Matthias was confused. Kafka's magic had always weirded him out, but what he had just done confused him even more.

"Okay, so..." he finally said, his eyes still fixed on the ground as they walked. "Explain to me what the hell you even did."

Kafka spat out a sigh before he cleared his throat. "So... The soul is malleable or whatever. Since I am capable of molding the soul however I see fit, I chose to mold it into some kind of unnecessary anger. Y'see... Instead of the usual physical/meta-physical molding that I do, I went deeper. Kind of into the mind, I guess. But that's not really my specialty, so it became undone in a couple of minutes. So thank Alonso for that bad idea."

"Hey, it was a great idea," Alonso said. "Because it's just that. An idea."

Matthias paused. "Okay, but... Okay." He sighed. "But why?"

"Quit dragging your feet and hurry up," his brother ordered.

Matthias nodded and scurried forth.

They walked in a straight line, with Alonso in the front. Kafka stood in the middle and Matthias dragged himself from the back. The three were brothers. And just like everyone else on that godforsaken realm... They were after the God Crystal.

That "commotion" they produced among the Hunters was all part of an intricate and expectedly useless plan "orchestrated" by Alonso. The eldest brother.

All of his ideas were put into action at his command. And it was all executed by Kafka.

They all wore similar clothing. All black clothes, topped with a brown robe that Alonso had stolen for each of them. Kafka knew it was a horrible look, but as usual, he didn't care.

Kafka was the tallest and slenderest of the group, standing a few whole inches above his brothers. His hair was dark and curly and drooped over his forehead. He had darkened circles under his eyes and sunken cheeks, all with his pale and cold skin.

Unbefitting of his general appearance, his eyes were very much alive. His irises were amber and glimmered when under sunlight.

The trio kept on walking through the forest until Alonso halted.

That was his self-enacted role as the older brother. The "leader", he called himself. He gave strange orders and came up with even stranger plans to achieve their goals.

Well, his goals.

Kafka followed because he simply didn't care enough to object or speak his mind. As for Matthias... Well, the bright-eyed and optimistic young man wanted to stay with his brothers no matter what. He still retained the belief that his brothers knew what they were doing.

"We should rest here for a bit. Besides, we need to discuss the new plan I've been working on."

Matthias nodded with excitement and a slight smile, while Kafka swallowed the urge to sigh. Alonso was already thirty years old but he hadn't changed at all from when he was ten.

Unable to restrain it, Kafka spat out a sigh as he threw down the bag he held around his shoulder.

"This is a good spot for a picnic, actually," Matthias muttered.

Kafka stared at him. "You've said that about half the spots we've seen."

"That's just because Vanaheim is an incredibly nice place."

Alonso cleared his throat and interrupted his brothers. He sat down on a pale stone and motioned his brothers to do the same. Kafka couldn't find a rock suitable enough to sit on so he plopped himself down onto the ground.

"I hope you two understand the truth of the matter," Alonso said, staring at them, meeting them both with his gaze. "The truth is... We're unstoppable. Not individually, however."

Kafka's dull gaze shited down onto the dirt. 'Speak for yourself, dumbass.' He was already tired from what he had to endure on their journey. And there was still much to overcome.

But it'll be worth it. All for the God Crystal. That's what he reminded himself.

"We're only unstoppable... together. Think about that."

After ten seconds that Alonso had given them to 'think about it', the eldest brother spoke once again. He crossed his legs and smiled, staring at his brothers. "Now then," he said, crossing his legs as he sat.

"Here's our next course of action."

- - - - -

"Oh God, she's adorable!" Anya cackled as soon as her eyes met Morgana's. Morgana swallowed her saliva and instinctively grabbed the edge of Alexander's sleeve. She stared up at the blonde Hunter. Anya's eyes were wide, just like her smile.

It had taken about ten minutes for the fire to die down (metaphorically and literally) and for the Hunters to regroup in peace and quiet. As soon as they did, Anya rushed over to thank the one who had saved her.

Alexander stood by Anastasia and the others, but Anya's focus shifted almost instantly to the tiny Asgardian girl beside him.

Anya was in her twenties, just like most of the other Hunters. She had dirty blonde hair that cascaded past her shoulders and back. Her eyes were no longer contorted with darkness and fire. Now, they were simple and human, hazel and glimmering as she smiled.

Even after the scorching conflict, Anya was still beautiful.

She ruffled Morgana's hair and laughed once again as she was met with Morgana's apathetic response.

"So... What's your name?" she asked, lowering herself and crouching down to her level, meeting Morgana's black eyes.

Morgana remained silent.

Alexander lowered himself a bit and whispered to her. "Morgana, are you not gonna..."

The Asgardian child shook her head. "Yeah, fair enough," Alexander said, a thin smile spreading across his lips. "Her name's Morgana. She's... six years old. And she's not on Vanaheim by her own will, so we're taking her to Midgard."

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Anya was still fixated on Morgana.

"Seems like a complicated situation," she said, still smiling. Anya finally stood upright and faced Alexander.

She took in a deep breath and spoke. "Thank you." Anya grabbed Alexander's wrist and brought his hand up to shake it. And as their hands shook, Alexander responded.

"Yeah, no problem. I-"

Anya interrupted, "Oh, I'm not done yet."

"Oh."

Her gaze was passionate yet sincere as her eyes met Alexander's. She still shaking his hand at this time. "I'm sorry," she told him.

After Joseph explained the situation, it was obvious how Alexander had done the most. To be fair, he was the only one who could do anything. Still, she thanked him and apologized.

"Well, you weren't really in control of what you were doing, so it's fine."

Anya smiled once again. "You're even an understanding person, too!" she remarked. "You're just awesome, dude!"

Alexander didn't know how to respond to that.

"I'm sorry if I'm acting weird," Anya proclaimed. "I'm feeling pretty delirious, to be honest. Don't tell anyone that; if you do, they'll worry. That's the last thing I need," she said, letting out a light chuckle as she sighed.

Alexander squinted and gave a slight nod, before finally pulling his hand from the Hunter.

"So, uh..." he finally said. "What exactly happened?" he asked.

Anya spat out a sigh and threw herself onto the ground. Once sitting, she looked up and stared at Alexander. "This one guy just ran out of the forest. He was wearing some black and brown clothing. Kinda looked like a homeless man."

She continued, "It isn't protocol to attack someone right off the bat... But even when he killed someone, none of us were able to touch him. He slid through the air and dodged practically everyone's attacks. It was then that he touched him. Just the palm of his hand. I don't remember anything specific after that. What I do remember... is that you punched me. I've never wanted to be punched... But if I'm glad you're the one who punched me."

Again, Alexander didn't know how to respond to that.

Instead, he decided to focus on what she had said before that. The man who attacked the group. It was possible that the man was with the Golden Dawn. If the presence he slightly sensed was one of them...

Alexander rubbed his chin as he pondered that possibility. The Golden Dawn was everywhere across Vanaheim.

As Alexander stood and thought, Morgana looked up at him. She stared back down at the ground and copied his movements, stroking her chin in silence and mimicking his disposition. Alexander smiled as soon as he noticed that.

He turned to the side and faced the forest, where he had first sensed that presence, that singular feeling. Alexander still didn't know what to say, whether to console her over the fact that two of her comrades were killed, or reassure her that everything was alright now, or anything like that.

Alexander simply grit his teeth. "That guy's probably still on Vanaheim. In all likeliness, he's after the God Crystal, same as us. So if... If he tries anything again... we'll just stop him. That's just how it is," he said.

Anya smiled in return. She turned to the side as the Hunters gathered around Joseph. Just like always, he stood on a stone or any higher level as he addressed them. That unnecessary act always made her smile.

From just a few meters away, his commanding voice was loud enough for them to hear, even as he wasn't shouting. "Okay, so we have good news and bad news," Joseph said.

Thiago spat out a sigh. He didn't want Joseph to waste time addressing his fellow Hunters, so he interrupted with the information he already knew. "We're less than three kilometers from that one town we're supposed to get to," he told them. "From there, we're on our way to the God Crystal."

Joseph smiled and nodded. "Exactly right, Alexander. Now!" he shouted, clapping his hands. "Onto the bad news..." His smile quickly faded. "Our ship burned down. No one decided to protect it from the fire. But that includes me, so it's understandable."

The Hunters stared at him in silence and groaned collectively.

"Hey, it's not that bad," Joseph said. "Like Thiago said, we're just a bit away. If anything, we'll just steal a boat. It's not that hard. Essentially... we got this. Am I right or am I right?"

And with that, Joseph hopped off his makeshift podium and rushed over to Anya.

She immediately got up and wrapped her arms around him. Strangely, they had hugged half a dozen times over the past ten minutes.

As she pulled herself away, Jospeh spat out a hearty sigh. He reached into his trenchcoat and pulled out a crumpled carton of cigarettes.

Anya immediately interrupted his actions. "No," she said. "I'm not letting you smoke in front of a child."

Joseph spat out a sigh. Still, he smiled. He pulled himself closer to Anya and kissed her on her forehead. They both smelled horrible, but... it was worth it.

Still, Morgana cringed at the sight. "Ew."

"Exactly, Morgana," Alexander said, still staring at Joseph and Anya. "Ew."

Over the next dozen minutes, the Hunters departed. Even though night had already descended onto Vanaheim, the glowing moon kept the realm's lands still bright.

And in just a matter of hours, the sun would rise again. Even with that incident, they were still on track. On the matter of the time, at least. But that was what mattered. The sooner they get the crystal, the sooner they get to leave.

As the group trekked through the forest (as they have been doing for many days), Anya slowed down and walked beside Anastasia. "So..." she muttered. "Alexander Lane, huh?"

"Huh?"

"You're with him, right? Like in general. You came to Vanaheim with him?"

Anastasia only nodded in response.

"So... Who is he? The same question goes for you, as well. You guys are just kids. And Alexander did stuff that only a high-ranking magician would be capable of. In fact, it's more than just magic. Excellent judgment, execution, even mobility. He's a strong kid. And if you're with him, it means you're the same way."

Anastasia finally chuckled. "No. We're not the same. I'm nothing like Alexander, especially not in the ways you mentioned. I'm normal. He's... Well, he's what you described him to be. I don't know how he always figures it out but... He always finds the right way to get this done."

Staring at the ground, Anastasia continued. "Just like today... He realized smashing the ground apart seemed to work. The energy suddenly shifted and moved around to maintain itself, and through that, I ended up being able to make a Connection. He was able to save you because of that."

Anya smiled as Anastasia finally looked up, looking back at her.

"...He's just weird like that," Anastasia explained.

"Uh-huh."

"What?" she asked Anya.

As Anya and Anastasia spoke, Alexander and the others were treading ahead. And just like that, the group stopped.

The forest ended just a few feet away. And past that... was the hill's dropoff. All that stood between them and the city was a downhill slope of grass.

As close as they were, Joseph still froze and stared outward at the city. With the light of Vanaheim's many moons, each of them could see the port town and the vast lake that stood behind it.

None of them had to see to know what was past that. Another river and another lake. And there...

There was the God Crystal.

"There it is..." Joseph mumbled to himself. "The beauty of port cities. Free trade."

Alexander stared down at the glowing city.

It looked nothing like any of the cities they had seen on Vanaheim. Steel structures, brick buildings, and a general array of colors and materials were seen in just the first buildings in sight. Compared to the wooden and stone edifices that were so common, this...

'This is much better.'

"Alright, y'all..." Joseph began. "Let's begin the descent."

Alexander nodded and followed the Hunters. Just as they had begun to tread down the hillside, a pillar of light burst into the sky. From hundreds of yards away, the brilliant golden glow burned like the sun and illuminated the entire area.

Morgana instinctively grabbed hold of Alexander, just as he spun and faced the side. His eyebrows were furrowed and his thoughts were racing.

'Is this an attack?'

'That's a lot of energy. It feels familiar.'

'If it was an attack, it wouldn't have burst like that.'

'Is that a signal?'

'Is that...'

His eyes widened and his face lit up. "That's Lumiel!" he shouted as he turned to Anastasia.

"Huh?!"

"That's her energy! It's a signal!" he shouted. "Remember? Since we're separated, they're finally using the signal Archibald told us about! This means they're close by!"

Even as the pillar of light faded, Anastasia's eyes were still widened. Lumiel's magic was always a distinct color of light. Not just gold or yellow, but almost a golden white. That's how Lumiel described it, at least.

And that was the same color as that 'signal'. Anastasia grinned as she gripped her wand.

She had to send a signal back, after all. Anastasia took in a deep breath and raised her wand to the sky, preparing herself to unleash pure lightning.

At that same second, Joseph grabbed Alexander by his shoulder. He shouted, "Alexander, what's going on?!"

Alexander's crooked smile was still strewn across his face.

"Our friends. They're what's going on."