Princess Briana Gem Sentry (mentioned), Jake Sentry (mentioned) belongs to Sci-Briana17

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"The heart of purity — it's missing!"

As soon as Jesse heard the heart of purity was missing, his hands began to tremble from the sudden impact. His breathing grew shallow and the pressure grew smaller, almost suffocating him.

"Jesse?" he heard a voice call out, almost distant. He tried to connect the voice, but his mind became foggy. "Hey, look at me," the voice urgently stated as he felt the stern yet gentle grip on his shoulders, Jesse looked up to see Aliya with her (now) damp hair and wet clothes.

"You are going to be okay. We are going to find the heart of purity and last two relics as planned. As long as the dagger of Atlas is safe and still in our possession by the time we get these last two items, then you will have nothing to fear," Aliya softly assured him, giving Jesse a warm and affectionate smile.

As Jesse stared into Aliya's light brown eyes, he could see the compassion and loving spirit in her eyes. Perhaps, he kept staring longer than necessary, but Jesse sworn he saw literal sparkles in her eyes. It was incredible how beautiful she looked, but more so, how she managed to retain her kindness in spite of everything.

Jesse knew he loved Aliya.

In his heart, it was true but Jesse had wanted to tell her and express his excitement for his best friend when she reveals she too felt the same way. Once his wish came true, he and Aliya would live in the human realm, establishing their Human Appreciation Club and experience happiness on their own terms.

It would be magical.

"Jesse, you're staring again," Aliya gently pointed out, but Jesse merely grinned. "Now, you are blushing..." she mumbled, but there was almost a subtle hint of sadness in her voice that he dropped his grin. If she had tried to mask her tone with a bright, cheery smile, then Jesse could see right through it because from the corner of his eye, he saw the subtle frown.

Jesse suddenly felt a terrible pit in his stomach and the agonizing thought that maybe he might have jumped to conclusions with Aliya, but that was stupid. Why wouldn't Aliya love him? Here, he was the bumbling, adorable dork she cherished! Plus without the burden of being perfect or dealing with the expectations his parents and Avalon set on him, he was basically his old self again!

So... Why did Jesse get the sense that... No.

The thought of Aliya not being in love with him nearly made him laugh, if he could. Jesse thought there was something else that was bothering her, so he dismissed his initial theory altogether. Then again... Jesse's eyes widened as he realized Aliya never finished her response after their boat got tipped over.

Was it possible that this was her indirect way of saying... No! Jesse was just clearly over analyzing things and this one was just another way to distract himself from the urgency of his mission to become human. He was just being foolish. Aliya would feel the same way; it would be pointless if she didn't.

After all, she had blush in his direction earlier today and they had almost kissed back at the festival honoring the memory of the lost princess. If Jax and Lillian hadn't found them or if they had never intervened, Jesse was certain he and Aliya would have kissed right then and there.

Yeah, he was just being foolish, that's all.

~~~~~~

"Okay, Jax, what happened?" Aliya softly asked as Jaxon paced back and forth. "I don't know! After I left you and Jesse alone, I came back here and I got attacked!" Jaxon began, briefly pausing. "You were attacked?" Aliya briefly repeated, eyeing Jaxon closer as they brush the small bang to the side.

"Yes," Jaxon stubbornly stated as Aliya lightly hummed. "It's just for someone who just got attacked, you don't have any bruises," she later pointed out, gesturing to Jaxon not having any physical indicators that would led her or the group to believe they were truly attacked. "But anyways, what happened next?" she followed up.

"Once Libby came back, the heart of purity was gone!" Jaxon finished before breaking down. "I tried to stop the attacker, but I wasn't a match for them," they continued, in between sobs as Lillian comfort her sibling. "Jax, it's okay," she assured them before looking at Aliya and Jesse.

"Do you have any idea what the attacker might have looked like? Or what the attacker was wearing?" Aliya followed up as Jaxon shook their head before going back to be comforted by their sister.

"Um, Lily, can I speak to you for a second? Preferably alone?" she gently requested as Lillian nodded, reassuring her sibling that she would be back as Jesse went to comfort Jaxon. Once Aliya and Lillian reached a reasonable distance between their friends, the two stopped.

"Aliya, what is all this about?" Lillian briefly asked as Aliya heavily sighed. "I don't buy Jax's story. I think they might be lying," she slowly said, hesitating with each word. "Li, let's not jump to conclusions now. Jax is a victim," Lillian defensively argued as Aliya bit her tongue.

"A victim without some kind of physical injury that would indicate an attack or at least some kind of ambush," Aliya pointed out, trying to keep her tone leveled. "Are you trying to say..." Lillian began, only to trail off as Aliya shook her head. "I'm didn't say anything," Aliya quickly stated, sighing as she rubbed her arm.

"Look, it's just the only person who tracked us was the assassin and you pretty much took care of that issue. Even then, the assassin was sent primarily to kill Jesse, not having an idea about the relics," Aliya briefly began. "What about Soren?" Lillian pointed out as Aliya shook her head.

"If Soren wanted to track us by now, he would have already done so and it would be for the dagger of Atlas, not the heart of purity," Aliya gently explained. "Don't you find it a little bit weird how our second relic goes missing now when we're close to finishing the quest?" she continued as Lillian slowly nodded.

"I admit, it is a little bit weird, but come on. I doubt they could be the one behind the missing relic. This is Jax we are talking here, Li," Lillian firmly stated before sighing heavily. "Still... When you were talking about Narcissa and Erebus referring to their pawns as champions, I saw Jax's eyes get wider as if they were in for a shock," she added as Aliya's eyes widened from her response.

"If that is the case and what you are saying is true, then what would happen if Narcissa wanted to stop Jesse from collecting the rest of the relics?"

"What?" Lillian curiously asked as Aliya blinked. "Jax's question. I didn't think about it at first, but it seems almost too relevant to our situation now," she mumbled as Lillian blinked. "Think about how Jax asked about Narcissa wanting to stop from collecting the rest of the relics and only now, one of the relics go missing," Aliya explained as Lillian's eyes widened.

"You are not—"

"Just hear me out."

"But it wouldn't make sense! Just because you and Jesse are pawns in Narcissa and Erebus's game doesn't mean Jax and I are pawns in their game too!" Lillian sharply exclaimed, careful not to raise her voice.

"I know but—"

"Aliya, do you even hear yourself? Jax is one of the smartest people I've ever known!" Lillian defensively argued. "They wouldn't do anything to jeopardize Jesse's chances of getting his wish! More so, Jax won't even let me turn Jesse in to Narcissa myself!" she added as Aliya deeply sighed.

"I know but—"

"Accusing my sibling is one thing, but this? You making this bold claim that Jaxon is a pawn is something else! Jax would never do anything to hurt Jesse!" Lillian protested as she eyed Aliya darkly.

"If you would just hear me—"

"Jax wouldn't work for Narcissa and they definitely wouldn't work for Erebus!" Lillian persisted as she eyed Aliya closer. "Unlike someone," she sharply added but quickly regretted her words once she saw Aliya's sullen eyes, more so when she saw her sister flinch.

"Aliya—" Lillian started, preparing to apologize to her sister when she released a harsh, forced laugh. "I didn't volunteer myself to be his pawn, you know. I didn't ask for him to pull my strings and use me as a vessel, but sure," Aliya bitterly stated as Lillian's face fell.

"We can say it was my choice."

"Aliya—"

"I deserve what's coming to me anyways," Aliya mumbled with a solemn chuckle of her own. "Maybe being a vessel for a god will be better than being a screw-up and a mistake back home," she continued as Lillian's frown deepened. "Aliya—" Lillian began once more, but Aliya had moved on past the topic.

"Anyways, Jax isn't working for Erebus. If they were, I would have known from their eyes or their actions if they were to resemble mine since I work for him and all that," Aliya explained, but while her tone was neutral, there was a underlying sense of rage she forcibly swallowed.

"Look, I know Jaxon is smart but they let their emotions get the best of them. I'm not saying Jax is a pawn for Narcissa now but if they were, then there's a possibility of Jax being responsible for the heart missing, especially if she had promised them something in return for performing the deed," Aliya solemnly explained as Lillian heavily sighed.

"I want you to be wrong so, so badly, but if you're right... then, we need to stop Jax from sabotaging the quest," Lillian stated, but Aliya shook her head. "If I'm right about this, then we can't go confront Jax directly. It will add too much suspicion and hinder our progress further," Aliya softly explained as Lillian nodded.

"So, what do we do then?" Lillian curiously asked as Aliya glanced in her direction. "We track down the heart of purity and stick with the plan of finding the last two relics. But we definitely need to keep an eye on the dagger of Atlas in case..." she hesitated, eyeing Lillian cautiously.

"Jax is the one responsible for the missing relic," Lillian finished with a sigh of her own as Aliya reluctantly nodded. "Once we find the heart of purity, I'm going to see if I can expel Erebus from Castor's necklace," Lillian proudly explained as Aliya shook her head with a laugh.

"I'm serious! If the heart of purity was able to get rid of Cain, then it should work on expelling Erebus from the necklace and you'll be free," Lillian reasonably explained, frowning when Aliya gave her a small smile.

"That's sweet, but I'm not changing my mind. Trust me, it's for the best," Aliya stated, much to Lillian's disappointment. "But you don't deserve to be his vessel and it was wrong of me to assume you were working for Erebus willingly," Lillian truthfully stated, yet Aliya merely shook her head, still maintaining her small smile.

"Thanks, but don't apologize," Aliya simply said, brushing past her sister's apology. "You should get back to the others before Jax gets suspicious," she added as Lillian frowned. "I'll catch up," Aliya further stated, hoping that would be enough to get her sister to leave.

"Okay, but I hope you know we will all deal with Erebus together. We have your back, Aliya, just like you always had ours," Lillian softly assured her, hugging Aliya, who had returned the gesture. Once she left, Aliya dropped the smile and sunk to the ground, burying her face deep into her knees.

~~~~~

"You're nothing more than replaceable."

"Stupid eels. When I find them, I'll—" Aliya began before pausing as she thought back to the boat ride. The eels had tipped the boat prior to Jesse trying to kiss her and when she was in the midst of telling Jesse her response. Only then, did the eels go directly for her once she got Jesse back to solid ground.

Those eels must have belonged to Narcissa, that much she clearly knew. But if that was the case, then how did the eels (or to some extent, the sea witch) know where she and Jesse were? How did the eels know to strike and why did they target her specifically when Aliya didn't make a deal with the sea witch?

"There's a traitor within your ranks, my Champion," Erebus chimed in as Aliya quickly stood up. "After tomorrow, your traitor will suffer the consequences of their actions and that's just the start. Soon, everyone will pay," Erebus continued, glancing over to see his pawn walk away from him.

"Where do you think you're going?" Erebus promptly asked, snapping his fingers as Aliya appeared to the god, now in chains as she darkly glared in his direction. "What more could you possibly want from me?" She bitterly countered back, trying to take off the chains.

"To end this foolish plan of yours. If you decide to follow through, I'll ensure your so-called friends pay the price," Erebus stated with a ominous tone while Aliya simply rolled her eyes. "What do you plan on doing? You're pretty useless without a vessel," Aliya pointed out, before watching as the god's grin grew wider.

"My dear, a vessel lets me roam this mortal plane with ease, but behind the shadows, I can possess as many people as I please. I can take a look at one person and make them relive their worst memories. I can bring nightmares to life. I am the god of darkness and trust me, I am far from useless," Erebus sharply stated as he held Aliya in place.

"So stick with our plan and everything will go smoothly. Disobey me and I'll make the rest of your years a living hell for eternity," Erebus coldly foretold her before dropping Aliya onto the ground.

"Don't disappoint me."

~~~~~~~~~~~

"I can't believe it! We've been searching for two hours straight and I still haven't sensed the heart of purity's energy!" Lillian cried out in frustration, attempting to punch the nearest wall when Aliya held her arm. "Just try to relax," Aliya assured her as Lillian nodded, taking a deep breath.

"What if you were wrong about me having a connection to the heart of purity?" Lillian asked, her voice breaking as she sunk to her knees. "Let's just face it. Not only was I the wrong person to assist you, I'm just a failure overall," she mumbled as Aliya sat next to her.

"Lily, listen to me. You are not a failure," Aliya fiercely told her as Lillian sniffled. "You were able to use the heart once when I was in danger. If anything, that should tell you that you are pure of heart," she continued as Lillian slowly nodded.

"Why don't you try searching for the heart of purity within your mind?" she followed up as Lillian sighed deeply. "We tried that already," Lillian solemnly countered back as Aliya nodded. "I know, but why don't you try again? This time, using the same emotions you had to activate the heart's power," Aliya softly requested as Lillian sniffled once more.

"But what if it doesn't work?" Lillian questioned as Aliya held her hand. "It will work because you are Lillian Kiernan, mistress of shadows. You took down Cain, an assassin and saved us more than once. If anyone can track our missing relic, it's you," Aliya passionately assured her as Lillian took a deep breath and nodded, now standing up as she pulled her sister with her.

"Okay, you're right. I got this," Lillian confidently stated, noting Aliya's tender grin. In response, she pulled her sister into a tight hug. "Thank you for believing in me," she softly whispered, before pulling away to give each other space. "Alright, here goes nothing!" she continued, closing her eyes.

"What do you see?"

"Nothing so far," Lillian answered, surveying her mind.

As she peered through the depths of emptiness, the shadow-manipulating Avalonian took a deep breath, willing herself to bring up the same emotions she initially used to activate the heart's power. She thought by using her fear of losing her sister, she might have been able to use that fear to guide her towards the heart. When nothing came, Lillian groaned before shaking her head.

"Well, I guess if you expect disappointment, then you can never really be disappointed," the mistress of shadows told herself, laughing as if she really thought she could track down the heart of purity. She would have pulled herself out of her mind had Lillian not seen a glow in the distance.

"Well, this is new," Lillian stated, following the glow, where she found herself back at the campsite. Then she opened her eyes, scanning her surroundings before finding Aliya.

"Li! I found the heart of purity just like you said I would!" Lillian proudly exclaimed, grinning from side-to-side before recalling the location. "But, it was showing the heart to be back at the campsite," she finished, her grin slightly fading. "The campsite? Why would the heart of purity be back at the campsite if that's the place where the relic went missing?" Aliya curiously asked as Lillian shook her head.

"I don't know, but that's where the heart is, so let's go!"

~~~~~~~~

Mind Sequence
"Lily?" Aliya called out, wondering what could have possibly led her to get trapped in her own mind again. "Jax?" she called out, wandering around her mind until she heard a distinct voice. As she followed the sound of two men talking, she saw one of the two being familiar.

"Did you bring the boy like I requested?" the first male asked in his stern tone as her eyes widened at the sight of the male's scar on his throat. As she stared at the older pale-skinned male's black purplish regal attire, his white shirt, blacken dress pants and matching shoes, she realized why he was familiar to her.

"Yes, Soren," the second male solemnly answered, pointing towards the unconscious boy as she noticed the male's younger look. It wasn't until she saw his pink hair that she gasped.

"Jesse!"

"Good," Soren stated, grabbing Jesse. "I don't see why we have to use him, the boy, I mean. He's just a kid," the male insisted as Soren laughed.

"This boy is a lot older than you think, trust me. He's an Avalonian," Soren explained, while the male stared at him in confusion. "Come on, Axel. You were a detective once. Didn't you deal with cases in the supernatural field?" he continued as the male (now named Axel) adjusted his light beige jacket.

"I did, but this—" Axel began, only to get cut off. "Then, pretend this is a case and start poking the boy with needles until you find his point. If the legends are true, then his Avalonian blood should be enough to power my staff and keep my youthful looks," Soren insisted as Axel shook his head.

"I'm not going to hurt an innocent kid, Avalonian or not, this is wrong and you know it," Axel firmly stated as Soren rolled his eyes and laughed. "My staff needs power and I need to maintain my body. So, wrong or not, I'm going to benefit from the boy dying. Though, it's hilarious to know you have a conscious," Soren firmly stated as Axel glared at him.

"The girl who was here with you... I sensed she had demon magic. Perhaps since you failed to bring up Princess Briana or even tell us where her parents were hiding her, you can do an alternative and who knows? You might just be able to go home to your son and wife again," Soren began as Axel crossed his arms.

"Leave Zane and Serenity out of this. This is a matter between you, me and that stupid deal I made," Axel firmly stated as Soren chuckled. "Gladly, if you are willing to tell me about that young detective of yours," Soren began as Axel blinked, confused before his eyes widened. "Young detective? Wait, you mean—" he started, only to get cut off.

"Just tell me the location of your young sidekick and I'll send someone to go fetch her. If I'm correct and she has demon magic, then I think the girl's magic would serve as a good substitute to replenish Jake's strength until his cousin can properly be found," Soren continued as Axel blinked.

"First of all, Xitlali is not my sidekick. She was my partner and I'm not giving up her location just so Jake can use her in the same way, he would have used Briana," Axel protectively stated as Soren internally gagged. "Your sentimental statement is enough to kill me," Soren sarcastically deadpan, before shaking his head.

"Just work on the boy and keep an eye out for anyone looking for him," Soren stated as Axel blinked. "I anticipated we'll get a few others like his kind, which by then, my scepter will be fully recharged and I can get my revenge on the girl who gave me this mark," he later explained, pointing to the healing slash on his throat. "Now get a move on!" Soren ordered before leaving.

"Aliya!"

~~~~~~~~

"S... Soren has Jesse and he is expecting us to show," Aliya said in between her breaths as she tried to slow down her elevated heart rate. "Wait, what? What do you mean he's expecting us to show?" Lillian asked at once.

"Because he has Erebus's scepter and gemstone, only he combined them to create his staff. That night, Soren had three relics on him but since we were so focused on the retrieving the dagger of Atlas from him, we all missed the opportunity to get his staff," Aliya explained as she found herself laughing.

"If we had his staff before the heart of purity went missing, then we would have been done," she continued as Lillian aggressively began breathing in and out. "This whole time... you mean to tell me, this quest could have ended by now! Aliya!" Lillian angrily exclaimed, which only led Aliya into fits of laughter.

"Aliya, how long have you known?" Jaxon slowly asked, trying to keep their calm but it became hard when they saw the girl had no intention on taking them seriously. "A slip of the tongue, I suppose," Aliya managed to say, in between her laughs as Jaxon noticed the gemstone starting to turn black.

Glancing up at the sky, Jaxon saw the sun was slowly falling from its highest peak. "You don't really expect to win, do you?" Aliya mockingly asked the two, a gleam of mischief in her eyes, which were beginning to turn black. "She said by the end of the day, Erebus would have complete control over her," Lillian quietly recalled, eyeing her sister with despair.

"The sun isn't down. We still have time," Jaxon assured Lillian before holding the girl, who continuously kept laughing. "Aliya! Snap out of it!" Jaxon exclaimed, slapping the girl in a brief moment of panic.

"Ow!" she cried out, glaring at Jaxon, who saw the gemstone briefly suspending its gradual form to black. "Jax, you did it! She's back!" Lillian happily cried out as Jaxon solemnly sighed. "For now, at least," they quietly stated.

"I would ask what the slap was for, but your faces tell me I ended up creeping you two out again," Aliya said before staring at the gemstone, which was slowly rising to become completely consumed by Erebus's power and back at the sky.

"It's only a matter of time until our plan goes into motion, my champion. Then I'll help ensure you will get the respect you always wanted," Erebus whispered in her ear as Aliya tried taking the necklace off before panicking as it became fixated on her neck.

"In case you thought about backing out, I enhanced the necklace, so you can't take it off," he explained, much to her disappointment. "Remember what I said and don't disappoint," Erebus continued before vanishing as Aliya tried to maintain her balance, only to stumble as Jaxon and Lillian caught her.

As the two siblings help Aliya stand, Lillian began trying to take the necklace off, but she was stopped. "Just stop. There's no point. Erebus has the necklace fixated on me since he didn't want me to back out, making your efforts pointless," Aliya explained with a sigh.

"But, we have to find a way to get the necklace off before the sun sets though!" Lillian protested as Aliya shook her head. "There's no more time and besides, I'm a lost cause by this time. Getting Jesse and Soren's staff is more important than messing with an enhanced amulet," Aliya firmly stated.

"Aliya, you can't actually be serious here!" Lillian angrily protested once more. "But, I am. I really wish things worked out in your favor, but... life is cruel, I guess," Aliya softly said, almost in a somewhat apologetic tone.

"Come on, we don't have much time to spare."

~~~~~~~~~~

Through retracing their steps, the trio were able to arrive at the front of the entrance where the trio once observed the death of a 'Foot Clan' soldier at the hands of Soren, who was now their primary target.

"Pain."

"What?"

"Pain," Aliya repeated once more. "Erebus is sensitive to pain, especially once he takes over my body, he will become vulnerable to exposure of feeling pain on a higher level than beforehand," Aliya explained, rubbing her hand.

"If push comes to shove, use the dagger of Atlas against him. That's what I used to stop the link between us, but it was only temporary when I did it, so Jax, I need you to create a deep cut to severely put him in a weak state. This way, he won't be able to rely on his powers so much," she continued as Jaxon initially hesitated before nodding in the end.

"Lily, once Erebus is weak, use the heart of purity to expel him from Castor's necklace. If you're right, then the excessive amount of light energy will be enough to reduce him back to his shadow-like form," Aliya added before smiling. "Can you do that?" she asked as Lillian tearfully smiled, pulling her sister into a hug.

"I knew you would change your mind!" Lillian happily exclaimed, pulling away as she wiped her tears. "Yeah, I never lost faith for a second," Jaxon softly added, hugging Aliya before pulling away. "Naturally," Aliya softly said with a laugh as she smiled warmly in their direction.

"Now, let's go get Jesse, get back our relics and show Erebus that he messed with the wrong group of Avalonians!" Lillian determinedly exclaimed as the trio fist-bump each other.

"Yeah!"

~~~~~~~~~

"Jax, there's something we need to discuss," Lillian began as she and Jaxon slip through the front entrance, only for their arrival to trigger the alert of Foot Clan soldiers. "Not sure if this is a good time, but sure," Jaxon casually said, the two standing back-to-back as Soren arrived with a triumphant smile.

"See? What did I tell you, Axel? Right on time, I told you!" Soren proudly bragged as the two siblings noted Axel's light beige jacket and jeans had several tears, while his hair seemed to be graying, if only slightly.

"Axel, you know the drill. If you need me, I'll get my revenge on the girl. Have fun!" Soren shouted as the siblings eyed each other. "He's going after Aliya. We need to go help her," Lillian quietly protested as Jaxon shook their head.

"No, you heard what she said. She specifically told us to get Jesse. If we work together, we can speed up the process and go help her. Deal?" Jaxon countered back as Lillian reluctantly agreed to their plan.

"Foot Clan soldiers, attack!" Axel cried out as the two siblings stood side by side. "Now, what did you want to talk about?" Jaxon curiously asked as Lillian stared at her sibling, long and hard before sighing.

"Jax... Are you a pawn for Narcissa?" Lillian slowly asked, hesitating with each word she spoke as Jaxon quietly eyed her, their smile slightly dropping. "The sea witch? Don't be ridiculous!" Jaxon answered with a scoff, the two using their powers to go through the sea of soldiers coming in their direction.

"Now don't tell me Aliya put you up to this," they continued as Lillian shook her head, deciding it would be best to keep her sister's name out of this one. "No, she didn't, but I came up with the idea on my own," Lillian countered back, creating a portal underneath the soldiers, but for each wave the two dealt with, another wave would come.

"Why would you think I work with the sea witch? Do you not trust me?" Jaxon curiously asked. "No. I do trust you, it's just... I thought if you became excessively jealous about Jesse choosing our sister over you, then you might put yourself in a position where you got Jesse at the cost of losing Aliya," Lillian slowly explained, initially hesitant to tell them her thought process.

"You see, you will be second place when it comes to winning his heart," Narcissa told them as Jaxon released a scream before clenching their fist, tears streaming down their face. "No, no, no," they mumbled, falling to their knees as Jaxon tried to tell themself it was fine if Jesse loved Aliya and vice versa.

But how many times were they going to stand by the side while their feelings went unnoticed? How many times must Jaxon see the look of adoration Jesse gave Aliya while they would forever be in the friend zone? Why couldn't Jesse see that they were the one for him? Not Aliya!

"Make her pay," Jaxon angrily stated, clenching their fist tighter as they were focus on seeing Jesse and Aliya together, unaware of Narcissa's smirk. "Bring me the heart of purity and I'll deliver on your request. For now, I can give you a taste of what you can expect from me," Narcissa stated as Jaxon absentmindedly nodded.

"Fine! Just do something!" they exclaimed. "Pacify her! Drown her! I don't care! Just make her suffer!" Jaxon angrily snapped, each word coming out of their mouth in a venomous, rapid fire. "Of course, my champion," Narcissa politely stated, snapping her fingers as her two eels raised from the water.

"You heard our champion. Go tip their boat and whatever you do, don't let Aliya get to land. Drown her lightly and after Jax does good on their promise, then we can drown her more intensely on the second round," Narcissa ordered before snapping her fingers as her eels dived back into the water.

"You have my word, champion."

"It was a silly assumption. I'm sorry, I guess I was nervous and jumped to conclusions," Lillian stated, drawing them back into reality as they tried to push back the acid taste in their mouth. They wanted to laugh her response off, except she was right. Jaxon had allowed their jealousy get the best of them and now, they were making irrational decisions left-to-right.

Jaxon had called Aliya their sister and they nearly let her drown until Jesse jumped back into the water to save her. They didn't want to feel this guilt, especially not now but knowing Lillian was right to suspect them greatly pained them. So when they saw a Foot Clan soldier coming behind their sister, Jaxon found this as the perfect excuse — at least... until they could figure out a response.

"Look out!" Jaxon sharply exclaimed, preparing to push their sister out of the way when the two siblings heard the sound of a gunshot bullet. Moments later, the soldier fell to their knees, a blood of pool slowly forming. "I'll buy you some time. Go get your friend. He's in the top floor," Axel stated as he began reloading his gun.

"Uh, thanks," the two siblings stated, not entirely trusting Axel, but nonetheless they chose to follow up on his request. "Let's go," Jaxon whispered to their sister, heading upstairs where the two siblings found Jesse in the top floor as Axel correctly told them.

"Jesse!" Jaxon happily exclaimed, hugging him as Jesse weakly smiled, though his arms were in terrible pain. "Uh, Jax, we got to go. Carry him if you must, but we got to make up for lost time," Lillian firmly stated as Jaxon nodded, choosing to carry Jesse as the trio made their way out of the back entrance.

The trio only made it a few steps out the door when they saw Aliya pinning Soren with his staff in her hand, the purple gemstone glowing vibrantly in her possession. "Aliya, please stop! This isn't you! This is just Erebus trying to control you!" Jaxon and Lillian pleaded, before a deep, shallow laugh escaped from her mouth.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Glancing up to the sky, the two siblings and Jesse saw the full moon at its highest peak before staring back at the girl in front of them. In that moment, the trio each knew they were too late.

"Close, but you see. I am in control now," a deep, hollow male voice belonging to Erebus spoke as Aliya — No, Erebus — turned around to slam the staff into Soren's forehead, watching as the human mage fell to the ground.

"For all that talk of revenge, you sure were quite the disappointment. What a shame. Well, you're just as pathetic as the rest of them," Erebus spoke with a scoff, harshly kicking the human mage to the side before eyeing his champion's friends, who stood closely to each other.

Occupying her body, Erebus held his staff in hand as he smirked. "Now, where were we?" he casually inquired, surveying the trio. "Give us back our sister and our friend!" Jaxon and Lillian exclaimed as Erebus laughed, a cruel grin forming on his champion's mouth.

"She's a sister and a friend when you need her, but when she's no longer of use, what is my champion to you, then?" Erebus sharply counter back, stepping on Soren's unconscious body before teleporting himself to put himself directly in front of the trio.

"She's still a sister and a friend," Jaxon firmly stated, only to get slammed onto the ground by Erebus. "Jax!" Lillian exclaimed as Jesse quietly gasped, wishing he could call out their name. "You know that's bold coming from you, traitor," Erebus whispered, shoving his staff deeper into their skull.

"Jaxon!" Lillian exclaimed, now running towards them, but Erebus was faster. With a swish of his staff, he was able to create a impactful force as Lillian and Jesse flew across the wall before eventually falling onto the ground, where the two struggled to stand up.

"Libby! Jesse!"

Growling, Jaxon took the dagger of Atlas and slash the ankle of Erebus's left leg before they proceeded to knock the staff out of his possession. "No one messes with Libby and Jesse. Now, get out of my sister's body and face us in your true form, you insufferable god," Jaxon firmly stated, holding the dagger in their hand as the relic transformed into a sword.

After the dagger's transformation, Jaxon quickly felt the burning sensation, which came so rapidly, they were forced to drop the dagger. As they released a quiet gasp, Erebus viewed this as a perfect opportunity to mock them.

"Ha! Pathetic. My champion could last longer than you," Erebus proudly boast, swinging the staff towards Jaxon's face as the dagger of Atlas fell out of their hands, the sword reverting back to its initial state. As Jaxon coughed up blood, they glanced at their hands, which were now gaining small blisters.

Jaxon only managed to briefly get themself back up when Aliya — No, Erebus — held them firmly by the throat as Jaxon struggled to breathe. The dagger of Atlas was just out of reach, if they could just reach it....

"A... Aliya, please! Fight back! You can beat him! Don't like him use you!" Jaxon called out to the best of their ability as Erebus laughed, a sparkle of mischief in his — her — black, crystallizing eyes.

As Jaxon stared at the gemstone which was now fully black, they almost lost hope until they could see the Avalonian gem changing slightly, as if trying to return to its original state. In seeing the gem trying to change, they view this moment as a sign Aliya was in there, trying to fight back against Erebus.

"You fool! Don't you get it? Aliya is mine to control now!" Erebus angrily exclaimed as Jaxon blinked before spotting Lillian preparing to teleport her and Jesse to their side. As they stared back into Erebus's cold eyes, they spotted a glimmer of the soft light brown eyes Jaxon was so used to seeing in Aliya.

She was listening to them. Aliya was fighting back, even when Erebus insisted he had full control over her. It was a gimmick and Jaxon knew she just needed help from the outside to break through.

"You controlling her? Yeah, sure. She's just letting you think so," Jaxon smugly stated, keeping their composure when Erebus laughed in their face. "Nonsense! I control her body and her mind!" Erebus angrily countered back as Jaxon used their energy to shake their head and let out a small chuckle.

"Well, that is true. You control everything, except the root of the core of Aliya, which makes her so unique," Jaxon continued as Erebus scoffed. "Which is?" the god bluntly asked as Jaxon saw Lillian and Jesse entering through one of their sister's portals.

"Easy. You don't control her heart," Jaxon sharply finished. "Also, if I were you, I would look behind you," they added, timing their statement just a black portal appeared from behind the two.

"Hey, Erebus! You chose to wrong girl to pick as your champion!" Lillian angrily cried, punching him — she made a mental note to apologize to Aliya regarding her face — in mid-air as Erebus fell, while Lillian gracefully landed on the ground as Jesse tragically face-plant onto the ground.

"Jax! Are you alright?" Lillian concernedly asked them, helping her sibling stand while Jaxon rubbed their neck. "I won't be alright until we get Erebus out of Castor's necklace and free Aliya," Jaxon firmly stated just as Jesse stood up and presented them with the dagger of Atlas.

"Your hands," Lillian quickly noted as Jaxon brushed aside their sister's concerns. "It's fine," Jaxon gently assured her. "You remember the plan?" they added as Lillian swiftly nodded, just as Erebus stood up, eyeing the trio with great disdain for them. "Good. In that case, let's finish this and go get our Aliya back," Jaxon fiercely stated as the trio fist-bump each other once more.

"Yeah!"

~~~~~~~~~

Mind Sequence
"Your friends, they are rather persistent," Erebus began, crossing his arms as the god witnessed his champion failing to break out of his chains he created for her. When she had noticed his presence, Aliya dropped the chain before sighing. "Were you expecting all of them to react differently?" Aliya plainly countered as Erebus shrugged.

"I was expecting them to be dead," Erebus sharply stated as Aliya crossed her legs in a butterfly position. "I don't see how that's my fault when you clearly wanted me to get Soren's staff," Aliya stated with a shrug. "Anyways, this should be a good thing. Now, I get to see you lose against three Avalonians. Wouldn't that be a sight?" she continued, laughing as Erebus glared at her.

"What? You got what you wanted, so why the look? You didn't specifically state I had to root for you, so I'm rooting for my friends to beat you," Aliya smugly clarified as Erebus shook his head. "Unbelievable," Erebus mumbled as his champion promptly laughed.

"You're telling me!" she exclaimed at once. "This is my mind, yet ever since you took over, I've been held a hostage in my mind and I'm in chains. I knew you didn't want me to escape, but iron chains? Really? What are you expecting me to do? It's not like I have powers to escape, so I should at least been given the decency of having anti-iron chains. I'm just saying," Aliya continued as Erebus stared at the sight of her friends banding together.

"It's time to finish this," Erebus told himself. "Once I take care of your friends, there will be no one else to stop me," Erebus insisted as Aliya mocked him with a laugh. "Good luck with that. My friends are going to beat you and you'll lose," Aliya smugly stated as Erebus's cold, black eyes immensely darkened in her presence.

"Silence!" the Avalonian god exclaimed, summoning a shadow rope onto Aliya's mouth, who huffed underneath her breath. As she muffled through the rope, Erebus took a deep breath to compose himself.

"It took this long, but I will emerge victorious," Erebus confidently told himself, before approaching the girl as he held her chin, while Aliya eyed him. "As for those friends of yours, there will be nothing left for anyone to even remember them," Erebus boldly concluded, waltzing as he left his champion to her own devices.

~~~~~~~~~

"Back for more, Erebus?" Jaxon openly taunted as Erebus simply laughed. "I was just about to ask you the same thing," Erebus stated with the same mocking tone his opponent used on him. From there, the two excessively fought each other with Jaxon finally catching their lucky break when they had Erebus pinned.

"What are you going to do? Kill me?" Erebus lightly mocked as Jaxon glared in his direction. "Maybe," they stated as Erebus coldly laughed. "Gods can't die, so we can only regenerate once we are severely injured," Erebus explained, purposely mocking the latter, who stared at him.

"I can still make the regeneration process a living nightmare for you, at least," Jaxon firmly stated with a hollow chuckle of their own. "Go ahead. Finish the job and make yourself a hero," Erebus smugly stated, grinning manically as his eyes became focused on Jaxon.

As they raised the dagger of Atlas, the dagger transformed into a sword once more but before they could deliver the final blow, Jaxon felt Jesse tug against their arm. "Stay out of this, Jesse!" Jaxon exclaimed, harshly pushing Jesse onto the ground just as Lillian's eyes widened.

"Jax! What are you doing!" Lillian loudly exclaimed, looking at her sibling with fear as Jaxon processed their sister's look and back at Jesse, who also gave them the same look of terror. "You... You...." Jaxon mumbled, dropping the dagger of Atlas before looking back at Erebus, who kept staring at them with a cunning grin.

"You knew," Jaxon quietly whispered as Erebus's grin grew wider. "It's a shame you didn't go through," Erebus lightly mocked as Jaxon's eyes widened. "You knew I was afraid of hurting my sister and you almost made me stab you on purpose, so the wound would impact her!" Jaxon cried out in a panicked state, but Jesse was there to comfort them.

"You are so... ugh!" Jaxon loudly exclaimed before grunting in frustration. While Lillian hugged her sibling, Erebus stared at the dagger and grinned.

Quietly picking up the dagger of Atlas, Erebus proceeded to make his move, except he forgot to factor in Jesse, who had grabbed the god from behind, causing him to drop the relic. Due to the impact, Jaxon and Lillian glanced over to see Jesse holding Erebus in place.

"Now is our chance," Jaxon stated as Lillian nodded. "Yes, but the heart is—" she began, only for Jaxon to reveal the heart of purity in their possession. "Here," they briefly said, surrendering the relic over to their sister.

"We'll discuss why you still have the relic after we free Aliya," Lillian firmly stated as Jaxon sheepishly nodded. "For now, go help Jesse hold Erebus in place," she added as they quickly went to Jesse's side and grabbed Erebus's other side. As Lillian took a deep breath, she held the heart of purity.

"For Aliya!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Erebus gave out his last screams, the god vanished as the gemstone returned to its initial state while Aliya's eyes became restored to their natural light brown color. Once the three gave her time to adjust, Aliya stared at the trio and back at Castor's Avalonian necklace, where there was no black void in sight.

Aliya tried to speak, but instead she was greeted by Jesse, who quickly spun the girl around as she laughed. Observing the way Jesse viewed the girl with tender fondness, Jaxon tried telling themself that they had changed, but as they saw the two making eye contact, Jaxon couldn't handle the sight of the two any longer.

So while Lillian and Jesse were distracted by Aliya, Jaxon stealthily retrieved the heart of purity necklace and quietly retreated outside the complex building, where they were greeted by Narcissa.

"How good it is to see you again, my champ—" Narcissa sweetly began, only for Jaxon to stop her. "I want out of the deal," Jaxon firmly stated as Narcissa lightly blinked before laughing. "My dear, you can't just back out," Narcissa briefly stated as she kept her composure.

"You signed the contract, remember? It was an agreement," she added, snapping her fingers as Jaxon's contract with Narcissa appear with their signature in a bright, golden color. "You can't go back now," she firmly stated, losing the honey-coated sweetness in her tone.

"Then, I want to make a new contract. I'll give you the heart of purity and you leave everyone alone," Jaxon offered, only for Narcissa to shake her head. "That's not how this works. Because you made the initial deal with me, you can't negotiate another deal until your first contract is set to expire, which..." she trailed off, looking at the expiration date.

"... isn't set to expire soon. Still, someone else would need to revoke your contract for you to negotiate a new deal and have your new contract become valid, but I don't see that happening any time soon either," she finished as Jaxon's face fell.

"But, I will take the heart of purity as promised," Narcissa perked up, quickly seizing the necklace from their hands as Jaxon's eyes widened. "No!" they exclaimed, trying to get the relic back as they remembered what was promised.

"Relax, will you? You still have three more relics to destroy, one of which is infused with two of them," Narcissa pointed out, shoving Jaxon onto the ground. "You can't make me do this! I won't allow it!" Jaxon angrily exclaimed, standing directly in front of the sea witch as Narcissa softly chuckled at their response.

"Actually, I can. You made the deal, you signed the contract, so by all accounts, I own you and if you truly want to see your crush alive and well, then you'll get rid of the remaining three before you pay the price," Narcissa bluntly stated, clutching the heart of purity in her hands.

"Fine... can you revoke the part where I wanted Aliya to drown, then?" Jaxon offered as Narcissa shook her head. "I already told my lovely pets that they could drown her more intensely now that you brought me the heart of purity," she answered, much to Jaxon's disappointment.

"Besides, my eels were disappointed in their performance and wanted to make her truly suffer on the second go," Narcissa reasonably stated, observing as her champion's face fell. "You don't seem thrilled about this. Why?" she followed up as Jaxon stared at her.

"Because I didn't want this! I didn't ask any of this!" Jaxon angrily cried out as Narcissa stared at them. "... But you did want this," Narcissa slowly stated as they looked up, slightly confused before they truly processed her words. "No, no, no," they mumbled, falling to their knees as they aggressively tried pushing the sea witch's words out of their mind.

"Still, I'll help you stop the others from getting the remaining relics. Just make sure Aliya isn't the one kissing Jesse."

"You told me to make Aliya suffer."

"Make her pay. Pacify her! Drown her! I don't care! Just make her suffer!"

"Honestly, I don't see why you should be concerned over her," Narcissa plainly stated as Jaxon stood up. "From what I can tell, she took the man of your dreams. Who's to say she won't start going after your life?" she continued as Jaxon shook their head. "Stop it!" Jaxon aggressively snapped.

"Stop what?"

"Stop telling me lies about my sister!" Jaxon angrily exclaimed once more as Narcissa chuckled. "Your sister? I didn't know that's how you view Aliya now," she stated, before shaking her head just as Jaxon stared at their hands.

"Aliya is no sister of mine. She's just an ex-sister now."

"Well, it's getting late, so I should let you go back to your band of misfits before anyone gets suspicious of your prolonged disappearance. Just remember to destroy the relics and you'll be fine," she concluded, before the sea witch clapped her hands and vanished into thin air.

"Yeah, sure."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I can't believe it's really over," Aliya insisted as Lillian nodded, affectionately hugging her sister once more. "Now we can assemble the relics and tomorrow, we all get to go home!" Lillian happily exclaimed, though she couldn't help but notice Jesse's solemn expression from the corner of her eye.

"When I said home, I was referring to me, Li and Jax. I wasn't really referring to you since you're going to live here with the outsiders," Lillian plainly clarified, though that didn't change his expression, which confused her.... Until she saw Jesse staring at Aliya.

"Don't tell me you're having second thoughts about permanently becoming human now because of your unresolved feelings for her," she insisted with a groan. "I can't do it with you anymore!" she cried out as Aliya laughed.

"What happened this time?" Aliya lightly asked as Lillian was prepared to tell her until the group saw Jaxon. "Jax!" Lillian exclaimed, rushing to hug them until she froze upon seeing their expression.

"I'm sorry," Jaxon solemnly began, which caught Lillian off-guard. "Sorry about what?" she puzzlingly asked, though her heart began racing out of fear. "The heart of purity went missing again," they continued, just as Lillian was joined by Aliya and Jesse, who were also looking at them.

"Jax, I'm sure it's just in your possession again. Did you double-check your pockets?" Lillian wholeheartedly began, hoping to just laugh the matter off. That was the plan, at least, until Jaxon shook their head.

"No, Lillian. The heart of purity is really missing this time," Jaxon firmly stated, though the two girls sensed there was something else they were hiding from the group. "Okay, well, we still have the dagger of Atlas," Aliya pointed out. "Plus, we got Erebus's scepter and gemstone in the form of Soren's staff!" Lillian gleefully added on.

"So, we'll just find the heart again like earlier today. It'll be fine," the two continued as Jesse nodded, smiling in Jaxon's direction to show his support towards them. While Lillian and Jesse walked on ahead, Aliya lingered back to see Jaxon fumbling with their hands.

"Hey, everything will be okay. I doubt you lost the necklace on purpose," Aliya assured them. "Besides, I'm sure we can find an alternative object if we absolutely can't find the heart of purity by Jesse's deadline," she added, preparing to walk ahead when Jaxon grabbed her hand.

"Aliya, I... I'm really sorry for the way I treated you lately. I was stupid to let my jealousy get in the way of our friendship," Jaxon truthfully began as she started to talk, only to get cut off.

"I love Jesse, but there's nothing more important to me than family. I've cared for Libby and now that you're my sister, I should start acting like a better sibling towards you. I swear I'm going to make up for everything I've done to you," they continued as Aliya merely chuckled.

"Jax, you haven't done anything besides fight with me a few times and give me a couple of cold looks. Look, it's fine, okay? When you are passionate about someone, you tend to get jealous. I appreciate your apology, but you shouldn't beat yourself up over this," Aliya reassured them, squeezing their hand.

"Hey, it's natural for siblings to fight, but what matters is that after the fight, siblings end up making up, learn from their mistakes and move on," Aliya continued before releasing their hand.

As Jaxon looked up, they saw their sister opening their arms. "Are you—" they began, only to get cut off. "Jax, just take the hug," Aliya bluntly stated as Jaxon laughed before happily choosing to embrace their sister.

After embracing each other for a few minutes, the two naturally pulled away from the hug. "Hey, I wouldn't get stressed over this. Things will work out on their own time. You will see," she concluded before meeting up to join with Lillian and Jesse.

"Heh, right."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When the next morning came, the group were greatly alarmed when Lillian began to scream. On cue, Jaxon came to her side just as Jesse and Aliya arrived a little bit later, but still on time nonetheless. "I heard screaming!" Jaxon began as Aliya merely shook her head.

"What happened?" she asked as Lillian took a deep breath. "I woke up to gather our remaining relics together, so we could just have everything ready for Jesse," she began as Aliya slowly nodded. "Okay, then what?" Jaxon followed up as Lillian took another deep breath.

"Well, I was starting to come up with all of these daydream fantasies about Jesse finally leaving us—" Lillian excitedly stated before she stopped to stare at their reactions. "Lily, I'm going to need you to be on topic here," Aliya gently interrupted, while Jesse merely glared in Lillian's direction, unsure what to think.

"Okay, well, I had just finished strapping Soren's staff, so I was on my way to grab the dagger of Atlas and when I tried to find the dagger, it wasn't there!" she exclaimed as Jesse's eyes widened.

"So I thought, maybe I had already went to take the dagger of Atlas back to my little organizing spot. But when I came back, Soren's staff wasn't there and the dagger of Atlas no where to be found!" Lillian continued as Aliya and Jaxon ushered her to slow down in terms of the pace of her speaking.

"In a panic, I began searching for Soren's staff, but instead I found..." Lillian suddenly trailed off, only pointing straight ahead as Aliya, Jesse and Jaxon stared at each other and back at Lillian. "Well, go see for yourself!" Lillian managed to cry out as Jesse took a step before Aliya and Jaxon stopped him.

"Maybe, you should stay with him on this one," Aliya told Jaxon, who blinked. "I'll go see what Lily is talking about," she added, taking a deep breath before approaching the spot where Lillian was assembling the relics together. Jaxon patiently waited alongside Jesse, who was beginning to look nervous.

"Hey, I'm sure it's nothing," Jaxon assured Jesse, looking up when Aliya arrived back, though her spirits were much lower than before. "What did you find?" they asked as she cleared her throat. "Well, I found our missing relic," Aliya started as Jesse's eyes lit up.

"But... not in the way you think," she continued, catching Jesse's look of confusion. So when Aliya opened her palms to reveal the shattered pieces of the necklace, Jesse's jaw dropped. "This is what remains of the heart," Aliya slowly stated, even hesitating to reveal that much once she saw Jesse's sullen eyes.

"It gets worse!" Lillian loudly exclaimed as Aliya and Jaxon stared at her. "Worse than that?" Jaxon briefly asked, pointing to the shattered heart of purity. "We can't even fix this! How can this possibly get worse?" Aliya insisted, before Lillian sighed. "Well, if you insist," she started as Aliya's eyes widened, realizing her mistake.

"I was able to find Soren's staff, but...." Lillian trailed off, revealing the bent scepter, which was now on the verge of breaking in half while the gemstone was completely missing as she held her head down.

When the love fairy first heard the dagger of Atlas going missing, he was nervous, yet he still had hope about his situation, believing his team would pull through. But now as he stared at the destruction of the two relics, Jesse felt his heart racing erratically. Yet after seeing the gemstone missing from Erebus's staff, he knew there was no way of bouncing back from this.

Jesse needed all four of the relics in one piece. There was no way Narcissa was going to accept this! In a panic, Jesse fled the scene as Jaxon quickly noticed. "Jesse, wait!" they called out, rushing to keep up with Jesse.

Once Jesse and Jaxon were out of sight, Lillian and Aliya stared at each other. "What are we going to do? We... We can't fix this," she insisted as Aliya solemnly sighed. "No, but we can still find the gemstone and the dagger of Atlas," Aliya offered in a somewhat optimistic tone.

"Even then, the situation is hopeless! How can we recover from t... this?" Lillian began at once. "Face it, Aliya! This quest was for nothing and Jesse wasted our time!" Lillian wailed as Aliya held her sister close.

"Hey, this quest will not be for nothing," she assured her as Lillian pulled away. "We will find a way to fix this, I promise," Aliya continued as Lillian meekly nodded. "Okay, but what are we supposed to do about our..." she began, only to trail off. "If I'm right, then we need to get to the remaining relics now, but just for good measures..." Aliya paused as she took out a miniature tracker.

"I'll place the tracker on the dagger."

"Why the dagger?"

"If the dagger of Atlas is missing, then it's still in one piece. That means we still have a chance to find the relic, place the tracker in a unsuspecting area then catch the person responsible for this," Aliya confidently stated as the two girls looked at each other and sighed.

"You don't think Jax is behind this whole thing still... right?" Lillian slowly asked, once again hesitating as Aliya rubbed her arm. "I want to be wrong. I do. I really, really do, but I can't let go of this feeling that our sibling is behind this," Aliya truthfully admitted, much to Lillian's underlying disappointment.

"If it's not Jax and I'm wrong, you have every right to slap me, deal?" Aliya added as Lillian frowned. "But slapping you will be no fun," Lillian softly whined as Aliya's eyes lit up. "Okay, I'll do your chores for a whole month if I'm wrong," Aliya insisted as Lillian crossed her arms.

"Three months," Lillian firmly stated as Aliya's jaw dropped. She opened her mouth to protest before shaking her head from disbelief. "Fine! I'll do your chores for three months if I'm wrong," Aliya reluctantly stated in a defeated tone, giving in at last as Lillian grinned.

"Yes! Ooh, I hope you're wrong about Jax! No chores for three months! Let's go!" Lillian happily exclaimed as Aliya glanced towards the sky and back to the spot where Jaxon immediately rushed over to comfort Jesse.

"Yeah... me too."