Song: Scar Tissue by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Jordan's p.o.v.

I woke up to the smell of pancakes. Pancakes? Guard Tom was gone, so he couldn't have made them. I felt a pang in my heart when I thought about him. I hoped he was still alive. I felt horrible for being the cause for him being captured.
I sat up in my bed to go look for the source of the smell, and was greeted with a throbbing migraine and nausea in the pit of my stomach. These side affects are killing me. The first thing I noticed was Tom wasn't next to me. Did he make the pancakes? I thought he only knew how to cook fish and eggs...

I picked up my scattered clothes from the floor and pulled them on, but I noticed Toms clothes were still on the floor. Maybe he got some out of my drawers. I skipped down down the stairs and headed to where the smell was. It was coming from guard Toms room. I pulled open the door and was met by a very interesting sight.

Tom was butt naked and he was holding a pan, flipping pancakes and frying bacon. He saw me in the door way with my jaw down to the floor and smiled. "Morning Sparklez, want some pancakes?" He asked casually.

"Tom. For my sake. Please put on some pants." I only looked at his eyes. If I looked any lower than that, my entire face would be covered in blush.

"Why? It's way more fun to cook this way. Thought you might enjoy a view with your breakfast." He grinned with a mischievous look in his eyes. He knew this was bothering me,

"I can't eat pancakes if I'm staring at your junk." I blushed even harder at my own words.

"Sure you can. You just gotta get used to it is all. Take a seat." He pulled out a chair, but I didn't dare look away from his eyes.

"Tom. No. Pants. Now."

"I'll think about it after you eat a pancake. How bout it?" He sat a plate full of pancakes on the table and I accidentally looked down for a second. My face felt like a million suns were crashing down on it.
I was about to yell at him again, when I heard the door open behind me.

Oh no.

"Jordan, I don't mean to intrude but Mot and I wanted to ask if you were feeling better-" Gaines stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Tom, making Mot bump into him accidentally.

"What are you looking-...oh." Mot stopped too.

Gaines looked like me, with his whole face covered in a thick red blush. "U-um Illbebacklater!" Gaines ran out the door as fast as possible, slamming it shut behind him.

Tom had scarred poor Gaines for life.

Mot was still there, smirking at the door Gaines left out of. "Poor guys never seen his own manhood, let alone anyone else's."

I was confused. Why didn't Mot leave too?

"Er, you gonna stay or?" Tom asked Mot from behind me. I couldn't speak at the moment. I was too embarrassed to even blink.

"Hell, if you're making pancakes I'll look at anything. Can't say the same for your husband though." Mot grinned at my state, making me blush even harder.

"Sparklez, would it make you less red if I put on some shorts?" Tom laughed.

I still couldn't talk, so I just nodded furiously.
~
"You feeling better after the whole guardian thing?" Mot asked before shoving a pancake in his mouth. He's eaten seven of them, and that was his eighth.

"Yeah. Thanks for the help with that...I really should start carry weapons with me when I go places. Seems like I'm always having bad luck wherever I go." I hadn't eaten more than half a pancake. I was still sort of sick to my stomach.

"Speaking of which, do you know what day it is Sparklez?" Tom asked as he bit into a gigantic piece of bacon.

"Uh, Tuesday?" I asked confused.

"No you sausage, it's your birthday. Did you seriously forget?" He looked at me shocked.

I just shrugged my shoulders. "I guess so. Is that why you made me pancakes in your birthday suit?" I rolled my eyes.

"Yup! But I also have something else for you. Let me go get it." He got up from the table and left the room, leaving me with Mot.

"Must be nice being married. Wish I had a man like you." He muttered.

I choked on the pancake I was eating. "W-what?"

"I said I wish I had a man like you. Hot, smart, and great in bed from what Tom tells me. Lucky guy." He winked at me.

Was he hitting on me while my husband was literally right upstairs?

"Are you hitting on me?" I asked bluntly.

"I've been trapped in a dimension with old soggy people for ten years. Cant I look?" He smirked.

"But I...I thought you liked Dianite."

"I said I'm just looking. I can't appreciate a sexy guy when I see one?"

"Stop that!"

"Stop what?"

"Stop hitting on me! Do you know what Tom would do if he heard you?"

Mot scoffed. "Oh please. I could take him down in seconds. He's too soft to put up a decent fight."

"Soft? What are you even talking about?" Tom was not soft.

"Having a husband, good with crying children, tries to sort things out with words. Thats soft. He's soft."

"Then go ahead and make him angry. See what happens. The last person who made him angry nearly died from blood force trauma." I think Tony was still recovering from that fight weeks ago.

"I'll do just that. But you can't interfere if he starts gettin angry, alright? I want a one versus one, not two."

"Mot. You're gonna get yourself killed." I was scared about whatever he was going to do.

"I think you should be more worried about your husband." He grinned with pridefulness.

The door to the room opened again and Tom entered with a small box in his hand. He handed it to me.
"Go ahead, open it. I made it just for you." He smiled sweetly.

I tore off the white paper and began to open the small box. I pulled the lid off and reached inside. I pulled out a knife that was almost a whole foot long. A black leather grip and a purple blade, the blade being as sharper as any I'd ever had before, maybe even sharper.

"I got a matching one, see?" He pulled out a large knife similar to mine from the back of his shorts. Did he always carry that? "Same one I almost killed you with once...heh...but I got one for you incase maybe I'm not around to help at some point in time."

I was about to respond, when I was cut off by a scoff.
"You mean like yesterday when I saved him and you were still trying to figure out how to walk? I was practically his hero there. He went into my arms like a damsel in distress." Mot laughed with a slight evil glint in his eyes. He was trying to stir up trouble.

Tom just gave him a dirty look, then turned back to me. "Guess I can't always be the hero. Sorry about that Sparklez."

"Yeah, sorry your husband can't protect you because he's soft. But don't worry Jordan. I'd rescue your pretty face any day. Maybe you could pay me with that hot body of yours?"

He went over the line. Way over the line.

But Tom didn't get angry. He didn't scream or flip out or start beating the crap out of Mot. He just stood there for a moment. "Sparklez, do I have permission? Please?" He asked nicely. Permission? He asked so nicely for it, so I just nodded.

I shouldn't have.

Tom grabbed the frying pan that laid on the stove in a flash, turning to Mot and slamming him in the side of the head with it.

"TOM!" I shouted at him. Mot fell to the floor immediately. Did he seriously just knock him out with a frying pan?
Tom walked over to Mot, who was awake and was trying to process what just happened.

"He is mine. His love is mine. His body is mine. He. Is. Mine. Get that through your thick skull. If you can't, then maybe when you stop being paralyzed we can fight about it."

Mot sat up from his spot and stood to meet Toms threatening gaze. "Alright then, lover boy. Let's fight. No weapons or frying pans, just you and me. Fist and fist."

"Deal."

"Tom!" I didn't want him to hurt Mot. And I didn't want Mot to hurt him.

"Remember what I said Jordan? No interfering?" Mot shoved past me and walked out the door. Tom followed behind but stopped momentarily beside me.

"I'm sorry. But this guy deserves what's coming to him. I'm doing this for you." He kissed my forehead and left.

He's doing this for me? But I don't want them to fight! I want them to be friends and actually like eachother!
I quickly followed them out of the fortress and outside, where they began to prepare for the fight. I wished somebody would stop this. Where was Dianite? Didn't he care that his champions were fighting?

"I do care boyo. But they won't listen to me. I know they won't. Just let them fight it out. I'm sure your hubby will be fine."

They both took off their jackets and rolled up their sleeves.
I can't watch this.
I went inside and grabbed the knife that Tom gifted to me and my specter key. In seconds, I was in my specter dimension all alone. Why did I give him permission to fight Mot? I just ruined our honey moon. It was nice while it lasted at least...

I hadn't been in my specter dimension in awhile. So I'd forgotten everything that I had in it. Including Ianite's things.
Her rose was still on my wall where I'd placed it in a frame. She'd given it to me once before a purge. I took the frame off the wall and pulled the flower out. It was still fresh and full with beautiful red petals.

I closed my eyes and thought of her. Her laugh, her encouragement, everything she's ever said to me.
"I know you probably aren't even there...but I just wanted to ask that you watch over him. He's an idiot who gets himself into too much trouble. I miss you. It feels odd to be godless...it feels odd to be insane and alone. I don't know what to do with myself with you gone...I feel so weak and vulnerable to everyone. I don't even know how to use these new powers you gave me. I just know that I'm insane and they're the only thing keeping me alive. Please tell me what to do...I need you."

I wiped away the tears from my cheeks and sighed. I felt like a major weight just left me. Even though I was probably only talking to myself, it still felt great to say it all out loud. She couldn't have heard it. She was dead and she wasn't coming back. I needed to accept that she wasn't going to help me this time. I was all alone now.

I clutched the small rose tighter and went to the corner of my room to wallow in my own self pity. I didn't deserve to be her champion. I was weak and soft, just like Mot had explained. Maybe it was better that I was godless. I wouldn't have to worry about letting someone down all the time.

I don't know how. I don't even know why. But I felt like I was even worse than before.

"Maybe you should go back, boyo. You don't look too good." I heard Dianite advise.

"Mot and Syndicate are fighting...can't go back." My head was starting to hurt. Probably another side affect from that stupid book.

"...Glitter lap, did you just call your husband Syndicate?"

"Yeah. So what?" My eyes were really irritated. I sort of wanted to sleep. Maybe I could take a nap in here. It's nice and quiet.

"You need to leave. Now. Go back to your towers Sparkley Jowels. You aren't well."

"What? What makes you say that?" I didn't want to leave. I liked it here.

"What is your husbands real name?" He asked.

"It's...it's..." A surge of pain streaked through the side of my head and I groaned.
I couldn't remember his name. I forgot his name. What's happening? The side affects usually weren't this bad. And they didn't include memory loss. Was it because I prayed? Was Ianite punishing me for praying to her?

"Get out of there now! Something's attacking you, boy!" Dianite yelled at me, but it sounded sort of muffled. Everything sounded that way. I should be running away, shouldn't I? No, my mind wanted me to stay. Forever. I wanted to stay here forever. I felt a slight chill as something cold touched my feet. I looked down. My shoes were soaked in water. My floor was covered in a foot of water. My mind thought it was funny, so I laughed. The water was rising. I thought about swimming in my specter dimension. That would be fun. I'll just stay in here and swim all day. I don't need gods to have fun.

"SPARKLEZ GET OUT OF THERE NOW! ITS TRYING TO DROWN YOU!" Dianite bellowed. I just smiled wider and let the water run through my hands. It was at my waist now. It felt nice on my skin. Why was Dianite so uptight? Water was nice and cool. I wasn't gonna leave now. I wanted to swim. The water was rising quicker. I couldn't wait to dive head first into it. Up to my neck, I felt so giddy! Why didn't everyone swim in their specter dimensions? It felt so nice. It was like my skin was getting a massage. And then it reached the top. I looked around my little room. Everything was floating and it looked magical to me. I smiled wider. Beautiful.

I saw a purple square open up to my room. Swirls and shapes were floating in it. What was it? It was so pretty.
Someone appeared from it. Syndicate, my mind whispered. I bet he was here to have fun with me. He could swim and enjoy the beauty with me. He looked around frantically for a bit, until his eyes landed on me. He swam toward me with a panicked look in his eyes. Why was he panicked? This place was calm and quiet. No one should panic here.

When he finally reached me, he held my wrist and tugged me towards the magic square. But I wanted to stay here! I wanted to swim and be happy. I shook my head no at him. He looked at me confused. He tugged my wrist again. I wasn't going with him. I didn't want to. I wanted to stay here. I pulled my wrist from his grasp. He seemed to get angry at me when I did. Why didn't he understand? I liked it here. Why didn't he like it too?

Forget him. Stay here. Forever.

I want to stay here, but I want him to stay too.

He wants you to leave. He doesn't want you to have fun. He hates you.

What? No, he loves me. Doesn't he?

I stared at Syndicate, who was trying to pull me towards the magic square again. He looked irritated. Maybe he does hate me.

He hates you. Stay away from him. Swim away from him.

I pulled my wrist free again and swam away, trying to get away from him. I should listen to my mind. It's right after all.
I looked back to see if he was following me. He wasn't. I saw him below me, a terrified expression on his face. Something was pulling him down. A tentacle was wrapped around his ankle and it was pulling him down further and further. His pleading eyes were locked with mine. He needed help. He needed my help.

No he doesn't. He needs to die. You don't matter to him. He doesn't care about you.

His face began to get redder and redder. Was he running out of air? He was gonna die if he didn't get out of here.

Let him. He deserves it.

No. No he doesn't. He's my husband. Toms my husband.

Tom.

And then my head began to throb less. I could think clearly. And I immediately knew I was running out of air. Tom was limp now. His eyes were closed and his face was pale.

Oh my god!

I swam as fast as I could to the bottom of the room and pulled the knife from the back of my pants. I grabbed Toms ankle and cut the squid tentacle off, making ink go everywhere. I pulled my limp husband to the square. A portal. It was a portal. Please let it lead somewhere safe.

I pulled us both in it, and we began to warp.

Fresh air flooded my lungs again and I slumped to the ground in exhaustion.
"Oh my god! They're okay!" I heard someone shout. I was way too tired to even open my eyes. I still had Tom in my arms. He was still unconscious.

"Help Tom..." I called to whoever was there.

I felt someone lift him off me. Hands picked me up and carried me away. I hope they help Tom. Whoever they are.
~~~~~
Sorry for the late update. This week has been crazy because of marching band. The bottoms of my feet have huge bruises on them and I'm so miserable I'm literally about to cry. Please ask me questions or comment something nice for me. You guys cheer me up when nothing else can :(

Thanks!

- Lee