The events of the previous night had worn both Jak and Kiera to their limits. When the food fight had come to an end—or rather when they had all run out of cake to throw—Kruphix had left to take Vadina on an 'uncle-niece bonding trip' while the new parents had to channel extra magic into cleaning the house. The house-spirits were good, but they would only do so much. One of them threatened to leave rabid mice in the master bedroom the next time the gods created a mess of this caliber. Needless to say, the couple was tired.

As the two slept peacefully Jak had wrapped his arms around Kiera's waist while hers were around his neck. The two had rested their foreheads against one another's, sleepy smiles painted on their lips. One would almost think that they were any normal, loving couple; not two sadistic and insane third-level gods. It was peaceful and perfect...

...Until the alarm rang.

Kiera groaned in protest, lazily reaching her hand out to try and find the bane of her existence. Due to the fact that her brain was shot with sleepiness, she began to hit the top of her husband's head instead.

"Why won't it turn off?" She groaned.

Jak lazily opened his eyes. "Bruh!"

"Jak, it's broken. Turn it off." She complained.

Jak sighed and pulled on the alarm clock so hard that the cord snapped, causing immediate silence. He then crushed the piece of technology between his bare hands. "Better?"

"Why didn't it work? I hit the snooze button!" Kiera said.

"If you think the snooze button is my head." Jak muttered under his breath. "Let's just go back to sleep." He offered, wrapping the blanket back around the two of them and resting his chin atop her head.

The perfect moment was ruined by a crash of pots and pans downstairs. Kiera groaned. "Jak, can you see what's going on?"

Jak sighed and placed a kiss on Kiera's cheek before getting out of bed and groggily putting clothes on his body. He then walked out of the room, making his way down the grand staircase and entering the door to the dining hall—which seemed to be the source of all the commotion. Much to his surprise, he saw Kruphix with armfuls of alcoholic beverages that were being placed onto the table.

"Who the hell are you and what did you do with Kruphy?" Jak asked warily.

He huffed. "Well, I told you that you would drive me to drink one of these days. May as well be today." He rolled up the sleeves of his cloak. "I hope you don't mind, but I borrowed Ash to help me out."

As if on cue, the door burst open, a thick pair of arms carrying more assorted bottles. "That's the last of 'em!" A deep voice announced. The bottles were set on the table so that Jak could see the owner of the meaty arms and deep voice cleaning off his hands.

Ash was Jak's apprentice, even if he was about four times his master's size. As per always, he wore nothing but his gauntlets and a pair of pants, showcasing his sculpted body with its intricate red markings.

"Hey, Ash." Jak greeted.

"'Sup?"

"Get me a bloody mary." Jak commanded.

"And give me a scotch on the rocks." Kruphix followed, adding under his breath, "I've always wanted to say that."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "What do I look like to you, a bartender?" He waved his large arms for emphasis. "I don't think I'll be able to make something like that without breaking—well—everything!"

"Point taken." Kruphix noted. "I'll make them." He grabbed a few bottles and proceeded to start making the beverages.

Jak smiled and took a moment to look out the window. The lake always had a nice view; especially with that giant monocled eye...

What?!

Jak rubbed his eyes and looked again. "Am I drunk? I haven't even started!"

"Ha ha, so funny, Jaksidious Turner." A voice spoke. "You can't even remember your favorite whale with a top hat?"

Kruphix beamed. "Ah, Mentlegen! How are you doing?"

"MENTLEGEN!?" Kiera's shriek echoed throughout the entire mansion. There was a small whoosh as smoke began to gather in the dining hall. As Kiera materialized, Jak silently wondered to himself how she had gotten dressed so fast.

"Lady Kiera!" Mentlegen boomed. "You look as beautiful as ever!"

Kiera smiled. "We have so much we need to catch up on! But first, let's get you inside." Grey light coursed throughout the room, expanding the interior area by about tenfold. Three shapes materialized in the room; a 200 foot blue whale with a top hat and monocle and a pair of baby whales a tenth his size.

"Baby Whale and Baby Jr.!" Kruphix exclaimed. "They've grown since we've last saw them."

"We're sorry that we haven't come by for a while." Mentlegen apologized. "We got stuck in Rio."

"Sounds like fun." Ash noted.

Mentlegen turned his attention to the apprentice. "Ah, Master Ash. You look like you've gotten stronger."

"That I have." He affirmed. "I'm almost ready to become a god."

When the door opened once more, a very confused and messy Vadina was revealed. Her black hair stuck up at awkward angles that seemed to defy gravity and she was still dressed in her baby blue pajamas with tiny silver moons. Ash was the last one to notice she was there, and Vadina that he existed.

"Um," she started, shifting uncomfortably. "Can somebody please explain to me why there is a shirtless guy and three whales in the dining room?"

Ash coughed and inched his way towards Jak. Once he was close enough, he pointed out Vadina and whispered, "Who's she?"

"Oh, that's right!" Kiera mused. "All of you haven't met, or for that matter been told anything about each other. Dina, the shirtless guy is Ash, Jak's apprentice. The whale is Mentlegen, a dear friend of mine. I've known him since I first became a goddess and joined the legion. Boys, this is Dina. She's mine and Jak's daughter."

"Oh." Ash said, as if it made total logical sense.

Mentlegen narrowed his eyes and huffed angrily through his spout. "Jaksidious...what did you do?"

Jak threw up his hands. "Nothing!"

"I'm adopted." Vadina clarified, flicking one of her ears. "My real mother and father died, but Ma and Pa took me in and let me become a goddess."

"Oh, I see." Mentlegen turned his massive head towards Jak. "My deepest apologies."

"Done!" Kruphix announced, holding up two glasses filled with alcoholic drinks. "I poured you a glass of beer, Ash. I don't know what else you may have wanted."

"Thanks anyways. I'll take it." The apprentice grabbed the mug in his large, meaty hands. His mentor smiled greedily and swiped his bloody mary from Kruphix, gulping the entire thing in one sitting after bringing it to his lips. Jak topped it off with a loud burp.

Vadina scowled. "Pa, that's disgusting!"

"Why in the world are you drinking that filth?" Mentlegen questioned. "Not only is it vulgar, but there are three minors in this room."

"Drinking can be classy." Jak pointed out. "How about wine during Christmas, or champagne during New Year's?"

"I am still fully against it." Mentlegen stubbornly stated.

"Ah, quit being so prohibition era." Kruphix drawled. "Hey, Vadina, you can have some as well if your parents say it's okay."

"I'm sixteen." She pointed out, raising a suspicious eyebrow at her uncle.

"There's no way in heaven or hell that she's drinking alcohol underage." Kiera said, wrapping her arms protectively around her daughter.

Jak looked at Kiera a bit closer. Her eyes were as wide as coins and her wings were twitching anxiously. She was afraid—that much was blatant—but of what? Before he could take a look into her mind, the sound of rushing water and the feeling of water soaking his head and shoulders snapped him back to the situation at hand.

"How dare you!?" The whale bellowed.

Kruphix cocked his head. "Excuse me?"

"Offering alcoholic beverage to a minor is under no circumstances acceptable!" Mentlegen raged, his anger towards the God of Justice clearly showing.

"But I declined." Vadina tried to defend.

As if she hadn't said anything at all, Kruphix continued talking, oblivious to Vadina's protest. "Well, she didn't accept my offer, so there! Calm down, M.G."

"Don't you dare use that tone with me, Kruphix Tyreal Auros Gabriel Savage!"

"Please," Kiera begged. "Both of you stop. This really isn't anything to argue over."

"I can use whatever tone of voice I so wish!" Kruphix snapped, leaving his sister's cried all but unheard. "I am a third-level god under Cthulhu! I greatly outrank you!"

"How rude! I thought you were supposed to be the most mature and respected in this legion!"

"I am mature! I just want to relieve some stress! Is that so wrong?"

"Then I suggest you find a healthy way to relieve it! Take up drawing, painting, reciting old English literature! For the Trinity's sake, don't go out and consume such filth that impairs your good thinking!"

"Stop it!" Kiera pleaded. "Don't fight, please!"

"I'll do what I want!" Kruphix shot back.

Mentlegen blew his spout and drenched Jak again. "I refuse to stand by and do nothing." He swiped his tail across the table, breaking every single bottle that Kruphix had brought.

The god's mouth hung open. "What the hell?" Kruphix balled up his fists. "That was over fifty-thousand dollars' worth of alcohol! I'm going to gut you and sell your entrails on the black market, you worthless porpoise!"

"I. SAID. STOP!" Kiera screeched, collapsing to the floor. She gripped her head so tight that Jak feared her nails might cause her to start bleeding.

"Kiera, calm down." Kruphix chided.

"Don't you dare tell me to calm down!" She yelled. "You expect me to calm down after bringing in alcohol!?"

"What do you have against alcohol?" Kruphix asked earnestly.

"Not only that, but you both are being rude!" Kiera added, tugging on the ends of her hair. "I...I..."

"Ma..." Vadina's voice trailed off.

Kiera's eyes shot open, and Jak could have sworn he saw them flash bright blue for a second. He knew something was obviously wrong, but Kiera wasn't exactly the type of person to come out and say quite what was going on. He tried to listen to her thoughts, but he was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of noise in her head. It almost reminded him of a bunch of jumbled words and phrases that came through a weak radio signal. These were Kiera's thoughts.

<WORTHLESS...DIE...DON'T DESERVE...NEVER...>

Jak tried to tune into something, anything specific, but it was no use. Something was wrong with Kiera's mind.

"Ma...say something, please!" Vadina begged.

"Must...Escape!" Kiera wrapped her wings tightly around herself and disappeared, leaving nothing behind but the scent of smoke.

Vadina looked at Jak, the distress evident in her eyes. "Pa...tell me what's wrong with Ma."

"Yeah, Jak. Do you have any idea? You are only god of the mind." Kruphix pointed out. "Do you know what made her snap like that?"

"You see, the thing is I tried to figure that out." Jak confessed. "I couldn't make any sense of her thoughts. Something's not exactly at peace with her mind--even more so than usual."

"What do you think it could be?" Ash followed, eyebrows furrowing with concern.

"I have no fucking clue, but I don't think she should be left alone in that sort of state." Jak spread a pair of glass wings that were usually hidden under his shirt. "Ash, stay here with Mentlegen and Dina just in case she decides for whatever reason to come back."

"I'm not just going to sit here and do nothing!" Vadina exclaimed, stomping her foot for emphasis.

Kruphix's white angelic wings unfurled. "Vadina, we don't want to scare you. Kiera can be...sporadic. She's not always one way all the time."

"I don't care!" Vadina protested. "That's my Ma and I'm not going to wait at home while she's hurt!"

Jak stared into the eyes of his adopted daughter. "You're not going to change your mind, are you?"

"Nope."

Jak sighed. "Fine. Just stay close. I'm not going to let you end up hurting yourself, either."

Vadina smiled with glee as she ran into the arms of her father. He grabbed her tightly around her chest and under her arms.

"Do you feel secure?"

Vadina gave her father an affirmative nod.

"I have the location of Kiera thanks to the mental link the two of us have." Jak informed his fellow gods. He took a deep breath. "Let's do this thing." And with a powerful downstroke of their wings, the gods were airborne, carrying a junior in tow towards pure uncertainty.