(Hi! There are three songs in this chapter. I have placed them at the beginning of each scene they are attached to. I really recommend listening to them because they will help set the mood of these particular scenes which have powerful emotions.The songs for particular scenes end when a new song shows up!) (Also, the picture above is a visual for the end of the chapter ;) )

Claire POV-

She had to run faster.

Jordan was frantically turning corners, her black boots screeching loudly every time she made a turn on the polished floor.

It wasn't long before tears began to fall from her eyes as she realized how useless this all was, how she would never be able to escape.

Still she kept running, shoving furniture and paintings behind her as obstacles.

Just as she had pushed one of the sword racks to the middle of the hallway and quickly turned right, Jordan was welcomed with he sight of the lord of the nether.

As she stopped, having to stumble on her own heels to not run into him, she fell on the ground from the momentum.

She quickly got her knife out from the skirts of her dress and did her best to keep her shaking hand steady.

Oh god.

Dianite's eyes were blazing like the sun and his whole body was covered in flames.

He was angry...so angry in fact that he didn't even hesitate when bringing a hand up, summoning a fire ball. Then without any last words, he threw it towards her.

Bright light filled her vision as the fire ball quickly made its way to its target at a rate too fast to dodge.

Death.

Nothing new.

But instead of feeling that familiar whisper of pain, Jordan shot up from the blinding light and began catching her breath as if she had been holding it in this whole time.

Then she noticed the slight pressure on her lap and noted the black silk sheets before her.

Then she noticed the darkened room and the empty space next to her on the bed.

As she focused on her breathing she kept whispering a few words in her head.

Two more days. Two more days of fear, and killing, and pretending.

Two more days.

Just as she had gotten her breathing under control, Diane walked in through the double doors on the other side of the room. Not the ones that led outside or the adjoining rooms, but the one's that held his private treasure "closet".

Before Tom had received his armor, it had been stored it that room after its creation. It was items of importance like those that were stored in that place for safekeeping, and from what Jordan knew, it wasn't opened very often.

When Dianite saw her awake, he gave her a small smile and made his way over to the bed, the fabric of his long black pants swaying against each other was the only noise in the room.

He had gotten more conformable with the sleeping arrangement throughout the days, so much so that he now slept right by her side, tucking her in next to him every night.

It had taken her a while to push aside her thoughts of betrayal before she managed to get used to the arrangement as well.

So now when he wrapped his arms around her and pushed up the blankets with his magic, she didn't flinch.

"Why are you awake at this hour?" He asked softly

"I noticed you were gone, thought something was wrong" she said, letting her head rest against his bare chest.

It was a viable excuse, her little lie. Dianite, despite all the bad, truly did care about her and was beginning to let his guards down more and more each day.

He never left in the mornings without saying good morning and giving her a light kiss on the forehead. Then he would let her sleep in for a while before she was summoned for breakfast, which they spent together in one of the smaller dining rooms.

Though it had only been a few days, it felt like a routine now. Sometimes so much so that she would forget her mission for a while and got lost in it.

Despite that, she tried to remain focused as best she could, but her nightmares these past two days had brought on a worry so deep, it made her almost dread the day of her escape.

She HAD told Ianite to rest, even if that meant letting her nightmares plague her for a few days. Jordan had become so used to not having them that it seemed like it wouldn't make a difference. But they had come back, and they involved all the things that could go wrong in her escape.

Her plan was complex enough that she should be able to vanish unnoticed, but it required many things to happen which she had no control over.

But it was still two days away.

"So.." Jordan said "You gonna tell me what you were doing playing with the monsters in your closet?" She joked

Dianite let out a laugh and began to run one of his hands through her hair short brown hair, which she'd washed before bed and was still damp. He didn't seem to care.

"I was readying a set of armor for you. You should be able to wear it by morning" he said, again, very softly.

"I thought making enchanted armor by the gods takes days or even weeks to make"

He paused his combing and pushed himself back enough to look her in the eye.

"True. I've been working on it for a while" he said

"Since when?"

"Since that day I took you to my father's secret cave and saw the armor he had made for you" the god replied, pushing her back agains his chest, clearly satisfied with the shock spread across her face.

"But I wasn't your champion back then" Jordan said, indeed still shocked

"I knew you'd be mine some day, even after all that happened when you left" he said and Jordan remembered what her referred to.

When she kissed him goodbye and then left him for what she thought would be eternity.

"Sorry about that day" she lied.

There was a long pause before Dianite leaned back again and then crashed his lips against hers. Not a long kiss, but sweet. The kind that would have made her swoon with happiness months ago.

Still, she did her best to try and forget all that anger and kissed him back.

"You're here now" he said after breaking the kiss and turning back to their embrace "We wont be apart ever again"

Right...

Soon, Jordan felt the lure of sleep tug at her. She succumbed to it knowing that the day ahead held a lot of work such as talking to Furia, killing, and maybe pay a closer visit to Dianite's forces.

3/3 of those things could get her killed, but she wasn't just gonna sit there for two days worried about her escape, she might as well do something useful with her time.

******

Dianite POV-

He was drifting between the realm of sleep and consciousness, his magic swirling all around him like clouds, growing ever so slightly as the minutes passed by.

The god could feel the pulsing of the darkness like a rhythm of drums, alluring and very much alive in its own mind.

The magical mist itself was so close he could almost brush his hand upon it, then again, his awareness of it was so strong he could wield it as anything he wanted.

Sleep was an odd thing, specially with magic. Dianite wondered how sleeping worked for Jordan, if she could see the clouds of power and darkness as he could.

Once, Thomas had mentioned that Jordan used to visit his brother in her dreams. Sometimes he wondered if the communication remained, if he still tried to contact his lady or if he even could.

Although weary at first, Dianite was now almost certain that Jordan really had come back to him. Still, there were moments of doubt here and there where he thought it might all be some sort of cruel joke or act.

But she had proven herself these past few days, and if for some reason it was all still an act, then he would use her against Ianite. If she had truly come to kill him on Ianite's behalf, then she would have a made a great mistake coming to his territory for that. He would use her as leverage and....

No. Dianite halted those trails of thought before they grew further and focused on the magic around him.

In the edges of his consciousness he sensed Jordan moving slightly in his arms.

Dianite approached the edge of the darkness before him and pushed past it in one step, which caused him to descend into a tunnel of non-magical darkness back to consciousness.

Once awake, he noticed Jordan was still in his arms, both of hers now around his neck and her breath blowing softly against his chest.

Peaceful.

It was odd sometimes, waking up and seeing her in his arms asleep beside him. There were even times when he was convinced that it was all just a fragment of his imagination, or another of his father's illusions from when he was a boy.

Happiness.

An emotion that had been tampered with so many times that it still made him pause, to know that he truly did have a partner to be happy with, a future not filled with loneliness and darkness.

Jordan was his tether to reality now, that sweet lovely human that rested against his chest.... She was the illusions his father spun in his head.

But now he would fight and kill anything and anyone who dared take it away.

Perhaps Thomas had grown past his anger at Jordan and was currently fighting to het her back. If he did, Dianite would make sure to give the boy a long painful end.

As the lord of the Nether continued to caress his queen's hair and contemplate ways to kill Tom, the door to the hall flew open and one of his champions hurried inside, heading for the desk on the other side of the room.

Once Furia finally realized that Dianite wasn't there, he turned around with shock written all over his face.

Instead of burning Furia to ashes for almost waking up Jordan, he kissed Jordan's brow and removed her arms from his neck, using his magic to push the blankets in place, and slowly made his way to the joining room by his desk.

It was a small study that used to house mountains of documents and books, old stuff written by humans at the dawn of his rule.

Jordan had taken a look at the room on her second day and spent a few hours cleaning out the space, turning it into a simple study where she could read.

Dianite didn't mind at all, he would have sent someone to clean out the space ages ago had it not been for the fact that he didn't want his minions to destroy any documents.

Now, this was the place he would sometimes find his lady after Dianite was done with meetings.

For now, this place would have to do. Dianite didn't bother to change out of his attire as he gestured for Furia to enter.

"What is it Furia. Must I remind you that one does not simply bursts into my private chambers like that, not even my champions have that courtesy" he said coldly, taking a seat at the head of the desk.

Furia sat down on one of the two chairs avaliable on the other side before bowing his head.

"I had no idea you would be with your champion my lord. I assumed her chambers were elsewhere and that, as always, you would be awake" Furia said, a slight waver in his voice.

"She is my lady and your queen, she is exactly where she is supposed to be, and you'd do well to remember that" he responded, already getting annoyed "Let's hope your excuse was worth it"

Furia set down his helmet on the table, eyeing the various books on the table and the flat metal square that his lady loved to carry around.

Furia's gaze lingered on that item, his mind seemingly lost in a memory, before he turned his head back and bowed.

"It appears that during the chaos of the decoration preparations someone from Mianite might have snuck in to the base my lord" his champion said.

Dianite felt his fire rile up all over his body, the heat in his palms increasing.

"How so?" He asked slowly, trying his best not to yell off the top of his lungs for Jordan's sake.

Furia looked like he was getting ready to bolt out of the room.

"One of the guards went to go place some of the decorations by Dargon's courtyard and found something amiss. We think the.." Furia stopped as if not sure mentioning the item near Jordan was wise but Dianite remained still, fighting off his anger at the oncoming words.

"...Item Dargon had is missing, but no one can get close enough to make sure my lord" Furia finished

"HOW COULD ONE OF THOSE HUMAN CHAMPIONS GET THROUGH OUR DEFENSES AND STEAL IT!!!" Dianite screamed

Furia was quick to stand up.

"We don't know my lord, we are searching the castle as best as we can" he said

Dianite didn't even bother to yell any further, he got up from his chair and rushed out of the small room, summoning clothes with his magic.

Despite his anger, relief coursed through him when he saw Jordan sound asleep.

That small part of him wondered if perhaps Jordan had retrieved the heart for Ianite, but that thought quickly vanished when he realized she had been asleep with him all night. He would have sensed if she got up. Besides, even she didn't know where it was hidden.

Throwing one last look at the beauty sleeping on his bed, he left the room and made his way down to the courtyard.

******

Claire POV-

Oh no. He knew. HE KNEW.

That threw off her whole plan!!!!

Jordan had to leave now before this could somehow be traced back to her.

As soon as she had heard Dianite's screams from the other room, her stomach sank and she debated running right then and there.

But the logical part of her brain was still working, and she faked sleep, bidding her time to tweak her plan.

Jordan tried to relax her mind as best she could despite the horrible mess before her. She did her best to breathe in and out now, pushing air into her lungs after she had stoped breathing when she heard Dianite's steps end by the bed, sure Dianite knew and was gonna kill her.

No. Now she truly needed to relax.

After getting her heart rate back to normal, she focused on one thing.

Ianite.

She had to get through to him NOW.

Luckly, it seemed like her god had rested enough because soon her vision filled with white clouds and blinding light.

As the light faded, the first thing she noticed was the smell of coffee and the calm music in the room.

Once the clouds cleared, she noticed the wooden tables and marble counter with coffee machines, outside the room's large windows was an empty roadway and street lights fighting agains the darkness of the night.

At her favorite table, like last time, sat her god.

"Lady Jordan" he said as way of greeting and gestured to the empty chair before him.

Jordan didn't bother to hide her panic this time. She ran over to him and grabbed his arm, kneeling by him when her legs gave out.

"I need to leave, NOW" she said, trying to catch her breath and keep her heart rate steady

"Leaving Mianite will take some..." her god began, sadness across his features

"No! Not leave this world, just the Nether. Dianite knows the heart is gone. You said you could talk to Mianite sometimes, I need you to get him to open the portal now" she said, not bothering to check her manners.

She wasn't just freaking out for her life, but for the fact that she needed to get the heart out.

If she was caught, it would all be for nothing.

Lord Ianite stood up and brushed the hair out of her face quickly, his saddened expression now one of worry.

"I will do so once you wake up" he said simply, as he got ready to leave.

"Wait!" She said, holding on to the god's arm again " Twenty minutes. Tell him to have it open in twenty minutes"

Knowing time was of the essence, she quickly gave her god a hug, wrapping her arms tight around him.

"If I'm caught, tell the pirates to go get the heart and only the heart. You know where I hid it." She said, fighting back her fear to steady her voice "It wont be worth the risk to rescue me as well"

"Don't say that. Just make it back, I don't care if you must leave the heart behind but come back..come back safe to me" he whispered

"I'll make them pay, I promise" she said back quickly, prying herself out of his embrace.

"Come back to me my champion" he said as he let go of her hand

Jordan didn't bother to ponder on his concern or thank him for caring in the first place, she just nodded and willed her consciousness back.

In seconds, she shot up from the bed after barely waking up.

As quick as she could, she dressed in her Mianite clothes which she had hidden underneath a pile of her dresses. Once her cape was clasped on and her weapons strapped in place, she rushed to her little reading room and grabbed her backpack from underneath the couch by the window.

She had kept it ready in case something like this happened. All of her valuables were in it along with some spare weapons and food for a few days. Luckly, that wasn't too much as to slow her down.

Before she could forget, she stuffed her iPad in the bag and zipped it up as she exited the room.

Now time for her incomplete plan to take action.

A day ago, Jordan had casually told Dianite that Christmas was coming up (which it was) and how it was a very important holiday for her from back home. She had described the history behind it, the gifts, the decorations...

It didn't take much convincing to get Dianite to celebrate it with her this year.

Since no trees could naturally grow in the nether because they needed an attachment to the overworld, Jordan had suggested decorating the castle with them regardless, using dirt from the overworld to send people to gather it.

That had been the purpose of her villager killing spree all these days, as their deaths were required for the spell to work. Luckly for her, they used up most of the villagers the nether soldiers had managed to get before Mianite's magic trapped them in.

At least by killing them, Dianite couldn't use them to kill her once she escaped. He would effectively be trapped in now, unless summoned by Tom that is.

But that wasn't her only reason for bringing up her beloved holiday.

Jordan had insisted on putting garlands all over the castle walls as a simple decoration. Since they couldn't place the dirt to keep them alive at the top of the walls, she had mentioned how they could be put on the floor instead.

Dianite had deemed the garlands made from the trees retrieved not lively enough to ruin his "nether aesthetic" as she liked to call it.

Unfortunately for everyone, while they were all busy with meetings and training, she snuck in string inside them.

TNT string.

String that connected to various TNT stacks across the castle where the decorations were. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to finish her good work.

Jordan had planned to visit the armies and place some in their lower levels where some of them slept. Still, she was able to get most of the back of the castle, but her real goal had been to destroy Dianite's armies as best she could.

If her math was right, which it usually was, the blast radius would be enough to take out two-thirds of the castle.

That one minion really should have brought a lot of her stuff, specially one of her chests filled with TNT for the purges.