They had arrived at a grand library.

Rows upon rows of books took up the space showcased in the doorway. They stepped in. Tables lined the center of the carpeted room, while the walls were covered with more books. The shelves branched out from the left and right walls like tongs from a pitchfork, offering more space for the numerous books. A couple beanbags lay scattered across the room, and a little windowed nook in the wall provided a view of the outside sky. Altogether, it took up at least three times the space of any living quarters.

"This place has its own library," Josh said, craning his neck around to take it all in. "I don't know why that surprises me."

"I'm more surprised you haven't been sent here for schoolwork," Mara said. "The book we want should be over here."

A couple of teens, including a guy that Josh had classes with, poured over books at the tables. They glanced up for a moment to watch Josh and Mara walk over to the left section of the library. His classmate smirked at their still interlocked hands before returning to his book.

Josh looked down at their hands as well. The butterflies returned, but none of the nerves touched his lips as he smiled.

Mara peered at the books, lips pursed. A plaque declared they were in the Historical section. She trailed her fingers across the book spines in a subcategory another plaque called Wars and Battles. The books varied in titles and languages. Just how much unknown history did the dragons have to require so many books?

"Found it!" She slipped a medium-sized book off the shelf. It showed a human staring up at the sky, where two dragons spat fire at each other.

A History of Dragonic Battles, the text declared. The book Imani had mentioned.

Mara took the book to an empty table. She slipped her hand out of Josh's and started thumbing through the pages.

He flexed his hand. The leftover warmth somehow made him colder. Rubbing his hand against his jeans, he leaned over her shoulder to see the book. The smell of berries and grass wafted off her hair.

You have issues, Boomer mumbled.

You're just jealous I'm not smelling your hair. Not like Boomer had hair, which Josh waited for him to point out. When his dragon said nothing in response, Josh frowned. Wait, are you actually—

"Finally," Mara said. "It would help if all the chapters didn't have such dramatic titles." She brushed her hands over the page. "Elohim and Sheol."

Josh studied the page. Time had dulled the edges, but the painting it depicted was vivid shades of bright gold and deep purple, as if night and day themselves battled for dominance of the page. It mirrored the format of the cover, but with humans as a minor focus. Mere silhouettes clashing in the midst of the fiery battlefield.

The most prominent feature of the piece was the two dragons circling each other in the sky. The one on the left seemed to shine with its sleek silver scales. Something about the way the scales molded together gave the appearance of armor, but on its wings, the scales overlapped, more like feathers. Spikes jutted out from its head and trailed down its spine, forming a small ball of spikes on its tail.

Where the silver dragon seemed like a controlled force, the black dragon on the right screamed its chaotic intensity. Crevices spread across its black scales, red flames glowing within them in most places. In others, the fire blazed, erupting from the cracks. The cracks at its shoulders and elbows produced fiery spikes. The dragon opened its fanged maw, a glowing blaze threatening to burst out.

"Elohim and Sheol?" Josh whispered. It was hard to believe anyone could capture them on page if so. He had seen dragons, but these ones still felt far from reality.

Mara nodded. "Yes, this is them. And this"—she pointed at writing on the next page—"will explain what they were talking about in the office. I learned about it in History, but I was so convinced it would never affect the present that it feels faint now."

Her finger darted around the page as she skimmed its contents, her brows knit together. Josh had barely finished the first paragraph when Mara reached the end.

"About nine hundred years ago, Sheol and his bonded human, Lucien, started absorbing dying dragon souls to increase his power. He gained ten times the power any Shadow Knight or Phoenix Dragon should have. Logard, the then Paladin leader and the human bonded to Elohim, came together with ten other warriors to fight against them. But they were unable to kill Lucien with his increased power, and instead they gave their lives so Logard could create seals to lock Lucien and Sheol away."

As she spoke, Josh's eyes drifted to a picture on the right edge of the page. Ten figures channeled different colors toward a silver-enveloped figure while a final silhouette stood off to the side, a black-red energy around it.

"Each seal is located in a pocket dimension between the Soul Realm and Energy Realm," Mara continued, "and it is protected by a temple around it. If these seals are broken, Lucien and Sheol will be released. The seals also strengthen the barrier between realms, which Lucien tried to destroy. That would explain why possessions stopped and breaches decreased."

"It took ten people giving their lives to lock him away, and they're trying to get him out?" The words punched Josh in the gut. He had thought before how powerful the dragon must have been. The more he learned, the worse it hit.

"Trying, yes," Mara replied. "But thanks to Xander and the Shadow Knights' own actions, we know. Which means we can stop them."

And save Xander and Eli in the process, Boomer added, mirroring Josh's own thoughts.

Josh nodded, staring at the black dragon in the picture. Only a few days ago, everything had been normal. Now, the Paladin world was at risk, with his brother at the center of the conflict. How could things go wrong so quickly?

Something tickled in the back of Josh's mind. He and Mara jolted upright at the same time.

Everyone, this is Ioana Hatzis once again. I need all Paladins to report to the Sanctuary courtyard once more, unless they have immediate protection to provide.

Josh shivered as Ioana's voice repeated the words four more times in his mind. "Do you ever get used to that?"

Mara chuckled. "You act as if we have ever needed all-Paladin communication before last night. Let me put this book away really fast."

She did just that, and then they were on their way to the courtyard,hand-in-hand once more. Few others had arrived before them. Ioana occupied thesame table she had before, but this time she sat and had Imani as company.

Josh's mom and dad waited at another table. He hooked a thumb toward them. Mara nodded, and they walked to his parents. His mom raised an eyebrow at their interlocked hands while his dad smiled victoriously.

"You know what this is about?" his dad asked.

Josh shrugged. "A plan maybe?" Hopefully. Twelve hours had never felt so long.

The courtyard filled more quickly this time. According to his parents, a lot of unfamiliar faces had taken up residence in the nearby rooms.

Makes sense for people to hang out, Boomer said. Everyone would want to be quick to get more information.

I wish they'd get in here quicker though. Josh leaned back against the table, scanning the growing crowd.

The Michaels walked into the area. Jonathan and Elisa appeared more tired now than when they had been dragged from their sleep earlier. Whatever expression Cale wore warped the moment he spied Josh and Mara.

He glowered at their hands. Josh glared back, resisting the urge to childishly stick his tongue out. Should have expected the instant disapproval from the king of Sourville.

Josh spent the next few minutes explaining to Boomer that no, Cale wasn't a king and Sourville wasn't a real place, only interrupted when a sharp whistle cut through the courtyard.

All eyes swiveled back to Ioana. She now stood on her feet. On this side of her peering gaze, Josh shuddered. Why did she ever need to fight when her gaze alone pierced everything?

"It would seem that the Shadow Knights are slowly releasing Sheol by breaking the seals keeping him bound," Ioana announced.

The tension spiked as the warmth drained from the room. People shared shocked looks, and even if some showed subtle signs of puzzlement, the fear of what they did know overwhelmed it.

"Doing so allowed him to influence people here, but we believe that he will not be able to do so again since he became so exhausted he lost control of those he was influencing," Ioana continued. "To further ensure this, Joel is working with Jodas to strengthen the Sanctuary barrier."

"Then did Sheol create the portal through which they took Xander and Eli?" Hisato asked.

Ioana's brows pinched together. "No, we do not believe so. Nobody can create portals to the Sanctuary, and Peter mentioned something about loopholes. Our current theory is that the Sage traitor with the Shadow Knights could create a portal out of the Sanctuary, but not into it. This, though, will also be prevented by strengthening the barrier.

"That said, our plans extend past just strengthening the barrier, as doing so won't save Xander or the boy. The Shadow Knights no longer reside in their base, so we will stake out any possible entrances to a seal with the Sage's help while others continue searching for their new stronghold, and when they make their move... We get our leader back."

Most in the courtyard cheered, empowered by the prospect of having a plan. Josh wished he could cheer, but instead he found himself examining Ioana's face. She had delivered her words with confidence and courage. As everyone turned to discuss with each other, though, doubt crept around the edges.

This mission required them to get lucky. The right place would have to be staked out at the right time. An iffy plan at best.

But it was the best they could do, and it would work. Josh gave it no other choice. They were going to save his baby brother.

Fun Fact: The background with Sheol and Elohim and the sealing is based on an actual game of Mighty Dragons my brother and I did. The last one, I believe, and has sense been expanded by a Mighty Dragon DnD I am eventually supposed to write. He named the leader Nogard. I changed the N to an L to try and make sure it wasn't so obviously dragon backwards... He is worse at naming than I used to be.

So we are finally getting answers! The sealed evil trope may be a tad overused, but hope I can deliver it in a unique and fun way ;) Also, yes the Paladins' plan for help is pretty lame... I will so 100% be improving that next draft.  On a side note, this was my first time truly picturing and putting to words how Sheol and Elohim appear, and I hope it came off as epic as it was in my head U^.^

Let me know your thoughts on the chapter down below, and if you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote and comment! I also have a discord open to anyone who wants to join, and we have a section there to discuss the book :D It's in my bio if you'd like to join!