I've been dreading writing this chapter, so good luck reading it. Sorry in advance and sorry for taking FOREVER to get this chapter out to you guys. Forgive me?

Avi never thought that he would be the one pulling their team together. That job always fell to Kirsite or Kevin, maybe even Scott, but never Avi. Avi was always the one that needed to be controlled. But now he was dragging a passed out Void across the floor, sloshing through water that he realized probably came from Kirstie.

He found the girl he had just been thinking of floating gracefully in a lake of her own work. And he shifted Void to one hand while grabbing Kirsite's arm with his other, dragging his two unconscious companions behind him.

He reached Kevin next, the boy was just standing there, looking over the flooded hallway with tears in his eyes. Avi dropped the arms he was holding and rushed towards his best friend, embracing him as he felt tears drip onto his shoulder.

"We're monsters," Kevin choked out, gripping tightly onto Avi's shoulders. Avi pulled away, staring into his best friend's eyes.

"Wolves kill other wolves when their family is being attacked. Wolves kill other wolves to try and protect themselves. Do we think of wolves as monsters? No, Kev, we aren't monsters. We aren't any more a monster than a wolf is. We never wanted this- nobody ever wanted this, but we had to do it. We aren't monsters, Kev. We're just a group of teenagers who never asked for this." Avi tightened his grip on Kevin's shoulders. "You need to get it together, Kev. We don't have much time-- we need to find Scott."

"I know where he is," Kevin said slowly. "Nuts took him." Avi cursed, this time Kevin didn't correct him. Avi looked into his best friend's dark eyes, and it was then that he knew what he had to do.

"Get them out of here, Kevin," Avi said quietly, the realization of what he was about to do, starting to dawn on him. "I'll find Scott, you get them out of here, get them to somewhere safe." He swallowed, forcing the lie out of himself. "I'll see you soon."

Kevin nodded, and pealed himself off the wall he was using for support. He went to the two passed out elementals, picking both of them up and with one last glance at Avi, headed towards the exit. With the power out, it wouldn't take too much to get the doors open. Avi was glad that Kevin was finally going to be able to see Outside. The real Outside.

Avi released a sigh and turned in the opposite direction, running away from the people he loved more than anything and towards the person he hated more than most. But that women had someone he loved, and he would do anything to get him back.

~*~

Avi was running around blindly, reaching out with his heart, trying to find the missing piece that was Air. It took him a while, but finally the empty spot was filled. Scott was close.

The feeling kept getting stronger and stronger the closer he moved, finally reaching a locked door. He mustered up all his energy and blasted open the door with his fire. It swung open, revealing a terrified Scott.

He was seemingly alone in the room, but the chains around his wrists connecting him to the wall told Avi different. That and the fact that Scott's eyes were as wide as saucers looking towards the corner of the room that Avi could not see.

"Madden," Avi growled out, stepping inside that room, and turning towards the corner that he knew the scientist was hiding in.

"Avriel," The scientist replied, her eyes never leaving him, but Avi was only focused on Scott, and all the terror that was bleeding from him.

"It's okay, Scotty," Avi said, smiling at the younger Elemental. "Everything is going to be okay, I'm going to get out out of here, everything will be okay?" Scott nodded, but tears still overflowed from his eyes and dripped down his face. It was then that Avi regretted everything he had said about the Elemental. He wished that he had never called him a coward, Avi wished that he could apologize for every mean thing he had said to Scott. He wished that he had time to do everything that he wanted to do. He wished that he could turn back time. He wished that he had supported Scott. He wished that he had tried to make everything up before this moment. He wished that he had tried harder to be there for Scott. There were many things he wished. There just wasn't enough time.

"Don't lie to him, Avriel," Madden snarled. "He should know that we are using him. He is our key to getting all of you back under our control. He is never going to be free again." Scott whimpered at Madden's words, and more tears fell from the brilliantly blue eyes.

"Don't listen to her, Scotty," Avi said, gazing into the younger Elementals eyes, trying to reassure him. "You're going to be just fine. I promise that you are going to get out of here. I promise that she will never hurt you again."

"Don't make promises you can't keep!" Madden growled. "You know nothing! Matthew is coming soon, and soon you will find yourself helping us control the very same Elementals that you think you can protect. You cannot protect anyone Avriel, you're just a teenager."

"Maybe," Avi sneered, turning his attention to the woman who had tortured him for years. The woman who taught him the meaning of the word hate. The woman who Avi wanted nothing more than to destroy. "But I am a teenager who can shoot fire from his hands, so who has the real advantage?"

"I cared for you!" Madden yelped, seeming to realize the true trouble she was in. "I mothered you! I am the closest thing you can call a mother."

"You never cared for me," Avi spit. "You experimented on me. You took me from people who would care me. You hurt me. You aren't anything close to a mother, not to me. I only see you as a monster." He smirked, feeling powerful and evil all at the same time. He wasn't sure he liked the feeling, but he knew what he was about to do Madden deserved. He needed to do this. "And I will enjoy destroying you."

He stared down the woman he hated. He stared at her, feeling his hands burst into flames. He was going to kill her, he knew this, and he prepared himself.

"Close your eyes Scotty," Avi said, sending a soft smile in the younger boy's direction. "You don't need to see this." The blond boy nodded, and shut his eyes, squeezing out a few tears as he did so.

With that action, Avi turned back towards Madden, his eyes darkening considerably as his whole arm was consumed by the flames. He smiled at her, the smile was a dark thing, as dark as Avi could muster.

"I'm going to kill you, you know." Avi said, taking a step towards the self proclaimed scientist. Towards the monster that had scarred him as a child, towards the person that the boy in the corner feared more than anything. He stepped towards the person that he was going to kill. But he didn't feel a hint of concern about what he was about to do. In his mind, this woman, Dr. Grace Madden, deserved everything he was about to do. And so he stepped forward again, knowing his eyes held only blazing fury, and for the first time, Madden actually looked scared.

"Please, Avirel," She pleaded, knowing what was about to come to her. "I promise that I will let him go, I'll make this up to you! Please!" Avi shook his head, and took another step towards the woman who ruined his life.

"Too late," He growled, and he threw his hands forward, the fire surrounding him burning her flesh as it came in contact with it. He burned a hole straight through the chest, scorching the wall that was behind her. He set the body aflame, and finally got himself back under control, turning off the fire that surrounded him. He then turned back to the chained Elemental.

"It's okay now, Scotty," Avi murmured, trying to sooth the younger boy, who was now sobbing with his eyes still tightly closed. "She's gone, nobody is going to hurt you anymore."

"Get me out of here," Scott cried, pulling weakly against the chains. "Please, get me out of here." Avi knelt down next to the younger boy, pushing the sweaty hair off his forehead, and taking his chained wrists into his own hands. With as much accuracy as Avi could muster, he burned through the metal that connected Scott to the wall, releasing him from this nightmare.

"Okay, Scotty," Avi said. "You're free, now promise me that you will get yourself out of this building. Promise me that you will find Kevin. Can you do that?" Scott nodded, his blue eyes were still full of tears. Avi embraced the younger Elemental, before urging him to run, but the boy didn't move.

"Why aren't you coming?" Scott asked, grabbing onto Avi's hand, ignoring the burns that Avi was inflicting on him. 

"I'll be right behind you," Avi said. "I just need to make sure nobody is following us." he swallowed, he didn't want to lie to Scott, it was the last thing he wanted to do, but he needed to get Scott out of there. "I promise." Scott nodded, and threw his arms around the older boy, before turning and fleeing the room that he had been trapped in. 

"Get him!" He heard a voice yell. Avi recognized it as Dr. Matthew Walter. The man Madden had warned Avi was coming. Avi took a deep breath preparing himself for what was to come. He need to protect the people he loved. The men surrounded him, grabbing onto his arms with gloved hands too keep Avi from burning them. They were restraining him, trying to control him. Avi released his breath and opened his eyes, watching the men who were attacking him. He took another breath, and searched the building for any presence of the other Elementals.

And once he was sure that his friends-- his family-- were safely outside of the building they had been trapped in for years, he did the one thing he promised himself that he would never do. He blew himself up.