Phoenix, Arizona, 2/3/16…

Amanda was sitting outside Brie and Daniel's house, knees tucked to herself as she looked out at the sunset… today had been too much not only on Brie and Daniel but herself as well.

She heard footsteps and looked up after Finn had sat down next to her.

"It's not fair… he deserves better than to be told that he can't get back in that ring." Amanda responded quietly as Finn rested his left hand on her right hand, her eyes reddened from crying as Finn pulled her into his lap.

"It ain't right to cut him off so suddenly, he was still right in there with the career and everything." Finn agreed with her.

"I… I still want to hold onto hope that he'll be cleared one day. For nearly 20 years, it was his life and he loved it… he still does." Amanda whispered as she leaned against Finn, who rubbed his left hand up and down her back… before he noticed her rubbing her left wrist as a dull ache shot through it. "Still aches every now and then… broke it when I was..." She explained, trailing off and Finn realising what had caused the injury after remembering that Amanda had started training to wrestle when she was 14.

"First taste of the industry… probably made you think twice for a moment or two." Finn replied.

"Yeah… didn't go near that trampoline that Matt and Jeff turned into a wrestling ring for a while after that. Poor guys felt so terrible because of what happened but it wasn't their fault." Amanda said as they stood up and his arm wrapped around her back as she leaned against him sleepily.

She looked up when they saw Brie and Daniel… and Amanda walked over, her and Daniel embracing and her burying her face into his right shoulder as Daniel lightly stroked her hair.

"It's gonna be okay, Mandy…" Daniel whispered before they let go, Amanda and Brie hugging before Amanda and Finn headed upstairs.

The four had gotten ready the next day and Daniel had blindfolded Amanda before helping her into the passenger seat of the Equinox.

"Where are we going?" Amanda asked as the four were on the road with Daniel driving.

"It's a surprise, kiddo." Daniel explained.

"Then why am I the only one blindfolded? Brie, why did your hubby blindfold me?" Amanda questioned, Brie chuckling and lightly rubbing her friend's left shoulder.

"Don't worry, it's to do with how you like your history." Brie replied, Daniel nudging her arm.

"Well don't tell her, she'll find out when we get there." Daniel responded.

The car stopped and Amanda was helped out and led into the building, Finn taking the blindfold off and Amanda's eyes widening.

"See? We can focus on different things to change everything." Finn replied.

After a while, it was when they reached one exhibit that Amanda walked over to it and saw it clearer.

"They didn't go into much detail about this in History class when I was in ninth grade…" Amanda responded quietly.

"God's Lost Ring, hey? Quite the name to give to something." Finn responded as he walked up beside her, looking at the large arch, made of a metal that had never been identified as any known material on the earth.

"It is…" Amanda replied before they heard a loud whirring sound. "What the hell?" She muttered as they walked over to where it was echoing from.

"Maybe they've got one of those mechanized exhibits and they just turned on the power. Big or old electronics tend to hum a bit." Finn responded as they looked around the area.

Amanda looked closer… and then her eyes widened as the humming turned sinister and reacted by shoving Finn out of the way as the exhibit roared to life and she was thrown against the wall before falling to the floor unconscious, Finn pulling himself up and running over to her before crouching down and finding that Amanda's left arm was burned as Brie and Daniel reached them.

"What is that?!" Daniel questioned as he looked up at the ring which was sparking and launching clouds of energy from the inside… before the middle ring started to rotate, and seven of the nine chevrons began to light up one by one, until they all extended and a much larger cloud launched outwards, staying there for a moment before flying back to the reverse side and spiralling around, a field of a water-looking substance calmly forming within the ring, the middle glowing with a bright light like it was the end of a long tunnel.

Finn wasn't paying attention and Brie dialed 911… Daniel crouched down, placing his hands on both sides of Amanda's neck as she slowly woke up and tried to move, Finn also stopping her.

"I… I can't feel anything in my arm…" Amanda said quietly as Finn lightly brushed her hair back. The look she had was heartbreaking and Finn helped her sit up enough so he could hold her.

"Oh crap…" The four heard, coming from the ring. They looked, Finn only briefly glancing, to see a teenage girl stood there who hadn't been moments before, stood in shorts, a tank top, a camo hat and with a backpack on, all seeming to be mildly wet. "Just… back up, I know how to fix it."

"'Back up'... piss off!" Finn responded, refusing to move and the girl rolling her eyes before she stepped over and grabbed his shoulder, forcing him to look at her.

"I get that you might be her boyfriend, brother, bestie, whatever makes you so close to her but do you have any idea what an unstable vortex burn even is?! I bet you don't, and I'm sorry to break it to you but the ambulance won't make it here in time to stop her from literally melting in front of you, so let me fix it and then you can hug her to your heart's content!" The girl said in a solid tone.

When she crouched down to Amanda, she saw the fearful look in her eyes before setting her backpack down.

"I know you're scared… but I know you're not trying to run." The girl responded.

"Couldn't if I tried… legs are hurting." Amanda replied.

"Yes, that's the paralysis effect. Should wear off if I get this done quick enough." The girl responded, opening her backpack and taking out a small metal tin, containing an assortment of small vials and coloured fluids. "Drink that, that'll numb the pain of what I'm about to have to do."

"Pain of… what exactly?" Finn questioned, backed off but still intent on knowing what was happening.

As Amanda drank the vial, the girl raised a small device. "Someone hold him back… really sorry about this but it's way better than disintegrating." She said before she pressed the device to Amanda's arm right in the middle of the burn, Amanda screaming out as it worked, something shooting through her veins faster than her pain response could keep up, faster than she could even respond with a jolt or movement as Brie and Daniel held Finn back.

Eventually, after a few seconds that felt to her like years, the device flashed green and it parted from her skin, a trail of blood falling from where it had been.

"Sorry… but at least you won't melt now." The girl apologized.

Amanda nodded as the girl motioned to Brie and Daniel to let Finn go, Finn wasting no time in helping her sit up before turning to the girl.

"I'm sorry for how I acted… whenever she gets hurt, I just… I lose my mind." Finn explained.

"It's okay… my brother and cousin are no different to me. Oh, and speak of the devil." The girl responded, before two men stepped out from the field of water in the ring, both in similar humidity type clothing and looking towards the group.

"Don't tell me she got a vortex burn!" The taller, blonde haired man said, the girl stopping him as he was about to head over.

"I already treated her." The girl responded, the man loosening up a bit and giving her a small rub on the shoulder.

Amanda was still dizzy as she leaned against Finn, who held her as Brie and Daniel crouched down, Daniel lightly turning Amanda to him and moving his finger to get her to follow it.

"You suspect a concussion?" The girl asked.

"Happened before to most of us." Daniel explained.

"Did you give her the pathway thingy?" The other man with darker hair questioned, the girl nodding.

"Pathway… but you said…" Brie started to question.

"Pain killer? Yeah, I… was trying to calm her a bit about it. There is no pain killer that will work against it, it's on another level entirely. In reality, that vial was the difference between a concussion and a full on stroke." The girl answered.

"Mind still feels like it's being rattled…" Amanda responded as the girl crouched down.

"It will do. Might wear off later on but you'll feel it in the morning like a ten tonne hangover." The girl replied.

"You don't… look like much of a doctor…" Amanda said as she managed to finally get her eyes to focus properly on her.

"No, and I don't talk from training either. Experience is what fuels me… I've had to have that thing twice since I was 12, and it only takes the first to never forget it." The girl responded.

Amanda nodded and rested her head in her hands as Finn wrapped his right arm around her and rubbed his left hand up and down her back.

"Give her a few minutes to fully return to her senses, then you should get her right to a doctor. By then, it'll look like she simply burned her arm and jumped to escape, took a nasty fall in the process. That's what I said to doctors when I had it last." The girl said after a moment.

"Thank you… what's your name?" Daniel replied.

"Alena. Blondie is my brother Nigel, and that's my cousin Cole." The girl answered.

At the nearby ER, Amanda and Finn were in the trauma room by themselves after she was fixed up… being as careful as he could, Finn cradled her face in his hands and got Amanda to look at him, knowing she felt terrible about what had happened.

"I should've never gone near that machine…" Amanda said quietly.

"None of us could've ever guessed that would have happened. The thing has been dead as a rock for apparently thousands of years, it coming to life again out of the blue was just… we can't even understand it now." Finn responded, before the two looked at each other. "And hey… regardless of how small or extreme, mistakes are to be learned from. Somehow, I don't doubt that those three who came through that thing will tell us a thing or two about them."

The two held each other, Amanda paying no attention to her phone though it was ringing.