Within the secret base of the Crystal Cavern, John Reech and his personal friend Blaine sat in his office on the lower floor. The space was not nearly as cluttered as it would become, and Blaine was a solid one hundred pounds lighter than he would later gain. Yet as always, Reech looked the same, even then in his maroon robes with an impressively long white beard.

  They talked business for a while before a certain person came into the office to meet them.

  They both became silent and turned their heads when that person entered the room.

  It was Rocko.

  He was younger, and his beard was not as shaggy as it had later became. He still had some hair on his head, but the receding hairline was becoming a major concern.

  "Greetings, Rocko," Reech patiently spoke as he approached the large desk.

  "Aye."

  Rocko took a seat at the opposite side of his leader, and to the left of the large hairless man known as Blaine. He already knew what this meeting would be about, and he wasn't entirely thrilled with the job that would be presented before him.

  "I understand you know why you're here," Reech began, taking no time to cut to the chase.

  "I do."

  "Hazorath has completed his service watching over Nocturne Castle. He has already received his payment. With him gone, I have elected you to take over his duties," he explained calmly with his hands folded together on the table.

  Rocko did not raise his sight to meet Reech eye to eye. He kept his head down, unhappy with the long task ahead of him.

  "I know you're not particularly excited to play the guardian role of an abandoned castle, but your payment must be made, as you know," he added.

  Rocko finally looked up into his eyes. Reech's were soulless, there did not seem to be any emotion behind them. The leader of the secret organization had become quite similar to a computer. All decisions were made with his mind, never his heart.

  "How long do you want me there?" Rocko finally spoke.

  "Seven years," Reech easily replied.

  Rocko cringed. That was a decent chunk of his life. It would be so much time spent away from his friends and everyone he cared about. Not only did he feel he was losing a portion of his own life, he felt that he was also losing everyone else's, since they would also be seven years older once he would reunite with them.

  "We will mail each other on a regular basis for reports and updates," he continued.

  "I understand," Rocko replied in obedience.

  Blaine had a heavy heart. It was something he very rarely showed, but in the moment, it was quite noticeable.

  "Just seven years, Rocko. Seven years, and you'll be back. We won't go anywhere. After that, you'll no longer be in debt to us. Its a tame job, if you think about it. The only downside is the length of time it will take," Blaine explained, trying to encourage him. He removed his glasses and wiped his glistening eyes in a very casual manner, trying not to make it obvious that more emotion was showing than he would like.

  "I'll miss you for sure. I'll miss everyone," Rocko said to Blaine.

  While both of them were experiencing sorrow, Reech remained unmoved. Of course, he would prefer to keep Rocko around, but he had his reasons for why the castle needed to be under watch.

  "You're more than welcome to establish a foothold in the castle and live in there secretly. That is what Hazorath did. Though I have a feeling you wouldn't fancy the isolation, so there's a small village just a few miles south of Nocturne called Heroca Town. If you decide to live there instead, be sure to make regular trips to inspect the castle."

  Reech pulled out some papers from under his desk and slid them to Rocko for him to study. It included a map, and notes on the village nestled inside the Murok Mountains. There was also a mailing schedule they would both adhere to for regular updates.

  He gave Rocko a few more instructions, and then told him he would depart in three days. Blaine spoke as well, and after a while, he finally stood up and left the room, his mission fully detailed.

  When he was out of the room, it was silent for a moment between Reech and Blaine.

  "I don't know why you're so adamant someone babysit that castle," he said.

  "I can assure you, its important enough to lose him for that many years," Reech responded.

  "Perhaps one day you'll finally let me in on why," Blaine snapped back in anger. He stood up out of his chair as well, and began to leave.

  Rocko woke up in his bed inside Nocturne. The days lately had produced much anxiety for him. He knew that Marin had his suspicions. He knew that Loid was watching him at random times. The event about a month ago that forced him to rebuild the wall left so many unanswered questions for them.

  Today was Wednesday. It was a midweek day that Phil and Rocko got to enjoy off from work. Specifically though, it was the second Wednesday in the month, and that meant Rocko knew a letter from John Reech would be delivered today for him to read.

  Rocko used to be just as excited about his days off as Phil was, but the stress of trying to avoid anymore suspicion towards him left him feeling tired. Phil flew out of bed, his bone skinny body eager to inhale breakfast and enjoy a day of playing cards, throwing ball, or partaking in any other activity that didn't involve work with Fern.

  Both of them headed down to breakfast, where most of the other castle dwellers were after waking up for the day.

  Rocko piled on some waffles and bacon. Phil gathered eggs, sausage, and buttered toast. They sat together as they ate, something that had been a constant every day without fail. Despite not being brothers, anyone who knew of them could swear they were.

  "Hey Rocko, do you still remember when you first saw me?" Phil asked as they ate.

  "Yeah," Rocko quickly replied while putting cut waffles into his mouth. His eyes scanned the dining hall as he ate.

  "I was trying to get some food out of the trash behind that meatball restaurant," he explained.

  "I remember."

  "And you bought me a meal inside the restaurant!" He continued in amazement.

  "It was raining out. You looked pretty pathetic," Rocko responded with a smile on his face. Smiles were rare for Rocko to show these days, but Phil would always be the one to bring those out.

  "Then we did a lot of travelin'. Walked for days and days. You always made sure I had food though, so I was okay with following you."

  "Are you happy you stuck with me?"

  Phil looked at his best friend, then down to the gourmet plate piled with the best food one could consume. He had come a long way from where he once was, and that was due to both Rocko leading him to the northern village, and then Marin for bringing them into the castle.

  "It… It was the best decision. Ever!"

  After they ate their fill, both of them left the dining hall. Phil was ready to spend a few hours playing pool, but Rocko pulled him aside.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  "I'm gonna check the mail. Head on down to the tavern, I'll be there soon afterwards," he said.

  Phil wasn't pleased with the statement.

  "I'll go to the mailroom with ya!"

  "No. Go on. I'll be there soon."

  Phil scratched the back of head, but then agreed and turned down a different hallway. Rocko looked around in his usual paranoid manner, then proceeded to the mail room.

  He kept his head down as he walked to an area he spent little time at on his own. When he arrived, others were already mailing new envelopes out at the desk, and others were opening P.O. Boxes down a wide hallway.

  Rocko squeezed by people as he approached his own box, no easy task at his size. When he finally made it, he produced a small metal key from his pocket. While trying his hardest to keep himself as inconspicuous as possible, he unlocked a small door mounted to the stone wall.

  He peered inside.

  There was no envelope. The small box was entirely empty.

  He stared for a few moments, almost hoping that the letter would suddenly appear in his vision. This was not good. Reech had never ever missed an appointed mail day. He even paid extra for guaranteed on time delivery.

  Rocko looked around to see if anyone was staring at him. When he confirmed no one was, he closed the P.O. Box, and got in line to the mail desk. Other kingdom citizens were holding envelopes and packages that they were looking to mail out.

  He broke out into a nervous sweat as he imagined some worse case scenarios as to why the letter was not there. Most likely though, the mail workers were late to get to his box. He just wanted to confirm the idea, and perhaps pick up the letter for himself.

  It wasn't a possibility in his mind at all that Reech had been late. He would never be.

  When Rocko was next, he saw that the postmaster was manning the desk for the current hour. The middle-aged man's eyes widened behind glasses when he saw him.

  "Mail for Rocko Felerin?" He leaned in and said quietly.

  "Ah, n-no. No mail for you today," he nervously stammered.

  Rocko stared at him for a second. "You won't check?"

  "I already did," he replied.

  This was very bad. Rocko looked beyond to the shelves on the back wall in thought as other mail workers shifted stacks of papers around. He wanted to say something else, maybe even plead, but it started to occur to him exactly what was happening, and a lot of it was due to the postmaster's inability to not look guilty as hell.

  "Okay then, thank you."

  Rocko got out of line.

  His mail had finally been intercepted. It was only a matter of time before the walls would close in on him. As he walked down the hall, he panicked. He began wondering what he would do. Once Marin or Loid read what was in the letter, it would indict him instantly.

  When Rocko was out of sight from anyone's view, he began running to the back of the castle. He was likely to run into less and less people the further in he got, as not many spent time in the deeper sections of Nocturne.

  Eventually, he reached the arch that went into the hinterlands of the castle. Only a few guards had been out there, but none had taken notice of him running towards a certain direction. He hugged the back wall of the castle outside as he tried his hardest not to get spotted by the guards stationed in the higher posts.

  He finally sneaked into a crevice in the back walls, and to the spot where he had been building his stone golem on and off for months now.

  It was gone!

  Rocko's jaw dropped. "No. No, no!"

  There was still snow tracks and markings where the golem had stepped forward, and clashed with both Marin and Loid the other day. It was apparent to him that someone had found it, and it activated itself from the dormant state he had it in.

  Rocko grasped his bald head in total despair.

  It was over for him. He had been found out. His only weapon of protection was also gone, and he had no idea if it had been destroyed or majorly displaced.

  There was nothing else he could do. Loid was bound to be looking for him right now. He had to leave. He had to flee the castle, and abandon his post.

  He wouldn't leave Phil. He had to go get him. Phil had become so much to him. Five years ago, he had met the sorry kid begging for scraps and scavenging trash cans. Since that day he rescued him, he had become like a brother. While he thought he was just doing a kind thing and helping someone else who greatly needed it, Rocko hadn't realized that he was also rescuing himself from feeling alone.

  Rocko sprinted back inside the castle, eager to find Phil and get away immediately. The day was young, and there was a decent chance they could reach Whitewood City by the evening.

  Rocko had saved up a small pile of coin from the wages he earned, and it would be enough to purchase a room at an inn there for the night. From there, he could decide where they would go and what he would do.

  Rocko ran, but when someone closed in, he slowed to a fast walk and kept his head down. Every hallway he turned down, he gazed far ahead to see if the silver haired innkeeper was drawing near, or the King for that matter.

  Finally, he reached the tavern stationed near the front of the castle. It contained a bar where alcohol could be purchased, as well as fine cigars and other classy items. There were also pool tables and darts, where many of the kingdom citizens would go during their off hours to play and socialize.

  He spotted Phil immediately, already chalking his pool stick to break open a new game.

  Rocko ran up to him.

  "Phil, we have to go," he said suddenly.

  "What?"

  "Put the stick down, we have to go right now."

  "Go where?!"

  Phil had yelled that fairly loud. A few denizens glanced over at them. Rocko was adamant not to draw attention to himself. He grasped his friend, and walked him over to a corner of the tavern, where they could be alone.

  "We need to leave the castle, Phil. We need to leave the mountains," Rocko tried. He knew how jarring this was, and how hard it would be for Phil to comprehend, but he hoped that he would just listen to him, and try to understand later.

  "What do ya mean, leave the castle? You want me to go away?" He said, already sounding like his feelings were getting hurt.

  "Both of us! Let's get outta here! Let's go somewhere else."

  "Why?! I like it here!" Phil jerked his arm, freeing it from Rocko's meaty grip. "They give us yummy food. We have a big warm castle. I can play cards! Why do you want us to go?!"

  Rocko sighed. He wasn't going to strong arm Phil into also fleeing, even though it was looking like that was the case. He would greatly miss him, but Rocko knew it wouldn't be right to pry Phil away from everything he had here.

  "I can't be here anymore. That's what I'm sayin'. I'm gonna leave. If you want to stay here and not go with me, then fine." Rocko began to storm away.

  Phil was deeply troubled now. He shook in his shoes as he watched the only friend he ever knew walk away. After glancing back and forth from the pool table to Rocko, he finally threw the stick down and ran after him.

  "Why do you want to leave?! You want to leave Loid too? And the King? And this castle?!" Phil yelled.

  Rocko grabbed him again and gave him a firm hush to keep him quiet.

  "I can't tell you why right now, but I'm in danger."

  Phil gasped.

  "Not you!" Rocko made clear. "Me. And it's not a choice I can make to stay. If you go with me, I'll explain why later. But if you want to stay here, that's okay. I know that you have a good life here, and I don't want to take it from you."

  Phil didn't have many gears in his head, but they were all surely turning in this moment. This was a dire situation he was in, and he had to make a choice. He looked down silently, and completely still.

  A lot of time was passing. Time that Rocko didn't have.

  "Well…?" Rocko pressed. "Phil?"

  Phil had become like a statue. He had frozen in place, just as he had the very first time Marin met him halfway down the mountain. It was Phil's defense mechanism. If he was presented with a distressful situation such as this one, he didn't know what to do. He would just shut down.

  Rocko couldn't wait any longer. "Stay here, man. Have a good time. Maybe one day I'll see you again. Farewell, brother."

  Rocko began pacing away.

  "Wait!"

  Rocko turned around to see Phil running after him. "...Not all the best food in the world is better than my best friend! I'm gonna come with ya!"

  Rocko was joyous. A wide smile of relief overcame him. "Aye, I'm happy to hear it. Let's get outta here."

  Being at the tavern, they were already close to the front gates of the castle. They could easily book it to the main entrance and run down the road, leaving Nocturne for good. Just as they were about to do so, Rocko stopped.

  No. That would be far too obvious. If Marin or Loid read the letter soon, pursuing after them down the main road into White Forest would be the exact way they would search. No, they had to take an alternative route. One that would get them far from the main path and away from anyone who could try to find them.

  Rocko knew of the old woods to the left of the castle. Hardly anyone ever went out there. He could cut through there and get down the mountain a different way. That would be the best bet to not get tracked.

  Rocko turned towards a new direction. He would take the stables exit to make it out there.

  "Over here, Phil. Quickly. Let's go."