They managed to find their way back to the entrance of the Temple in good time by following the footsteps imprinted in the dust coating the floor. As they approached the wall, Ethan came to a sudden halt and flung his arm out in front of them, stopping them in their tracks. He jerked his finger sharply at the wall, a gesture that told them quite plainly, outside.

"Can you recreate scenes happening in real-time too?" Alec whispered to Katrina.

"I'm not that great at it, but . . ." She turned around, facing the doorway through which they had just come, and opened her palms. Yellow light erupted into the room once more, contorting until the rocky terrain beyond the Temple came into view. Two people were outside, as Ethan had said, one man and a woman. The woman was seated on a boulder, her leg crossed delicately across her lap. The man, however, was standing with his arms folded over his stocky chest, glaring at the Temple. Both of them were dressed in brightly colored jumpsuits.

"Know who they are?" Charlie said quietly to Alec.

"The man is called Giga-Dwarf," he said.

"In what world could someone like him be called a 'dwarf'?" Ethan said in disbelief, squinting at the man's enormous profile.

"I don't know, superhero names are weird," Alec said, shrugging. "And the woman is —"

"Proxima Venus," the twins said in unison, looking unusually grave.

"Yeah. How did you know?"

"She's our mom's partner," Anthony explained.

"Your mom is Starlight Neos?" Alec said in awe, a little too loudly; Charlie clapped a hand over his mouth.

"As adorable as your fanboying is, can we save it for later?" he said, with a pointed nod at the scene Katrina was still producing.

Alec cleared his throat. "Right," he said, removing Charlie's hand. "So, if we can't Cloak or use Telepathy to hide us, how do we sneak out?"

"We don't have a choice, we'll either have to try to carve a path around them, or push past them," Maddison said.

"Neither option sounds good," Charlie said.

"Well they're all we've got! Now, listen to me. We'll have to work quickly. Anthony, how far can you jump us?"

"Not far. I can only travel to places within a certain proximity. Otherwise, it becomes really difficult to maintain the wormhole and it can become unstable. It could spit us out anywhere."

"And out there is just one big stretch of nothing," said Charlie. "There's nowhere he can bring us that wouldn't be directly in their view."

"What if we can outrun them?" Reya suggested.

"I don't think it'd be likely," Javon said. "But it depends on what they can do anyway."

"Well, Proxima is an Elemental, like me. Only she's light-based," Alec elaborated. "And her powers can work across a distance, so, that idea's shot."

"Hang on," Javon said suddenly. He was frowning, as if he had realized something.

"What?" Ethan said.

"You said she's a Light Elemental?" He was looking at Alec.

"Well, yes, but what does it have to do with anything —"

"A lot, actually. Don't you see it? The pattern?"

"What pattern?" Maddison asked.

"It's just like earlier, when we were on the jet. First it was Greek mythology. The myths themselves kept coming back — the school, the Heroes, the Temple, Alec's book — and where did that lead us? To an actual Greek goddess. One who must have been resting here for centuries."

"Yeah, but —" Alec said, still not seeing his point, but Javon spoke over him.

"And here it is again. That night, the night you had your Trigger Moment, it was you, Wildfire, and Shadow Shifter — an Earth, Fire, and Shadow Elemental all in one place. Now here we are, with another Elemental hovering outside."

"They're not exactly uncommon," Katrina reasoned. "In fact, they're actually one of the more common superhuman types."

"Yes, but how many of them have you ever seen in the same area? How many of them were of a completely different element? Wildfire said it himself, the last Earth Elemental they know of was a League member back in the 1900s. Even now, at Helix, a population of over a thousand students, and the only registered Elementals are Alec and Brianna Lance."

"Who?" Alec asked, bewildered.

"Water-based Elemental in Poseidon," Charlie elaborated.

"A Water Elemental in the Dorm of the Sea God." Alec smiled at the irony.

"The point is," Javon said impatiently, "coincidences can and do exist. But too many of them isn't just a series of coincidences. It's a pattern."

"So what, me, Proxima, Wildfire, Shadow Shifter, and now Brianna are part of some big conspiracy?" Alec let out a mirthless laugh. "Come on, man."

"I don't know!" Javon said. "But we can't ignore the signs."

"Guys," Ethan said.

"So a few Elementals gathered in the same vicinity for one night, big deal," Charlie said. "Doesn't necessarily mean there's some driving force behind it. It could actually just be . . . a series of coincidences."

"Guys."

"And what if it isn't? Atropos wasn't a coincidence."

"No, that was a calculated operation that they'd clearly been planning for months. Are you saying someone planned to have all these Elementals gathered in one place?"

"Guys."

"What?"

"The big guy's gone."

Everyone whirled around, peering at the depiction of the scene happening outside that Katrina had still been projecting. Ethan was right. Proxima was alone, her hair, a light shade of blue, glistening in the moonlight.

"We have to go," Maddison said urgently. "Now —"

A loud crack and a sudden tremor rang out in the room. Everyone fell silent, staring at the ceiling. Spiderweb cracks were extending across the dusty carapace. Another bang, and the cracks widened.

"He's coming from above," Maddison said, her tone fearful.

"What do we do?" Charlie asked, a wild look in his eyes.

Reya suddenly wrenched off her bag, tossing it onto the floor and digging into it. She rummaged inside for a few seconds, then pulled out —

"Masks?" Katrina said.

"Can't think of everything, right?" she said, thrusting them into hands haphazardly. "My family uses them sometimes for different rituals. Thought we could use some, especially since Maddison said she saw a lot of Heroes hanging around the area recently."

"Nice thinking," Charlie said, accepting a bear mask.

Alec received one with a scarlet wolf design. He shrugged, then pulled it over his face.

"That's only one problem," said Maddison the Vixen. "We still have to get past them. Never mind them catching us, if they report us, they'll have to detail whatever powers we use. And some of us" — she cast pointed looks at Alec, Charlie, and the twins — "have more distinctive powers than others. We have to take it easy, or we'll be recognizable."

"Got it," Anthony said.

"Let's go."

The roof finally gave way, and in a shower of dust and debris, Giga-Dwarf fell into the room. Charlie stood up, and with his fist shining with energy, he mowed down the door.

They spilled out into the night, putting as much distance between them and Giga-Dwarf as they could, while still maintaining a moderate space between them and his partner. Proxima Venus did not look startled. On the contrary, she smiled. "I was wondering when you'd come out. Such a shame, the things a girl has to do to get people's attention these days." She sighed theatrically.

She was a woman of great beauty, with hair that shimmered in different colours every few seconds. And yet, as pleasant as she was to look at, it was precisely what made her deadly.

"Don't look at her directly," Alec said quietly. "She can make her entire body glow in different colours, and if you look at her when she's doing it, it can disrupt your emotions, depending on which colour she chooses."

"And him?" Charlie asked, nodding at Giga-Dwarf, who was slowly advancing on them from behind.

"That's a different problem, but similar in nature. Giga-Dwarf absorbs kinetic energy, converts it into his own, and uses it to make himself stronger. The more he's damaged, the more powerful he becomes. We can't hit him."

"How the hell are we supposed to fight people we can't look at or touch?" Ethan hissed.

"You can't," Proxima said serenely. Even her voice was beautiful, soft and mellow. "Which is why it makes no sense to try. So how about you lovely children stand down and we can have a simple, non-violent conversation about what you're doing here? There's no reason we have to be neanderthals about it."

"Listen to the lady, kids," Giga-Dwarf growled. "She won't ask again."

A brief pause ensued. They all stood stock-still, both Heroes staring at them. Then, a few seconds later, Anthony said, "How about . . . no?"

Ethan burst into motion, directing his efforts at Giga-Dwarf. He flicked his wrist in his direction and the Hero flew backwards, caught off-guard by the sudden aggression, and crashed into the newly repaired Temple wall, destroying it again.

Proxima Venus sighed, but stood gracefully to her feet nonetheless. Her hair had changed colour, now a sleek sheet of blood red. It was not a comforting sight. Her fists glowed with a sudden surge of white and she thrust them forward, shooting beams of light forward. The group broke apart, diving to either side to avoid impact, but the force of the hit still blew them aside regardless.

There was a roar of rage and Alec, who hadn't been hurt much by the fall, looked up. Giga-Dwarf was emerging from the rubble of the Temple: pieces of rock fitted themselves back into the wall as Giga-Dwarf stomped forward, his body encompassed by glistening rivulets of yellow energy.

His teeth were bared and his eyes were wild. He looked positively dangerous. He lunged — but Charlie came hurtling out of nowhere and slammed into him, pushing him to the floor. The two rolled aside, and Ethan and Anthony rushed forward to assist.

Alec got to his feet, but he had barely stood up before Proxima's body began to shine with a deep, calming green light.

He didn't have time to look away, but he wasn't worried. He could feel the sudden urge to relax washing over him, but he fought it off, bolstered by Ethan's technique. The light suddenly died down and Proxima came back into view, her head tilted to the side and an expression of intrigue across her face.

"A telepathic guard," she remarked. "Interesting. It was your friend, the one dressed in the snake mask with the telekinetic powers, who did it, yes? Before he acted." She nodded absently. "A clever trick. But far from enough. You see, dear," she said, smiling widely, "a telepathic guard can only do so much. My powers aren't mental-based. They're light-based." And her form glowed again. This time she became an inferno of steel-blue. The intensity was far beyond what she had first displayed; he could feel a sudden paroxysm of grief looming over him, threatening to drown him. Even with Ethan's powers, he couldn't resist it. Instead, he did the only thing that occurred to him: Alec lunged to the ground, burying his face in the sand. When the light had died down yet again, he clapped a hand over his face and looked around him.

Reya, Katrina, and Maddison, who had all been behind him, had frozen in place, shivering uncontrollably. Through the holes in their masks he could see their eyes, burning with the same blue Proxima Venus had emitted.

He could feel the sadness emanating from them, like being submerged into a deep, heart-wrenching pool of despair. Ethan had linked their minds when he had created the psychic guard. Alec could feel their thoughts — no, their emotions, pure misery engulfing each and every one of them.

He looked up, and found the Heroine standing directly over him. She was staring serenely down at him, her beautiful face arranged into a smile.

"Your friends don't seem too good," she said. "It was a valiant effort with the psychic guard, but I'm afraid you don't quite know the true mechanisms of my power. I don't affect your mind dear, I affect your body.

"The light triggers a biological reaction, forcing the viewers to experience a rush of emotion depending on the colour and the intensity. The mind really has very little to do with it, it's all chemicals and hormones, and what-not. But don't worry, you'll see for yourself."

She raised her arms again. Alec instinctively dived at the rock at his feet, covering himself and his mask in the slippery-feeling orange stone, and retreated from her. Her reaction, however, was nothing he could have expected.

"Oh, an Elemental!" said Proxima, sounding very pleasantly delighted. "And an Earth Elemental too! How splendid! I haven't seen another Earth Elemental in years!"

He did not trust the sweetness of her tone or her smile. He was reminded of his recent readings of Greek mythology, where he had learned of the Sirens, terrible creatures with the faces of beautiful women who lured unsuspecting sailors to vicious deaths. She did not move even as he jumped to his feet, pulling up large boulders on either side of him. "Sorry," he said, his voice gravelly due to the Earth Mimicry. "But I can't let you take us in."

"Oh, of course, darling," she said sweetly.

She still wasn't moving, but he didn't want to hit her. Perhaps if he could fake her out, he would have a chance to run . . .

He launched the boulders, fully intending to veer them away before they could hit so that she would clear the path — but with an oddly graceful movement she threw up a hand of her own; white light surged from her fingers and speared through the boulders, reducing them to rubble.

"Oh dear. Is that the best you can do?" Her tone was not jeering, but one of sadness. Disappointment. "Poor boy, you haven't been at this very long, have you?"

"Uh . . . no," Alec said meekly. She nodded in understanding and resumed her seat on the boulder.

Behind them, another explosion rang out, but it didn't even phase her. He didn't know what was happening, but she didn't seem to want to attack him any more, and he thought it best to keep that way, at least until he found a new opening he could exploit.

"Earth Mimicry is a very impressive feat," Proxima began, "but apart from that, is hurling boulders the only thing you can do?"

"Pretty much," Alec said, feeling suddenly ashamed of himself.

"A shame," Proxima sighed. "So much potential, going to waste. You don't even know half of what you're capable of."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, Elementals like us are constantly underestimated. Many people think that the most we can do is light candles, throw a few pebbles, make our palms glow like organic flashlights." She rolled her eyes. "But Elementals are, in truth, one of the most versatile classes of superhumans in the entire world. Observe what I did to your friends, for example; I have many more tricks up my sleeves. And you too can do so much more."

Interest genuinely piqued, Alec said, "I once heard that an old Earth Elemental in the League could control plants. I tried it a few times but, it's never worked."

"Yes, plants are a different matter entirely. Only a special few seem to be able to manipulate living matter. But otherwise, did you know that Earth Elementals can even manipulate gravity? Oh yes," she said, pleased at Alec's expression. "You have no idea. I once knew of a Hero who could manipulate the very energy that runs under the Earth's surface, through telluric currents.

"The things we can do are limited solely to our imagination, my dear." She spread her arms wide, as if to bolster her point. "Go on, try it," she said suddenly.

"Try — what?" Alec said, startled.

"The telluric currents. Try channeling the energy from under the Earth. I saw what you did a while ago. Very impressive. You've got potential, wouldn't you want to see what you can do firsthand?" Alec hesitated, then slowly, nodded. "Good. Go on."

Alec backed away at her warm, encouraging tone, almost automatically. Proxima looked around. "Yes, this looks like a great spot to try it," she said. "I want you to channel your senses into the Earth. Feel not what is at your feet, but what is under it. Concentrate. Ground yourself. Remember, it is your element. You don't just wield it, it is an extension of yourself."

Alec exhaled at her words and closed his eyes. The sound of the wind, the explosions in the background, all faded into silence as he stood there, digging his feet into the ground, seeing nothing more than black. But then, out of the emptiness, he felt something stir at his feet. Then it stirred again. It felt as if thousands of tiny, electric worms were prickling at his feet, jolting him.

"Do you feel it?" Proxima coaxed.

Alec opened his eyes, feeling suddenly ecstatic. "Yes, I feel it!"

"Good. Now command it, just as you would the rock itself. Pull it upwards into your own body."

Alec drew an involuntary breath and trembled violently. It was working. He could feel the energy rising into him, filling him like an absurd, humanoid battery. His arms, which were outstretched around him, crackled with energy. Green lightning flowered at his fingertips.

"Now release it," Proxima whispered. His arm turned as if it were the arrow of a wind vane, pointing skywards, and he felt the energy surge into it. Then, in a strange rush of pain and pleasure, the energy burst from his fingers, shooting across the sky.

He let out an excited gasp, his breath coming in short bursts as a smile stretched his lips.

"How did it feel?" Proxima Venus asked.

"Exhilarating," Alec gasped out. "I feel . . . like I could run a mile!"

"Ill-advised, best not to move so much after you've just turned yourself into a lightning rod for so much energy, least of all when you're inexperienced with the sensation, but you've got the spirit!" Proxima said brightly.

"Now . . . gravity. A much harder beast to tame."

Alec's face fell slightly. "Gravity?"

"Now now, no need to feel disappointed. This is all in your wheelhouse. Gravity is one of the universe's most fundamental forces, but on Earth, it is most powerful coming from the Earth itself. By manipulating the Earth's gravity, you can pull objects towards the ground or repel them, at will. It is similar to how you manipulated the current, but on a wider scale. Go on."

Alec held one hand over the ground. He felt quite apprehensive, yet at the same time extremely avid.

"Gravity is what keeps us all rooted to the ground," said Proxima, "but what would happen if it was suddenly inverted?"

Alec clenched his fist. His eyes were trained on the ground, his face screwed up in effort.

"Feel the Earth itself. It is an extension of you, the way a sword is an extension of a swordsman, and Gravity is an extension of the Earth. Breathe."

Alec breathed, and relaxed. He could feel it. An almost tangible force, like invisible ropes of energy pulling them downwards. In fact, he could see them. He tilted his head. His vision had changed, gone black and white as if he were looking through a funny lens. All around, he could see waves of silvery energy protruding from the Earth's surface, shooting up to the sky, latching onto the objects above it and pulling them down.

He looked at the stone in front of him, and he extended his own will towards it, envisioning the waves inverting. The rock began to float, the waves pushing it away from the ground.

"Woah," he breathed.

"Now pull it down."

He pictured the waves reverting, once again pulling the stone down. His hand clenched again. The rock suddenly went crashing downwards. Alec wheeled around to face Proxima. Her face was alight with happiness, with pride.

She's proud of me.

"Those waves are produced all around you," she continued. "A higher level technique would allow you not just to push and pull things from the Earth, but to attract and repel them in virtually any direction. Try to attract the rock towards you."

Alec pointed at the rock again, relaxed and focused on his breathing as she had said. He saw the waves of gravity bend towards the rock, and as if it were his fist that was clutched around it, he pulled back, and the rock came gliding smoothly towards him.

"Woah!"

In a panic, he threw up his hands, and the stone stopped dead in the air.

"Now repel it."

And as though he was punching at an invisible target, Alec moved his hand. The ball flew forward as though shot from a cannon, tearing a hole in the wall of the boulder around them.

"You see," Proxima said, clapping. "You could do so much more. If only you had someone to teach you."

"I —"

Alec stopped himself. He was about to say "I do," but realized what a statement like that would mean. Instead, he frowned and said, "But why are you teaching me? You were sent here to stop us, right?"

"Oh, orders," she said, waving her hand dismissively. "What the League don't know won't hurt them. But since you asked, I am helping you, dear, because regardless of if I do or don't, you don't stand a chance. Might as well make the fight more interesting. And more importantly, we could use someone like you. Passionate, powerful, smart. I could take you under my wing, teach you, push you to your greatest heights."

"After you bail me out of jail?" Alec said sarcastically.

"It may never even have to come to that. As long as you and your friends can provide a decent excuse as to why you are here of all places, the League may let you off with a warning. And if not, I could vouch for you. What better way to redeem yourself than to do it from inside the League?"

It was a tempting offer, but it sounded too familiar to one he had already refused. He had had enough change for the past three months. He didn't need any more.

"Hmm . . . tempting, but, I'm not ready for something like that yet. Maybe you can check back in about . . . three years?"

Proxima sighed. "You may find that you have much less time than you think to make your decision. Remember, you still have to leave here first."

As she spoke, another huge explosion rang out, and Alec wheeled around. Giga-Dwarf had burst through the Temple walls, clutching Charlie by the throat in one hand, and Anthony's limp body in the other.

"I don't know why you bother, Proxima," he growled. "Now are you going to help me, or not?"

"Oh, very well." She sighed again.

He heard Proxima plop to her feet, then looked around again — which was a mistake. She twiddled her fingers, and the moment she had, the air around them began to shimmer. Images wove into the air just as they had when Katrina had recreated the scenes in the Temple, but with much more detail. A thousand Proxima Venus's filled the air and canyon around him, completely indistinguishable from the real woman.

"It's just an illusion," Alec muttered to himself, shaking his head violently. He knew her powers, knew her tactics. She manipulated light to manipulate her enemies in turn. None of this was real. . . . So why was he still afraid?

"Agh!"

A strangled cry escaped his lips as something smashed into his face. He skidded across the ground, but leapt up almost immediately, armoured in the orange-brown stone. "Ah!"

Another blow reached his chest and he doubled over, feeling cracks spreading along the stone of his chest. A third blow barreled into his back and he crashed to the floor.

The illusions faded as he gasped, and he felt himself rising into the air, a massive hand clutching his throat.

"Yield!" Giga-Dwarf roared in his face.

Alec's breath sounded ragged as he breathed, as if air was being blown through a hollow pipe. "I . . . I don't think I will, sorry," he said, forcing his face into a weak, taunting grin.

Giga-Dwarf adjusted their positions in one swift movement, pinning him in a wrestler's hold and pulling violently. Though Alec's limbs had turned to stone, the man's strength was immense, and he could feel the pain in his bones as they threatened to part company with the rest of his body. But even as he struggled, he felt the tingling sensation below, like worms running all over his feet.

"You can't beat me," said Giga-Dwarf. "I can absorb whatever you throw at me. Your efforts quite literally strengthen me."

"That's what I was counting on," Alec choked out. The energy swirling under their feet streamed upwards, through the rock and into his body, all at once; he felt the charge spike his organs, but he kept the energy flowing, circulating through him like his own pumping blood, and he channeled it all into the body pressed against his. Giga-Dwarf screamed as the charge ran through him, a deep, drawn-out cry of sheer anguish. Alec slipped through his hold and broke the connection, but the Hero crashed to the floor, convulsing heavily.

Proxima Venus gasped, losing her composure for the first time that night. She darted towards him, and as she ran her words came back into Alec's mind, echoing with resounding force: Our powers are limited solely to our imagination.

Alec directed his will towards the ground, and it responded readily to his thoughts. The rock shifted, contorting, moulding under his efforts like clay. Great golems of stone erupted to the surface and he pushed them towards her, controlling their every move like massive, stringless marionettes. They crowded around her, swinging out with their enormous earthen fists, but they were barely an inconvenience for her. With every move they made an arc of brilliant white light branched across the pitch-black sky, reducing them to rubble. Quite soon they were merely chunks of rock around her, but Alec was already at his friends' side, whom Giga-Dwarf had most conveniently piled in one place.

Reya, Maddison, and Katrina were stirring, but Charlie, Anthony, Javon, and Ethan were still out. Katrina's eyes burned yellow and she thrust out her palm towards the Heroes. All movement ceased as abruptly as if somebody had pressed pause on them, and Reya started to chant.

A huge ring of violet energy emerged out of thin air, and while Giga-Dwarf and Proxima Venus lay frozen in time, Alec helped them heave the others onto the ring. Then Reya guided them into the air and soared off towards the forest. Alec's last glimpse of the Heroes as their eyes were obscured by the flitting branches was them bring resumed by Katrina's power.