

Guardian: Darkness Rising

Peter Houtman

Titles available in the Guardian trilogy

(in reading order):

Guardian: Protectors of Light

Guardian: Darkness Rising

Guardian: Darkness Rising

Be careful with your secrets...

Copyright © 2016 Peter Houtman

All rights reserved.

Once upon a time, not so long ago, the magical world of Lunaria was freed from corruption by the Bond of Light. The Master, who ruled over Lunaria with an iron fist, was defeated, and the Guardians returned home safely after restoring the balance between the Light and Dark.

These Guardians returned to their lives, and lived them to their fullest. There was only one rule that had followed them all the way home, one which they had to strictly follow: they could never touch the book that had brought them to Lunaria in the first place again. If the book was to be destroyed or its story to be read, it would possibly release its magic into the world, with unknown consequences.

The five Guardians successfully obeyed this rule for years, by finding new hiding places to hide the book from sight every once in a while, and moving it from attic to attic and from basement to basement as their lives went on. The book remained carefully and successfully hidden for twenty-five years, hardly ever touched and unread.

But, of course, the Guardians got children. And those children got older. And with age comes curiosity; the desire to investigate anything seemingly intriguing and mysterious. Of course we all know how that old and rather popular saying goes...

Curiosity killed the cat.

But, before we find out what happened to Lucas Riverdale, the boy who would be the one to discover the dangerous and yet mystical book, there is another story that needs to be told. The story you should hear first.

Because stories should be written in chronological order – and this particular story takes place four years before the book was rediscovered. Both stories will connect seamlessly at some point – don't worry. You will get to know everything about both; you won't miss a thing.

Now we, the Spirits of Light, invite you to join us and listen to this story. To watch as it enfolds in your mind – or, if you're imaginative enough, right before your eyes. It won't take too long, we promise.

Prepare yourself for another ride through Lunaria. And... we'd advise you to buckle up, because if you know what happened the previous time, you should know what's up next. This new road's going to be a tad bumpier than the one we went before, so be wary.

But be wary of one thing: once you've joined us, there's no going back...

I

The

Release

Runaway

Sunset on a late summer afternoon. Aside from the sounds of happy chatting and the clinking of glasses and cutlery coming from a few of the neighbourhood's backyards, everything was silent and peaceful. The residents of New York were preparing themselves for the coming night.

And nobody would've expected something bad to happen that night after the sun had gone down.

Marilyn, Mari for short, was fourteen and full of life. Her brown hair was cut short; Mari was a bit of a rebel, both in appearance and personality.

There was, however, only one thing Mari liked about herself: her eyes. Her left eye was blue, and her right one green, the colour of her father's eyes. A rare occurrence in human genetics she'd inherited from her grandmother. But to her parents, it didn't make her look any less pretty.

Now there might be several noticeable things about Mari, her family, and the reason why she was running away. Her parents had always had issues, fighting over the most useless things – but Mari had more or less put herself over that.

Her parents weren't the reason Mari planned on running away. The main reason she ran away was one of the main reasons teenagers often decide to run away: in hopes of finding their own happiness. Mari felt as if no one truly understood her, and she wanted to prove a point to her parents.

Of course, running away just because no one understands you might come off as a stupid idea. And... in most cases, it is.

But it wasn't Mari's fault. Well... it wasn't entirely.

When Mari was young – too young to remember, even – her father broke an important rule.

He'd snuck the book from one of his friends' houses to his own, to read the story to his daughter. Perhaps he felt pride, since the story was connected to the greatest adventure Mari's father had ever experienced, and wanted to pass it on to his legacy.

If only he hadn't done that, maybe Mari never would've left.

Because that night, the same night Mari's father read the story to her, something found the little girl. And it was not planning on ever letting go.

Inside her room, Marilyn was rummaging through her stuff, sorting out everything she'd need to survive while she was gone. Mari made sure not to bring along too much - she wouldn't be gone for long, after all, just long enough to prove to herself and her parents that there indeed was someone out there, someone who understood.

Mari waited for her parents to go to sleep before leaving.

Luckily, Mari's father was at work and her mother never went to bed all that late when she was alone. It wasn't long before Mari indeed heard her mother's footsteps coming up the stairs, entering the bathroom, and shortly afterwards entering her bedroom to finally go to sleep.

Mari waited a little more; just long enough to make sure her mother would be far enough asleep not to be able to hear her daughter's creaky bedroom window opening.

"I'll be back soon, I promise," Mari whispered, as she set foot on the roof – she felt the heat radiating from the tiles through the soles of her shoes.

Mari carefully slid down the drainpipe, which had been conveniently (or at least for this particular moment) installed right beside her bedroom window, and hopped off into the backyard.

There was one last person she needed to see before leaving town. And that person was Lucas Riverdale.

Mari dashed through the streets, careful not to stand out from the people that were out late partying, just arriving or leaving their friends' houses or just simply having fun.

As she neared Lucas's backyard, Mari decided to skip the backyard gate; she just simply hopped over the low fence and ran over to the oak tree that stood near the house.

Dropping her backpack at the roots, Mari started to climb the thick trunk, all the way up to the one branch that hung in front of Lucas's bedroom window, the branch she'd sat on so many times before.

But this time, it'd be different. This could possibly be the last time she'd ever sit on that branch. Because if she liked her new life enough...

...Mari wouldn't be coming back.

She knelt down on the branch, leaning forward just far enough to be able to knock on Lucas's closed window.

Hopefully, he was still reading a book or playing videogames. Or anything similar that kept him up at night. Lucas was a true night owl, and his parents often had to 'threaten' him with taking away the things that kept him up to get him to sleep.

And luckily for Mari, Lucas was indeed still awake. After a few more knocks, the curtains moved aside, and Lucas's face appeared behind the glass. His red, slightly curly hair was a mess, but that wasn't anything new to Mari; his hair was always a mess.

He looked confused at first, but grinned as soon as he saw Mari's smile, and quickly opened the window.

"Hey, little bat," he said. "Out for a night fly again?"

"Oh, I wouldn't know, Luke," Mari grinned. She was tempted to use his nickname, 'Skywalker', which was an obvious reference to Luke's favourite movie series, but she decided to leave it.

"So... what are you up to at this hour?" Luke said. The thirteen-year-old smirked at her; a mischievous glimmer shone in his eyes, as if a dozen tiny stars were floating around in his irises.

"Well..." Mari said slowly. She thought she'd prepared this well, thought out exactly how this conversation would go. But now that it came to it, she had a hard time thinking of what to say. "I just stopped by to say goodbye to you," she said; the confusion on Lucas's face was instantly visible.

"You're... leaving?" he said. "But – why? And where will you go?"

Mari shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "Wherever my luck takes me, I guess.

"...You could come with me, if you want."

Luke bit his lip. "I..." He sighed. "I just don't understand why you'd even want to run away in the first place. I mean – you've got everything you could possibly want, right?"

Mari shrugged. "I know it seems selfish to just run off like this," she said, "but staying here just doesn't... feel right. There's this voice inside my heart and head telling me there is more to life than this.

"I can achieve more than this, Luke."

"Mari, you're fourteen! You've got plenty of time to achieve more than you have now!" Luke exclaimed, quickly lowering the volume of his voice out of fear of his parents hearing him. "Don't you get it? We're kids, and we're not supposed to be on our own yet!" He let out a sigh.

"Please, don't leave. Go home, Mari. And stay there until you know what you want. You know, when you're sixteen, or maybe even eighteen, you'll be much more prepared for the outside world.

"Maybe then you'll be able to run away and make it on your own.

"But not now, not like this."

Mari's eyes were confident, and that reflected in the way she spoke. "What makes you think you've got the right to judge? You're thirteen."

Of course, Lucas disagreed. "Mari, you're spouting nonsense."

"No, I'm not." Marilyn was still showing off that kind of confidence Luke loved about her – it was just her insufferable stubbornness that often managed to set him off.

"Yes, Mari," he said decisively, "you are. As much as I respect your love for adventure – I must say that I envy it, even – this is ridiculous. You've got to draw a line somewhere."

Mari rolled her eyes. "Really, Luke?" she said. "You're saying I'm reaching over my limits?"

"Should I remind you about your age?" Lucas said. Deep down, Mari knew he was right. But she just wanted to make sure Luke got her point, and that's why she decided to keep arguing.

"I know I'm young, and therefore, I actually shouldn't be doing this," Mari said. "You don't have to remind me. But I have to do this. For myself." She patted her chest confidently as she spoke.

"If you really want to go, then I won't hold you back," Lucas said. "But remember, there are people who care about you Mari, who will be hurt when they find out you're gone.

No matter how careful you announce you'll be gone. They won't care if you explain the exact route you'll be taking. You'll be gone, Mari. And they'll miss you.

I'll miss you."

Mari offered Luke a smile. "Hey, don't worry about it," she said. "I won't be gone for long; you'll see me again soon. I promise."

She quickly hugged him before climbing down the trunk. She'd made a promise; she'd be back soon.

But Mari didn't keep that promise. She never came back.

Luke, however, didn't care. He waited for Mari to come back for four years, and even tried to go after her multiple times. But he always came back home, because after all, he was only a boy with nowhere to go, and didn't know where to look to find his friend.

Where had Mari gone? Was she still in town, hiding somewhere, or had she left? Weeks became months, and months became years. And it took those years for Luke to finally accept that Mari was not coming home.

He'd tried to assist the police and Mari's parents in their searches, but how do you find someone who doesn't want to be found? Despite being young, Mari was clever. She knew how to blend in with a crowd without drawing too much attention to herself. It was possible that she'd skipped town completely, even.

New York was a big city, one you could easily get lost in.

She never returned to school, or any other public place where it was possible for people to recognize her. It was almost as if she'd vanished from the Earth's surface.

But what neither Luke nor anyone else – not even Mari herself – could've possibly known or guessed, was that Mari would return in the fall, four years later.

Four Years Later

It was the beginning of autumn break, four years after Mari had left.

Now, four years later, Luke was in his senior year of high school, but he didn't care much about school or his grades. It isn't uncommon for seniors to stop caring about their grades – at least until the final exams come around the corner –, but Luke had stopped caring four years ago.

He hadn't heard from Mari ever since she'd left, and part of him couldn't help but blame her for it. All of his messages and calls had been left unanswered, and she'd never even made any kind of attempt to contact him herself.

Luke figured that maybe Mari truly had found what she'd been looking for, and forgot about him. He didn't really care anymore, anyway. Luke just hoped Mari had found happiness, whatever that meant to her.

Her parents had been fighting more often since she'd disappeared, trying to find out what had caused her to run away. Their discussions regarding what had been the cause had always ended in fights; eventually, they decided to divorce, and Mari's father left the neighbourhood to search for his daughter.

Mari really hadn't considered how she'd be affecting everyone's lives – but at least she was happy, or at least so everyone hoped.

Luke had decided to check on the attic to see if there was anything from his childhood related to Mari. He'd done so plenty times before, but his father always caught him just when he was about to find something. For some reason, James didn't like his son snooping around on the attic.

And the reason for that, of course, was the book that lay hidden there. And James wanted to prevent his children from finding it at all costs.

Luke climbed up the attic stairs, holding a flashlight in his right hand. The attic did have a regular light; Luke just needed the flashlight in order to be able to find it. He flipped the switch, and the light went on.

Over the years, a lot of stuff had been packed away on the attic. Mostly old toys or other things that belonged to young children. Luke had three siblings; he was the first-born of triplets, and his sister Emma was five years younger than him and his brothers.

Lucas was very close with his siblings. Through the years, they'd always been together in everything – except for high school, as they sister was in junior high by the time her brothers left high school.

There were plenty of things from their childhood that instantly recalled old memories of his siblings, but Luke hadn't come for those. He didn't even know if he had anything left that had belonged to Mari, but there had to be something, considering Luke and Mari had always been best friends.

Luke remembered the old vest Mari had once given him; it'd been her favourite, but she'd grown out of it over the years and simply refused to throw it away, so she and Luke had hidden it on the attic.

They had hidden it inside the old wardrobe – inside the sock drawer, so no one would find it. They truly believed that their parents would find it and throw it away back at the time.

Lucas knelt down, opening the wardrobe's sock drawer, and quickly found the vest. It was a deep purple colour; Mari's favourite colour.

But it wasn't just a vest Luke pulled from the wardrobe; as he tugged on one of the vest's sleeves, something rolled over the floor as the vest that had been wrapped around it came loose.

It was a book; it'd fallen open on the last page, catching Luke's eyes instantly. "What do we have here?" he mumbled.

"Believe?" Luke said, reading the word on the last page. "What's this?"

He closed the book and turned it around to look at its title. "Guardians of Light. I've never heard of it..."

Intrigued by both its title and the cryptic placing of the word 'Believe' on the last page, Luke wrapped the book inside the vest and took it downstairs...

...Only to run right into his father, who was just coming up the steps. And he didn't look happy.

"What were you doing on the attic, Luke?" James said. "I believe your mother and I have told you many times before that-"

Luke, irritated, cut his father off. "If we want something from the attic, we ask for it, blah blah blah," he grunted. "I know, Dad. I'm seventeen." A crooked grin crept onto his lips. "I just went up to get this old vest of Mari's. Nothing else."

James raised his eyebrows as Lucas showed him the vest. Had he recognized it?

"Can I see that?" he said, not revealing anything about his awareness of the obvious, poorly hidden object inside the vest. Luke reacted slightly surprised, but tried to play it cool by agreeing to show his Dad the vest – by folding it out in front of his chest, carefully hiding the book behind the purple fabric.

Luke instantly knew that his hiding tactics weren't working, but he remained hopeful.

But James had known Luke for longer than today; he knew his son was hiding something, and gently tapped his son on the chest, right on the book.

"Can I see that, too?" he said, grinning crookedly. "I know you're using that vest to hide something, Lucas."

Luke grunted loudly at the fact that he'd been caught. "Fine," he said, sounding very unwilling. He reluctantly took the book from underneath the vest and handed it to his father, whose eyes widened.

"Where'd you find this?" he said; he tried to conceal the surprise and fear in his voice, but didn't manage to do so all too well. "Luke, I need you to put this back where you found it. Now."

Luke wanted to get the book back from his father, but he pulled it close to his chest. "Promise you'll put it back, Luke. Just do it."

"Why, Dad?" Luke said, slightly flailing his arms. "I mean – it's just a book. What's the matter with it?"

"I'd love to explain everything about it to you, Lucas," James said, while looking at the book with worried eyes. "But I'm afraid I can't. I swore an oath that I'd keep this book a secret twenty-five years ago, and I'm not planning on breaking it."

"Dad," Luke said, "you're talking nonsense. As usual."

James looked at his son, his navy-blue eyes spouting fire. "I might be unreasonable sometimes," he said, "but at least I'm doing everything I can to protect you. I can't tell you anything, Lucas. If I could've, I would've done so already."

Luke leaned against the wall, grinning mockingly at his father. "Oh, really?" he said. He knew he was on the verge of pissing off his father – he was being an ungrateful little brat, and he knew it, but sometimes his father just needed to be put on the spot. Luke never understood what the fuss was all about regarding the attic.

When he was little, his father used to tell Luke and his brothers Theodore and Ian ghost stories to keep them away from the attic. As innocent and gullible as they were, the three boys truly believed it was haunted for the first twelve years of their lives.

Their father was a very convincing storyteller; no wonder he wrote children's books for a living. His father had a great love for books, which had started somewhere in his childhood.

His study, where he'd often spend the entire day working on a new book if inspiration struck him, was filled with bookcases. And all bookcases were nearly full. So this book, being left abandoned on the attic wrapped inside an old vest, surprised Luke greatly. Why wasn't it somewhere on the shelves in his father's study? What was so bad about it, that it had to be hidden?

James's eyes continued to spout fire. "Yes," he said. "Really."

He looked at the book again. While his head was down, his eyes shifted towards Luke. "You know what?" James said. "I might just keep this in my study, to make sure you won't go back upstairs to get it."

Luke let out a loud, irritated sigh. "Really, Dad? The Lock-away punishment?" His father nodded.

"Exactly. The Lock-away punishment."

The Lock-away punishment was a particular punishment Luke's parents had created for the times when Luke or his siblings would develop a new 'obsession'. This would involve games that would be played until they'd start affecting grades, bedtimes or behaviour and pretty much anything that would do the same.

James would put the object necessary for the 'obsession' to 'persist and evolve' (in James's words – whether it was the TV remote or a video game disk) in a locked drawer in his study and allow limited access, until the problem that'd been caused by the particular subject had been solved.

It was an effective method, but sometimes seemed to come off to the children as exaggerated. But it did stop the kids from developing a certain attitude toward their parents – well, at least until they'd reached a certain age. Luke had developed a slightly rebellious and smart-ass-ish attitude, especially toward his father. What Lucas didn't know and James didn't want to admit, was that that James saw a touch of his own attitude from when he was twenty in his son.

But, James had matured, which meant that there was still hope for Luke to do so, too. Lucas was an intelligent boy, and it'd be a waste of potential if he proceeded to be a little brat through adulthood.

For now, it didn't look like Luke would change his ways any time soon, however.

"Come on, Dad! This isn't necessary!" Luke yelled, flailing his arms into the air. "I'm pretty sure there's nothing about that dumb old book that's too much for me to handle."

"That's not up to you to decide, Lucas," James decided, and walked off with the book, leaving Luke behind with Mari's vest in his hands.

"Ugh," Luke grunted. "Dad's always got to be the one to spoil the fun, now doesn't he?"

"Yes, he does," someone across the hall said. "If he doesn't do it, then who else would?"

"Theo!" Luke grinned; his brothers were coming out of their bedroom, and they'd probably heard every bit of the conversation Luke had had with James. "I guess you're right."

Luke's brothers looked fairly similar to him, although Theo's hair and skin were the darkest, and only Ian wore glasses; all three boys shared their father's navy-blue eyes and freckles.

"What's the problem, anyway?" Ian, the 'youngest' of the three, said, as he ruffled his dark red, curly hair. "I heard something about the Lock-away punishment."

Luke chuckled. "I found an old book on the attic, and Dad won't allow me to read it," he said. "He thinks it's dangerous or something – he said he swore an oath not to tell anyone about it."

Theodore snorted. "What!? You're being serious right now?"

Luke nodded, while wearing a smug grin on his face. "It's a true story," he said. "Dad's scared of a dusty old book."

"So, he locked it up, huh?" Theodore said, rubbing his chin. "It's a good thing Dad doesn't know we've found ways to get around the Lock-away punishment over the years."

Luke and Ian burst out in laughter. "What? We've never broken the punishment! I swear; we're innocent!" Ian laughed; he was shaking his head so heavily, that his circular glasses nearly slid off his nose.

"We should get it tonight," Luke whispered. His face looked like he was up for a little bit of mischief making. "We'll pick the lock to both his study and the drawer, just like we've always done – and then we can read it during our sleepover. When we're done, we'll return it before Dad wakes up. He'll never know that book ever left the drawer."

"The sleepover's tonight? Ian said. Oh, yeah – right."

Every first of the month, Luke, his brothers, and their friends held a sleepover. Mari and Daisy (a girl who was part of their group of friends) had been the ones to come up with the idea of the monthly sleepover, and as the teens got older, they continued the tradition in Mari's honour, as if she was still there with them. Sometimes, it came off as silly, as they were nearly adults by now, but no one seemed to want to stop the sleepovers, either.

And tonight would be no different. It was Luke's and his brothers' turn to host the sleepover this time, which gave them an extra advantage when it came to snatching the book.

The triplets' parents usually went to bed around ten. The teenagers were allowed to stay up until twelve when they were hosting a sleepover, which meant they could easily pick the lock of James's study without getting caught. Emma probably wouldn't betray her brothers if she caught them – right?

"Seems like a good plan," Ian said. "Don't let Dad find out.

*

Later that afternoon, the triplets and their friends decided to meet up in the park. It was cold for the time of year, but the sun was shining, which made the cold temperatures slightly more durable.

Without Mari, the main friend group consisted of seven teenagers; Luke and his brothers, their cousin Felicity and her brother Anthony (Tony for short, Marco, and Desireé (Daisy for short).

Daisy was actually the triplets' (and thus also Felicity and Tony's) second cousin, but the six teenagers never truly treated each other differently from their friends who weren't related to them.

You probably couldn't imagine yourself spending time with your cousins for at least five days a week, but that was regular business for the Riverdales, the Collins and the Bennetts. They were almost just as close as their parents were, and did pretty much everything together.

That didn't mean they didn't have any other friends – after all, Marco wasn't related to them -, but the teens simply preferred the company of family. It meant that they'd always have someone to rely on; it gave them a sense of safety no one else could provide. Other friends were just as good, but never as close. After all, Marco kind of felt like family, anyway.

There was a certain spot in the park where the teenagers preferred to hang out; underneath the big oak tree in the middle of the park, on the grass field. Whenever they met up in the park, the teenagers just simply spent their days sitting in the tree's shadow, exchanging news and telling jokes and stories.

And Luke had a particularly exciting story to tell.

"So guys, for tonight, I've got a special show planned," the redhead said mischievously. "But it's going to be a true endeavour to get to it. An... adventure, I'd say."

Intrigued sounds came from the others. "Why, really?" Marco said; his eyes were a calming grey colour, and his dark, curly hair was always messy. Marco was popular with the girls at school; his olive skin was soft, his hands big, and his jawline strong.

"It's a book," Theodore said, his navy blue eyes twinkling, "but a very special book. According to our dad, at least."

"Really?" Felicity said. "What's so special about it, then?"

"We don't know," Luke chuckled. "He started freaking out and took it from me before I got the chance to read it."

"He locked it up?" Marco said thoughtfully, sounding moderately surprised as he leant back on the grass. "I don't know dude. A book just doesn't seem worth all the effort to me."

"Oh, but it will be," Ian reassured him. "Why else would Dad take it away from us, just because he doesn't want us to read it?"

"I don't know," Luke said, and shrugged. His mouth pulled into a quick pout as he did so. "Adults just think we're a bunch of dumb teenagers, that's why." Everyone laughed; they were indeed dumb teenagers, but in a certain way, they were more mature than their parents believed them to be.

"Alright, we'll help you," Felicity said. She was nineteen years old, and therefore the oldest of her friends. Her dark blonde hair framed her face, just brushing her shoulders; her bangs nearly covered her blue eyes. Her face had a round shape – she was slightly chubby, like her mother had always been, but she wasn't fat, either. "What do you require us to do?"

"You guys just need to stay as quiet as possible," Luke said smugly. "My brothers and I can handle this problem by ourselves."

"What about Emma?" Tony said, his blue eyes reflecting worry. His hair was short and brown, combed up in a cow-lick. He was just as tall as Ian, which could be considered tall for his age, as he was only fourteen. "I mean – she's going to want to take part in this. There's no way your little sister is going to miss out on a chance to bust your ass to your parents."

Ian, Theodore and Luke looked at each other. Tony had a point – their sister usually threatened to tell on her brothers to get them to do her bidding. She was, as quoted by Ian, 'small, yet terrifying.'

"We'll take care of her," Luke said decisively. "And of Mia, too."

Luke was referring to Marco's younger sister, Mia. She was ten years old, and almost just as sneaky as Emma. Marco often blamed his sister's snarky attitude on Emma's company.

"That's right... there's going to be two of them to keep watch of," Theodore sighed. "Why do they have to have their sleepover on the same days as we do?"

"Probably because our parents don't want screaming children in their house for two nights a month," Marco suggested, "which frankly, I can understand."

The others couldn't help but chuckle.

"I mean – come on," Luke suddenly said. "We're not going to let those two little tell-tales stand in our way, now are we?" He flashed a mischievous grin "I mean – their average age is eleven, and ours is-" he took a moment to count the numbers in his head – "at least fifteen. So what's stopping us?"

His friends couldn't help but agree with him. Luke had a point.

"We're not letting those two brats get to us this time," Luke said decisively, crossing his arms and leaning back against the trunk of the tree he was sitting in front of. "If necessary, we'll find a way to keep them quiet. Perhaps they won't be much trouble after all."

The others agreed with him.

"You're right, Luke," Daisy said. "There's a certain chance the girls won't even find out what we're planning to do.

"If we manage to hide it from them and your parents and don't run into more trouble, we should be able to handle this fairly easily."

The teenagers then proceeded to make their plan of action for that night, and decided that after ten o'clock, they would wait for an hour before breaking in to James's study and get the book. Luke would pick the lock and go in to get the book, while his brothers stood watch. One of them outside the study, one of them in the upstairs corridor, to watch both Emma's and James's bedroom. The plan seemed perfect: if everyone played their part properly and did everything they ought to, nothing could go wrong. The teenagers would simply have a peek inside the book and have it returned to James's study before they went to sleep.

And, knowing Luke really wanted to know the contents of the book, he wouldn't let Emma, Mia or anyone else get in his way.

Release the Magic

It was eleven o'clock, and that meant that it was time for the teenagers to execute their plan. The teenagers had successfully hidden their plans from everyone outside their friend circle, and thus they could proceed with their plans according to planning.

As soon as everyone was in position and Luke got the message that the coast was clear, Luke pulled out the bobby pin he'd always specifically used to pick the lock to his father's study. It took him a few turns, but eventually, the lock clicked and the door swung open when Luke pushed the handle.

eir plans from everyone outside their friend circle, and thus they could proceed with their plans according to planning.

As soon as everyone was in position and Luke got the message that the coast was clear, Luke pulled out the bobby pin he'd always specifically used to pick the lock to his father's study. It took him a few turns, but eventually, the lock clicked and the door swung open when Luke pushed the handle.

Luke went inside to snatch the book from the drawer; he'd need another pin to pick the drawer's lock. If everything went according to plan, he'd be upstairs reading the book with his friends within just a few minutes.

Luke had little trouble picking the drawer's lock; he was surprised how easy it actually was for him to best his father. Luke was convinced that his father should've known about his sons' tactics by now, but apparently, James still didn't.

Or perhaps James was still relying on his boys to be the better person and not break the rules at any given opportunity. If that was the case, then James was failing miserably.

Luke and Theo, who had been waiting for his brother outside the study, walked upstairs, and entered their bedroom together with Ian as they met up with him halfway through the hallway.

But as soon as Luke entered the bedroom, he froze.

In the middle of the room (originally two rooms, but James had broken away the wall that separated the rooms so the three brothers could share one room) stood Emma and Mia. Luke's friends quietly sat on the bed.

"You were scheming again," the taller girl with chestnut brown hair and piercing blue eyes said to Luke, "and you decided not to invite us?

"You disappoint me, brother."

Luke sighed and rolled his eyes. "I'm not playing this game again, Emmy," he said. He exchanged a look with each of his brothers. "We promised we'd take care of them..."

"...And that's exactly what we're going to do," Theodore said, as he walked forward and flung his sister over his shoulder. "You're coming with me."

"And you're coming with me," Ian said to Mia. The girl was quite a bit smaller and lighter than Emma was, but Ian still had some trouble getting her off the ground – mainly because her nails were sharp, and she wasn't afraid to use them.

"We're here to negotiate!" Mia protested, her dark brown eyes spouting fire and her short curls dancing around her head aggressively. "You have to give us a chance!"

"Be quiet!" Luke hissed at her. "If you wake up our parents, we'll end up in trouble. We don't negotiate with children." He then straightened his back and said to his brothers, "take them away, boys. And keep them quiet. Try to lock them inside their room or something – this sleepover is ages thirteen and up only."

Ian and Theo then proceeded to escort the two girls out of the bedroom. "This isn't fair, Luke!" Emma said. "You'll regret this!"

"Sure thing kiddo," Luke said, disinterestedly stretching his arms. "Alright, then," he said and sat down beside his friends. "Let's do this then, shall we?"

He waited for the encouraging nods that came from his friends until opening the book; something which could have been considered to be the biggest mistake of his life.

Nothing happened while the teenagers read the first few pages – but Luke got distracted due to impatience. It would take them hours to read the entire book – and Luke wanted to show his friends the weird last page and return the book to his father's study before he'd wake up.

So, obviously, Luke skipped to the final page straight after finishing the first chapter.

"Why'd you stop reading?" Tony said, while taking a closer look at the page. "What's that?" he said.

"Believe," Felicity said, reading the word aloud. Both she and Tony had reached forward, and had one of their hands touching the page briefly.

Daisy did the same thing, as she said, "I think it's some kind of message. But what does it mean?"

The last touch required was Marco's, who took the book on his lap to inspect it more closely. "What if there's some kind of invisible ink on this page, or maybe something else?"

But Marco never got the chance to find out if there were any secrets. As soon as his hand made contact with the page, the black, inked letters glowed bright white, sending an energy blast around the room powerful enough to knock everyone back against the wall.

Ian and Theo, who'd just walked back into the room, were sent flying into the hallway, slamming against their parents' bedroom with a loud thud.

And the only reason James didn't wake up from the loud thuds that were heard just outside his room, was because something – or someone – kept him asleep. While Anna rushed outside to see what was going on, James was having an important conversation with an old friend.

*

"James? James. I need to speak with you."

James found himself in a familiar place, except for the fact that the last time he'd been there, the place had been broken into ruins. The Castle of the Spirits.

"Akilah?" James said. "What's the matter?"

They hadn't spoken for twenty-five years, and the only reason was because Lunaria had been at peace for all that time. The fact that Akilah contacted James now, through the small piece of Lunaria's Light he carried inside his soul, meant that something bad had happened. Or was about to happen. Or both.

Either way, it involved James and his friends and family in some sort of way – why else would Akilah contact James?

"I am sorry for contacting you this sudden, after never having done so for twenty-five years," Akilah said. Her face looked serious and in peril. "But we require your assistance once again, Guardian. The Master will rise again, and without your help, we won't be able to stop him from taking over Lunaria again."

"What do you mean, 'he will rise again'?" James said confusedly. "I thought Sabrina killed him!"

"She released his soul from his mortal body, yes," Akilah said. Her eyes were closed. "We secured his body in a safe environment. But if his wretched spirit somehow regains access to it... we're all lost."

James looked at Akilah with unbelieving eyes. He didn't know what to say. The Spirits of Light, who were known to be almighty, were requiring his assistance? What about his friends? What was he going to tell them?

James was certain his friends were just as reluctant to return to Lunaria as he was.

But, if Akilah and the other Spirits truly needed them... then that meant they'd have to go back.

One last time.

"With what do you exactly require our assistance?" James said. "Can't you just burn the body, so you'll know for sure that the Master won't be able to repossess it?"

Akilah glared at James; he knew the Spirits had probably already tried something similar. But apparently, it hadn't worked. "His body is protected by a powerful spell," Akilah said. "Only a Spirit is able to destroy another Spirit. Whether a demi-spirit or not."

James rubbed his chin; he hadn't noticed he was wearing his Guardian's attire until then. "So... that's where we come in, huh?" he said. As expected, Akilah nodded at him.

"Yes," she said, sounding slightly disappointed and angry, "but it's not just you and your friends this time. Someone has released the Book's magic, James."

James's eyes widened. He instantly knew who was responsible for releasing Lunaria's magic; his sons were in big trouble when he woke up. But, because he was also worried for their safety, he asked Akilah, "What will happen to them?"

Akilah briefly closed her eyes. "They will join you on your quest to save Lunaria," she said. "And... I believe you know the young teenagers that released the magic, don't you, James?"

James closed his eyes and scratched his neck. This was something he couldn't deny. "...Yes. They're my sons."

Akilah shook her head. "I don't believe it's just your sons," Akilah said. "There were five hands required to release the magic. There were two girls and three boys, James. Your friends' children will be involved in this too, I am afraid."

James stared at Akilah; his mouth was open, and he couldn't bother to close it. "...Can't you protect them?" he said slowly. "Like – can't you grand them clemency? They're just kids!"

"I'm sorry, James," Akilah said. "I can't. They released Lunarian Magic, and now they will have to fight for their freedom, just like you and your friends once had to. I can't change anything about that."

James bit his lip. "Alright then..." he said. "How much time have we got?"

"Twenty-four hours," Akilah said. "You have twenty-four hours until the magic brings you to Lunaria." She paused and nodded. "Good luck, James. Until we meet again."

James bowed down in front of Akilah. "Until we meet again, Akilah," he said – the last thing he could say before waking up.

*

When James opened his eyes, he instantly heard the tantrum going on in the other room. Of course Anna had found the teenagers messing with the book, and she wasn't very happy about it.

James quickly made his way to his sons' bedroom, and found Anna scolding the seven teenagers – Emma and Mia were wise enough to stay out of this one. Ian and Theo were pleading innocent, but obviously, their mother didn't believe them. Her main target appeared to be Luke, however.

"Your father put that book away for a reason! We don't want you to get hurt, Lucas!" Anna scolded her son, who was sitting on the bed in front of her.

The guilt in Luke's eyes was clearly visible – he didn't know the full story behind the book, of course – but it didn't matter anymore now anyway. The magic had been released, and they were in this together. Whether they wanted to or not. "I'm sorry, Mum. I didn't know."

James, however, didn't react as angrily as his wife had. When he walked into the room, instead of scolding Luke, James stood in front of his son, and grabbed his shoulders.

"Luke," he said, "I'm sorry. We should've told you about the book, and the mysteries around it. I thought I was doing the right thing by not telling you, but..." he sighed. "Maybe telling you would've been a better idea."

"It's okay, Dad," Luke said. "We were being little pricks for getting the book from your study, anyway. Aside – if it hadn't been for that 'explosion' just now -" he made quotation marks in the air with his fingers as he said the word – "we probably wouldn't have believed you."

James nodded at Luke, and then looked at his wife.

"...I think I still don't believe you, honestly," Luke mumbled quietly, but James wasn't listening.

."We're going back to Lunaria," he said. "Akilah needs our assistance."

"You're going back?" Anna said, her voice filled with surprise and worry. "What about the kids? Samira? Your friends?"

"I'll have to discuss it with them today," James said slowly, while thinking out loud. "I'm not happy with it either. But Akilah believes the Master is at large, and we've got to help the Spirits to destroy him once and for all."

"Alright then," Anna said, "but... please bring the news to them with care," she said. "It's still dangerous there, especially if the Master is hiding somewhere. He's probably out for revenge."

"...Dad?" Luke said. "What are you talking about?"

There were similar looks coming from the others. No one knew about Lunaria, so no one knew what Anna and James were talking about, either.

James and Anna exchanged worried and insecure looks, before James finally decided to tell the five teenagers in front of them what they'd got themselves into.

"Well... this might sound weird," James said, "but twenty-five years ago, my friends and I were taken to a magical world because we read that same book as you."

Looks were exchanged on the teenagers' side. Were they believing James's story, or were they thinking he was crazy? The book had blasted them against the wall, after all. Not sure how they'd explain that other than 'magic'.

"We defeated the evil forces that controlled that world," James said, "although don't ask me how we did it, because I still don't know. But... that evil force is back, and we've got to fix it."

"What about us?" Felicity said, nervously running her fingers through her dark blonde hair.

"Yeah," Tony said, rubbing the puffy skin underneath his eyes. "Do we need to come along, or are we safe? I mean – we did touch the book..."

James swallowed loudly. "About that," he said. "Yes. You will have to come along with us. But... we're your parents, so you don't have to worry. We'll keep you safe."

He gave the teenagers an encouraging smile. "Now, go to sleep you guys. We'll discuss this tomorrow – if Akilah is right, then we'll be in Lunaria within twenty-four hours."

James and Anna left the teenagers alone; as soon as they were gone, Luke looked at his friends. "You don't believe this, right, guys?" he said.

"Why not?" Tony said. "It seemed all quite real." Luke responded with a dismayed snort.

"Magic?" he said, flailing his arms around. " 'My friends and I were taken to a magical world because we read a stupid book and we defeated an evil force without knowing what we were doing'." He mocked the sound of his father's voice, adding a nasal quality to it. "I mean – come on! Dad's just messing with us because we found the book, and he's pissed about it. He probably installed something inside the book because he knew we'd get to it."

"If I were you, I'd wait and see before making any assumptions," Theo told his brother. "I mean – both Mum and Dad seemed very upset. I don't think this is fake, dude."

Luke grunted. "You two don't have anything to do with it," he said, pointing at his two brothers. "You didn't 'touch the book'."

The two boys exchanged a shrug. "Do we?" Ian said.

"I don't know," Marco said. "We'll just have to wait and see..."

"We'll just have to go to sleep, you mean," Luke said, clearly starting to get tired of the conversation as he crawled across his bed, reaching for his pillow. "This will all blow over tomorrow."

"I hope you're right..." Daisy mumbled, as the other teens found their sleeping bags and beds to go to sleep. "I really do."

*

The next day, James organised a meeting with his friends at his sister's house.

This was a serious matter requiring discussion, and better within twelve hours. And, since Daisy was involved with the matter, James had decided to invite Lucy, too. She wouldn't be coming along to Lunaria, as she had no connection to Lunaria, but she did deserve the right to know where her youngest daughter would be taken. James had advised her to bring her husband Aton along too, but that was up to the two of them to decide.

James had made sure to bring the book to explain the situation.

As the group of adults sat down in the living room and James put the book on the coffee table, surprised gasps came from his friends.

"What's this about, James?" Bella said. "Did something happen to the book?"

"Well..." James scratched his neck. How was he going to bring this carefully? "Yes. They released Lunaria's magic upon themselves, and now they'll be joining us on our journey to Lunaria." He looked at his friends; as much as they'd changed over the thirty years the five adults had known each other, one thing that had never changed, were their expressions.

There was Samira, James's sister, curvy and short, her hair short and blonde, her blue eyes questioning. Thomas, her husband, still had a British accent, but now also strong shoulders. His hair was the same brown mess as always. Antonio was still the broad-shouldered, muscular blond guy he'd always been, his green eyes peering unbelievingly from behind his glasses. And then there was Bella, who had hardly changed; her body was petite, her eyes blue, and her hair dark. Lucy, despite being his cousin, somewhat resembled James; her red hair was up in a messy ponytail, and her dark blue eyes were worried.

"Wait," Samira said, while leaning forward toward her brother, as if she couldn't believe her ears – which was probably true, "What? We're going back to Lunaria?"

"You're kidding, right?" Thomas said, scratching his brown beard. "There's no reason for us to go back there. The Master's dead, the light is back, the Spirits rule again. We can't do anything more than that."

James leaned back on the couch, crossing his arms. "So thought I," he said. "But it turns out that there's a chance the Master might come back if he repossesses his body. The Spirits require our assistance to prevent that from happening."

"Alright, point taken," Thomas said. "There is more we can do. But how are we supposed to help with that? We hardly managed to defeat him! If it hadn't been for Sabrina, we would've been toast!"

"That's true," Antonio said. He'd been disinterestedly cleaning his glasses the whole time, as if he didn't care that he was going to have to put his life on the line once again. "But we're twenty-five years older now. We're not a bunch of stupid kids anymore."

"You're turning forty-five in February," Bella said smugly. "I don't know who's got more strength and agility, a nineteen-year-old or a forty-five-year-old, but I'd say the nineteen-year-old does have some advantage there..."

Antonio responded with a grunt. "Just shut up, Bella," he said. "I know I'm not what I used to be, but I can still be at least as strong as I used to be. For a while, at least..." His voice quickly died out to a grumpy grumbling sound.

James leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees. "Guys," James said, "you know the drill. Just go to sleep tonight, and we'll be on our way."

Lucy ran a confused hand through her long, dark red hair. "And you're sure there's no way out of this?" she said. "You're absolutely sure that you guys and your kids will have to go back there, for - who knows how long?"

James rolled his eyes, yet it wasn't a roll of annoyance. He was acknowledging his displeasure with the fact that there was no way out. "Trust me, if there would've been a way out of this, I wouldn't have called in this meeting in the first place," he said tiredly. "There's absolutely no way out. Believe me, I checked with Akilah. More than once."

Antonio fell backward into the chair he was sitting on, grabbing his head with both his hands. "Wow, man," he sighed. "Just - wow."

"And our kids know about all of this already?" Thomas said; confusion reflected in his grey eyes. "How – how did this happen? How – and why – and what did you tell them?"

"I told them carefully, without trying to scare them," James summed up the answers to Thomas's questions, "I told them because the book had gently thrown them against a wall after they'd touched it, and I told them about our adventure and the consequences that come with touching that book." He grinned. "So... nothing out of the ordinary, I'd say."

"And... how did they respond?" Samira said worriedly. "Did they take it well?"

"They did go a bit pale, I believe," James said. "But they'll probably be fine; I told them we'd be staying with them all the time and would protect them at all costs. Something which I believe is our duty as parents, am I right?"

The others nodded agreeing. It was their duty. And a duty they'd die for to fulfil, although they hoped heavily that it'd never have to go that far.

"I'd suggest we spend some time preparing them a bit for what's to come by allowing them to read the book," Lucy suggested. "That way, you guys have some time for yourselves to get your memories of Lunaria all together. There might be something you remember from your last visit that will bring an advantage for you."

"Lucy, you're brilliant!" James said, as he sat down on his knees and bent over the coffee table to draw his friends closer. "We can base a strategy on things that went well – things we should repeat – and things that went wrong and which we should avoid repeating at all costs.

This visit will be different and probably more dangerous – or not, who knows – than our previous visit, but if we take another look at our past victories and failures, we can learn from those."

The others agreed with him; while there'd been plenty of plans that had worked, many had failed. If they could remember what happened when their plans failed, they could work around that to make them work – hopefully.

It wasn't a foolproof system, but it sure was a good and useful system. James shortly left to return the book to the teenagers and explain to them what they had to do, before returning to his own crew and discussing strategies.

This war wasn't over yet. It'd only just begun – twenty-five years ago.

*

When Antonio drove home later that afternoon, he felt nervous. And not because of the grim future that lay ahead of him and his friends, but because he had to tell his ex-wife about it.

He hadn't spoken to her in three years, and she probably didn't have any interest in doing so now, but Antonio believed that Louise had the right to know what was going on.

As he pulled up in his ex's driveway, Antonio nearly had second thoughts, but as he began to back out of the driveway, the front door opened, and Louise appeared in the opening; her eyes widened in surprise at the sight of her ex-husband's car.

"Antonio?" Louise asked, trying hard to sound friendly as Antonio got out of his car. "What are you doing here?"

"There's... a situation," Antonio said, wearing a serious expression on his face. "We need to talk."

Louise, although clearly reluctant to do so, told her husband to come inside.

"Does this have anything to do with Mari?" Louise said. "If not, then I'm afraid I'm not interested.

"It's not about Mari, but it is about your family," Antonio said. "Well – your former family. Me."

"Isn't it always about you?" Louise said; she simply couldn't keep herself from making snarky remarks at her ex. Antonio paid it no mind.

"I have to go back to Lunaria, Louise," he said. "Do you remember that old story I told you shortly after we got together? It's happening again."

Louise set her jaw. "You're kidding, right?"

"Ah, of course," Antonio sighed. "You never believed that story."

Louise sipped from her coffee. She hadn't offered Antonio any. "I don't see why I should."

"Well, maybe because it's true?" Antonio snapped. "There are five people – no, seven people who've confirmed that everything I told you was true."

"Magic?" Louise mumbled. "Really, Antonio?"

"Then explain why me and my friends were gone for nearly an entire month," Antonio suggested. Louise shrugged; she couldn't really deny that as a fact.

"Well... even if it is true," she said, "then why are you going back?"

Antonio scratched his chin. "To finish off any unfinished business we had accidentally left," he said, and then stood up. "Anyway. If Mari comes back while I'm away... of if I don't come back, and she does... then tell her where her father went.

"And then tell her he's sorry that he wasn't there for her."

Antonio then turned around and left, leaving Louise sitting on the couch. She didn't even go after him; she simply listened to the screeching sound of Antonio's tires as they raced through the street.

Return to Lunaria

The adults had no time to take a break during the day. There was much to discuss – and that included making plans. It quickly turned out that no one truly had any idea what to do – after all, the adults didn't know what they would be up against. The fact that they would be forced to put their children in danger didn't help, either.

The adult Guardians spent the time they had left instructing their children on what to do when they got to Lunaria; just simply stay close to their parents and wait for further instructions.

Anna and Lucy promised James they would stick together. The two women knew their children would need someone to talk to. They'd had the same experience twenty-five years ago, so they knew what the teenagers were going through. The kids that stayed behind, for that matter, promised to take care of each other – nearly every teenager had a sibling they'd be leaving behind (save Felicity and Tony, as they were both part of the Bond of Light).

But eventually, night-time came, and it was time to go to sleep.

*

Unlike his previous visit, James was not the first to wake up this time, nor did he wake up in Keepers' Cove, as he'd originally expected. But, of course – why would the Spirits send him and his friends there? It made much more sense that Akilah would bring the Guardians to the castle.

James put on the clothes he found at the foot of his bed; it was his old Guardian's attire, but then brand new – and fit for his newfound broad shoulders. Obviously, the clothes he wore as the scrawny sixteen-year-old he'd been, never would've possibly fit him now.

As soon as he was dressed, James went out to explore the castle, in search of his friends – the room he'd woken up in had four more empty beds, so he instantly assumed that the others were already awake – and most likely waiting for him, too.

James felt curious as to what he was about to discover; the other Spirits, Akilah's siblings, would be there now, too. And since the Guardians had never met any of them – save Akilah, of course -, this was bound to become an interesting meeting.

As he walked around the castle, James took some time to appreciate its breathtaking beauty. A lot had changed in the past twenty-five years; as he looked out of the windows as he passed them, James could see that the Land of Light had been restored to its full glory. The light had been returned, and it was beautiful; it nearly made James forget why he was there.

He quickly tried to find his way to the Ritual Chamber, where he expected to find the others. It'd been a long time since he'd last set foot in this castle, and even then, he never got to see too much of it, which made him more or less worried that he would get lost quite easily.

But luckily, that didn't happen, and he'd soon found the room with the glass-ceiling.

As soon as James had been noticed, all five Spirits of Light rose from their seats. "James," Akilah said warmly, beckoning him. "We were waiting for you. Please, join us."

Before sitting down, James shook hands with the other Spirits; it was as if they were idolizing him. And maybe they were; after all, James had sacrificed himself for the sake of Lunaria.

"Welcome, Guardians and children," one of the Spirits said as James sat down. "You might not have been aware of it at the time, Guardians, but we've followed your every move from the shadows the last time you were here, and we must say we were very impressed."

The Spirit was looking young and boyish; his skin was a shimmering crystal blue, and his silver eyes glittered as jewels in his face. He had white freckles on his cheeks, and his hair was a messy bunch of silver strands with golden highlights. "I am the youngest of the Spirits," he said. "Ince, the Spirit of Innocence. And these are my brother and sisters."

"Why, thank you," Thomas said. "We are very honoured."

As James looked around the table, he noticed that all of his friends were dressed in their old clothes as well. Their children were dressed in clothes that were fairly similar to the parents', but still noticeably different.

"No, we are honoured," another Spirit said. She was a female with fair skin, and wavy, dark brown hair that was decorated with flowers. She quickly proceeded to introduce herself as Aoife, the Spirit of Life. "You risked your lives multiple times to save our world. If it hadn't been for you, our world would've been lost to the Master."

The Spirit who was sitting next to Aoife nodded. He had lavender skin and one dark blue and one golden eye, which darkened as he spoke. "But, I believe that Akilah has already told you that we need your help once more." He paused to look at Akilah.

"Aharnish is right," Akilah said. "The Master will rise again if we don't do anything. And now the Book's magic has been released, matters are worse than ever."

Luke shifted uneasily in his chair. He wasn't sure what to think of everything he saw; thus far, his father hadn't been lying. But... a world full of magic, and the balance between the Light and Dark of said magic being endangered? Unlike his father, Luke was always a person of ratio. He didn't think that magic could exist anywhere outside a storybook, and thus, he didn't think it existed here.

Akilah smiled at Luke, reassuring him a little. "This was bound to happen sooner or later, Lucas," she said. "Please, don't blame yourself for everything that has happened. For now, we should worry about the Master." Her expression darkened. "He has pulled someone from your world, someone you know. And the Master's going to use her against you."

*

Earlier that day

It was deep in the night, and now eighteen-year-old Mari was trying to fall asleep, but without such luck. And as she finally started to drift off, something woke her up.

"So... Marilyn Belluci. The girl I've heard so much about."

Mari opened her eyes at the sound of a deep voice saying her name. She didn't see anything but darkness at first, before noticing two glowing red eyes staring at her.

"Who... are you?" Mari said; as she looked around, she noticed she was no longer in her bed in her safe hideout – the mysterious figure in front of her had taken her outside.

"You could consider me... an old friend of your father's," the mysterious figure said; Mari wasn't sure whether it was just too dark to see or he didn't have a face at all. "What are you doing out here all alone, Marilyn?"

"...I don't know," Mari said, slightly hesitant. "I should be asking you. Why'd you bring me out here?"

The dark figure in front of Mari let out a deep chuckle. "Amusing," he said. "Don't you remember me, child? The face in your dreams? The voice that called you out here?"

Mari's eyes filled with confusion at first, but then the realisation hit her. When she listened closely, she indeed recognized his voice. The voice in her dreams had been a tad younger, friendlier too, maybe – but it was him.

"...Then you can answer my question," Mari said. "You said it yourself four years ago. You said that there was more out there. And I still haven't found what you told me to look for!" She finally decided to get up from the ground to face the figure in front of her. "Now, tell me, what did I leave my home for four years ago, break my parents' hearts for, leave my best friends behind for?"

Something of smugness appeared in the figure's eyes. "Why, Mari," he said, "for me, of course."

Mari frowned in confusion, defensively taking a few steps backward. "...What?"

"If you come with me, I can explain everything to you," the figure said. "There's a magical world, a world I once was proud to call my home." The figure lowered its glowing eyes. "But my brothers and sisters... they turned on me, and banished me. Took everything from me." Anger hinted about in that last sentence. "They used innocent humans to clean up their mess." He paused for a second, and the expression in his red eyes darkened. "And you know what, Mari? One of those humans was your father. And now they've taken him to clean up their mess again."

"What?" Mari said. "Who took my father?"

"Oh," the figure said, completely ignoring Mari's question. "I forgot to mention. They took that precious friend of yours, too. ...Lucas is his name, isn't it?"

Mari's eyes widened. "How do you know all of this?" she whispered. "I haven't seen my family or any of my friends in four years. So how would you know who and where they are, if even I don't?"

"Do you want proof?" the figure said. "Then come with me, and I'll take you to them. You can be happily reunited... if you help me with something.

"You'll get everything I promised you so many years ago, Marilyn. That's an oath."

Mari noticed that the figure stuck out a hand at her; he was made completely of shadows... but then... more like a solid shadow. "Now, will you join me?"

"Uh..." Mari said, hesitatingly, but took the figure's hand eventually. "Yes, I will," she said. "Sir..."

"Oh, please," the figure laughed. "Call me Asura. Or Master... whichever you prefer."

*

"That scumbag had the nerve to capture my daughter!?"

The Spirits of Light had tried to carefully share the news with the Guardians, by telling them who the Master had taken to Lunaria to help him with his dirty little plan – and Antonio didn't take it well.

His friends tried to calm him down as he rose up from his chair, yelling profanities that referred to the Master; the five children, who sat opposite their parents, watched silently, too afraid to utter a single word.

"Antonio," Akilah's voice bellowed over his anger, strict and strong. "Please behave yourself. We will do whatever it takes to save Mari; no harm will come to her, as long as you follow my plan."

"Well, you better tell me what that oh-so-glorious plan is then, before I grab a sword and go kill that guy myself," Antonio grunted as he sank back down into his chair.

"As much as we appreciate your enthusiasm, you know you can't do that, Antonio," the fifth Spirit, who surprisingly hadn't spoken a single word since James had entered the room. She had long, black hair with colourful streaks running through it, and bright blue eyes. "My name is Aine, Spirit of Joy, by the way," she said quickly, as if it didn't really matter. And, in the current situation it probably didn't, but it was important for the teenagers to know her name – it made asking questions and starting conversation so much easier if you knew each other's name.

"We can secure Mari's safety only if we get her away from Asura," Akilah said. "That's why we've been preparing something."

"We know that Asura, or, as you probably remember him, the Master, will be trying to invade the castle," Ince said, as he rose from his chair. "But he can't do it himself; the light that fills this Realm would instantly kill him in his current form. But, if he were to become a full-fledged Spirit or repossessed his body, he would be able to withstand the light – at least for a certain amount of time, and probably long enough to take over again if we don't do anything about him." He paused, just to make sure everyone was still following his story. "Now, we decided to lure him – or, at least, Mari – out, by hosting a masquerade ball in honour of your arrival."

Confused and worried looks were exchanged at the other side of the table, and intelligible murmurs came from the teenagers.

"Ah," Aoife chuckled amusedly. "Don't be afraid; we'll help you prepare for it. We're just hoping that Asura will send Marilyn to the ball, so she can find his body and take it to him – and then we can step in and save her, and find out what the Master is planning. There won't be anything serious about it, we promise."

"If you say so," Luke mumbled worriedly; the same worry was reflecting in the eyes of the two boys that were sitting next to him. None of the three could dance, which meant that a ball where they'd probably have to dance in front of a whole lot of people was likely to become a total disaster. They could hear the girls snickering beside them, and Luke the boys threw them a withering look in unison.

*

Of course, the Master hadn't missed the announcement about the masquerade ball that would take place that night. It was actually the reason he'd contacted Mari on Earth to get her to Lunaria that day; this ball was the ultimate opportunity for him to reunite with his body.

Mari could easily blend in with the crowd, and make her way to the chamber where the Master's body was kept, if she kept a low profile.

The Master had led Mari to a chamber in his castle – for some reason, the Spirits hadn't bothered to break it down in the past twenty-five years. Perhaps they hadn't considered the Master truly a threat until recently.

Mari was caught by surprised when she entered the room the Master had sent her to; the room was looking surprisingly friendly compared to the darkness that surrounded and filled the other rooms of the castle. The bed looked comfortable, with a dark oak frame and dark blue satin sheets. And on top of the satin sheets lay...

A dress, but not just any dress; it was a gorgeous, cobalt blue ball gown.

"What's that?" Mari asked, instinctively knowing the Master was still following her as she approached the bed and gently stroked the dress. She allowed the soft fabric to glide past her hands as she made notes of every detail in her head. "Is this mine?" she said.

"There are more dresses in the wardrobe," the Master said, pointing a foggy hand at the wardrobe that stood opposite the door. "...Less formal, of course, but this one's for a special occasion."

Mari turned around in surprise. "For what special occasion?" she said.

"The Spirits are throwing a masquerade ball tonight," the Master said; if he would've had a mouth, it would've shown a dangerous smirk right now. "I thought it'd be beneficial for the both of us if you went there... after all, you wouldn't want to miss out on a chance to reunite with your loved ones, now would you?"

Mari blinked her eyes in confusion. "...My parents will be there, too?" she said, slowly and bewilderedly. "But... how?" Then, she remembered their conversation from earlier that night. "...Will Luke be there, too?"

The Master nodded slowly – although it was hardly noticeable. "Yes. He will be there."

Mari lowered an eyebrow, causing one of her eyes to squint in suspicion. "There's something you want me to do at that ball, isn't there?" she said. The Master laughed in response. "You're learning quickly, young one," he laughed. "I'm impressed." He continued chuckling for a short moment before continuing. "Now let me reassure you that this won't be a very difficult task," he said. "All you've got to do, is take this stone to my body and place it on the brooch that was designed for it, and you're free to go."

The Master reached out a black hand, containing a tear-shaped red stone. Its surface was smooth, and the stone itself had a soft, red glow at its core.

"Go on," the Master pushed Mari, "take it. It won't hurt you."

Slightly hesitatingly, Mari took the stone from the master, without giving it or the hand she took it with another look. She quickly slipped the stone into her pockets, disregarding it from there.

"Very well," the Master said, as he left the room. "There will be a carriage waiting for you outside at sunset. Make sure you're ready by then."

The door clicked and locked as Mari looked around the room; there were no possible escape routes. The only window was very small and barred; aside from that, she was up too high to jump out, which meant she'd have to tie clothes and sheets together to make a rope – and there was no way she'd have enough to reach close enough to the ground. She was left with one option; get dressed and do as she was told – until she'd find a way out.

Masquerade Ball

Mari needed only a few moments to get dressed; it didn't take long for her to put on the dress and to make sure it fit okay. She then brushed and pinned back her hair, to make it look half-way decent.

She hadn't noticed anything strange, until she glanced at her hand – the hand she'd held the Master's stone with.

It happened when she took the stone out of the pocket of her jeans to put it into a small purse that she'd found in the wardrobe – the veins of her hand, which were usually a vague blue underneath her skin, were now a deep black colour.

It was for sure that the stone had caused it; in an attempt to prevent the black from spreading – and scaring people at the masquerade ball, of course – she put on the gloves that came with the dress. She hadn't been planning on wearing at first glance, but considering her current situation, she decided to put on the gloves anyway.

All Mari wanted was to go that ball and find her father and Luke. They needed to know that she was okay – and she had to make sure that they were okay.

The Master guided Mari all the way from her room to the carriage that was waiting for her outside – he probably still didn't fully trust her, and he was right not to.

As they walked toward the carriage, the Master went through everything he expected Mari to do while she was in the castle, but refused to explain why he needed to get that stone back to his body.

When Mari tried to bring it up, the Master angrily brushed it off and said that Mari would just have to do as she was told, so she went on her way to the castle.

When she arrived there, there were many other creatures arriving and entering the gats to the castle. There were guards at the gate, but they didn't seem too serious; they knew who to let in and who not, and that was their only mission – aside from telling guests to put on their masks after they'd entered the gate.

As soon as she saw the massive crowd that was attending the ball, she discovered that it would be difficult to find her father and Luke; she had no idea what Luke looked like now he was seventeen, and the fact that everyone was wearing a mask wasn't going to make things easier.

Mari walked through the castle's main hall, where people were meeting and catching up with each other; there were two grand stairs that each led into a different direction and were separated by the grand door that led to the Ritual Chamber.

From what Mari heard people say as she passed them, the Ritual Chamber would be the place-to-be that night; apparently, there were ten so-called 'Guardians', and their leader would be giving a speech later that night to open the dance.

As soon as Mari heard the name of the leader, she knew for sure that her father and his friends were there. She knew only one James Riverdale, and she knew for sure that it was the James she knew. And Mari implemented that in such a way that she instantly knew that her father's other friends were the other Guardians. Her father's closest friends would make five Guardians.

If Luke was one of them, too, he'd be number six. But who were the other four?

Mari was quickly distracted from her questions when she saw a young man standing near the opened doors of the Ritual Chamber. His hair had a familiar shade of red, and had apparently noticed that Mari was staring at him, as he quickly approached her.

As soon as he opened his mouth and said his name, he revealed his identity to Mari. It was him, without a doubt.

"Mari," Luke said.

"Luke," Mari replied, blinking as if the boy standing in front of her was merely a vision of her own imagination and would go away if she just kept blinking her eyes at him.

"It's been an awfully long time, Mari," Luke said, his blue eyes twinkling behind the blue mask he was wearing, making them nearly undistinguishable – but Mari managed. "Where have you been?"

"Everywhere and nowhere," Mari replied quickly. "How did you know it was me?"

Luke chuckled. "Well, I must admit that I had to come up close to know for sure," he said. "But I'd recognize those pretty eyes of yours anywhere."

Mari instantly knew what Luke meant. Her eyes had always been the thing Mari liked the most about herself; it made her feel somewhat special. They were different, but a good kind of different.

Mari let out a sigh of both happiness and relief. "You have no idea how glad I am to see you again, Luke," she said.

The left corner of Luke's mouth pulled upward into a crooked smile. "So am I, Mari," he said. "I waited for you. For four years."

"Thank you," Mari said slowly. "You know you didn't have to do that. But thank you for waiting anyway."

The right corner of Luke's mouth was pulled up into a smile now, too. "Of course I'd wait for you," he said. "What else would I have to wait for?"

Luke slowly pulled Mari into a hug; for a moment, by the position of Luke's head and the way he moved, Mari believed that he wanted to kiss her, but somehow felt relieved – yet, for some reason slightly disappointed – that he didn't do so. It was weird for the two of them to kiss without having any reason to.

After all, Mari hadn't seen Luke in four years, and he'd probably found someone else. They'd always viewed each other as friends, and Mari didn't want to change that point of view.

"Now look at the ridiculous place I found you in," Luke chuckled. "Out of all the places in our universe you could've chosen, I had to come find you in another."

"Yeah," Mari chuckled, her mind still vaguely hanging on to the strange, kind of gross thought of her lips on Luke's.

...Sadly, whether Mari and Luke would kiss or just keep hugging, there had to be someone to get in their way.

What are you doing!? The Master's voice boomed through Mari's head. This is not part of our agreement, Marilyn. First, you'd do your job for me, and then you'd get to spend as much time with your family as you want. Don't make me change my mind.

Mari, startled by the sudden threat that had come her way, quickly pulled away from Luke's hug, who grabbed her wrist as she tried to run off.

"What's the matter, Mari?" Luke said. "Why are you running away?"

"I- I can't explain," Mari said heatedly. "I'll be right back, okay? I just need to take care of something! I'll come right back to you when I'm done!"

"Can't I help you?" Luke said. "Mari, you know you can tell me anything!

"You don't have to keep secrets anymore!"

Mari stopped struggling as her eyes darkened. "No," she said, her words shaking, yet certain. "I can't tell you everything. Not this."

Luke didn't blink; his eyes and voice seemed to freeze over as he said, "Mari. We know why you're here. I'm not going to let the Master use you like this."

Mari's eyes widened; the party went on normally around them, but to her, it was as if time had stopped. Did they know? How? Had the Spirits told them?

...Who was really the villain here?

The Master had lied to her – there was no other option. Luke didn't seem as if he was under some kind of spell – this was Luke, and he was offering her help. It wasn't that Mari hadn't already discovered that the Master was bad news – she just didn't really believe he was. She'd just rather stayed out of his business – until he'd told her about the Spirits keeping her family captive.

Mari peeked inside the purse she was carrying to have a look at the glowing red stone, and sighed. "I need to talk to my dad."

Luke placed a hand on Mari's shoulder. "Of course you do," he said. "Don't worry. Together with you, it'll be sixteen against one; this 'Master' fellow won't stand a chance."

Mari smiled as she and Luke entered the Ritual Chamber; people were coming after them, as the dance was probably about to start. If Luke had confidence that they could win it from the Master, then why would she worry?

The Master was powerful. That's why she was worried. Well... at least he couldn't enter the Land of Light, right? As long as they were here, they'd be safe, and that was more or less a reassuring thing to know.

When Luke and Mari entered the Ritual Chamber, James and his friends were already attending the altars they'd once used twenty-five-years ago. Apparently, that's from where James was going to hold his speech – would his friends be speaking, too?

Luke told Mari that he and his friends would be joining their parents as soon as they were told to – which left Mari amazed; of course she'd still been wondering about the identity of the remaining four Guardians. Luke told her that she had to join them, so her father wouldn't look so lonely up there (despite the fact that Daisy would be joining him), and it'd add a nice element of surprise to the evening.

And Luke was convinced that if every last of the Lunariae knew Mari, everyone would support her in her fight against the Master, leaving him practically powerless.

...Or at least he'd be pretty weakened – for as long as his wretched soul remained separated from his body.

The Guardians began their speech; everyone attending the dance fell silent as they watched the five adults climbing the stairs to the altars.

"Welcome, everyone, to his special evening," James spoke; his voice was magically amplified. Akilah or one of the other Spirits had probably helped with that.

"It is with great honour that we stand before you all here tonight. And, to be honest, before we arrived here, we didn't even know that the Spirits had organised this masquerade ball for us, so we were actually quite overwhelmed by tonight's turnout." James let out a nervous chuckle as he scratched his neck, and the audience laughed along with him to reassure him a bit.

They were all old friends in some sort of way; there was no reason for him to feel nervous or uncertain here tonight.

"Anyway," James continued, "we're here for a reason, as you might already know. And we're here tonight to tell you that we're going to do everything within our might to keep Lunaria safe from harm."

The audience applauded encouragingly; of course they had full faith in these five humans after all they'd done to save Lunaria twenty-five years ago. They'd managed to defeat the Master once before; there was absolutely no reason they wouldn't be able to do it again this time.

"Thank you," James said, making a small bow toward the audience, and noticed his friends did the same. "But this time, it won't be just us. We'll be helped by five very special teenagers – our children."

This was the cue for the teenagers to join their parents. The audience moved aside, making a straight path toward the altars for the teenagers to walk on.

Anthony went first, shortly followed by his sister, Marcus and Daisy. Luke stayed behind for a few short moments to reassure Mari.

"All you have to do is come after me and walk up to your dad," he said. "There's nothing to it, really."

And that was exactly as she did. After Luke had left, winking at her as he rounded the corner, ready to greet the applauding audience, Mari slightly lifted up her skirt and walked the same path as Luke had.

While everyone had been applauding as the five new Guardians walked the path, they fell silent as soon as they laid eyes on Mari.

Everyone was caught by surprise by the unexpected yet pretty girl, who nervously walked past them. And, of course, her father hadn't missed out on the sudden silence downstairs.

Antonio blinked slowly as the girl walked, only stopping in front of the altar he was standing on. "...Mari?" he uttered silently, fiercely hoping that this girl was indeed his daughter.

"...Dad," the girl smiled, as she ran up the stairs and threw herself into her father's arms.

"Everyone," Antonio said, as he kept his daughter close to his chest. "I'd like you all to meet my beautiful daughter Mari."

The audience applauded and roared with support. Everyone knew that Mari was something special, something different; even though no one was sure why. The girl had a special aura, one of the kinds that a non-magical being couldn't possibly possess. On the outside, she seemed human, but something on her inside declared that she wasn't just that.

"Four years ago," Antonio continued, "Mari was taken from us by the Master; apparently, he needs her to complete his dirty plans for him. But we're not going to let him, now are we, Mari?"

Mari smiled at her father. "Of course not!" she shouted. "Whatever he's up to, we're going to stop him right in his tracks!"

The audience roared with pride. The Lunariae had so much faith in the Guardians; it was absolutely incredible – incredible enough to stun Mari for a few moments as she watched all the magical beings, from dwarves to giants and fairies, cheer her on. There was absolutely no way that these people were the bad guys, as the Master put it. He had it all wrong. This was the side to fight for, and no other.

"Well, that concludes it then!" Thomas shouted. "People of Lunaria; tonight, we celebrate the beginning of a new era! The era we hoped we could've started twenty-five-years ago, but will now officially begin! And it begins by taking down the Master once and for all!

"Who's with us?"

Once again, the audience responded with roaring cheers of encouragement and excitement. They were ready to go back to war if they had to. Help the Guardians once more, to get rid of that pesky demon the Master was once and for all.

Soon, it'd all be over.

As the night went on, more and more people came to see and talk to the Guardians, hoping to hear what the plans were. Luckily for Mari, who was uncomfortable with talking to such massive groups of people, Luke stayed at her side all night, doing most of the talking for her.

That was, until the Lunariae screamed for the two of them to dance.

"Well, we can't leave our guests un-entertained, right?" Luke said, as he gently took one of Mari's hands. "I bet you'll do great, come on."

"Luke, no!" Mari protested. "I've never danced before. We'll both look like idiots."

"Just trust me," Luke said, drawing Mari closer as they stepped on to the now cleared dance floor. "I had to learn how to dance for uncle Finn's wedding. I'll lead."

In the beginning, Mari was tense and nervous, but as she followed Luke's every move, she slowly started to loosen up, yet didn't get too comfortable, as she wanted to avoid stepping on her best friend's feet at all costs.

"See?" Luke smiled at her. "You're doing fine." He grinned, and decided to add a joke to reassure her more. "It must be magic in your feet."

Mari could feel the colour rising in her cheeks. Indeed. She was doing fine. And... the fact that everyone was staring at her and Luke didn't seem to bother her at all. It made her wonder what was going on for a few moments, but she quickly let those thoughts go.

She was doing amazing, and for once, she wanted the entire world to know.

To Tame a Demon

The ball didn't end until sunrise, when all Lunariae were slowly starting to return to their own realms and homes. The Spirits offered the Guardians that they'd go to sleep for a while before getting down to business, and that was exactly what they did – they were too tired to be able to discuss serious matters now.

After everyone had slept off their tiredness, the Spirits called in another meeting – and this one was about Mari.

They wanted to know what the Master was up to, what he'd asked her to do, and so on. They wanted to know everything, up to the smallest details.

Mari managed to stay surprisingly calm as she told her story to the five quite impressive creatures in front of her; as soon as she'd finished, they started to silently discuss what she'd just told them.

"And that stone you just talked about," Ince said, "where'd you leave it?"

Mari blinked slowly. "Ah," she said, "I believe I left it in the purse I took with me last night.

She slowly rubbed her arms; she'd put on a pair of gloves she'd found in the closet of the room the Spirits had given her to sleep in, along with a deep purple dress that had been there, too. To her surprise, all the clothes she'd worn thus far had fit her surprisingly well.

The black coloured veins had spread all the way across Mari's left arm to her shoulder; she didn't know how to stop it, or what the consequences would be if she just let it run its course.

Maybe she could find a cure later without having to scare her father.

"Well, then," Ince said friendlily, "would you mind to go and get it so we can see it, Mari?"

Mari nodded, bobbed into an awkward curtsy and quickly left the Ritual Chamber to go find the room she'd spent the night in. Luckily, it wasn't long until she'd done so. Mari quickly went through her chamber, got the purse and went back to her family. She wasn't sure what the big deal about the stone was; both the Spirits and the Master seemed very eager to have it in their possession.

"Ah, there we are," Akilah said as she noticed Mari entering the Ritual Chamber, carrying the small, leather purse. "Come, dear. Show us what you've got."

Mari handed the purse to James, who shivered at the touch of the purse – Mari noticed, but she wasn't sure if the others had noticed too.

James carefully took the stone out of its case and let it slide to the table, unwilling to touch it again.

"What's the matter, James?" Samira asked her younger brother. She most definitely had noticed how strangely James responded to touching the small, tear-shaped glowing object. "Is it something with the stone?"

James, feeling that everyone was looking at him, nodded. "Yes," he said. "It contains Dark Magic. And a lot of it."

Mari noticed that Akilah and Aharnish were sharing a sideways glance. What was going on?

"...Right," Akilah mumbled. There was a certain amount of uncertainty in her voice that Mari found unsettling. "It might be worse than I thought."

She hovered a slender finger over the stone's surface, and gently touched it, only to instantly withdraw her finger, drawing it close to her chest.

"What's it, Aki?" Aoife exclaimed, worried for her sister's safety. "Is it what you thought it was?"

"No," Akilah said dejectedly, "unfortunately, it's much worse than I thought. Especially if..." Akilah glanced at James for a brief moment, but moved her eyes away from him before James could ask her what the problem was. "Never mind," Akilah said. "We'll find a way to stop this."

Then, her attention went to Mari. "Mari," she said, on an alarmingly strict tone, "please tell me you haven't touched that stone with your bare hands."

Mari started; what was she going to do? She'd probably scare everyone if she showed her arm – it probably meant something bad, if the Spirits were this worried about it –, but she probably couldn't keep on walking with it, either. Mari knew neither the repercussions this would bring for herself, nor for her family and the rest of Lunaria – that is, if there were any for them.

If she lied, the truth would eventually come out – and by then, matters would probably be worse than they were right now. And yet, somehow Mari still couldn't bring herself to telling the truth.

"Marilyn..." Mari suddenly heard her father's voice, strict and stern. She couldn't lie.

"Well..." Mari then proceeded to slowly remove the glove from her right arm, revealing the black veins that had now spread to her shoulder.

While her friends and family let out surprised gasps of horror, the Spirits remained calm; Akilah beckoned Mari to come closer, so the Spirit could examine the veins on her arm.

"Oh dear," Akilah said, worry finally reflected in her golden eyes. "This is bad."

"What's wrong?" Antonio said – if Akilah was worried, then that meant something truly bad was going on.

"She's been – poisoned," Akilah said, clearly unsure how to answer this particular question properly. "With Dark Magic."

"What do you mean?" Luke suddenly spoke, not realising he stood up in a rather hostile position, despite the scepticism in his tone. "How can one get poisoned with Magic?"

"Luke, please sit down," James said, but the teenager's friends seemed to agree with him. They all spoke to each other, at the same time, all sounds and voices forming a noisy buzz together.

Mari hadn't done anything but bite her lip as she watched her friends explode into a massive argument of incomprehension. It didn't take long before the teenagers fell silent again, though; their parents' judging looks were enough to do the trick.

"Oh – um- we beg your pardon," Felicity said, feeling as if she had to take responsibility, as she was eldest of the five teenagers – despite the fact that Luke had basically ignited the fire that had led to this explosion of sound. Ince, and eventually, the other Spirits too, nodded approvingly, but the parents still seemed moderately frustrated with how their children behaved.

"We understand how frustrated you younglings must be," Aoife said, as she paced around the table. She looked graceful, yet wise, as if she were the real Mother Nature – which was, in Lunaria, basically the role she fulfilled as the Guardian of Life. "There are so many questions, and those all need answering... but I'm afraid we don't have all the answers that you seek. We are wise, but not omniscient."

"But we just might do have some of them, although even we aren't sure," Aharnish said, suddenly stepping forward – he'd been silently discussing matters with Ince and Akilah by one of the columns not too far away from the table while Aoife spoke to the Guardians. It had been a rather short conversation, but Aharnish knew his youngest brother well enough to know his approximate plan of action.

"We should leave that stone alone," he said. "It contains dangerous Magic, designed to leak out at the touch of human skin – and meant to destroy beings of Light Magic – like us." He gestured at himself and his siblings as he spoke his last sentence.

"But..." a careful, high-pitched boy's voice spoke. "What's going on with Mari's arm, then?" The boy in question was Tony, speaking for the first time since he'd arrived in Lunaria; he probably had been either too frightened or too confused to do so – or maybe he'd been both. Tony had never been that much of an outgoing boy – when he was young, he'd always rather hide behind either of his parents' legs than say 'hi' whenever he was introduced to someone new. And right now, there were strangers surrounding him, who were, well... strange.

They weren't human, and by the looks of it, extremely powerful, and Tony didn't know what to expect of them. But as he watched his parents speak so comfortably around them and showing off at their son how much they trusted the Spirits (although not necessarily intentionally), Tony slowly started to ease up for a bit, but remained too nervous to speak for quite some time.

Until now, of course.

"Some of the Dark Magic that is trapped inside that stone has escaped and found itself a way into Mari's bloodstream," Aharnish carefully explained.

"Well... not exactly into the bloodstream," Aine suddenly said, sounding surprisingly cold for someone who was supposed to take care of bringing joy to people.

"What?" Aharnish said, as he watched his youngest sister rise from the table, having a face like thunder – this was the most serious expression Aharnish had seen his sister pull in years.

"I know how this works," Aine said slowly. "Asura was cocky enough to explain it to me, thinking I wouldn't be able to understand. He so proudly told me of a weapon powerful enough to turn anyone that comes in contact with it into powerful, dark beings. He said it'd even be capable of resurrecting the dead with dark powers." She fell silent; her bright blue eyes rested on the red stone that lay still on the table, still giving off a soft glow. "He wants to use it to resurrect himself. That's why he sent Mari here; to put the stone back on Asura's body, so he can enter through the stone's power."

"But that would mean he'd rise just as powerful as before," Thomas said, clearly shocked. "How's that even possible?"

Aine played with a lock of her own hair; it slowly shifted colours as the Spirit let it twirl around her finger. "Inside the body, this kind of magic can be compared to a spider's web," she said, her gaze still fixed on the stone and its mysterious glow. "It spreads across the body, forming a strong web of threads that sprout from the veins, coming together at two centres; head and heart.

Now the head centre is just the brain wrapped in threads of Dark Magic to ensure that the wielder can use it properly. The heart's the core of the darkness."

"And... what about Mari?" Tony said carefully, not wanting to offend Aine – he just didn't get the point.

"I... don't know," Aine said. "I'm not sure whether the magic will spread any further or not. If it does, that could mean we might lose her."

"...'Lose' me?" Mari snapped. "What!?"

"We could lose you to the Dark Magic if it finds itself a way into your heart," Ince said, rubbing his chin. "And we don't know whether or not that's going to happen yet."

Mari's eyes met her father's; there was comfort in his eyes, yet also worry. "Don't worry," Mari said, without taking her eyes off him. "It won't."

"We admire your bravery, Mari," Akilah said. "But for now, you shouldn't worry about that. We must come up with a plan to trick the Master and defeat him."

"May I suggest something?" James said, slowly rising from his chair. His sister grabbed his arm as he stood up; the two siblings looked at each other. James nodded at her. "It's okay, Samira. I'm not going to do anything stupid."

Samira smiled back at her brother. "I hope not," she said.

"Akilah," James said, "is the prison where the Master's body is currently kept in Dark Magic-proof?"

"Well, it's supposed to," Akilah said. "It's meant to keep all forms of Dark Magic out. That stone wouldn't get in there. Plus, Asura wouldn't last long inside this castle anyway – there'd be too much Light Magic for him to survive here."

"So... it'd be safe to resurrect him inside this castle, because he'd be powerless for as long as he's in here?" James said, sounding as if he was up to mischief.

"James..." the judging sound of Thomas's voice sounded – he knew that his brother-in-law was up to no good. "What are you planning?"

James looked aside to reassure his friend – it didn't quite help, though. It was probably a good idea to explain the full plan – if not the best idea. "

"Well, we can only banish him for good if we get rid of both him and his body – at the same time," James said, his fingers nervously tapping the table. "So – I just thought – if we did it here, in the castle – we might have a shot at it?"

"ARE YOU NUTS, RIVERDALE!?" Antonio exploded, his hands meeting the table's surface in a rather unfriendly fashion. He didn't explode at James like this often – only at the rare occasion where Antonio believed James's ideas went too far. And this was one of those moments. "You'll be leading the enemy straight to us! If we were to use that stone to resurrect him, he'd be back at full power, ready to destroy us! What do you think our chances would possibly be then?"

James gave Antonio a small nod, directed toward the Spirits. "Look who we've got here with us, Tonio," he said. "I don't think the Master stands a chance."

Antonio snorted, obviously unimpressed. He wanted to say something, but the chance to do so was taken from him by Akilah.

"Despite the fact that what you just said was very flattering, James," Akilah said, "you shouldn't think lightly of Asura. Our brother has beaten us before, and I am sure that he might succeed in doing so again."

James had a sinking feeling as he watched the other Spirits nod, confirming what their sister had just told him. "But – it's always worth a try," he tried, hopeful to get a positive reaction to his plan this time, unwilling to give up.

"You're being way too reckless, Dad," Luke said. "It's too dangerous."

James looked at his son; he honestly didn't know what to say. Yes, he knew he was being reckless and that it was a risky move to make – but was it truly that dangerous? Too dangerous for Luke, the mischief maker, to try out?

"I must admit that I agree with uncle James," Tony said silently. "You don't know whether it'll work or not until you've tried. There must be some extra precautions we can take to make sure the Master won't break loose, right?"

"Actually," Marco said, patting Tony on the shoulder, "I agree with Tony, too. We can find a way to secure our own safety... I think we should give Mr Riverdale's plan a shot."

The Spirits exchanged looks with each other, looking genuinely surprised – but, at the same time, something in their expressions hinted at something that seemed to resemble either pride or intrigue.

"Alright, very well then," Aharnish said, one eyebrow raised in mischief. "I believe we can arrange something – we can make special chains that keep him from using magic, for example. We'll look into it." His expression then turned stone cold, yet the mischief still didn't fade from his mismatched blue and golden eyes. "But, in return, we expect you to lead the entire operation, James. You'll be in charge and responsible."

James swallowed. 'Responsible' was a word he still had to get used to, even after raising four kids. For how much of the operation would he be responsible? At first, he wanted to ask, but decided not to do so. He'd claim full responsibility, no matter what would happen.

*

Not much later, the ten Guardians and Mari were called by the Spirits. They'd been requested to join the Spirits in the dungeon – where any necessary changes to the way the Master's body had been put away had been made.

The stone would temporarily be able to pass through the barrier that kept all Dark Magic inside the four stone walls of the cell, which meant James had to go first.

He was the one that carried the stone, and would be the one to place it on the Master's brooch – exactly the way Mari had explained how to do it.

The Master's instructions had been oddly specific – Mari hadn't noticed how specific they actually were until she'd recited them to James. That stone must've been very important to the Master somehow.

James, however, was more worried about the consequences this would have; the Spirits reassured him that the Master would be powerless when he'd be resurrected – but now the time had come to do it, James felt as if he'd rushed his plan – he should've thought it through. Antonio was right; this was a bad idea – but there was no going back now.

James walked forward toward the Master's now opened coffin, and placed the stone inside the small, silver mould on Master's brooch that exactly matched the stone's shape. The stone was now exactly above the Master's heart – it'd only be a matter of time until he'd wake up; weak, chained, and ready to be killed.

But his awakening went different than anyone who was present in that cell would've expected. Dark fog seemed to float around the cell for a moment, and the stone got a bright red glow as it reacted to the newfound heartbeat.

As he sat up inside the coffin, the Master grinned a vampire smile at the redhead who'd just resurrected him. He spoke with the same spine-chilling voice as if he'd never stopped speaking

"Oh, James, you shouldn't have done that."

That was the only sentence to escape the Master's lips before he did the same – with a single wave of his hand, the Master evaporated in black smoke – leaving James behind in the cell that had been designed to keep the Master detained, his face pale and his eyes shocked.

Whatever it Takes

"Mum?"

James had left three children behind. Bella had left behind one. Theo, Ian and Emma were missing a brother and a father – Mia was missing a brother and a mother.

As promised, the kids had spent time with each other during the days their parents were gone – although Jaqueline and Jacob, Daisy's older sister and brother, couldn't be there, as they were in college.

The four kids didn't like to sit inside, but the weather had left them with no other option, as on the morning the Guardians had left it had begun raining, and the thick drops of water still hadn't stopped falling.

And now, they were sitting in the living room of the Riverdale house, curled up on the couch and watching TV. For the first time in a day, Emma had finally opened her mouth.

"Yes, Emma?" Anna answered her daughter.

Emma looked up, directing her blue eyes at her mother. "What was it like when you were a teenager, when Dad 'disappeared' for the first time?"

Anna let out a small chuckle. She knew that question would come, but that still didn't mean she knew how to answer it. "That's... quite the question, Emma," she said. "It was mostly... difficult."

"Difficult as in how?" Ian asked. "Not knowing where he was?"

Anna nodded. "I did know where he was," she told her son. "In fact, after aunt Samira, I was the first one your father told about his concerns. I was the one who made the suggestion of the fairytale being a reality." She paused and let out a sad chuckle. "I never expected it to be true, though. It seemed impossible at the time."

Ian and Theo looked at each other; their parents true were something special. Of course their parents hadn't believed at first – but then, when they suddenly found themselves in neck-deep, they had to. A feeling similar to what the teenagers were feeling right now, and what Ian assumed Luke and the others were feeling as well.

"Your father was capable of communicating with Grandma through dreams," Anna said, as if she suddenly remembered. "When he told me about it after he'd returned, it seemed as if he found comfort in hearing his mother's voice and seeing her face."

"Do you think Dad will be doing that this time, too, Mum?" Emma asked out of sheer curiosity. "Talk to Grandma in his dreams?"

Anna sighed. She proceeded to face away from her children as she lowered her eyes. "He didn't have the heart to tell her," she said. "And... I believe that that decision was up to your Dad to make – I just hope he contacts her when he's not sure what to do."

*

The plan had backfired. In a terrible way – the most disastrous way possible. And James was responsible. Not that anyone blamed him, though – even the Spirits were too astonished to say anything. How had he escaped the chains they'd made? That was impossible. Or – at least, it should have been.

James felt as if he was at the brink of having a mental breakdown – what had he done? This was his fault, and he wouldn't let anyone tell him otherwise – simply because it was the truth.

He'd caused this, he'd come up with the plan – he hadn't even thought it through. James knew how high the risks of his plan backfiring were, and yet, he'd made the foolish decision to just simply ignore every single reason why and every way how the plan could've backfired.

James menacingly pulled at his hair while pacing around in circles. He didn't know what to do anymore; they didn't know where the Master had gone or how to stop it. "The Ritual?" he blurted in desperation. "Could that work again?"

Akilah shook her head. "That's only meant to restore the balance between Light and Dark," she said. "It won't destroy the Master."

James grunted in despair.

"Aside from that, James," Antonio said, "who would perform the Ritual? There are two Generations here!"

"I would," James said decisively. "My soul became part of the Light when Akilah saved me back then – I believe that that means that I can control it without a problem now."

Akilah moved uncomfortably, feeling slightly at unease by what James had said. There was something about the fact that James was now basically part of Lunaria's light - the problem was that the Spirit hadn't told anyone – and she wasn't planning on doing so now that the Master had returned – it was impossible to tell whether he was listening to the Guardians' and Spirits' conversations.

And that was the reason why Akilah decided to keep her mouth shut for now, hoping that the Master didn't know - and wouldn't find out, either.

"You know we wouldn't let you, even if you're right about what you're saying," Thomas said. "James, this is insane."

James looked at his friends. "We have to try something," he said, the desperation almost literally dripping from his voice. "It's my fault. I have to fix this."

"James," Samira said, "do you really think we blame you? We knew this was going to happen."

James turned around. "Sorry?"

"Well - we knew he'd eventually break free, although we didn't know exactly when," Aharnish said, "so we placed a magical barrier around the Land of Light, in order to prevent any Dark Magic spreading to the other Realms."

"He won't be going anywhere anytime soon," Aoife smiled. "Don't worry, James. We'll catch him."

James looked his friends, who offered him encouraging smiles. "We just know that when you've got an idea, there's no way in stopping you," Bella said. "And honestly – it would've been a good plan if he hadn't escaped."

"But how did he escape?" Thomas said, inspecting the coffin the Master had lay in. "I thought you said this chamber and coffin would leave him unable to use his powers."

Ince blinked, and swallowed fairly audibly. "So thought we," he said, "but apparently, he's grown stronger than we anticipated. We underestimated him."

Samira put a hand on her brother's shoulder. "Well, what are we going to do now?" she said. "We don't know where the Master went."

She wished she wouldn't have said that, as it instantly gave James an idea – it wasn't about playing the hero, but redeeming himself to his friends. Despite their reassurances that they didn't blame him for what had happened, James still blamed himself, and he wouldn't rest until he'd made up for what he'd done.

"He can never have gone far if that barrier holds him back," he said. "I am responsible for this happening. I'll go out and find him."

James turned around and started walking while reaching for his sword, but he was stopped in his tracks by Thomas. "And where do you think you're going?"

James looked at Thomas. "Step aside, Thom, please," he said. "I've got to do this. I know I can do this."

"You can't, Dad," Luke said, joining his uncle. The boy was starting to get convinced that things were serious. "Not without our help."

James looked at his son; by the look in the boy's eyes, James knew that Luke was filled with determination. He turned around to see his friends and family stand in half a circle, all smiling determinedly.

"There's eleven of us and one of him," Marco said. "If the eleven of us together can't do it, then no one can."

"Eleven?" Aharnish chuckled. "Hey, kid, you weren't thinking of leaving us out of this, now were you?" he said, ruffling Marco's hair.

Marco shrugged with a crooked smile. "Guess that makes sixteen, then," he said.

"Seventeen."

A figure had appeared in the doorway of the Master's cell. A slender, small woman, not much taller than Tony. She had long, silver hair, that peeked out from underneath the green hood she was wearing.

As she took off the hood, the figure revealed her face; a golden headpiece with a bright silver stone shimmered on her forehead, and her hair was tucked back behind her pointy ears. Her blue eyes were shimmering with mischief. "Long time no see, Guardians."

"Violina!" Antonio shouted happily, and almost ran over to the Fixie to hug her. "Yes, it's been a long time, indeed. Almost... too long."

"Antonio," Violina said, as the two let go of each other. "You got older."

Antonio chuckled, nervously rubbing the white-blond beard that was growing on his chin. "Yeah," he said. "And you... didn't."

"I told you, a thousand fairy years equals one of yours," she said. "I wasn't kidding."

"You sure weren't," Antonio said. "Why are you here?"

"I attended the ball last night, incognito," Violina said. "But – not in this dress, of course. And... I decided to stay, because I believe you lot look like you could use some help."

"We do, Violina," James said. "We most certainly do."

"Well, luckily, so do I," Violina said, taking off her cloak. "I need to free my sister from a spell, and I most certainly think you guys could help me do so."

"Although we'd love to help, Violina," Bella said, "don't get me wrong, we really do – we're kind of in a situation here..."

"Yeah, I heard," Violina said. "Guess the Master's on the loose again and out for revenge, huh?" She ran her fingers through her silver locks as she spoke. "That's most certainly a sticky situation, indeed. Especially if you consider all the trouble you guys went through about two and a half a decade ago to defeat him."

"Can you help us, Violina?" Thomas asked, scratching his neck. "All we really need to do is to capture the Master so Akilah and the Spirits can destroy him once and for all."

Violina shrugged. "I don't know, Thomas," she said, sounding genuinely reluctant. "The nonchalant tone of your voice makes me slightly worried that you've forgot about all that happened last time."

Thomas raised his palms in defence. "Oh, no, don't get me wrong," he said. "I know that things are going to be a lot more difficult than I just made them seem to be. I know how dangerous the Master really is. But what kind of power could he possibly have left over this world? All of it was taken from him."

"Well, if your long-term memory isn't broken, then your short-term has to be," Samira told her husband. She sounded exasperated. "Did you forget what just happened ten minutes ago? The Master escaped from a seemingly inescapable prison! He's stronger than ever, Thom.

"We don't know why or how, but he is."

"I believe that Thomas meant that we're in the advantage as long as the Land of Light remains light," James said quickly. "A well-plotted plan could work."

"What are you getting at, James?" Samira said curiously. "Do you have any ideas?"

"And please make sure that this plan is better than your last one," Antonio said. James could tell by the tone of Antonio's voice that he was merely joking, but the nasty sting it left wasn't lost on James.

"We... could try to lure the Master into a trap. There's still at least seventeen of us, after all," he said carefully, part of him already knowing this plan wouldn't be going anywhere.

"But how, then, Dad?" Luke said. "If the Master can outsmart the Spirits of Light, then he'll be able to get rid of us without breaking a sweat!"

"You're right..." James let out a sigh of defeat. "This is never going to work; the Master isn't dumb enough to fall for a trap. We're done for."

"That's not what I meant, Dad!" Luke said, but his father had already turned around and left the cell. "Dad-!"

Luke sprinted after his father, closely followed by Samira.

"Wow," Antonio sighed, slightly starting to regret the mean comment he'd made. "I didn't know he was taking it so hard on himself."

"You know Uncle James, Dad," Mari said. "If things go wrong under his supervision, he takes the blame. He won't accept anyone else to blame themselves."

"Isn't that some kind of victimizing?" Marco said; Mari responded by shaking her head.

"No," Mari said, "because the last thing he wants is pity."

"But how do you know?" Felicity said, sounding moderately confused. "You two aren't even related. How could you possibly know how he feels?"

"I know," Mari breathed, "but I know because I have been doing the same thing ever since I got here."

*

"Dad, please. I didn't mean it like that."

"I know you didn't, Lucas. It's not your fault." James didn't turn to face his son, but crossed his arms. "It's just my own problem, I guess."

Luke felt a tap on his shoulder, and looked aside to see his aunt standing beside him. She smiled encouragingly. "Let me handle this."

Samira walked forward and carefully approached her brother. "James," she said on an as calm and soothing tone as possible. "Please stop blaming yourself. You're not to blame for this. Plus, the Spirits already took care of the situation."

"I came up with the idea," James said, "so that makes me partially responsible. There's no way to change that. But..." He sighed. "I guess I should stop making a big deal out of it... I just thought things would be a lot worse."

"We don't know how bad the situation will be in the end," Samira said, "but for now, we're sorting things out. As long as the barrier stays up, the Master can't harm the other Realms."

Samira looked her brother in the eye; she knew that James would remain troubled about this for a while, and she'd have to keep an eye on him. "Come here," she said, pulling her brother into a hug.

"It's going to be alright, James," Samira said. "We saved the world last time by working together. This time, we can do it again. I know we can."

"Samira..." James said quietly. "Would you be willing to give up whatever it takes?

Just like last time?"

"Don't make any foolish decisions, James," Samira said strictly. "You got lucky last time. Maybe next time, you won't be so lucky."

James sighed. "I know," he said. "I'm sorry for every last dumb decision I've ever made, and every single one I will make in the future."

Samira chuckled. "Then you've got a lot to apologise for," she said. When she looked up and saw her brother's face, she burst out laughing. "Just kidding!"

James gave his sister a crooked smile. "Of course you were," he said, as he abruptly pulled away from her, "but I don't really think this is the moment to make jokes, Samira."

Samira crossed her arms. "James," she said, "you are allowed to have a little fun, no matter how dire the situation! Where did that jokester who used to be my brother go?"

James shrugged. "He'll be back," he said, while walking back into the cell where his friends still waited, "when things have been sorted out."

Darkest Night

When evening came, James had made a choice. A choice he'd been thinking about since he'd released the Master earlier that day; he had to leave. He had to be the one to find the Master and bring him to justice – whatever it'd take.

As soon as night had fallen over the Land of Light and James was sure everyone was asleep, he left. Wearing a dark cloak to cover his identity from the outside world, he crept out through an open window on the ground floor.

He didn't want to leave; oh no. Leaving his family and friends behind was the last thing he wanted. But there was no time left, and no other way out. James wouldn't put his friends and family at risk again.

James mumbled a few silent apologies as he looked back into the dark castle, knowing no one would be there to listen to them, and left.

He knew exactly where to look; the Master would be most likely to retreat in his castle to prepare for war. James didn't expect that the Master would be easy to defeat – but James believed he would be in the advantage.

James wasn't a kid anymore; he'd be able to take on the Master if he believed he could do it. Despite not having used his magic for decades, it felt incredibly familiar; James felt the light energy that surrounded him fuel his own soul. There was no way the Master would defeat him – unless the man would cowardly retreat to trickery, which was the one thing holding James back.

The Master was known for his trickery. He was sly and good at lying; a dangerous combination, which he was well-known to use to his advantage. James had to be careful if he didn't want to fall under the Master's control. But, on the other hand... the Master couldn't possibly be as powerful now as he'd been twenty-five years ago. Things were different now, and darkness no longer ruled the Realms; he had no source of power other than whatever he had put inside that stone...

...Hopefully, that wouldn't be too much for James to handle. He was familiar with the way his own power worked now, and he was about to find out how effective they'd be against the Master.

James was ready for a fight. And he hoped that the Master wasn't.

*

When Thomas woke up in the middle of the night, hoping to be able to get some water somewhere, it didn't take long for him to notice that James had gone missing. He quickly went to alarm his friends and the Spirits, and gathered them in the Ritual Chamber – they had to send out a search party for James.

"So that's why he was acting so strangely all evening," Antonio said angrily. "He just wanted to go off on his own."

"I don't believe that's it, Antonio," Violina said. "This doesn't sound like James at all..."

"Violina's right," Samira said. "James would never go off on his own just so he can be the hero. There's more behind this."

"We've got to go out and look for him," Bella said. "Akilah, can you watch over our kids while we're out there, and keep them safe until we get back?"

"Who says we're not coming with you?"

All adults turned their heads to the Ritual Chamber's entrance – Luke had silently entered the room. Fully-dressed, armed and determined to go along. "We've got to fight, too."

"Lucas, I believe you don't understand," Samira said. "We're not going to fight – well, not yet. We just have to find your father, and then we'll be coming back to discuss a plan of action."

Luke crossed his arms. "I believe we've wasted enough time discussing plans, and I believe that that's the exact same reason why Dad went off on his own."

"The kid's got a point," Aharnish said. "We're running out of time here. And as time slips through our hands – so do our options. We don't have long until the Master executes whatever plot he's planning."

Violina and Samira exchanged looks. "Look," the Fixie said, "I can look after your kids while you're out there. You've got to find James – and quick. The bigger your search party, the better." The Fixie turned her head toward Akilah. "I think you and your siblings should go along with them. They're going to need some backup."

"Sounds like a good plan to me," Akilah said. "What do you think, Guardians?"

"Since I am a Guardian, too, I believe I have a say in this as well," Luke insisted; the Spirits couldn't do anything but nod approvingly.

"Well then," Ince said, "what are your thoughts, Guardian?"

Luke smiled mischievously. "I suggest we form two search parties," he said, "a search parties consisting of five – two Spirits and three humans, and two humans and three Spirits, to even out our chances."

Aharnish nodded. "Seems like a good plan," he remarked. "So you're suggesting your friends stay here?"

"Yes," Luke confirmed, "they stay here with Violina. If we haven't found Dad by the time they wake up – which honestly, I highly doubt, they can head out with her to search, too."

"Clever plan, kid," Aharnish smiled. "I must give you that."

Thomas chuckled. "He must take after his father," he said. "Don't worry, kid. We'll find her."

Luke looked at his uncle. "I know," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I have no doubt we will. I'm just worried whether or not we'll find him before the Master does."

"You've got a point there, Luke," Bella said. "We should waste no more time and head straight out there." She looked at her friends. "Antonio and I will go together, Samira. I think you, Thomas and Luke should stick together, since you're, well – family."

"You shouldn't think like that, Bella," Samira said. "You and Antonio are just as-"

"I didn't mean it like that, Sam," Bella said, sounding slightly agitated. "I meant that James will be more willing to listen to the three of you than to us. You're the only one who's always been able to talk sense into him whenever he has moments like these."

Samira raised her eyebrows. "Oh. You're right."

Thomas nodded at Bella. "That settles it then," he said. "And – I believe that we should let Akilah and her siblings decide who of the Spirits go with which group."

"I suggest Ince and I go with you," Akilah said, nodded at Thomas, "and that Aharnish, Aoife and Aine go with Bella and Antonio."

"Seems like a good plan to me," Antonio said, placing his hands on his sides. "Let's go," he said, as he reached for his sturdy glaive, "right now. We've got absolutely no time to waste, now do we?"

*

"No, indeed. You don't."

The Master had, as James had already predicted, retreated to the safety of his dark castle, and had spent most of his time spying on the Guardians while planning his attack – the first strike. He was confident that a single attack wouldn't do the trick, so he had to plan three strikes – third time's a charm, after all.

Plus, this time, everything would be different. If the Master's theories were true, he'd have the most powerful Guardian of all Guardians on his side. And, something the Master found very pleasing, was the fact that this, if done right, would be irreversible – incurable. Another clever – even if only the Master himself thought it was – change to his plan, was the complete destruction of the Spirit Castle. He wouldn't leave a single wall standing this time; no Ritual Chamber, no Altars, no Ritual, no way to bring back the Light to Lunaria.

And honestly, the Master found this new plan of his so clever that he wondered why he hadn't done it this way the first time; it would have saved him a lot of trouble.

But then again... he never would've been able to enslave a creature as strong as he was about to now.

It was time to bring the plan into action; the Master had wasted enough time spying on the Guardians.

*

James had come far. He'd almost made it to the Master's Castle, even. But whether he would've made it before the Master had put his plan in motion or not, it didn't matter. The Master wanted to speak to James anyway.

The last thing James could remember, was black fog surrounding him, accompanied by a sinister laugh sounding in his ears before blacking out.

When he regained consciousness, James found himself lying on the cold stone floor of a terrifyingly familiar room; he was inside the Master's castle, in the same room as he and his sister had been trapped in during their last visit. Somehow, his cloak had vanished; the Master had probably taken it.

Fear instantly clutched James's heart as he jumped up and rattled the doorknob – he was locked in. There were no windows, and the only exit was locked. What was he going to do?

The fear clutching James's heart loosened its grip when James remembered what he'd left his family for. The Master had put James exactly where he wanted to be.

The darkness in the room gave him some trouble concentrating – the only light source in the room was a torch fixed to the wall opposite the door – but eventually, the door clicked and opened. Using magic somehow now came as a natural experience to James – he didn't even know how he did it anymore; he just did. But then again, the ease this door opened at... it almost seemed too easy.

And it was. As soon as James had set foot outside the door, he was thrown back into the room, making a nasty fall on the floor. As soon as James had ended up there, thick, black roped wrapped themselves around his limbs, leaving him lying helplessly on the floor. No matter how much James struggled, nothing worked; he couldn't break free.

"I beg your pardon," a deep, familiar voice said, which still manage to send a chill down James's spine after twenty-five years. "I didn't mean to be so rude... But I had to keep you inside somehow."

James felt that he was forcefully pulled to his feet, but not by a pair of hands. The Master entered the room, and lit the other torches with a wave of his hand, giving James a vampire grin in the eerie light. He hadn't changed a bit in those years... which almost seemed impossible. The Master still wore the same, dark purple robes with the high collar and golden and black patterns he'd always worn. A dark red cape hung over his shoulder and his face remained unshaved.

The black scar near the Master's right eye stood out sharply against the man's pale skin. The staff the Master held a staff made of dark wood, with black and red patterns printed on the hilt. A dark red orb was attached to the top of the staff, the hilt 'tangling' itself around the orb to keep it in place.

"Hello, James," he said, "it's good to see you again."

James gloated at the Master as he lowered his eyebrows. "Then I'm afraid the feeling isn't mutual, Asura," he said, receiving a fake-shocked eyebrow raise from the Master.

"James, my boy! Where are your manners?" he said.

"Boy?" James spat. "I'm forty-one. I'm an adult now. Or did you just so happen to forget that?"

The Master laughed. "Why, of course you are," he sang. "In human years and experience, you're a full-grown man. But, compared to me..." He paused a short moment to give James a sinister grin. "You'll never be more than just a boy. And you know it."

James rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Just get to your point," he said, tired of the Master's charades. "Why did you bring me here?"

The Master smirked. "Well," he inquired, "don't you think I should be asking you why you were heading over here earlier?"

James snorted. "Well... I must say things didn't exactly work out as planned," he admitted, "but I will be honest with you. I came here to kill you."

The Master rubbed his chin. "I see..." he said, not giving away how he felt about James's answer. "And now you want to know why I brought you here, don't you?"

James nodded. "Exactly."

The Master spread his arms out widely. "Well, then," he chimed, "allow me to introduce you to my plan."

With a wave of his staff, the Master made the same black fog as before appear, causing the world to disappear in front of James's eyes once again.

James hated teleporting. It made him feel dizzy and nauseous. Although he hadn't passed out this time, James still wasn't sure whether the dizziness was any better.

He found himself in a dimly lit throne room; the Master was standing in front of his throne. A golden ball was floating between his hands; when James looked closer, he noticed that the floating ball was actually a globe of Lunaria.

"Look at this," the Master said, as he slowly walked down the steps, where James was standing. "The entire globe is lit in a golden colour. The light and dark are... balanced. Disgraceful, isn't it?"

James tried to shrug, but the way the dark ropes tied his arms to his back prevented him from doing so. "Why do you think it's so disgraceful?" he asked. "I think it's beautiful."

The Master didn't look at James. "That's only because you don't know the full truth," he said disheartened, "and you never will. You don't know how cruel the Spirits actually are."

James lowered an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" he demanded. "This is just another trick to get some pity out of me, isn't it?"

The Master sighed and shook his head, but couldn't prevent a sinister smile from creeping up on his lips. "Your opinion is biased, my boy," he scoffed. "But that's alright. I won't be able to change it anyway, no matter how hard I'd try." Then, he suddenly looked up. James felt as if the two orange eyes – left seeing, right blind – staring at him were looking right through him. "None of that matters, however," the Master whispered on a tone that sent chills down James's spine. "I believe it's about time for me to check what your friends are up to."

The Master walked away from the globe, back to his throne, and hovered a hand over something what seemed to be a large, glass ball. James clearly couldn't see what the Master saw, because to James, it looked as if the Master was merely looking and grinning at an empty, glass orb. "Yes..." he mumbled. "Excellent."

He then turned to James, announcing happily, "your sister and friends are out there looking for you, James! How do you feel about that?"

James sighed. He would've run his hands through his hair if he only could've. "I knew they'd head out there," he said; he was in a cheeky mood all of a sudden. This mood was the only thing providing him with the courage to say, "what's the holdup, Asura?"

The Master turned his head in surprise. "What?" he said, obviously caught off-guard.

"I said, what's the holdup?" James repeated. "Why haven't you attacked them yet?"

The Master laughed. "Attack them?" he laughed. "And take away their opportunity to watch you waste away?"

"Excuse me?" James demanded.

The Master looked down at James, smirking creepily. This was the moment he'd been waiting for. "Don't you know, my dear James?" he asked innocently, as he began to ascend the stairs once again. "In that case, you happen to be in luck; I'm in the mood for a story."

James gloated silently at the Master, waiting for more.

"You see, James," the Master said, "Lunaria's light lives inside you... and thus... so does the darkness." The Master suddenly put the orb of his staff to James's throat, who couldn't help but feel his heartbeat speeding up.

"That's right," the Master breathed. "You clever boy. You know exactly what I'm getting at, don't you? I'm going to bring your family here now... because I want them all to see." I want them to see you, and to watch as the world crumbles around them – taking you with it."

"It's never going to work," James said. "there's no chance I'd ever join you. Especially not since your theory has no proof to be backed up with."

The Master withdrew his staff and glared at James. "Oh, but I do have proof," he whispered sinisterly. "Just have a look at the stones on your Golden Wing. They're cracking."

James could tell his hands were shaking, despite being tied up. What if the Master's theory was correct? If it was, then James and his friends would be big trouble. Reconsidering everything, there was a fair chance that the Master would turn out to be right – after all, the Master's knowledge of Magic was significantly larger than James's.

In the meantime, James had disappeared into his own thoughts and worry to miss out on the Master summoning Samira, Thomas, Luke, Ince, and Akilah, who'd been outside searching for James.

"JAMES!" Samira yelled as soon as she realised where she was. The siblings ran toward each other, but the Master interfered by freezing James in place and raising a wall of black flames between Samira and her brother.

"James?" Samira demanded. "What's going on?"

James's voice trembled as he replied. "I don't know, Sam."

"Asura!" Ince's voice bellowed; he extinguished the black flames with a single wave of his hand while angrily walking forward. "What do you think you're doing!?"

Asura didn't seem too impressed by his two angry older siblings. "You know exactly what I'm doing, my beloved brother," he hissed. "And, just like last time, I'm starting with you."

The Master raised his staff, but Ince was faster. With a single move, the Master was thrown back against a wall.

"I see," the Master growled as he got back on all fours. "Brother didn't come for a friendly chat. But what about sister?" He lashed out at Akilah; the spell arrived before Ince could stop it, but Akilah didn't defend herself or strike back; she simply kept dodging over and over, until she'd ultimately fail to do so.

Knowing that moment would arrive soon, Akilah tried to reason with her brother.

"Asura, please," Akilah pleaded. "You still have a chance to turn this all around. Give the good in you a chance!"

"The good in me?" her brother sneered. "Please, Akilah, You and I both know that there's no good in me left. And..." he paused for a moment. "Maybe there never was."

While the three Spirits were battling, James was being freed by his family. Thomas used his enchanted sword to cut the dark ropes, allowing James to hug his sister and son.

"Dad," Luke said, "where were you? We were worried sick."

James's eyes flashed from his son to his sister and his brother-in-law – he felt utter embarrassment for the situation he'd created. "I'm sorry, Lucas," he said. "I thought I could handle this. I thought I could face the Master on my own." He sighed.

"All I wanted was to protect you. And... I failed."

"No, James," Thomas insisted. "You didn't. We're all still safe."

"Then where are the others?" James said incomprehensively.

"Antonio and Bella are with Aoife, Aine and Aharnish," Samira said. "The kids are with Violina – Lucas insisted on coming."

"I wanted to help find you," Luke said after receiving a judging glare from his father. "And I'm glad I did, Dad."

James snorted and smiled at his son. "I am too, Luke," he said. "It's good to see you. All three of you."

Father and son shared a hug, missing out on all that was going down behind them.

The Master had defeated his siblings once again. With a single tap on the floor with the bottom of his staff, the Master turned them both into...

"Shadows," James breathed. "He's turned them to shadows."

"ASURA!" Ince bellowed. "What's the point of this!?"

The Master smirked at his brother. "You see, Ince," he said, "now you can experience what it's like to be me once again. You get to experience the punishment you designed."

"Don't do this, Asura," Ince warned his brother; he laughed it off, however.

"There's nothing you can do to stop me, Ince," he laughed. "And soon, our dear siblings will be joining you in your pitiful, helpless state." The Master laughed hatefully.

"What is he talking about?" Samira hissed. James shrugged.

"I don't know," he lied. Well, basically it wasn't entirely a lie, but it wasn't the truth, either. "But I think we're about to find out."

"Well, I'm not waiting until everything goes wrong," Luke said, and sprinted forward; his father wanted to grab him, but missed. "LUKE, DON'T!"

Luke ignored his father; he lashed out with his sword at the Master, who had his back turned to Luke. Just as the blade would've made its impact, the Master moved his hand upward. The blade of Luke's sword began to glow red, and mimicked the movements the Master made with his hand – sending the sword back where it came from, tearing the flesh of Luke's temple.

James and Thomas rushed forward to save Luke as the boy fell unconsciously to the ground. The two adults quickly dragged the boy away from the Master before the evil Spirit could finish the job.

"Such courage," the Master smirked. "Too bad he lacks any actual skill."

James looked at Akilah and Ince. "Get him back to the castle," he told the Spirits, referring to his son. "Get him out of here. We'll take care of the Master."

James didn't have to tell the Spirits twice; despite the fact that they were shadows, they could still teleport and hold objects – which meant that they could take Luke back to safety.

In the meantime, the Master attended to executing his plan.

Using his staff, the Master summoned the globe of Lunaria; the red orb on the staff began to emit unsettling black smoke as he did so.

James began to tremble uncontrollably. As he leaned Samira to support, she gave him a worried look.

"James? Are you okay?" Thomas said.

"Y-yeah," James stammered. "We've got to get out of here. Now."

The trio didn't hesitate; James grabbed his sister by the wrist and pulled her along. Unfortunately, they were already too late by the time they'd started running.

The Master raised his staff and placed his hand on the globe, exactly on the Land of Light. "Now," he breathed, "let's see how fast I can change this world this time."

As the Master finished his sentence, the patch of land presenting the Land of Light on the globe began to turn pitch black.

...And so did the actual Land in real life.

The air got an instant chill as the dark energy began to spread from the castle through the air – there was no stopping it.

Thomas, Samira and James could instantly feel the effect of the world darkening; as the world darkened around them, so did James's heart. There was no away of fighting it, as James felt his last grains of hope slip from his heart and mind, only to be left with an ink-black stain inside of him.

The last thing James was able to tell at his family before being completely engulfed by the dark was, "RUN!"

"DAD!" Samira yelled, trying to pull away from her husband, who had gripped Samira tightly; going anywhere near James now was a terrible idea. "Sam, you heard him!" Thomas yelled. "We've got to get out of here!"

Samira continued to struggle, but quickly accepted that he had to leave her brother behind. "Don't worry, James," she yelled, before running after Thomas. "We'll finish this, once and for all! We won't let him take you, I promise!"

"I'd love to see you try, my dear," the Master laughed. James had been driven to his knees, and was sitting next to the Master, panting loudly. "James is mine."

Samira didn't react, nor did she look back. She just simply couldn't look back.

The only thing she could do to help James now, was to keep Luke safe and find a way to cure James and save the world at the same time. After all, she still was a Guardian – and thus, she had to fulfil her duty.

Whatever it'd take, Luke would get his father back. And Samira would get her brother back.

Follow the Light

The Master felt as if he couldn't be happier. Everything had gone according to plan: the world was darkening once again, and James was his loyal servant.

Yet, something seemed off. The Master was quick to discover the reason why; as he glanced at the globe, he was expecting to see a completely black ball, but only the Land of Light had turned black. The black colour was spreading, but it looked as if it was struggling to get past the borders of the Land of Light. The barrier the Spirits had put up had worked.

"AKILAH!" the Master bellowed. "What's the reason for this!?" he breathed. "AKILAH!"

The shadows took their time to appear; they didn't seem quite impressed with the tantrum their brother was throwing. Obviously, they made sure Luke was in good hands first before returning to Asura.

"Akilah, what did you do?" the Master said angrily, pointing at the globe behind him. "Why isn't the darkness spreading?"

"We had to keep you contained," Ince said calmly; the Master looked as if he was about to explode. He just simply couldn't stand the attitude his siblings had toward him, as if they didn't respect him and everything he'd had achieved. They acted as if they were above him; the Master thought his siblings were arrogant and narcissistic.

They'd always been, and they'd never change, either.

"How do I break this barrier, Ince?" the Master demanded. "Tell me quickly, please. I don't like having to wait."

"We all have to do things we don't like sometimes, brother," Ince said smugly, and after Ince had finished his sentence, both shadows simultaneously disappeared once again. On the inside, the Master was boiling with rage, despite the calm appearance of his face. How could his siblings be so arrogant, so full of themselves?

They were blatantly ignorant – even after all that the Master had proven to be capable of, his siblings didn't seem the slightest bit afraid or impressed; they just remained indifferent towards the Master. Annoyingly indifferent.

The Master had no time to waste on hinting down his siblings; the darker Lunaria would become, the more weakened their powers would be, anyway. For now, his main concern was finding a way to bring down that cursed barrier. Once that would be done, the Master would regain full control over Lunaria, enabling him to permanently wipe his siblings off the map. They were insignificant little ants. No – they were cockroaches, because one cloud of pesticide would never be enough to wipe them out. But a cloud with the strength and capacity of ten clouds... yes, that would do the trick.

The Master had plenty of time to work on bringing down the barrier, as the Guardians were no element of worry for him. James could take care of them just fine; with the dark energy flowing through his veins, he was almost as powerful as the Master himself.

"James?" the Master asked, referring to the man that had been sitting in a dark corner while the Master was venting. "I've got a task for you."

"What is thy bidding, My Lord?" James asked as he slowly rose from his kneeling position. His eyes were a startling shade of red, lying deep in their eye sockets; James, no longer in need of aid from his glasses, had thrown them on the floor where they lay, one lens cracked.

"James, my boy," the Master grinned, the fact that the Guardian that once had fought him so fiercely as now calling him Master, "I'd like you to go out there and find the Guardians. Make sure that they don't leave this Realm – and do whatever it takes to make them stay."

James nodded and bowed deeply. "Will do, My Lord," he said. "They won't leave the Land of Light."

The Master rolled his eyes. "Please don't call it that," he scoffed. "It's not 'light' anymore."

James nodded. "As you wish."

The Master nodded back at him. "Go on, now," he said, "I gave you a task to complete, now didn't I?"

James turned around, planning to leave the throne room, but he'd hardly taken three steps before turning back around again.

"What is it now?" the Master asked, slightly agitated.

"What if the Guardians attempt to restore the Land of Light by completing the Ritual?" James asked. The Master rubbed his chin.

"Hm..." he pondered. "You've got a point there. I could..." the Master paused for a moment to pace around and consider his options.

"I could make a spell for you," the Master ultimately decided after he'd stopped pacing. "With it, you can poison the Altars so the Guardians can do the work for us."

"...Poison the altars, My Lord?" James said, sounding as if he was questioning the Master's word choice. "Perhaps curse is the word you're looking for."

"Perhaps," the Master mumbled, too busy thinking of a fit curse to even listen to what James had to say. He then realised there was one curse that would be capable of cursing the altars in the right way, but it would take time to prepare it. This meant that James would either have to wait – and thus risking losing the Guardians – or go out without any objective other than to keep the Guardians inside the Light Castle, which meant risking that the Guardians would perform the Ritual. Whichever choice the Master would end up making, there were risks to both.

"Just stay here for now," the Master decided. "I'll prepare something for you which you can use to cast the spell, so you won't have to cast it all by yourself.

"This curse will assure our victory in case either of us gets compromised."

"Very well, sir," the Master said. "But – please don't doubt my competence, My Lord. I will not fail you."

The Master allowed a sinister smile crawl up his lips. "I have no doubt in you, or your services, James," he said, before leaving the throne room.

*

Samira and Thomas had left the Dark Castle in such a rush, that they hadn't considered in which direction they were actually headed – but apparently, they were headed the right way, as they ran into Bella, Antonio and the three remaining Spirits not too far from where they'd left off. They seemed rather shaken by the sudden change the Land of Light had undergone.

"What happened?" Bella said worriedly as she saw the trio approaching. "The Land of Light has gone dark again. Were you guys at the Dark Castle? What did you find?"

"I think it's better if we ask one question at a time," Aharnish said. "And... I think we'd better save them for when we get back to our own safe haven. It's not safe out here."

"But what about James?" Antonio protested. He noticed that Samira took a step back, shaking her head. "What's wrong, Sam?"

"He won't... he... won't..." Samira whispered, trying to admit the fact that her brother had been overtaken by evil, but she simply couldn't. She turned to her left and buried her face in her husband's chest.

"...James won't be coming," Thomas said quietly. "The Master got him. There's nothing we can do for him now.

"As for Luke, he got critically hurt, so we had Akilah and Ince rush him back to the Light Castle."

Aoife gave Samira and Thomas a sad, yet encouraging smile. "We'll see about that," she said softly. "We're more powerful than you think... despite having our limits. But, Aharnish is right: before we take any actions, we should get back to the others. They're probably worried."

Aoife wasn't wrong. When the group returned to the Castle of Light, they found Violina in a frantic situation – and not just because the Land of Light had gone dark.

"Oh, I'm so glad you came back," the lady Fixie said to Aharnish, her face looking flushed and worried. "Luke's doing fine, his wound has stopped bleeding – but Mari really needs your help."

Antonio's expression instantly turned. "Take me to her," he said. "What happened to her?"

Violina shook her head. "I wish I knew," she said.

Antonio rushed after Violina, followed closely by the three Spirits. Something had happened to Mari, obviously something bad – but what?

Violina led them into the room Mari had resided for the past day, where the girl lay still in her bed.

The sight was horrifying; Mari's brown hair was tangly and messy, her face pale. Black veins had started to spread to the sides of her head. Felicity and Daisy were sitting on chairs at each sides of the bed with worried faces. Marco and Anthony were sitting in the back of the room.

"What happened to her?" Antonio said, as he sat down on his daughter's bedside.

"I wish I knew," Violina said. Her eyes were lowered and her hands rested on her stomach. "There was nothing I could do."

"There's nothing much you could've done," Aine said quietly while carefully examining Mari. "The sudden change of the atmosphere in the Land of Light has allowed the darkness inside Mari to spread too fast. We need to get her away from this place first before we can begin healing her."

"I'm afraid we won't be accompanying the Guardians in that mission, Aine," Aoife, who had been looking out the window, suddenly said. "The barrier won't hold much longer." She turned around and beckoned her brother. "Aharnish, we must do something."

Aharnish nodded at his sister; he knew exactly what she meant. The darkness would eventually manage to slip through the cracks, causing it to get out of control and leaving Lunaria lost once again.

"Very well," Aarnish said, indicating that all Guardians had to listen. "This is the plan: Aoife, Aine and I will go with you to the edge of the Land of Light, where you will go on and we will stay behind to strengthen the barrier."

"But where should we go?" Samira said as she nervously tapped her feet. "Where does Mari have the best chance of survival?"

"Aside from the Land of Light, magic is the strongest in the Silver Valley," Violina suggested. "But I doubt that we can make it there in time."

"We'll just have to risk it," Luke insisted; nobody had noticed him stumbling into the room until he spoke. His head was bandaged. "Mari needs help; we can't let her waste away like this."

"Luke," the redhead heard Marco say, "dude, let's put this whole thing realistically. That Dark Lord out there wants us dead – I doubt we'd make it out of here in one piece, even if we tried."

Daisy gave Marco a sideways glance, but then looked Thomas dead in the eye. "They did," she said, referring to the four confused adults in front of her. "Twenty-five-years ago. So... why couldn't we do it again?"

"We, huh, kid?" Antonio let out a sad chuckle. "Yeah... about that. Things were different back then, Daisy. I hate to break it to you, but let's face it: you don't know the slightest thing about the way things work in this world. At least we had two weeks to figure it out before we ended up here."

"Does it really matter?" Anthony suddenly said as he stood up; his blue eyes met his father's, but he ignored Thomas and kept on talking anyway. "You guys will be by our side when we're out there at all times. You can teach us about the dangers that lurk out there. We're stuck here until the Master is defeated anyway; so we might as well just help out as much as we can."

Felicity's head turned into her little brother's direction as he spoke; he hadn't thought Tony would ever be able to stand up like that, and she felt proud at him for doing so.

"I must say that I have to agree with Tony," Violina said. Her silverish-blue eyes had a mischievous sparkle due to the rather peculiar lightning. Both her hands rested on her hips. "I can stand in for James. The ten of us can take Mari to the Silver Valley. What's important right now, is that we stay together."

Thomas looked at his friends to see what their opinions on the situation were, when he suddenly felt a slender hand touching his shoulder.

"I think we should just do it," Samira said. She gave her husband an encouraging smile, which apparently hit its target.

"Fine, then," Thomas decided. "But the five of you stay close to us at all times, and you do exactly what we tell you to, when we tell you to."

The faces of the five teenagers lit up. "Don't worry," Tony said, "we'll do anything you say."

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Aine said. "We've got to hurry."

Antonio and Luke helped Mari to get to her feet while Aoife, Aine and Aharnish went ahead. If they left now, there was a slight chance that the entire Bond of Light would make it out of the Land of Light by sunrise. Timing was critical at this moment.

However, the Bond of Light had hardly set foot outside the castle before finding themselves surrounded.

Pitch black, seemingly human mist creatures with soulless, blood red eyes floated around the Bond of Light, staring at them in an eerie fashion.

"What are those?" Luke asked his aunt and uncle, who both shook their heads; these were shadow creatures they'd thus far been yet to encounter.

"These are Night Stalkers, a personal creation of mine," a surprisingly cold, yet familiar voice said. "I remember these creatures once being mentioned to me, but I have never actually seen one... So, I thought, why not make them myself?"

It was James. The Stalkers floated aside, allowing the red-haired man to become visible to the Bond of Light. Two Shadow Walkers accompanied him in wolf form.

"Hello, Guardians," James spoke, all emotion absent from his voice. "It's nice to finally meet you."

"James!?" Bella exclaimed. "What happened to you?"

"I've been meaning to tell you..." Samira said quietly, but James interrupted her.

"Do we know each other?" he insinuated. "I am sorry, Ma'am, but you appear to have mistaken me for someone else." He stroke the head of one of the Shadow Walkers that was standing beside him as he spoke.

"You're playing with us, right, mate?" Antonio said, with an anxious chuckle hinting about in the tone of his voice. "You do remember us, but you just hate us because of what that emo wizard did to you."

"Hate is such a strong emotion," James stated, "of which I feel very little. I remember none of your faces, nor do I feel anything but apathy regarding you. I'm just simply doing as I was told."

"That doesn't sound like the James we know," Thomas said slowly, but James didn't respond in any way other than with a teasing smile.

"Then perhaps I'm not the James you all seem to be taking me for."

Thomas crossed his arms. "I doubt it," he said "The Master just really did a number on you this time, that's all."

"As I already told you," James said, slightly spreading his arms, "I am just doing as I was told. And I was told to keep you from crossing the border to the other Realms – and to collect her."

James pointed at Mari, who was leaning on Luke. The Stalkers instantly took her from Luke's side, but Luke responded by pulling out his glowing sword and angrily cutting – or, well, as close as it came to cutting – the Stalker that had grabbed his friend to bits.

"Mr Bellucci," Luke insisted, "please keep her safe. They'll keep coming for her."

Antonio, who had been insisting on carrying his daughter all along (but hadn't been allowed to do so by Aharnish and Thomas because they'd probably need him in a fight if it came to it), agreed more than happily. He allowed Mari to lean on him as he shielded her with both his body and glaive. There was no way these monsters would be taking his daughter from him again.

"Dad, why are you doing this!?" Luke yelled at his father. "Please, stop!"

"What did you call me?" James said, seemingly pitying Luke. "You think I'm your father?

"Oh, you silly boy."

As James continued to speak, Luke couldn't believe his ears; he felt his heart break as he heard the man in front of him, the man he'd called his father just a moment ago, say without any sign of emotion in his voice, "I don't have a son. If I did, I think I would've been able to remember him, now don't you think?"

Luke didn't know what to say. He just stared at his father, completely baffled. What was he supposed to say, after all? His own father had just denied that he knew him.

Luke wouldn't allow it to affect him too much, however; this wasn't his father talking about him. This was the darkness that had overtaken him.

"This isn't you, James," Samira said, somehow completely in sync with Luke's thoughts. "Don't you recognize us? Any of us?"

James sighed in exasperation. "You're wasting both our time, lady." He commanded the Stalkers to separate Mari and Antonio from the group; at that exact moment, Thomas decided it was enough.

He drew his sword and lashed out at the Stalkers that were standing between him and Antonio, causing them to dissolve as soon as the glowing blade passed through them.

"JAMES!" Thomas bellowed, while pointing his sword at his former friend's throat. "That's enough. You're either or letting us pass, or I'll make you let us pass."

"Are you threatening me?" James said slowly, the tone of his voice drastically changing as he spoke.

Thomas shrugged, without lowering his sword. "Yeah," he said. "Maybe I am."

"Very well," James said slowly, while reaching for his sword. But, to everyone's surprise, the blade wasn't glowing as James took it out of its scabbard - but black smoke seemed to be coming from the now jet black blade. "Let's dance, Guardian."

James charged forward; Thomas dodged his opponent's sword agilely, while yelling at the others to get back somewhere safe.

He had no intention of killing James, but if he had to, he wouldn't hesitate to do so. He felt stings of anger toward himself as soon as the thought came up in his head, but he had to think of his family first – the family that wasn't on the Master's side.

Clang. The sound of two metal blades meeting was heard several times – Thomas thought back of the time when he and James had fought, trying to figure out a way to defeat him – and suddenly realised that this was the exact same place as back then.

This revelation distracted Thomas for a second, causing James's sword to make contact with his chest – luckily, the blade bounced off on Thomas's metal chest armour, but still came down hard enough to send the Brit staggering backward a few steps.

"If this is how you want to play it, then so be it," Thomas grunted through gritted teeth and charged for his first attack; James dodged the first swing of Thomas's blade, but the second sliced the fabric of his dark blue tunic, missing the skin by less than half a centimetre or so.

Thomas dodged and caught James's attack with his own sword; he used the same technique as he'd always done back when he had fencing practice with his father. He flicked his wrist and turned his sword, basically forcing James to drop his own.

Thomas struck. The blade found flesh, piercing James's side; he dropped to his knees, tried to stand, but had to drop down again.

"I hope that next time, you'll think twice before attacking me," Thomas said, his blade lifting up James's head by the chin. The pointy end of the blade pricked James in the throat; this was clearly an uncomfortable feeling.

The expression in James's red eyes had changed; apathy had made way for hatred. "Don't worry," he coughed. "I will. Next time, I'll attack when you don't see me coming."

"Then I will be waiting," Thomas said, withdrawing his blade and disregarding James. "Come on," he said to his friends. "We're wasting our time here."

"Then what can we do to make this visit worth your while?" a voice asked, causing Thomas and the other Guardians to instantly spin on their heels.

While the Guardians were attending to James, the Master had appeared behind them. The adult Guardians instantly got into a defensive stance, raising their weapons, ready to attack, but the Master didn't seem impressed.

"Oh, please," he sighed. "Make yourself no illusions. You know those weapons won't do anything."

"Perhaps we can't kill you, but at least we can hurt you plenty," Antonio spat, "which is almost just as good."

"Now now, Antonio," the Master said, "I was hoping to have a friendly conversation with you. But..." he grinned. "I guess I was wrong."

In the meantime, James had got back up on his feet, and was now standing directly behind the Guardians. His side was still bleeding, and the red glow in his eyes was burning with anger.

But as soon as James raised his sword, preparing to attack, the Master raised his hand. "James, here," he commanded. James did as he was told; the Guardians let him pass by them without doing anything. Thomas threw the Master an angry glare.

"The fact that you're using James like this only proves your cowardice," Thomas spat. "You're too afraid to face us head-on."

"Am I?" the Master said, his grin growing broader. He then spread his arms, saying, "come on, Bennett. Do your worst."

The Master didn't have to tell Thomas twice. He dove forward, intending to attack the Master, but was caught off-guard the loud CLANG of metal against metal. James had intervened.

"James-!" Thomas shouted, wrinkling his nose. "You're only proving my point. Your master is a coward for using you as a shield!"

The Master laughed, and pushed James aside; this happened with such a force that the sword James was holding got flung out of his hands. The man himself ended up beside it, missing the blade's sharp edge by a centimetre.

"It's just you and me, then," Thomas growled at the Master.

But the Master had other plans.

The Master aimed his staff at Thomas, just as he was lashing out at the Master again. A burst of red light shot out of the staff's orb, freezing both Thomas and his blade just before impact.

"Oops," the Master said. "And now I'm only proving my point. Your weapons. You. Nothing can hurt or defeat me, because you can't even come close enough to do so much as touch me." He flashed a dangerous grin. "But what happens when I touch you, Bennett?"

The Master took a step forward, and touched Thomas's hands, which were still holding the sword floating in mid-air. As soon as the Master touched them, they turned to stone – and so did the rest of Thomas.

The Guardians made protesting sounds – Antonio even had to pull Samira back into place – but the Master paid them no mind. Instead, he turned to face James. "Get up," he commanded. "Go do what I told you to."

James quickly got up, grabbed his sword, bowed at the Master and dissolved into the shadows of the night. He was gone.

"Well, that's that," the Master said. "As for me... Before I leave and see to it that James is performing the task I gave him correctly, I must do something."

The Master followed the lines of Thomas's stone shoulders with his fingertips. "Remember what I said, twenty-five years ago? That I'd keep the lot of you as stone trophies?"

He flashed a grin. "That's exactly what I'm about to do now."

One pound on the ground with his staff was enough. Samira, Bella, and Antonio turned to stone within moments. "I can't have the lot of you stand in my way again."

The six teenagers that remained, were shocked. What were they supposed to do?

"Let that be a lesson," the Master taunted the teenagers. "Don't stand in my way. This is not a game for children."

The Master then disappeared, and so did the four Guardians' statues.

Luke disagreed with the Master. This was certainly their game – because they weren't children. The game was on, and Luke and his friends were ready to play.

II

The Game

The Flight

The Bond of Light had to flee the Land of Light as fast as possible. The quicker they'd be gone, the bigger their chance to get to the Silver Valley unharmed would be.

As soon as the teenagers caught up with the three remaining Spirits and told them what had happened, the Spirits promised they'd guide the Guardians to the border of the Land of Light without leaving their side.

"Just one question," Felicity said after a while. "Why didn't we just go back and perform the Ritual? We could've done it easily."

"When are you kids going to listen?" Aharnish said, slightly irritated. "You lot haven't had any kind of training or experience, and your parents are missing – which leaves us without anyone who can perform the Ritual."

"I disagree," Luke said. "We could've done it. The five – or six – of us."

"No," Aine said. "Aharnish is right; you couldn't have. The five of you might be the new Generation, but you only have a quarter of your parents' magic."

"So you're telling us the book needs to... recharge magic?" Tony said, chuckling silently at how stupid that actually sounded.

Aharnish shrugged. "Its energy drains," he said. "Listen. We're new to this too. We've never had two generations within the same century."

"We understand," Marco nodded. Aharnish smiled.

"We just have to figure out what the deal is with you lot, I guess."

"The 'deal'?" Tony said. "What do you mean?"

"The 'deal' is whether you've got magical abilities or not," Aoife said, before her brother could say anything. "We still haven't had any opportunity to test that."

"We had plenty of opportunity," Luke said. "But no one thought of it until now. And now we don't have time."

"...Exactly," Aharnish said, while scratching the back of his neck. "That's another way you can put it, I guess."

"My sister and I can help you with your training," Violina said, "but in order to do that, we'll have to get there first. Safely.

"And..."

"And what?" Felicity said.

"My sister and I haven't spoken in a while," Violina said. "I believe I mentioned it earlier – she's fallen under a spell. I had to flee the kingdom."

Daisy placed a hand on Violina's shoulder. "Don't worry," she said, "we'll help you lift that curse. No matter what."

Violina looked at her and chuckled. "You'll have to," she said with a teasing smile. "We're going to need my sister's help if we want Mari's condition to better again."

"Speaking of Mari," Daisy said, "how are you?"

"Fine, I guess," Mari mumbled. She was leaning on Luke's shoulder as they walked – after all, her father was no longer there to carry her. Her face was pale, contrasting greatly with the dark, black veins that peeked from the sides of her face. "I'm just feeling a little – dizzy. But I'll manage."

"How are we going to get to the Silver Valley, actually?" Luke said, giving Mari a worried glance. "I don't see her walking all the way."

"We don't have to," Violina said; they'd arrived at the bridge near the Land of Light's border. Violina clapped her hands, causing a small whistle to appear; as she blew it, no sound seemed to come out.

"What was the point in that, exactly?" Daisy said. Violina raised her hand, indicating that she had to be quiet.

"Just watch."

And they didn't have to wait long; they had been standing there hardly two minutes when suddenly, four silver shapes appeared in the sky.

"Glimmer!" Violina said proudly. And it was indeed the silver dragon, now all grown-up (for as 'grown up' a dragon can become, at least).

...Which meant that she was now nearly twice as big as she had always been before.

She had brought along three other dragons that looked similfar to her – they were probably her new family.

"There's our ride," Violina said, as she walked forward to pet Glimmer. "Don't worry. They know exactly where to take us."

"I hope so," Marco said, obviously unsure of whether riding a dragon would be a good idea or not – despite the fact that the idea of doing so did quite intrigue him.

"Don't worry, Marco," Aharnish said, "these dragons can be trusted. Aine, Aoife and I will go on to the barrier by foot – I suggest the lot of you fly to the top of the mountain and solve things out from there – heading straight to the Silver Valley might be dangerous."

Luke nodded. "Got it."

Obviously, the teenagers had their doubt about getting on these dragon's backs. However, after considering that one of the dragons had helped their parents (and thus didn't eat any of them), getting on seemed to become easier.

At last, everyone had found seat on either of the four dragons' backs, and they were ready to take off.

"Alright, Glimmer," Violina said, "just follow me; I'll lead the way." She'd hardly even finished her sentence before launching off into the night sky – despite the fact that it was impossible to tell it was night-time due to the dark clouds hanging overhead.

*

"My Lord, I would like to apologise for my failure earlier."

James had returned to the Master's castle and reported that he had succeeded in placing the curse. The Master didn't appear to mind the fact that the redhead had let the Guardians initially slip through his fingers too much, however, which seemed to mildly surprise his servant.

"It was merely a case of bad luck," the Master said slowly. "Very unfortunate, indeed."

"What are you thinking about, My Lord?" James said as he got up from his kneeling position. "You sound as if you're up to something."

"I am, James," the Master said. "Indeed, I am. You're a clever man."

James didn't make a remark regarding that compliment – probably because he wasn't sure whether it was truly heartfelt or not -, but made a suggestion instead.

"Would you like me to go after them, My Lord?"

The Master raised his hand. "No," he said. "Leave them. They're only children. Just let them go and do their... business.

"I can deal with them myself later. Without anyone but the Fixie girl to guide them, they'll be an easy prey."

James refused to take 'no' for an answer; at least, not without at least some kind of explanation. "But why won't you let me take care of them, My Lord?" he said, trying to pry information from his master. "Are you afraid I will fail you again?"

The Master responded sounding genuinely surprised. "Oh, no, it's no such thing," he assured James. "I would just like to keep you here, where you're... at your best."

James tilted his head, and decided to react on that last comment this time. "At my best, My Lord?" he repeated questioningly.

The Master looked at his servant for a short moment, as if he was puzzled by the fact that his authority was being questioned – as if he didn't know how to respond.

"Your powers are the strongest in my presence, James," the Master said. "That's why you can't leave this realm."

James had no need of knowing the truth. Obviously, if James were to leave the Land of 'Light', he'd end up in a balanced Realm – at least, for now – and that'd mean the energy in his soul would become balanced, too. And the Master didn't want James to go running back to his friends just yet.

James would be able to go and destroy them soon enough, though – the Master just needed to find a way to keep him dark. Otherwise, James would be of no use.

But the Master had already thought of a way to keep James under his control. He just needed to test his method on the guinea pig he'd chosen; if this curse would work on Mari, it would do the same for James. All it would take was getting Mari cursed and watching the effects unfold – and then, it'd be James's turn.

Of course, the Master was willing to use the curse on James if he failed to reach Mari – but those matters were of later concern.

*

As they flew over the realm that had once been known as the Edge, it was clear to see how the Light had changed the realm. The cracks had closed, forming one solid landscape that consisted of grassy and flowery hills.

"Just look at this," Mari said to Luke, pointing at the sea of green below them; she heard him let out an awestruck gasp.

"Wow," Luke said. "Amazing."

The sight was utterly breathtaking. The lava streams and dangerous geysers had made way for a seemingly endless patch of green and flowers.

Luke and Mari looked at each other; this was exactly what they had to protect. They couldn't let the Master ruin all of this again.

"Before this place became the Edge, we called it Louloudia," Violina, who had suddenly appeared and was now flying beside Luke and Mari, said. "It... means 'Flowers' in Earth's Greek language." She smiled as she looked at the sea of flowers below her. A sea indeed.

"It's beautiful," Daisy said. She was sitting behind Luke and Mari, and had been studying the colourful realm down below as well. "I didn't know there was a place like this in any universe."

"Aren't you happy you know now, then?" Violina smiled.

As soon as they reached the mountains, the dragons landed on a plateau near the top of the mountain. The dragons were too big to be able to land in the forest, which had its borders directly at the foot of the mountain, and therefore, the Guardians had to continue without them.

"Actually, it's a good idea to go on afoot," Marco said, as he jumped off the dragon he'd been riding. "This way, we can secure the safety of our group as a whole. It's easier to disappear when you're afoot than when you're flying a six metre-tall reptile."

"It might not be the best idea," Luke offered, scratching his neck, but not getting off the dragon he was sitting on, "but it's our best chance. Which means we have no choice but to take it."

The hesitation was obvious, and so were the reasons why. But Marco was right: just for this once, going afoot would be a safer solution than risking airborne assault.

After all, the dragons were much larger targets, and therefore, they were easier to hit.

And so, eventually, after some more arguing, the Bond of Light, accompanied by Violina, began to climb the mountain.

By the time they'd reached the top, the sun was rising, and heavy snow had started to fall.

The Bond of Light had to hurry: it had never been their intention to go the rest of the way afoot – quite the opposite, actually – but their current situation had forced them to do so. Mari needed help, and the most efficient way to get her to the Valley was by simply creating a diversion.

Glimmer and her family would go flying over the forest, hopefully tricking James and the Master into thinking that that was where the Bond of Light was headed.

Without the Spirits' aid, there was nothing much more they could do.

Luke regularly checked behind him to see if his friends were still there, silently thanking the Heavens whenever he saw that they were still keeping up. He made sure that Mari remained close by his side at all times, however.

Meanwhile, Mari wondered how long it'd take before James would find them. After all, it wasn't quite difficult to realise that the dragons weren't carrying anyone; James would probably be quick to figure it out.

And it turned out that Mari wasn't wrong. It didn't take long before the already chilly air got that familiar, extra unsettling touch, and the white flakes that were falling from the sky turned pitch black.

James was approaching.

Luke could feel his heartbeat rising as the dark creatures rose from the dark snow, and started to swirl around the group of four. James, however, remained nowhere to be seen.

Not knowing what to expect, Luke and his friends agreed to stay still, as the Stalkers silently circled around them and black snow proceeded to fall. And yet, James still didn't show.

Growing impatient, Luke decided it was safe enough to attack the Stalkers. His friends instinctively did the same, reaching out for their weapons, save Mari, since she was the only one without a weapon – she decided to make work of that as soon as she and her friends would reach the Silver Valley.

Violina rose into the sky ready to attack.

As Luke pulled his sword from its scabbard, he decided to try and intimidate the Stalkers as much as he could. "We are the Bond of Light," he stated, loudly and clearly. "We will not be intimidated by you."

One of the more humanoid shadows floating near Luke came closer. Its red eyes were glowing brightly, and its voice was a low, distorted growl.

"We were summoned to do one thing, Guardian," the Stalker growled. "And that, frankly, we weren't summoned to intimidate you." If the Stalker had a mouth, it would've grinned broadly. "We were summoned to finish you."

"GUYS, NOW!" Luke yelped. But the Stalkers, already knowing they were about to be attacked, beat the Guardians to it.

They dissolved into smoke and dove to the ground, where they slithered underneath the teenagers' feet like dark snakes. Luke ordered his friends to run, but the Stalkers were too quick.

In a matter of seconds, an entire patch of snow twice as big as the ground the teenagers covered fell apart and began sliding down the mountain, causing an avalanche to occur that knocked the Guardians off their feet. Luke tried to call out for his friends, and he could hear them do the same, all while trying to stay afloat – but soon, the world went white – and then pitch black.

The snow took them along on its path of destruction, until it finally came to a stop half-way down the mountain.

It was dark and cold underneath the snow. After a while, Luke could hear his friends shout his name above ground. Luke managed to respond only by digging away just enough snow to be able to stick his hand above the thick, white layer; luckily, his friends were quick to get a hold of him, and had freed him from the cold, white prison within minutes.

"Thanks, guys," Luke shivered, rubbing his arms trying to warm up. He then proceeded to look around; someone of their team was missing. "But – where's Felicity?"

"The avalanche separated us," Marco said gravely, "and further away than we'd expected. We – we can't find her.

"Honestly, I thought we were lucky to have found you. Violina managed to dig up the four of us-" he pointed at Mari, Daisy and Tony, who looked exhausted- "but she couldn't find you. And now, we can't find Felicity."

"Then for God's sake, start digging!" Luke yelled. "We can't let her die down there!"

Luke didn't have to tell his friends twice. They started digging around; they might've been lucky not to have been buried too deep, but perhaps Felicity wasn't that lucky.

Tony was crying. Daisy's breath was loud and shaky. Everyone was calling out Felicity's name – this couldn't be the end for her.

The moment the Bond of Light left the Land of Light, Luke had set one goal; complete their mission and make it back together.

No one would be left behind, and Luke would make sure of that.

Eventually, someone found Felicity. She hadn't been buried deeply, but the reason her friends hadn't been able to find her was that she'd been rendered unconscious; Felicity had hit her head on a rock.

"Felicity?" Marco said, gently shaking the girl in attempt to wake her. "Felicity, can you hear me?"

"She's bleeding, Marco," Daisy said, looking at the back of Felicity's head. "And... by the looks of her ear, she's got frostnip."

"Doesn't that develop into frostbite?" Tony said. Daisy nodded, biting her lip. She then looked up at Luke.

"We've got to get Felicity out of here to somewhere she can warm up," Daisy said, "and fast."

Luke stared at his unconscious cousin. "Take off her armour," he then commanded. "It radiates the cold. When her armour is off, take off your cloaks and wrap them around her – I'll carry her down the rest of the way."

Luke's friends agreed silently and followed his commands.

"We've got to hurry," Luke said, shoving his sword back into the scabbard. "Felicity's life as well as Mari's depends on it now."

Broken Curse

But it wasn't James who'd been the one to deploy the Stalkers. It had all been the Master's doing. He was in a hurry, and had successfully managed to locate the teenagers.

The Master was very well aware of the fact that these children were the children of another generation of Guardians, which made them a threat to his victory. And, aside from that, they moved fast. Too fast. And thus, the Master decided to get rid of them. It was too bad he had to give up his initial plan, which had been to capture Mari and test the curse on her whilst she was alive, but the Guardians were in a perfect position for the Master to take them all out at once.

An opportunity he most certainly couldn't afford to miss. And that meant that the Master would have to do the same to Mari as he'd done to Sabrina so long ago – resurrect her with Dark Magic.

James kept insisting that he had to be the one to go out and collect Mari's body, but the Master kept refusing his offers without offering any kind of explanation in return – this seemed to frustrate James, but the Master didn't regard James's frustration as a threat.

James, however, took that differently. He was frustrated with the Master and his ways; the Master refused to give any logical reason as to why James wasn't allowed to redeem his previous mistake and had to stay inside the castle instead.

Unfortunately for the Master, James wouldn't get discouraged – quite the opposite, actually. The curse that James had fallen under apparently didn't have the effect the Master had expected. James's free will was somehow still stronger than his desire to serve the Master, which made James vulnerable to the exact thing he was about to do; run away.

James came up with an excuse as to why he was leaving the castle; it was a poor excuse, but for some reason, the Master fell for it. James told his master he was going to check if the Spirits had returned to their castle.

But the truth was that James wanted to prove himself. And, aside from that, James wanted revenge. That Guardian had humiliated James, and thus he had to pay. And since Thomas was no longer around, the children had to suffer in his place.

James quickly made his way to the border of the Land of Light, stopping at the barrier. The Spirits, who had gone to the barrier to strengthen it, were nowhere to be seen – but James could feel their strength flowing through the barrier as he touched it.

"This barrier is the only thing that's keeping us back, My Lord," James said. "It must be destroyed... but you've been waiting too long. I shall prove to you that we can win this... it'll only be a matter of time."

And after speaking those words, he crossed the border between the Land of Light and the Edge.

Although plenty of dark energy had already slipped through the cracks of the barrier, it still wasn't enough for the curse to keep a hold of James, causing the curse to be lifted almost instantly.

To James, after the curse had been lifted, it felt as if he was finally stepping into the sunlight after having been trapped in a dark prison for decades. It was an amazing sensation; his memories of his family and friends flooded back into his mind, and the sense of warmth and happiness reunited in his heart.

Being free again was the best, yet also the strangest thing. James remembered some of his actions, some of the things he'd done while being under the dark influence. And he didn't like any of it; especially not since he didn't know how bad the things he didn't remember were.

James felt the wound Thomas had made in his side sting, yet didn't care. He was just glad he hadn't harmed any of his friends.

James quickly realised that it wouldn't be long before the Master would know James had fled – although he'd initially left the Land of Light with a different purpose – and began to run.

James was on his own in this one; he couldn't count on any help of his friends. But there was one thing James could do; he could guide the children. They wouldn't have to do this on their own.

As he started to run, all James could do was hope that he'd be able to catch up with the teenagers that had fled the Land of Light before the Master would find him.

*

What James didn't know, was that two particular shadows had been watching his back all this time, knowing the redhead would slip up eventually. And when he would, they'd be there to help him.

But, before Akilah and Ince could guide James to his friends, they had to announce his return first, to prevent any... misunderstandings from occurring, obviously.

Akilah just believed it'd be a good idea to give the teenagers a head's up – as they remembered James attacking them in some kind of catatonic, evil state – and he was no longer like that.

Of course the two shadows could still travel fairly, quickly, although it went quite a bit slower than usual. But they'd reached the teenagers soon enough; they were still walking down the mountain, as Violina had directed them toward a path that wasn't too steep to walk on.

"Violina?" Akilah said, approaching the young fixie. "We've got news."

"Miss Akilah?" Violina said, stopping dead in her tracks; she didn't know of the events that had passed in the Dark Castle. "What happened to you?"

"What happened to us is not important," Ince stated. "What happened to James is."

Luke stepped forward, so that he ended up standing beside Violina. "What happened to Dad?" he said on a surprisingly demanding tone. "What do you know?"

"Well..." Akilah said, smiling, although she wasn't sure whether her smile was visible or not, "We know that James has broken free from his curse."

"But – how, then?" Luke said, while checking up on Mari; she was able to stand and move around on her own, but she seemed quite absent by the look in her eyes. "How'd he do it?"

Ince moved his hands to his sides. "Oh, but that's simple," he declared. "He just... left the Land of Light."

"Wait-" Mari suddenly blurted, raising her palms defensively, "you're saying that that is all it takes for him to return to normal?"

"Well, yeah," Akilah shrugged. "We... probably should've told you that before, shouldn't we have?"

"Yeah," Mari confirmed, arms crossed. "You probably should've." The others couldn't help but agree with her.

Violina, however, seemed ecstatic. She snapped her fingers twice as she rejoiced, "But of course! How couldn't I have seen that before?"

The fixie then turned to Akilah and Ince, her blue eyes sparkling with joy. "It's the energy you transferred into his soul, isn't it?" she spoke, the words flowing from her lips in a whisper. Akilah nodded.

Violina continued to mouth her every word to Akilah and Ince, with her back turned toward everyone else but Luke.

Luke tried his very best to make out what Violina was saying, but ultimately, to his own frustration, failed to do so.

Akilah nodded again. "Yes," she said, speaking out loud, "but the effects that followed were unexpected, and James is vulnerable to the energy that surrounds him, which led him to his transformation."

"The effects of what?" Luke asked, almost begging for answers; he almost forgot that he was still carrying Felicity. "Oh, come on! I want to know everything!"

"You know everything you need to know, Lucas," Ince decided. "We have to go now. We must make sure that James gets here safely. The closer he is to the lot of you, the smaller the chances of the Master reaching him will be."

"Sure thing," Luke smiled. "Just bring my Dad back here safely.

"Please."

"Don't worry, kid," Ince reassured Luke with a wink, "we've got this."

*

James was still running. He didn't know where he was, (mostly because he couldn't see clearly without his glasses), but didn't care, either. He just had to get as far away from the Land of Light as possible.

Eventually, James just couldn't take it anymore; he allowed himself to fall flat on the ground. The grass itched his nose, but he didn't mind. He hadn't slept in twenty-four hours, plus the dark magic that had overtaken his body had asked a lot from him. James hadn't noticed while he was under the dark magic's influence, but now everything had cleared, he felt the exhaustion and aching all over his body.

James lay on his back, breathing slowly, his eyes closed. He knew he had to continue running, that there was no time to rest. But James knew he couldn't keep running like that for hours without even knowing where to go. He had to find a way to contact Luke and his friends.

And for a moment, it seemed as if his prayers had been answered. James opened his eyes upon hearing the sound of rustling grass; he quickly got on all fours to see what was going on, not sure whether to grab his sword or not.

It didn't take long for the redhead to realise that there were three creatures headed this way; he instantly recognised the beings as two Stalkers and a Warlock Spirit. James stared at the monsters, who were apparently now strong enough to sustain their form in bright daylight.

For a moment, James hesitated; he was afraid he'd pass out if he'd start running again – but he had no choice. James reached for his sword, turned around and made a dash for it.

The Warlock was fast. And the Stalkers were even faster. It didn't take long before they'd caught up with James, who decided running was no longer an option, and would stand his ground against the three creatures instead.

Unfortunately, that was exactly what the Warlock wanted James to do.

The Warlock was carrying a staff, similar to the Master's, but smaller in size, and was using it to send rays of Dark Magic flying toward James – who blocked them with the blade of his sword. The redhead dashed forward, dodging any additional attacks, and lashed out at the Warlock - slicing him in half in the process. The Stalkers were circling around him in the sky as he did so.

"What do you think of the improvements I made to my hunters, James?" the Master spoke, his voice coming from behind. James turned around, and thus, didn't notice the Stalkers floating down to the Warlock's smouldering remains. The two shadows fused, causing the Warlock to become whole once again.

The creature quickly rose to its feet behind James, who turned around, but was already too late – the Warlock trapped James against its chest by violently pressing the staff horizontally against James's chest.

"Perhaps I was too quick to ask that question," the Master said, letting out a dark chuckle at the sight of James's frustrated face. "It's quite the upgrade, don't you think?

"And then to think that you designed those lovely creatures. Night Stalkers, did you call them, huh?"

James growled at the Master. "Let me go!"

"I'm afraid I can't do that," the Master said. "Although I must admit – without your glasses, you're not worth much, are you, Riverdale?"

James wrinkled his nose. "Don't try to insult me," he hissed. The Master laughed.

"Oh, dear. Someone's a little frustrated," he said. "Trust me – there's nothing for you to go back to... So don't be in such a hurry to get away."

"How about you let him go, Asura?" Akilah suddenly spoke. "I'd like to have a little chat with you."

The Master turned his attention away from James to look at Akilah, but he didn't order the warlock to let James go. Instead, the Warlock only pressed the staff tighter against its captive's chest.

The Master sighed dramatically. "Why do you always have to get in my way, Sister?"

"Perhaps because we're family?" Ince answered for his sister. The Master wrinkled his nose at the sight of the second shadow.

"I thought I'd got rid of your nuisance by turning you into a shadow. But frankly, I was wrong.

"It's not your face I should get rid of, it's your personality."

Well, feel free to try," Ince said mockingly. "If you let James go, you can do whatever you want to do to us."

The Master snorted. He was so fixated on Ince that he didn't notice Akilah sneaking off toward James and the Warlock Spirit. "Why should I accept your offer?" he scoffed. "You're useless to me. You have nothing to offer me."

Meanwhile, Akilah had discovered how useful her current state truly was. She managed to 'merge' with the Warlock, gaining control over the Spirit's movements. Akilah freed James from the Warlock's grip, who then proceeded to finish the Spirit off.

"We're worth more than you think, "Ince said, as he watched the scene behind the Master. "Your minions are at our mercy."

That last sentence was bound to make the Master suspicious. Ince knew he'd grown overconfident, but was silently hoping that the Master would keep his attention directed toward his brother – but Ince was dead wrong.

Akilah had urged James to run, to get out of the Master's sight, and that just so happened to be exactly what James was doing when the Master turned around.

The Master raised his staff, and James was forced to stop dead in his tracks. Both Akilah and Ince yelled out their brother's name, but he wouldn't listen.

With a single tug on his staff, the Master pulled James in – when the redhead was close enough, the Master grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

"Do not play me for a fool, Guardian," he said. "You're mine. No matter what these two dolts have to say about it."

Despite the fact that he couldn't move, James clearly felt the sharp pain in his arm when the sharp bottom tip of the Master's staff sank into his flesh.

James sank to the ground; the sharp pain in his arm quickly spread through his entire body, eventually causing him to pass out. What James didn't know, was that the 'curse' the Master had prepared to test on Mari was a small vial of the Master's blood near the end of the staff, which would empty itself if the vial's sharp, needle-like tip made contact with flesh.

It assured the Master's full control of his victim, who, in this case, was James.

"I told you, boy," the Master scoffed dismissively, "you're nothing but a boy compared to me." He then proceeded to grin at his siblings. "And there's nothing the two of you can do to stop me." After speaking those words, he swung around his staff and disappeared with James, both of them dissolving into black smoke.

Ince moved around uncomfortably. "I think we should tell the Guardians about what happened here... I feel like we've given them false hope."

"We should do that. And... we should also admit that there was one thing we didn't understand, or perhaps didn't want to believe in," Akilah said to Ince, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder as she smiled at him. It wasn't a genuine smile of happiness, however; there was sadness reflecting in her eyes. "The rules of this game have changed.

"And we aren't the ones that changed them."

*

The Spirits caught up with the Guardians by the time they'd reached the foot of the mountain. Akilah felt bad about having to bring such bad news – especially after seeing how happy Luke had been hen he found out his father was safe.

In fact, Luke was the first to notice the two shadow Spirits hiding between the trees, beckoning them to come closer; the redhead seemed excited to see them. Of course he was.

And it seemed as if the others were, too. Akilah cringed at the thought of their disappointment when they'd find out the truth.

"Akilah!" Luke said as he approached the shadow, almost bouncing up and down with anticipation. "Where's my dad? Is he safe? Is he alright?"

Luke looked around as his friends joined him, and as James remained nowhere to be seen, Luke's smile dropped almost instantly.

"...He's not here, is he?" Luke sighed. "The Master got to him again."

"I'm sorry, James," Akilah said. "We'd found him just in time, and he almost got away – but the Master got the better of us."

Luke groaned in agony. "No!" he said. "So – he had to go through whatever the Master did to him twice? We've got to go back and save him!"

Luke's friends were about to object to his plan when Felicity suddenly moved. She didn't make any large movements, but it was noticeable enough to let the others know that she was awake.

"Felicity?" Luke said, instantly dropping to his knees to lay Felicity on the ground. "Felicity, can you hear me?"

Luke saw his friends joining around him; they all wanted to know whether Felicity was alright or not.

"...Guys?" Felicity said, slowly moving her hand upward. "Luke, is that you?"

"Yes, Felicity, it's me," Luke said. "We're all here. We're safe, Felicity."

Felicity opened her sea-blue eyes. "Luke, where are you? Guys, this isn't funny!"

"But – we're right here, Felicity!" Tony shouted, diving forward and grabbing his sister's hands. "We're right here!"

"Tony?" Felicity asked; her eyes didn't move toward his face, but remained unseeing, staring into the distance. "I... can't... see anything."

"What?" Tony said, fear dominating his big, blue eyes. "You can't?"

"N-no," came the confused reply. "I can't... I... can only make out what seems to be blots of colour, but that's it."

Marco pursed his lips. "I think that fall on your head might've caused this, Fel," he said; Felicity turned her head in his direction, but her eyes didn't meet his. Luke self-consciously touched the bandage on his head; he'd got lucky.

"What do you mean, Marco?" Felicity asked, but knew the answer for herself. "Ah, of course... I fell on the back of my head, didn't I?" Marco nodded.

"It might not be permanent, though," he tried to reassure his friend.

"Let's hope it isn't," Felicity said. "Luke, Tony, could you please help me up?"

As Luke and Tony helped Felicity to get up, Luke got an idea. "Violina, do you think your sister could cure Felicity's blindness?" he asked the Fixie.

"I don't see why not," Violina said. "I mean – she's never had experience with physical brain damage, but how difficult can it be to cure?"

"That sounds positive," Daisy said, meaning to be joking, but she didn't come off as very convincing. "Let's hope your sister agrees."

"And even if she can't heal Felicity, we'll make sure we can," Ince said decisively. "You must go on your way now – it's not safe to stay in one place for too long.

And so the Bond of Light continued on their quest, and the two Spirits vanished once more. Tony stayed close by his sister's side, and held her hand to make sure she stayed on the right path. While they walked through the outskirts of the Fairy Forest, Luke found some time for himself to think. About his father, about the current situation.

About everything.

Although the words James had said to Luke still hurt him deep inside, he knew that it hadn't been his father speaking. Right now, what hurt more was the fact that James had been captured by the Master again – and that Luke wouldn't be seeing his father for a very long time. But Luke was determined to get his father back safely, and although he didn't exactly know how, he did know he would get him back.

The Master wouldn't win. Luke and his friends would make sure of that.

Royal Outcast

Of course there was no time to lose; Mari needed to see Queen Eloine, Violina's sister. Only she could help them.

"So, how about we finally go and pay a visit to your sister, Violina?" Luke said. "I hope she'll be willing to help us when she hears about our situation."

"Well..." Violina scratched her neck, unsure how to continue. "I've already told you guys that Eloine and I haven't spoken in quite some time, or have I?"

The teenagers nodded, although they didn't quite understand what the fuss was all about, as they had never seen Violina's sister and thus didn't know what she was like.

"I'm sorry if I haven't told you the reason yet," Violina continued, her voice suddenly much more monotone and dark. "It's her spouse and his mother. I believe that they cast a spell over my sister and my people... and used that spell to banish anyone unaffected by the curse."

"Including you?" Daisy asked.

Violina seemed reluctant to answer that particular question. She twirled a lock of her long, silver hair around her finger as she said, "Well, to be honest... yeah."

Daisy gave a small nod. "Huh.

"...That's not going to form a problem for us, is it?"

Violina started to pace around after receiving that question. "...No," she said slowly, "but we'll have to sneak in – probably... things have changed."

And things had changed, indeed. The Valley itself had changed – there were small villages here and there that were inhabited by all kinds of magical creatures - and looked like they were growing quickly. In the period that the Master wasn't around, inhabitants of the Silver Valley probably felt safe enough to come out of their hiding spots and rebuild what had been lost in all those years.

...And if the Bond of Light didn't act quickly, the villagers would soon lose everything all over again.

As the Bond passed through the villages, they were gawked at wherever they went, but Luke was pleased to see that the Bond's presence didn't cause any great disturbances amongst the villagers.

The Guardians only traversed the most outer villages, as Violina said that certain parts of the forest were simply too dangerous to walk through.

"Alright, guys," Violina said, as she and the Bond finally headed for the forest to head for Eloine's palace, "most of the Fairy Villages we will be passing are located in the treetops; that's why the trees are so huge... but this does make us easily spotted." Violina put on her hood as she led her friends into the forest; this was the moment to be cautious.

Violina advised the Bond to stay by her side, as she knew where to run in case they wre caught.

"But if we're going to get caught, then we better make sure we get caught together," Marco remarked.

It was as if Marco had jinxed it, as they actually did get caught shortly after; apparently, Queen Eloine had hired a royal guard, that just so happened to be on patrol.

The guards were with five, which made them outnumbered by one, especially regarding their height – the guards were taller than Violina, but not much taller than Tony. But then again, these guardsmen had both weapons and magic; something which ten out of twelve of their opponents didn't have – or didn't know how to use.

"Well, look at what we found," one of the guardsmen said, grabbing Violina by the arm. His square-jawed face was marked by a big scar that followed a thick, jagged line from the right side of his forehead to the left half of his jaw.

Violina tried to yank herself free from the guard's strong grip, when a white blast hit the guard's chest, forcing him to let go of Violina as he stumbled backwards.

"And don't even think about touching her again," Luke said, his voice succeeding but his eyes failing to hide his excitement; his friends were just as surprised at the stunt Luke had just pulled as that Luke was. Then, with more cocky confidence in his voice, the redhead added, "Next time, I'll kill you."

One guard turned his attention to his fallen friend to help him up, but the other two looked at Luke and started laughing. "Aye, a fine fellow indeed," the broadest-shouldered one of the two said. "A little young perhaps, but I think Her Royal Highness will be more than pleased to have a chat with you." While gesturing at his co-workers, the guard shouted, "Bag him!"

Luke was slightly caught off-guard by this, as were his friends, allowing for an easy capture to happen, if it hadn't been for the help that was on its way.

"Guards," a handsome, yet unfamiliar voice spoke, "would you care to share what you've encountered here with me?"

Mari noticed that the voice made Violina cringe; the girl put a comforting hand on her shoulder, which Violina seemed to appreciate.

Meanwhile, the man speaking had stepped forward to greet the Guardians. "My apologies for this rather rude treatment. I couldn't help but overhear that you'd like to request an audience with my wife, the Queen?"

As the man spoke, the Guardians took a good look at whoever was standing in front of them; a Fixie with rather messy yet somehow still classy, silver hair, and skin that seemed to have a golden hue. His eyes were a true and pure shade of gold; they looked like shimmering jewels in the sunlight that peeked from between the leaves of the trees overhead.

"Uh – yes, we would like that," Luke mumbled, suddenly noticing that the Fixie in front of him was taller than he was – much taller than the average Fixie would be.

The Fixie laughed. "Oh, pardon me," he said, "I haven't properly introduced myself yet." He took a bow as he continued, "I am Kyan, King of the Valley Folk."

A few awkward bows and curtseys were made to the King in return. "We are-" Luke said, but King Kyan cut him off.

"There's no need for you to tell me who you are," he said, "as I already know who you are. My mother already told me you were coming – that's why I came out here."

The Guardians were caught by surprise – even Violina hadn't expected this. And, apparently, the guards had no idea, either.

King Kyan told the Guardians to come follow, and so they did.

The palace had changed. What once had been a quiet, humble temple, was now a massive, white building, with towers and whatnot – yet the front 'porch' still seemed intact.

The King led the Guardians to the main hall, which was also unfamiliar in appearance \- nothing of Eloine's humble interior had survived one-and-a-half a decade.

The King told the Guardians to wait in the main hall until someone came to get them; it was probably for the better if the Bond of Light just did as they were told. If the Guardians didn't behave as the King had requested they'd do, he could kick them out of his castle just as easily.

Eventually, someone did come for the Guardians – presumably a lackey. He was short, even compared to the other servants that had passed by while the Guardians waited, and his hair was short and grey. Two green eyes peered from behind circular glasses.

"Her Majesty would like to speak with you," he said. "Please, follow me."

The Guardians nodded at the small elf – or, at least, that's what James assumed him to be, as the small creature had no wings – to the throne room.

"I don't get this," Luke said, as he watched the lackey elf close the heavy doors and leave, "why are we being bossed around like this if we're supposed to be some kind of heroes?"

Luke heard Mari express herself with a disinterested sigh. "Does it matter?" she said, defensively crossing her arms in front of her chest. "By the looks of the way we're being treated, it's not like this 'Queen' or 'Her Majesty' is willing to help us, anyway."

"Don't say that, Mari," Daisy said, offering her friend an encouraging smile. "I believe that our – well, I believe I should say your – parents know the Queen."

"Considering the fact they're friends with her sister?" Felicity added. "Yeah, they probably do."

Mari didn't respond, but rather distanced herself from her friends, looking somewhat frustrated. Mari didn't blame her friends for the way she was feeling; they didn't know Mari felt her mind slipping from her grip with every waking moment, they didn't know that Mari wasn't going to be like this for long.

Mari felt like she was a hazard to be around; a ticking time-bomb, without a timer to confirm the moment of detonation. And that was the one thing Mari simply couldn't stop worrying about.

Mari was startled by the sound of a voice in her right ear. "Hey." She turned to face the speaker, knowing it was Luke. "Hey."

Luke put a hand on Mari's shoulder; the tone of his voice was soft and comforting. "Don't worry about things too much, Mari. It's not good for you."

Mari shrugged; she didn't know how to respond, despite wanting to. "I can't stop. I just feel like I'm losing control, and when I do..." She looked Luke dead in the eye. "I don't want to know what happens to you guys, Luke."

Luke smiled at Mari. "I won't let you lose control, Mari," he said. "As long as we all stay together, the Master won't get to you." He noticed that Mari was trembling – probably with nerves.

"Need a hug?"

Mari nodded, allowing herself to sink into Luke's arms instantly; she hadn't noticed how badly she just needed a hug before, and it made her feel good.

Luke silently rocked Mari back and forth as he held her. "Shh," he whispered. "I'll always be here for you, Mari. And not just me; we'll all be there, whenever you need us. Unconditionally."

Mari smiled at Luke's chest. "I know."

"How touching."

A woman spoke; when the Guardians looked ahead into the throne room, they noticed a female Fixie sitting on one of the four thrones. Apparently, King Kyan – and a vast majority of the Royal Staff – had had a different woman in mind whenever they mentioned 'Her Majesty'.

"Greetings, Guardians," the female Fixie spoke as she rose from her throne. She had skin that seemed to have a silver glitter, much like Kyan's golden skin. She, too, was surprisingly tall for a Fixie – human height, even.

The Fixie's light brown hair was tied in a tight bun; a single, golden streak of hair was visible on the outside of the bun. Her eyes had the same colour as Kyan's. Her face looked young - too young to be Kyan's mother.

"My name is Chiara, although most of my subjects address me with 'Your Majesty'. Knowing you are important guests, you may choose which you prefer... although I do prefer 'Your Majesty'." Chiara straightened the creases out of her purple dress before ascending the steps and nearing the Guardians.

"Wouldn't you kneel before royalty?"

The Guardians confusedly knelt before Chiara – they had no idea how to handle the current situation. Luke exchanged a confused look with both Marco and Mari, but neither of the two could help him on this one.

"Would you prefer if I had a go at this one?" Marco mouthed toward Luke, but Luke shook his head. He was going to handle this just fine – with care.

"My apologies, Your Majesty," Luke said carefully, making sure he wouldn't look up until given permission to do so – "but we came to see the Queen of the Valley Folk. Queen Eloine."

"Ah..." Chiara scoffed. "Queen Eloine. My daughter-in-law.

"I'm rather disappointed that you came to see her instead of me."

"If I may be so bold to ask, Your Majesty," Felicity said, not quite following Luke's example, as she was looking up and on the brink of standing up as she spoke, "why are you disappointed with us? We simply require help. I don't think it matters who gives us what we need, just as long as we get it."

Chiara's face instantly lit up. "Oh, but if that's the case," she said, seemingly completely forgetting her disappointment, "then why didn't you say so?

"If you require magical assistance, then you've come to the right place, darlings."

Chiara looked at the six teenagers and the Fixie, who were still sitting in a kneeling position. "Ah, of course," she said. "My bad. You may rise."

The Guardians gladly got to their feet; it wasn't fun to sit in a kneeling position for that long.

Chiara addressed Luke, smiling friendlily at him. "How can I help you, Guardian?"

Chiara's hand moved toward Luke's chest as she said 'you'; Luke was hoping that Chiara would simply tap his chest, but Chiara rested her hand just above Luke's heart instead. Luke stepped back in discomfort, causing Chiara to move in closer than Luke had moved away.

"I know who you are," the Fixie whispered, so only Luke would hear. Luke was rather taken aback by this strange lady; he had no idea what she meant by 'who he was'. He was Luke, ans he was human. Nothing more.

Luckily, Luke's friends came to his aid quickly. "Ahum," Violina coughed, "we have a child here who is in desperate need of magical healing. In fact, we have two."

Chiara suddenly made a sharp turn in Violina's direction. "Who let you past the gates?" she hissed. "Have you returned to wreak havoc in my kingdom once again, Violina dear?"

"For your information," Violina snapped, "this was my sister's kingdom, and mine, too – long before you and your precious boy showed up." She paused. "But... no, this is a visit of peace. I am merely here to help my friends."

Chiara seemed rather unconvinced, but did say, "Fine. But if you do even as much as try to pull anything, I'll have you locked up and executed for treason."

Violina crossed her arms and slightly leaned onto her right leg. "Fine by me," she said. "But you'll have to try and catch me first."

"You are hereby dismissed, Guardians," Chiara decided, paying attention to Violina no more. "Except for... you. I'd like you to stay, so your friends can catch a break while I prepare myself."

Chiara was assessing Luke; once again, Luke got nervous. What did this lady want from him? Luke guessed that he was about to find out, and that he probably wasn't going to appreciate the answer.

Luke made some helpless gestures toward his friends as they left the throne room; there wasn't much they could do for him, anyway.

"So... Lucas Riverdale, right?"

The sudden change in Chiara's voice as she said the name sent a chill down Luke's spine.

"...Yes?"

Chiara made a heel-turn into his direction, wearing an unsettling smirk on her face. Her red lips contrasted brightly against her greyish skin.

"How is your father doing, Lucas?" Chiara said slowly, the smile on her face growing wider as she spoke.

Luke's eyes grew wide as he defensively took a few steps backward. "What!?" he exclaimed. "Who are you!?"

Chiara shrugged, her smile not fading. "Oh, no one special," she said, "just a woman with a desire... the desire to become Queen of the Valley Folk."

"Why?" Luke asked, not sure if he wanted to know the answer. But Chiara gave it to him anyway.

"Because I want power, my dear Lucas," the Fixie said, gesturing at the thrones further into the room. "The middle ones belong to my daughter-in-law and my son, Kyan. The two at the sides... they belong to the Princesses."

"Violina and you?" James asked, knowing he was delivering the obvious answer.

"Not since she was banished, not anymore," Chiara said sharply. "But... I don't want a small throne. I don't want to live in anyone's shadow."

Chiara began to pace around the room as she continued her 'monologue'. "That's actually where you come into play, my dear Lucas. I mean – I was originally planning to capture your friend Mari and send her straight to the Master, but now you're here... I..."

She moved closer to Luke, who instantly backed away again, hoping he wasn't nearing any corners or walls.

"...I want your power, Luke. I want all of it."

Luke didn't comprehend. "Sorry?" he said. "I must've missed something."

"You don't know?" Chiara laughed. Something sparkled in her eyes, as if she'd suddenly come up with an ingenious plan. "Oh, my boy, you're missing out on something great. You do know you've got magic, right?"

"Um..." Luke said, "I didn't know I had any until about an hour ago."

Chiara smiled. "Why, of course. And what if I told you..." she said, "...you could become even more powerful?"

Luke swallowed. "Sorry, not interested. I'm not planning on staying in Lunaria – I just want to get my family and friends home safely."

Chiara backed away a bit, seemingly disappointed. "Ah. I see.

"But you see, I hadn't finished my story yet."

Luke made a small gesture with his hands. "Then finish it," he said encouragingly.

"I can make you powerful," Chiara said. "All you'll have to do is accept my hand in marriage, Lucas. And then you'll become just like me. A Royal."

"...Fixie?" Luke blurted out; Chiara began to holler with laughter.

"But of course!" she laughed. "It's a magical transformation, which is either conveyed at birth or through marriage – or... the Master."

"So... you became a Fixie how, exactly?" Luke asked, one part of him fascinated by the story, the other part rather worried. His opinion of Chiara became more unclear with every word she spoke.

"The Master gave me the power I needed to get my son where I wanted him to be," Chiara said. "He was born a Fairy, as I had become one, but with all the physical attributes of a human being. When he married Eloine, he became a Fixie – and so did I gain the power of the Royals, too." She paused, hoping Luke would ask another question.

"But even though I am a Fixie, I still can't become Queen."

"And you're expecting to become Queen how?" Luke said, scratching the back of his neck; he didn't understand how he could possibly make any of what Chiara had just mentioned happen, as he was neither a Fixie, nor a member of the Royal Family.

Luckily, Chiara knew the answer. She moved awkwardly close to Luke once again, speaking in an eerily seductive voice. "If you marry me, you'll become a Fixie, and we'll be the eldest couple in the Family, which will force Kyan and Eloine to stand down. Then I'll be Queen – and you'll be King, of course... That's how our monarchy works."

Luke raised his palms defensively, ready to push Chiara away if she came any closer. "As much as I love the offer," he said, "I must say no. I don't love you, Chiara. Even more so – I don't even know you."

"You don't have to love in an arranged marriage, Lucas," Chiara whispered, stroking Luke's arms, which seemed to lower themselves without Luke's permission. "It's all about power."

"Well," Luke said, raising his arms once again, "I don't want power. I don't want anything. Besides, there's someone else."

"That's in another world..." Chiara whispered. "And maybe you don't want power because you're already more powerful than a Fixie... and if you are, you won't change after marrying me. You'll stay... human."

Luke snorted uncomfortably. "Yeah. Uh. Still, no thanks."

Chiara let out a low sigh. "Fine," she said, instantly moving away from Luke, seeming awfully cold all of a sudden. "You may go."

She didn't have to tell Luke twice; he instantly made his way toward the exit of the throne room. Before Luke left, Chiara called his name.

"You have until sundown to decide. Then, I'm calling the Master, and tell him you and your friends are alive. If your powers can't be mine, I won't let them be yours, either.

"And... I bet the Master is dying to see you."

Switcheroo

Luke ran into his friends outside the throne room; they were startled by his flushed face, instantly asking him what had happened.

"We're in trouble," Luke said under his breath. "Chiara is in league with the Master – and apparently, he believes we're dead."

"What?" Felicity said; she was looking at Luke this time. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah," Luke confirmed, "she threatened me... we've got until sundown to finish our business here and get going – then she calls the Master to capture Mari – and probably finish us off."

"Oh boy," Daisy said, nervously plucking at her gloves. "Looks like we've got about... ten hours left before everything goes to hell."

"We're kind of in a sticky situation right here..." Marco mumbled. "We'll probably not be able to get Mari and Felicity the help they need from Chiara..."

"You're right," Tony said, wearing a grave expression on his face. "What should we do now, then?"

Violina stood near the wall on the right, rubbing her chin. "If we want to get this done, we'll have to break our promise," she said. "I've got to get to my sister."

Luke let out a soft, nervous chuckle. "Yeah. And then we get executed for treason. Remember?"

Violina shrugged; she had a confident smirk on her face. "I'm willing to take that chance."

She received a grin from Luke in response. "That's the spirit."

The plan seemed easy on paper; Violina would try and reach her sister, then bring her to the Guardians – where Eloine then would heal Mari and Felicity. Then, the Guardians would be on their way before sundown.

Luke, of course, hadn't told any of his friends about the arranged marriage-related threats, and the reason why he hadn't done so was that Luke himself didn't really count any value to them. No one could force him to do anything against his will.

Well, no one but the Master. That was a proven fact... if the Master could control James, he could control anyone.

When the time had come for the plan to be executed, Violina requested Felicity to come along with her – Violina put it as 'to have her back in case things went wrong', but Felicity was sure that Violina believed that Felicity would be able to convince Eloine to help them, even if the spell Violina had described was still intact.

However, before the duo went to see Eloine, Violina insisted to speak to Luke – she wanted to know more about Chiara's plans.

"The reason I wanted to talk to you, is because I believe you haven't told your friends everything Chiara has told you," Violina told Luke. She'd taken him someplace quiet; Luke tried to reassure Violina that she was wrong, but eventually, Luke gave in.

"Well," Luke mumbled, "forgive me for sounding weird, but... Chiara says I've got powerful magic, and she wants to marry me in order to be able to access those."

Violina didn't seem too surprised. "Let me guess," she said, "if you don't marry her, she'll call the Master to capture us."

Luke responded with a small nod. "Exactly."

Violina crossed her arms, her expression serious, as if she was deep in thought. "So she's doing it again," she thought. "Chiara's still hungry for more power."

"Excuse me?" Luke asked. As Violina explained the situation, she furiously started to pace in front of Luke, across the hallway.

"She's been doing this for a long time, Luke," Violina said "Tricking young men into marrying her – and once she's done so, she sucks them dry."

"So, a black widow, huh?" Luke joked. "But then about power and magic instead of money."

Violina snorted. "For money, too, if it were possible. But..." She suddenly threw Luke a stern glare. "There's more to it.

"All Chiara has to do to steal one's magic, is kiss them – hence the marriage shtick. She marries them often in secret, or with as little people witnessing – or, if she really can't wait, she just simply kisses them straight on the spot – and then, she ditches the body."

Luke tilted his head. "What?"

"She kills them," Violina repeated dryly. "Chiara is looking for power – and more than any man can give her. So much even, that the Kiss of Death – that's what I call it, at least – drains both the magic and the life energy of its victims right out of them."

Luke spread his arms wide. "That does explain why she looks s young..." he blurted. "But why doesn't anyone stop her, then?"

"That's how strong this curse is, Luke," Violina said with a wink. "No one even sees it. And it's about time that we changed that."

Luke rubbed his upper arms uncomfortably. "The question is how..." he mumbled. "I mean – Chiara is onto us. And if she really wants my magic, she'll eventually grow impatient and come and take it, right?"

Violina nodded slowly. "Yes," she said, "but we can prevent that. And here's how..."

The Fixie got off her feet to be able to float at Luke's ear level, whispering a plan in his ear.

"You're truly willing to do that for me?" Luke said unbelievingly. "You know what'll happen if-"

Violina cut him off. "I do, Luke. I am very well aware of the consequences. But it's worth a try – we'll just have to be careful around Chiara."

Luke nodded decisively. "Fine, then," he said. "Let's get started."

*

Luke and Violina returned to their friends shortly, and thus, Luke, Felicity and Violina went on their way to find Eloine.

They had to walk through the halls carefully; Violina figured Eloine would be in her study, which was quite easy to find – almost too easy. But perhaps it only seemed easy, as Violina did know the castle better than some of the servants – even though the castle had been like this for only the past ten years.

Violina quietly knocked at the doors that led to the study before entering. "Eloine?" she whispered; the blonde Fixie sitting at the oak wooden desk instantly looked up. "Vio!"

The two sisters happily approached each other, exchanging a long hug. "What are you doing here, Vio?" Eloine asked her sister.

"The Guardians have returned, Eloine," Violina said. "And they need your help."

Eloine's eyes went wide in surprise. "Really?" she said. "What happened? Why have they returned?"

"The Master is trying to take control over Lunaria again," Violina explained. "The children of the Guardians have to stand in, as the Master turned their parents to stone... He also happens to have poisoned one of the children with Dark Magic – if we don't do something quickly, she'll be lost to the Master."

"That is a dreadful situation, indeed," Eloine said, holding her chin in her hand. "Lead me to them. I'll be glad to help."

Felicity nodded at Queen Eloine. "Thank you so much," he said. "And... I was wondering if you could heal my eyesight? I lost it on the mountain this morning."

"Don't worry, my child," Eloine smiled, seemingly proud that she instantly remembered his name, "help is underway."

"I wouldn't be too sure of that."

The trio started; Violina and Felicity quickly turned around, to find Chiara and two guards standing in the doorway. "I thought we'd made an agreement, Violina."

"We had," Violina replied dryly, "until you decided to threaten us. That's when I decided to take matters into my own hands."

"Well, that was a mistake," Chiara sang. "Take them to the throne room, to their friends. I'd like to show them something before throwing them in the darkest dungeon we have."

Violina's heartbeat quickened as one of the guards grabbed her and started to drag her across the hallway, back to the throne room. Luke. She's going to kill him.

Queen Eloine hurried after Chiara, who followed her prisoners to the throne room.

"Chiara," Eloine said, "I hardly believe this is necessary-"

Chiara stopped and made a heel turn toward Eloine, her facial expression stern. "The Princess and I made an agreement," she stated emotionlessly. "This agreement meant that the Princess would not try to wreak any havoc in my kingdom or this castle.

"If she were to break these terms, which I believe she has, I'd have her and her friends executed for treason."

"Your kingdom?" Eloine spat, sounding genuinely insulted. "Are you implying something here, Chiara?"

Chiara laughed. "Dear, if I were to have the desire to become Queen, I would have been Queen by now. So make yourself no illusions." She turned back around, but turned her head just so that she could look at Eloine. "Besides, you and I both know this is my kingdom. Whether I am Queen or not."

*

The doors of the throne room flung open by magical force. It was obvious that Chiara was feeling confident.

As Chiara passed by, Violina couldn't help but notice the strange object Chiara was holding. It looked like some kind of bracelet, made of thick, black leather, similar to the leather of the guards' gloves. Violina wondered what purpose the bracelet serve, but quickly figured out that it probably did the same thing as the guards' gloves did; block magic. Luke's magic.

Chiara made her prisoners stand in a row. Violina, accompanied by a guard, stood in front of the Guardians.

Nine guards stood by the prisoners; three at each side (they stood at the back and the sides, careful not to block anyone's view).

Two guards stood beside Chiara, who was standing on the elevated platform where the thrones stood. "I'd like to demonstrate what happens when you stand in my way," Chiara said, gesturing at Luke. "You denied me. You denied my power. But in the end, I will have what I want."

The two guards walked down the stairs, taking Luke back up with them. A few confused looks were exchanged in the small crowd down below; Violina watched Luke struggle, but for some reason, he failed to break free – as if his magic was being blocked by the gloves, which wasn't supposed to happen, as the gloves were designed to block Fairy Magic only.

"You see, Luke," Chiara said, "I'll be honest with you. I did not want to marry you, nor did I ever possess any desire to become Queen. I just wanted your power." She chuckled darkly. "I mean... you are not half as powerful as your father, but he's... reserved for the Master. So I'll just have to settle for second best; your power.

"And your power, I shall have."

Violina's chest tightened as she watched Chiara move closer to Luke. This wasn't going according to plan. Come on, you can do this, Violina thought. Please, don't leave me hanging.

But Luke still couldn't break free.

"VIOLINA!" Violina shouted, not noticing she'd run her mouth, catching everyone but Chiara's attention.

Violina suddenly managed to break free from the guards' grip as she yelled out – her own name?

Violina sprinted forward to save Luke – but she was too late. The Kiss of Death had already been planted.

Luke's body began to change shape as he fell to his knees; his features changed to Violina's. The same thing happened to 'Violina', who stood at the end of the steps, panting loudly, almost crying.

Chiara stood there; her body motionless, her eyes menacing.

Violina grinned weakly before sinking through her elbows. "Gotcha."

"YOU!" Chiara belted at Luke. "YOU DID THIS!"

Luke slowly approached Chiara, part of him already knowing that that was a bad idea. "Oops," he said to Chiara, as he in the meantime laid a concerned eye on Violina, but noticed her sister had already come to her aid.

Two events occurred at the same time; while Eloine consoled her dying sister, Luke confronted Chiara.

Eloine sat on her knees, holding her dying sister; the curse that had held the Queen captivated had been broken. Kyan came rushing into the throne room, heading straight for his wife; when she explained what had happened, Kyan finally seemed to realise all the damage his mother had done.

"Violina, I am so sorry," Kyan sobbed. "I should have realised sooner – I should've known – I mean, for Pete's sake, she's my mother –"

Violina cut him off. "Not... your fault," she mumbled. "Don't b... blame you...rself."

"Violina, you've got to hold on," Eloine urged. "I need you. I can – I can try to heal you with- we can share-"

Violina shook her head. "You'll be fine," and, after a long pause, added, "...without me."

"What?" Eloine blurted, feeling his throat closing up. "No!"

"Yes," Violina said decisively, "you will. You and... Kyan... will."

She smiled; the expression lasted for a short moment before fading. Eloine broke down sobbing, her husband sharing her grief.

Meanwhile, Chiara and Luke were having a 'quarrel'. Blasts of magic were thrown back and forth (Luke simply reflected Chiara's attacks with his sword), the battle eventually leading them to jumping off the elevated platform, back to the main floor. No end seemed to come to the fight.

But it did end – and, unfortunately, not in Luke's favour.

Chiara had driven Luke against the wall; Luke wanted to push her away, failing to notice the bracelet in Chiara's hand. It snapped around Luke's wrist, forcing him to stop moving instantly.

"You see, sweet Lucas?" Chiara whispered threateningly. "You can't outsmart me. I will get the power I desire, and simply because I want it."

Chiara moved closer, resulting in Luke trying to move his head away; he was, however, frozen in place. Things seemed hopeless.

Just as Chiara's lips began to touch Luke's, she jerked away, grabbing her arm with a loud groan. An arrow had pierced Chiara's shoulder.

"Touch him again, and you'll get another one," Marco said, bow loaded and raised. "And the next one goes between your eyes."

Chiara glared at Marco as she pulled out the arrow. Then, her gaze drifted to the guards, who didn't quite seem to be doing their jobs.

"You better do what she says, 'Your Highness'," Tony said mockingly; he, Mari and Felicity had joined Marco: Chiara was surrounded.

"It's over, Mother," Kyan said, summoning the guards; they quickly approached Chiara and took her into custody.

"What?" Chiara hissed under her breath; suddenly, a broad grin appeared on her face. "You think you've defeated me?"

"Yes, Mother," Kyan confirmed, unaware of the underlying meaning of Chiara's words, "we have defeated you. Your curse has been broken, and you will be charged with treason.

I am sorry it had to end like this, Mother."

"Oh, don't be, my boy," Chiara laughed. "But these Guardians, on the other hand... they soon will be. Very soon."

"I wonder what she's talking about?" Felicity asked, while freeing Luke from the wall.

"I don't know," Luke replied, as he watched Eloine carry Violina out of the throne room. Just as he was about to thank Felicity from freeing him from the wall, it hit him.

"The Master," Luke gasped. "Everyone! Get out of here! NOW!"

Alarmed by Luke, everyone inside the throne room instantly started to sprit toward the exit. Unfortunately, only Kyan, the guards and Eloine made it out before the doors slammed shut.

Marco and Mari, who'd just reached the doors as they slammed shut, tried to pull them open, but the doors were jammed.

"So, Guardians," the Master's chilling voice spread through the throne room. "We meet again."

The Master pointed his staff at Luke; as the orb started to glow, Luke was lifted off the ground; Luke's body followed the orb's movement, and slammed against the wall. The Master's signature shadow ropes seemed to grow out of the wall, holding Luke tightly against it.

"Not again," Luke sighed.

"Honestly, I must say I'm impressed," the Master said, as he calmly walked down the steps he'd spawned on. "I hadn't thought the lot of you would be strong enough to survive an avalanche."

Luke struggled, but with no avail. He knew what the Master wanted to do to him. And the fear in Luke's heart grew with every step the Master took.

However, the Master wasn't meant to reach Luke - well, he would have been if it hadn't been for Luke's friends.

"Oh, how adorable," the Master smiled. "So, we're protecting each other now, huh?"

Tony stepped forward toward the Master, pointing his sword at the Master's chest. "Isn't that what we've always been doing?" he said.

The Master shrugged. "I guess you're right. But even now, it's pointless." He proceeded to pound the ground with his staff; behind the teenagers, Luke was lifted off the ground by the same kind of shadow ropes as the ones that had kept him against the wall.

Luke let out a yell; he tried to reach for his sword, but failed to do so. Luckily, his family came to his aid; Daisy was quick to cut the ropes so Marco could catch him.

"You see?" the Master commented dryly. "Useless.

I could easily pick him up again if I wanted."

"I could easily jam my sword into your heart if I wanted," Daisy grunted, resulting into the Master making a sharp turn toward her.

"I don't think you can," the Master said. He pounded the ground with his staff once again, turning Daisy's lower legs to stone.

"I think that's about enough," Luke said, pushing himself in front of his friends.

"Lucas-!" Marco shouted, but Luke ignored him. It didn't help that Daisy was encouraging Luke, either.

"Why, look at that," the Master smiled. "Now Papa's out of business, his dear son decides to play the hero."

"Don't let him get to you, Luke," Luke heard his friends warn him from behind, but their words seemed to be coming from far, far away.

Luke looked thought of his dad for a brief moment, but continued to speak to the Master. "I'm not 'playing' a hero, Asura. I am a hero. Just like my father." He inhaled to make his chest appear as broad as possible; the Master laughed at this.

"You can laugh all you want," Luke said decisively, "but I'm still not afraid of you." Suddenly, his expression changed to a cocky grin.

As Luke pulled out this sword and pointed it at the Master, he said, "In fact, I am challenging you to a duel."

The Master seemed intrigued. "Well, my boy," he said, spreading his arms wide and taking a bow, "at which terms would you like to challenge me?"

Luke didn't hesitate. "If I win," he said, "you'll reverse the curse you cast on Lunaria, leave and never return."

"And if I win?" the Master said, the grin on his face broadening. He knew that this was an opportunity he couldn't possibly let slip by.

Luke did hesitate this time; he obviously began to become less confident that he'd win. But, knowing he couldn't go back now, he went through with it. "If you win," he said, his voice betraying no anxiety, "You may kill me. If you manage to defeat me, I will turn myself in to you."

"LUKE, NO!" Marco, Daisy, Mari, Tony and Felicity shouted in unison – but Luke ignored them. This wasn't their decision to make.

The Master's grin broadened even more – if possible. "Very well, then," he said, transforming his staff into a black sword, "let's dance."

The Unexpected Generation

The Master was the first to attack. To prevent anyone from intervening during the fight, he surrounded the area where he and Luke were standing with black flames. It also prevented Luke from fleeing.

The Master was better at fighting than Luke had expected him to be; Luke instantly began to question his decision to fight. Luke had never had any training, aside from the fencing lessons Thomas and James had taught him. Another problem was, that the Master fought aggressively, determined to win.

But Luke wouldn't let that get him down. He struck back at the Master, swinging his sword at the Master's abdomen and neck whenever given the chance.

Luke could hear his friends and family cheering him on as he struck at the Master or blocked his attacks. It was an amazing feeling, but Luke eventually started to get tired – after all, he hadn't eaten or slept in well over twenty-four hours. It didn't take long before fatigue got the best of him, and the Master worked him to the ground.

Luke had lost.

"LUKE!" Marco cried out. Using his crossbow, he tried to shoot an arrow at the Master, but the arrow was incinerated as soon as it hit the fire.

"I believe we have an agreement, Luke," the Master grinned, pricking into Luke's chest with the tip of the black sword, causing Luke to groan.

"A-alright," Luke uttered. "You- you got me. You win."

The Master's eyes narrowed. "Thank you for not making this any more difficult, Lucas." His grin broadened. "But... I'm not going to kill you."

Luke's eyes widened. "What?" he said, feeling every muscle in his body tense up.

"You heard me," the Master said slowly. "I will not kill you, because I have someone else to do that for me."

The Master snapped his fingers, and almost directly, a figure appeared within the circle of fire. It was James; he looked beat up, and his eyes were glowing bright red once more.

"Dad, no," Luke protested, trying to get up, but the Master forced him back on the floor with his foot.

"Shh, Lucas," he said. "The adults are talking."

The Master walked toward James, leaving Luke lying on his back. "Dad," Luke coughed.

"James, my boy," the Master laughed, "I've got a job for you.

"Do you see this boy? I made a deal with him... and now, he's all yours."

James's eyes shifted toward Luke, who was still lying on the ground. To Luke's horror, nothing in the two glowing red eyes looking at him seemed to show any sign of recognition.

The Master turned the sword back into his staff, seemingly amused by Luke's despair.

"Dad," the redhead blurted as he tried to get on all fours. "It's me. Luke."

"You see, Luke?" the Master grinned. "I always get what I want. That's how it works around here... You children have got nothing on me."

Luke swallowed. "I wouldn't be so sure of that," he said, reaching for his sword that was still lying on the ground – but unfortunately, the Master noticed.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he said, summoning the sword from the ground, leaving Luke unarmed. "You promised you wouldn't struggle anymore if I defeated you... now didn't you?"

"He did, but we didn't," Marco said, his voice coming from above.

Both the Master and Luke looked up in surprise; Marco had climbed into the tapestries that were hanging on the wall – and was ready to shoot the Master.

The Master's eyes seemed to be spouting fire when he saw an arrow coming his way. He quickly backed away, sending the arrow flying back to where it came from with his staff, causing it to bounce off against the wall – but didn't notice the hem of his robe catching on fire as he did so.

"Anyway. Where were we? Ah..." The Master grinned, but his grin quickly faded away when the smell of scorched fabric caught his nose. "What the-"

"Smells like something's burning, now doesn't it?" Luke said with a smug grin covering his face from ear to ear.

The Master yelped alarmed when he saw his robe going up in smoke behind him; he quickly took off the dark piece of clothing, and threw it away on the floor, where the fire continued to burn. Soon, one of the tapestries caught fire as well. "Oops," the Master cackled. "How unfortunate. Within moments, this entire place will be lit like a torch... and so will you."

Luke's chest tightened. He was still trapped within the ring of fire; he had no idea how to reach the flaming robe – and his friends didn't have anything to put out the fire with.

"Well," the Master continued, seeming to rather enjoying the fear that radiated from Luke's aura, "seems like your father won't need to fight you anymore. The fire will incinerate you, which I would deem a much more painful and fit punishment for an annoying pest like you."

The Master gave his staff a gentle nudge; black ropes wrapped themselves around Luke's middle, forcing him to stay still in one spot.

There was nothing Luke could do to escape; the Master still had his sword, and his friends were blocked from reaching him by the wall of flames, which was ever growing.

"I'm sure the Queen will blame you for this, if you'll even make it out alive," the Master said, gently stroking Luke's head.

"Get your hands off me," Luke growled at the Master through gritted teeth.

The Master laughed. "Why, of course, my boy," the Master said, his eyes narrowing. "I won't touch you any longer."

"Why aren't the Queen's guards trying to break down the door?!" Daisy yelled in frustration, her legs still keeping her stuck to the floor. "They should be helping us by now, don't you think?"

The Master let out a loud, menacing laugh. "They can't," he cackled. "Time is frozen in the rest of this palace – temporarily, of course, but... I didn't want anyone getting in my way."

"My Lord, I advise we leave, before the fire breaks the shield you put around this ring," James said. Luke looked at his father with a rather dumbfounded look on his face. Shield? So that's why the fire was only burning half of the room – the half where the Master, and thus the teenagers, weren't in.

"You're right, James," the Master said, seeming satisfied, and turned back around. "We can't keep Lucas safe forever... just like he can't protect his friends forever."

Luke's eye twitched; his fear had been replaced with anger. "Leave them alone," he spat. "If it's me you want to watch burn, then that leaves you no excuse to harm them."

"Ah, how adorable," the Master said, slowly turning back to face Luke. "You just want your family to be safe... such a noble, yet naive, goal."

Luke's eyes shifted to behind the Master, where his father was standing. "Please, Dad," he begged. "You're stronger than this. I know you are. Please, I beg you. Save my friends, save yourself, save your own friends.

"We're not the enemy, Dad. The Master is."

"Ugh," the Master scoffed. "Enough of this.

"I have no more time to waste on you children... I have more serious matters to attend to. Like, destroying a magical barrier, for example. I hope you enjoy your final moments before the fire engulfs you completely... following the rest of this palace."

Luke, as he struggled against the ropes that held him in one place, yelled, "COWARD! Why didn't you turn us to stone when you had the chance?"

The Master laughed. "Oh, boy," he said. "Lucas, dear boy, there's only one reason I haven't turned the six of you to stone... you aren't a threat to me or my plans.

"You have no idea what you're doing... and now, there's no one left to help you. This Eleventh Generation never should have existed, and you're only proving the reason why."

The Master then proceeded to take a bow, before disintegrating into black smoke, taking James, the Guardians' statues, and any traces of magic with him. The sound of blazing fire instantly filled Luke's ears, but it sounded more like a hive of angry bees; Luke felt weak, his vision was blurry and he felt as if the world was turning before his eyes.

The last thing Luke heard before hitting the ground, was the clattering of metal, and the creaking sound of a roof falling apart. Then, everything went dark.

Apparently, at the exact same moment Luke fainted, the doors to the throne room opened, and Eloine and Kyan, accompanied by several guards, came rushing in. Eloine was quick to put out the fire before the entire castle would collapse, but the throne room was ruined.

Marco had saved Luke from being crushed by the falling ceiling by ducking forward and snatching him away from the falling word and debris just in time.

When Luke woke up, he was lying in a bed, and six worried faces were looking at him.

"You're awake," Eloine said, smiling at Luke. "What happened?"

"He- he- took them," Luke mumbled, looking as if he was about to lose his mind. "Dad. Uncle Thom. Aunt Sam. All five of them."

"About a day ago, the Master turned our family to stone," Marco added. "He told us that we were – our Generation – was never supposed to exist, and that that was the reason why he didn't turn us to stone."

"He possessed James again," Daisy said quietly. "I don't think we're safe here."

Eloine rubbed her chin. "Maybe you're right," she said, "but then again, I don't want the six of you roaming around Lunaria without knowing where to go."

"Well, one thing I'd like to do before heading out again, is go to sleep for a while and eat a steady meal," Mari said, unable to hide a broad yawn. "I'm exhausted – and starving."

Kyan nodded. "Of course," he said. "We'll put guards around the Castle, but I'm afraid we can't keep you company – Mother's execution is scheduled for tonight."

The teenagers nodded. "We'd just like to go to sleep," Luke said, still feeling a little bit dizzy. "We promise we won't bother you."

Eloine smiled. "Don't worry," she said, "I've had Guardians staying the night in my castle many times... including your parents, actually." She then beckoned Luke's friends. "Come. I'll lead you to a vacant bedroom you can sleep in – there are two more beds in this room. Would any of you like to stay here with Luke?"

"Well, there are two more boys," Felicity said, "so perhaps they could sleep here with Luke." The others seemed to agree to that plan.

Suddenly, Luke remembered a question he'd had on his mind for quite some time. "Oh, Felicity, before I forget-" he said, but the girls, accompanied by the King and Queen, had already left the room.

After the Queen had let the teenagers to a safe place to sleep, they thanked her for her kindness. Right now, they had to be careful – the stakes to the 'game' – as the Master seemed to view it – had been raised, and the teenagers weren't sure whether they were up for it without their parents being there to help them out.

Queen Eloine, however, promised the teenagers to train and prepare them for their mission in the morning. She promised she'd do whatever she could to make sure that the teenagers would save the world.

Things were different than twenty-five years ago, but they'd figure it out eventually. These teenagers were now the new Bond of Light, the Eleventh Generation – the Unexpected.

It was up to them to save the world; everyone, including their parents, was counting on them.

The teenagers didn't attend Violina's ceremonial funeral that night – Eloine and Kyan had decided to leave them sleeping. And Chiara's execution didn't seem like something children should be watching.

However, not all teenagers were asleep. Mari wasn't. Despite how hard she tried, she just couldn't clear her mind and fall asleep. Something was going on, something Mari couldn't lay her finger on, despite how much she wanted to.

Time was running out. Something needed to be done, and as quick as possible. And Mari was afraid that she wouldn't be able to be a part of that.
Practice Makes Perfect

The next morning, the Guardians woke up before the sun had even risen. Mari started awake; apparently, she'd fallen asleep at some point in the night, after all.

She watched silently as everyone gathered their things, and headed down to Queen Eloine's study, where the Queen had told the teenagers to meet her as soon as they were awake.

Queen Eloine seemed happy to see the Guardians. "Ah, you're awake," she smiled. "Good. I guess that it's time to start your training, then."

The teenagers followed the Queen, anxious to find out what kind of training she had in store for them. Eloine took them to the courtyard; there, Kyan and various guards were waiting for their arrival.

"Since I can only teach you how to use magic," Queen Eloine said, gesturing at the guards, "I asked for some advice on different kinds of combat."

Kyan approached them, smiling broadly. "Since you've all got your own unique weapon, save a few exceptions," he gestured at Luke's and Tony's swords, "I'd suggest you should just show one of my men your weapon, and they'll see what they can do.

"Luke, I believe Eloine wants to show you something."

While his friends took their weapons to the guards to receive individual training, Luke followed Queen Eloine to one of the more quiet corners of the courtyard. Luke was excited; he knew that the Queen was going to test him to see if he had any magical abilities.

"Alright, Luke," Eloine said, "now before we begin, I'd like to say that while it's quite common for Guardians of Innocence to have at least some magical abilities, not all of them were able to control them. So don't worry if nothing happens, okay?"

Luke nodded; despite wanting to be just as strong as his father, Luke knew he shouldn't expect too much of his abilities at first. After all, his father had had issues controlling his abilities to the first time he'd used them, too – right?

"I know I have magic," he said. "I don't know how I did it, but I managed to protect Violina from the guards yesterday."

"In that case, Luke," Queen Eloine said, "first, you'll have to clear your mind. This will become easier as your training progresses, but for now, you'll have to focus on it. Just think: a good beginning makes a good ending."

Luke nodded again. He wasn't sure whether he should sit down or not, so he decided to meet at the middle by sitting down on his knees. He closed his eyes and folded his hands in his lap as he tried to shut out the outside world.

Clearing your mind doesn't necessarily mean thinking of nothing, but simply filtering out all noise and focusing on what's important.

Eloine left Luke sitting on the ground like that for about fifteen minutes or so, before gently touching his shoulders. "Are you ready to continue?"

"Yes," Luke said without opening his eyes, "I am."

"Very well," Eloine said. "Then you may rise."

Luke did as he was told; he got back on his feet and opened his eyes. "So," he said, "what's next?"

"I'd like to keep your eyes closed for just a while longer," Queen Eloine said, "I want you to focus on and trust in your surroundings.

"Using magic is about seeing with your mind, rather than with your eyes."

Luke closed his eyes, starting to get more intrigued by the moment. "Alright," he said, "what's next?"

Queen Eloine smiled. "You'll see."

Despite the fact that Luke couldn't see anything, he clearly felt something happening. Something flew his way, and when he had caught it, his fingertips began to tingle; a pleasant tingle that quickly spread from his fingers through his arms to his shoulders. For a moment, it was as if the tingle continued inside his chest.

"You may open your eyes," Queen Eloine's voice spoke, "you have passed the test."

Luke opened his eyes; he let out a gasp in surprise at what he saw. He was holding – a ball of light.

"Whoa," Luke gasped, completely awestruck by his achievement. "So this means that-?"

"You can control magic," Eloine nodded. "Now comes the second test – using magic."

Luke's eyes shifted from the glowing ball that was floating between his hands back to Queen Eloine. "And I'm planning to do that... how exactly...?"

"Simple," Queen Eloine smiled. "You take the orb you're holding right now, and you throw it wherever you want it to go – then you give it directions." She paused. "And then, you try to make another one yourself."

Luke swallowed. He had no idea how he was going to do everything Queen Eloine had just described, but if he was able to hold this glowing orb between his hands, he might as well be able to do everything else.

Luke let go of the orb, mentally pushing it forward, while physically simulating the movement with his hands. To his amazement, the orb followed his commands. Not perfectly, as the orb instantly dropped to the ground after it'd been pushed, but it was a start.

"Well done, Lucas," Eloine said encouragingly. "Now, let's see if you can keep it moving for a while."

She summoned another orb; Luke caught it, but accidentally dropped it in his excitement. Eloine laughed, and made him another orb, which Luke did manage to keep safe.

"Okay, Luke," Eloine said, "now make it fly."

Luke did the same thing he'd done with the last orb he'd sent flying; he let it go, pushed it forward, and then commanded it to go up. The orb stopped moving forward and shook, threatening to drop to the ground, but eventually did fly upward. Luke grinned. "Heh."

He commanded the orb to fly back to his hands; surprisingly enough, this time, the orb followed his every command perfectly.

"Seems like I'm getting the hang of it," Luke said, tossing the orb in the air, making it spiral upward before spreading his arms wide and allowing the orb to vanish.

"Really nice," Queen Eloine nodded. "Now, I will teach you how to make an orb yourself."

Now this was the tricky part. Controlling the orb wasn't too difficult, but creating one seemed to take up all of Luke's concentration and energy. The first few times, nothing happened; after five minutes or so of trying, Luke would grunt in frustration, complaining that nothing was happening. But Queen Eloine would encourage him to try again every time – and so he did.

After a while, things finally started to happen. Small sparks of light began to flicker between Luke's hands; first they were only white, but eventually, Luke could manipulate their colours at will – and thus create orbs of all sorts of colour – if the orb were to show up between his palms.

But, after two-ish hours of trying and staying determined to succeed, Luke finally created his first orb. As proud as he was, he instantly sent it flying, spiralling into the air. He allowed the orb to circle around him a few times before finally catching it again.

"Well done, Luke!" Eloine applauded. "Now, I'd like you to try the same thing, but then with fire."

And so the day went on. Eloine taught Luke to summon all kinds of things, although he did get his fair share of swordfight training as well.

Several hours of defence and target practice later, the teenagers met up again in the middle of the courtyard. Sweat was shimmering brightly on the teenagers' foreheads; the guards wanted to make sure that these Guardians would return to the Land of Light as prepared as possible, and thus they had really made a point of wearying the young adults as much as possible.

Queen Eloine sent the Guardians to get cleaned up, and told them to meet her again in her study as soon as they were done.

*

"Ah, Guardians," Queen Eloine smiled as the teenagers entered her study. "It's good to see you again."

Although the current Guardians didn't know, their parents might've recognized the study's interior; it looked almost identical to the guests' reception room in the old castle. Perhaps some of the castle's old interior had survived, after all.

"Please," Queen Eloine smiled as she saw the teenagers stand around helplessly, and gestured toward the blue armchairs, "do sit down."

The Guardians did as they were told; the blue chairs were soft and comfortable to sit on.

"So," Queen Eloine said, as she joined the group of six, "how was your training?"

Luke's eyes started to sparkle at just the thought of how his training had been, but he was more interested in hearing how the others had found theirs – so he just simply listened to their stories, instead of telling his own.

Marco told about how he'd begun to perfect his aim with his crossbow, which resulted into Felicity mocking him how she was already a flawless archer; that wasn't quite true, but she was pretty good for someone who could only depend on their sense of hearing and intuition. After training for a while, Felicity had managed to hit every target the guards had set up for her, and had even hit the bull's eye twice. Only Mari seemed rather silent and distant. Tony was excited to tell everyone he'd finally got a sword that matches his length more properly.

"Do you have any questions before you head out again?" Queen Eloine asked, after all teenagers had told their stories.

"Oh, so many," Daisy sighed. "We just have no idea where to start."

"Well... how about we start at the beginning?" Felicity suggested. "Queen Eloine, can you tell us about our parents? What they were like when they were here?"

Eloine smiled. "Why, of course," she said. "I will start at the moment they arrived here."

Queen Eloine told the teenagers everything she knew, everything that had happened in those five days the Last Generation had been in her company. How Violina led them safely through the forest, how Samira cleansed her own curse and learned how to heal, and how she then proceeded to use that ability to save her brother's life.

"I don't believe there's much more to tell," Queen Eloine said as she finished her story. "I hope I've told you all you wanted to know."

"Wait," Tony said, "so that necklace you gave my mum – it gave her special powers, didn't it?" Queen Eloine nodded in response.

"Then why don't we have anything like that?"

Queen Eloine chuckled. "That's a good question, Anthony." She thought of what to say for an answer for a while. "Honestly, I don't exactly know, but... I guess it's just that these items are unique, and the Guardians that claimed them most recently are still alive. The Spirits kept the Totems in their castle, and returned them to your parents as they arrived.

"That's probably why you don't have anything as such."

"But what do the others do?" Luke said. "The only thing I know about the Totems is that our parents got them by completing a certain test – and that my father got his Golden Wing for completing the Ritual and sacrificing himself. But what does it do?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Eloine said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully, "but all Totems are meant to strengthen a Guardian's abilities. So... I guess the Golden Wing makes it easier for your father to use his magic.

Samira's necklace gives her the ability to heal, that's one thing I do know."

"While we're asking questions anyway," Mari said, "is magic something you inherit from your parents, or-?"

The corner of Queen Eloine's mouth pulled tight for a moment. "Well, in this world, yes," she said, "but as you all come from a world where magic is either yet to be discovered or already gone extinct... I'm not sure. But I assume the same rules apply, so yes.

That explains why some of you might have enhanced senses you wouldn't have on Earth, but only Luke has real magic. Because of his father; he is the most powerful Guardian to have ever lived."

"And that's why the Master was so eager to capture him," Luke pondered. "To get access to that power."

"Exactly," Queen Eloine said. "Anything else you'd like to know?"

"Yes," Mari said. "When James – disguised as Violina – came to see you, did he say anything about my curse?"

Queen Eloine's head made a sharp turn. "Oh, dear," she said. "I completely forgot in all the chaos." She gestured at Mari to come nearer. "Child, please, come here. Let me have a look at you."

Mari stood up, and knelt down in front of Eloine, who gently brushed Mari's messy hair away to examine her face. The marks had now spread to her cheeks, clearly visible.

Queen Eloine's face paled. "We must hurry," she said, standing up from her chair. "Please, follow me to the garden."

The Guardians did as they were told, and followed the Queen to the palace garden. The Queen led them into the royal conservatory greenhouse, where it instantly became clear where the Queen was headed. In the middle of the garden, on a pedestal, grew a single, golden flower.

"This flower," Queen Eloine said, "is what cured both Samira and James back when they were visiting my palace. "I decided to plant one of my own inside my greenhouse to ensure I'd always have one at hand whenever I'd need it."

"Couldn't you have used it to heal Violina?" Daisy blurted, recognizing her mistake a little too late. Queen Eloine didn't seem to mind, however, as she offered Daisy a kind smile.

"I'm sorry, Desirée," she said, "but magic can't bring people back from the dead. In this world, all living beings have life energy – which can be extended with magical energy.

"Violina's life energy was mostly gone... aside from that, the Fairy Folk can't survive without their magic. And once our magic is gone, it can't be restored."

"But Akilah brought my father back from the dead," Luke protested, knowing it wasn't the right time to make objections, but he decided to make a point of it anyway. "That's something."

"The Spirits can manipulate life, Lucas," Queen Eloine stated. "...well, to a certain extent. And I don't believe that it's James's own life energy that Akilah restored." Realising she'd run her mouth, the Queen quickly tried to get everyone's attention back to the flower. "So anyway, I can use this flower to heal you, Mari."

"No, no, no," Luke objected. "What was that about Dad's life energy not being restored?"

Queen Eloine sighed. "It's not important, Luke," she said. "Just let it slide. I want to-"

Luke was persistent. "I want to know," he said, crossing his arms decisively.

Queen Eloine laughed silently. "Alright. Since you're not going to stop asking about it..." she mumbled. "Will the six of you come along, please? There's something I need to explain to you."

Suddenly, Mari felt a nasty sting of pain spread through her chest and her head. Was it what she feared? Following the pain, a cold feeling spread across her chest, confirming that the moment she had feared for days had finally come.

"I- I'll stay here," she mumbled, "I don't really feel well. I'd like to sit down here and enjoy the silence for a bit."

Queen Eloine smiled. "Understandable," she said. "It's been a wild ride for the lot of you, the past week."

"Don't catch a cold, Mari," Luke winked at his friend. "When I come back, I'll have learned all the secrets of the universe, and I'm willing to share them with you – but not if you sneeze on me."

Mari laughed. A sincere laugh.

She watched her friends leave the greenhouse. The door had hardly been shut before Mari lost control; she sank to the ground, gritting her teeth, feeling a throbbing, burning pain as her heart seemed to beat in every single one of her veins before completely freezing.

She'd become a Lost Soul. And if she didn't leave quickly, her friends would be lost, too.

As soon as the pain had lessened, Mari opened her eyes and got back on her feet. Her eyes had gained an eerie, orange-reddish glow, and her pupils had become tight and vertical, like a cat's.

Just like the Master. Her Master?

NO, Mari thought. No. He is not my Master, and he never will be. But he will pay for what he did. He will pay for everything.

Mari extended her left arm; an orb of black magic materialized in her palm, blasting a hole in the greenhouse's windows.

Mari ran. Away from her friends, away from the fear of destroying them. And toward the Master. Toward his defeat, toward his demise.

She'd destroy him, just like he'd destroyed her.

Darkness Rising

Luke returned to the greenhouse with an annoyed expression on his face. The Queen had tricked him into thinking she was going to share important information with him, but in reality, she had just spent thirty minutes making terrible puns while telling a bad story. Well – it wasn't really a bad story in terms of bad storytelling or a poor plot – if you could call it that -, since it told about the time their parents had spent time with Queen Eloine. But it wasn't what Luke wanted to know.

It had cheered his friends up, but that cheerfulness didn't last long, as they returned to the greenhouse only to find one of its windows shattered and Mari gone.

"Mari?" Luke asked, frantically raising his voice as he ran toward the shattered glass. "MARI!"

Many emotions soared through Luke's heart and chest at the same time. Fear, anger, frustration. "We shouldn't have left her here," he said furiously. "We shouldn't have left her alone! Now she's gone! Just like my father, like our parents, like-"

"Luke!" Marco shouted, grabbing his friend by the shoulders, trying to calm him down. "Please, Luke! Get yourself together!" he commanded, his eyes wide with worry.

Luke let out a heartbreaking sob while gritting his teeth. He grabbed Marco's shoulders, digging his fingers into the leather shoulder pads Marco was wearing.

"We'll find her, Luke," Marco said. "And we'll find your father. And... with a bit of luck, we'll find the Master, so we can kick his butt."

"Indeed, we will find him," Luke grunted. "First, he takes my father – then our family – then Mari – it's enough. It's about time we put this horrible man to a stop, once and for all."

Everyone agreed with the redhead on that last comment.

*

After dinner, the Guardians thanked the King and Queen for their hospitality – they really couldn't stay any longer, unless they wanted to risk losing Luke in the middle of the night, too. And, if they wanted to find Mari, they'd have to go after her now. It'd only be a matter of time before the Master would find her – if he hadn't already.

Queen Eloine had made a powder out of the flower, assuming that it'd be easier to sprinkle an unwilling person with powder than forcing them to drink a potion. The teenagers couldn't possibly predict what mental state they'd find Mari in, of course. She'd put it in a leather bag, along with some food and water – who knew how long it'd take for the teenagers to fix everything, after all?

The teenagers set off into the forest, where they passed under various Fairy villages. The Fairies didn't seem to be bothered by the Guardians that passed through their villages, unlike what Violina had told the teenagers before – perhaps it was due to the curse being broken.

It was difficult for the teens to decide where to go at first; Queen Eloine had provided them with directions, but it did take quite a while before the Guardians had finally made their way out of the forest at the location they were supposed to get out. The Bond of Light then proceeded to move toward the mountain; the Queen had pointed out a secret passage so they could cross the mountain quicker. The teenagers had to climb up for a while in order to find it, but eventually, they found it.

Still, somehow, there still hadn't been a sign of Mari, while they should've run into her way before even reaching the mountain. As he and his friends crossed through the secret passage, Luke wondered what had happened, and figured it'd been nothing good. But what Luke did know, was that the Master was behind all this once again. He had to be.

*

Luke didn't know, although it might've helped sooth his worry if he had, that Mari had made the decision to flee on her own. And, as of right now, she was learning about the advantages – and disadvantages – that came with being a Lost Soul. One of the advantages was her increased speed; she was able to run much faster, and jump much further. This was a true advantage to Mari; she'd run through the forest and reached the mountain in hardly ten minutes, and jumped from ledge to ledge on the mountain to get across. She was determined to reach the Master's castle before her friends would get to her – she didn't want them to see the atrocious deed she was about to commit.

But Mari had to do it. Her new powers, her new soul, had changed her. Had made her realise things she hadn't realised before. How could she possibly have?

Part of Mari knew that it was the darkness inside her talking, telling her what to do, but Mari didn't mind. The darkness gave her the power to do things she'd never thought she'd be able to do. It had set her free, and now she would set Lunaria free.

And then, everything would turn back to normal.

Mari paced through one of the villages that surrounded the lake; the few villagers who were still out, stared at Mari's glowing eyes as she passed by. Mari paid them no mind. But when she arrived at Linmor Lake, she stopped. How was she going to get across, aside from swimming? She was able to jump far, but not this far.

Mari sighed as she looked around the dock; it was twilight, so there were hardly any people around, save a few fishermen who'd just returned from a day out on the water – she then realised for how long she and her friends had actually been asleep. But there were a couple unmanned boats, almost begging for Mari to steal one of them.

Mari knew stealing was bad, but sometimes, the end justifies the means. She looked around before approaching one of the boats, making sure no one saw her. As soon as she was sure the coast was clear, Mari untied one of the rowing boats and pushed it further into the water.

As she got into the boat, Mari decided to see if she could sleep as soon as she'd got out of sight of the dock, despite not feeling tired.

It'd probably take much longer for her friends to get where she was; after all, they'd have to be the perfect heroes and buy a boat.

Or maybe not...?

*

By the time Mari had set off into the water, Luke and his friends had finally climbed down the mountain. The teenagers were quite worn out, but Luke kept insisting that they had to keep going; his friends understood, yet they still wished Luke wasn't so demanding.

The situation was dire. They knew. Luke cared about Mari. They knew. Their parents needed their help. The entire world was counting on them.

They. Knew. But Luke was just simply pushing it too far.

He wanted to do something that was just simply impossible to achieve in one day. Well, at least for humans it was.

"Luke, please," Felicity said, trying to talk some sense into her cousin, "let's stop and go to sleep. Mari's probably long gone by now."

Luke ignored her, and surlily kept moving forward. This resulted in an angry response from his friends; it took the four of them to work Luke to the ground.

"Now you're going to calm down and get yourself together," Felicity commanded her cousin; he was glaring at her. "Nothing what you're doing is helping Mari."

"Well, I seem like the only one who's at least trying to help Mari," Luke spat angrily. "I'm sorry for just wanting to save my friends and family!"

Felicity looked as if she was about to punch Luke. "I'm going to let that slide," Felicity said, her voice emotionless, but her blue eyes icy, "because you don't know what you're saying.

"But next time, I'm kicking your ass."

"...Of course," Luke mumbled. He sat up as his friends had finally got off of him. "Fine. We can stay here for the night." He sounded rather reluctant to come to this compromise. "A few hours, nothing more. When morning comes, we're going."

His friends smiled at him. "Glad you finally made a good decision," Marco said. Luke snorted in response.

*

The Master was amused. Too amused. James was under his control once again, the adult Guardians were out of his way, and the new Guardians... well... they were trying their best.

The Master gloated as he watched the Guardians quarrel and fight over pointless issues. They were friends, like their parents had been, but they were far from as close. These teenagers were doomed to fail; the Master would be surprised if they'd even make it back to the Land of Light before they'd get sick of each other and split up. It was too bad that they'd survived something that could've easily killed them again, but once again, they'd only survived because someone else had saved their hide. And now, they were on their own.

The Master couldn't help but laugh in utter amusement as he watched the teenagers struggle. He had the upper hand at last. "James?" the Master called.

"You called, My Lord?" James said; he entered the throne room as soon as the Master had called his name.

"Indeed," the Master said. "I called."

He walked down the steps as he continued to speak to James. "James, now that our conditions have changed, you may leave the Land of Light as often as you wish to.

"But I don't think you'll have to do so..."

"Why not, Master?" James asked. "Please. Tell me what I have to do."

The Master grinned at the obedience that almost seemed to radiate from James. This time, he wouldn't be cured just by walking out of the dark. In retrospect, relying on only the dark atmosphere of Lunaria to keep James evil had been stupid, ignorant idea. Of course the Master's siblings would've found some way to protect the world from going dark all over again – but the Master guessed he'd just become overconfident. His greatest weakness had always been his cockiness – the only trait he shared with his siblings.

But none of that mattered now. James was under the Master's control, and he was planning on keeping it that way.

"James," the Master said, "we'll have guests arriving soon, and I'd like you to form a nice welcome committee.

"Track down the Guardians and get rid of them. There's a special guest headed our way... I'll take care of her myself, but you'll have to get the Guardians out of the way for me."

James bowed toward the Master. "As you wish," he said, before leaving the throne room. "Nothing will stand in our way, My Lord. I promise."

The Master watched his servant leave with a fond expression on his face; he flashed a vampire smile at the thought of James killing his own son.

And if Luke still somehow survived? Well, in that case, the Master thought, he'd make a fine servant.

Louloudia

Night had fallen, and Luke was unable to sleep. Perhaps it was due to his fallout toward his friends, or maybe it was due to everything that had happened in the few days.

Had it been like this for his father and his friends, too? Had they been as stressed, as scared, as on the edge as he was?

Luke held his knees and rested his head against them as he watched his friends sleep. They'd been right; he'd been treating them unfairly, he had set unreasonable goals.

But why?

"Hey," Felicity's voice suddenly came from behind. "I saw you were awake."

Luke looked at her. "Yeah," he said. "Couldn't sleep, so I decided to keep watch." He chuckled. "Somebody's got to do it, eh?" He paused. "Saw?"

"Do you feel unsafe here?" Felicity suggested, looking around; they'd found an abandoned cave at the foot of the mountain and were using it for shelter; apparently, Luke's question was lost on her.

"Maybe," Luke mumbled. "I don't know. Maybe Dad's out looking for us. Maybe the Master is. I...

"...I don't know what to make of everything anymore, actually."

He looked at the exit of the cave; from where he was sitting, Luke had almost a perfect view of the night sky. It was filled with millions of stars that twinkled like little diamonds. Luke knew that he'd never get the chance to see something like that on Earth – not this clear. Not this bright. And it amazed him.

"I don't think anyone does, Lucas," Felicity said. "We're all a bit lost on what to do. But – everyone's counting on us, so..." She ran a hand through her dirty blonde hair. It just brushed her shoulders, flopping around as Felicity led her fingers slide through it. It felt gross and greasy; after all, none of them had had the chance to take a proper shower for a few days, save the necessary cleaning.

"...we'll just have to try and make the best of it," Felicity finished her sentence, her eyes moving outside, to the stars. "If they believe we can do it, then we probably can."

"But who decided that we can?" Luke said. "We didn't – do anything. We just read a book we weren't allowed to. And..." He sighed. "Even that's my fault. The whole reason why we're here, Felicity – it's me." Luke buried his face in his hands. "It's all my fault. And it bites."

Felicity put a comforting hand on her cousin's shoulder. "Knowing that Akilah needed our parent's help anyway," she said, "I don't think you should take this too hard on yourself.

"We agreed on the whole 'stealing the book'-plan, after all. So... I guess that that makes us all at fault here. After all, there were five hands needed to release the magic – five Guardians to complete the Bond."

Luke shrugged. "Maybe you're right," he said. "Maybe."

"I am right," Felicity said. "If anyone's going to point any fingers, we're all to blame for this. Not just you."

"Thank you, Fe," Luke smiled. "Also... sorry for acting like such an annoying prick all the time.

"I was being ignorant and selfish. I should've listened to the four of you."

Felicity shrugged. "Well, at least you've finally come to your senses.

"Although it took you a while."

Luke made a small, offended noise. Felicity chuckled. "I'm just joking," she said, punching her cousin in the shoulder. "Go to sleep."

"Not before you answer my question," Luke said. "You said you 'saw' that I was awake. How?"

Felicity's eyes widened slightly. "I don't know," she said, "it was more intuition. I – I'm sorry I haven't been of much use in the past few days. I wish I could've done more – but I was scared to mess up."

"You weren't useless and you wouldn't have messed up," Luke said decisively. "Just because you couldn't see, you weren't worth any less." He swallowed.

"But I understand that you were afraid, and that you still are. At least now, we can fix that." As he spoke, Luke reached for the leather bag the Queen had provided the Guardians with. The amount of food inside of it had already slimmed quite a bit. "With this."

He pulled out the vial of flower dust, showing it to Felicity; its glass shimmered in the moonlight, and so did the substance the vial held.

"We can cure your blindness with this, Felicity. I'm sure of it."

"I don't know..." Felicity said. "What if we have to use the entire vial in order to get it to work?"

"We can always try," Luke suggested; eventually, Felicity nodded. Luke took two fingertips of dust from the vial and blew the dust gently into Felicity's eyes.

The teenager blinked for a bit, giving the dust some time to do its work.

"Nothing's happened," Felicity sighed with disappointment, lowering her eyes. "I still can't see anything."

"Just go to sleep," Luke said, "maybe it'll have changed in the morning. It was only a little bit of dust, after all."

"I'll only go to sleep if you do so too, Luke. You're my cousin, and I'm the oldest. So... that makes me responsible. If I don't make sure you all get your naptimes, then I'm sure I'll be getting a butt-kicking from my parents."

Luke cackled with laughter, quickly putting a hand over his mouth in order to muffle his laughter. Felicity laughed as well.

Luke felt at ease and ready to go to sleep; maybe now his mind had finally come to rest a bit.

*

When he woke up at the crack of dawn, Luke felt slightly more energized and hopeful than he'd felt the night before. And there was more than one reason as to why he felt that way.

"Guys?" Felicity said as she woke up, "guys! I can see!"

"Really?" Marco said, with an astonished look on his face. Tony squealed with happiness, flinging himself around his sister's neck.

"Yeah!" Felicity said, happily accepting her little brother's hug. "I mean – not too well, it's as if I'm not wearing my glasses while I'm supposed to – but I can see." She then looked up at Luke. "You were right, Lucas! That powder restored my vision – even if only a part of it."

"Told you," Luke winked at her. "It'll only be a matter of time until you'll be able to see properly again, Felicity. I promise.

"Shall we go now?"

The others agreed; they had to keep going.

The teenagers walked into one of the nearby villages; they knew there was a lake ahead, and thus they'd need a boat. And these villages seemed to be the best place to find one.

The Guardians made their way through the village as its inhabitants slowly began to wake up; people opened their windows, came out into the streets to greet each other. And of course the Guardians didn't go by unnoticed.

People started following the group of five as they were headed for the dock, silently whispering. The teenagers eventually caught flashes of conversations.

"...Not again..."

"....Why are they here? I thought.... dead."

"Apparently, the Spirits.... kids."

"Poor souls."

Eventually, the teenagers, Daisy in particular, had had enough. "Alright," Daisy suddenly said loudly, "if anyone's going to help us out here, that'd be very appreciated. But what we don't appreciate, is people following us as if we're some kind of parade!"

The townspeople started to mumble. Apparently, they realised Daisy's point, as they began to back away and return to their homes quickly. Only one person remained: she looked fierce, her dark brown hair tied in a ponytail. Her dark green eyes glittered dangerously in the low sunlight.

"Looks like you kids need a boat, huh?" the woman said. "Yeah, I can get you one.

"How much gold have you got?"

"Eh..." Daisy mumbled. "Nothing, actually. We're not..." she paused, not exactly sure how to phrase it. "...from here."

The woman laughed. "It's fine," she chuckled, "I kid. I know who you lot are." Her expression then turned more serious, as did the tone of her voice. "But honestly, the fact that the five of you are standing before me does concern me. What are you kids doing here?"

She gestured at the Guardians that they had to follow her to the dock. "I'm Undique, by the way."

"Well, Undique," Felicity said, "we understand why you're concerned. Nobody here had expected the Master to return, after all.

"Honestly, neither had we."

Undique nodded. "Obviously," she said. "After we'd been freed from the underground hiding places we lived in to survive the Master's reign, we'd never expected to ever see him again." Her expression got a slight tinge of worry. "Has he really returned?"

"He's trying," Marco said, "but we'll stop him before he gets the chance to take over Lunaria again."

"But... at the current moment, we're after one of our friends," Luke said. "She... ran away because of something the Master did to her."

"Poor girl," Undique said. "You said 'she', right?" Luke nodded, causing Undique to let out a small sigh in relief.

"Well, this is my boat," she said, pointing at a rowboat that was probably just big enough to take the five teenagers. "If you've got the time to return it, please do." She chuckled. "But if you don't, don't sweat it. I'm sure it'll find its way back to me somehow."

"Thank you so much, Undique," Tony smiled, as he shook the sailor's hand, "we're forever in your debt."

"Not really, kid," Undique said. "Not really. Just go and get your friend back – and maybe save the world while you're at it, okay?"

Tony laughed. "Will do."

*

Going to sleep had been a mistake.

During the night, Mari had drifted on the tide, but had unfortunately ended up far from where she was supposed to be.

As Mari rowed back to the realm that had once carried the name 'the Edge', now Louloudia once again, she thought of her friends. Where were they? Were they coming after her, or had they decided to put the most important thing – their mission, of course – before her?

While a part of Mari hoped that she hadn't taken her friends' minds of their mission, another part of her hoped that they'd come after her. That they'd come to find her.

But that probably wasn't going to happen, so Mari quickly put her thoughts aside and focused on her own mission as she stepped ashore. As she did, Mari decided to follow the shallow stream that split from the lake into Louloudia to find the Land of Light.

Not that far away, a man was tracking down his prey – James. He'd made it halfway through Louloudia by now, closing in on the teenagers that formed his target.

He wouldn't let them get away; he wouldn't disappoint his master.

James was unaware of the fact that Mari was near, despite the fact that she was hundreds of metres – at least – away from him.

What James did know, was that the teenagers were near. Tony and Marco had studied Linmor Lake as they'd flown over it a few days earlier, and were guiding their friends to the shortest route across the lake. And James was planning to catch them exactly there.

James was in no rush; he knew that despite the small distance the teenagers were going, it'd be quite a difficult task for them to get across. Rowing is heavy when you're untrained.

And James wasn't wrong. The teenagers had come far, but they'd come hardly halfway through before Marco's arms got too tired to row.

"Can someone else take over, please?" Marco huffed. "I'm tired..." His eyes were focused on Luke as he spoke.

The redhead Marco was looking at, however, was busy getting himself into trouble. He was leaning over the edge of the boat; he thought he'd noticed something moving under the water. As he bent forward, Luke's cape slowly sank closer toward water level.

Just as the red fabric of the cape hit the water, something yanked at it, catching Luke by surprise and pulling him under as he let out a yell.

Luke tried to look for whatever had grabbed him as he was submerged, the water stinging his eyes; he quickly noticed multiple sirens, clawing at his cape, seemingly trying to choke him. Luke tried to kick them off, but ended up getting both his legs grabbed by the seemingly beautiful creatures.

The sirens had got a stronger hold of Luke's cape, pulling him down quickly, and Luke was starting to feel lightheaded. His fingers clawed at the brooch of his cape, trying to get it off; he was surprised to feel the tight fabric around his neck loosen before he'd loosened the brooch.

Arrows seemed to be the cause; one the sirens hissed as she pulled back her arm. Blood was floating in the water. The other sirens met the same fate; some weren't lucky enough to be just hit in the arm, though.

Luke felt a pull on his arms; Daisy's and Marco's faces appeared in front of him. While Marco pulled Luke up, Daisy fended off the sirens with her daggers. Both the teenagers had taken off their capes before jumping in the water, in order to avoid getting caught the same way Luke had been.

Luke returned to the boat coughing loudly. Marco and Daisy joined him quickly; mere seconds after he'd boarded the boat, Luke found four pairs of stern eyes looking at him.

"What?" Luke said. "I thought I'd seen something move under the water. And I wasn't wrong." He shivered, both due to the cold and the thought of being drowned by fish-ladies.

"Just be glad we had arrows to shoot into the water," Felicity said, showing Luke her now half-empty quiver. "If we'd all had swords, we probably would've cut one of your limbs off."

"Thanks for saving me, guys," Luke said. "...Again, I guess." He then proceeded to do what Marco had asked him, and started to row the boat back to the shore.

Luckily, Luke managed to get him and his friends safely to shore before his arms turned to limp noodles, too.

The Guardians thankfully climbed out of the boat and got ashore. Felicity guessed that they'd been in the boat for about an hour, guessing by the height of the sun – it'd finally begun to rise above the mountaintops.

"Then that means we've got plenty of time left before sundown," Luke said. "Good... I wouldn't want to face the Master in the dark."

"Yeah, but we're probably not going to be able to face him until sundown, Luke," Felicity said. "Especially not if he's going to be blocking our way."

She was pointing at a figure in the distance, who was approaching the teenagers quickly. It didn't take long for Luke and his friends to realise it was James approaching them.

"Dad," Luke gasped in horror. "Oh no."

Luke knew his father wouldn't recognize him and would be likely to attack him, but Luke was still reluctant to hurt him. To Luke, the man that was approaching him with his sword raised was still his father. Luke was still convinced he could save his father.

In fact, Luke was prepared to use a portion of the flower dust Queen Eloine had given him to do so. They had plenty of the stuff (since they had to cure their parents, too); so, if given the chance, Luke couldn't think of any excuse not to use the dust on James.

"Guardians," James said, now close enough to the Guardians to be able to attack them, "you have come far, but not far enough. My master wants your heads..." He paused, and flashed a grin that looked eerie in combination with his glowing red eyes; it didn't help that he moved the black blade he was holding to his chin. "...and I will be the one to deliver them to him."

"Well," Luke said, trying his best to hide the shiver in his voice as he pulled out his glowing sword, "come and get them."

James responded instantly. He leapt forward, lashing out at the Guardians, who had to be quick to dodge the swinging blade.

The teenagers weren't sure what to do at first, because obviously, they didn't want to hurt James. But with every sign given that James truly did want to hurt them, the Guardians slowly became less reluctant to attack.

The fact that the teenagers were now defending themselves didn't make James any easier to hit, however. James was more experienced, and his skills had been magically enhanced by the Master – but that didn't mean he was unbeatable.

Luke shouted at his friends to take advantage of their group; they quickly surrounded James, forcing him to focus his attention on five teenagers at a time.

James couldn't possibly block two arrows coming from two different sides at a time, despite his best efforts. Apparently the Master had ordered him not to use any magic unless absolutely necessary.

Or he'd just had enough.

James clenched his fists, creating a blast that was powerful enough to knock all five teenagers off their feet.

"Did you really think you could beat me just like that?" James growled at them. "I've got to admit, you're pretty good – but you'll never beat me.

"I am too strong for five petty children to defeat me."

"Well, what would you say if I told you there are six petty children?" Mari suddenly shouted, causing James to get distracted from his former targets – although probably not for long.

"You..." he mumbled, obviously not recognizing Mari, "...would make no difference."

James attacked Mari, but she was quick to raise her sword and catch James's with it. The power the two swords hit each other at sent Mari staggering backwards for a bit, but not too far for her to actually lose balance.

"That's where you're wrong," Mari said, her eyes flashing to the vial with golden dust Luke was clasping tightly. "Sprinkle the dust, Luke!" she yelled. "Cure your father!"

Luke didn't hesitate. Before James could react, Luke took about a quarter of the vial's content, and blew it in James's direction, who instantly starred. Luke, curious whether it'd worked, ran toward his father, who in the meantime had sunk to his knees and grabbed his wrist.

When Luke was reassured that his dad was okay and looked up to thank Mari for saving them, she was long gone.

Shadowed Guidance

"Dad, are you alright?" Luke asked his father, because he didn't quite believe he was. "Dad. Please tell me you're alright. I need to know."

"This – won't last for long," James said to his son as he took off his glove showing the cut in his arm, which had turned pitch black. "It's only a matter of time before the curse spreads and gets a hold of me again. It's because of the Master's blood – he truly wanted to ensure his control over me."

"Well, we're not leaving you here," Luke said decisively. His friends seemed to agree.

James smiled and hugged his son. "I wasn't saying that I was leaving," he said. "I'm sure we'll find some way to solve this."

"We should be going," Felicity said. "Mari just... vanished into thin air – well, black smoke, actually... I have no idea where she's gone."

"I have a sinking feeling where she's gone," Luke mumbled, as he and James got up. "I think Mari is convinced she can defeat the Master on her own."

"Well, she is a Lost Soul now," James said, talking as if the kids had any idea what he was talking about, "so she is strong. She basically shares a part of the Master's power." His eye shifted at his now gloved arm. "I wonder how this is going to work out, though."

"We'll just have to wait to find out," Luke decided. "But right now, we've got to go to the Dark Castle and save our parents."

"Wh-" James gasped; apparently, he didn't know what happened to his friends. "What did the Master do to them?

"I thought you'd just decided to split up to find Mari." He'd probably figured that out due to Mari's sudden appearance and disappearance.

"The Master turned them to stone right after- well-" Tony mumbled. "You know. We've got to save them if we want to save Mari and this world."

"Why are we wasting time here, then?" James said. "We've got to go and save them, right now." The teenagers agreed.

With James at their side, for however long he'd be there at least, the young Guardians felt much safer.

*

Mari was surprised at her own abilities. She just simply thought about getting away from her friends as fast as possible, and suddenly, the world disappeared before her eyes, only to reappear before the Dark Castle's gates.

Mari was awestruck. She'd made it. Right to the Master's doorstep. Nothing was holding her back now.

But still... Mari was hesitant to enter the castle and confront the Master. Something inside of her wanted her friends to be able to make an advantage out of this, too. If the Master was distracted and fighting Mari, then perhaps he wouldn't notice her friends saving their parents. The teenagers would have the Master surrounded without him ever knowing.

But then again – waiting for them would probably take hours. And Mari just simply didn't have any time to wait.

With the dark energy that fuelled the Land of Light once again, Mari's newfound abilities were enhanced and strengthened, and Mari felt the power running through her veins.

Mari was powerful, and she would show the Master just how powerful she was.

Entering the castle was simple; almost too simple, even. But Mari figured that the Master was interested in fighting Mari; he truly believed that he'd be able to win from her.

As Mari made her way through the surprisingly empty hallway toward the doors of the Master's throne room, she considered her chances. There was a certain chance the Master would win – considering he was a master of deceit, and he had more experience than Mari did. But Mari had something else: determination. Mari was fed up with the Master, and everything he'd done to her, her friends and her family. It was enough.

Someone had to teach this ignorant demi-spirit a lesson. And Mari was the one to do it.

Keeping those thoughts in mind, Mari entered the throne room.

*

The Guardians, accompanied by James, were running through the flower fields of Louloudia. As they got further into the realm, they noticed that the sky was getting darker and the flowers began to show signs of withering. The barrier had weakened further, and the effects of the dark energy that was seeping through the cracks were clearly visible.

Obviously, it was impossible to run all the way through. The six Guardians regularly took small breaks to rest their feet, and eventually slightly changed direction. Their goal was to end up as close to the Dark Castle as possible – although James wasn't sure where exactly the river in the Land of Void – James was persistent to temporarily restore the realm's previous name – went. If the Guardians were to end up at the river, they'd have to walk all the way back to find the bridge – unless they'd be willing to swim across.

It turned out that Felicity had been right earlier; the sun was starting to set when the teenagers finally reached the Land of Void. They were tired, and their legs ached, but it was too late to go back or stop now.

This would all end tonight. By the crack of dawn, the Guardians would have freed Lunaria from the Master once again, and would be on their way home.

The Guardians stood before the barrier; a shiver went down Luke's spine as he looked aside to his father. "I guess... this is it, then," he said.

James looked at his son, knowing what he meant. Sweat was glistering on his forehead. "Just go, Luke. I'll – be watching from the sidelines."

"Can't you try?" Luke said hopefully. James shook his head.

"Let's not risk it, Luke."

Luke sighed. James was unable to enter the Land of Void for as long as it was corrupted; Luke knew that he'd have to leave his father here so he wouldn't have to go through the pain he'd gone through before again, but still wasn't satisfied with that solution.

Luke had never been separated from his father for as long as he'd been in the past few days – or at least never forcefully separated. Luke was reluctant to leave his father all alone, but as things were now, there truly was no other option.

James hugged his son. "Go knock 'em dead, Lucas," he said. "I'll be right there as soon as the light goes back on." Luke couldn't help but snort.

"That's a terrible joke, Dad."

"Isn't that what I'm a dad for?" James laughed.

"Luke, are you ready to go?" Marco asked. Luke looked at his friends and smiled. "Yeah, you guys go ahead, I'll be right there," he said.

His friends nodded back at him; they didn't cross the barrier yet, however, but waited in front of it.

"What's the matter, Luke?" James said. "I assume there's something you want to talk about."

Luke moved around his shoulders uncomfortably. "I... just..." he mumbled. "I just wanted to apologise, Dad."

James's mouth opened slightly in surprise; a small gasp escaped from his lips. "Lucas," he said, "it's alright. You couldn't have known."

Luke shook his head. "I know, Dad," he said, "but it still doesn't feel right. I treated you horribly, and then all of this happened..."

James chuckled. "You treated me horribly?" he said. "You didn't yell at me. I did that to you."

Luke shrugged. "It's fine," he said and grinned as he added, "I'm used to it."

"When we get home, things will change, Luke," James said. "I'm not going to keep secrets from you any longer."

Luke smiled at his father. "That sounds like a good idea, Dad," he said. "Keeps us out of trouble."

James smiled at his son and ruffled his hair. "Now go," he said. "Go save the world. I've already had my turn; now it's up to you."

Luke laughed and ran toward his friends; he looked back at his father as he and his friends crossed the barrier. "We'll be back soon, Dad," he said. "That's a promise."

"Be careful, Luke," James nodded at his son. "It's dangerous out there."

The shiver that had gone down Luke's spine before saying goodbye to his father was nothing compared to the one that went down his spine as soon as he crossed the barrier. He felt as if the energy was drained straight from him; the air was cold and damp, and the atmosphere just had an eerie feeling. He felt slightly lightheaded, and sought support on Marco's shoulder.

"I almost forgot what walking around in this place felt like," Felicity said. "I can't wait until we restore the light."

"Then I'd advise you better get to work."

The teenagers turned around; it was difficult to see, but when Luke and Tony pulled out their swords, two shadowy figures were revealed in the light. Akilah and Ince.

"Akilah? Ince?" Daisy said. "You're still-?"

"Shadows," Ince said. "Indeed. The Master has... outsmarted us again, apparently."

"But that's not why we're here," Akilah said, "we're here to help you. After all, you teenagers don't know the Land of Light like we do. And, since your parents aren't around to help you, we will."

"I just left my father in Lou..." Luke had to take his time to remember the realm's name. "Louloudia. He promised us to join us as soon as we've restored the light to this realm."

"A wise decision," Ince agreed. "He would've turned against you again if he would've joined you here. There's nothing we can do about that – it's..." He suddenly stopped talking.

"I'm tired of nobody telling me what's going on with my father," Luke said. "Are you going to tell me or not?"

It wasn't visible on her face, but Akilah smiled. "It's simple, actually," she said. "The night I resurrected your father, I used the Land of Light's energy to do so.

"He's basically become like the Master; a demi-spirit. But your father is much more sensitive to magical influences than Asura is."

Luke shrugged, not sure how to react to this information. "Oh... that's probably why he's so much stronger than any of us."

"Well, his magic might be strong," Ince said, "but the Master is still stronger."

"Because his magic is dark?" Tony insinuated. Akilah and Ince laughed.

"That's superstition," Ince said. "Dark is weakened by Light. Light is weakened by Dark. But they're still matched to each other. It's the one who gets the upper hand who wins the battle."

Luke nodded. "Makes sense," he said. "They need each other. That's why the Guardians restore the balance instead of destroying the dark completely, right?"

Ince nodded, although any movement was hardly noticeable in the dark. "Exactly."

Daisy seemed rather uncomfortable. "Shouldn't we keep going?" she said.

"You're right," Luke said. "We've got to get to Mari. And fast."

"Mari has reached the Dark Castle," Ince said. "We just saw her enter before we left to find you."

"How did she get here so fast, though?" Marco wondered. "She disappeared into smoke back in Louloudia. How'd she do that?"

"She can teleport like the Master," Akilah said, "because she's a Lost Soul. They were once the Master's minions... the last two Lost Souls were set free twenty-five years ago."

"Can we save her?" Luke said, as the teenagers, now accompanied by the two shadows, continued walking.

"You can," Akilah said, "with that dust you've got. We created those flowers for a Fairy Queen a long time ago. They can cure nearly anything."

Luke looked at the vial in his hand; for some reason, he hadn't let go of it ever since he and his friends had entered Louloudia. He wasn't sure why he'd kept holding on to it; perhaps he just wanted to have it ready to use.

"So if we just use it on her, she'll go back to normal?" Luke asked.

"She will," Ince confirmed. "You'll be able to save all of your friends with it – except for James."

"We can save him, too," Luke said decisively. "We'll save our parents and then restore the balance together with them."

"The Land of Light is a fairly small realm," Akilah said. "We'll be at the Dark Castle soon. We'll have your parents freed before you know it."

*

Mari crashed into the wall with a loud thud. The Master was stronger than she'd anticipated.

Apparently, the Master had been waiting for her, and had taken his time to prepare himself for a fight. Fighting him was more of a challenge than Mari had thought it'd be.

She quickly got back on her feet, scanning the room for the Master; the dark demi-spirit had magically forced all candles to go out, causing the throne room to be even darker than it'd been before.

The only thing that gave the two fighters away, were their glowing eyes. And, of course, the Master's glowing orb.

"Giving up yet, Mari?" the Master's mocking voice came from the dark. "You might think you'll be able to save your friends, but deep in your heart, you know better."

"Shut up," Mari said under her breath, but repeated her words in a loud yell. "SHUT UP!

"You don't know ANYTHING about me!"

She suddenly noticed the red glow of the orb moving in the corner of her eye, and barely dodged the blast of energy that came her way.

"Don't I?" the Master said. "You've always felt different, haven't you, Mari?

"Like there was more for you out there."

Mari charged her own energy, throwing everything she had at the three glowing dots in front of her. They disappeared for a short moment, but reappeared behind her, catching her by surprise.

A single blast sent Mari flying; Mari once again crashed against a wall, nearly ending up going unconscious upon impact with the wall.

"Don't deny it, Mari," the Master said. "You and I are very much alike. In powers, in personality.

The only difference is that you have a family that loves you."

Mari turned around, but remained seated on the ground, as her legs felt too weak to stand on and her head was foggy. She just simply remained sitting on the ground, glaring angrily at the three glowing dots in front of her. The two smaller ones seemed to have something sad in their looks.

"My family – the Spirits – never loved me. They abused me, gave me near-useless powers simply because it was a responsibility neither of them wanted. They mocked me. Used me.

"And when I showed them what I was made of, they banished me. Isn't it only fair of me to take my revenge?"

"No," Mari said. "Revenge is never the answer, Asura."

"You only say that because you don't understand," the Master said. "Your family loves you, and you love them. You wouldn't want to hurt them.

"But... I can make sure of that, dear."

"What do you mean?" Mari said.

"I promise you, if you take my hand now," the Master said, presumably sticking out his hand through the darkness toward Mari, "I will not harm your friends or family. No harm will come to them from my hand."

"And... you're keeping your word?" Mari said, slightly suspicious. And for a good reason, too, of course.

"I promise I will keep my word," the Master said decisively. "I will not harm your friends or family.

"Let's stop fighting, Mari."

"Very well, then," Mari said, searching for the Master's hand in the dark.

What she didn't know, was that the moment she shook it, she'd made a great mistake.

*

The teenagers had snuck into the Dark Castle successfully. Normally, the Master would've instantly sent his minions – Night Stalkers, Shadow Walkers, or any such monsters – to find and capture the intruders, but since he was preoccupied with Mari, it was safe for the teenagers to sneak about.

"The Master keeps the statues of Guardians he's captured in the castle garden," Ince said. "We spent about a week releasing every statue's soul after the Master was gone. It was terrible." He shuddered at the memory.

"So now it should be just the statues of our parents," Luke said. "I hope."

The garden looked more like a graveyard. White dust cloaked the ground, and the plants – or at least whatever seemed to be plants – were either deformed to monstrous versions of the original or dead.

In the distance stood four dark figures, their silhouettes slightly lit in the dim moonlight.

"There they are," Luke said. He wanted to sprint over and just throw the dust at the adult Guardians, but he knew that it was wiser to tread carefully. Who knew what the Master had done to this hell of a garden.

Luckily, nothing happened; the five teenagers and their companions reached the statues safely.

Luke took small amounts of dust out of the vial as he passed the statues; the stones started to tremble as the dust touched them.

And eventually, all that remained were four startled adults. The teenagers were quick to explain everything that had happened while their parents had been gone; the adults agreed with their children that they had to act quickly.

But before they left, Luke wanted to try something.

"Ince," he said, "you said this dust could cure nearly anything. So that makes me wonder... what it'll do for the two of you."

Luke shook the vial, allowing some dust to fall on his hands, but making sure there was enough left inside for Mari. He then blew it in the two shadows' direction.

Nothing seemed to happen at first, but after a few short moments, a bright light flashed through the garden. When the light finally dimmed, two glowing figures stood in the place of the shadows – it had worked.

"Lucas," Akilah gasped, "thank you for saving us.

"Now... allow us to save your friend."

III

The

Saviour

Mercy

When the two Generations and Spirits entered the throne room, they were caught by an unpleasant surprise. The room was dimly lit, but the people standing inside were clearly visible. The Master was standing in front of his mighty throne, with Mari at his side.

"Welcome, Guardians," the Master spoke on a rather triumphant tone. "Akilah. Ince. I see you've come to finish this once and for all."

"MARI!" Luke shouted at the girl standing beside the Master. "Are you alright?"

Mari didn't respond. She completely ignored Luke, even. As if he didn't exist at all.

"Asura, if you surrender now, things will be a lot easier for the both of us," Ince warned his brother. "We don't have to hurt you if you don't resist."

The Master, however, laughed it off. "Of course, Ince," he said mockingly. "After well over a thousand years of work, do you really think I'd be willing to walk away from everything?

"That's where you're wrong."

The Master then directed his attention toward the Guardians. "You might've taken away my new toy, but after all, James truly never was more than just a toy to me. A distraction for the lot of you... although a pleasant addition to my army when I have rebuilt it." He paused for a moment. "And when a child loses a toy..." The Master grinned and placed a hand on Mari's shoulder.

"...it simply gets a new one."

Apparently, that sentence – or touch, or maybe even a combination of the two – had been the sign for Mari to attack. She drew her sword, leaping down to the Guardians' level. The Guardians backed away, not wanting to hurt Mari.

"What did you do to her, you scumbag?" Antonio barked angrily at the Master. "What have you done to my daughter!? TELL ME BEFORE I SLICE YOUR HEAD OFF!"

The Master laughed as he watched the Guardians desperately block and dodge Mari's attacks, both physical and magical, as she chased them around the throne room, forcing them to split up.

"Mari and I merely made a deal," the Master said. "If she took my hand and allowed me to help her up, I wouldn't harm you. Any of you." He grinned. "I guess Miss Marilyn didn't consider the consequences to grabbing hold of my hand."

Antonio sprinted forward and tried to grab his daughter's arms, as she continued to violently lash out at him. "You're in my way, old man!"

Antonio took out his sword, and tried to use it to whip Mari's sword out of her hands. Mari didn't quite offer him an opportunity to do so, though.

"Mari, listen to me!" Antonio said. "You're stronger than this. I know you are! Try to fight it, please!"

"You're wasting your breath, old man!" Mari growled, proceeding to lash out at her father. "Now take that word of yours and fight back! Show me what you're made of!"

Antonio kept on blocking his daughter's attacks, refusing to attack her.

He looked at the eighteen-year-old girl in front of him, with her wild eyes and messy hair. Antonio was hardly able to recognise his own daughter. "I will not fight you, Mari," he breathed. "Please."

Just as Mari was about to attack again, golden dust downed on her, stopping her in her tracks. The colour in her eyes and cheeks was slowly restored as the black veins on her face faded.

"..Dad..?" Mari said coarsely.

Antonio let out a cry of happiness, threw his sword to the floor and hugged his daughter tightly.

"NO!" the Master bellowed, directing his rage toward Luke, who barely managed to dodge the blast of dark magic the Master sent his way, tripping over his cape as he did. The master continued to quickly approach Luke; his eyes were wild and outraged.

"You," the Master hissed. "You, boy. You have been the thorn in my side for the past few days... You're just as arrogant as my father.

"So how about I get rid of you just as I almost got rid of him so many years ago?"

The Master had raised his staff, but it was cut in half by a sword before the Master could do anything. "What-"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Thomas was the one who'd cut the Master's staff in half; the other three adults and five teenagers, including Mari and Antonio, had quickly surrounded the Master. Ince and Akilah stood right behind their brother.

"It's over, Asura," Ince said.

The Master watched silently as Thomas helped Luke to get back on his feet. "Is it?' he asked quietly, a grin creeping up on his lips. "I don't believe it is."

A loud explosion followed. Something had exploded outside the castle, possibly a couple of kilometres away.

"What was that?" Bella said, although the Guardians already knew the answer.

"That was the sound of your precious barrier shattering into a thousand pieces," the Master said, before bursting out in loud laughter. "You have lost, Guardians!"

Fear instantly clutched Luke's heart as he turned to face his aunt. "Dad is out there," he said to her. "He's all alone – he's probably in pain right now – we have to go save him."

Samira had a worried expression on her face, which shifted to the side for a short moment; Ince and Akilah had engaged a fight with their sibling. They'd had enough.

"The only thing we can do to save James is fix this," Samira said. "We've got to get back to the Castle of Light and perform the Ritual. It's our best, no, our only chance."

"Just go!" Ince shouted, as he stopped one of the Master's attacks with great effort; apparently, he'd heard Samira talking.

"We've got this!" another voice shouted; it was Aoife. The three spirits who'd gone to strengthen the barrier had returned to support their siblings. The barrier had shattered now anyway, so there was nothing left for them to protect.

Luke wondered whether the five of them would be strong enough to fend off the Master, but guessed he'd just have to trust them.

*

While he nine Guardians and Mari left the Dark Castle and rushed to the other side of the realm, the Spirits tried to reason with their brother.

"Asura, stop this madness!" Aharnish commanded his brother; in the heat of the battle, the Spirit of Night and Day had blown a hole in the roof of the throne room, and now the Spirits were following their brother into the night sky.

"This quarrel, this war, has gone on for long enough. It's about time we put an end to this."

"Put an end to what, brother?" the Master replied mockingly. "To your misery, or to mine?

"You might have taken my staff from me, but you haven't taken the power that runs through my veins. I am still just as strong, if not stronger than you are."

"This is not a competition, Asura," Aine said loudly. "This isn't about who's stronger. And you know it."

"Hasn't it always been?" the Master said on a rather violent tone. "If I remember correctly, the five of you were always keen to showing off your power and authority to anyone dumb enough to listen to your preposterous stories. The stories you made up just to tell everyone how great you are." The tone of the Master's voice clearly let shine through how much he truly despised his siblings – he hated them in the deepest grounds of his heart.

"Show off. That's all you lot ever did."

He paused for a moment before continuing, perhaps hoping to get a counterargument from his siblings. "I'm getting tired of this conversation, it feels a little one-sided. Are we doing this or not?"

Without his magic, the Master had to control his magic with his hands. It wasn't much of a problem, but his staff had always given him advantages his hands didn't give him. But, with his hands, the Master always tended to get a bit more creative when it came to magic.

There was this particular trick the Master had always used; he was curious to find out whether or not he'd still be able to pull it off.

The Master raised his arm; a string of his signature fog surrounded his arm, thickening as it crept closer the Master's hand. The black string eventually crept over the Master's hand and through his fingers, launching itself spiralling into the night sky, where it reshaped itself into a dark dragon.

The shadow dragon followed the Master's commands, attacking the Spirits of Light both physically and by spewing its dark fire at them (proving that the latter was more effective).

The Spirits of Light responded respectively; combining their powers together, they made a dragon of their own, in the exact same way the Master had made his; made of light, and spewing green fire. The light dragon challenged the dark dragon, allowing the conversation between both parties to continue while the dragons were occupied.

"Do you truly feel like we abused you, Asura?" Akilah asked, genuinely concerned about her younger brother, who seemed rather annoyed with her concern as well as her question.

"Yes, Akilah," he snarled, "I do. I always did. What o you think made me like this?" His eyes narrowed. "Do you really think I was born evil? No. I was sculpted into an evil shell after my creation.

By the five of you."

The anger in the Master's voice was beyond any measure. Never had Akilah heard any man, woman, or any other creature speak in such a hateful way. And it broke her heart.

"This monster you see, Akilah," the Master continued, "the monster in front of you, is the result of your own actions. If the five of you truly never wanted any of this to happen, then you should've thought of that before leaving me in the dark for all those years." He laughed. "Literally in the dark." He called back his dragon, commanding it to attack the Spirits again, but they were quick to dodge, using their own dragon as a shield.

The Master snorted in dismay. "Too afraid to fight, are we?"

"We're not afraid to fight, Asura," Ince said, "we're just too stunned by your reasons to attack us."

The Master took a deep breath. "You didn't listen," he said. "I have been repeating this story to you over and over for the past... what, two thousand years?

"And yet, you're still surprised."

The Spirits just looked at each other for a moment. Ince couldn't help but stare at Akilah; the expression in her eyes was more than just sad. It was heartbroken.

Akilah knew. She'd always known. Ever since Lunaria's creation, the Spirits had been there. And ever since the Spirits created their little brother Asura to take on the toughest task they could've possibly given him, Akilah knew that Asura would be in pain.

Akilah knew for years. Centuries. Millennia, even. And still, she never did anything to lift the weight or help her brother. And she was ashamed for never doing so.

Something inside of Akilah saw everything Asura had gone through, everything that had happened to him until what he'd become now, was directly her own fault, because she'd been too afraid to, as the oldest of her siblings, put a stop to something.

Perhaps she'd just been too afraid to actually show her authority to the people it would've mattered most to: her own siblings.

Akilah had only one hope left: the hope that she'd be able to make it right. Right here, right now. The only thing she knew for sure was that she'd have to be the one to do it.

"Asura," Akilah said, rising up to the Master's level, above the dragon's safety. "Please, give me a chance to speak to you."

The Master didn't respond; he narrowed his eyes at his sister. "Go on."

"Thank you," Akilah said thankfully. "Asura, listen. I'm sorry. I can't even begin to tell you how sorry I am." She shook her head, not sure how to continue. "We... we created you to fulfil a purpose we were simply too afraid to. And it was wrong. But – we were happy to have you. We never wanted to hurt you. Honestly, we underestimated how difficult your task was and the effects it had on you.

"We should've taken it on ourselves. Controlling the dark and the negative, I mean. If we would've shared the burden, no one would've been harmed."

Something changed in the Master's posture, although his position remained hostile. Still, he didn't attack Akilah or tell her to stop talking.

He just simply stared at her, as if he was about to smile. And perhaps, deep inside his heart, he wanted to. Maybe he did want things to go back to normal, to what everything had once been like.

But it was too late.

"No," the Master said. "As much as I appreciate your apologies, they're meaningless now.

In fact, I believe this apology is about two hundred millennia late."

The Master raised his arm, summoning his dragon behind him. "Kill her," he said, all emotion absent from his voice. "Kill them all."

Memory

The Guardians were on their way to the Light Castle. In order to save Lunaria, they had to the Ritual and restore the light to the realms. If necessary, the Guardians could deal with the Master after completing the Ritual.

To the adults, the Ritual was a more or less familiar event, but the teenagers clearly needed some preparation. Both mentally and physically.

Although they were in a hurry, the Guardians stopped running after they'd left the Dark Castle; ironically, the two castles were set fairly close together.

Perhaps they already knew something was up. Something just simply didn't feel right, and it wasn't just the darkness in the Land of Void.

"Hey, Dad?" Mari said; she and her father were walking behind the group. Mari wanted to talk to her father in private. "Thank you for saving me earlier."

"That wasn't just me, Mari," Antonio said, putting an arm around his daughter's shoulder. "Luke helped with that. He had the powder."

"Yes, but you were the one keeping me in one place," Mari said. "Thanks to you, Luke was able to sprinkle it on me. Otherwise, I still would've been running all over the place, not stopping until you were all dead." She laughed at how morbid that sounded. "I'm glad none of that happened, though."

Antonio pulled his daughter closer, teasingly ruffling his daughter's hair. "As if we'd ever allow it to," he said.

Mari smiled at her father. "I'm sorry for leaving, Dad," she said. "I never should've listened to that voice in my head – I believe it was the Master all along."

The corner of Antonio's mouth jerked. "Well, I guess that that's my fault somewhere, too," he said, suddenly lowering the volume of his voice. "When you were little, I kind of... broke a strict rule the Spirits had imposed on us before we left Lunaria."

Mari gave her father a confused look. "What do you mean, Dad?" she asked.

"Well..." Antonio said, chuckling nervously. "My friends and I were chosen to protect Lunaria because we'd read a book. And as soon as we'd saved Lunaria, Akilah warned us to never read our touch the book again." He paused to look at his daughter. "I broke that rule long before your friends did."

"You... read that book to me," Mari guessed; Antonio nodded.

"That's exactly what I did. And... I'm thinking that maybe that's why the Master found you."

"Don't sweat it, Dad," Mari assured her father. "I don't think something small and innocent like that matters by now." She nervously moved her hands about as she spoke. Her father seemed to disagree with her statement, though.

"It might not matter to the others," he explained, "but it does to me." He looked at the sky for a moment; the moon was peeking through the thick layers of clouds, shining a faint light on the Land of Void. "It feels as if I shoved you way from your mother and me." He let out a faint chuckle. "I was young, and dumb enough to be convinced that the book wouldn't have that much of an impact on our lives anymore. But I was wrong."

Antonio let out a sigh of defeat as Mari looked at him; she smiled. "We've all made mistakes, Dad," she said. "And this is our chance to make them right." She stared into the distance as she continued to speak. "When we get back home, I'd like to live with you and Mum. Maybe go to college... if I can manage leading a normal life again."

Antonio held his daughter close as they caught up with the group. "Of course you can," he said. "We'd be more than glad to have you back, Mari.

"However, there is one condition."

Mari gave her father a confused look; Antonio looked back, a mischievous twinkle shining in his dark green eyes.

"When we get back, you'll tell me all about the adventures you had out there – and the reason why we couldn't find you," Antonio said. Mari chuckled.

"Alright, then," she said, "but after that, we leave the past behind, okay?

"I think it's about time we stopped looking back and started looking forward. I've been looking back since the day I left."

"Then what stopped you from going in the direction you were looking at?" Antonio asked.

"Time doesn't go backwards, Dad."

*

Antonio and Mari weren't the only ones who were ready to leave the past behind. The Spirits were, too.

Aside from the dragons, their fight had evolved to elemental magic. Some powers were limited to the Spirits (such as Aoife's nature-centred magic; she had to revive the plants on the ground below if she wanted to manipulate them), but they made do with what they had.

The battle seemed endless: the Spirits and the opposing demi-spirit were perfectly matched to each other.

The six opponents dodged each other's attacks quickly and agilely. Neither of the two parties was willing to give up. But eventually, Akilah started to notice something. The Master's body was starting to tire.

Akilah, knowing she could take advantage of the Master's exhaustion, said, "There's no need to fight anymore if you are tired, Asura.

"I know you are. Not just physically, but mentally also. And I understand."

The Master stared at his sister for a short moment; the fight had been halted once again. "I'm not tired," he stated decisively, "and I won't be defeated."

He raised his hand again, intending to attack, resulting in the same happening on the other side. But Akilah stopped all five of her siblings in their tracks. This wouldn't end the same way as their final fight had just over a thousand years ago.

"No, Asura," Akilah said calmly, "you misunderstood what I meant.

"I know how you feel. The human body we trapped you in... It's a prison to you."

"Wasn't that what you intended it to be?" the Master sneered. "A prison, a punishment? You wanted me to be dependent of a vessel."

Akilah turned to face her four siblings. There was no denying the facts their brother had just stated. He was right.

"We... made a mistake, Asura," Aharnish admitted, obviously ashamed. "We treated you unfairly."

Asura's eyes narrowed. "Glad you finally manned up and realised your mistake."

"But we can help you," Aoife said hopefully. "Please, Asura. If you're ready to let everything go, we can help you – free you from your prison and your pain,"

Obviously, the Master didn't believe her. "You're lying," he said, quickly raising his voice. "Once again, this is just a trick for you to be able to fix your mistake! Covering up the error of your ways!" To everyone's surprise – even the Master's own surprise – tears began to stream down the Master's cheeks. "You have no idea what it's like to live like this!

"All I ever wanted was to be loved and respected, and to be one of you!"

The Master stopped yelling. "But you never gave me the chance," he said silently. His face quickly grew cold and expressionless.

"And you never will."

The Master looked at his hands; in his heart, he knew that it was over. The Guardians were close to beating him a second time, and it was about time he gave up. He was tired.

Clenching his fists and gritting his teeth, the Master reluctantly said, "Just do it, Akilah.

"Set me free."

It took Akilah a few moments to understand what he meant. "Are you sure?" she asked. "We won't be able to bring you back once you've moved on." She paused. "I mean – we can restore you to the Spirit you once were-" The Master cut her off.

"I don't want to come back, Akilah," he said. "Too much has happened for me to ever become who I was again.

"And you know who the cause to that is."

Akilah nodded. And for a moment, for the first time in centuries, Akilah recognized her little brother. "Very well."

She gestured at her siblings to join her; the five of them surrounded the Master.

"Asura," Akilah said, "in the name of the light, and on behalf of the Spirits that guard it, I hereby release you from your prison. You have served your time; it is time for you to move on and be free, like you always wanted to be."

The five Spirits all moved as one, combining their powers together. The Master screamed in pain; his body began to disintegrate as soon as the Spirits' magic made contact with it.

But as the Master's body died, so did his soul. And while the Master's body faded into shadows, the Master's soul was represented by golden sparks. They floated around the Spirits, as if to say goodbye before disappearing.

"We did it," Akilah said, a single tear rolling down her cheek. "He finally made peace and moved on."

Akilah hoped with all her heart and soul that her brother was finally happy; she regretted the way she'd treated him for all those years, but knew that her brother would now finally find happiness.

Akilah wiped her tears and replaced them with a smile instead. "Come," she told her siblings, "the Guardians might need our help."

"I can't believe it," Ince said quietly. "We're finally going to be free."

"And this time, we'll be doing it the right way," Aharnish added. "No one will ever have to carry the burden that Asura did, because we will be carrying it together."

Akilah smiled at that comment. Indeed, they'd do it together. On Asura's behalf.

Weapon of Mass Destruction

James was fighting. Fighting the effects of the darkness that was slowly taking over his heart and mind again. The impending amnesia that slowly sucked away his memories bit by bit, the sudden urge to kill, everything.

But there was one good thing, making matters slightly less difficult; there was no one left to control James. If he was strong enough, perhaps he could retain his memories, and repress the darkness.

He tried. And... perhaps he'd succeeded, even. The veins were there again and his eyes were red, but this time, it was different.

James remembered something. Hardly enough to go by, but at least it was something. James remembered his son. He had to get to his son, as he'd promised. James had to see Luke, just so he could be sure that he was alright.

And thus, James turned around and ran toward the Land of Light.

*

The Guardians had reached the Castle of Light. This is where matters got serious. The adults had to prepare their children for the Ritual, as they adults would probably not be able to do it themselves.

The Spirits appeared to assist the Guardians in their final moments of preparation, also bringing the news that the Master had disappeared.

Both Generations were nervous; the adults were nervous because they knew what would happen during the Ritual, and the teenagers because they didn't.

But the most nervous of the bunch was probably Luke. He didn't have anyone to help him prepare, no one to tell him what would happen. James wasn't there to do it.

The only thing his aunt and uncle could tell him, was that the Ritual had nearly killed James – although Luke was more or less 'glad' to learn that whatever had happened to his father had been due to severe injuries and the Ritual combined, and thus there wasn't much of a risk of death for Luke.

...If he did it right, at least. And that was probably the scary part; the teenagers didn't know how to do it 'right' or 'wrong', because there were no indications or specific instructions as to how they had to do it. They just had to.

"So... you're really going to have to do this, huh?" Mari said; she and Luke had retreated to the back of the Ritual chamber. They just simply wanted to talk among two friends.

"Yeah," Luke replied silently, not exactly sure what to say. "They told us what to do – just simply stand there and say a stupid riddle, and then everything handles itself, I guess."

"That really doesn't sound all that difficult. Why is everyone so worked up about it?"

Luke let out his breath. "Because it went wrong last time our parents performed the Ritual," he said. "But that shouldn't happen this time... since the Master is gone and all."

"I wonder if he's really dead," Mari pondered. "Or if he's still some kind of ghost."

"Probably not," Luke said, "if he told the Spirits to kill him... that man must've lead a really messed-up life."

"As if we haven't," Mari chuckled. Luke chuckled too.

"Yeah." He looked at Mari. "Hey... can I ask you something?"

Mari looked back at Luke, raising her eyebrows. "Sure," she said. "Ask away, Luke."

"Where were you for all those years? Before you came to Lunaria?" Luke asked, getting straight to the point. "I never found you. No one ever did.

"It was as if you had vanished."

Mari fiddled with her glove nervously, trying to find out how far the fingers would stretch. "I've been in many places, Luke. I-" She suddenly stopped. "New York is a big city, Luke. Let's leave it at that."

"And nearly all the policemen in New York were looking for you, Mari," Luke demanded. "You were gone for four years. Your dad never stopped looking for you."

"I thought about coming back many times, you know," Mari defended herself. "I thought that I could maybe stay on your attic for a while."

Both Mari and Luke chuckled at the thought of Mari hiding on the attic of Luke's house.

"Dad probably would've found you within a matter of hours," Luke said with a smile.

"Exactly," Mari agreed. "And then, I would've been sent back home to my parents. That... wasn't what I wanted.

"At least... not yet."

"But then where did you go?" Luke asked, his curiosity sparking. "You obviously didn't stay in the neighbourhood."

"No, indeed, I didn't," Mari aid. She swiped her left foot across the marble floor nervously. "I ended up going to the Bronx. There was this vacant apartment I lived in with other runaways." She turned her head away from Luke.

"I did a lot of things I wasn't proud of, Lucas. And I'm still not proud of the things I've done. I guess that's why I never came back."

"So you shoplifted to get food and lived your life as a squatter?" Luke guessed. "Eh. You could've done worse, Mari. Just be glad you didn't kill anyone.

"Did you ever get caught stealing?"

"No," Mari said, slightly annoyed, "but I'm still not proud of the fact that I did it. I felt like I was disappointing my parents with every step that I took – just waiting for a change that would never come." She let out a sigh of defeat. "I failed my mission, Luke."

"You didn't to me," Luke said. Mari turned her head, looking at her friend with a confused look in her eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Well..." Luke said, not sure how to continue, his eyes shifting between Mari's green and blue eye. "You did prove your point, Mari. You survived on your own, and... you proved that there was more out there." He gestured at the room they were sitting in.

"I..." he mumbled. "There were times I regretted not accepting your offer to come with you, Mari.

"I went after you, Mari. More times than I can count. Sometimes, I'd be gone for days – searching all over the city for the slightest trace of you."

"I bet your parents didn't like that," Mari said. Luke laughed.

"No, they sure didn't," he said. "But they understood. Your dad left the neighbourhood about a year after you left, believing he'd be able to track you down. He guessed you'd left New York."

"Well, he was wrong." Mari sighed. "One of the first lessons I learned while I was out on my own, was 'Don't look back, and never regret'," she said. "And I think you should learn how to do that too, Luke."

Luke looked at her, his eyes betraying his confusion. "What do you mean, Mari?" he asked. Mari smiled mischievously.

"Stop regretting your past choices, Luke," she said, "and be more cautious with your future ones. I will do the same.

"I am here now, and I'm never leaving you again."

"I'll stick you to that," Luke said. "Looks like we're going to be following each other from now on."

"Don't become a stalker, Lucas," Mari warned him. Both of them laughed.

When it was time to perform the Ritual, the five teenagers were called by Akilah, who gave them their final instructions.

She directed each teenager toward the right altar, and told them to begin meditating. The Ritual would tell them when it was time to begin.

In the meantime, no one knew that James had almost reached the Castle of Light. To the man's surprise, more memories had begun to flood into his mind as he neared his destination – memories from before he'd turned the second time, the things he'd done when he'd turned the first time – the curse he placed on the altars.

The altars the young Guardians were about to activate.

James accelerated in speed as he reached the Castle, rushing through the hallway as quick as his legs could carry him – he was sure that the Guardians would hear the sound of his footsteps and approach him.

And James wasn't wrong – the Guardians did indeed hear him. Or at least one of them did, for that matter.

The doors to the Ritual Chamber opened, and as soon as James saw the blonde woman standing in the doorway, the final bits of his memory returned.

All of it. His childhood, teenage years, his first journey through Lunaria; everything came back, all at once.

"SAMIRA!" James shouted; his sister was caught off-guard, as James's eyes still had an eerie red glow; James had his memory back, but was still filled with dark energy. James understood why she looked so afraid; even he himself wasn't sure whether he'd be able to stay in control or not.

"Samira," he repeated, on a slightly quieter tone. "Get those kids off the altars."

"What are you talking about?" Samira replied, realising her brother meant no harm. "James, what's going on?"

Thomas appeared beside her, joined by Ince and Aharnish. Their eyes widened when they saw James standing in the hallway, panting and panicked.

"The altars are cursed, Sam!" James said. "The Master made me pour this strange potion into the grooves between the altars' stones – if the magic inside the altars is released, then-"

James abruptly stopped talking to listen to the voices of the five teenagers saying an awfully familiar incantation.

"We Guardians present to you

The Elements of Light, to make this world anew

End the Darkness, return the Light

Shining over Lunaria, clear and bright"

Halfway through hearing the teenagers, James began to run. He sprinted past Samira, Ince and Thomas, who quickly joined him. "STOP!" the four adults yelled in unison, catching everyone off-guard; unfortunately, it was too late to stop whatever the Ritual had set in motion.

The Ritual sure was different. Instead of the five beams of light uniting to become one beam that would spread its light through Lunaria, the altars emitted a powerful blast of dark magic that shattered all windows in the Ritual Chamber – including the roof window.

In the midst of chaos, the teenagers were thrown off the altars in the process.

Luke scrambled to get up; it took a while for his vision to become clear again. His left ear beeped and stung, and a warm feeling spread from the shell of his ear down his neck. When Luke moved his hand toward his stinging ear, he carefully pulled a glass shard out of his ear. Horrified, he quickly dropped it, the bloody shard shattering as it hit the floor.

The beeping was due to the loud blast, Luke knew that – but he wasn't sure whether or not that shard of glass had pierced anything vital to permanently damage his hearing.

"Lucas?" Luke heard his father's voice coming from his right. "Luke!"

James appeared before Luke; a chill went down the boy's spine as he looked his father in the eye. One was blue, one still glowing red. An eerie sight.

"Dad, what-" he mumbled.

"Luke, are you alright?" James asked his son; Luke noticed that his father had scratches on his face, varying in depth and length – he'd presumably been hit by the flying shards of glass. "Your ear is bleeding."

"Y-yeah," Luke mumbled. "I'm fine. What about the others?"

James looked aside. "I haven't checked yet," he said, looking back at his son, "but they seem to be fine."

Luke offered his dad a faint smile. "Dad?" he said, "what happened?"

James bit his lip. "Come," he said, "get up. We have no time to waste."

Luke did as he was told; he looked up as he did, and was horrified at what he saw. The sky was no longer its usual dark blue-greyish night-time colour; the sky had turned pitch black, with flashes of purple and dark blue twirling around in a circular motion, as if it were a black hole, sucking up the world into an endless void.

Whatever this was, and whatever had happened when the Guardians had performed the Ritual, Luke knew that this wasn't what was supposed to happen.

And he knew that this wasn't any good.

Sacrifice

"James, what is going on!?" Thomas shouted; the wind was howling loudly outside, and the fact that every window in the Ritual Chamber had shattered didn't help. "What happened?"

James' heart was beating quickly. "I don't know," he said, "but I believe the Master wanted to secure his victory by turning the Ritual into some sort of self-destruct device."

"Self-destruct device?" Aharnish said. "So... that's why he was so content with getting killed." He clenched his fists to retain his anger. "I knew he wouldn't be willing change his ways that sudden! It just simply wasn't possible!"

"Aharnish, please, try to stay calm!" Aoife said, her big, brown, deer-like eyes full of worry. "I'm sure we can fix this, it's nothing to worry about!"

Luke and Mari stood beside each other, staring at the sky, not noticing that their four friends were doing the same.

The wind was howling, and thunder and lightning surrounded the black, gaping hole.

"So... Nice weather we're having today, huh?" Marco said.

"The end of the world. Never thought I'd live the day to see it."

Luke snorted. "Well, it's not the end of Earth," he said, and then on a darker tone, continued, "but... it's still the end of us."

"Maybe it isn't," Mari said, sounding as if she'd come up with an idea. "I think I know how to stop this. It might end badly, but- there's nothing else we can do, really."

Her friends looked at her, their eyes wide in surprise. "What are you talking about, Mari?" Daisy said. "What could you – or we, for that matter – possibly do to stop this?"

"It's... the least I can do," Mari said carefully her eyes quickly flashing from the left to the right. She wasn't sure whether the idea she had would actually work or not. "I can repay you all for the pain I have caused."

She then proceeded to turn around and walked toward the Spirits, who were having a heated discussion. Mari said something to them, leaving them completely silenced, before walking to her father and hugging him.

"I'm sorry, Dad," she whispered, "I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise."

Before her father could react, Mari had already let go of him and ran toward one of the tallest altars.

Luke knew what she was about to do, and sprinted after her. "MARI!" he shouted; when he'd finally got close enough to reach her halfway up the stairs, Luke grabbed Mari's wrist.

Mari quickly turned around to see who'd grabbed her; her expression grew furious when she saw Luke standing there, determined to hold on. "Luke, let go!" she shouted frantically. "Let GO!"

"No, Mari," Luke said decisively. "I promised you I wouldn't let you go ever again, remember?

"I'm sorry, Mari. I can't let you do this."

The sadness in Luke's voice broke Mari's heart, but she didn't stop struggling. "Just let me go, Luke," she demanded through gritted teeth.

"If you want me to let you go, then at least tell me what you're going to do!" Luke demanded.

Meanwhile, Antonio had appeared behind Luke. "Mari?" he asked, his voice soft and worried, "what are you doing?"

"Dad," Mari replied, at the verge of tears; tears were stinging behind her eyes. "Let me do this. I have to do this."

"Do what, Mari?" Luke and Antonio said in unison, although they both said it with their own emotions running through their voices.

"I just – figured–" Mari mumbled, unsure of what to say. "That maybe the Master has–" she continued to struggle to find the right words for her insane plan – at least she considered it to be insane. "If... if it's possible for James's soul to absorb light and dark energy, then maybe so can mine."

Luke shook his head in frustration. "Mari, what on Earth are you talking about!?" he yelled.

"He's right, Mari," Antonio said, "you can't... absorb this much energy. Right?" He looked down at the Spirits for their approval.

"Actually, I can't believe I'm saying this, but..." Akilah mumbled, jumping up to land on the steps next to Antonio, "Mari might have a point."

"What!?" Luke exclaimed; even Mari seemed surprise that her own stupid theory might be true.

"Well... Mari was a Lost Soul, and thus she's – perhaps she's got some abilities left – abilities that can exist unnoticed if they're never used. We were never able to prove it, but–" She stopped. "Still, Mari, as much as I admire your courage, we can't let you do this. If anyone's absorbing this curse to stop it, then it's me."

"No," Mari protested. "I won't let you sacrifice yourself. This world needs your leadership, Akilah."

"And your family needs you, Mari," Akilah interjected.

Mari noticed Luke had got distracted enough to let go of her wrist. "I'm sure they'll do fine without me."

A few steps backward up the steps were enough. Mari felt how her body got pulled off the ground, as Luke and her father screamed out her name below her. But she was too far away; if any of the two would get any closer, they'd get pulled up, too. In fact, Antonio had to pull Luke back to prevent him from doing so.

"Mari, please," Luke cried out. "If you do this, you'll die!"  
"I know," Mari shouted to down below; the wind was howling, and she could hardly hear what Luke was saying – but she didn't have to hear him to know. "And... I just want you to know that I'm okay with that."

Luke shook his head vigorously, salty tears were shimmering in his eyes, making them seem even bluer. "I won't let you."  
"You can't stop me," Mari said. "Literally.

"Unless love really does conquer all.

If you finally believe in me, Luke, and only if you truly do, take my hand and try and stop me."

Mari stuck out her hand at the redheaded boy below far below her, beckoning him to take it.

And Luke did. He jumped away from Antonio, the magic instantly getting a hold of him; it pulled him up, toward Mari, allowing him to grab her hand.

"LUKE!" James cried out; Luke looked down at his father and nodded.

"I'm sorry, Dad. But I have to do this. I can't let her get away.

"Not again."

Mari looked at Luke with unbelieving eyes. "You...

"Why?"

She was almost angry with him. Her best friend, the one she'd been so desperate to protect, and now he'd really joined her.

He'd actually done the one thing she'd never expected nor wanted him to do.

"Luke, what are you doing?" Mari said angrily, tears streaming down her face. "Get back down. Now."

"No. I will not leave you again," Luke said decisively. "Mari, when I told you I'd follow you for the rest of my life, I meant it."

Mari hugged Luke tight, knowing that the magic surrounding them was about to make an end to their existence. And they'd be taking all magic with them.

As much as taking in the magic hurt, the thought of losing Luke hurt even more. "You really are an idiot," she said. "You're throwing your life away."

"It's alright, Mari," Luke whispered. Tears were running down his face and his voice started to shake as he continued to reassure his friend, taking her face in his hands. "No matter what happens, I'll be with you. We'll be together.

"I promise."

Mari buried her head in Luke's chest as she muttered, "I wish I'd never left."

Luke smiled. "Don't look back, and never regret, Mari," he said. "Who knows what the future holds for us, after all?"

"Luke..." Mari mumbled. "You're either the bravest boy I've met, or the stupidest."

Luke laughed. "I believe it's safe to say I'm both."

For a moment, Luke and Mari were completely engulfed by the deep purple and black flashes that surrounded them, before the flashes disappeared completely - leaving everything eerily silent. When the sky cleared again, there was no sign of Mari and Luke – just two golden, glowing figures that resembled them, who appeared to be made of dust, absorbing the dark magic around them.

The two figures looked happy, waving at their family and friends, before shooting into the sky and exploding like a golden firework, spreading its light across Lunaria.

The wind stopped howling, and the black, gaping hole in the sky vanished, revealing the deep purple colours of dawn; the Light had been returned to Lunaria once again.

Everyone was crying and devastated, but James and Antonio had truly fallen apart. James had sunk to the floor after watching his son disappear, shaking and sobbing heavily, not even noticing the changes the return of the Light had brought him. Antonio was still sitting on his knees on the steps of the altar, staring at the morning sky, and remained there until Bella and Thomas came to get him.

Both fathers were inconsolable.

"What am I going to tell his mother?" James sobbed, holding his sister tightly. "What am I going to tell his mother, Samira? We don't even have a body – he's – " James couldn't finish his sentence, as he was overtaken by tears once more.

"You can tell her that he's happy, James," Samira whispered. "You saw how happily he waved at you, right?

"He's like you, James. A true hero."

James let out a gasp that almost sounded like a laugh between his sobs. "Yeah," he said. "And I'm proud of him... I just regret never being able to tell him how proud." He paused. "Samira?"

"Yes, James?" Samira replied carefully. James sighed.

"I... I'm sorry for what I did all those years ago. I am sorry for putting you through all that pain."

"It's okay, James," Samira comforted her little brother. No matter how old or how much taller than her he'd get, he'd always be her little brother to her. "It happened a long time ago. You don't have to worry about that anymore."

"I'm sorry," James replied, talking to himself, rather than his sister. "I'm sorry."

Mari's and Luke's friends had found comfort in their parents and their soothing words. But Daisy was the one comforting Antonio, rather than the other way.

The Spirits had retreated to a quieter corner of the chamber to discuss the recent events.

"Did any of you know this was possible?" Ince asked in a hushed tone.

He was asking all four of his siblings at once; three of them instantly turned to Akilah. Unfortunately, she didn't exactly know the answer, either.

"They both had magical abilities, and therefore magical energy," she thought, "so they were both able to absorb the Dark Magic to some extent – whether at will or not."

"Enough to prevent the destruction of our world?" Aharnish said skeptically. "I highly doubt that."

"Maybe it was true love that allowed them to save the world?" Aine said, sounding slightly dreamily. Aoife agreed with her.

"But..." Ince said confusedly, "they never... did anything to prove their true love. Or did they kiss while I wasn't looking?"

All four Spirits laughed; even Aharnish. Ince was the Spirit of Innocence for a reason; he didn't quite understand the full concept of 'love', kind of like a child.

"True love comes in many forms, Inky," Aoife said. "True love doesn't have to be anything romantically."

"That's beautiful," Ince said. "I had no idea it worked that way. But..." he smiled. "Now I do see how that would work."

"I guess we'll never know what exactly allowed them to pull this off," Akilah said, "but what's important, is that they pulled it off. They saved us; all of us. And for that, we should be eternally grateful."

Home

The Guardians took a short moment of peace and quiet to themselves to process the experience, before meeting up in the centre of the Ritual Chamber again. It was time for them to go home.

It was a much sadder moment than everyone had expected it to be, but of course no one had expected to go home with two less people in their party than they'd arrived with – even though Mari technically hadn't arrived with them.

The sky was clear, and the Land of Light already showed signs that it was starting to heal – after all, only six days of Dark Magic-poisoning was nothing compared to a thousand years.

The nine Guardians, adults and teenagers, gathered together near the altars, ready to leave Lunaria. But first, they had to say goodbye to the ones that had guided them through everything.

"So... I guess this is it, then," James said; his eyes were still slightly red and swollen. "Our final goodbye. And... hopefully for good this time."

Akilah and her siblings couldn't help but chuckle. "Don't worry," Akilah said, "we won't need your help any longer. I'm pretty sure that we'll finally be able to rule Lunaria in peace – just as we intended."

"Though we must say we are forever indebted to you all," Aharnish added. "Thank you for saving us, Guardians. Thank you for saving Lunaria.

"If you ever need us, just – give us a call, and we'll come rushing in to help you."

"Oh," Antonio said, "forget it." The tone of his voice was friendly, but his eyes betrayed his grief.

"...What should we do with the book?" Bella asked. "I mean – the last time we hid it didn't exactly end well."

Akilah smiled. "Now that the Master is completely gone and we have officially returned, the magic within the book's pages will run out eventually," she said. "After all, there wasn't supposed to be any magic left for an eleventh Generation – but apparently, the book decided there truly needed to be one... And I guess it was right." She paused to nod at the four teenagers, who did nothing but silently nod back.

"Anyway... I'd keep the book somewhere safe. As long as you don't destroy it, it should be fine. The book has served its purpose, and therefore I highly doubt we'll ever meet again."

"Let's drink to that," Bella said with a smile. The others, even the Spirits and the teenagers, seemed to agree.

"When we get home, I'm going to get myself drunk," Antonio mumbled, hoping his friends wouldn't hear him. And if they did, he hoped that they'd think he was joking.

"Very well, then," Aoife said, "are you ready for your journey back home?"

The Guardians nodded. They were ready to leave everything behind; ready to go back to their usual lives – for as far as they'd be able to call them 'usual' from this point further.

"Very well," Akilah said. "James... I know we'll meet again, but I hope not to see you here for a very long time."

James was slightly caught off-guard, but deep inside, he knew what Akilah meant. Perhaps he'd always known – ever since he'd been resurrected. Akilah hadn't resurrected him just because – she'd resurrected him with a purpose, so James could repay her one day.

"I can hardly wait to fulfil my duty by your side, Akilah," he smiled. "But for now, I think I'll enjoy my time with the family I have left."

"I hope you enjoy every moment of it," Akilah smiled. "Farewell once more, Guardians. Take care.

"...And sleep well."

*

When James opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was his wife. How her dark curls framed her face, her brown eyes filled with surprise. She was sitting on her side of the bed, looking at him; a smile appeared on her face as soon as she noticed James was awake.

"Hello, there," Anna said, her voice shaking. "You're back early."

"Didn't I promise you I would be?" James responded, kissing his wife on the cheek. As happy as he was to see his wife, he couldn't bring himself to telling her what had happened.

Unfortunately for James, though, Anna asked, "Did you all get home safely? How did Luke and his friends find the adventure?"

James swallowed. "Anna, there's something you need to know," he said.

He told her to go downstairs and wait for him – James would wake up his children. They had to know what had happened, too.

James carefully woke up the two seventeen-year-old boys and their twelve-year-old sister, asking them to come follow him downstairs.

And thus there they sat, anxiously waiting for James to break the news. Obviously, Luke's absence hadn't gone by unnoticed; the teenagers asked their parents where he was, and James let out a sigh. He had to confirm his family's fears, although he didn't want to.

"Luke... didn't make it back," he said slowly; his eyes as well as those of his wife and children instantly welled up with tears.

"Oh, my baby boy," Anna gasped. "What happened to him, James?"

"He..." James paused, thinking about what Samira had told him. "He's a hero, Anna. He died saving Lunaria from destruction."

Anna smiled through her tears, but couldn't keep herself from sobbing as she threw herself against her husband's chest. James beckoned for his children to come closer; both parents hugged their children tightly.

"He promised us he'd come back," Ian said through his tears. "This isn't fair! He said he'd come back!"

"I'm sorry, Ian, Theo, Emma, Anna, all four of you, I'm so sorry," James said, noticing he was sobbing, too. "But – if Luke and Mari hadn't sacrificed themselves, none of us would've come back.

"And I think the least we can do, is thank them for saving us. Whether they're hearing it or not."

*

James wasn't the only one who returned home with sad news. Antonio had woken up in his apartment, instantly setting his mind to a mission; he had to go back to his old neighbourhood, to his ex-wife.

She had to know what had happened to Mari. After all, Louise hadn't seen her daughter in four years, either.

Antonio drove back to his old house, the house he'd left three years ago to look for his daughter. Ever since then, he hadn't truly had a real home; he kept moving from place to place in New York and the area surrounding the city, in hopes of finding his daughter.

And he'd finally found her... only to lose her again right away.

An event Antonio would probably regret for the rest of his life. But then again, it had been Mari's own choice. She wanted to be the one to save the world, as if there was a debt she had to replay. Mari had grown up so fast – faster than Antonio ever would've wanted her to.

As Antonio pulled up at the sidewalk of his old house, he hesitated. He wasn't sure whether this war the right time to tell his ex-wife what had happened to their daughter.

But whether it was the right time or not, it was Louise's right to know what had happened. After all, there is never a right time for hearing your child has passed away.

Antonio slowly got out of his car and walked toward the front porch. He rang the doorbell out of respect for his ex-wife, despite having the key in his pocket.

The door opened slowly, and Louise appeared in the opening, her hair tied in a messy bun and her eyes tired. "Oh, it's you," she said, seemingly not too happy to see her husband. "You're back."

"Yeah..." Antonio mumbled. "I... I came by to tell you something.

"I found Mari."

Louise's eyes widened in surprise. "You did?" she said. "Did you run into her after you got back from the other world, or-?"

Antonio shook his head. "No," he said. "I... May I come in?

"You might want to sit down before I tell you about Mari."

Louise let her ex-husband in, and the two of them headed straight for the living room. Antonio wasn't planning on staying long – Louise probably didn't want her to.

"So... what's going on with Mari?" Louise asked. "Anton, please tell me she's alright."

Antonio bit his lip. He felt his throat closing up; if he wouldn't say it now, he wouldn't be able to say it for a long while.

"Mari... was alright, Louise," he said. "She was safe. Until..."

"Until what, Anton?" Louise asked, the worry in her voice resembling more than just an undertone. "What happened?"

"The Master, who once controlled Lunaria, had taken her prisoner for his own purposes," Antonio mumbled. "He wanted her to help him fulfil his plans."

"But she didn't, did she?" Louise asked frantically. "For goodness' sake, Anton, don't pause like that!"

"She didn't, Louise, trust me," Antonio said. "Mari did quite the opposite, actually.

"She saved the world."

Louise didn't seem reassured. "She saved the world?" she repeated her husband's words. "So... does that mean she came back home with you? Where is she, then?"

Antonio swallowed. "Mari... didn't come back home, Louise."

Louise's eyes widened in horror. In her heart, she knew what had happened to her child, but she had to be sure.

"Antonio..." she said quietly, "is Mari... is she...?"

"Gone," Antonio admitted, his throat finally closing up. "She died. Together with Lucas, James's son. They saved the world, but... couldn't save each other."

Louise allowed her breath to escape from her lungs as she buried her head into her hands, her elbows resting on her knees. "No..." she mumbled. "Marilyn... why did she have to be taken from us right after we'd found her again?"

"I'm so sorry, Louise," Antonio said, placing a careful hand on his ex-wife's shoulder; to his surprise, she allowed it. "I did what I could. But Mari wanted it this way. And... Luke followed her, even.

"This is what they wanted. To save the world, to save us."

"But why?" Louise lamented. "Why our little girl?"

She suddenly turned and wrapped her arms around her ex-husband's waist. "Please," she said softly. "I don't... I don't want to fight anymore, Antonio.

"Please, stay. I don't want to lose you too."

Antonio accepted her hug. "I won't leave," he said. "I won't leave you anymore, Louise. I promise.

"I will try my best keep the promise I made to Mari. The promise I failed to keep for her. But this time, for you, I will do everything within my power to keep it."

A year goes by quickly. Quicker than you'd think, even.

Things never went back to what they used to be. Mari and Luke never came back; the void they left was never filled.

And it wasn't just a physical void they'd left. They left a mental one as well.

The sound of Luke's laughter was missed greatly by his siblings. Even his tricks and shenanigans were missed; especially by his parents.

Eventually, the inevitable winter came. Long, dark nights, that seemed to seamlessly blend in with the almost equally dark days.

No snow fell that year. Not even the slightest bit of white flakes came falling from the sky. But, despite the fact that there was no snow, the merciless winter cold remained.

But of course the winter came to an end. Spring began, the days started growing longer and lighter. Flowers and trees began to bloom, and so did eventually the hopes of the former Guardians.

Everything on Earth has a new beginning, so that meant that perhaps they could have one, too.

As a result of that, James and his family left New York for good later that spring. Anna and James felt like that was the first step to a true new beginning.

Sometimes, to move on, you have to leave the sight of old memories behind and create new ones. But the family made sure to never forget Luke.

Luke's family took him with them, wherever they went. He was always in their hearts, no matter what happened.

And although the first year was a difficult one, they got through it, because they had each other to rely on. Family and friendship; the most important elements when it comes to human life.

Even Louise and Antonio found their new beginning. Three years later, they were finally ready to become a married couple once again. In their daughter's memory. They didn't organise a big, fancy wedding, but perhaps that wasn't truly necessary, either.

It is important to keep your loved ones close, because you never know when they'll leave you. People can leave you in many ways, after all.

But then again, if you love someone, you've got to learn to let them go. It isn't healthy for one to stay fixated on each other forever. But just because you let someone go, it doesn't mean you never have to speak to that someone ever again.

Actions speak louder than words, but words are the ones that hurt the most in the long run. But perhaps sometimes, saying nothing at all hurts more than saying the wrong thing. Speech is silver, but silence is golden, they say.

Well... sometimes, you'll just have to settle for silver. And that's because it's the right thing to do.

Be careful with what you say and do to the ones you love. Cherish the time you have. Don't take it for granted.

And, if you ultimately do decide to split ways, or are forced to do so, make sure that you always keep each other in mind. You'll never know when you might meet again.

And you'll never know what will happen once you do.

***
~ TABLE OF CONTENTS ~

I: The Release

II: The Game

III: The Saviour

