As Al entered the bus, his mother's words continued to echo in his head, "Please send letters, Al. I know you won't have access to the internet, and you can't take phones. But please stay in contact with your mom, my little man."

However, his thoughts were interrupted by the boisterous welcome from everyone on the bus, their voices blending in a chorus of greetings. "Hello and welcome, brother Alexander!" they exclaimed.

Al looked around, his smile awkward yet enthusiastic, "Hello, everyone! Thank you for having me!" he replied.

The bus filled with cheers, but amidst the excitement, Al couldn't help but notice a tall, slender boy sitting alone in the back. The enigmatic boy rolled his eyes at him.

Al smiled strangely and approached the seat next to the boy. As Al got close, he noticed the boy looking increasingly disgruntled.

With clenched teeth, the boy resentfully picked up his bag from the seat next to him and turned away.

Al sat quietly beside him, observing the boy's obvious disinterest in the trip. "He clearly doesn't want to be here. He might be the best choice for my plan," Al thought to himself, his shameless smile widening.

He turned his face towards the boy and softly said, "How does brother do?"

The boy refused to face Al and continued to gaze grudgingly out the window.

"I'm not your fucking brother, so don't call me that!" the boy retorted with hostility. Al was taken aback by the strong reaction, but inside, he couldn't help but be amused. He responded quietly, "Woah, easy there, so what should I call you then, tough guy?"

The boy's face twisted with anger at Al before a fat, balding man called out. "Please, Cesar, I don't want to keep reminding you the whole trip not to curse. Please be mindful."

Cesar reluctantly calmed down and continued to avert his gaze. However, Al was becoming more convinced that this boy, Cesar, would be the best person for his plan.

Trying to mend the situation, Al said, "Hey, look, I'm sorry. It was a bad introduction on my part. Let's forget about it. So, your name is Ceasar, like the Roman Emperor?"

Cesar frowned and was about to correct him when Al added, "My name is Alexander Adamos i'm Greek on my dad's side."

Cesar looked at him smugly and replied slowly, "It's Ceh-Sar, dumba... uh, duh dummy. You know, after the civil rights activist Cesar Chavez. I'm two-quarters Mexican from my dad's side."

Al stared at him silently, ignoring the word "dad." All he focused on was the term "two quarters." He reflexively responded, "You mean half-Mexican?"

Cesar looked at him as if Al was mentally slow. "No! I mean 2 quarters because that's all he's worth. He couldn't just talk things out; he had to send me away on a trip with a bunch of losers." Cesar spitefully said.

"Also, why am I even talking to you?" Cesar said before adding, "I just want to be left alone for this whole trip. I don't even believe in this stuff,". The fat man glared at Cesar but chose not to say anything.

Al lowered his voice, making sure others couldn't hear him. "Don't worry. I don't believe in this stuff either." He looked around and continued, "Anyway, you're the only other person around my age here. I am 18. Everyone else here is at least over 30."

Cesar scoffed at what he was hearing. "I'm here only because my parents sent me off while I was still 17. You don't believe in this stuff, yet you're here? You're definitely some freak. Get the hell away from me before I get that fat man over there involved." Cesar whispered, his voice filled with disdain, as he looked at Al in disgust.

Al chuckled and thought about what it would be like if he actually chose to go on the pilgrimage. Maybe he and this skinny, rage-filled boy would become good friends. But he dismissed the idea and thoughtfully replied to Cesar, "Looks like your parents got you good. Anyway, I came here to help my mom. The vanishing really affected my family."

Cesar's eyes lit up when he heard Al mention the vanishings. He wanted to say something but was still set on ignoring Al, whom he found very annoying. Al continued, "You wouldn't believe the things I've seen. No one can."

Cesar cut Al off, "Better know who you're talking to. I've seen these so-called vanishing's with my own two eyes."

Al's face grew pale. He stuttered as he asked Cesar to elaborate on what he had witnessed. Relishing Al's sudden loss of composure, Cesar began to paint a picture.

"Long ago, when I was 10, my older brother Tony, who was 13, and I would play outside way past our curfew. Our favorite place to go was the closest park near our house. None of our friends had come on this particular night, so it was just the two of us," Cesar explained, his voice carrying a mix of intrigue and nostalgia.

He paused momentarily, glancing at the new arrivals in the bus, but Al's focus remained solely on the story being unfolded.

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Cesar recounted, "As I was emptying my bladder in the park's restroom, a booming buzzing noise filled the air, nearly deafening me. When I came out, I saw my brother levitating mid-air, being pulled by a U.F.O." Another pause followed. Cesar enjoyed the suspense he created, but Al's expression was confused this time.

Cesar concluded his story, "I'm sure those who have vanished are still alive in some mothership. I'm also not surprised the government is trying to cover it up. They know they are absolutely powerless against forces like that, so telling the public would only cause fear and panic. When I tried to tell people what happened, they all dismissed me. The cops labeled it as a kidnapping,"

Cesar's expression was proud, as if he had unveiled a hidden truth known only to a select few.

Behind Cesar's proud facade, Al saw something familiar—the pain of losing someone close only to have people question your sanity. Calmly, Al asked, "So, you really believe that 1.5 billion people, including presidents and billionaires, have been abducted by aliens?"

Cesar clenched his teeth, momentarily losing his composure before regaining control. He responded with conviction in his voice, "I know what I saw that day and what took my brother... As for everyone else, you've got me there."

He waited anxiously for Al's response. This was the moment when others would usually distance themselves from him.

Al's smile softened, causing Cesar to frown and turn away.

"Hey, man, I believe you," Al reassured him. "Trust me, I probably understand you more than you know."

Cesar was dumbfounded by Al's response, quickly recovering his usual furrowed eyebrows and pouty mouth.

"Are you mocking me? Explain how you could understand," Cesar demanded.

Al took a few seconds to gather his thoughts. This time, he was the one building up the suspense. In any other situation, he would have kept quiet, knowing that talking about such things would likely be met with disbelief and accusations of insanity.

It would be like talking to a wall that kept trying to tell you it wasn't a wall. Now, here in front of him was another person talking to walls.

As the bus picked up more passengers, Al noticed nobody was paying attention to their conversation. The bus had erupted into sing-alongs, creating a loud backdrop to their discussion.

Cesar, growing impatient, remarked, "Boy, you really are trying hard to come up with something good. I don't understand why some people feel the need to lie."

Before Cesar could turn away, Al made up his mind. With a pained expression on his face, he began to speak. "Over three months ago, me and my best friend..."

As Al finished recounting his story, the bus approached the airport. Al had shared most of what had happened, and Cesar's initial skepticism had faded. He didn't fully believe Al's account, but he could see the genuine pain and sorrow in his eyes.

Cesar let out a soft chuckle. "If what you're saying is true, the aliens that abducted my brother might be related to these dark acolyte things."

Al slowly lifted his gaze to meet Cesar's eyes, which were filled with a newfound sense of optimism. At that moment, Al realized that the two of them still held onto naive hope.

Despite the short time they had spent together, the feeling of familiarity between Al and Cesar grew. Al couldn't help but feel bad Cesar was being forced to go on this pilgrimage.

"I'll probably see him again anyway. After a month or so, I'll meet him to give him the rest of the money. I can ask him how the trip went," Al mused, a hint of a smile on his lips.

After a long pause, Al said, "Yeah, maybe the two are connected somehow. Too bad we'll probably never know. Anyway, there's something I wanted to ask you..."

Cesar cautiously replied, "Please, don't tell me you really are some freak after all."

Al smirked at his joke and casually said, "Well, as you've mentioned, you're not 18, so you don't have a choice but to go on this thing." Cesar frowned, "What's your point?"

Al smiled suspiciously, "I, on the other hand, am 18, and I don't plan on taking this little trip all the way. However, I need my mom to think that I did go."

Al opened a metal lunch box from inside his bag and pointed at the envelopes and a small folded-up paper inside.

Looking directly at Cesar, he asked, "Do you understand where I'm getting at? Also, don't worry, you will get paid."

Cesar was baffled, but before he could reply, Al continued, "A thousand for accepting, and another thousand once I know you've completed this simple task."

Cesar was shocked. He couldn't believe he was about to make the easiest 2,000 dollars of his life. He couldn't pass up this opportunity.

"Wait, why would anyone do this? If you really were trying to make her happy, why wouldn't you just go?" Cesar asked surprisingly.

Al was caught off guard by the questions. He hadn't prepared a convincing answer. However, before he could come up with something, Cesar spoke again, dismissing his previous questions. "You know what, just ignore all of that. What I really want to know is, what will you be doing that you want to hide from her?"

Al hesitated. He expected Cesar to agree when he saw the money and dismiss any suspicions. However, Cesar proved to be intrusively curious.

Al recalled Cesar saying he didn't fully believe his story.

Al had learned that sometimes the truth was more unbelievable than any lie he could conjure. Coincidentally, this was one of those times.

"I'm going to a secret training base to learn how to manipulate my Will to kill dark acolytes," Al speedily replied his face bright red. He recoiled at his own words, almost bursting out laughing at how ridiculous they sounded.

Cesar just stared at him, initially feeling mocked, but he remembered the story Al had just told him. He gave Al a wry smile before saying, "Right... Anyway, I'll do your little job, don't worry. You can give me the money and box right now, so it looks like I brought it. Also, Al, if you don't give me that other half when I return... Well, let's say dark messengers won't be all you'll have to worry about."

The bus arrived at the airport, and people started getting off to line up outside. Al turned to look at Cesar one last time and extended his hand. "You have my word." Al and Cesar shook hands in agreement.

Cesar chose to be the last person to exit the bus, watching Al walk towards the fat, bald man who was now outside. He looked down at the box, opened it to see money, and smiled.