.
"Jax, why do you keep fighting? Nobody can beat this war, nobody can beat the 17th floor and it'd be best if you just stayed here with me..." Kai starts to mumble to himself.
Jax looks at Kai angrily "What the hell is your problem!? I will beat this okay? I WILL BE A HERO!!" He runs out the door onto the streets of Dalmasca, running towards the tower. Tears stream down his face as he continues to sprint through the streets. He stops in an alleyway, catching his breath and thinking about his next move. After about 20 minutes of thinking he leaves the alleyway for an inn at the center of town called The White Dove.
He shows up at the inn out of breath and hungry, he checks into his room and settles in. He checks the time to see it's past midnight and lays down thinking about what he should do next.
After an hour of thinking he decides on taking two maybe three days to prepare himself for the tower. He makes a list of things he will need on a scrap of paper he found in his pocket and begins to write down his list of items.

Jax's List of Items:
-blacksmith (I need a stronger, sharper sword)
-Item shop, potions and such
-Food, small things like bread and crackers
-Clothing shops, Sweater and such
-Armor, Chain armor, Helmet, Boots, etc
-WATER

After he writes his list he lays down, thinking about everything that's happened up until this point, losing his family and friends, his home, everything. He thinks about Ember, the beautiful girl he met in Dalmasca two years ago.

*Flashback*

Ember takes Jax's hand as she runs down the street smiling at him. Her emerald green eyes shining in the bright summer sun.
"Come on Jax! You are sooooo slow." She giggles and runs into the green field, rolling in the grass by the beautiful blue lake. Jax sighs and looks into the distance thinking to himself, a small grin creeps across his lips and he speaks slowly.
"Ember.. I wanna stay here forever with you."
She smiles at him and giggles, "Don't worry Jax. I'm not going anywhere."

*Flashback over*

Jax lays in his dark room with tears running down his face, he continues to think about how everything happened, how hard he fell for her, he looks down at his necklace and sees her ring. He remembers how he lost her to that demon and her final wish.
Survive.