He awoke and saw a pair of gorgeous green eyes peering at him from behind glass. A lock of jet-black hair bounced over a pretty tan-colored face. Tanika 'Crowe' Lynchfield was looking at him as though he were a fish in an aquarium. Zane realized he was in some kind of stasis tank. He was submerged in an arctic-blue liquid that soothed his burns and cooled his body. He had a breathing mask placed over his mouth and bubbles coming from a vent beneath his feet surrounded him.

Crowe laughed and shook her head. "You know, you sure do have a knack of getting yourself knocked out Zane."

She pressed her lips on the glass, gesturing a kiss, laughed, and walked away. That was all Zane saw before he felt himself surrender to a void of inky blackness again.

Moments later, he felt someone rubbing a warm, soaked, cloth over his head. He opened his eyes and saw Crowe looking down on him.

"Oh! Hey! Mike! He's coming through at last."

"Where the hell am I?" Zane asked, feeling as though someone had taken out his brain and played baseball with it. He saw daylight peeking through the tall white curtains of his bed-chamber. The sound of the waterfall pouring down into his own river - usually quite soothing for him to wake up to - thundered in his ears, making his head throb.

"You're back home," Crowe answered. "Where you should have been all along. So, the great Zane Truesdale is doing late-night vigilante work, eh?"

Zane slumped his head on his pillow. "Oh, great. I suppose everybody knows about that."

"Not quite," Prince Michael said, walking into the room from the library. As usual, he wore a black suit and tie. A black sash was pinned to his shoulder by a large golden brooch in the shape of a six-pointed star. The rubies on his black iron crown sparkled obnoxiously.

He snapped his fingers.

Two squadrons of knights in steel plate and black capes rolled in a wagon containing the remains of Zane's cybernetic prototype. It stood lifeless on the wagon, cables, plate, and rods hung helplessly from the bottom of the head where the neck once was.

"Oh no," Zane mourned. Even though he had it for just a night, Zane felt as though he had lost a dear friend. "Goddesses," he said. "I was just starting to get to know him."

"You can fix it, can't you?" Michael asked, circling the head.

"You really want me to?" Zane asked, feeling rather optimistic. Deep down, he hoped Michael would let him continue working on his Cyber Knight project. "I mean, I can work something out if you want me to. He just needs a few adjustments."

"No," said Michael.

That put a damper on Zane's spirits.

"You're good, Zane, but you're not that good. You still have a lot to learn. I know someone who can help you."

Zane looked up. Even though his face felt horribly stiff and stung just to sniff the air, he couldn't help but form a smile. "You're going to let me help?"

"Doesn't look like I can stop you," Michael replied with a chuckle. "I've known you and Lex since the day I was born, Zane. Even if someone shot all your limbs off and all you had was a trash can and a pencil for defense, you'd take on a dragon if it meant saving Alexis."

"That I would," said Zane. "I know you'd do the same."

Crowe giggled and placed both hands on her hips, tilting them to the right. "Let's face it. You two bozos are too stubborn for your own good."

The three of them laughed.

"So what's the plan?" Crowe asked. "It's a new day, meaning poor Lex has six days left."

Michael nodded. "Well, even though I told Zane to stay behind, he got more info than we did."

"That was all my doing, thank you!" said Nel-E.

"Who the hell was that?" Crowe said looking around.

"She's my personal AI," said Zane. "It gets pretty lonely in here building all this stuff. I need someone to talk to before I start losing my mind."

Crowe snorted. "You're building cybernetic dragons and are killing street thugs with it. I'd say you've already lost it, Zane."

"It's actually not a bad idea," said Michael. "Provided we keep this to ourselves."

Crowe frowned and crossed her arms. "Uh, just what do you intend to do, Michael? You can't seriously be letting your future House Steward risk his life by doing comic book hero vigilante work."

Michael placed his hands behind his back and looked at her. "Domino Security has been tracking the Aeons since the kidnapping. They're all talking about this Cyber Knight character. Needless to say, after what Zane did, they're running scared. He got their attention. They're panicking and that will make them sloppy. Every mistake they make is one path closer to Alexis."

"If you say so, Your Highness. But if the press catches wind of this..."

"They won't," said Michael. "In fact, they don't even know what happened in Red X Gaming. My men cleaned up the site pretty quickly."

Crowe sniggered and gave a whirl of her eyes. "That was a big ass explosion, babe. Someone is bound to notice."

Michael shrugged. "That part of the district is full of old generators and some faulty wiring. It's bound to happen."

Zane threw his bedsheets off and got out of bed. "Michael, I greatly appreciate this. I'd thank you but there's no time. As you said, we have only six days left. If we're going to find Alexis we have to do so now. You said you knew somebody who could help me with the Cyber Dragon Project. Well, who?"

Michael held up his hand to quell Zane. "I'll give you the details after we've looked at those ribs of yours. If you're going out in the field, you need to be at one-hundred percent. Who knows. Maybe our new friend can help you learn a few things."

"I'm a quick study," Zane replied. He picked up a silver pitcher on his night table and poured himself a glass of water. The pitcher was enchanted with a clever spell that kept it ice cold. "Where can I find this friend of yours?"

Michael gave up. It would have to take a thousand chains to keep Zane down. "I'll text you the address later. Believe me, my friend will get that..." He looked at the prototype's head disdainfully. "Thing up and running so we can head to Level Five. In the meantime, I'm going to get some more help. If we are going to venture into the deepest parts of the underground city, we're going to need someone with a lot of power."

"You know someone?" Zane asked. "Is he good?"

"You should know," said Michael. "He almost beat you in Duel Academia."

Zane's face shrunk. "You're kidding?" He gave a soft chuckle. "Huh. It's been a while since I've seen that kid."


The Emerald Road


The golden-haired maiden ran through the forest as fast as her skinny legs could carry her. Behind her, she heard the voices of her pursuers echoing from behind the thick veil of mist. She had barely escaped them moments before when they assaulted her caravan and killed the guards. She was soaked and sticky with ale that was poured all over her. Her arm was bruised by their powerful grip and her clothes were all but shredded.

Fear. She was rank with it. At that moment she felt as though everyone in the world was after her. The forest itself seemed to lust for her flesh. The branches of dead trees reached out to her, ripping her gown and practically stripping her down to her skin, muddied and scratched. She heard the gang of highwaymen yelling and calling out to her; whistling for her as though she were a household pet. The lust in their voices was as clear as day.

The girl tripped over a log and tumbled down a muddy slope to the creek below. She fell with a splash and hit her head against a rock. It was a light bump, but it stung her awfully and dazed her. She heard the leaves rustling underneath thick, heavy, leather boots. The clanking of their rusty iron armor got louder. She forced herself up and ran.

"There she is!" she heard one of them yell. Upon hearing their voices, she pushed her legs even faster.

Something whooshed past her face. A bolt from a crossbow. More of them flew by, missing her by a hair.

This is it, she thought to herself. She was doomed. There was no escaping now. She felt as if any moment she would feel a sharp pain of a bolt would paralyze her.

She saw something ahead of her. It appeared out of the mist as if born from it. A priory. It looked old and abandoned. The stained glass windows were smashed and the walls were festooned with ivy. The gardens, once green and exploding with color, were overtaken by weeds and covered under a dull gray and brown blanket of dead leaves.

Tombstones poked out of a small cemetery underneath the shadow of an old oak tree. The girl dreaded she would join the dead resting there if there was no one inside the priory. She ran up the steps and banged on the iron door with all her might.

She pulled on the round handle coming out of the bronze dragon's mouth. It would not budge. It was locked tight. While a grim sight, it brought her hope. Mayhaps there was someone in there after all.

She pounded on the door repeatedly. "Sanctuary!" she cried. "Sanctuary, please! Oh, please, give me sanctuary!"

No one came. It was abandoned. It was just as she feared. An axe flipped out of the mist, missing the girl's head by mere inches, and stuck itself on the door.

"Stop you fool! You're supposed to hurt her, not kill her!" A scruffy voice shouted from behind the trees.

The men appeared out of the fog brandishing their weapons. "No more games, poppet," sneered a man covered in rusted iron armor over leather breeches. He was naked from the waist up. He wore a thick hood over his kettle-hat helmet. A truncheon with tallies carved on it was his weapon of choice.

He made command gestures with his hands. The men understood and surrounded the girl. They lifted her up.

"Please," she sobbed. "I beg of you. I'm a Priestess of Ana. The Rose Priestess is very wealthy. She will pay you handsomely in gold and jewels; rare cards if that is what you desire. Just let me go."

"You're all the gold I need," a raider said, coming from behind her and ripping her gown. The girl screamed. Just as the men began to laugh, the doors to the church burst open.

"Hey!" someone shouted.

All went silent.

The highwaymen stopped and turned. Someone was standing at the entrance of the priory. A boy, hooded and cloaked in a smelly, brown, and ragged cape. A gold brooch held it over his chest.

"What the hell is going on?" the hooded boy asked.

"If you know what's good for you, boy, you'll get back inside and mind your own business."

"You're making an incredible racket, man. You woke me up." He saw the girl in their grip. "What are you guys doing to her? Back away."

Another raider stepped forward with a small crossbow. "You back away, ya bloody toon! Get back inside now, or I'll stick ya like a hog." He smiled, revealing yellowed teeth. "And is that brooch of yours made of gold? It will be a great pleasure if ya hand it over."

"No way, man," said the Eldori boy. "I worked hard to earn this. Don't you know this is given to the top ten best students at Duel Academia?"

"A Duelist, eh? Then I s' pose you've got a deck of rare cards on you. Hand them over as well."

The boy narrowed his eyes. "You need to back out now if you know what's good for you. Step away from the girl, get out of my place, and get lost."

"Very well. We'll just loot your treasure off your corpse."

"You don't want to do that," said the boy. "Leave now."

The bandit fired his crossbow, but something tall and very muscular caught the bolt in a flash. The tip of the arrow was just a mere fingertip from touching the boy's nose.

The bandits gasped and took a step back when they saw the giant standing beside the boy. He just appeared out of nowhere. The men holding the girl dropped her and drew their swords. But they knew they were doomed.

The boy's lips formed a mischievous grin. He was a conjurer no doubt. And a skilled one to summon such a thing.

The giant he summoned was as white as limestone with a body that was just as hard. He had blue orbs on his shoulders and his domed head. A red gem was inlaid on his chest.

"Okay, boys," the conjurer said, wiping his nose with the back of his index finger. "Allow me to introduce...Elemental HERO Terra Firma!"

Terra Firma tossed the arrow away and walked down the steps of the priory. A bandit with a torch foolishly stepped forward. He waved it in underneath the HERO's chin, thinking he could scare it away with fire like he could any other beast.

"Back!" shouted the bandit. "Back! I warn you, monster, stay back!"

Terra Firma looked down at the bandit. He grabbed the burning end of the torch with his bare hand. The flames hissed, smoke billowed from between his fingers. Terra Firma lifted the stunted bandit off the ground. The bandit could not let go of the torch out of the terror he felt. The terror of what this superhero would do to him.

Terra Firma lifted his arm high until he came face-to-face with the bandit. The bandit sobbed and wet his pants as he looked into Terra Firma's lifeless golden eyes. In a split second, Terra Firm punched the bandit in the stomach with enough force to create a shockwave that caused the leaves to flutter through the air and the trees to tremble.

The gang heard a brief shriek of horror. They all looked up in time to see the tiny silhouette of their companion zooming higher and higher into the sky until he disappeared into the atmosphere.

In their shock, they failed to notice the boy running towards them, brandishing a beautiful divine sword with a glowing iridescent blade inlaid with seven colorful gems. He decapitated the archer with one quick swipe.

Elemental HERO Terra Firma lunged forward and kicked another bandit clear across the forest and into the fields where he smashed against a rock. The boy blocked one of the bandit's strikes with his vambrace which was plated in mithril. It caused nothing more than bright sparks and chipped the already ill-kept blade.

Terra Firma grabbed the bandit by the head and crushed his skull as if it were clay. He tossed the body over his shoulder and punched through the stomach of another bandit. The boy jumped off Terra Firma's massive forearm and stuck a bandit in the chest before he spun towards another one, sticking him in the face.

In less than a minute, the boy and Elemental HERO Terra Firma stood triumphantly together amongst the pile of dead bandits. Terra Firma crossed his arms over his chest and vanished. The boy pulled off his cloak and gently blanketed it over the girl.

"Thank you," she whispered. She draped the cloak around her shoulders and stood up.

"Think nothing of it," the boy said nervously. He heard storm clouds on the horizon. The trees started swaying violently in the fierce eastern winds. "Uh...looks like quite a storm is coming. Won't you come in?"

"You're so kind. Do you have food? I...I'm a bit famished."

"Fam-who?" the boy replied stupidly.

"Hungry," the girl said, realizing quickly that her knight in shining armor was rather slow in the head.

"Oh," he said awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his head. "I guess I can spare a few snacks."

He allowed her to go in first.

The girl hurried toward the ruined building then stopped. She turned and looked at the boy. "I'm Della," she introduced herself. "Pink Priestess of the Temple of Ana in Birthgarden.

"Hey, Della of uh... All that stuff. I'm Jaden. Jaden Yuki. I just finished my grade school years at Duel Academia. Now, I want to go back and soar through the ranks of Broxiton University."

"A pleasure, Jaden," Della said, bowing her head. She felt a raindrop on her nose and hurried inside.

Jaden, meanwhile, dragged the bodies away from the gardens of the priory and tossed them into a cave at the bottom of a large drop behind the cemetery. By the time he got back inside, the storm had arrived. Della was sitting in front of the fire of Jaden's camp located at the priory's central nave. She was staring at the boxes and bags of strange snacks laying around Jaden's duffle bag.

Della did not wish to eat the food without permission so she kept her distance. "Cookies? Pocky? Potato chips? Chocolate milk? I've never seen these delicacies before."

Jaden laughed. He unbuckled the baldric strapped across his chest and sat down on a small wooden stool. "I'm from the East."

"From Domino?" Della gasped. "The City of Light? Your land is rich in technology so I heard. Is it true you travel with flying vehicles and have weapons that can destroy armies of thousands with one blow?"

"I guess so," Jaden said, reaching for a bag of kettle-cooked chips. "Help yourself. I'm not going to need all this by the time I reach Domino."

Della dove in at once. She opened a bag of chocolate raisins. "Oh, it's good. You, easterners, love your sweets."

"You have no idea," said Jaden. "Man, I'm starving. Summoning sure burns lots of calories."

"Where did you learn to Summon that creature?" Della asked, picking up a bag of pretzels.

"You mean Terra Firma?" Jaden asked. "Nah, he's been a buddy of mine since my freshman year of high school. Of course, a girl I knew at the academy was the one who helped me unlock his true potential."

"A girl, you say."

"Belladonna Wyvernheart."

"Oh dear," the girl said sadly. "I heard about what happened to her family. Is she all right?"

"I don't know. She disappeared after the coup that destroyed her House and lost her kingdom. It's kinda why I'm out here tracking her."

"Tracking her? Are you a ranger?"

Jaden laughed. "No. But I trained with the Emboldorian Rangers before I set off looking for my friend. See, I've heard reports that she had been spotted wandering the wilds in these parts." His smile faded. "However, I'm about to pack it up." He threw a stick in the fire and sighed sadly. "It's been two years. A really long two years. But thanks to Terra Firma, I've been able to scout for my friend in peace. I could always count on him when I was in trouble. I got some sweet new heroes to use now thanks to my training back in Rassay."

"Oh! You were at the capital? What's it like?"

"Complicated," Jaden said with a chuckle. "A country girl like you would not survive there lemme tell ya."

"What did you do there?"

"Well, besides learning how to track, I was also learning how to summon monsters. I was there all summer getting taught by the best. But let's talk about you. What were you doing all the way out here in the Emerald Road all alone anyway? It's dangerous in these parts. Highwaymen have been running rampant here since this is the ideal road to take for the Termnnian Banks. And with Prince Yuri's return so close, the Church of Yeyu's been on the fritz. You know they've got Witch Hunters around here that will kill you just on the suspicion that you use magic. And you're a priestess of the goddesses."

"Whom they claim do not exist," Della said furiously. "Yes, I know. Preferably, I would have chosen the bandits over them. Bandits are gentler by comparison."

"That's a nasty comparison."

"At least they let you go when they're done with you. Witch Hunters and other vagabonds of the Church do unspeakable things to women before sending them back north to Naralia to be kept as slaves. Or worse."

"The sooner our long-lost prince returns the better," Jaden said, his mood dampened by the topic. "You still haven't answered my question. What were you doing out here?"

"I was delivering something of great importance," Della replied. "A rare and magical stone. But the bandit's leader took it from me and fled down the mountain with his elite squad leaving me to his minions. They must have headed to Domino with it because they said something about usurping the throne from House Dalton. I must get it back, Jaden. Thank the Goddesses I ran into you. You must help me retrieve that stone. Are you by chance a mercenary? Name your price. The Temple of Ana will pay you whatever you like."

Jaden's smile widened. "Aw, really? That's sweet! One magic stone comin' right up."

His phone suddenly vibrated. "Uh oh," said Jaden. "He doesn't usually call me unless it's for something serious. This must be really bad."