A/N:

Not a new story! I decided to split The Mystery of El Jardín into a trilogy for easier read and less fatigue!

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 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 1}

"Yes. All our friends yet live."

My blood went cold. My legs felt like jelly. "Our friends?"

The Endless reached up and pressed a latch at its neck. I heard a hiss of decompression and watched as it reached up with its hands, one flesh, one iron, and lifted its helmet from its head.

"I had to be sure you were ready, Bella," the older, wrinkled and gray-haired, version of myself said with a smile. "Now our work can begin."

My heart stopped in my chest.

"What sort of devilry is this?" Angelique asked with her hand placed on her cutlass.

"You're..." I started but I couldn't get anything else out.

"I'm you. The first version of you, that is," the Endless finished for me.

"The first? I don't—"

"Understand? No, you wouldn't. I am the you who first landed on El Jardín years ago, who first watched all our friends die, who learned how to make use of the island's time loop to save them."

When I frowned in confusion and fear, she smiled reassuringly, and as if she could read my mind, she assuaged that fear. "Don't worry, the suit will prevent a paradox from being caused by our proximity to one another."

Harrvel was distraught as he leaned heavily on his cane. "You lied to us. Lied to the Kaarii for generations!"

"I did not lie," the Endless said harshly and glowered at Harrvel. "The twelve are integral to preserving Kaanu."

Harrvel shook his head. "You used my people as mere pawns, fodder … caring only about your so-called Catalysts."

"You needed something to believe in, didn't you?" she retorted.

Harrvel's crimson eyes narrowed. His jaw flexed and gave his face and even more skeletal appearance. He fell silent and glared at the Endless.

The Endless turned back to me. "I know this must all seem very strange. Is there anything you'd like to ask me, Bella?"

I had millions of questions, but I was unable to formulate any one of them, except one. "What's this 'work' you mentioned us doing?"

"Cullen seeks to harvest El Jardín's time-altering energy by triggering the island's destruction. We can't allow that," the Endless replied, but I wasn't satisfied with that.

"If Cullen is the problem, can't you just go back in time and prevent him from being stranded here in the first place or something?"

She chuckled. "No need. There's a crux of extra-dimensional crystal inside the core of the volcano. All the fragments on the island originate from it. By harnessing the crux's power, you and I will stop Cullen for good."

I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration. "Okay, but how is any of this even possible? What are you? What … am I?"

She lowered a mechanical limb toward the ground. "My journey to self-discovery was long and difficult. Yours will happen much faster. It's important, however, that you develop that understanding on your own."

A flame swirled from the Endless' metal fingertips and ignited a line of powder. Sparks traveled the trail's length and disappeared around a bend in the tunnel. "In the end, it's up to you to decide who you truly are."

A distant explosion echoed through the caverns.

"There. That should activate the crux. We'll—" The Endless stopped abruptly.

I felt a slight tremor. It was so subtle, almost as if it came from my own heart, tight with anticipation.

"This is not as I'd expected," the Endless said and my head whipped toward her.

The tunnel pitched violently and sent all of us sprawling to the ground. The walls began to shake, and a gust of wind, intensely hot, blasted the area.

"The volcano is erupting!" Harrvel exclaimed.

"Right now?!" I asked stupidly.

Over the din, an ear-splitting roar came from somewhere below.

"AaaAaAAAHhhHH!"

Angelique's eyes widened. "By the black depths, what...?"

The Endless's eyes widened. "Now I understand. The core is missing, destabilizing the entire structure. We need to leave immediately."

Together, we ran headlong through the caves to the temple's entrance. Outside, a plume of fire and smoke billowed from Mount Suerte's summit. Streams of shimmering lava wound their way down the slopes.

Harrvel whimpered in despair. "Too late … it's all too late. Raan'losti has come."

Angelique moved in front of the Endless, effectively blocking her path. "Arrêtez, demon! You told me if I brought you Bella, you'd give me the Fountain."

"The legendary Fountain of Youth, yes. It's inside the mountain just as you and your fellow pirates believed, but not in the form you expected. In any case, I wouldn't go back there now," the Endless replied and threw a gesture toward the mountaintop, where geysers of lava rocketed into the night sky. "This is no ordinary eruption. The entire island is about to change … just as it did when Cullen tampered with the crux."

I gaped at her. "Will this make everything worse?"

"During the last eruption, the Kaarii were pulled back hundreds of years," Harrvel answered, and I groaned.

"And the world was turned into a primeval hellscape. Is this going to send everything further into the past?"

The Endless looked apologetic. "There's no way to know how far-reaching the effect will be yet."

"So you're saying the Fountain is lost?" Angelique asked frustrated eyes directed at the Endless.

"What you seek can be found to the east," she replied bitingly. "There's another temple on the coast. A place once known as No'ox Naj. Your brother, Bastien—"

A gout of lava crashed onto the nearby slopes. It converged with a stream of molten rock and rapidly flooded down toward us.

"Oh, god," I whimpered in fear. "I don't think we're gonna survive this."

The Endless turned to me intently. "Listen to me. You're the miracle I've waited for. You're the only one who could keep everyone safe. I need you to recover the Island's Heart from Cullen. With it, we can preserve El Jardín and protect our friends. Do you understand?"

"I … I—" I stammered out.

"Bella, do you understand?!"

I swallowed hard. "Yes."

"Good. Stand back."

As I moved away, the Endless donned her helmet again. Slowly, she extended both arms toward the approaching inferno.

"Go … Find everyone! Find … the Island's Heart!" The Endless vanished beneath the rising blaze.

"No! Wait!" I cried out, but it was too late.

"Laisse tomber! We must go!" Angelique dragged me away, and before I knew it, the two of us and Harrvel ran for the rainforest.

We crested a hill and I looked down to find a sea of liquid fire gathering at the base of the volcano.

"We should be safe up here," Harrvel said, but I wasn't too sure about that.

Several flashes lit up the smoky sky.

"A storm?" Angelique questioned.

"Not a natural one," Harrvel replied ominously.

Floating orbs of energy appeared high above and exploded into wild arcs of lightning, and I recognized the formations all too well.

"It's happening again … just like when we flew in."

Suddenly, several strokes shot into the surrounding foliage and caused it to ignite.

"Zut alors!"

"No longer safe," Harrvel cried out. "We must move, quickly!"

There was a crackle of splintering wood and a huge tree trunk started to fall toward me. I sprung out of the way and dove into the smoking brush.

As the tree crashed down, a cloud of sparks and thick smoke billowed outward.

Angelique was breathing harshly and coughed.

"Got to keep … moving!"

I tried to hold my breath, but some of the smoke entered my mouth. "Can't … breathe."

Angelique and I fell to the ground, coughing helplessly. Through the haze, the fiery glow became brighter as trees and undergrowth were rapidly consumed.

My consciousness began to slip away when a hand reached out to me.

"I ain't losing you twice, Princess," a voice from above said and I forced my eyes open to look into Edward's green ones.

"Edward?" I gasped out.

He grasped my shoulders and helped me to my feet. With his arm wrapped around my middle, we hurried out of the smoke, and I saw Leah helping Angelique do the same.

As a group, we moved through the forest, seeking to outdistance the spreading fire. When we were out of immediate danger, Edward helped me sit down and crouched down before me. "You alright?" he asked, his forehead creased with worry.

I took a deep breath of the cleaner air and nodded. "I think so. Nice timing by the way," I said with a hoarse chuckle, my voice affected by the smoke inhalation.

"Oui, the two of you really know how to sweep in at just the right moment. How do you call it when there are two couples? A 'double date'?" Angelique teased with a smirk.

Edward glanced at her and then shook his head with a quiet laugh before he pulled me into his arms. I gratefully buried my nose in his t-shirt and breathed in his scent.

Leah frowned and crossed her arms. "Can we save the flirting for when we're not about to be burned alive?"

I looked around and then frowned when I realized someone was missing. "Wait. Where's Harrvel?" I looked over my shoulder but I saw no sign of the old shaman.

"He was on the other side of the fallen tree," Angelique said, also shocked that Harrvel wasn't with us.

"Grandpa Smurf knows these jungles better than we do," Edward said reassuringly. "We're gonna have to hope he can make it out on his own."

I sighed but nodded anyway.

Ball lightning continued to appear in the sky, and arcs of electricity rained down.

I leaned my head against Edward's chest. "How did you guys find us?"

Edward stroke my back and buried his nose in my hair. "The chopper went down right after you fell. We've been combing the forest while Cap and Big Guy searched along the eastern coast."

"So Garrett and Peter are alright?"

Leah shrugged. "We can only hope. It's been three days since we saw them."

"Didn't think it'd take this much time to find you, but Michonne over here will tell you that I'm wrong every great once in a while," Edward filled in.

I leaned away from him and looked at both of them in confusion. "Three days?! We only got separated a few hours ag—"

"Stop!" Leah interrupted me. "Something's up ahead."

Rays of bright blue light streamed from a glowing rift hovering mid-air.

"The hell?" Edward said and tightened his hold on me.

Angelique took a closer look. "It's … like a window. I see a place on the other side."

Out of nowhere, a high-pitched sound came from the jagged tear in reality. I pulled away from Edward and inched closer to look through it and saw a herd of dinosaurs roving through a prehistoric jungle, and a huge pterodactyl was flying straight for me.

I whipped around to the others. "Run for it!" I yelled, and as one, we launched ourselves away from the rift.

With a piercing cry, the leathery-winged beast emerged and coasted over our heads.

"C'est un monstre!"

"Dinosaur, but close enough for my mustard," Edward said and stared at the sky in awe. High overhead, the pterodactyl disappeared into the darkening clouds.

I was panting as I brought myself back up to my feet. "Let's get out of the way of this portal or whatever it is."

"Agreed," Leah said and rose to her feet as well.

The four of us ran further into the forest and left the rift behind.

"This kind of stuff didn't happen during the last storm," I pointed out with a sinking feeling in my stomach. "Or did it?" I asked and automatically looked at Edward.

He shrugged and shook his head. "Hard to say. I was busy trying to keep Delilah from making a swan dive into the Caribbean at the time."

Leah looked down at the ground and kicked a rock out of the way. "We were lucky. We were spared … along with the island. And now there's nothing out there to go back to."

Edward placed a hand on her shoulder. "Take it easy, Ripley. I ain't having you crack at a time like this."

Leah shrugged away from his touch and glared at him. "I'm not cracking! I'm being honest with myself. Everything's gone. This is all we have now."

A series of blue flashes filled the air, and two more rifts opened before our eyes, floating amid the trees.

"Looks like Cullen's about to get that prehistoric theme park he always wanted," Edward said sarcastically.

The ground suddenly heaved beneath us, and we stopped to brace ourselves.

"Pour l'amour de Dieu … what now?!"

A groan came from the forest floor as it split apart and caused blazing lava to rise from a network of fissures.

Edward groaned. "Figures. My day was going well for once."

"The lava's burning everything!"

Leah pointed toward the floating rifts. "The time portals! We've got no choice!"

"Copy that," Edward agreed and pulled me with him toward the rift closest and looked inside. He gasped. "Looks like some kind of bayou in this one. Moonlight … still water … Reminds me of home."

"You sure it's safe?" I asked, slightly scared of the possibility that another dinosaur would appear any second.

"I see a room full of windows in this one. And stars? It's actually … beautiful," Leah described her own rift.

Another flash herald the appearance of a third rift, slowly shimmering open in front of Angelique, but as the brush began to catch flame, Edward and I entered the first rift while Leah and Angelique went into the other two.

The roar of the eruption was suddenly gone and replaced by chirping insects and the gentle lap of water along a mossy riverbank.

"Looks safe enough," I observed and looked over my shoulder at the burning rainforest that could still be seen through the rift. "Guess we'll have to pass the time here until the fire dies down."

"Guess so," Edward said, and we sat down together by the water's edge.

We sat down together by the water's edge, and Edward chuckled. "Whatever this place is … it's sure a dead ringer for Pearl River."

"Is that where you grew up?" I asked with

a smile. I loved it whenever he spoke of his home. He always got a happy glint in his eyes, and it made my heart skip when I saw it.

He smiled and nodded. "Yeah. We moved around a bit before I headed off to Annapolis, but my grandparents always had their place out in the backcountry. That house was the center of the family," he reminisced.

"What was it like there?" I asked to keep him talking.

"It's a different world out there. A simpler way of life," he said, and I sighed with slight jealousy.

"Simple sounds pretty nice right about now," I said, and

Edward agreed with a chuckle.

"You're tellin' me." His chuckle died down, but the smile remained. "Beth and I would spend the day swimming, fishing, and pranking the neighbor kids … our favorite trick was a little thing called 'Crabby Britches'."

I frowned at the unfamiliar phrase. "Crabby Britches? You mean...?"

"Exactly what it sounds like. Strategically placed crawdad when you least expect it."

I laughed at the mirth in his eyes. "You two were little brats."

"We were," he agreed. "It was great."

He gazed at the water, and I looked at him, beyond relieved that he was okay and unharmed, but then I noticed a cut along his hairline, and I frowned. "Did that happen

when the helicopter crashed?" I asked him, and when he looked at me, I gestured toward his forehead.

"Hmph, yeah." He nodded. "It was one hell of a landing. We were lucky no one got anythin' more serious." He swallowed and inhaled deeply. "Although, I was terrified I'd never see you again."

I reached out and cupped his cheek. "Me too. If Angelique hadn't been there, it would've been so."

"Remind me to thank her later." He placed his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer. "What happened after she saved you? You said that to the two of you, it's only been a few hours since we left the complex."

I nodded and sighed. "I don't even know where to begin," I said, and I thought of everything that had happened and tried to sort it out, but it turned out to be too overwhelming, and I started to sob.

Edward tightened his arm around me and kissed my temple to comfort me. "It will be alright," he whispered to me reassuringly even though he had no clue about what was actually going on.

"I don't know if it will," I sniffled, and then everything tumbled out of me. I told him about the visions I'd had when I touched the idols; the temple; the runes; the Endless; everything.

He pulled away slightly and looked at me with cautious eyes. "You're saying that you are the … God or whatever Grandpa Smurf has built his entire religion around?"

I groaned. "I don't know. The Endless looked exactly like me, like how I will look when I am sixty, or something; but I don't know if that's what it really was or if the Endless can take whatever form she likes." I sighed. "It feels like I didn't get any answers at all," I finished.

It felt so good to finally confide in someone else about everything I'd carried around by myself.

Edward stroked my back rather robotically, and I could see that he was deep in thought. When he finally spoke, his tone was slightly guarded.

"And the visions? Why didn't you tell anyone about them?"

I looked down at my hands because I felt my guilt well up. I had always known that I should have shared the visions with the others, but a part of me had simply wanted to protect them from the prophecy of their deaths. "I was scared," I confessed. "All the visions predicted death, and some of the times, I didn't just observe, I was a part of it." My sight became blurry as my tears started to fall again. "I was unable to do anything while you, once again, died in my arms, and it felt as real as the first time." My breath hitched in my throat, but I knew Edward needed to hear all of it. "That's twice now, Edward. If I have to endure your death one more time, I don't think I can take it."

"I get that," he said. "But you can't keep things like this to yourself, Princess. You have to trust the rest of us. Trust me."

I pulled away from him and looked into his eyes. "It was never about trust, Edward. I've trusted you with my life pretty much since the very beginning, but I was so scared of losing you. I was terrified that those visions would come true and that there was nothing I could do about it. I wanted to spare you all from the knowledge that you were supposed to die soon." I grabbed his hand and entwined our fingers. "I love you, and I do trust you, but I have a habit of taking everything on myself in order to protect those I love, and I know you can relate to that."

He sighed, and his gaze became distant. "Yeah, I guess you're right about that."

"Something wrong?" I asked.

"I just..." he started and then sighed again. "I keep going back to the moment I lost him."

"You mean Jazz?"

"McKenzie got his claws in him. Made him into something inhuman. I could've saved Jazz from all of this … and I didn't," Edward mumbled, beating himself up. "And now, whatever's left of him is in there watching, suffering. I can't take it, Princess." His gaze met mine, and there was a helplessness in his expression, his eyes filled with grief.

I wound my arms around his frame. "Edward, you know I know what happened in that plane when Jazz couldn't eject, but I'm not gonna just sit here and tell you that it wasn't your fault because I know that's not what you want to hear." I leaned my chin on his shoulder. "We're gonna get him out."

Something welled up in Edward, but he nodded fiercely and swallowed the pain. "No matter what it takes," he agreed.

"That's the spirit."

Edward exhaled and shook his head. "Helluva place, this island."

I grinned. "You're telling me," I said, giving him his own words back to him.

"We've been through a lot here, but I gotta say … I'd do it all again just for the chance to meet you, Bella." He turned his head to me and both of us closed in at the same time, and he grinned as he brought his lips to mine.

His kiss was soft and warm, caressed me passionately, and gradually took my breath away. We pulled apart and he reached up to run his fingers through my hair.

We gazed out over the water and watched the ripples cascade across its silken surface.

"You ever think maybe … we were meant to be?" Edward asked softly, breaking the silence.

I smiled. "Yes. I do think that."

"All of the craziness this place has thrown our way couldn't keep us apart. Even brought us to this Land Before Time swamp that looks just like my old stomping grounds," he mused and I glanced up at him.

"I'm glad I could see it with you."

"Me too, Princess." Edward glanced over at the hovering rift, and I did the same. The sliver of visible rainforest was dark and smoky.

"Fire's died down," I mumbled, feeling reluctant to leave the tranquility of the swamp.

"Tempus sure does fugit," Edward said. "You ready?"

"As I'm ever gonna be," I replied, and we ducked through the rift together, our hands clasped in each other.

The ground was covered in writhing smoke. The lava fissures still emitted a dull glow, but the surrounding brush appeared to have stopped burning.

Leah stood a short distance away, near the second rift. "Welcome back," she told us, and Edward hopped over a cooling fissure and peered into the third rift.

"Ground Control to Buccaneer Barbie. You can come out now."

Angelique gingerly poked her tricorn-topped head out, checked the area, and emerged. "A surprisingly pleasant sieste," she said with a smirk. "Shall we be on our way?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Let's get out of here before that volcano comes up with a new way to kill us."

As the eruption continued lightening up the sky, we trudged through the rainforest. Almost two hours later, the shoreline came into view.

We arrived at a wide moonlit cove. Pillars of natural rock rose from the sea lingers grasping for the stars.

"Where are we?" I asked in awe of the unfamiliar beach.

"Magnifique, non?" Angelique said. "Colonnade Cove. A treacherous harbor that only master sailors dare traverse."

"So now what?" Leah questioned.

"I guess we'll have a look around," Edward said.

Leah turned and narrowed her eyes at him. "And what exactly are you expecting to find? Look at the mountains. We're on the northern side of the island."

"Garrett and Peter were searching to the east, right?" I asked the others for confirmation.

Leah nodded. "Yes. And the eastern coast is probably one giant inferno of lava right now … we took too long."

"We'll find them, Trinity. Just relax," Edward said, but Leah gritted her teeth and glared at him.

"Use my name or don't speak to me again!" she yelled at him, and Edward put his hands up in surrender, his brows raised high.

"Leah..." I tried softly.

She sat herself down on the sand and faced away from the rest of us. "We were idiots to think we could all make it through this together. Honestly … I doubt anyone is getting out of here alive."

We all stood around in silence for a moment, but then Angelique spoke up. "Ah, pardonnez-moi … but do you happen to see something out by that cliff?" She pointed at a shadowy outcropping of rock a short distance away.

Edward frowned, not seeing what she was referring to. "More … beach?"

I was about to give up squinting when I finally noticed it. "Something's over there … I think it's heading this way."

A strange, indistinct figure was approaching across the beach. The moonlight seemed particularly bright around it.

"Is it the shaman?" Edward asked and squinted as well to see better. "Jumanji, that you?" he called out, but there was no response.

The figure continued on its slow path toward us.

"Wh-who's there?" I called, starting to feel frightened, but once again there was no answer.

When it finally drew close enough to reveal detail, I felt a chill travel down my back. Green light undulated within a translucent, ghostly body. The face was featureless.

"Holy..." Edward exclaimed in a whisper with eyes wide as saucers.

"What on earth?"

Angelique backed away. "Oh, non non non! Angelique does not do ghosts!" She whirled on her heels and ran for the cluster of palm trees behind us.

Leah finally turned to look and gasped. The figure stopped a few paces short of her and seemed to study her grief-stricken face.

"What is this?" she asked. "W-what's happening?"

It raised a hand toward her and offered something. A small object was partially visible in its luminous grasp.

Leah's eyes widened. "Is that … how did you get that?"

"What is it?" I asked her. "What does it have?"

"A photo I kept at home in Tobago. It's me, my mother, and Tio Nicolas … it can't be real. Everything out there is burned to cinders." Leah stared at the spectral entity fearfully, unable to reach out to it.

The light within its body started to falter.

In desperation, the figure turned and extended the photo to me. I noticed that the picture was slowly darkening at the edges as if it was ready to burst into flames.

As soon as I grasped the photograph, the figure disappeared completely.

Leah stared at the spot where it vanished. "It's gone."

I handed Leah the photo and the moment she touched it, everything was suddenly awash with light.

The haze cleared and I found myself in a cozy, yet sparsely decorated room. A man with tied back gray hair was leaning over a desk, trying to fix an old typewriter.

"Come on, you tonto," he grunted and smacked the typewriter's cabinet with his fist. The machine emitted a sad clang as its keys clicked back into place.

The man sat down and got ready to resume typing. After a moment of hesitation, he sighed. "Now I've forgotten where I was."

There was a knock at the door and then Leah entered the room carrying a large box.

"Ha. And there's my niece who thinks she can fix everything with her fancy college degree!" the man exclaimed with a grin.

Leah grinned back at the man. "Hola, Tio Nicolas. I have something for you."

Nicolas eyed the box which bore the image of a desktop computer. "Leandra, I told you … I don't want that. Everything's traceable with computers."

"You're not going to use it for planning revolutions, Tio," Leah insisted. "It's for your memoirs. You're never going to finish them on that rusty old thing."

Nicolas huffed. "It works fine enough!"

"Does it?" She gestured to a thin stack of haphazardly typed pages on the desk. "Tio, how are you going to inspire the generations of Tobago with your life's story if you can't even get a single chapter done?"

Nicolas looked at the stack and sighed. "Alright, alright. I know how futile it is to argue with you."

Leah chuckled. "Good. Now help me unpack it." She popped open the cardboard flaps.

"You never give up. Just like your mother. I should call you Livita."

Leah placed a large bundle of packing material in his hands. "I'm not a little girl anymore, Tio."

Nicolas shook his head. "No, you're not." He looked at a picture of Susan mounted on the wall with a wistful look. "She'd be very proud to see you now. All grown up and on your way to great things. You should be somewhere exciting and full of promising young people. New York … London..."

"I like it here," Leah insisted.

"Tobago is your past, Leandra."

"It's my home," she disagreed. "We fought for this place, remember?"

"I will never forget. But we're free of Salvador's corruption now. And we've sent a signal that fascism will not be tolerated here ever again."

"Yes, and now it's time to take care of ourselves. Time to rebuild and plan for the future."

Nicolas looked at Leah with a confused expression and then he gasped. "Are you … thinking of starting a family?"

She shrugged with a smile. "Maybe I am."

Nicolas laughed with happiness. "Ha! I didn't think I'd see the day. Perhaps I'll even be a tio abuelo … ah … how the time escapes me." He sniffled and his eyes got misty.

Leah plugged the computer tower and powered it on. She then handed Nicolas the instruction manual. "Okay, you got it from here? Give me a call if you need any help."

"Help?" Nicolas huffed. "Hmph, I'll be fine." But then he looked around in confusion. "Uh … where do I insert the paper?"

Leah laughed. "Oh, Tio."

After another burst of intense light flooded my vision, I saw that I was back at the cove. Leah was holding the photo and tear were streaming down her face.

"You two okay?" Edward asked worriedly.

Leah looked into my eyes and I knew she'd seen the vision as well. "I … was that … how...?"

"I think … we saw the future," I said, and Edward looked at me, raising his eyebrow, and I knew he was asking if it had been the same as with the idols. I shook my head at him and corrected myself. "A future that could have been."

Leah nodded. "Yes," she breathed out shakily. Her gaze drifted toward the shore, where it lingered and watched the tide wash in and out. Then, she suddenly turned to me and embraced me tightly.

"Shh. It's okay," I said reassuringly and stroke her back.

"I'd forgotten how much I miss my home," she sniffled and over my shoulder, she gazed at the old photo. "When I was little, all I wanted was to have a family one day." She stepped back and inhaled deeply, then glanced over at Edward and then back to me. "We're going to fix this."

Edward smiled. "Damn right we are."

"No more anger. No more despair. We owe it to ourselves to fight for the future with all we've got," she said. "I think maybe I … I just needed to see it to keep believing in it."

"Now that's the Leah I know," Edward said and nodded.

She smirked at him. "It's Katniss, cabron," she said, and Edward chuckled. She put the photo in her pocket and straightened out. "Garrett and Peter must've seen the eruption coming. Hopefully, they found a place to wait it out."

Angelique came running over to us. "Ahem. While I was, ah, scouting I found something else." She gestured in the other direction along the shore, and we all saw a cluster of huts resting in the shadow of a large cliff.

"A village?" I asked. "Those look like Kaarii dwellings."

"Maybe someone will know the whereabouts of the others," Edward said. "I've heard we're kind of a big deal around here, after all." He winked, and all of us laughed.

"Let's go find out," I said and took his hand in mine.

A/N:

Anyone need any clarification on who the Endless is, let me know! I know it can be a bit confusing with everything that's going on and all the details thrown in everywhere.

BUT, Bella, Edward, and Leah are reunited! They're gonna search for the others and they might have some luck with the Kaarii.

Bella confided everything to Edward so now he understands what she's been carrying, but do you think he will just move on now? They got to talk at least, and it was needed.

Anyway, you're thoughts truly mean everything to me! They are an attest to my efforts to get your heads spinning, and I love it! Lol!

Until next time,

Stay Awesome!