The marble halls echoed with every step. A strange man with sharp ears walked and furrowed brows. His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles became pale.

His focus was on the large doors ahead, and he showed no care if he were to bump into anyone in his way. With one mighty push, he threw the doors open and was greeted by several sets of eyes. Beings of all shapes and sizes seated around a large oval table. They gazed upon him with a curious aura.

"Kalasraast," A woman spoke from the other end of the room. Where she was seated, it was clear that she ran the show. Even the way she addressed him sounded as if she demanded his respect. "You've finally graced us with your presence, oh Great Devourer."

"Silence, Empress." He snapped at her. "I've heard that you were given a lead on my daughter's whereabouts. I demand that you send me to find her."

The room was deathly silent, the others did not interfere with the two. None even dared to speak up. Though they were gods, there was still a hierarchy in this pantheon. And none questioned the Empress, for she was the Goddess of Life.

But Kalasraast did not care about the status and role of his peers. He simply wanted one thing.

The Empress stood from the comfort of her seat and glared at Kalasraast. "You have been quiet all these years, still you have the guts to talk back to me with such an attitude."

"Wouldn't you do the same if it was your daughter?"

"Yeah, I would. But no one is there to go against me. Now, if you have nothing else to add, go back to whatever hole you crawled out of. This only concerns us, not you."

He growled. "She is my flesh and blood! Of course, she is of my concern! You either tell me what you know or else-"

"Or else what!?" The room shook, no, the whole place felt the growing wrath of the Empress. "You have not contributed to Eden or our colonies! If anything, you and the Apex race haven't even given us anything back! We've offered so much for your kind, yet you didn't even pay a single debt!"

Kalasraast was silent as she lectured him.

"We allowed you to become part of our society. Shelter, food, and even knowledge! I am disappointed that you come here after years of hiding, just to make demands. You have no room to do so."

She returned to her seat, eyes still glaring at Kalasraast.

"I've given Justice the assignment. He is free to punish your daughter as he sees fit."

"I will not stand idle and wait for Justice to bring her back. I will do it myself."

The Empress sighed at his defiance. "Fine. But only for a price."

"Name it."

"Callisto's rogue champion had been spotted in Titan 6. We've already sent people to retrieve him, with Callisto's permission, of course. So I believe that if you help bring him back, then I will tell you of your daughter's location."

"And Justice?"

"I'll go tell him he's off the job until further notice."

"Very well, I will seek out the Champion of War and bring him back."

"See that you do, our reputation is on the line and we'd rather not lose the support of our followers. Especially now with the Bloody Tyrant on the move."

Kalasraast wanted to correct the Empress but knew the title of Bloody Tyrant was his daughter's identity now and forever. With the goal in mind, he ventured off to hunt down Crow.

"Well, with him gone," The Empress pushed herself to her feet. "I will be off now, still got a stream to start and a game to play."

"But we haven't talked about the growing demon sightings!" One god voiced his concerns.

"And? Let the Redeemers and the Sentinels deal with them. We can all worry about that when it reaches Eden or an important planet."

The Empress walked out of the room and entered a different hallway. A large window was to her right which gave her a grand view of the city below. Eden was a beautiful sight.

But she had seen the city several times. There was nothing more for her to be awe at. It had been so long since she had first settled on the planet. A mirror caught her attention just as she was about to move on. With one quick step, she was already inspecting her reflection.

She wasn't human in any way. Her skin wasn't pale, no, she was as white as snow. She ran a hand on her misshapen yet round head and caressed her horns. Despite being the Goddess of Life, her appearance did not fit her title. The only thing that was a different color was her green robes with golden accents. Aside from her clothes, she looked as if she came out of a sketch. Her outlines were as messy as the situation they were in. Some could even say that she belonged to a 2 dimensional plane.

There was even a cross on her face which became a symbol in Eden and represented her.

Once she was satisfied with some vanity, the Empress continued down the hall.

******

Everything was quiet at Cain's Diner. Jonah wore a look of disapproval which was focused on his friend, Ivory.

"Your face is gonna be stuck like that if you don't stop." Ivory wanted to lighten the mood, but she wasn't one for jokes.

"Now you're worried about me? Couldn't fool me."

"Jonah, don't be a child."

"You know you could've trusted us, right? Listen, we all knew the risks and what was at stake, with Evie forcing us into the job. Hell, it was all one big test for her in the end."

"I needed you boys to be at the top of your game, one small lie doesn't hurt anyone, Jonah."

"It hurts me," He said to her. "It really does, Ivo'. Nathan and I would've fought harder, and I wouldn't have been caught. I was cocky and thought I had the jump on him."

The two were silent for a minute before Ivory let out a small chuckle which turned into laughter. And Jonah followed her example soon after.

"Don't be so dramatic, Jonah. But you've convinced me, you and Nathan are responsible enough for me to trust and I was wrong to withhold information. You boys deserve to know what I know."

Jonah smiled as he finally got through with her. "Glad to hear that! Man, if you weren't listening I would've started to cry!"

"Pretending or actually?"

"Who knows? Hey, where's Nathan, anyway?"

"Nathan and the Gluttonous Maw wanted to get more information about his previous life. I told him not to go anywhere near the Tyrant, but he wouldn't listen."

Jonah glanced away dejectedly. "Can you blame him? Guy had been looking for so long. About three years now? Maybe more… We wanted to help him, right?" He looked over to Ivory and searched for an answer. "I mean, what kind of friends would we be if we don't help?"

"I know we promised to help out in any way that we can, but this is the Bloody Tyrant we're talking about. She paired us against Crow just to test us."

"Which we aced, greatly!" Jonah added.

"So I don't want Nathan to get caught up in any trouble. I worry about him, okay? You, mortals, are frail and squishy, I don't want to see the day I have to let you both go just yet."

Jonah fell silent once again. Ivory's words were heavy on his shoulders as he pondered about it.

The diner was strangely silent despite it being noon. As usual, there was a lack of customers. But today, the whole place was empty with the exception of Jonah and Ivory as well as Evie's two goons. The silent duo who had kept an eye on them ever since Nathan first interacted with Evie.

Scratch also barely left her station. It was as if she was hiding in her kitchen and away from Watcher and Bianca. Seemed to be so.

"How are your eyes?"

Jonah was pulled out of his thoughts. "Oh, well, they come and go. Really hurts to look at you when it comes back."

"What was the point of that?" Ivory wondered.

"I can see gods, for one, even Star Forged stuff. Hey, do you know a Sentinel called Hex?"

"I'm guessing that's the feral Sentinel you told me about. Yeah, but I last saw him after everyone went their separate ways. Don't really know him that well honestly."

"You guys don't die, right? What do you think that guy is doing in Vristan now?"

"Him and what I assume several bunches of Sentinels are probably just roaming the empty planet. Good thing too, I don't want to see them hurt anyone." Ivory said. "So they reverted to their previous form, huh? Damn shame."

Something caught Jonah's eye. "Hey, isn't that Evie right now?"

Ivory followed Jonah's gaze and found Evie outside. But something was different. Her long messy mane was shorter and tied into a ponytail. She dressed more professionally with a skirt and a blazer. Even had a tie and a pair of sharp glasses.

Evie held a clipboard in one hand and a pencil in the other. Jonah thought he could hear her scribbling away due to how silent the diner was.

Before they could even question it, Nathan swooped down from above with the Gluttonous Maw out and ready. The two watched as their friend sliced through Evie with ease.

Jonah and Ivory rushed out the moment Nathan attacked.

"What the hell, man!?" Jonah exclaimed. "What did you do!?"

"Oh," Nathan was out of breath and it took him a second to continue. "Hey guys, sorry about that, but she wanted me to take down as many as possible. Man, I hope Jimmy doesn't throw a fit with this."

"What do you mean!? You just killed someone out in the open unprovoked!" Ivory scolded.

"Your friend explained it as clearly as the current weather." Their attention shifted over to Evie who was scribbling down on her clipboard.

Jonah snapped back toward Nathan who towered over a corpse. Before anyone could ask, Nathan dashed over to Evie once again and rent her in two soon after.

"That will be all, subject Hound." Another Evie appeared, but this time she wasn't alone. With this Evie were a couple of her soldiers dubbed Scouts. "You've certainly earned your reward. And we appreciate you for allowing us to test your abilities."

"The heck is going on here?" Jonah asked aloud. "Why were there so many of you and-" Jonah couldn't finish his sentence as he watched the corpses crumble. As if they were never there, to begin with.

"Ah, I see you are curious about this situation you are in." Evie adjusted her glasses. "I am Eileen, Research Class. I help with Evie Prime's experiments and perform tests."

"She's a clone," Nathan said. "Evie has different kinds of clones with assigned jobs."

That explained why Eileen was different in several ways. She was far more composed and professional than Evie. It was as if this clone was a whole different person.

"Indeed," Eileen tapped her pencil against the clipboard. "We've assigned Nathan here to track and eliminate various Eileen clones spread throughout this section of the city. And we are truly baffled at how quickly he finished the task."

"No kidding," Nathan huffed as he finally relaxed. "Now, give me the damn thing."

Eileen snapped her fingers and one of the Scouts reacted. The Scout carried with them a large cylinder and handed it to Nathan. "As promised, for your outstanding results, we will allow you to have Phantom in your care until the order of their return is given."

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

Once done, Eileen produced a pamphlet which she offered to Nathan and his friends.

"Now, could I interest you in our Maids? Loyal, hard-working, and combat-ready. If you subscribe to our newsletter now, we will also add in our Tyrant Bundle which offers a personal Scout."

"We'll pass," Nathan said as he swiped the pamphlet from Eileen's hand. "I'm going home."

"Wait up!" Jonah called out as he went after Nathan with Ivory just behind him.

"Nathan, what is that?" Ivory inquired about the cylinder.

"It's the words! I convinced Evie to let me borrow it for a small test. They call it, Phantom."

Jonah quickly stole Phantom from Nathan and inspected it closer. "This? This was the tactical genius that helped you with the Midnight Witch? I don't know, it seems ordinary to me."

Suddenly, Jonah screamed and nearly dropped the cylinder on the pavement. Words started to appear in thin air. And the others saw it as well.

"Glad you took me away from her, even if it is just for a short moment." It wrote.

"Phantom," Nathan took back the cylinder. "Thanks again for helping me back then, I appreciate it. But I have some questions if you don't mind."

"Is this about your past, Hound? I can help if you'd like."

"Yeah, I was hoping you would do that!"

"Where do you want to begin? There are many things I know that would definitely help you out."

"First!" Nathan pulled Jonah into view. "This is Jonah Bloodfield, the nicest guy I know."

Jonah arched a brow. "Nicest? Nathan, I'm only nice to friends, I'm cruel to my enemies and passive to strangers. Calling me the nicest guy you know is kind of a false advertisement."

"And the tall lady over there is Ivory, a Sentinel."

"Pleasure to meet you, Phantom," Ivory said. She left no other comment.

By then, the group had already gotten back home to their apartment. On the way, they were greeted by Sally who was as cheerful as ever. But the moment they were close, something bothered her and she excused herself. The three weren't concerned about it. Lately, Sally had been in a hurry to be elsewhere. Especially when Watcher was around.

"So," Phantom was placed on the kitchen counter by Nathan, who had then gone on to retrieve a folder.

"Yeah, Evie rewarded us for that job we did for her, and she even gave me some information about me. I'm glad you could help me with this."

Jonah and Ivory watched as Nathan struggled a bit with Phantom. Seemed that he realized that the cylinder had no eyes to see. But lucky for him, Phantom pointed out that they had cameras to help them see.

"What do you know about these Gate schedules?"

Nathan pointed at a series of lists of Gates and different timestamps as well as some locations Nathan had not heard of.

"Some of those were missions off Scalfos. I should know, we were both partners before… Well, before you wanted to pair up with Jackie. Other than that, I'm unsure what those are."

"We worked together? Hold on, how come you don't hate me like the others?"

Phantom wrote ":)" for everyone. "We were friends, actually, if anything, we were like brothers."

"Woah, really!?" Nathan was honestly surprised that he had at least one friend among his old crew. It placed him at ease knowing that he wasn't as bad as they said. And above that, they discovered that Nathan had a friend within Evie's group. "I am so sorry that I don't remember you."

"It's fine, I'm just happy that you're safe."

"Hey," Jonah cut into the conversation. "What exactly did Hound do to Evie's goons?"

"What didn't he do?"

That sentence alone nearly shattered Nathan. He feared that his sins and wrongdoings would cause unwanted conflicts.

"Nathan was always prideful, everyone else but Evie was below him. You even challenged most of them in a duel only to win in the shadiest way possible. Jackie comes to mind, I have no clue what you did but she obviously didn't fight to win, just to lose. And in the end, she hates you the most."

"Sheesh, Nathan really dug a deep grave for himself there."

"Hound did." Nathan corrected. "Can I just… talk to them, Phantom?"

"Perhaps, but from what I witnessed back at Trusty's, they would most likely freeze you to death."

Jonah had noticed something. "Hey, isn't it a bad idea for us to have Phantom, if he could tell us about Hound's old crew? Heck, Evie would've been smarter to just keep him from us, but now we can ask for some of her secrets."

"This is what she wanted," Phantom informed them. "Nathan, the tests don't end. Evie will keep putting you in challenges again and again, and no doubt about it, she will throw one of her freaks at you."

The way he described them, it sounded as if Phantom held a grudge toward everyone that he used to work with.

"Say, I haven't watched a movie in a long time now." Everyone stared at the cylinder. "You bunch have any? Specifically; any comedies?"

"Oh, sure, we have a lot." Ivory went off to set up the television.

"So, are you like an Awakened?" Jonah asked as he and Nathan walked to the cough with Phantom in hand.

"He's a what?" Nathan asked as he was unfamiliar with such a title.

"You know, an Awakened? Like Sally." That didn't go through to Nathan as he was still confused. So Jonah explained further. "Robots who got souls. I was wondering if Phantom was like Sally."

"No, I'm not a machine," Phantom answered. "I used to be human, but due to an accident, I was placed inside this capsule. My body withered long ago, but my mind still lives."

As if to confirm his story, the capsule started to break apart. First, there was a sharp hiss, then the center opened up for all to see. This large cylinder hid something none of them expected.

A brain.

Tubes and wires ran about inside, as the organ floated in an unknown green liquid.

The two humans could not form any words. They simply stared with eyes widened as this revelation was revealed to them. A fate given to someone they met recently. And there was only one person to blame.

"I see you guys are shocked to see me like this. It's alright, most people would find talking to a brain a strange thing."

"No, it's fine," Jonah said. "We've seen a lot of weird stuff. Let's just watch a movie."

The four of them continued with their plans and set up a comedy for Phantom.

Though it showed in their faces that the fact concerned them, the movie went on without a hitch. But Phantom had made a strange request at some point several movies after. Phantom wanted to be left alone by the window which faced East. It was worrying at first when they placed him by the kitchen window.

But Phantom assured them that he'd be fine.

It was already dark out, and dinner was uneventful.

Nathan asked Phantom for his help when the group would investigate Nathan's past tomorrow. Phantom was eager to do so which made our spiky-headed hero glad. For now, everyone needed to rest. Ivory usually meditated by the entrance, but she instead wanted to do so elsewhere. None of them knew where she went, and none of them worried much.

With that, the two went to their respective beds, in this case, it was the couch for Jonah.

******

Nathan awoke in the middle of the night. He realized that he had seen no sight of Gluttony ever since they got home. It was quite dim in his room, the only source of light came from his window. Slowly, he checked the places Gluttony would be but found no trace of her. She wasn't on his clean clothes, not in the closet, and certainly not under his bed.

He was beginning to be worried, so Nathan called out her name only to be met with silence.

Step by step, the floor creaked. The only noise other than his breathing.

Crept up to the door, Nathan realized the lights that slipped through under the door. Not just that, but a shadow went by every few seconds.

It was strange, there was no sound from the other side, yet Nathan felt a dangerous presence. There was something wrong. With the idea of a threat within their home, Nathan burst through the door. Only to find himself somewhere else. This wasn't his apartment, no, this was somewhere worse. A place he hated the most.

Only darkness surrounded him with the only light coming from a nearby fire. The air was thick which was almost suffocating.

The stench of iron assaulted him, and he felt the rust beneath his feet. This place, this was that prison he woke up in.

Something brought him back to this parking lot beneath the earth. Where the sun could not reach, and monsters and beasts alike resided. Worse of all, he was unarmed.

A sudden shift in the shadows caught his attention, which prompted Nathan to reach for his knife. Unlike then, he had sharpened it. But his skill with it was still questionable.

The silence was painful, so much so that it felt as if he was already deaf.

Only when this creature surrendered its safety in the shadows that a sound was made. A sharp gasp courtesy of Nathan.

It was no beast, not even a mutant that lay hidden beneath their feet. No, the creature that escaped the shadows was himself. It was strange to see his own face not reflected in a mirror. And the strangest part was that deep scowl on him.

"Who are you?" He asked.

The man with his face did not answer. Instead, he rushed at Nathan with inhuman speed. Nathan dodged the imposter just as he was about to land a strike. Instincts kicked in and Nathan pulled his knife down at them.

But the imposter proved to be just as quick.

Luckily, it seemed to show them that Nathan was ready for a fight, so they backed off to the edge of the light. This time his scowl was replaced with a manic smile.

They finally spoke. It didn't surprise Nathan that it was his voice that came out of their lips. They did steal his face as well. What didn't make sense was the gibberish that came out of them. It was as if they were trying to tell Nathan something. Once he was silent again, that scowl of theirs returned.

With that, the imposter slid back into the shadows, and Nathan was once again alone. But once they were gone, the shadows started to crawl. For each passing second, the darkness grew. It was then Nathan realized that the door behind him was nowhere in sight, and he was cornered by the oppressing dark.

It all caved in as he was consumed by the abyss.

It was painless.

Until the light slightly burned his eyes. There was no darkness, and he wasn't back in that forsaken place. No, Nathan was home, and in his bed. And by his side was Gluttony who was curled up like a ball.

It was a dream after all. So much had happened the past few days, and it would seem that the stress was getting to him.

"Rust," Gluttony murmured as she stirred a little. "So much, rust."

He smiled warmly and placed a comforting hand on her. A nightmare shared between them. Something he realized now was that by the end of it all, he was never alone.

******

"You have reached your destination!" The intercom announced as the group exited the Gate train. "Welcome to Titus!"

It was no different than their home, everything looked as if they had never left the planet. But despite that, Nathan and Jonah were in awe of the city before them. Everything and everyone was busy with their day. The place was as grand as any, and the population was practically crowded.

This Gate station was packed with all sorts of people. From the smallest human to the biggest machine.

And just as soon as they exited the trains, hundreds more entered. Before Nathan knew it, the train they rode in was gone. The Gate was an amazing invention which connected worlds across the stars. And it was all thanks to Umbra, Goddess of Space.

"Titus…" Jonah muttered. "Hey, what is Titus famous for?"

Nathan was there to illuminate, thankfully. "I've read that this planet imports the most lemons out of all the other planets. They produce over billions and only a small percent is kept while the rest is sold."

"Well, that's an interesting fact. Wait, how about Ivory's home, Earth?"

"No clue, I only know Earth through religion. Also, did you know Igneous, our world, is famous for the biggest statue of Queen Midas in the galaxy? Made of solid gold too."

"Our? I'm not from Igneous," Jonah told him. "We aren't sure if you're from there either. If anything, you probably lived in Scalfos before all this."

"That sounds terrifying." Nathan shuddered at the thought. "Who'd even live on that planet deliberately?"

"I mean, to be fair, I heard the slaves over there had health care."

"What are you two talking about!?" A Martian popped out of nowhere. It would've been strange for them to just cut into the conversation, but in truth, this was Gluttony in her disguise. Despite being greatly shorter than the average Martian, no one seemed to bat an eye. "Is it about my awesome costume? I am indeed a genius, and you both should praise me for it!"

"I like your Teddy bear one better," Nathan commented.

"Children kept trying to steal me with that one."

"Why didn't you bring the box instead?" Jonah asked.

"I wanted to stretch my legs this time! I can't always be carried, you know." To which Gluttony answered.

Before they could continue, Ivory finally arrived with a couple of duffel bags.

"Jonah, why the heck did you bring so many guns with you? I had to jump through a lot of hoops just to keep them. Bad enough they thought Phantom was a bomb, I almost got a visit from Darwin."

"Who?"

"Someone a Sentinel wouldn't want to see ever again." Her claim was ominous enough for the two to question no further. "Anyway, please bring only one, especially if we're carrying Phantom around."

"Sorry if my capsule is oddly bomb-shaped."

"You don't need to apologize, Phantom." Nathan assured him. "We still got a day ahead of us, so let's focus!"

"I remember this!" Phantom wrote. "You were sent here to recruit a potential agent."

"Guess we're on the right path!" Nathan said as he felt triumphant.

He had written down everything he needed in a notebook so he wouldn't get lost. With that in hand and the help of Phantom, the group ventured off into the city.

It was different from their home back in Igneous. In simpler terms, everything was cleaner. The air was fine and crisp, and the scene was almost picture-perfect. Bustled with life, the city felt alive. They noticed that a lot of street sweepers zoomed by every few minutes, which cleared both the road and sidewalk of any dust and litter. Perhaps that was one of the benefits of being one of the biggest producers of fruits, lemons specifically. Or simply that this city was far more determined for a better future.

Now that they noticed it, there was far more police presence around. Which reminded them of Jimmy.

"Oh, Jimmy!" Jonah exclaimed. "We didn't explain what happened back at the diner."

"Scratch can fill him in," Ivory reassured them. "He always knows who to ask first."

"We're here!" Gluttony announced to the world.

A small building located just next to a restaurant. The name "Gerald's Inn" was on top of the building, which matched the restaurant next to it, which was named "Gerald's Resto". A little strange since they could have just made a single sign for both. But none of them commented on it since they were more interested in Hound's activity. Not many people seemed to be around, but it was still early in the morning, which explained the lack of customers.

The four then entered the inn. Jonah was at the front of the group, his duffel bag of guns rattled as he eyed the place. They were caught off-guard by the cozy aura of the lobby which earned it an impressed whistle from Jonah. It was as if they were in a cabin in the woods. There was even a fake window which displayed a nice and serene forest for them to immerse in. Ivory felt relaxed as well, it seemed that the decorations were effective with the Sentinel.

"Excuse me?" Jonah rang a bell. "Hello?"

From the back came a man older than Jonah and Nathan. He was short and round, with a bit of a receding hairline, but he had more hair on his face.

"Hey there, welcome, I'm Gerald! Didn't expect any visitors to my inn today! What can I do for you folks?"

Jonah placed some credits on the counter. "Yeah, friends and I are looking for someone, and we'd like to ask you a few questions."

One might have accepted the offered cash, but not this man. Gerald took a step back the moment Jonah tried to bribe him. "I don't know what your deal is, but whatever trouble you're carrying around, I don't want any part of it."

"Come on, we won't cause any problems, just help us out here."

Before Ivory could even add something, Gerald had just noticed Nathan by the entrance who was busy with a taxidermy of a beaver. "YOU!" He exclaimed with a finger raised.

Nathan realized the attention was on him, so he briskly walked over to the innkeeper. "Hey, my friends and I are looking for-"

"You have some nerve showing your face here, Lucas!"

"What? No, I'm Nathan, Nathan White."

"Is this some joke you're playing!? Because I'm not laughing. Get out of my inn, right now! Or else I'll call the police!"

"Sir, we just need some ans-"

"I said get out-" Gerald silenced Nathan, but he himself found that he couldn't speak as well. The cause was simply that Jonah held Gerald at gunpoint.

"Jonah!" Ivory scolded. "Put that damn thing down, now!"

"Nah, shoot him!" Gluttony said. "He ain't gonna give us the dough, so better off blasting through his skull!"

"You, shut up!"

Jonah smirked. "For once, the shorty is right, if he ain't gonna talk, might as well move on."

"L-Lucas, we can talk! We can talk!"

"Jonah, that's enough." Nathan told him before he faced Gerald. "Listen, I'm not Lucas, I'm…" There was a pause for a second, as Phantom had written a message to Nathan. "I'm his twin, Nathan."

"You are?" Gerald's voice cracked. "I… What do you want?"

"We're looking for Lucas, he went missing a few years ago and we've been following his tracks."

Once he was convinced, Gerald relaxed. "Twin, eh?" He huffed disappointedly. "I'm sorry for you losing your brother, but Lucas was a real piece of work."

"I understand my brother was quite the character. He was here for a few months, so we kinda want to see if you know anything else."

Gerald scowled as he crossed his arms. "I'll tell you what I know. Lucas had my daughter all excited for her biggest day ever! We had it all prepared! The catering was paid for, the guests were seated, and my beautiful girl wore her mother's wedding dress! But what do you know? Lucas bailed on her! He left my daughter at the altar, and was never seen again!"

"Oh, that's… that's definitely terrible."

"Terrible, alright! We all loved him at first, but after that stunt, everyone in the family wants him dead! Oh, yeah, you better not leave yet so I can tell the others that you aren't Lucas."

"Well, let me just say that I'm very sorry for my brother's actions and I would like to make it up for you if I can." Nathan said. "Oh, and also, sorry for Jonah threatening you like that, we're just tired after a long search."

"I get it, if it was my brother I'd probably do the same."

"Anything else?" Ivory inquired. "Anything we can use?"

Gerald cupped his chin as he was deep in thought. "Well, he and I were drinking one time, and he got a little too tipsy that he started talking about some gal. At first, I was worried, but apparently he hated her. Something about being a poor pick?"

"Any names?" Nathan asked further.

"Bell… something… Miss? Bell Miss?"

"Bella Smith?" Jonah guessed.

"Yeah, that's it! He really hated her, and I have no clue as to why. Once that guy starts, he just goes on and on. Other than that, I have nothing else to add. Oh, wait! He used to teach in Midway High, just down a few streets."

"Lucas? A teacher?" Jonah was amused by the fact. He gave Nathan a sly smirk along with Gluttony.

"Thanks for the information," Nathan said as he ignored the mocking look the others sent his way.

"Hey, if you ever see your brother, kindly give him a good punch in the arm for me." Gerald said.

"Why wait? Nathan is already here." Jonah suggested mischievously. He suggested hitting Nathan now while Gerald had the chance.

"Nah, you seem like a good kid, Nathan, better than Lucas. I'd rather not punish the innocent." Gerald was kind, and it made Nathan feel some regret for the actions of his past self. "Anything else you folks need?"

"Yeah, do you have a room for three? The Glu-" Ivory caught herself before she uttered Gluttony's true name. "Gilda could share a bed with Nathan."

"Oh, yeah! Not many people would book a room around this time of the year. Drop by the restaurant if any of you are hungry."

Jonah shivered a little. "Hey, can you turn down the AC? It's getting a little chilly here."

Nathan was about to agree when he noticed his own breath clouding up on his face. The air was so condensed that he could see vapor. The others soon realized that something was out of place. That's when something collided with Ivory and slammed her against the counter.

Ivory was quick to recover and retaliated. She caught the attacker by the throat, it was a small person, yet they were strong enough to stagger Ivory as if it was nothing. Before anyone could question it, Ivory tossed her attacker across the room where they crashed into the wall with a very audible splat.

That's when they saw her, Jackie, who stood by the entrance. Ice formed around her feet as she was motionless. A strange cold feeling crept up to them as time went on. As soon as the danger presented itself, Nathan and the others armed themselves for a fight.

Jackie grimaced at them, with pale blue eyes glared at one man only. It seemed that whatever grudge she held against Hound fueled the fire within her frozen heart. And as Nathan and his friends prepared for a fight, Jackie herself started to pull her gloves off. Her hands were much bluer than the rest of them.

A cold wind slammed into them and they felt the chills crawl up their backs.

***