A/N:

This chapter has not been beta'd because my beta is sick and I think her health is more important than a mistake here and there, and I hope you feel the same! 3

If you are sensitive, you might want to fetch some tissues before reading this chapter.

I'm gonna continue putting the disclaimer here just be sure that everyone is aware of where this story originated.

This story isn't 100 % mine. I have transformed it into a story from an interactive story app called Choices (an app I am completely obsessed with atm) and the creators are Pixelberry Studios.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

{Chapter 12}

I crouched on the edge of the cliff, looking at the rushing waterfall churning and pouring its contents two thousand feet into the sea below.

Shifting my eyes, I gazed across the strait toward the craggy pillar of rock crowned with a towering, cutting-edge facility.

Alistair stared at it with an undecipherable expression. "So this is it. The MASADA Complex."

"We all knew your dad had a complex, Malfoy. Now he's just getting blatant about it," Edward commented and shook his head at Cullen's ridiculousness.

"If Iris was telling the truth, our ticket home is somewhere in there," I said, joining the boys' conversation.

"So this Lernal Gate—"

"Lernaean Gate," Alistair corrected. "The lake of Lerna was the lair of the Hydra in Greek mythology."

"Sure, that's not ominous at all," Edward replied. "Anyway, we have to get inside, find this Lernaean Gate, and if the Island's Heart can power it…"

"It can take us home," I finished for him. I opened my bag and looked at the gleaming, shattered orb of colorful prisms.

"Still sounds like a trap to me," Edward said skeptically.

Alistair glared angrily at him. "Is this your brilliant 'gut instinct' again, Edward? The one that's never, ever gotten us into trouble before?"

I stepped in between them. "Guys, we'll be ready for whatever they spring on us. If there's even a chance the Gate's in there, we have to take it. We just have to stay alert and go in with a plan," I said, but it only had Alistair turn his glare on me.

"So you think I'm being a fool to believe her?" he asked defensively.

"Relax," Edward said and put a calming hand on Alistair's shoulder. "Princess's just being cautious. But none of this even matters if we can't figure out a way in."

I gestured toward the cableway going from our cliff over the water and to the facility entrance. "The only way across is this gondola."

"Of course. Knocking on the front door will work out splendidly, no doubt," Alistair said sarcastically and crossed his arms, but winced when the movement jostled his wounded arm, and he had to adjust the sling Kate made him.

"They'd see us coming a literal mile away," Edward pointed out. "We need a plan. Any ideas?"

"Hiding in plain sight?" I suggested.

"How would we even do such a thing?" Alistair asked me with a look that said he thought I'd lost my mind.

I sighed. "Look, there's no way we can climb down this cliff and back up the pillar. Only way in is the gondola. I don't know yet how we can ride across in it without being immediately captured, I admit that, but we'll figure something out."

Alistair relented. "Hm. I suppose you're correct in that we must investigate the available options."

"We'll think of something. We have to," Edward agreed. "Anyway, right now, we've got bigger problems," he continued and jerked his head forward.

I followed his gaze back toward the others where they were waiting at the edge of the trees, recovering from the Arachnid's attack.

The three of us rejoined the group where Kate sat by a shivering Garrett, who was wrapped in a blanket.

"Here, make sure to cover your—" she started but Garrett jerked away.

His teeth were chattering badly, causing his words to be rather difficult to understand. "S-stop— I— said I'm— f-f-fine!"

Kate looked worried. "Garrett, please. You were in that freezing cold water for so long. You could have hypothermia." She reached for him again, but Garrett stood up and walked away with his blanket.

"I can t-take care of m-myself, okay? Just n-need to wa-walk around!" he exclaimed angrily.

I noticed how the others gave furtive glances toward the edge of the falls, and when I looked in that direction, I saw that Victoria sat there alone; her long hair billowed in the strong, cold wind, which also instantly dried the tears on her cheeks.

I went over to her and offered my hand. "Vicky. Hey. Come on, join the rest of us."

"You're sure?" she asked insecurely.

I lead her back to the group, and several of them backed away in fear, which, in turn, caused Victoria to recoil.

"Oh!"

"Whoa … please don't hurt us!"

"We'll do whatever you want!"

Victoria's eyes welled with fresh tears. "See, Bella? They're all afraid of me … of what I've become."

I felt myself getting angry and I glared at Tanya, Emmett, and Benjamin who'd had the strongest reactions. "Hey! I know what happened is scary, but she saved our lives! We were literally dead in the water if Victoria hadn't saved us. Maybe show a little gratitude."

Emmett looked contrite. "Aw, man. Bella's right. We're being total jerks, guys!" He looked at Victoria and smiled at her. "Come here, Vic, you can sit next to me."

Victoria smiled back at him gratefully. "Thanks, Emmett." She sat down and then frowned. "I don't even remember what happened."

"You touched the Island's Heart, and a spirit inhabited your body. I've never seen anything like it," Jacorel said, his yellow eyes glowing with slight caution, but also intrigue.

"One moment," Alistair spoke up with suspicion in his tone. "I seem to recall Bella urging Victoria to not touch the Heart, right before she was possessed."

Every pair of eyes in the group focused on me.

"Bella? Did you … did you know that was gonna happen?" Tanya asked carefully.

Even Victoria looked at me, concerned. "Bella?"

I didn't know how they would all react, but I knew I couldn't lie now that they had figured it out, so I nodded. "Yes. I did. It happened to you once before, back at Elyys'tel. Harrvel said that telling Vicky and scaring her could ruin her health."

"You hid this from us too?" Tanya asked sadly. It was obvious she didn't like being left out, but I wasn't going to feel guilty for doing what I felt was right. However, before I could defend myself, Emmett did that for me.

"At least she had a good reason … and is being straight-up with us now," he said, but Alistair scoffed at that.

"Oh yes, honesty, when the cat's already out of the bag, is quite the virtue."

"I understand why you did it, Bella," Victoria said and took hold of my hand. "It must've been a hard choice. So … thank you for protecting me."

Benjamin turned to Jacorel. "What's happening to her? What did the Heart do to her?"

"I don't know," the Kaarii King admitted dejectedly. "The Heart is the most powerful artifact in Kaarii legend. It represents the very spirit of this island of Kaanu … perhaps it even … contains some of that spirit."

"T-time out! You're t-telling u-us that the Island is p-possessing V-Victoria?" Garrett stammered out through his still chattering teeth.

"It may be. When it restored her life, that was an incredible transfer of energy," Jacorel said.

Peter frowned. "But like, she's only like that when she touches the orb thing, right?"

"Not sure, Peter, but my guess is no," I answered him.

He turned to me. "Wait, what?"

"Remember the Yeti? How Vicky almost controlled it?" I reminded him.

Tanya nodded. "That's right. I think a lot of this spirit is already in her!"

"It's true that the orb does seem to act like a trigger, though," Jacorel said. "But I fear each time she touches it, more of Kaanu's spirit joins hers. Next time or the time after that … there could be no turning back."

I squeezed Victoria's hand. "Victoria? Are you okay? I know it's a lot to digest—"

She sighed. "It's just that … my whole life, I carried something inside my body. Something taking over me. Something that would eventually erase me. And I thought I'd finally gotten it out, that I was finally free to be me. But I'm not free. It just got replaced with something else."

A pained silence fell over the group.

After a moment, Peter forced a smile and patted Victoria's back. "But hey, your disease didn't give you powers to fly and stop bullets. Now, look at you!"

Rosalie scowled at him. "Dude. Not the time for jokes—"

Victoria gestured to her that it was okay, though. "No, it's okay. Peter's right. I need to look on the bright side of this." She exhaled and attempted a smile. "I've always been helpless. I've always needed others to look out for me since the day I was born. So if what happened to me means that I can help you, that I can take care of others for once … then I'm gonna make the most of it."

Edward grinned at her. "Hell yeah."

"So I guess this means we shouldn't use the Heart to heal our wounded," Kate said and cast another worried glance at Garrett.

"Yeah, that seems like a dangerous idea," I said before she got any ideas.

"I figured. In that case, we need to find medical supplies."

"Kate, I said I'm fine—"

Kate whipped around and fixed Garrett with an icy stare. "Will you shut up? You're not fine."

"We're in the middle of an ice age, miles away from the Lodge. Where do you suppose we're to find medical supplies?" Alistair asked her.

"I saw tire tracks nearby. I'd bet it's from Arachnid's vehicles on their way to ambush us at the lake," Leah said. "Most of them fell in the ice, so the trucks might still be there. They'd have first-aid kits inside."

I immediately stood up. "I'll go with you."

"As will I," Jacorel said and stood up as well.

Edward stood up next to me and grinned. "Let's do this."

Kate nodded. "Okay, let's go."

Edward looked at her skeptically. "You sure you're up for this, Maybelline?"

Kate turned her eyes to him and they were full of spite and fire. "Yes. In fact, I'm the only one who knows what we need, so it looks like you're the dead weight this time, you pompous ass."

He held his hands up in surrender. "Point taken."

Soon, we were trudging through the dense northern forests. Dead trees stretched their bony, knotted branches high above us.

"Edward, may I ask you a question?" Jacorel said. "You were one of the enemies before, no? An Arachnid?"

Edward looked down at his feet as he walked. "Yeah. The Arachnid Unit. My call sign was 'Wolf,' as in a wolf spider," he admitted. "Everybody was a different spider. McKenzie's codename is 'Tarantula.'"

Jacorel nodded to himself. "I see. You were warriors without a tribe. You fought only for yourselves—"

Edward interrupted him as he was getting annoyed. "Hey, it wasn't like that then. We used to help people … at least … that's what I told myself we were doing."

I heard a soft sniff and turned to see Kate. "Kate, you're crying—"

"No, I'm not," she replied defensively, but I had an idea about why she was upset.

"It's Garrett, isn't it?"

She sniffed again. "We almost lost him back there. If Peter hadn't gotten to him in time, he'd be d—"

"But he's not," I told her passionately. "He's tough. He'll pull through."

She swallowed. "It's just … He's still important to me, Bella. We dated for two years. That doesn't just disappear when it's over. Even though we're not together, I'll always care about him … But when he looks at me now, all I see is hate and disgust in his eyes." She wiped her traitorous tears away. "I can't stand it. If he'd died thinking that—thinking that I—"

I thought back to the vision I had about Kate's past when I touched her idol. How her sorority sisters lied to Garrett, telling him she cheated only to ruin her.

It was risky of me to use the info I had of the past, but I couldn't just pretend like I couldn't help either. "Kate, you should tell him the truth. Tell Garrett your friends lied to him. Tell him you never cheated."

Kate's eyes widened. "What—But how could you know that they…?" She sighed. "I can't do it, Bella. It's just too humiliating. If I were to tell him that, that would mean I didn't have a single true friend in the world."

I gently placed my hand on her arm. "Kate, we're your true friends."

Her eyes met mine, glistening with tears, and then she sniffed again and nodded. "Okay … Yes, I'll tell him."

"Dammit!" Leah cursed from up ahead. "Too much fresh snowfall this far out. We lost the tire tracks."

"We really need to find the vehicles and get those kits," I said unnecessarily since we all knew this already, but it just slipped out.

Edward studied the surroundings. "Judging by the terrain, the best tactical move for Arachnid would've been the crest over that way."

Jacorel squatted down and also surveyed the area. "I disagree. The low branches this way are broken. Something large passed through."

Leah rolled her eyes. "You're both wrong. Smell the gas? It's gotta be coming from this way!"

Kate exhaled sharply. "Or it's literally right here." She pointed at a military Humvee resting nearby, very visible through the trees.

Edward, Jacorel, and Leah all looked embarrassed.

Leah cleared her throat. "Hrm, uh … Good work."

The five of us approached the Humvee cautiously.

"Looks empty," Edward observed. "No sign of 'em anywhere. We're clear."

"Leah and I will keep watch outside while you search the vehicle," Jacorel said and immediately started to scan all around.

"Don't take too long. Any survivors might head back this way."

Edward, Kate, and I climbed inside the Humvee. The interior was spacious and filled with high-tech equipment.

"Jackpot," Edward said, pleased.

"Over here! A first-aid kit! And some heat blankets," Kate cheered.

"Check this out," I exclaimed. "They've got a bunch of emergency shelter tents too. These could keep us safe in the cold."

"Nice find. Let's see if we can drive this thing back to our camp."

I climbed into the driver's seat and turned on the engine and a large central computer display mounted in the console came to life. I got curious and wondered if perhaps we could find any clues as to how McKenzie had actually found us.

I tapped through a couple of screens, searching.

"What are you doing?" Kate asked. "Let's get moving."

"I just wanna see one thing," I told her and found a menu that listed a number of files and actions. I looked at them and clicked on the file that said 'anon_transmission.'

An audio file played from the Humvee's speakers. It was distorted and impossible to understand, but there was something there that caught my attention, and that was why I rewound it, turned up the sound and listened again.

"Is that a voice?" Kate asked and gaped.

I nodded. "Yes, and listen to what it's saying."

Barely, under crashing waves of static, was the sound of a garbled voice speaking English.

"You want Edward Masen? Come get him. June 2nd. Fifteen degrees, eleven minutes, seventeen seconds North. Seventy-three degrees, twenty minutes, sixteen seconds West."

The transmission repeated on a loop.

Kate blinked. "Fifteen degrees North, Seventy-three degrees West? That's gotta be—"

Edward clenched his jaw. "Yeah. It's here."

I looked at him in shock. "Someone … gave McKenzie your location?"

"And they knew what day I was bringing you here," he said and nodded. "Dammit! McKenzie was waiting here for me the whole time!" He kicked the passenger seat hard in his anger. "Someone ratted me out! When I find out who—"

Suddenly, a pebble plunked off the rear windshield, and then another.

"Crap! That's Leah and Jacorel. They're warning us."

"Shh! Look! Someone's coming," Kate said in a hushed voice.

We all ducked down in the cab, and through the snow-dusted windows, I made out four Arachnid soldiers approaching.

"Get a move on. They went this way." One of them said in a voice distorted by his helmet.

In the rear, one soldier propped another one up as they limped along. "Going as fast as we can, sir."

"Forget Two-Eight-Seventy. Leave him. We have to move! The vehicle's up ahead," the first one said, and my heart skipped a beat.

"Damn. Some of these bastards survived the lake," Edward cursed under his breath.

"And they're headed this way! What do we do?" Kate asked, panicked.

I looked at the other two and then straightened up in the driver's seat. "Screw it!" I stomped on the gas pedal and the Humvee roared to life.

The massive vehicle rocketed forward straight at the troops. I felt four hard thumps and saw their bodies windmill through the air as they careened off the hood.

The truck slammed to a stop against a tree trunk, and I got out and saw Leah and Jacorel running toward us, shock on their faces.

In my wake, the four soldiers lay in the snow, motionless.

"Wow. Well done," Leah said in awe.

Edward jumped out of the truck as well. "Holy crap. You just saved our asses."

Kate came out after him. "That … went better than expected." She looked from the soldiers and to the vehicle. "Come on, let's get this gear back to the others."

As we all headed back to the truck, I stopped and looked back at the fallen troops, and an idea formed in my head.

"Huh. Hang on a second," I told the others. "I think I have an idea."

Soon, we reunited with the others near the falls and showed them all the supplies we'd found.

Everyone circled around us, staring in shock as I presented my idea.

"Hold on," Peter said. "You're talking about sneaking into Cullen's lair wearing these suits?" He gestured to the pile of Arachnid armor we had stripped from the troops.

I nodded. "Like we said, the gondola's the only way across. So a disguise is the only way they'll let us in."

Emmett nodded thoughtfully. "It's so insane that it just might work!"

Alistair rolled his eyes. "Why do people say that? Nothing is so insane that it works!"

"It's an interesting idea, but there's just one problem," Garrett said, and once again, Alistair interjected.

"One?!"

Garrett agreed. "Okay, sure, lots of problems, but a big one is we've got four suits, but there are thirteen of us."

Furball huffed at him and Emmett chuckled. "Sorry, little man. He means fourteen. But I don't think they make suits in your size anyway."

Edward grinned. "That's the best part of the plan. Tell 'em, Princess."

I smiled back at him. "The rest of us don't wear disguises. We go as prisoners."

Rosalie frowned in anger. "You're asking us to turn ourselves in? To those psychos?"

Leah nodded. "Yes. And once we're inside, the ones dressed as Arachnid will free the rest of us."

"And we make a break for the Lernaean Gate," Kate finished.

Garrett, now warm again underneath a heat blanket, contemplated it. "Huh … That … That could actually work."

"It could. But it's more likely we end up shish-kebabed on that braided girl's katanas," Rosalie said with a scowl.

"Rosalie, we need you," I said. "You're our expert hacker. If anyone can get us through their security once we're inside, it's you."

She shrugged. "Obviously. But at least you acknowledge it."

I turned to the others who had remained silent. "I know this sounds crazy. But this is our one shot at getting home, all of us, together."

Peter worked up his momentum and cracked his neck. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's blow this joint!"

Kate stopped him, though. "That's all well and good, but some of us are still hurt."

Tanya agreed with her. "Kate's right. We can all recover for one night at least."

"We can rest until dawn," Victoria said. "Those tents you took from Arachnid will keep us warm through the night."

"Perfect. Let's get a fire going."

As everyone started setting up camp, I saw a strange expression on Garrett's face. I went up to him and looked at him questioningly.

"Garrett? What's up?"

"It's just weird. This whole time, we've been racing forward, with no idea what's coming next. But now, we finally do." He met my eyes. "This time tomorrow, we'll either be back home … or we'll be dead."

Hours later, night had fallen, and the sky shimmered with infinite stars.

We finished raising the last of the tents; Tanya organizing while Peter lifted the heavy stuff.

"Right over here, slot that support into the notch."

"Here?"

"Perfect! All done!"

I looked over the little tent village we had created. "With this many tents, we should all be able to sleep comfortably." A few of us had to share of course, but it had never been a question about who I would be sleeping with tonight.

"Ohmygod, Bella, look!" Tanya exclaimed and pointed at the sky.

I turned around and saw a breathtaking meteor shower filling the sky with streaks of light. "It's … incredible," I breathed out in awe.

"Dude, I've never seen so many! This is wild!" Peter gaped.

"Are they the Quadrantids? Or maybe ancient meteors we've never even heard of?"

"Benji, you gotta check this—" I looked around for Benjamin and saw him standing awkwardly on his own. He was looking over toward the edge of the falls with a troubled expression.

Following his gaze, I realized he was looking at Jacorel, who was sitting alone at the cliff's edge watching the shower.

I walked up to my bestie. "Hey, what's bugging you?"

"Ehhh…" he said, attempting to shrug it off, but didn't fool me for a second. "It's nothing. Just … Goodbyes suck, you know?"

I nodded somberly. "Right. Jacorel isn't coming with us."

"Yeah," he replied and then inhaled deeply. "I get it. He can't. We're from different times, it couldn't last, et cetera." He chuckled humorlessly. "Of course my heart would be dumb enough to go for the 'Romeo and Juliet Across Spacetime' love story, huh?"

"You still have tonight," I encouraged him. "Just because something ends tomorrow doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy it today."

Benjamin shook his head with a smile. "Dammit, you're always right. I'm gonna go over there." He quickly smoothed his hair down. "Okay, how do I look?"

"Honestly, with your new hair? Like a total heartthrob."

"I'll take it."

I patted him on the back and he left to join Jacorel by the waterfall. I remained standing on the edge and watched them as they talked, but when they leaned forward and shared a beautiful, but heart-wrenching kiss, I turned away to allow them their privacy.

Emmett called me over to a campfire, and I joined him, Victoria, and Furball near the strong flames.

"Wow, Emmett, it smells amazing over here. What are you cooking?"

He grinned. "Check it. We've got sausages and vegetable kebabs."

"Where did you get all this?"

"Raided the kitchens back at the Lodge." He showed me the inside of his backpack, which was brimming with various ingredients. "Between good food and a few hilarious t-shirts, what else does a man need?" he asked and gestured toward the shirt he was wearing which had a print of a lighter that had the text 'It's Lit!' on it. "Here, dig in!"

Emmett served up some fresh-cooked food to me and Victoria.

"This is so delicious," I said with my mouth full of food.

Nearby, Furball devoured a vegetable kebab.

Emmett laughed. "Furball loves his veggies! Eat up, little man! Gotta get big and strong if you're gonna be a Guardian one day!"

Sated, Furball licked his mouth with his long tongue and nuzzled my lap. I stroke his fur affectionately.

"Aww. He's gonna miss you a lot when you go home," Victoria said, and I nodded sadly.

"I'll always remember him. I'm gonna miss him, too, but this is where he belongs," I said, and the other two nodded in agreement.

After eating my fill, I got up and wandered the camp to check on the rest of the group. As I walked, I noticed Garrett and Kate sitting alone, side by side on a log. In the wind, I caught a bit of their conversation.

"So that's it. I know you have zero reason to believe me, but it's true," Kate said and looked down.

Garrett shook his head and looked down as well. "What's crazy is that I have every reason to believe you. I still know you, Kate. I know how hard that must've been to say just now. I can't believe those scumbag friends of yours—"

"They're not my friends, Garrett," Kate insisted. "You are." She met his eyes. "I know part of you will always hate me for letting you think this for so long, and you're totally right to. But you're still one of the best people I've met. I needed to finally tell you the truth … to finally tell you … I'm sorry."

Garrett's shoulders heaved as he sighed deeply. "Thank you, Katie." He pulled her into a hug.

As I kept walking, I couldn't help but smile to myself, knowing I'd had a hand in helping Kate talk to Garrett and clear the air between them.

A second campfire was where the rest of the group had gathered, and I joined them, settling in between Edward's legs and leaning back against his chest.

They were all telling stories and laughing, and I was soon laughing with them.

"So our cover's blown," Edward said, continuing his story about how he and Jazz always used to prank each other. "M.P.S. cops are hot on our tail. They chase us to the top of the Ryuhyong Hotel. Only one way down from there. Me and Jazz grab our chutes, run through the windows, and basically have to B.A.S.E jump from the tallest building in Pyongyang, with cops shooting at us from the tower, and all these locals gawking up at us and pointing." His voice vibrated in his chest against my back, and I snuggled further into his warmth. "And I just hear Jazz laughing his ass off behind me. I look up, and spraypainted in huge Korean Hangul on my open chute is 'I can't stop farting.'"

We all burst out laughing, except Tanya who gaped.

"That's so mean!"

I tilted my head back to look at Edward. "Jazz sounds like he was awesome."

He smiled fondly. "Yeah … he really was."

"That might even top the time I hacked this price-gauging pharma exec's credit card and ordered forty-seven stripper clowns to crash his 80th birthday party," Rosalie said through her laughter.

"Well played," Edward approved.

"That might be more of a felony than a prank," Tanya said, still looking shocked.

Rosalie shrugged. "Meh. Potato, po-tah-to." She looked at me. "What about you, Bella? Any all-time great pranks?"

I grinned. "I once dressed up as Samara from The Ring to scare Benji sophomore year. Hid in his closet and waited for him."

Edward's laughter resounded all around me. "Ha ha! Man, what I'd give to see Pop Culture Petey's face right then!"

"Oh my gosh, you two are just awful!" Tanya continued to disagree with us.

"Oh come on," Edward told her. "Harmless pranks are what make friendships great."

The night went on with food, stories, and laughter, but soon, I was lying on the ground with the others around the weakening campfire, staring up at the meteors streaking overhead.

"Hey … anybody else kinda nervous about goin' home?" Peter suddenly asked.

"So many questions. What will it be like? What will we be like?" Tanya continued his train of thought. "How could we just walk around, go about our lives like normal after everything we've seen and done?"

"I missed an entire quarter. Definitely gonna have to work twice as hard to get back to the top of my class," Kate mused.

"Huh. I missed my whole senior season," Garrett realized.

"Guys, I bet the entire country was looking for us!" Emmett exclaimed. "Do you think we're famous? Are we gonna be celebrities when we get back?"

"Heavens, I should hope not," Alistair groaned.

"C'mon Alistair," I teased him. "Don't you wanna hang out with us on the talk show circuit?"

"You're presuming anyone will believe us. If someone told you about the stuff we'd seen, would you have believed them?" Leah asked and started laughing at the ridiculousness. "We'll probably be locked in an insane asylum—"

"That's if the government doesn't silence us—" Edward added and winked.

Tanya frowned. "You two are seriously ruining the mood."

Edward surrendered. "Sorry, sorry, we'll be superstars, everything will be sunshine and rainbows, and we'll be together forever."

Tanya nodded curtly. "That's better."

"I'm just glad that we survived," I said, voicing my main thought.

"Damn straight. Survival's all that matters," Edward agreed.

"We obviously have some danger left to navigate, but … yes, we are quite fortunate," Alistair said and pulled Tanya closer.

"Life can be taken away so easily. So yeah … I'd say we're lucky to be here," Leah pointed out, and I knew her thoughts were with her mother's unnecessary death.

We all fell silent as we lay in a circle around the dying fire, watching the stars fall.

Within an hour, the fire finally faded to embers, and one by one, everyone crawled into tents to sleep.

"Goodnight, everyone."

"Try to get some rest."

"We'll need it."

Edward snorted. "Yeah, good luck with that. I reckon everyone's gonna be too anxious to sleep a wink."

Everyone disappeared, but I stayed a bit longer with Benjamin, watching the embers die out.

"Tomorrow, everything's gonna be different," I said.

He nodded. "Yep. One last night in paradise." He winked at me, a gleam in his eye before he stood up and went into a tent of his own.

I shook my head at his antics before I made my way to the tent Edward and I shared. I zipped it up behind me and looked over at Edward, where he was lying shirtless in a sleeping bag, gazing up at the stars through the panels in the tent roof.

"Well, don't you look cozy," I said and smiled as I crawled up next to him.

"Would be a whole lot cozier with a warm body next to mine," he replied and grinned.

"Oh, would any random warm body do?" I asked innocently. "I could go get Alistair—"

"That boy's made of ice, and you know it. C'mere, Princess." He pulled on my arm so that I was lying halfway on top of him.

I slipped out of my clothes and snuggled up next to him and eased myself into the crook of his arm. "How's that?"

"Much cozier." He stroke a few strands of hair away from my face and he had a mischievous glint in his eyes that I knew very well the meaning of. "Although … I could think of something that would make this moment better."

His fingertips just barely brushed against the bare skin of my leg, just above my knee. The night was cold, but his hands were warm. Very warm.

"Oh, really?" I said, pretending as if I had no idea what he was talking about. "And what exactly did you have in mind?"

His touch roamed further, sliding up my leg, and curving toward my inner thigh.

"Oh, you know…" he shrugged non-committedly. "A little of this … a little of that…" His hand roamed all the way up my thigh and then slid in between my legs.

"Oooh … a little of that, huh?" I said and giggled.

He turned toward me, his face just centimeters from mine. I could feel his breath and stared into his eyes as his fingers pressed deeper.

"Edward…" I breathed out.

"You're so goddamned beautiful it hurts," he whispered.

I grabbed the back of his head and pulled him closer for a kiss, and then whispered against his mouth. "Don't stop." Then, I ran my own fingers down along his firm stomach. "God, I love touching you." I slid lower and took him in my hand, and he arched his head back with a sigh.

"Feeling's mutual."

Edward eased me onto my back and rolled onto me. In the tight tent, we were pressed chest-to-chest, and I could feel his heart thundering with desire.

"The things we do to stay warm, huh?" I said with a smirk.

"Oh, I think it's going to get a lot more than warm in here," he replied.

I shifted my hips back and felt myself against him. He let out a sharp exhale, and I nuzzled deeper, kissing my way along the side of his neck.

"We should keep it down," I whispered. "Everyone's just outside."

Edward leaned into my ear and gently bit the lobe. "Screw it. Let 'em hear," he whispered, and I grinned before kissing him again, our mouths hungry, our bodies burning, and we moved together in heated bliss.

We lay together, a little while later, our sweat-slick bodies still tingling.

Edward stared up, gazing at the skies through the window in the tent's flap, a complex look on his face.

"Something bothering you?" I asked.

"Listen," he said solemnly. "There's something I have to tell you."

I was instantly on alert, and I turned onto my side to look at him better. "What is it?"

"Tomorrow, when we go to that facility…" He trailed off and I stroke his cheek.

"We'll go home."

He nodded with sorrow in his eyes. "Yeah. And I can't go with you."

I sat up and stared at him in shock. "What?"

He looked anguished as he also sat up and tried to explain. "You know I'm a wanted man in the States, Bella. And if we all just show back up through some crazy-ass portal, there's going to be a whole lot of publicity. The rest of you get to go home to your families, to your lives. I get to go straight to a cold, hard cell."

"So what are you going to do?" I asked as my heart clenched painfully.

He sighed. "I'm going to stay behind after you all go through. And then I'm going to open my own portal to somewhere McKenzie will never find me. Santiago, maybe. Madagascar. The Maldives. Somewhere with warm beaches and cold beers and no super-soldier squad hunting me down."

"But—" I started to protest.

He cupped my face and wiped away the tears I had not realized were running down my cheeks. "I don't want to do this, Princess. But it's my only choice. I don't have a future anywhere else."

I shook my head as best as I could while my cheeks were still cupped in Edward's hands. "No. It's not. You can't let McKenzie win."

"I'm on the run, and he's got an army. I'd say he's already won," he said dejectedly.

I pulled his hands away and held on to them tight instead. "Come on, Edward. I know you better than that. You never back down, and you never let the bad guy win. McKenzie killed Jazz, and God knows how many other people. He has to be held accountable for his actions. He has to be stopped." Now I cupped his cheek instead. "And you … you're the man to do it."

"How the hell am I supposed to do that?"

"Come back with us," I pleaded. "Testify. Tell the world your story. Expose McKenzie for the traitor that he is, and make him pay for what he did!" I said passionately.

"Wish it were that simple."

"Why not?" I asked, growing desperate. I couldn't stand the thought of being apart from Edward now. I might have only known him for two weeks, and I had never believed in soul mates before, but there wasn't a doubt in my mind that Edward was mine.

"Because … because it's not just about McKenzie."

I frowned in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Edward closed his eyes with a heavy breath. "If I go back to the States … I have to face everyone again. I have to face Jazz's parents."

It became clear to me then what weighed heaviest on Edward's heart. "Oh … Edward…"

"I didn't kill Jazz. But I promised them I'd keep him safe. I promised them I'd bring their boy home." His eyes were filled with hurt and guilt. "He died on my watch. He died because of me. And I can't … I … I can't…"

A tear fell down his cheek and I wrapped my arms around his waist and held him tight.

"I know it's not easy, Edward. I know you carry a lot of guilt. But you can do this. We can do this," I said, emphasizing on how I would be with him through it all.

He turned to look at me, his eyes gazing into mine. "You think so?"

"I do."

He shook his head and a wondrous smile stretched across his face. "Ah, to hell with it. I love you, Bella."

My heart accelerated into twice its speed when I heard him say that, and I didn't even hesitate when I reciprocated his words. "I love you, too, Edward. There is nothing in this world or the next we can't face together," I vowed.

We kissed deeply and passionately, and then lay back down, cuddling together and bracing ourselves for the day ahead.

The next morning, everyone got ready to enact our daring plan.

Garrett clapped his hands together. "Alright, people, let's do this. Everybody remember the drill?"

Kate rolled her eyes at him. "I can't speak for the rest of us, but it's not like I have the memory of a goldfish. Four of us wear the stolen Arachnid suits. The rest of us pretend to be their prisoners until we get inside."

"But who will wear the suits?" Alistair asked. "I presume Edward should, as our resident action hero."

Edward shook his head with a grin. "I'll take the compliment, Malfoy, but I gotta be a prisoner. If McKenzie doesn't see me, he'll get suspicious. If I'm in custody, he'll be too happy to notice anything's off."

Garrett nodded. "Good point. I'll take one then."

Peter reached for the second. "I've got your back, Number Five. Let's suit up."

"Oh great!" Rosalie exclaimed sarcastically. "Our lives are in the hands of the brain trust." She sighed. "Gimme one of those stupid suits. You'll need me to help you deactivate security anyway."

"You should take the last one, Bella."

I turned toward Garrett. "Me? Why?"

He shrugged. "It was your idea, after all. And if anyone can come up with a plan to get us out of custody, it's you."

I took the suit and got it on with slight difficulty. It wasn't exactly the easiest outfit I'd put on in my life, but when everything was where it should, I looked down at myself and smirked.

"Wow, I feel so badass."

"Hell yeah, you look badass too!" Peter said with a grin. "You make that look good."

I winked at him teasingly. "Come on, Pete. You know I make everything look good."

He laughed. "Preachin' to the choir, bro. My turn!" Peter pulled on his own suit, and I was impressed that the material didn't rip over his muscular built.

Garrett and Rosalie mimicked him and put on their armor as well.

"We look dope. Aw yeah, I'm ready to kick some ass." Peter did a little dance and 'practiced' hitting the air.

Rosalie, however, as the only one who could ever tell him off without angering him, crossed her arms. "This isn't the time for a selfie. We've got work to do."

We headed over to the gondola platform and pressed the call button, and the empty gondola motored along the cables toward us.

"We need to get our story straight before we get on," I told the others.

Garrett agreed. "Right. Like, what happened to the real us?"

"We died," Rosalie said. "We drowned in the ice lake during the attack."

"That's dark, dude," Peter said while frowning.

"Why didn't you report in?" Edward asked, and I was grateful that he was kind of our man on the inside. He knew how the process worked down to every detail. "Each soldier goes only by a serial number. The call signs are for the elite fighters only. They're gonna wanna know your serial number to identify you, so memorize that. And lastly, how you managed to catch the rest of us."

"We could have gotten water damage to our radios," I suggested.

"And you could say that you caught us searching for medical supplies," Leah said. "The rule of surviving interrogation is to stick to the truth as much as possible. It's easier to not mess up the details that way."

Edward nodded. "She's right."

"Didn't need you to tell me that," she replied. "I bet I've been interrogated plenty more times than you."

He scoffed at that and rolled his eyes. "I seriously doubt that."

She grinned. "You wanna bet?"

I tuned the both of them out and searched out my serial number, which turned out to be on the back of my helmet.

'3-1-7-2'

The gondola arrived at the platform, and its doors slid open.

"Alright, we've got our plan. We're as good as we're gonna get. Let's move."

As everyone filed aboard, I spotted Furball, alone on the precipice. I opened my arms for him. "Aw, come here."

He leaped in for a hug and licked my face. I couldn't help the tears that welled up in my eyes as I knew this was goodbye, but I didn't allow them to spill over.

"Thank you, Furball … for everything." He purred against my cheek and I smiled through my sorrow. "Take care of our friends back at Elyys'tel, okay?"

He yipped happily in response, and I put him back down on the ground, and stepped onto the gondola, looking over my shoulder as I went.

The doors slid shut and I waved at the little fox that I'd come to love as deeply as any of my friends.

When he saw that I was leaving, he whimpered sadly and scratched at the door, wanting to be let inside, but I knew he had to stay.

One tear fell from the corner of my eye, but Edward was there to wipe it away.

"He'll be alright. This is where he belongs."

I nodded. "I know. But I'm gonna miss him anyway."

I turned around and my eyes widened at the interior of the gondola. The entire hull was glass, even the floor. I could see crashing waves thousands of feet below, and I gulped in fear, hoping the floor was strong enough.

"Don't look down, don't look down, don't look down," Tanya repeated to herself over and over.

"Here we go. Everybody ready?"

I surveyed my friends. "Last chance to turn back," I told them.

Nobody moved. Each and everyone looked back at me resolutely.

Edward crossed his arms and grinned. "You kiddin' Princess? The last chance to turn back was on that runway in Costa Rica."

I nodded and affixed my helmet, and the other disguised soldiers followed my lead. "Here we go."

A holographic display flickered on a glass wall. I reached out and tapped a button labeled 'RESUME TRANSIT.'

The gondola racked as it started reeling its way toward MASADA.

Through the glass floor, I saw the sea rolling far below, and I hurriedly looked away from it.

"This view would be awesome if we weren't heading into a secret paramilitary compound filled with people who wanna kill us," Emmett said as he looked toward the watery horizon, then he shrugged. "Never mind, it's still awesome."

"Remember, you're prisoners. Don't forget to act scared," Rosalie reminded the lot, her voice distorted by her helmet.

"I am scared," Tanya replied.

"Perfect."

We were about halfway across when suddenly the gondola jerked to a stop. I pressed the display, and it blinked red in response.

"We're stuck," I said as calmly as I could, not wanting the alarm the others.

It didn't help though.

"Stuck?! This is not a good place to be stuck!" Alistair exclaimed.

"Yeah, and it just got worse," Edward said, staring at something approaching from a distance.

The roar of a rotor echoed between the mountains and was accompanied by what I now could see was a chopper. The gondola started to rock in a blast of wind.

The black military chopper flanked us, its massive missile arrays pointed straight at us. Through the chopper's tinted windows, I could make out the pilot, the one McKenzie had called 'Mouse.'

Suddenly, a hologram appeared on the gondola's glass wall.

"If it isn't the Big Bad Wolf … Nice to see you again so soon. Did you miss me?" It was the woman with the katanas.

"Don't flatter yourself, Fiddler," Edward replied angrily.

"You're in Mouse's crosshairs now, so play nice, sweetie. Or I'll have him answer your next quip with a heat-seeking retort," Fiddler reminded him with a sweet smile.

Edward fell silent, and Fiddler eyed us from MASADA's high-tech control center.

"This is certainly a surprise, though a pleasant one. We got no report of your capture," she said suspiciously. "Private, care to explain the situation?"

I saluted to the screen. "Yes, ma'am. We captured the targets at the lake."

"We lost our comms in the battle," Rosalie filled in for me.

"Sorry 'bout that," Peter said, and Rosalie jabbed a sharp elbow into his side. "I mean, apologies, ma'am."

"What happened to your comms? You were dark for fourteen hours," Fiddler pointed out, still suspicious.

"Water damage, ma'am," I replied.

Fiddler frowned angrily and gritted her teeth. "You've been warned about keeping that equipment dry!"

"Sorry, ma'am. It won't happen again," Garrett said apologetically, but still in a mechanical tone.

On screen, Fiddler eyed me.

"You there. Identify yourself, Private," she said, and I wondered what she had spotted that had made her particularly suspicious of me. Was it my built? My height?

I didn't know, and so I simply gave her what she asked for. "This is Serial Number 3-1-7-2."

Fiddler nodded. "Yes, I see you haven't forgotten your own I.D. At least part of your brain still works. I count nine prisoners. What happened to the other four?"

"Dead, ma'am," Garrett answered. "They drowned in the lake when the ice broke up during the battle. They went under."

"That's too bad. Our client will be disappointed." She wasn't as suspicious anymore, but a little bit lingered and she asked how we had managed to capture so many of the targets without backup. "They've been quite uncooperative so far."

"We caught them searching for medical supplies for their wounded."

Fiddler was silent for a moment but then relented. "Very well, then."

The helicopter hovered closer.

"One thing is clear … you've earned yourselves a promotion."

I instantly felt the tension in the gondola release, and my shoulders relaxed instinctively. "Thank you, ma'am. We hope we did you proud."

"Mouse, escort them in."

The holographic display blinked out, and the gondola racked back to life.

"You seem to have fooled them," Jacorel said with a smile.

I nodded. "Yes, but don't forget we're just getting started."

We all gazed up at MASADA's massive tower. As we drew closer, it blocked out the sun and we fell into shadow.

"Here comes the welcoming party," Edward said under his breath and then shifted slightly toward me. "You gotta sell that we're your captives. Don't be afraid to get rough, Princess."

I grinned underneath my helmet. "I never am with you."

I saw a dozen Arachnid troops waiting for us at the landing platform. Finally, the gondola came to a stop, and the glass doors slide open silently.

I shoved Edward hard toward the exit. Garrett, Peter, and Rosalie forced the rest of the prisoners out.

From the landing pad, the soldiers escorted us into a sleek, futuristic laboratory.

"Ah, at last … the gang's all here!" a familiar voice exclaimed. The Arachnid troops made way, and Carlisle Cullen walked through. "Welcome, my honored guests. The moment of truth is finally at hand…"

A/N:

Okay, a lot happened there! Some funny things, some sad.

Someone sold Edward out. Who do you think it was?

The L-words were exchanged by Bella and Edward, and we had to say goodbye to our little blue fox-friend.

Benjamin had to say goodbye to Jacorel even though he's coming with them to make sure the Island's Heart remain safe.

Carlisle Cullen is in front of them and will tell them some truths. What do you hope to hear?

Tell me your thoughts and I will do the running man for you in your dreams ;-)

Until next time,

Stay Awesome!