IGNIUS POV

I looked into the garage, staring at Darcy, who was tinkering with a broken piece of tech that had been dug up by Caspian. A welding mask was pulled over his face and he had a welding torch in his right hand, his left leaning on the little box. The fire light from the torch danced around the room, flickering orange. 

He set the torch down, lifting up the mask and wiping his bleached bangs out his eyes, a smile on his face. Upon hearing my knock on the door, he turned around, smiling. "Ignius! Please come in!" He chuckled. 

"There's something that I need to tell you." I said, sitting on the edge of his workbench. "But before that, how've ya been?" I smiled, attempting to change my expression from the reality of horror that I was silently failing to process and had been for about a week. 

"I've missed you, my guy! You've not been here in ages!" Darcy chuckled, pulling the mask off and setting it down, sitting on the workbench opposite. "I had to fight off the Mezalean corruption on my own and then Indigo appeared and we didn't know who they were and we almost killed her and them-" 

I cut Darcy off. "There's something that I have to say." I sighed. "All I wanted was for it to not get this far, for you to just be my student and not need to fight..."

"What-?"

"Exor's champion is wicked, you know this, but it's gotten worse... way way worse. I fear that there's no Evangeline left inside. I fear that Exor has fully taken her over, or worse..." 

"IT CAN GET WORSE!?" 

"Exor wasn't always like this. They were a kind soul, the sort of person that helped those believe that the afterlife isn't as hellish as it may sound. The sort of person who helped the grieving realise that death is the next part of life. But eventually, jealousy took over, as I fear it will us all. They became irritable, eventually causing the Fall of Earthasia, the last settlement of the fae-"

"Hey, that's the name of the book I gave Tsuki!" Darcy smiled, causing me to chuckle.

"So someone documented it? Good. Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. And now, I fear it is worse. Not only does Exor have Evangeline in his grasp, but I fear that Evangeline has poor Skye in her control." I sighed, picking at the black fingerless gloves on my hands.

Darcy looked up at me. "So, like some sort of twisted and fucked up pyramid scheme?"

"Darcy, that's every single pyramid scheme."

---

AQUAEN POV

I sat next to Aalto, back pressed up against a tall rock. Dark blue hair swirled in waves in the water, swirling like a beautiful portal to a mysterious place, and perhaps that's what the water is, we may never know.

"So, there's a chance, however small, that there's another Evangeline?" Aalto said, turning her head to me, fingers still flying, weaving seagrass into a crown.

"The signs all point to that. The details are being kept incredibly secret, I fear, but all I need to know Ignius has already told me. Someone you know, someone close to someone close to you, is corrupted. I'm sorry we couldn't stop it happening." I sighed, weaving the sea water into shapes. Horses, mushrooms, a skull.

Aalto showed me the seagrass crown, placing it on my head.

"Then something must be done. And we can do it together." A sheet of silver hair fell over her shoulder as she turned her head and smiled at me, a glint of menace in her eyes.

This girl is going places. I don't know where because she scares me a bit, but she's going places.

---

ATURA POV

"YOU DIPSHIT!" I screamed, pointing my staff at Aeor's heart. "YOU LET THIS HAPPEN!"

Aeor's face was stony, emotionless. He pushed the staff away, but it came back, pointed at his face now. A pair of ornate golden daggers appeared in his hands. "Atura, I do not wish to fight."

Tears threatened to spill over but I fought them. "YOU'RE THE REASON MY CHAMPION IS INJURED, YOU PULLED ME OUT OF WATCH FOR A MEETING, YOU NEARLY KILLED THEM!"

I jabbed the staff into his face. The green orb glowed, and Aeor glared. "Atura, you're not thinking clearly."

"OH I AM THINKING VERY CLEARLY!" I screamed, pulling the glowing staff away, spinning it above my head, and shooting the green energy at Aeor.

He skidded back, grumbling irritably. "You wanna fight? Fine. We'll fight."

He ran at me, his dagger plunging into my side, dragging a deep gash along it. I yelled, the pain blinding, but if there's one thing about me it's that I never lose a fight.

I rammed my staff on the ground, the green orb becoming a blade, the staff becoming a scythe. I sweeped it along the floor, catching Aeor's ankles and knocking him to the floor.

Another thing about me is that my fights are incredibly short.

But Aeor sat up, throwing his dagger at my shoulder. It stuck, painfully, but I ripped it out, throwing it back at him. It lodged itself in his leg.

"Shut your dirty mouth." I said, vines wrapping around his mouth to stop him from talking. I crouched down to his level. "If I could destroy this land, you know that I wouldn't hesitate. I would smile while you died. But alas, the backlash I would get is incredible. So now, apologise for nearly killing my champion, and I won't kill you."

I removed the vines.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry... but MAN are you crazy-"

"I know I am. Some may say I'm worse than Exor."

I walked back the staircase to the Land Beyond. I know I'm not as insane as Exor, but boy do I fucking hate Aeor.

TWO IN ONE DAY???
Didn't post yesterday, here's my birthday present to you