My fellow fanfictors, your queen is back.

Jenna: QUEEN? Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shush! Anyway, I'm back from Spain and ready for some action. But apparently my school heard this and has loaded me down with so much homework it's unbelievable!

Jenna: Excuses, excuses!

Ok, if you're gonna be mean to me I won't let you talk to your public.

Jenna: ......I can live with that.

Fine then. I'll stop any flameshipping in my story.

Jenna: YOU WOULDN'T!

Try me.

Jenna: ......

That's better. Ok, so because of my evil teachers there might be a short delay in my updates, but don't worry, I won't fail you.

Sorian: I'm not leaving you! Or, I didn't leave you. I just took a well-earned break, but I'm back now so happy faces all around! Are you questioning my normality? Ok, so my friends are scared to be alone with me, but that doesn't mean anything. Right? Guys? Come back!

(A.N. I have a special note for all readers. Because of the whole 'Ivan in Sheba's body' thing, which I think is a stroke of genius; I must show you an example of the confusing speak marks that will be used in the future. No thanks necessary, but they're greatly appreciated.)

"Normal speech"

(Ivan talking through Sheba)

Thoughts

Sheba 'thinking' to Ivan

Ivan 'thinking' to Sheba

Get it, got it, good! On to the story!

Jenna: Queen! Oh man, that was funny! Oracle doesn't own Golden Sun.

A Painful Choice

"They got away."

In the dungeon, the three adepts had finally recovered from the surprise attack. Alex placed his cool hands over Max's chest and quickly healed the stab wound. As soon as it was gone, his sword hands melted away to become normal hands again. The extra metal spread across his skin, up his arms and covered his torso in thick armour.

"I'm aware of that Trinity," said Max in a very irritated voice. "How many escaped?"

"Two. Felix and apparently Ivan. We may have his body, but the girl, Sheba, was able to take his soul."

"Jupiter adepts, how I hate them." Max bitterly fingered the rip in his robe which unfortunately hadn't been repaired with his wound. "So now both wind users are free as well as both earth users?"

"Yes, but luckily this means that Ivan's soul will not be able to fight off my psynergy and will be completely under my control," Trinity explained, desperate to redeem herself. "He will fight his friends until his end or theirs if I command him to."

"Excellent. What about Alicia? Where is she?" Alex stepped forward to answer this question.

"I believe she is a captive of the opposing team."

"Them again. Alex, I thought you said that Karst would join us."

"That was a minor miscalculation of mine which I have taken into account, but the end is inevitable. We shall have the ultimate power no matter what they do."

"Good, good. Now, since we must attend to some business in Prox, could you please instruct our new friends to eliminate the pests Trinity?"

"It would be my pleasure." She turned to the still figures that stood in the shadows behind her, each of them wearing matching blank. "Alright, Ivan, Garet, Jenna and Piers. Come here now."

The four adepts snapped into life and approached her like a line of soldiers. Emotionlessly, they fell still again, waiting for their next command.

"Your mission is to capture and bring the remaining adepts to Prox where we will wait for you. Use force if you must, I doubt they will attack you, but do not kill them and do not fail."

Although deep in the darkened eyes of Jenna, Garet and Piers, sparks of pain shone, they nodded at Trinity's instructions with the soulless Ivan. They watched Alex, Max and Trinity glow blue then disappear in Alex's warp psynergy before they moved silently towards the door and left the dark dungeon.

"So Sheba, what's it like sharing a body with Ivan? Isn't it cramped?"

While the group rested on a cliff to the right of Lemuria's castle to watch for any movement from the mighty palace, Isaac, Felix and Mia had continued to question the Wind Adepts about Ivan's new living arrangements. Karst had volunteered to watch the now sleeping Alicia, but it was clear that she was listening to the interesting yet confusing conversation.

"Well, it kind of hard to explain. Imagine sharing a toy as a child. You have to take it in turns and two people can't really use it at ," said Isaac, pulling Mia's body towards him from his spot on the ground until she was almost on his knee. "Can you talk to Ivan, you know, privately?"

"What? In my mind? Yeah, I can. It feels really weird though, as if I'm talking to myself and I'm actually answering."

Once more, violet eyes took the place of Sheba's green ones.

(You want to know what's even weirder?) asked Ivan's voice as he pulled his legs out of Sheba's uncomfortable meditation position and lay them on the dirt-covered floor instead. (I can actually sense where my body is.)

"WHAT?!" Felix and Isaac jumped to their feet causing Mia to fall off of Isaac's lap and Ivan to jump back in surprise.

(Calm down! What do you mean 'what'?) Ivan asked curiously once he'd got comfortable again.

"You know where your body is? Why didn't you say sooner? The others could be close to where we are!" exclaimed Isaac.

(I would of, but there was a lot on my mind...our minds. It's getting rather crowded in her head with my thoughts added to hers.)

"That doesn't excuse you!" Felix grabbed Ivan by the top of Sheba's favourite robe and hauled him up into the air so that liquid brown eyes met sparkling purple ones. "If I lose my sister..." He couldn't finish.

Ivan, let me take over!

"Felix, it's me, Sheba. Will you let me down now?"

Felix slowly lowered Sheba to the floor and dropped onto his knees, sobbing into his sleeves as he did. No tears had escaped his eyes as he'd watched his sister and friends go under Trinity's control, but the pain the action had caused was finally having an effect on him.

Sheba wrapped her arms around his shaking chest while muttering comforting words into his ear. Karst looked on in indifference and Mia moved into Isaac's arms once more knowing that Felix wasn't the only one who needed comfort. Isaac felt exactly the same way. Jenna and Garet were lifelong friends of his and even Piers had become a member of their team. He wasn't going to let any of them be held in Alex's slimy clutches for much longer.

Mia screamed suddenly and Isaac instantly pulled her aside looking around for the attacker. The only thing that gave him any clues was a scorch mark on the floor, inches away from where Mia had just stood. Although the attack would have done some lasting damage to the Water Adept, it was curious that it had missed even though Mia had been standing still.

Grabbing his sword from his side, Isaac looked all around for the person who'd tried to take a shot at Mia while making sure that she was constantly behind him for protection. Felix and Karst quickly joined him. An eerie silence followed Mia's scream as the adepts searched the surrounding landscape. Yet Sheba appeared more interested in the scorch mark.

Wind Psynergy? She silently asked Ivan.

Definitely. I'd say Tempest, which was one of my most powerful attack. Be careful Sheba and please don't damage my body too much.

Sheba visibly nodded and grabbed her rod from the floor where she'd left it.

"Guys, I think I know who it is..."

But the others already knew. Standing on a small ledge that jutted out at a strange angle above them was Ivan. He emotionlessly stared at them, his hand still held out from his attack. Lowering it slowly, he suddenly leapt into the air, did a neat somersault and landed in front of them.

"Ivan?" Sheba called out, moving towards the blonde boy.

"That isn't Ivan, remember? It's his empty body, not his soul. He's inside of you," Isaac reminded her with his sword still held high, but he seemed reluctant to use it.

Sheba was about to say something when two jets of flames surrounded them and cut them off from Ivan. They turned to face Jenna, Garet and Piers with heavy hearts. Felix couldn't hold back his emotions any longer and found himself flat out running towards his sister.

"Jenna," he whispered as he pulled her into a hug. "Please be alright."

At first he thought everything was alright. Jenna didn't struggle against him even if she didn't hug him back, but he was wrong. A hand swiftly flew through the air and made contact with Felix's cheek. It was accompanied by a noise that sounded like a clap of thunder and left a red handprint on his face. Tears sprung to Felix's eyes and he couldn't help gaze at Jenna with a clearly hurt look. He reached up and gingerly touched the red area.

"Why Jenna?" he mumbled sadly.

"I must obey," was all she said in a voice that had none of the warmth it used to.

From their right, Piers had pulled out a small object that everyone recognized as a sleep bomb. He threw it at the group before him and watched them cough in the thick bluish haze. In moments, they had collapsed on the floor, unconscious and trapped.

Far to the north of Weyard in the snowy reaches past Imil lies a town named Prox. It is like Imil in many ways; it stands guard over one of the four elemental lighthouses and is the home of another clan, the mighty Fire Clan of the North.

The icy winds were growing more and more dangerous as the elements remained in their unbalanced state and the Mars Lighthouse was left unlit. It was uncommon to see anyone roaming the streets in such cold conditions, yet three strangers to Prox were out in the worst storm ever seen in those parts.

A tall man urged two younger children towards the inn and finally managed to push them inside. Out of the storm at last, they removed their fur-trimmed hoods and surveyed the interior of the small inn. Only four other people had taken shelter in this building that night. Two of them were quietly playing cards at a wooden table; the third was nothing more than a small child stirring soup in a pot over a roaring stove, and the fourth was a heavily cloaked figure sitting in the furthest corner away from the door.

The owner of the inn, a well built man with strange greenish skin, approached them from his place behind a counter and warmly greeted them.

"Welcome travelers to the inn of Prox. Please, warm yourselves by the fire and let me take your cloaks. I hope you stay until the storm passes. It really is terrible isn't it?"

"Yeah..." answered Alex vaguely as Trinity and Max rushed past him to be closer to the warmth. He was more interested in the cloaked figure that had turned towards the group as they had entered. Alex calmly walked over to the figure and sat down on a nearby chair without saying a word. The silence continued as the two simply stared at each other. The mysterious figure's face may had been hidden in shadows, but two bright red eyes shone through and seemed to bear a great weight on Alex's senses. The Water Adept blinked and broke their intense gaze before speaking.

"You wanted to see me, so, talk."

"I'm aware of your quest and may be of some use to you," a deep growling male voice said from beneath the layers of clothing. "But I want to make deal with you before I share my strengths."

"I'm listening."

"I'll tell you what I can do if you count me in on the power gained at the end of your quest."

"It all depends on your abilities."

"I can get you the Mars Star."

"The Mars Adept, Karst, has it."

"I know."

"How can you get it?"

"I have my ways. Is it a deal?"

"Tell me who you are and I'll agree."

The stranger paused for a brief moment then nodded. A large hand snaked its way out of the folds in his cloak and pulled away the hood that hid his face. It fell back and none other than Agatio.

"I used to work with Karst as you know. She will trust me."

"Fine."

The two men quickly shook hands and Alex stood up. He called to Trinity and Max who hurried to his side, grumbling slightly. With one last look at the brawny Mars Adept, Alex disappeared back into the storm with the younger adepts following closely.

Another one bites the dust! Yes, I'm finally done for the day and your new chapter is up for your viewing pleasure. Man, it feels good to be back in the game, don't you think Jenna?

Jenna: I'm tired, it's late, will you please go to bed now?

Yep. After one last note.

Jenna: I hate you.

People, please. It really simple. Just...push...the...little...button...and...I...will...update...quickly. Told you it was simple. R&R.