Scarlett stared blankly at the empty TV. She couldn't sleep taking the excuse to keep watch for the remains of the evening. Her mind, of course, was far too preoccupied on the current events and what must happen next. She jumped at Alton's snoring which she couldn't help but chuckle at. It was the small things which would distract her for a short moment just to see Alton finally getting some rest. She kneeled down, stroking his hair sighing.

"He looks adorable, no?" Scarlett jumped up as Riley sat on the balcony spinning around a small knife. "Don't look so surprised. We knew this would happen."

Scarlett stared her sister down smirking. "Then you know you're an idiot. All I have to do is wake up Alton and Zinnia, and now it's three against one."

"You could do that. But you won't." She exclaimed. "We haven't had a conversation in a little while it's almost Christmas a time to spend with family."

"What do you want?" Scarlett muttered.

Riley smiled, walking in leaning on the back of the sofa, running her fingers over Alton's chest. "When are you going to come home? We miss you, Scarlett. Stop wasting your time with streaming. You are so much better than this. We were going to save the world Scarlett, but you had to betray me."

"You've been brainwashed."

"How long are you going to keep up this act for?" She cackled, throwing the knife into her other hand. She made it float in her hand, moving it towards Alton's neck. "I could kill Alton right now. Slit his throat and end it all. What do you think?"

Scarlett remained silent watching the knife. A small amount of time passed as Riley flipped the knife back, pulling it back. "Like I was going to. I love him. Would you be angry if I stole him from you?"

"Stop."

Riley looked concerned as he jumped over the sofa hugging her sister. "Shh, shh. We don't want to ruin the performance. Do you think they know? Suspect anything? Or are you tricking yourself hmm? No matter, I'll leave you in peace. It was nice to see you, Sister. I'll see you at the Crystal Night Ball."

Riley stepped back teleporting away, leaving a speechless Scarlett. She bit her lip, lowering her head staring at the knife. "I won't follow your plan any longer."

****

Team Rhapsody had met at the usual hideout. They hadn't been at the karaoke bar since the V.I.R.A.L League, and it showed. Not a single song had played since their meetup with Alton and Zinnia spaced out with Scarlett on Alton's side. Gale and Emil were still clueless into the conflict. "The Crystal Night Ball? Does the Syndicate family just hate Christmas or something?" Gale pestered. "So, are we going to cancel the event?"

"It might be the best thing to do. We could be putting dozens of people in danger."

"I disagree," Scarlett stated standing up overlooking the list of places Syndicate are going to hit. "I say we let it go on. Flush out the Syndicate family and put an end to all of this."

"It might work. Cancelling this ball puts us back at square one. This is the first time we know what the family is trying to accomplish. We can beat them at their own gain. Have streamers ready to strike when the time comes." Emil exclaimed. We just need bait."

Zinnia shook her head, not happy by this. "I'm not one to put innocent lives at risk. Besides this Council of Syndicate already are well aware we know of their plan. They'd easily expect a trap."

"Alton you need to back me up on this. We can take down the family in one night."

"Like you did last night?" Zinnia whispered.

Scarlett glared at her which even threw off Zinnia. Turning back to Alton, she pleaded. "Alton…"

Alton sighed, rubbing his eyes. "None of this makes any sense. These attacks the family has thrown forward are so random and out of character. Some make sense like The Phantom streamer and us. They claim to hate V.I.R.A.L, yet they attack the Cult of Vanguard and kill Rodger. He could have easily destroyed V.I.R.A.L or taken us down yet Syndicate took him down helping us in the long run. Why would they do that?"

"Maybe Rodger was a threat to them. He was a puppet for Bargaining anyone like that is a threat to anyone." Emil suggested.

Alton glanced at Zinnia, who looked away. "Perhaps. But here's when another problem arises. You encounter Syndicate Emil, and she happily kills a member of Harmony and leaves two more in critical condition. Yet, she lets you live without an issue. I'm attacked too, and Syndicate could have killed me, yet they also let me live. But now they wish to kidnap me and make me help them."

"What are you trying to say?" Scarlett muttered.

"Two different plans constantly being tugged and pulled back and forth. Takedown V.I.R.A.L or on the broader point it almost seems like they try to help us at some points. I'm starting to suspect more than one person is calling the shots. I thought Riley was the Demon Mask the entire time. It matches up, but now I believe there to be more than one."

"If that's true this is just getting more annoying." Emil groaned. "How can you be so sure?"

"This is coming out of the left field. But when Riley attacked me a few days back, her whole fighting stance and personality was different from whoever I was fighting on the beach a few months back. They were calmer and more collected. Like they were merely toying with me."

"Now that you mention it that was the same for me. Riley doesn't match that description."

"Any ideas Scarlett? Do you have any long-lost siblings we should know about?" 

She shook her head. "No. Not that I'm aware of."

Alton sighed, shaking his leg biting his thumb. "The Crystal Night Ball. Why attack this place? It has nothing to do with V.I.R.A.L apart from the fact Harmony is signed up to play. The more we learn of their plans, the more this family makes little sense."

Scarlett stood up, getting their attention as she seemed frustrated. "This is Riley! I know it is. This isn't about V.I.R.A.L. It's about me. She wants to get back at me, that's what this is all about right now… When I was young, still with the family, there was one night where I could get away from all of the conspiracies and torture—the Crystal Night Ball. Riley and I snuck out on that night to see it with our own eyes. It caught our imagination and never let go. That was the deciding factor for me to get away from the family. I wanted to preserve the beauty in this world while my father wanted it dead. She is going to target the ball as a way to get back at me for abandoning her. It's the last good memory I have of her."

Alton continued to stare at the map nodding. "Alright, then. We'll go with your plan Scarlett."

"Are you sure Alton, you said it yourself this is off," Gale stated?

"While it is bizarre, to say the least, who am I to say no? We're team Rhapsody we don't only help the weak but each other. We're family, we help each other. This isn't just about stopping Syndicate but preserving the happy memories."

"Alton… Thank you."

"The Ball is on Christmas Eve. We only have a few days; we will need to prepare if we can stop any causalities." Zinnia whispered. "I still don't agree with this, but I'm going to try and avoid any unnecessary injuries."

"I'm going to get in contact with the Montagues. They might be able to help with forces." Emil stated. "Gale, can you help?"

Gale walked over as Emil placed his arm over his shoulder whispering. Operation Lockhart is still in motion. This is the perfect chance for the plan to go ahead. Remember what Diego said about the scene? A ball is perfect."

Gale smirked nodding giving him the thumbs up. "Defeat Syndicate and get Alton and Zinnia together with a slow dance. Ha, a real Christmas miracle."

"We don't have long to plan this. I have favour with Harmony. This is perfect."

Alton kept staring at the map as he was left with Scarlett. "What will you do when we take your sister down?"

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is are you going to kill her?" He brings up.

Scarlett flinches falling silent. She gives a short one-worded reply. "Yes."

Alton nodded. "Alright. Then let me do it."

"Huh? Why you?"

"You make act all tough thinking you can do this alone but killing a family member. Crossing that line will haunt you for the rest of your life. You still love her, yeah? You don't need to pretend; otherwise, you wouldn't care this much about it. You feel regretful you couldn't save her."

"I am…"

"Then, when the time comes, I'll put her down. Will you allow me that?"

Scarlett gave a small nod of acknowledgement. "Alton… I just wanted to say… Thank you for all of this. When we first met here so many months ago never did, I expect you to be so kind and caring. I love you very much for that. My family will say the same. When the time comes, I will return the favour. When your father comes, I'll help you stop him once and for all and get the revenge for your mother."

"We met at Zinnia's birthday party."

"Excuse me?"

"You said we first met here at the Karaoke bar. I wasn't here, remember? You came to warn them about Vanguard. We met at the orphanage."

"Of course, sorry. My mind is all over the place with the plan. We cannot fail, no matter what." Scarlett held her hand out, smiling. "Let's bring the family down together."

Alton nodded, taking her hand glancing back at the map still feeling a small clutch of uneasiness clinging onto him never entirely leaving.