Well, Part Three will end my AD: JL saga. I was planning on making this story four parts long, but there's been a change in the plot… so, next month will be the beginning of the end.

Note: From now on, Evil will be referred to as Yang, or Yang Jake.

II – VIII
The Harsh Truth

"The time draws near." Fate said, sitting across from the only Council member currently in their infinite library. "The legion is gathering strength, as is our strongest member..." Fate's counterpart, Destiny, closed his eyes, watching the week's events replay in his mind.

"We cannot hold him back forever. If Jake has a plan that has the slightest chance of even doing minor damage to his dark counterpart, he best put it into action soon." Destiny replied. He felt a large power nearby and opened his eyes. "Jake, reveal yourself." Jake emerged from the shadows, and approached the two.

"Unfortunately, I have no plan." He said, sighing. "The best thing I could come up with would to be to seal Yang, but in order to do that, it would take immense power, far greater than this universe, or any universes for that matter, could ever muster… and even if we could get that much power, it would take a pure soul to do so. All of you were human once… so none of you have pure souls. We all know that I don't have a pure soul… but to have one, you can't have a dark form. Since the council was once human, sans Yang, you all have darker forms… or, 'others' as Yang calls them."

"This is true." Fate said, standing up. "When Yang's 'Soul Harvest' is completed, he will have the strength to have a portal opened into the earth. He would then scatter the billions of evil souls that we had sealed long ago among their counterpart's universes… … this truly does seem hopeless, Jake… it seems that our luck has run out. Everything comes to an end eventually."

"True… but I won't allow it yet. I'd do anything, even give up my life, to stop Yang. He can't win. It can't end… not like this."

"That's what I like about you, Jake, you're so optimistic… but I think its time you learn that yin doesn't always overcome yang. Sometimes, you just need to know when to give up. We've all accepted our fates… it's inescapable. We will all fall before Yang." As Fate left the room, Destiny gave a worried look to Jake, before following his counterpart, leaving Jake there with his thoughts.

… … … … …

"Jake, you coming?" Rose asked as she walked into his room and sat next to him on his bed.

"No… you guys enjoy the eclipse, I'm going to stay here. I have other things on my mind right now…" He said, lying on his bed.

"Like how to stop Yang?" She asked, a worried expression on her face. Jake sighed in reply. "Jake, I know its important that you find away to stop him, but you can't spend your life with only thinking." She got up and headed for the door. "If you change your mind, you know where to find us." Jake looked at her for a second, but turned his head back to the ceiling.

… … … … …

Yang Jake grinned. "Today's eclipse will be the perfect time to unleash my latest pawn… Yami, appear." He commanded. A werewolf-like creature bowed before Yang Jake, with blood-red eyes and two rows full of sharp teeth. His fur was a dark brown, almost black, color, and was accompanied by a bulletproof skin underneath it. "Yami, you feed off the darkness… correct?"

"Correct, master." Yami said, grinning. He knew where this was going… he was finally getting to show his master exactly what he was capable of. "What purpose do I have in your plan?"

"Today, hundreds of people will gather to watch the rare eclipse in central park. You're job is to kill them all. With them still around, their others cannot enter the world. But I warn you, a rogue other, the other of the famous Daniel Long, may also be at the site. Who knows what that annoyance will do."

"Such a simple task. I have slain entire armies in my lifetime. You need not worry."

"Excellent. Now go, bring your people into the world." Yang Jake said, smirking. Yami howled and clawed a hole in between the dimensions of Earth and the Chaos Hole, the deepest area of the Underworld.

… … … … …

Yami stood in an alley, watching as the eclipse began. "I can feel the power already…!" He said. "Now, when the moon has fully covered the sun…" As he finished his sentence, the moon was directly in front of the sun, and the area around him became as dark as the gray alley he hid in. "Yami Senkou." Yami said. Time around the people completely stopped and a ring of fire surrounded them. "Fear the Harvest Moon, the eclipse that feeds my hunger for the endless night. To bring forth our world, some minor problems must be destroyed. That would be you!" Everyone stepped back in fear as the beast pointed toward them. "You imperfect beings… you cause our torture! The more of you imperfections we eliminate, the stronger we become." Yami dashed threw half the crowd in seconds, killing them instantly. "My speed is matched by none." He said proudly.

… … … … …

Jake sat on the couch watching the news, looking for anything that may be related to Yang or any leftover Chaos followers. "…And we're back, in front of the mysterious ring of fire that ha appeared around central park. This huge ring has trapped hundreds of people watching today's rare eclipse, and all that have tried to escape have slowly burned. The smoke from this huge fire is seeming to create a dome of darkness over the people, blocking out all light except for the faint light emitted from the fire."

"So he finally strikes." Jake said. He dropped the remote and ran outside as fast as he could and flew off.

… … … … …

Jake landed in front of the fire, with half the NYFD and NYPD beside him. "What's going on?" He asked a cop.

"We can't put it out! All the water we uses doesn't even phase the flames, and all the men we sent in there, even with our best fire-resistant suits, have burned."

"I see." Jake started walking toward the fire.

"Hey! What are you doing? You'll burn!"

"Fire cannot harm me. I control it." He said. He closed his eyes and focused all his energy on the fire, and parted the middle so he could walk into the darkness.

"Good luck," The cop said as Jake disappeared into the darkness.

… … … … …

"So you're the hero that everyone here told me about? Ha!" Jake watched as a strange creature ran circles around him. "You're just a kid!" Yami stopped in front of Jake, grinning. "I sense great power within you… but exactly how much?"

"Enough to stop you, and Yang from destroying my world."

"Ha! I highly doubt that! Master's power is infinite… but you… you're just a pathetic mortal! You can't possibly have even a fraction of Master Yang's power!"

"Where are my friends." Jake said, changing the subject.

"You mean those three girls?" Yami pointed to Hannah, Rose, and Kaelyn, who were lying unconscious by the fire. "They're out cold… er, hot…" Yami laughed. "They'll be cooked soon enough. I like my humans cooked at 300 degrees." He said. "They should be good to eat in ten minutes. Think you can beat me by then?" Yami asked, his claws growing longer. Jake leapt into the air and slammed his fist into the ground where Yami stood, missing. "You're fast," Yami zoomed behind Jake with lightning speed and kicked him to the ground. "But not fast enough! I am one of the elite, one of the greatest Yang warriors to ever come into existence! I am ranked three of the eight elite warrior ranks, and I am invincible!"

"You talk too much." Jake punched Yami in the jaw, who in return zoomed behind Jake and shaved his claw out like a spear. Jake back-flipped behind Yami, who turned to face him and punched Jake to the ground. "Only three, huh? Now I know why."

"Why, then?"

"You draw your power from darkness. Creating a ring of fire around a dragon who controls fire wasn't the brightest idea."

"This is gonna hurt… isn't it?" Jake was consumed by flames and burned remnants of buildings and cars, and even gasoline, creating a bright light which weakened the behemoth. "The light…" Yami said. "Even if you kill me… there are still four others… four more judgments.

"Four?" Jake asked.

"With Halloween, Chaos, and Wako gone, only four of us remain… Wako, rank eight, Chaos, rank two, and Jacob Halloween, rank six, three warriors who will be sorely missed by us. But we will never give up. You will lose… as it is meant to be." The flames soon consumed Yami, forcing the ring of fire and smoke to disappear. The fires created by Jake fizzled out and he looked at the hundreds of dead citizens before him.

"I guess no matter how hard we try, we can't protect everyone." He said, knowing that Rose was standing behind him. "After seeing countless deaths like I have… you just grow numb to the pain… to the sadness of the loss of life… it just… it just doesn't make sense. The more that I fight, the more that I kill, the more the very thing I've always hated… seems fun. Do you think that it's possible that I'm turning into Yang…? Do you think that this is how I'm destined to be? A cold-blooded killer who shows no emotion or regret when he must kill a foe, or even sacrifice an innocent man's life?"

"No, Jake. Don't think like that. You and Yang are different… I know how you feel. When I first had to slay a magical creature, I was terrified. I didn't see the point in ending an innocent creature's life for no true reason, and receive congratulations in return. But as time goes on, you just get used to the pain. I guess its just human nature." Jake was silent.

"I enjoy it. That's what scares me. I used to be sad… I used to never want to kill an enemy… but now… now its so… invigorating. It scares me… you know?" Rose glanced at him, a worried look on her face.

"Being the hero is never easy. I guess what they say is true: "How long can one man fight the darkness before he finds it in himself?" You just need to learn to overcome that darkness. There's always a way to win." Jake gave Rose a warm smile.

"That's what I always liked about you, Rose, you're always so optimistic. Until today, I was the same. But I guess we both have to learn that we can't always win. We can't come out on top forever. Eventually we will be beat… and when that time comes… it will mean the end of the world. But we shouldn't lose our will to fight or live just because of the truth… I mean, we should enjoy life… not live in sorrow for the fact that we can't live forever. When Yang comes, we will lose, we will die… it's the harsh truth… the one thing that we've known from the beginning, but always ignored. Its time to face the truth… no man can truly win over the darkness. Once it is beat, it manifests itself within another. But as I said… we should enjoy what we have while we have it. That was Dan's one mistake. When he realized the truth, he lost all hope and the will to live. Never give up those things." Jake sighed. "I'm heading back home… its been a long day."

"I'll stay here until the other wake up…" Rose said as Jake flew off into the sunset. 'Is it true?' She thought. 'Are we truly going to die at the hands of Yang?' She shook her head. "So many questions… so little answers." She said.

End Chapter

Been a while since I wrote a chapter this long… six pages. Well, till next time.