No. This wasn’t right. This wasn’t possible. Ava grabbed her head, tried to make sense of it all, but panic rose up and spread like a disease through her mind.

I can’t breathe.

Her heart ached, pounded against her chest—in her head. This wasn’t real. This couldn’t be happening.

I can’t breathe.

The room spun, became cloudy, and Junipea just laid there, watching Ava with those same honeydew eyes. Those same wild curls. Her throat closed when she saw the knife embedded in his stomach. She was drowning on air.

I can’t breathe.

There was red blood—his blood—everywhere on her hands. Ava frantically rubbed at it, but it wouldn’t come off. It was everywhere. On her arms, on her clothes, and even the floor, staining the marble. It soaked into the cracks, dripped from his chin just like that day on the battlefield.

I can’t breathe.

Ava went stiff. Cool mint creeped through her veins like ice. The back of her neck warmed—it burned. She pulled at her hair, tore into her skin. She was turning to ice. It hurt and she couldn’t stop it. She just wanted to rip this curse mark off so bad.

The window cracked, blooming split marble beneath them. It was exactly like two years ago when Ava lost control. She squeezed her arms, trying to hold it in, but the beast pushed and shoved. It wanted to come out and play.

Breathe in…

Stale air invaded her lungs, smelling of iron and desperation. She clung to every single particular, hoping this would be enough to calm herself.

The curse mark hit her like a ton of bricks. It burned into her brain. She coughed up blood, slipped further away. She was losing control.

The curse mark was becoming undone. Her breathing technique wasn’t working. She had nothing left to keep the darkness away.

But why should I when it feels this great.

Junipea grabbed Ava by the arms and roughly shook her. Her vision cleared. With each passing breath, her head cleared. She relaxed, slouching over as she tried putting back the pieces of her sanity.

No matter how much she wished for this to be true, for Junipea to be alive, she knew deep in her heart this was impossible. Junipea was dead. Ava saw him die with her own two eyes. She watched his corpse burn in the crematorium. Gio scattered his ashes in the ocean when they said their goodbyes.

So then who am I sitting on top of?

With a grunt, Junipea yanked the knife out of his stomach and dropped the blade on the floor. It clattered around like the time Ava dropped her Bō on the tile floor at home and refused to look at it for months.

She met his hard gaze, finding neither concern nor friendship between his frazzled curly hair. It was a blazing red, vivid as a painting like the blanket of stars sprinkled across his fair skin. It was all so real, yet too picturesque. He was like a heightened carbon copy.

“Are you insane? You could have killed us!” Junipea laughed as if the very thought was amazing. She didn’t know what to say.

He grasped her face, and for the first time, it felt like she could breathe better. His stern eyes softened, gazed deep into her soul. She couldn’t help but compare him to the Reaper. This feeling, this darkness, it clutched onto her.

“Oh, I see now. So that’s where you’ve been hiding. No wonder I couldn’t find you.” He smiled. “She’s going to love this.”

Ava pushed him off and reached for the knife. “Who are you!”

He grabbed her shoulders before she could act and forced her to stay sitting. Her entire body froze. Ava couldn’t move when he let up. She was cemented to the floor. Is this an ability? Is this guy a god?

The twins’ front door blew open and crashed into the wall across the foyer, denting the metal in. Mika ran out of their home, two swords clenched in his hands. For once, Ava was relieved to see him.

Junipea tsked, skewing an evil grin like the Black Rabbit’s mask. “And here I thought we’d have more time together before your guardians came to the rescue.”

He pushed Ava off in quick motions. She landed with a hard thud against rocks of marble. The pain doesn't register. She was stunned, mute, as he swiped the crystal sword off the floor and gave a lazy salute. “See you around, Pipsqueak.”

Wait a minute. This fucker isn’t going anywhere.

Ava summoned her Bō and swiped towards his legs. He hopped over like any rabbit would, and wagged his finger. “Don’t tempt me, Ava. I won’t go easy on you next time.”

That just gave her more reasons to chase after this guy. She stood, using the Bō as a crutch. Earlier took more out of her than she realized.

“Junipea!”

Gio’s voice rang through the damaged foyer. He stood by the pile of bodies at their door. His face said it all: how hurt and angry he was and there would be blood to pay.

Gio popped up next to Junipea and grabbed him by the collar. Ava wasn’t far behind, taking hold of his cloak at the last seconds. In an instant, they left the Capitol building and arrived on a deserted beach.

White sand brushed their ankles as Mika gripped Ava’s forearm with Sam on his shoulder. It didn't phase Junipea at all, teleporting four extra bodies, which meant he had a lot of energy stored inside him. Ava hoped it wasn’t too much to take on.

Junipea shoved Gio, then released his cloak. The material fell on the sand as Gio flamed up his scimitar sword. He meant business and Ava didn’t blame him. It was a nasty trick to use Junipea’s identity as a disguise.

Junipea chuckled, swinging his sword around in a lazy manner. “Come on, Gio. There's no way you'll cut—”

Gio cut Junipea’s arm. Flames burned his sleeve, constantly surging against the material until Junipea doused it in ocean water. He clenched his teeth. Ava hoped the salt water stung like a bitch.

“What happened to being in love with me?” he seethed.

“What happened to being dead!” Gio swung the blade at Junipea’s neck.

Their swords clashed, fueling Gio’s scimitar in a fit of crackling rage. With each strike, they grew faster and more precise. Ava stepped back as lightning roared to life, whipping out like a solar flame. She couldn’t jump in there without getting hit.

Gio knocked his sword against the crystal blade so hard this time, the ground shook, scorching the surrounding area. Flames headed straight for Mika, but he didn't move. He was fixated on the fight.

Ava pushed him to the ground as the intense heat flew overhead. His swords landed on either side of them, her hand on his chest, the other pressed into the sand. His heat radiated off her palm. The whole scene felt so déjà vu. Wide-eyed, he stared at her like he wasn’t sure what to say. A thank you would be nice.

Gio fell back on the sand, losing his weapon. The lightning sputtered out. Crap. Ava had to help him. She always had his back. She got up and ran towards him, Bō ready to strike.

Sam popped up from the side and swung his blade around. Junipea blocked it, but couldn’t stop the blow. He was thrown into the ocean. His body hit the water like a rag doll, skipping across the raging waves until he rolled to a stop.

He moved with the current, not once sinking into the deep water below. There were very few times where Ava felt fear during a fight. This was one of those times.

Bellowing out a laugh, Junipea stood on top of the water. A sly grin danced across his face as fingers dragged through the dripping curls and darkened into a crimson hood. The crystal sword appeared in his hand. It gleamed like diamonds off the ocean's surface and appeared light blue when it reached towards the cloudless sky.

In one fell swoop, he spun and swung towards them. A visible line streaked the air, slicing through the waves. Ava stabbed the Bō into the ground and morphed it into the staff form. A barrier resurrected around her and Gio.

It hit them like a bullet. Sand swirled, camouflaging him. Rocks and trees collapsed, shaking the Earth and her arms. It was trying to push her over. She dug her toes in the sand deeper to keep the staff steady against this monstrous power.

Was this how much power the gods possess? I hope not. This is terrifying.

When the storm died and the sand settled, Junipea disappeared from the ocean and popped up right outside Ava’s barrier, heading straight for Sam.

Junipea pierced through the koto barrier in one punch and stabbed the gleaming sword into Sam’s stomach the next.

It happened so fast Ava’s mind was still playing catch up. Rich maroon blood ran off the crystal blade. Blood gushed from Sam’s torso when Junipea yanked the blade out. Mika didn't hesitate. He jumped to his feet and attacked.

Gio went for Junipea’s back as Mika took the front. Junipea caught them both and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

They were left alone.

Sam groaned and fell to his knees. Ava ran to his side.

Blood dripped off his chin, spreading on his warm blue shirt. He was breathing heavier than usual and there was too much blood. She ripped some material off her shirt and applied pressure to his wound. This wasn’t enough, but she had to try.

I can't lose him. I can't let him die.

Ava looked around quickly for a way out. The tree tops floated behind them in the water. It stretched on for miles on end. There was no other land in sight.

Using a cut tree nearby, Sam wobbled to his feet. “I need to go help, Mika.”

Ava caught him when he fell over, again. “What you need to do is get medical attention. That wound is serious, Sam. If you don’t stop the bleeding now, you might—”

“Mika might die!” He grabbed hold of her arm with pleading eyes. “He used too much energy last night while he was training. And more when he cast the protection spell on you. I never thought we’d be fighting today. Or I never would have…”

So that's why he had plasters all over his fingers. If Ava could teleport she’d go after him. She could help Sam. She’d have a way to get in contact with Marc or Josh. Yet, that wasn’t her reality and her phone broke. So she had to convince Sam to leave.

Sam tried standing up again, refusing to acknowledge her words. He staggered back, but caught himself and took in deep breaths. The wound worsened, dripped in puddles to the sand as he leaned over his knees.

“How are you going to help Mika when you can barely stand?” Ava asked, but he ignored her. She grabbed his shoulder and applied more pressure to his wound. “Sam, you will die if we don't get you help now. Is that what you want? To leave Mika all alone? You’re all he's got left!”

That made Sam flinch. The fight in him finally simmered. He pressed on Ava’s hands as he moved to stand more upright. “I think I can still teleport.”

Thank the stars!

When they arrived back at the foyer, Josh was barking out orders into his phone, while Leo inspected the crime scene and corpses. Sam groaned and fell over in Ava’s arms. She used the wall to keep him upright. From all this blood loss, he was losing too much energy. They’re lucky he could teleport.

Leo ran to their side. “He's bleeding out! I’ve been putting pressure on his wound, but it won’t stop!” Ava said.

He propped his leather bag open, and took out the handheld Cat Scan and a needle. “Hold him steady. I need to inspect the wound and numb the area.”

Sam got heavier the longer they stood. Ava kept having to hoist him up further into her shoulder, but he’d slip back off after the next few breaths.

Josh took Sam's other arm and lifted the weight off Ava. Sam grabbed her hand, and suffocated it under an iron grip. His eyes squeezed shut as Leo injected the numbing agent by his wound. It looked worse than Ava imagined. A giant gash marked down his right side, blood oozed out through missing skin. He was lucky to be alive.

After cleaning what Leo could, he pressed the suture over the cut and slid it down. Sam groaned, gripping Ava’s hand tighter as the skin healed, stitching itself back together until there was no wound left. This small stick like instrument was a gift from Amaranthine, one that saved countless lives in this war so far.

“This isn’t good,” Leo said, stripping his hands of the filthy sterile gloves. “He needs a blood transfusion right now. Where’s his brother at?”

“I—I don’t know. He’s with Gio fighting Junipea off somewhere.”

Josh stared Ava down with such fearsome eyes, she slightly recoiled. “Did you just say they’re fighting Junipea?”

Her body shook, still tried to make sense of it all. “It’s someone disguised as Junipea. He broke in here and did all this,” she said, looking between the two. “What about Marc? You could use his blood.”

Josh cursed under his breath. “He’s out looking for you guys and helping where he can. This isn’t the only place that pricks hit. It’s worse out in the hallway. There are corpses from here to the north side entrance. Thanks to Leo here, we have a few survivors.”

The death toll kept adding up, and their blood was on her hands. But they were also on the UFE’s, Amaranthine, and whoever else already knew about the gods and reapers and never told a soul. Ava thought it was better to be in the dark, than be haunted by the secrets. Instead, it looked like all her life choices were leaving a trail of blood everywhere.

It’s time I stopped running away.

Leo took Ava’s place by Sam's side and put an arm over his shoulder. Blood stained her sweatpants and shirt. It covered her hand and sent her heart into a frenzy. But he was alive. He would be okay.

“I’ll take him to her living room. I can use Caterina’s machine for the procedure. I just need you to go find Marc,” Leo told Josh. He gave Leo a nod, then vanished after he gave out new orders through his phone.

The room was worse than Ava remembered. Kunais were stabbed deep into the cracked glass with slices from their sword fight etched into the walls. The marble was unsteady, cracked and ruined like a pile of rocks. In a daze, she stared and remembered how she did this. How this was her power. She barely felt Sam’s weak grip.

They were back in Ava’s living room now. Everything was as normal as it could be, except for this stillness in the air and the faint beeping sounds that came from Caterina’s room. It was almost too quiet. Ava wiped both hands on her pants and walked to her room.

“She’s sleeping,” Leo said, helping Sam on the couch. “She could hear the commotion outside in the foyer and knew you were fighting. I had to give her a mild sedative to calm her down or she would’ve had another attack.”

Caterina always worried about Ava and Gio, but Ava knew it gave her more stress because they were always the first one out on the front lines. Ava wished their mom never had to be stressed. It only made her illness worse.

As Leo retrieved the machine from Caterina’s room, Ava washed her hands in the kitchen sink, using old towels to dry her hands. She’d hear hell from Caterina if she didn’t.

It gave Ava time to process everything. Who was he? Why was he searching for me? And who the hell is ‘she’?

After drying off her hands, she wet a towel and took it to Sam. Blood dried on his hands, stained the couch with their remnants. He tried removing what he could as Ava sat down next to him. She refused to leave him alone in this state.

He didn’t make a sound. He didn’t move an inch. His staggered breathes took over the silence and made Ava more anxious. Sweat ran off his forehead as he grew paler by the minute. She dabbed his face, cleaned off the blood. Why is it taking so long to find Marc?

Leo came back, rolling in the machine for the transfusion. He left it behind the couch to go fetch whatever tools he was missing. The tubes reeked of the hospital and disinfectant. It turned Ava’s stomach.

Sam started hacking and coughing. He held the towel to his mouth, spitting up blood until his trembles got worse. “Stop looking at me like I'm about to die.”

His voice was hoarse and unrecognizable. It took everything in her to smile. “I'm just worried I won't ever get to spar with you.”

He let a short laugh and coughed into the towel. Ava rubbed his back, trying to mimic Mika. His shoulders loosened and it seemed to help relax him. He was breathing easier, yet cold to the touch.

“Our mother used to do this when we were sick in bed,” he whispered. It didn't matter how much time had passed, the pain was still evident in his far-off gaze. He still missed her.

Leo came back with a needle in hand. He repositioned Sam's arm and inserted the point into his skin. With everything set up, they were just waiting on Marc or Mika to get back. Ava checked the digital clock hanging in the kitchen. It had only been ten minutes since they sat down, although it felt like hours had slipped by.

“This is a shot to heal the internal organs. It will have a mild sting and make you feel uncomfortable. But I promise you, it will only last a few minutes.” Leo inserted the needle into one port on the tube, instantly making Sam groan and straightened in his seat.

Ava didn’t miss that.

Marc popped up, not soon after Josh appeared. All the rage and sadness and heartache came rushing through her, and Marc could see it. He was always intuitive to any change with Ava.

He stepped cautiously closer. He was at the end of the long dining table as Ava stood. She felt different. Her body ran on a new current with drops of energy increasing by the minute. It was hard to trust him anymore.

“Are you okay?” he asked. “What exactly happened in the foyer? The cameras were turned off and we couldn’t see—”

Leo roughly took Marc by the arm. “Hey. You can talk to her later. Right now, I need your blood. ASAP.”

“I’m fine,” Sam gasped out.

“He’s not fine. If I don’t do this now, we might lose him.” Leo pushed Marc on the couch and started prepping his needle.

Ava wanted to stay with Sam and make sure he'd be okay, but she didn't want to talk to Marc. She wasn’t ready to hear whatever excuse he had.

Josh rested his big hand on her shoulder. “Leo’s got this covered. Why don’t we go check in on your mom, and see how she’s doing,” he said, the gleam in his stern gaze told Ava he was lying.

Ava didn’t stop him, though. She let him lead her towards the hallway and to Caterina’s bedroom. He opened the door, acting like they were going in. As Leo said, Caterina was asleep in bed, surrounded by medical equipment with an empty spot for the blood transfusion. An oxygen mask adorned her youthful face, aging it passed her prime. She looked so vulnerable—nothing like her strong demeanor.

Ava wanted to lie next to her, curl up under the covers and be enveloped in that protectiveness she always received as a child. She missed her mom’s warmth, her gentle fingers as they ran through Ava’s hair.

No matter how much she wanted to go inside, she resisted the temptation, and listened to her mom’s soft snoring, letting it ease away the anxiety. She had to prepare for what came next. Josh and Ava vanished as quickly as the door closed back shut.