Yes, my dear readers, this is indeed the final chapter. I would not expect any sequels to this if I were you, because I really need to get back a taste for my other story.

Disclaimer: It's at the beginning of the story if you want it.

Deep beneath the earth, where the only light was that of the lava, a creature stirred from it's slumber. Its mistress was calling it from where it was to the mortal world. The creature stretched its limbs that had not moved in so long, its jaws gaping wide in yawn that showed its glinting white teeth. The words of the sorceress echoed through its mind as a gateway opened to the surface. If it could grin, it would've. It was time for some fun.

Jen willed herself to focus on the incantation as she felt Hephasto's attacks impacting on the ground around her. She couldn't allow herself to lose her concentration, not now. She could feel it; she was close.

"I really hope she knows what she's doing," said Kit. She and the Toa were currently across the street from the mall parking lot. "You and me both," Kopaka slipped, earning an inquisitive glance from the teen. Just then, a glow around Jen caught their attention. It started out soft, but soon increased in intensity, revealing a large pentagram-like design, of which Jen was in the epicenter. Hephasto stopped his advance upon seeing the light from the gateway shoot up into the heavens. Everyone could clearly hear a deep guttural growl that instantly made the hairs on their necks and heads stand on end. It sounded so . . . otherworldly. Kit felt her breath catch in her throat when gigantic, leathery wings extended and flexed. Whatever Jen had managed to summon was coming.

'This is it,' Jen thought, willing more of her strength and focus into controlling the creature. It raised its head up and roared, the light from the gateway glinting off of its scarlet scales. Its jade green eyes locked on Hephasto, who couldn't help but swallow nervously. This creature was the legendary Mechira, a beast that had not been seen in over seven hundred years. She spoke in the ancient tongue of her family, commanding it to destroy the demon that had terrorized the lives of innocents. The creature bared its sharp teeth and leapt for Hephasto's throat.

Unable to think of anything else, Hephasto dodged off to the side at the last second. Out of desperation more than anything else, he then fired the most destructive stream of energy he could summon. However, the only thing it succeeded in accomplishing was enraging the beast, a big mistake. Following Jen's command, it launched a wall of fire from its mouth. Hephasto almost didn't get his forcefield up in time to protect himself from the flames, and even then it came close to collapsing entirely from the intensity and strength of the fire. Just when he was sure he couldn't take it anymore, the Mechira's breath expired. His difficult fight didn't go unnoticed by Kit and the Toa. "C'mon guys, let's give her a little hand," said the girl. The Toa looked at her as if she just suggested they go ride rock raptors. "Don't you see? That creature's more than he can handle. It took all of the focus he's got to maintain that shield. So therefore, if we all attack at once . . ." "Then he will have to use that again to defend himself, but his focus will be shaky," Tahu finished. "With his concentration scattered, he won't be able to make it powerful enough to repel the beast's fire." Within minutes, the crew ran to Jen's side. For the briefest of moments, the young sorceress noticed and asked, "What are you guys doing?" "Giving you a little hand," Kit replied with a sneer. Jen didn't understand what they were thinking they could possibly do, but couldn't deal with that right now. She had to return her full and utmost attention on Mechira. Kit and the Toa got in a circle, surrounding Hephasto. Tense minute after tense minute passed as both the Mechira, Kit, and the Toa's eyes were locked on Hephasto. Some hands flexed in anticipation, ready to react at a moment's notice. Finally, Mechira began to rear back its head a little, an indication that it was getting ready to attack with fire again. Kit and the Toa slightly shifted their positions, also getting prepared. When fire leaped out of the creature's mouth, everything seemed to happen so fast. Kit shouted, "Now!" She and the Toa launched their respective powers, and Hephasto brought back up his shield. Except, this time, it wasn't as strong due to him trying to fend off several attacks at once—and one of them was more powerful than the rest put together. Try as he might, Hephasto couldn't maintain the focus needed to fend off the flames while resisting the girl's and Toa's efforts as well. The blaze slowly began to eat away at the barrier. Then, with the Mechira giving the fire a little burst, the shield failed completely. The next thing everyone saw and heard was Hephasto's anguished roar of death as the flames consumed his essence as if it was paper; Kit could hardly bare to watch. When it was over, two charred ovals where his feet were were burned onto the pavement.

They stood there in silence for a while before Lewa whooped, causing them all to start cheering now that the danger had passed. Jen smiled weakly, but still retained her concentration on the Mechira. "What am I to do now, mistress?" the creature asked telepathically. "Go back through the portal. I'll call you when you are needed again." The beast looked slightly disappointed in her orders, but didn't argue and did just as she said. The portal closed and she sighed; it would be a miracle if she would be able to use her powers correctly again. She started to make for her friends when pained laced through her abdomen. She placed a hand to her stomach and drew it away; it was stained red. Suddenly, she went into such a violent coughing fit that she collapsed to the ground and caused the others to look at her. Next thing they knew, she began coughing up blood.

"What's wrong with her?" Kopaka asked with a hint of fear in his voice as he knelt beside Jen. "She must've not been as fully recovered from her knife wound as we thought, and the strain to maintain the focus needed to summon and control that beast made it worse," Kit guessed. Seeing that the red on her torso was increasing and she was starting to look really pale, the Ice Toa announced, "We have to get her back to the hospital." Nodding, Kit instructed the Toa on how to handle the bleeding as she dialed 911 on her cellphone. Unfortunately, for some reason, the reception was bad and she couldn't get a connection. While the Protector kept trying to call for help and the male Toa offered their shirts, Kopaka applied a firm pressure and peered at the young sorceress, not caring if any of the others noticed. 'Hang on, Jen,' he silently pled. 'Hang on, help will be here soon.' Just as he offered a prayer to the Great Spirit for the girl to be alright, his heart felt as if it truly did skip several beats. Jen's breathing, which was already very bad, was almost non-existent now. "Kit!" the Ice Toa cried. The other teen immediately placed two fingers to the side of her friend's neck. "She's starting to fade," she informed, with horror in her voice. "Her pulse is bad." 'No,' thought Kopaka, unable to believe what he was hearing; if only he had his scope. Jen couldn't be dying, she just couldn't be. If she did then . . . for once, he didn't know what he would do. "Gali, you've got to use your powers!" said Kit. The Water Toa looked at her as if she'd grown an extra head, "What?" "Hurry, use your powers to heal her," the desperate, frantic girl elaborated, her voice starting to choke up. "It just might be the only thing that can save her now." Tears started to stream down her face, her eyes reaching out to her friend to do it. Asking her brothers to give her some room, Gali knelt at Jen's head and willed herself to calm down and focus. She summoned a volo sphere between her hands and let it flow over the girl's form. Everyone held their breath as if they themselves were in the water, and Kopaka again prayed with all of his being, waiting and hoping that this would work. As the water dispersed, the group waited to see what would happen.

Jen didn't move at first, Kopaka giving her hand a gentle squeeze to let her know he was there. Seconds ticked by and they all began to worry; had they lost her? She let out a weak moan, cracking open her eyes. "Guys?" she whispered, her voice hoarse from the coughing. They all sighed, relieved that she was alive. Kopaka helped her to her feet, her knees almost giving way to the weight of her body. He caught her around the waist, slipping her arm over his shoulders. She looked up at Gali and smiled. "Looks like I owe you. Big time." The young sorceress held out a fist to her friend, who smiled and tapped it with her own. Jen stifled a yawn, causing Kit to smile. "You need to get some rest, Jen. I'm pretty sure you don't want to get Alice involved in this one." She nodded, eyes already drooping. Kopaka lifted her in his arms and carried her as she drifted off into the sweet abyss of sleep.

That night, at Kit's house, the gang gathered in the TV room, albeit it was little cramped. Jen rested on the couch, still exhausted, but already feeling better. Kopaka sat next to her. They all felt relief, like a great weight had been lifted off of their shoulders. With Hephasto gone, it was finally over; Kit was safe. Of course, the downside was that that meant the Toa had to return to their reality. This realization made their hearts feel heavy, but none were as heavy as Kopaka and Jen's. A blue light appeared in their midst, Tehreisha's portal for the Toa. The heroes reluctantly said farewell to their Protector and the sorceress and entered the portal, the human forms Jen cast on them melting away as they did. Only the Toa of Ice stalled behind. He knew he had to leave, he had a life, a duty, back in his world, but he didn't want to leave Jen either. The girl looked up at him with watery sapphire eyes. "Do you really have to?" she asked, her voice sounding like it was about to crack with emotion. "You already know the answer, else you wouldn't have asked," he replied. Jen carefully sat up, not even taking her eyes off of his, fighting back tears. "I don't want you to go." Kopaka knelt down, gently grasping his hands around her upper arms, and looked deep into her eyes. Then, just like that, the girl embraced him in a tight hug, sneaking in a peck on his cheek as she did. The Toa, not sure of how else to respond—and grateful that the others weren't there to watch—wrapped his own arms around her. "I'll never forget you," Jen whispered in his ear. "Nor will I," he replied. After what felt like an eternity, they forced themselves to separate. They slowly let go of each other's hands, as if hoping to prolong the inevitable. Once the Ice Toa vanished into the portal, so did it. Jen let out a sad, longing sigh; her first love and he was from another dimension. Kit placed a hand to her shoulder and smiled knowingly and warmly. Jen offered a small smile back. The doorbell rang, and Kit left to answer while Jen gathered her things. Jen's mom came in and embraced her daughter as if she were afraid she would vanish in front of her eyes. After assuring her mom that she was fine, Jen said good-bye to Kit. "Where will you be staying?" asked the Protector, remembering what happened to Jen's house. "We'll be at my husband's brother's house until things get taken care of," Jen's mom answered. "Thank you so much again, Kit, for letting Jen stay at your place." "No biggie," the girl answered. She watched mother and daughter drive down the street before letting out a yawn. "What a wild weekend."

A few weeks later, Kit and Jen were at the library studying for a math test. At least Kit was; Jen had seemed to be in a daze ever since the Toa left. She was suffering from an aching heart. Kit noticed it more than others, the way her sapphire eyes glazed over when she saw the other teenage couples around the school. Now, she couldn't seem to focus on the notes or the problems, but just stared off into space until Kit snapped her fingers in front of her face. "Jen, are you okay?" she asked, eyes giving her a worried glance. Jen sighed, tucking her pencil behind her ears, and rested her head in her hands. "I just miss them – especially Kopaka." She closed her eyes, feeling tears sting them as she thought about the one she loved. "I bet he's missing you just as much. You know, you really changed him for the better; you got him to open up a little more than usual." Jen shrugged, fingering a crystal rose necklace that said Toa slipped into her hand when they parted. "He's the only one that ever truly made me feel like I really did have a place in this world – and in someone's heart." Wanting to change the subject, and hoping that it would get her friend to smile, Kit wondered about the reconstruction of her house. Jen shook her head. "We just don't seem to have the money to do that and my parents don't want to take it out of my college fund, so…we're moving." Kit's jaw dropped. "What? Where and when?" "To California. Apparently we've got some family back there, so it won't be too bad. We're hoping to get out of here by the weekend, but they're trying to give me as much time as possible to be with you so that I can have the memories. I really don't want to leave. Oh, that reminds me." She pulled out a leather-bound book with yellowing pages, as well as a folded piece of paper with the name of a certain team of Toa written on it from her backpack. Both of which she handed to her best friend.

"Can I trust you to keep this safe, Kit?" she asked, pushing the book toward her. "It's one of my family's heirlooms, so please don't lose it. We want a chance to find a safe place to keep it first."

"What is it?"

"It's more of a diary than a book. Alice started it and enchanted it so that every sorceress will have a story worth being told, even if they don't write in it. It holds every spell known as well as every beast, demon, and person that she ever encountered."

"What about the paper?" Kit asked, already flipping through the book. Jen smiled a little.

"Could you give this to them if you ever see them again for me? It's a drawing that I made of all of them. I think they'll like it." When opened, it was like the inside of a book with the pages all neatly on the side, but it held the faces of the human Toa. She had seemed to capture all of their expressions, from Tahu's stern face to Takanuva's curious eyes. There was a strict look on Kopaka's features, but there was laughter and a bit of sadness in his stare. Kit smiled at her friend's artwork.

"You're right, Jen. They'll like it. Anything else I should have?"

"Yeah. Could you tell Kopaka, if it ever crosses your mind, that I love him?"

"Sure thing."

At last, a story that I have actually finished. And yes, for the drawing, I did steal the idea from an episode of NCIS. Hope you all enjoyed the story and feel free to review.