"Marceline!" Betty called out as she ran to her. "You made it!"

"Mom!" The vampire replied with an uplifted expression as she rushed towards her too.

The pair hugged each other long and hard with laughter and tears of joy. After an enduring ordeal of being apart for what seemed like a lifetime, it was truly a relief to be back in the arms of someone comforting.

A few moments later, Betty recomposed herself and glanced at Marcy's battle-torn appearance up and down with a concerned expression, "What happened, are you hurt?"

Marcy flashed a toothy grin with a chuckle, "I'm fine, it was nothing I couldn't handle. I can regenerate, remember?"

"I know," Betty nodded being aware. "It's not going to stop me from caring though." She placed a tender kiss on her forehead before the pair closed in for another embrace. When they parted, both of them noticed an orange glowing figure from the right side watching after them with a sad smile.

"We did it," Phoebe said with her voice strained as she remained distant.

Marceline tossed her head with an inviting gesture and encouraged, "Come on, Pheebs. Don't be a stranger. You're one of us too."

The elemental nodded meekly before she took turns exchanging hugs with Marcy and Betty. After she parted, her mood improved and her spirits were lifted. "I'm sorry," she apologized with a chuckle. "I feel so stupid for thinking I had no place."

"What?!" Betty protested taken aback. "We were there for you in your moment of need! Why on earth would you ever think that?"

"I doubted myself," Phoebe grimaced. "When I saw you and Marcy together, it made me feel like I didn't have the same connection or bond to-"

"Phoebe," Betty affirmed tenderly. "It's ok." She paused to look away briefly before continuing with eye contact, "If there is one thing I've learned by being here, is that I have developed a role for being a nurturer. That being said, you don't need to explain yourself. Understand?"

The elemental nodded along with the vampire as Betty glanced at the latter.

"I may not have brought either of you into this world," Betty stated to both. "But I am willing to offer love, patience, guidance, and understanding like one."

"She's like the mother we've never had," Marcy said with a giggle to suppress her tears, which also made Phoebe react similar in suit.

"It's sad, but true," the elemental shook her head to compose herself.

"And now that it's out of the way," Betty began. "We can get back to the task at hand."

"Alright," Marcy nodded eagerly with a determined expression, "what's the next step?"

"Well before we continue," Betty held up both her own palms to bat down lightly, "I'd like to discuss how our personal experiences were regarding the trials." She formed a serious expression, "The one detail that stuck out to me from my journal before we even began was that the entities would test our resolve and our minds. If we are to proceed, we must not have any emotional baggage."

"Makes sense," the vampire shrugged. She then looked at Phoebe and Betty asking, "Anyone want to go first?"

"I think," Phoebe hesitated as she recalled her memory, "I'll go last on this one. I have a feeling that what I'll say will drive all of us off topic."

Betty and Marcy exchanged questioning glances before they ultimately respected Phoebe's decision.

"Fine, I'll go first then," the vampire threw her hands from her sides casually.

Betty and Phoebe listened in fascination as Marcy recalled her story. They learned everything from when the vampire walked into a dojo, how she fought an army of ice ninjas, and defeating Chaos single-handedly after several frustrating attempts.

"The guy was the bane of my existence," Marcy frowned. "If it weren't for me being immortal, I would have lost the first round at that very moment. He's been around far longer than I am, and I know he would have wanted me to break down first before dealing the finishing blow." She stopped as she felt unnerved at the thought.

"So how did you win?" Phoebe asked curiously. "It seemed he had everything in his favor from how you described him."

The vampire rubbed the back of her own neck, "I tried using my speed to end the fight without having to waste any time. When that didn't work, I eventually studied his technique and used it against him. I'm not saying I stopped him at every turn, but I did manage to land a few good hits to throw off his game." She then hardened her expression, "I also cleared my mind and reminded myself what I was fighting for. I thought of the times I spent with you, Betty, Simon, and everyone else that I cared about. After that, I found myself at peace for the first time in a long while."

"We're glad to hear that," Phoebe said with a comforting smile, knowing the feeling all too well.

"There's one last thing," Marcy recalled. "After I defeated Chaos, I ran into one of the crown's victims and found out he was the 'first Santa'."

Betty blinked in confusion as the name sounded so familiar, "Santa? As in the guy who-" she stopped once Marcy nodded for her. Phoebe on the other hand felt completely lost as she had no idea of the person they referred to and made a mental note to ask more later.

"Guess he's real after all," Marcy chuckled briefly. "Who knew?"

"But you said first, suggesting there have been others after him," Betty mentioned. "What's his story?"

"He didn't say," she answered with a bummed expression. "He told me to ask for someone called Gunter who supposedly knows."

"That would be me," a new voice rang, startling the group. When everyone looked around, they noticed Betty was searching her pockets until she pulled out a red gemstone. It glowed brightly as she held it out in front until a small beam of light struck the ground beside her. A moment later, a short green bipedal dinosaur appeared smiling and waving, "Hey everyone!"

"Are you a dinosaur?" Marcy asked in awe.

"I'm a Gunther," he replied innocently not really understanding the question.

"You're part of the crown too?" Phoebe asked as she remained wary.

"A construct," he answered. "But a friendly one I promise you."

Betty spoke up, "He used to be the apprentice of Urgence Evergreen, the creator of the crown itself. I met Gunther not long after I started my trial and he's told me the rundown of how the crown works along with its history."

Marcy and Phoebe were brought up to speed as they learned the facts. When Betty and Gunther finished explaining, the former went back to discussing her trial.

"I faced Madness," Betty started. "Or in this case, a Viking warlord named Svein. Apparently his story was that he started off as normal boy who wanted nothing but to protect his people from harm. When he was forced into a time of war, he used the crown with honorable intentions after he fished it out from the sea by luck. Long story short, the crown drove his enemies away from his home and then it corrupted him to turn against everyone not long after."

"Tragic," Phoebe commented.

"So how did you make it?" Marcy asked. "He seemed just as dangerous as my guy, although more barbaric." She joked lightly.

"Similar tactic like yours," Betty smirked. "I had to be really patient on when to attack and when to pull back. If I tried fighting him head on like a mindless grunt, I'd probably be dead within the first few seconds."

"I gotta hand it to you," Marcy praised. "You don't have any powers, except for your ice magic and you still held your own!" She paused in thought as she recalled another person who was known to accomplish similar feats as a human.

"I do want to point something out," Betty said as she suddenly formed a solemn expression. "When Madness lost his powers after the fight, I saw Svein for what he really was." She looked over to Marcy and Betty with a frown, "A boy, and not just an ordinary one."

"What are you saying?" Phoebe tensed as part of her mind had a growing suspicion.

Betty drew in a long breath before she answered, "He looked a lot just like Finn and it doesn't help that he went through a similar ordeal either."

There was a long moment of silence as the name lingered in midair until Phoebe spoke up.

"Then I guess," the elemental struggled with a sigh. "It should be easier for me to tell my story."

She rubbed her eyes momentarily before resuming with a stronger resolve, "I took on the entity of Sadness. And when I faced him... he took on the form of Finn the Human."

Marcy and Betty expressed compassion to the saddened elemental. They knew Finn had a significant role in Phoebe's life and that it was a daily struggle for her to cope with his death. It had been months, almost a year even but the pain remained strong as ever. Phoebe worked tirelessly during her time as a ruler to cast aside her personal struggles. When she rested, she spent her time interacting with her friends and loved ones as a further means to move on. Progress was made little at a time and when it seemed she made enough, her heart, mind, and soul were placed at the ultimate test for survival. Confronting Finn, despite being an illusion brought Phoebe into a moment of weakness. It was already enough for the former monarch to choose the lives of her people over the fallen hero that she swore she wouldn't relive such a dark moment in her personal experience.

"In the end," Phoebe concluded with a sigh. "I just couldn't see myself surrendering to my depression. No matter how.. painful it still is for me to wake up without him, he wouldn't want me to constantly blame myself instead of just moving on." She looked over to Marceline, "You once told me that I shouldn't keep to myself with something like this, to not go down the second road. I have only been through a glimpse of what it felt like by your standards and I already feel inclined not go through that ever again. I just can't fathom it."

"I'm glad to hear that," Marcy comforted with a hand on her left shoulder. "There's more to life more than you'll know." She then frowned, "Though the one thing that irks me is the fact you said you saw yourself and me standing beside him? What's that all about?"

"I don't know," Phoebe answered feeling troubled. "I mean, it's not hard to figure out we both love him and that we are connected to him in some way. I just couldn't understand why they were there to begin with."

Gunther spoke up, "I think I might know."

Everyone faced him on cue.

"Master Evergreen designed the crown to do more than just grant a person's greatest wish," he explained. "He also wanted to make sure it could foresee events in the distant future. If he was able to live without sacrificing his life for repelling the Catalyst Comet, he would have been the first Guardian to respond to any more catastrophic events, thereby making him assume the mantle of leadership. Problem is the crown was incomplete at the time, and I have no idea if this function was able to make its way into the final stage."

"What are you saying?" Betty asked.

"All I know," he shrugged, "is that it could have very well been a vision, despite how vague it seemed. Or, it could have been a cruel trick played by Sadness as an attempt to erode your will." He stared at Phoebe sadly.

"That probably might be it then," Phoebe admitted with a frown. In her thoughts, the afterlife was vast. Even if she could manage to venture into that realm on her own or with her friends, how would she be able to find Finn amongst all the others who once lived? After a moment she shook her head in concentration, "But whatever the case, we fixed the gems and I'm in the motions of moving on and helping a friend. That said, is the crown ready?"

"Wish I could say yes," Betty answered being disappointed with herself. "The crown's mechanism will need to be synchronized under a certain frequency with the gems before anything. After that, it'll need a specific, large power source to reboot the whole thing."

"Sounds really technical for a magical device," Marcy remarked. "So how do we do that?"

"There are three pedestals located further in this temple," Betty answered. "We place the crown on those and it will fuse each gem into the headpiece. First location will take sixty seconds, the next one a hundred and twenty, and the last will take two hundred and forty."

"Seems too easy though," Phoebe narrowed her eyes.

"The crown will be made self aware in some ways," Betty continued. "Every time I set it over at each location, the crown will start summoning enemies from its past life. They're going to do everything in their power to make sure we don't succeed. That means they'll try to tamper with the crown itself until the loading is stopped and we'll be forced to start over."

"We understand," Phoebe nodded along with Marceline. "Just point where to go and I'll lead the way."


The group navigated through the darkened corridors after they left the first chamber. As Phoebe ventured ahead of the group, the elemental took a cautious look with her surroundings. The interior was vague at best, but she feared there could have been traps concealed in her path. Her eyes tried to spot for signs such as a loose stone tile or a fine wire set just at her ankles. Apparently her time with the late adventurer has caused the elemental to develop a special sense of awareness when exploring a dungeon or temple in this case.

After a few minutes of walking through the passageways, Phoebe eventually spotted a spacious room with one of the pedestal's that matched Betty's description. It was plain in design, made simply of stone. However, when the elemental took a closer look, she noticed there was a fine engraving etched on the outer edges in a language she did not understand.

"Any ideas what it says?" She asked out loud.

"Yeah, place the crown here," Marcy sarcastically replied.

Phoebe stared at the vampire with a half-lidded expression, indicating she was not amused. Even though it was a typical reaction however, it took all of Marcy's self-control not to burst out laughing anyway.

"Yeah," Betty cut in casually as her eyes were fixated on her journal, "It's a rough translation, but she's right."

The elemental was openly shocked upon hearing this and Marcy couldn't stop laughing. Betty lowered her booklet to see the commotion and then realized the latter of the two was only joking. A few minutes later, Marcy recomposed herself with Betty posing with her own arms crossed.

"Better now?" The woman asked patiently with an amused grin.

"Heh, yeah," Marcy replied feeling flustered. She then cleared her throat for good measure and asked, "Are we ready to start?"

Betty nodded with a serious expression, "Only if you two are."

Phoebe and Marcy nodded and hummed with matching expressions and then took defensive stances. Their backs faced the pedestal in close proximity, while Betty cautiously lowered the ice crown in place. Once it was done, Betty darted her eyes left and right for the first sign of attack. Strangely enough, nothing happened. The room was still silent and the headpiece itself showed no signs of activity. It wasn't until a moment later did Gunther decide to speak up.

"Place one of the side gems onto the crown," he instructed with a smile. "Not the middle, that goes last."

Betty mentally face-palmed herself for forgetting before she shook her head back in concentration. She thanked the construct with a kind smile and then used the one Marceline had. From that moment, the crown was locked in place with a small round energy shield appearing for good measure. It hummed loudly pulsing with energy and the whole room became suddenly illuminated with a dark blue light.

"It's loading up," Gunther called out. "Protect the crown!" He then vanished back into Betty's gem.

Approximately twenty feet from the group's position, the floor around them began to glow from a series of portals. Once the entry points were wide enough for a person to fit through, a pair of hands shot out from each of them until they grasped the edges. Some of them had a light blue complexion similar to the Ice King, while others were peach-like in color. When their bodies fully emerged, Marcy and her friends knew from that moment they were being confronted by the same enemies they faced in their trials. The ones with blue skin were the ice ninjas of Fridjitzu while the others were Vikings under Svein's leadership. Both groups were equipped with swords from their respective designs and then they charged wordlessly into battle.

Marceline and her friends drew weapons of their own in response. The vampire had her ax bass, the elemental duel-wielded a flame and obsidian sword, and the human had a short sword and round shield conjured with ice magic. The three had their backs facing the pedestal as their enemies approached and soon they engaged in close quarters combat.

"It's only sixty seconds," Marceline mused in her thoughts as she began knocking back ninjas and Vikings with strong horizontal swings. "How long can that be?"

Ten seconds later, more portals could be seen forming on the ground. Dozens of enemy reinforcements began to literally jump out and sprint rather than emerge slowly with a crawl. Some of the figures had a light body build indicating they were easy to defeat with only 1-2 hits in exchange for being nimble, while others were more burly in mass to sustain extensive damage at the cost of being slow. These new units were still outmatched against the trio regardless, but their tactics to overwhelm and distract them slowly gained a foothold. While the heavy troops fought with the grunts, the runners would sneak past the action and bash the crown's barrier repeatedly with their fists until the synchronization would be forced to reset.

"Freakin' Murphy's Law," Marcy muttered internally as she effortlessly grabbed a Viking by the ankle and swung him around like an improvised bat. The ones who tried to tamper with the crown were dispatched in a short breath, and then Marcy flung the grappled warrior back into another charging group. Four men fell backwards into unconsciousness upon impact, and soon Phoebe and Betty began to imitate a similar strategy by shoving and throttling them into each other. They were quickly building up sweat and becoming breathless as they reached the half-way mark. Their hands flew in all sorts of directions as they blocked and countered several enemies at once, desperately hoping for the fighting to stop once the timer was over. The crown meanwhile hummed louder and glowed brighter with each passing moment, giving the defenders a sense of hope.

"Ten seconds!" Gunther announced from the gem he hid in.

The trio couldn't help but jolt a little in joy upon hearing the news. After all the nonstop chaos, holding the line seemed to finally pay off. However, the enemies suddenly began to change tactics by moving back at arms length before they rushed recklessly as one massive mob towards the pedestal. All three defenders yelled with intensity as they fired off beams of fire and ice from their hands to repel them, but their foes still closed the distance, running past them with ease and towards the now defenseless artifact. Just when it seemed like another hand would have a chance to deal a crucial smash-based attack, the crown flashed with a blinding light and instantly purged all ninjas and Vikings alike. The room was once again dimmed in darkness as silence took over. Marcy, Betty, and Phoebe panted and stared at each other for a long moment before they laughed collectively in sweet relief.

"Well," Phoebe breathed as she bent forward with her hands on her knees. "That wasn't too bad!"

"Still think you could have done this all by yourself?" Marcy asked Betty with a raised eyebrow.

"What are you kidding?!" Betty replied taken aback. "There's just no way!" She shook her head repeatedly for emphasis.

Gunther then reappeared and stood beside the group saying, "Synchronization's complete! Scratch one down, two more to go."

"Yeah, that's great kid," Marcy waved dismissively as she took a bottle of water from Betty's pack. "Just give us a minute."

"Better make it five," Phoebe suggested as she took a few deep breaths.


When the group composed themselves and treated their wounds, Betty motioned for everyone to huddle.

"We're going to need a strategy for the next two fights," she advised everyone.

"Yeah," Marcy concurred. "We can't hope to fend off an entire crowd for a longer time without having to hold back. My idea is that we start using more of our strength after we hit the thirty second mark. I'll use my giant bat form and pummel anyone up close, while Phoebe will draw more of her flames and burn them out."

"I don't think I'll just be able to power up at the flick of a switch," Phoebe frowned at Marcy. "But then again, if I try calling forth my powers even before we start, I know I'll probably tire out before I even know it."

"Which is why I'll be the one to change first so I can cover you," Marcy smirked. "I wasn't planning for both of us to do it the same time if that's what you're thinking."

"Either way," Betty interjected. "Fighting harder isn't always going to be answer."

"What do you have in mind?" Marcy asked.

"We do all those things like you just said," Betty replied. "But we also add some traps and barricades around the pedestal. There's only so much we can do and where we can be when the fighting starts, and it won't be long until we get distracted enough from what we're meant to do."

Marcy and Phoebe hummed in affirmation.

"I'll set up a wall around the headpiece with my ice magic," Betty continued. "It'll give us an idea if anyone ever manages to sneak past us and go for the crown. While that's going on, I'll also freeze certain sections of the floor and slow down any opposition. They try charging again, they'll stumble into themselves first before getting to us."

"Sounds like a plan," Marcy commented.

"I'll try not to get too carried away with my flames," Phoebe smiled sheepishly. "I'd hate to melt everything straight from the get go."

"You'll do fine," Betty comforted with a hand on her shoulder.


"Here they come!" Betty called out once the second gem started fusing. "Keep your eyes moving and push them back!"

Twenty seconds into the fight and the next wave of Vikings and ninjas were charging by the dozens. As Betty and her friends did their best to keep the crown from harm's way, the vampire made a mental note to clear some space for herself to transform into her giant bat form. Once she managed to make the transformation in the heat of combat, she wasted no time in swinging her arms alternatively in a sweeping motion. Small groups of three to four men were easily knocked aside, being flung in midair. No one was able to make it past Marcy at this point, but then it seemed the attackers made a sudden change in tactics. When it became apparent that Marcy was defending herself well enough from the onslaught, the enemies made a unanimous decision and decided to overwhelm Betty instead.

"Mom!" the vampire roared out in distress.

The woman glanced over her left shoulder as she noticed a new crowd of enemies charging recklessly towards her. She had just finished countering a blade strike and knocked back two people with a shoulder strike, but her eyes widened when she had no energy to readjust her stance. Just when it seemed like she would be trampled from the sheer numbers, a large white plasma blast passed behind her over her shoulder and instantly incinerated them. When she looked over to where the source came from, it stopped over to Phoebe who seemed to glow intensely under a golden aurora.

"I got your back," the elemental yelled snapping Betty back into focus. "Move!"

All around the room, the ground was met with thundering explosions. One moment Marceline used her flight to deliver a devastating elbow drop from afar, and the next she slammed both fists into a ground pound. Countless enemy troops were rag-dolled, flying at all angles from the shockwave. Phoebe in the meantime was firing off plasma bolts from her hands and forehead that scorched anyone within its path near instantly. The elemental had already holstered her swords at this point, flying and weaving to engage enemies by the masses. As for Betty, she moved further back towards the pedestal and reinforced the frost barricade encircling it. She would occasionally fire off bursts of ice magic with her hands to pick off whatever grunts her friends had missed, but overall she stayed behind not to get caught in the line of fire.

Suddenly, the crown flashed again. Time seemed to pass by unexpectedly for the enemies to vanish once more without thought, and the second gem glowed brightly after being merged with the crown. The three travelers were panting in exhaustion with blood and sweat rolling off their bodies. However, no one laughed this time as they were all in tremendous pain. Betty squinted her eyes as she pulled out her first aid spray with cyclops tears and reached over her back. After a few agonizing seconds, she sighed in relief when her wounds healed and her energy began to return to normal.

"We barely survived that," Betty whispered to herself in bewilderment. The fact she glanced at Marcy and Phoebe's tired expressions was enough proof on its own. Although the vampire was healing within seconds on all fours, the elemental meanwhile sat down and leaned her body against a wall with one knee propped up. Marceline was trying to muster a smile thinking her pain was not too overbearing, while Phoebe starred blankly as though she was reflecting on life. Minutes passed as the three remained distant from each other, until Betty said in a dry voice, "Let's all rest for today."

Gunther didn't even show himself in the aftermath. Apparently the construct knew there was some tension going on and ultimately decided it was best to leave everyone for the time being.


The next day, the three were finishing up eating their rations for breakfast. They should have felt a renewed sense of hope now that only one gem was left to fuse, but all of them scowled collectively.

"Four minutes," Marceline said bitterly out loud. "Just four lousy minutes!"

"Pfft," Phoebe scoffed feeling disheartened. "It's ridiculous."

"You don't have to do this," Betty stated to both of them evenly. "This is my quest after all."

"And leave you for dead?!" Marceline yelled on the fly. "Phoebe and I barely managed to hold them off when it was only TWO! And we were at full power before then."

Betty did not recoil and stood up on cue, "So tell me, what do you want?! Are you saying we should just walk away and forget this ever happened?" Her hands balled into fists.

"You don't understand!" Marcy threw a hand in frustration. "We're in the middle of nowhere where the closest place for help is at least a week away. I may not need any first aid supplies because of what I am, and Phoebe has her alchemy, but you-" she faltered.

"I am fairly aware of that," Betty countered. "But this isn't the first time I've had to go in harm's way just to save someone I care about."

"You still should have stayed behind," Marcy criticized recalling Betty's involvement in the Candy-Fire War.

"And go against my principles?" the woman lowered her voice with distraught. "How could you ever say that?"

"I.. well," the vampire hesitated when she met her gaze. She had the words in her arsenal to be argumentative for a long time, but there was a part of her mind that screamed louder to exercise self-restraint. Somehow her fear of saying something out of line overrode whatever urge to make her retort and be disrespectful.

"Let's say you were the one under the crown's curse," Betty said transitioning to another tactic. "Do you think Simon and I would just turn our backs and assume that you're lost forever?"

"No," she replied reluctantly hanging her shoulders.

"I rest my case," the human threw her own hands to the sides. "I wouldn't be doing all of this if I didn't love him, nor would I have done the same for you."

"We shouldn't be pushing ourselves away like this," Phoebe finally spoke up as she felt frustrated from feeling pessimistic. "Yes, this whole thing sucks but look how far we've come! We're nearly this close to fixing one of the most wretched things this universe has to offer and we're just going to fight among ourselves?"

Betty and Marceline were silent.

"We need to be closer to each other now more than ever," the elemental resolved. "We need to remind ourselves that no matter how tense or unfair things may be, we will never face them alone!" She looked over to Marcy, "You and I both thought we reached our limits yesterday. But, was that ever the first time either of us felt like that? When push comes to shove, when everything is placed on the line, we will always find a way to dig deeper."

Marcy frowned in admittance before answering, "Then I'll work twice as hard to make sure we leave this place. All of us." She amended as she glanced at Betty in acknowledgement.

"We're not going to lose anyone," Betty promised with a determined expression.


When the last gem was being fused into the crown, Marcy and her friends took on a defensive stance. Everywhere they looked, there were enemies jumping and rolling out of the portals that surfaced before them. There was no time for small talk the moment the first attacker was within reach. By the first minute, the floor around the defenders quickly became clustered with at least thirty men. Marcy noticed that maneuving around was slowly becoming more difficult and delivered a swift curb stomp that cleared the space around fifteen feet. Seconds later, the space was taken up as more enemies attempted to tackle her in unison. The vampire snarled as she found herself thrown on her back and wiggled repeatedly to break free from the pile of Vikings before her. With a determined yell, the pile exploded as the vampire morphed into her bat form. She then began to hover for the rest of the fight using strong-based sweep attacks and occasionally slamming the ground with both hands.

Phoebe utilized her flames to increase her overall speed as she duel-wielded her swords. Every time she engaged in close quarters combat with 2-3 people, the elemental reminded herself not to be caught in a long duel and just go for the killing blow as fast as possible. As far as she knew, these were just faceless projections from the crown that she had no emotional ties to. She essentially toned out a part of her mind, while fighting and moving with grace. Her attacks chained relentlessly, clearing out a dozen troops before leaping towards another one. It was a wonder that she kept her pace along with her friends, but none of them had the notion to check how much time they needed to survive.

"It'll be over when we least suspect it," she thought mid-battle. "Just remember your training, stay on the move, and don't die." At that, she conjured tendrils of fire sprouting off her back and began to shoot in all directions.

Things were progressing fairly well for the main trio as they repelled one enemy advance after another. Their eyes constantly darted sideways to maintain good peripheral vision, their breaths heaved from attacking and defending numerous strikes, and their bodies ached from sustaining damage overtime. Despite their weariness however, the group called upon their remaining strength to fight with increased vigor.

The crown began to grow desperate as the heroes went past the halfway point. When it felt its influence diminishing with each passing second, it began to summon enemies that looked exactly like Finn the human. Some of them were wearing his trademark outfit with the white bear cap, blue shirt, shorts, and green backpack, while others were seen wearing a closed, dark violet trench coat. Needless to say the group was stunned that they were forced to fight against a familiar opponent. Their momentum as a result was thrown off from the initial shock, now being forced to withdraw on the defensive. When their backs were near the pedestal's location by about ten feet, Phoebe was the first person to overcome her mental struggle before fighting back against the imitators that wielded replicas of the Finn and grass sword.

"Enough is enough!" The elemental proclaimed with outrage. "I've had it with these flippin' mind games! Finn is gone, I made a choice! I get that!" She narrowed her eyes in anger with a few tears running down her cheeks and spoke out loud to the crown, "No matter how hard you try, the past will have no control over me. Do you hear me?! No. More!" She boomed as her body grew exceedingly hot and blinded everyone's vision.

A red orange ring phased through everyone's waistline after the elemental's outburst. Although Marcy and Betty were left unharmed, everyone else instantly bursted into ashes until the room was empty. Phoebe's eyes glowed completely red orange as she hovered off the ground, arching her back. Seconds later, her flames reverted to normal until her feet touched the ground.

"Haaah, haaah," she panted repeatedly as she felt extremely exhausted. She then looked over to Marcy and Betty who eyed her with shock and said, "G-go fix.. the crown." With that she collapsed with her complexion turning maroon.

"You go ahead," the vampire said as she kneeled over Phoebe to administer care. "I got her."

"Wait, something's not right," Betty announced feeling bewildered before she can grab the restored crown. At that moment, she and the vampire can hear two canines growling ominously in the distance.

"It's the Alpha pair," Marcy gasped in shock. There before her very eyes were two onyx wolves that matched Jake 2's height and mass. They paced back and forth to the sides as they studied Marcy and Betty, while ignoring Phoebe's motionless form.

"Oh crud," Betty grimaced when her hands couldn't glow anymore from firing off beams of ice. "I'm all tapped out."

"I-I can't shift back either," Marcy struggled as she remained in her normal form. "I need time to save up on energy." Apparently her endurance was low enough to the point where she couldn't float either.

With the two in no condition to fight, Marcy and Betty bared their teeth in frustration. They had just finished protecting the crown in what was considered to be the most difficult ordeal in their lives, only to be forced back into the action without any proper rest. For all they knew, an easy death was all that awaited them.

"Damn it," Marcy muttered. "We were so close!"

Betty felt like she wanted to agree, but suddenly a thought crossed her mind. Her eyes went back and forth between the vampire and herself, developing an idea so crazy it might just work.

"What are you thinking?" The vampire asked anxiously.

"You were right, Marce." Betty grunted as her adrenaline started to wear off. "Despite everything that I've been able to prove.. I'm still human."

Marcy was puzzled at this until she blinked in realization with a horrified look, "No! I said I won't do it!"

"Listen to me," the woman instructed with a steel gaze grabbing her shoulders. "One of us has to be at full strength to take on this next fight! The way I see it, either you turn me into a vampire or.. you take my blood."

"I barely handled myself the first time," she protested. "And there's NO way I'm letting you share the same burden either!" Marcy referenced about her immortality.

"I don't like this anymore than you do," Betty shook her head. "We try taking our chances as we are now, and I can guarantee none of us will make it out of here!"

Marcy drew out a frustrated sigh as she noticed the wolves moving closer. In her mind, Betty was right, and yet the cost to make the decision seemed too overwhelming. The vampire had eyed her surroundings looking at all the dropped weapons from the slain Vikings, ninjas, and Finn imitations, but none of them seemed remotely useful. Like Phoebe, Marcy dreaded to relive a moment that involved a major internal struggle. Her heart ached from the possibility of losing another loved one and she weighed her options. As unlikely as it seemed to save everyone, she just had to believe there was still a trace of hope.

"Alright," Marcy relented which surprised Betty. "Just relax your neck and I'll try to make this quick."

"Do it."

Betty shuddered as she felt Marcy's fangs biting into her flesh for the first time. Just as she anticipated, the vampire's wounds were sealing faster and her overall strength seemed to improve. As a result, the human felt too fatigued to stand and rested her weight on the vampire's side. She could feel her eyelids becoming heavy, but then her strength slowly recovered when Marcy released her slowly and eased her body to the ground.

"Stay down," Marcy instructed in a monotone voice as her pupils began to dilate. Before Betty could respond, the vampire flew away and charged at the wolves head on.

Everything moved in slow motion while Marcy used her demonic speed. As she got closer to about ten feet, she shifted into her giant bat form with her claws extended for the grab. Each wolf was lifted off the ground effortlessly as they were taken by the throat. They could feel themselves flying backwards a considerable distance until their backs suddenly slammed at a nearby wall. The whole room shook from the sheer impact, with the canines whimpering briefly before they quickly recovered to growl again. However, as soon as they attempted to move, Marcy was already following up with another attack. This time she morphed into a form that resembled a giant octopus and proceeded to grapple the wolves once more. What happened next was unsettling.

The main Kathhounds found themselves hitting the walls and floors repeatedly as Marcy kept her grip. Slowly but surely, the duo struggled to break free until the pain made them essentially helpless. Even though they lost their fierce demeanor and started to whimper for mercy, Marcy continued to slam them without pause until she could hear the sound of their bones giving out. Moments later, the two became limp with their blood seeping in her grasp. It was clear enough that the fight was over without question, but her vampiric instincts kept her to continue. In that moment, all the frustration she once had restoring the gems was being channeled towards her unfortunate prey. She kept moving her tentacles erratically for a long time until the canines in her grasp became nothing more but a gruesome mess.

Marceline shifted back to normal after the deed was done. Even though the taste of human blood stimulated her senses, the memories Betty had prevented the former from craving and consuming more. In a surprising turn of events, Marcy was able to regain her rational thought faster and rush over to her maternal figure to offer immediate support.

"Here," the vampire stated in a neutral voice as she offered a bottle of water and an apple from Betty's satchel. "You'll need your strength."

The human accepted them whole-heartedly, taking small amounts. When she looked over at Marcy's bloodied form, she nodded in understanding instead of being taken aback. As their eyes met, they came to an unspoken agreement that they would continue to confide with each other from their personal traumatic experiences.

"I'm going to help out Phoebe," Marcy said feeling slightly comforted. "Just relax for now."


"Phoebe, can you hear me?" Marcy asked as she tapped the elemental's shoulders with both hands in a crouching stance. When she didn't respond, the vampire leaned over to see if her chest was still rising. Thankfully the elemental showed signs of life, but her flames were still burning weak. Marcy knew Phoebe had only a short time if she went by without help. Her eyes looked over to the elemental's body for a brief moment before she finally decided to settle her gaze on her features. A split second later, Marcy leaned over again and gave Phoebe mouth to mouth resuscitation. Each time she gave two breaths, the elemental would glow brighter with her flames receiving oxygen. The vampire remained focused with her task for nearly a minute until Phoebe started regaining consciousness.

"Pheebs," Marcy pleaded in a low voice. "Are you alright?"

"Not really," she replied feeling drained. "I feel like I'm stuck between falling asleep and staying awake." Her eyes frowned as she recalled her last moments, "Did we make it?"

"Yeah, we did," Marcy smiled which relieved the elemental. The two then assisted each other standing back up on cue before retrieving the fixed crown. "No more fights from here on out."

"Thank Grod." She looked up, closing her eyes.


A few hours later, the group moved further down the temple until they reached another blast door.

"Here we are," Betty announced out loud. "The last step to fix the crown."

"This is the place for the power surge?" Phoebe asked skeptically as she looked at the room's surroundings. "I was thinking it'd be somewhat bigger."

"Maybe the makers of this place wanted to settle for simplicity?" Marcy guessed with a shrug. "Function over style?"

"There's a counter you can set the crown on," Gunther briefed to Betty. "All you have to do now is use this terminal to direct those rings to the far pillar on the right." He narrowed his eyes, "I must warn you though. Once you do that, you'll be locked in here until you solve the puzzle."

Betty looked over to Marcy and Phoebe who nodded collectively that they'll stay.

"What are the rules for operating the system?" She asked warily.

Gunther replied grimly. "Each color can only be transferred under a certain rule. Red can move anywhere for free. Green can move unless the red ring is active in another pillar. Yellow can move if there are no rings present or if only the bottom ring is active. Lastly, blue can move to any pillar as long as there's no rings active beforehand. Any mistake in following these directions will cause an immediate surge displacement and kill everyone instantly. There's no time limit to this, and if you ever feel like you lost track, there's a button that can allow you to start over regardless of the rules. Take caution though, the machine can reset only a certain amount of times before it overloads too."

"S-sure," Betty hesitated as she studied the console keys that had ancient symbols. "You know what, I think I'll just write that down in my journal in case I forget. Matter of fact, I'm not even going to touch the system unless I have a definite sketch!" She laughed nervously taking a step back.

"I believe in you," Gunther comforted with a smile. "You and your friends have proven to overcome a lot of things before this all started. Compared to those, this is nothing more than a matter of patience!" He then lifted his right hand snapped his fingers, "The console's been translated to your language. Do what you can to solve this puzzle and you'll free Professor Petrikov once and for all."

"What will happen to you?" She asked in concern.

"Like all the others, I will pass on," He replied with acceptance. "You can stop at the very last step if you want to talk to me a bit more, but I think you'll be fine. Once you're done, just give the crown back to Simon and you're home free."

"Thanks, Gunther. You've been a great help."

As Betty began making a list of steps in her notes, Gunther spent the rest of his time socializing with Marceline and Phoebe. He mainly explained the origins of the first Santa and how his fate intertwined with the Fridjitzu Master.

"It was a routine Christmas," Gunther recalled. "Saint Nicholas was delivering presents all over the world until he sensed something weird in a city called South Town. Normally, he would have just stuck to the plan and return home to the North Pole. He accepted the fact that not everyone was bound to believe in him or that they would celebrate the occasion. It would have made sense to move on, but what gained his attention was that apparently more cities began to follow the same downward trend throughout the ages, and all of them were next to South Town." He paused with a hardened expression before continuing, "It was like a plague that was bound to consume everything it touched. Kids who were once renowned to be people of good will were suddenly on the other side being rebellious and disobedient. When it became clear that everything was going for the worst, Santa decided to investigate. What he found was that it was the gifts that drove them into this sort of behavior, but they were not his own."

"What?" Marcy was confused.

"A businessman by the name Geese Howard was found to be responsible," he explained. "He was a crime lord, an arms dealer, but he was also the owner of a respectable toy company."

"That's sort of an odd combination," Phoebe commented.

Gunther shrugged, "It was more of a cover to hide his true business ventures. He gained a positive image on social media, while influencing the authorities to look the other way. Anyone who competed against him was either bought under his pocket or crushed in every sense of the word."

"How does he manage to tie in with Santa?" Marcy asked.

He replied, "Geese Howard started off as an associate to a local crime family with the ambition to rise through the ranks. As time went on however, he found himself betrayed by his crew members and was left with nothing. One day as he wandered the streets being penniless, a strange woman in shades with a blue skin complexion gave him a crown claiming that it would offer unimaginable wealth and power. Needless to say, Geese didn't believe her, thinking she was dumb to part with a priceless artifact to someone she barely knew. However, the moment he wore the crown once out of curiosity, its corrupt influence already gained hold of his whole being. He started to act more cruel with others and resort to violence on a daily basis. He literally fought his way to the top of the criminal underworld and was feared by many in the process. In fact, he actually developed a telepathic bond where he could use power without wearing the crown!"

"The crown didn't want to stop there though," Gunther frowned. "When it sensed Santa Claus and the spirit of Christmas for the first time, it became repulsed from feeling things such as love, joy, and happiness. As a result, it devised a plot with its current owner as a means to cancel the tradition once and for all. Toys under Geese's company were donated to families with low-income wages as a public message to say that all kids could have fun. What they didn't know at the time was that these toys were tainted with chaos energy by the crown's powers. The longer they kept them, the crazier they would be. The Naughty and Nice list would shift dramatically, confusing the first Santa until he decided to make a personal visit to South Town itself. When he had a premonition from a giant golden owl showing that he would not return, Santa made a contingency plan to have a successor carry on the role delivering presents."

Marcy and Phoebe leaned forward, anxious to hear what followed.

"Santa was.. no match," Gunther said with a disheartened expression. "As more and more children across the world turned his back on him, Geese Howard only grew stronger. The crime lord didn't even have to fight him long enough to emerge victorious." His eyes watered as he looked away, "It was almost as though hope had abandoned him." He then lifted his head back to meet the duo's gaze, "But what I didn't know at the time was that it was never Santa's intention to save Christmas over a fist fight..."


"You're finished, old man!" Geese crossed his arms victoriously with a cruel smile.

"So it may seem," Nicholas admitted coughing blood in between as he staggered back onto his feet.

"Did you really think it was going to be like a fairy tale?" Geese chuckled pacing back and forth to the sides. "That somehow, the 'bad guy' would still lose even though his opponent is clearly outmatched?" He narrowed his eyes, "You have no exit strategy, no backup, and no deus ex machina to save you now. I have essentially destroyed your world piece by piece, and all that remains of it is just you!"

Nicholas stared at him in defiance, "You're wrong. Even with all that you have now, there will be others who will still stand against you in the name of hope!"

Geese couldn't help but laugh for a while and scoffed, "And I trust they will be very successful!"

"I've got an idea," Nicholas said with a crooked smile. "Since you said the fight was too short and easy for your liking, how about we make it interesting?"

"Oh?" the crime lord answered with genuine intrigue, "Go on."

"How about," Santa held his own chin in thought, "We go another round, but in this case, you loan me the crown."

"You're serious?" Geese asked as he struggled not to laugh hysterically. "Asking for a handicap?! I never thought I would hear such things from the likes of you."

"Well if it's too much," he shrugged offhandedly.

"You really think you could use my power against me?" Geese asked skeptically with narrowed eyes.

"If that's too much to handle-"

"Very well, I accept," Geese answered seriously, withholding any more laughs. "I'll even let you throw the first strike as a bonus."

Santa staggered towards the desk where the headpiece resided. As his hands trembled from lifting it, one of Geese's bodyguards snickered at the sight.

"You sure you don't want to just end it, boss?" He asked beside him. "He's done from the looks of things."

"I'm a man of my word," the superior answered with a forlorn expression. "And you'd do best to not question my decisions if you know what's good for you!"

"Yes, Mister Howard." He bowed apologetically.

"Hurry up and get on with it!" Geese yelled as Santa held the headpiece apprehensively at chest level. "Or are you having second thoughts?"

What caught him off guard however was that Santa suddenly smirked when he placed it on his head. At first nothing happened, but when a moment passed the crown sparked uncontrollably until it gave out a blinding flash. Geese rubbed his eyes irritably as his sight left him temporarily. Once he recovered, he saw that the burly man was nowhere left to be found except for the dark spot on the floor that looked like it had been struck by lightning. The crime lord looked around briefly before he finally grinned in realization: Santa was dead and the holiday that precedes him will soon be no more.

But something felt different however. Geese lost his telepathic bond with the crown as though it had been severed and for some reason, he couldn't draw anymore of its power. He felt frustrated that his powers were limited to only his base form and he hastily disposed the crown in a garbage chute in a fit of rage.

"I didn't need it anyway!" He reasoned out loud to himself. "I have gained enough of its knowledge and secrets to become more powerful than the average fighter. Nothing has changed!" He concluded as his maniacal laughter echoed through the building.


"What happened then?" Marcy asked.

Gunther answered, "A few years after he left the crown, he got himself into another fight at his own business tower where he fought two young martial artists. Apparently their father was murdered from one of Howard's previous dealings that they were set on a life-long quest for revenge. His death as you may have already guessed, was that he fell forty stories high from his penthouse."

"It finally caught up to him," Phoebe frowned.

"From there the crown would continue to move from city to city, corrupting those who ever came upon it," the former apprentice stated. "The only exception is that it merely made the victim act crazy and confused rather than being outright violent. That is what Santa did when he sacrificed his life into the crown, he used his essence to reprogram it with less dangerous personalities."

"Still wished he could have fixed it outright," the vampire commented.

"Wouldn't we all?" the elemental concurred. "So what happened to the other Santas?"

"Christmas was brought back into balance afterwards. Each time one left the job for personal reasons, there was always a successor to keep the tradition going. However, all that changed when the humans waged war on each other for a third and final time."

"The Mushroom War," Marcy solemnly recalled. "The nukes destroyed everything."

"And by then, the holiday and all its knowledge exists only through books, social media and by a very small group of people." He looked over to Betty who now approached them. "Looks like you're ready?"

"I am," she nodded as she clutched her journal tightly to her chest. "It took me a while, but I think I have it all figured out."

When the group gathered at the terminal, Marcy spoke up, "Hey Betty, I just wanted to let you know that whatever happens, I'm happy to look up to you as a mother."

"Marce," the woman said mildly. "We're not going to die."

"I know, I just-"

"Nope, not another word!" Betty lifted a palm for emphasis. "We're not being jinxed for this!" She then pressed a command on the console. At that moment, the green power ring zapped loudly towards the pillar on the right. Betty and her friends couldn't help but jump in that moment, until the former comforted, "See? Totally fine!" Although in reality she was freaking out senselessly despite having written the answer key.

The group jumped in place once again as the red ring transferred to the middle pillar. Again, there were no problems other than the fact that there was no electrical surge from making the right choice. Marcy and Phoebe debated with themselves in thought if spacing away from Betty would ease less pressure, but ultimately none of them moved in place.

"This may take a while," Betty stated as she had one finger keep track of the hand-written steps.

It had felt like ages as Phoebe, Marcy, and Gunther spectated the human's progress. One moment the latter was transferring the rings at a steady pace, the next she paused hesitantly before continuing.

"You ever thought about giving it a try?" Marcy asked Phoebe as they continued to spectate.

She looked over to her as though she was nuts, "No way, I'm already unnerved from feeling claustrophobic! I can work under pressure if it was something else, but not like this."

"Maybe a kiss will make you feel better again?" Marcy teased.

"Hey!" Phoebe retorted with her face turning red, "I like you, but just not in that kind of way. Besides, I don't think a sign of affection is going to magically open a way out!"

"Girls," Betty called.

"I'm just saying, if you want to try-" Marcy mocked with casual shrug.

"Now I know you're just messing with me!" Phoebe accused squinting her eyes while jabbing a finger for emphasis. What they didn't know during their banter was that the last ring was able to transfer to the right pillar successfully.

"Girls!" Betty exclaimed.

"What?!" They asked simultaneously. When they looked at her, their eyes widened in shock at the puzzle being finally solved.

"It's done!" Marcy exclaimed in disbelief. "You did it!"

"How long did that take?" Phoebe asked astonished.

"About fifteen minutes," Gunther answered which made everyone speechless. Who would have thought stress could throw off one's perception of time?"

"Thanks Betty," the elemental said. "You know for a second I thought we weren't going to make it a couple times, especially here. But, I'm glad I got to know you more."

"I'd be lying if I didn't say the same," Marcy admitted.

"I understand," Betty nodded. "There were moments where I felt like I had to second guess myself and start over. The fact that you two entrusted me to solve this puzzle means a lot."

Marcy and Phoebe smiled in response.

"Well," Gunther spoke up. "Now that the rings are set, all you have to do is press this button to initiate the reboot."

Betty followed his instructions and then interacted with the console one last time. Once the input was made, the right pillar hummed loudly until it formed an orb of electricity on top that was approximately the size of a basketball. Despite its size however, the energy it gave off had an intense presence before it zapped itself straight into the crown.

Half a minute later, Betty stared at the ice crown that seemed to glow benevolently with a white aura. As far as she knew, this headpiece was completely purged of all three corrupt entities along with the curse that entailed it. She then picked it up with both hands carefully, studying the three gems that seemed neatly polished before looking over to Gunther.

"He's waiting for you," he murmured with tears of joy.

"Thank you so much for helping us," Betty said as she hugged him tight. "I wish I had more to say."

"You don't have to say anything," he nodded gratefully. "Helping a friend is its own reward.. Now go ahead and live the life you fought so hard to achieve." He vanished shortly after in a glittering haze after the others said their goodbyes.

The group left the temple without a word, not bothering to explore the rest. By the time they made it outside at night, they found Ice King sleeping beside Jake 2 as though nothing had happened. There were a few discarded rations that suggested the pair waited for a little bit more than two days, and it made the group realize that whatever trials they took previously worked on a different time frame. There was so much to process regarding the actual scale, but in the end Betty held the ice crown with caution before she carefully sat it on top of the wizard's head. Slowly but surely, the man's features began to change along with his skin color. The flame wolf sensed the transformation progressing as he lifted his head up in question, before relaxing upon seeing Phoebe and her friends. After a minute, Simon Petrikov fluttered his eyes awake before taking the sight before him.


After a very long time surviving the wasteland alone with all its turmoil and misgivings, the vampire had achieved what she thought was impossible. There before her very eyes outside the temple, she had two people standing together that she regarded as a mother and father. It was the best feeling she ever had, it was what gave her strength to face her hardships, and it was what gave her hope to wake up and live another day. She had grown accustomed to being without a family living alone to fend for herself, but now her emotions overwhelmed her from the warmth she had not felt since her childhood. Although her biological father Hunson was still in the picture, Marceline had only come to terms with him recently where the two were long overdue from developing a bond as strong as Simon's. What was once considered to be a pipe dream is now a living reality. All these emotions were coursing through the vampire's whole being with such intensity that she would want absolutely no one to change it.

"I've missed you so much, Simon," Marcy murmured as she hugged him with tears flowing freely in joy.

"I missed you too," he replied. "Both of you," he amended as he looked towards Betty who also joined the embrace.

"What do you say we have a fresh start?" Betty suggested as she and Marcy parted. "The world has changed so much again since you left last time."

"I'm sure it has," he nodded. "You know I'm still a little surprised I'm feeling like this. I should be jumping with joy every second by now, but there's that same thought in the back of my head that wants me to believe I've crossed over into another plane of insanity. Like I'm reliving the same day when Bella Noche took my powers."

"It's not," Betty reaffirmed as she clasped both his hands and stared deeply into his eyes. "You're finally free now. The crown is fixed back to the way it should be, and you have the chance to live the life you always wanted. No rapid aging, no psychotic personalities, and no kidnapping princesses. The future is yours, truly." She smiled tenderly.

"C-can my future.. still involve you being at my side?" Simon asked nervously as he glanced away.

"If that means what I think it means, then yes I do, you dum-dum!" Betty replied as she tugged him by the collar and kissed him deeply.

All of the former wizard's anxiety was swept aside as his fiancé expressed her longing affection. His eyes closed in bliss and then his lips moved in sync with hers before he embraced her back. Being in close proximity with the one he promised himself to, Simon felt like he wanted the moment to go on for as long as possible. This of course was wishful thinking as Marcy and Phoebe approached them with the former feigning an awkward cough.

"S-sorry," Simon stated with a blush upon parting.

"It's been such a long time to see you act like that," Betty commented fondly. "Great to have you back again." She finalized with another hug. "Oh by the way!" She parted recalling in realization, "I'd like to introduce you to Phoebe."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Petrikov," the elemental greeted formally, recalling her royal etiquette. "My friends have told me that you are a man of esteemed character."

"Oh, well uh," Simon stammered from the compliment, "T-thank you! Nice to meet you too. Though it's fine if you just call me Simon." When they shook hands, the antiquarian was briefly shocked that his skin didn't burn on contact while Phoebe expressed indifference.

Noticing this, Betty stated, "Your time spent with the crown has given you an affinity to be extremely resilient with the elements of nature. That said, you could be fire proof to some extent just like I am and even conjure ice magic on your own."

"I can?!" He asked in disbelief as he stared at his hands that glowed light blue on cue before the aurora faded away.

"A parting gift from the crown," Betty smirked. "Though if you were to wear it again, it'll just give you a boost by using powers at a longer duration, not to mention you'll be able to fly."

"Sounds.. pretty wizard," he remarked, "I guess this will take some time to get used to."

"We'll have plenty of it to get back up to speed," Betty promised. "But first, I believe a celebration is in order."

"We're going to that outlet I mentioned before?" Marcy asked. "Fine by me, the food court has tons of options." Her stomach rumbled in excitement.

"It's either that or we eat what we have now and set up camp," Betty replied.

"Bonk that!" Marcy protested playfully, "I want to see some civilization for once!"

"Same," Phoebe nodded with Jake 2.

And so, the group departed the once elusive temple. Simon and Betty took to the skies with a flying carpet, while Phoebe and Marcy rode together on the fire wolf. They spent hours sharing each other's adventures and personal experiences with Simon and before long, they were nearing their destination. Although Simon was distraught over the events that regarded the late Finn Mertens, he found solace knowing that everyone beside him was still striving to move forward. The world was modernizing again after he learned the establishment of the United Civilizations and he couldn't have been more proud to see a page of human history being taken as a means to preserve peace rather than one to start a new world conflict.

"I'm very pleased to hear that," Simon said to Phoebe after she explained her story. "You really are remarkable to accomplish such things at a very young age."

"Thanks," Phoebe rubbed her left arm timidly. "But I did have some help beforehand."

"Of course," he answered. The group was silent for a bit more until he decided to glance at the vampire to get her attention, "Hey Marcy."

"Yes Simon?"

He formed a serious expression, "Last time, I was so caught up with making things right with Betty, you got left out. I'm sorry." He then looked down feeling bitter with himself.

"It's okay, I get it," she smiled off-handedly in comfort.

He nodded in relief and then proceeded to change the subject, "So anyway... You got a boyfriend yet?" His tone conveyed one with excitement.

If there was ever a time when the vampire blushed profusely in her approximate thousand year-life, this moment took the cake. Betty and Phoebe withheld giggles knowing the answer all too well, while Simon lifted his eyebrows becoming more intrigued with curiosity.

"Haah.. well..." the vampire began as she tried to play it off casually, only to fail miserably.

Needless to say, it was going to be a long trip back to Ooo from the way how things were going.