Hi everyone, thanks for waiting. Now, for this chapter… I had to get a little more creative, due to certain events that happened before this chapter, as well as characters and the impact they all had on one another. It's almost a completely different episode than canon. You'll see how it goes as I have been very excited to write this particular chapter where things really get personal for the heroes. So, let's get started.
Jewel Hunt
While the Knights of Vengeance rested and recovered from their recent battle, currently asleep in the cave in Meridian that was thirty miles from the castle, Drago and Nerissa were both wide-awake as the half-demon sat on a rock watched his mother work.
The elderly sorceress currently had a familiar set-up as a glass sphere was being held up by a large stick, with three smaller glass cups surrounding it. This was for the Ceremony of Amalgamation and Nerissa already had the three main ingredients for the process.
"Body." She dropped strands of Jade's hair into one cup before reaching into her robe to take out a glass ball that contained a copy of Jade's memories. "Mind." She placed the ball into the second cup before moving to the third where she pulled out a glass vial containing Jade's breath. "Spirit." She poured the contents into the third glass and began the ritual, casting her own magic to start it up.
The contents of each of the three cups began to glow bright as the energy traveled from them to the wooden joints that connected them to the main glass sphere which contained the final and more unique ingredient inside: the walking stick belonging to one of Jade's past lives, recovered from the Ben-Shui temple.
The second the energy from the three ingredients reached into the main unit, a cloud of sparkles formed as they were immediately drawn to the walking stick. A brief green aura formed around the relic, indicating the once dormant chi had been awakened, right before it turned purple. A second later, the ceremony came to an end as the sparkles and smoke vanished, and the walking stick fell to the bottom of the container.
"It is done." Nerissa said as she opened the container to retrieve the relic.
"And… what exactly did you do?" Drago asked.
"The chi contained within this relic is not necessarily Jade's." Nerissa explained as she held the walking stick. "It may have belonged to a past life of hers, but the Jade currently living is a different person who has not yet awakened her power as the Ben Shui's chosen one. Simply put, my son, the chi has been dormant for some time. But thanks to the ceremony of amalgamation, in which we infused Jade's body, mind, and spirit into the relic, we have awakened the chi, and tuned it to its current incarnation."
Drago seemed to understand what his mother was implying. "You're trying to copy her powers. But, I'm kinda confused. Didn't she already 'awaken' as a Guardian?"
"The process to becoming a Guardian is different from that of the Ben Shui chosen one, and even then her powers originated from a force of darkness." Nerissa replied. "I don't know what exactly would have happened if the Ben Shi monks had awakened her abilities with their process, but she would not be a Guardian. But here, the process is different. Instead of awakening the power of her past lives, I've transformed it into a copy of the power she currently wields. All we need now, is a proper vessel for it. "
With that, the elderly sorceress used her staff to open a Fold, allowing her and her half-demon son to leave Meridian and travel to Earth.
Jade gave a slight groan as she slowly pulled herself up from her bed. "Wha… what was that…?" She muttered, looking tiredly out the window at the late-night sky. She couldn't quite explain it, but she felt something inside her connect to something outside. But she was too tired to think about that now, so she simply fell back in her bed and resumed her slumber.
At the same time, at the airport that was just outside of Heatherfield, a small plane had arrived from Bhutan. It wasn't long before the passengers began to disembark, among them were three monks and the leader of their current party, the High Mystic, and a live yak that they had on a rope, all of whom had arrived from the Ben Shui temple.
"Hmmm..." The High Mystic stopped for a brief moment, concerning his companions.
"High mystic?" One monk asked with concern.
"I have felt… a great disturbance." The High Mystic said gravely. "We must find the chosen one… as soon as possible."
The Next Morning
"Wa-hoo!" Will slid on her socks with excitement into the kitchen, where her mother was already helping herself to a cup of coffee.
"Well, what's gotten you so excited?" Susan asked playfully as Will pulled out a jar of jam from the fridge.
"It's the last day of school! Half a day of classes, and then freedom! Total freedom!" Will proclaimed with you.
"Not so fast. You're not liberated till that basket is." Susan gestured to the full laundry basket in the corner of the living room.
'Crap! Forgot about that!' Will winced as she saw all that laundry. "But Mom, I promised everyone I'd help decorate the gym for Mrs. Rudolph's farewell party! Can't it wait till tomorrow?"
"You said that three days ago, and it still didn't get done." Susan reminded.
'Yeah, cause we were busy trying to get the Thunder Demon Chi.' Will thought but she couldn't say that aloud.
"I'm out of clean shirts. Look at what I'm wearing." Susan opened her jacket to reveal she was wearing one of Will's. A pink sleeveless shirt with a picture of Vance Michael Justin surrounded by a heart in the center.
"Huh, didn't know you were a VMJ fan." Will said for the same of humor.
"Funny." Susan replied before sighing. "Look Will, I know you've been much more responsible for a while, but this has to get done. I'm sure your friends can survive without you. Now I gotta get to work, I'll see you later." She gave her daughter a quick kiss on the cheek before walking out the door, leaving Will to put her hand on her face in annoyance.
"…So, I can't help decorate." Will said on the other side of the six-way phone call that she shared with Jade, Irma, Hay Lin, and Cornelia, while Jade herself got dressed for the day in her room.
"Yesh. Laundry duty. That sucks." Jade commented.
"Oh please, if you wanna attend the ball, you have to help with the prep." Cornelia said to Will.
"I spent forever designing the decorations." Hay Lin added. "We can't lose you to a pile of dirty underwear."
"Besides, when you're not around, Cornelia gets really bossy." Taranee said.
"Irma and Jade bring out the worst in me." Cornelia said, but before Jade herself could respond, they all heard a gargled response over the phone, which happened to be from Irma who was brushing her teeth.
"What?" Jade and all the others asked simultaneously.
Irma spat out the water and toothpaste before speaking clearly. "I said 'stop brushing your hair Cornelia, you're losing braincells.'" Irma snarked.
"That would imply she ever had any to begin with." Jade snarked, earning laughs from everyone and an annoyed grunt from Cornelia.
"Please Will, without you, I can't guarantee any survivors." Taranee said.
"Hey, it's not like I can be in two places at once." Will responded.
"Uh… yes you can." Jade replied. "Just make an Astral Drop. Duh."
"You want me to make Astral Drop to do laundry?" Will questioned. "Tell me you're joking, Jade."
"Oh, come on, you use your powers to fight monsters all the time. Plus, we saved all of Seattle, yesterday. Treat yourself a little bit. Spirit Sister's orders." Jade said with a grin.
She heard Will give a slight laugh on the other end. "Okay, just this once. I'll whip it up after school and met you guys later."
"Hey, it's just laundry duty, what's the worst that could that happen?" Jade asked before hanging up.
However, in that instance, she was completely unaware of Drago, who had scaled the side of the wall within alleyway that was left to Uncle's Rare Finds, having gotten close to the window without anyone noticing and heard everything.
He then climbed back down into the alleyway as he approached his mother, who had been hiding in the shadows.
"I think we found our vessel." The half-demon sneered.
Later that Day
Will went straight back to her apartment the second her half-day classes were out. "Mom!? Are you in here?!" Though she was sure her mom would still be at work, Will had to be sure. When she heard no response, Will took out the Heart of Kandrakar and said two specific words.
"Pord Lartsa."
The Heart shined brighter as a transparent figure formed directly in front of Will, which took the shape identical to herself, bringing her Astral Drop into creation.
"Hi." Will greeted.
"Hi." Astral-Will repeated like a robot.
"Here, hold this." Will handed her Astral Drop the laundry basket before putting on a hat and sunglasses for the sake of a disguise. "Follow me." She gestured for the Astral Drop to follow her, which she did.
The two made it to the laundry mat without any problems. Once there, Astral-Will found herself staring into an active washing machine. "Hey, over here please!" Will called to her Astral Drop, who gave the genuine article her full attention. "So once again... never mix…?" She held up a white shirt with black shorts to quiz her Astral Drop.
Astral-Will thought for a second before answering. "Irma with Cornelia?"
'Yeah, great idea here, Jade.' Will thought sarcastically. "Time for plan B." Will placed her right hand on a washing machine and her left on a dryer and used her Quintessence power, a pink aura formed around both machines briefly as she brought them to life.
"Ladies, my friend has never done laundry before." Will explained as she gestured to her Astral Drop.
"That poor, poor, child." The laundry machine said.
"Seriously, could you talk her through it? And kinda go step-by-step, she's pretty slow. Please?" Will requested.
"We'll break her in easy. Strictly gentle cycle." The dryer assured.
Will then handed her Astral Drop some coins. "This should be enough money, just to do everything these two tell you to do. If anyone comes in, just stick your head in this." Will showed a magazine. "I'll be back to reabsorb you into the Heart after we finish at the gym."
Once that was done, the redhead left the laundry mat, though she did feel a tad bit nervous about all this. She even briefly got the willies as she walked past an alleyway.
'Calm down, Will. It's just laundry.' She tried to tell herself. 'You covered everything. Like Jade said, what's the worst that could happen? Probably a dope slap from Uncle if he finds out about this… but I'm used to that by now.'
However, once she was gone, Drago and Nerissa both stepped out of the alleyway. "Huh, who'd a thought old red actually help us out." The half-demon commented.
"Oh, my dear Drago, you have no idea the golden opportunity she has presented us." Nerissa grinned.
The pair of mother-and-son walked into the laundry mat as Astral-Will got to work. "Hey, brainless." Drago got the attention of the Astral Drop.
"Hi." Astral-Will greeted back. "Oh, wait." She put the magazine over her head and stood up, facing the pair.
"Well, aren't we almost lifelike?" Nerissa commented. "Still, lifelike doesn't hold a candle to alive. Would you mind holding this?" She handed the Astral Drop the walking stick, which Astral-Will took into her hands. "Quintessence!"
Nerissa shot a bolt of her power directly into the Astral Drop, which flowed through its body and into the walking stick she held. Energy surged throughout the whole laundry mat as Nerissa's Quintessence powers not only directly affected Astral-Will, but even connected to the relic that contained Jade's Chi.
Jade was at the gym at Sheffield with most of the other girls, helping to set up for the party, when she stopped as she shivered for a brief moment.
"What's up?" Irma asked upon noticing her.
"I… just got a weird feeling…" Jade replied, sounding unsure herself.
At the same time, the High Mystic of the Ben Shui order and his three monk companions, along with the yak they had on the rope, came to a stop as they felt a surge of energy in the air. Even the yak grew more restless.
"Oh… the chi of the chosen one… but it is… not natural…" One of the monks said.
The High Mystic's eyes narrowed. "Dark forces are at work."
The flashing lights came to a stop at the laundry mat as Drago uncovered his face. "Man, talk about a light show and…" He looked past his mother to see what had become of the Astral Drop that currently laid on the floor and was rather surprised. "What the…?"
What was once an Astral Drop of Will Vandom was no longer an identical copy of the leader of the Guardians. While she still bore the same clothes, her body looked almost as if it was two halves of separate people together. The left side of her body was Caucasian while her right side had a lighter Asian ethnicity. The left half of hair was long and black, while that on the right was short and red. While both her eyes were brown, they were also completely different as the right eye was that of Jade, and the left eye that of Will.
"Hmm, a bit more of a patchwork than I had expected, but the result is still the same." Nerissa commented.
"What just happened? What did you do?" Drago asked his mother as the hybridized entity found herself blinking for the first time before sitting up to look at her hands and her own reflection in the glass door of a laundry machine, looking at her face for the very first time.
"This is no longer an Astral Drop, no longer a soulless slave bound to the bearer of the Heart of Kandrakar. She is a living, feeling, Altemere. Essentially a clone." Nerissa explained. "I used my Quintessence on Will's Astral Drop, while she held the relic that contained the immortal chi of Jade, to infuse both of them into a single entity. A hybrid who thinks and feels the same we do, possessing all the memories and emotions of Will and Jade, as well as their powers."
"I… I… I'm living… I'm… I'm feeling…" The Altemere said, standing up to look around her surroundings, feeling everything around her for the first time in existence. Her voice sounded almost like a mixture of Will and Jade's, shifting from one to the other. She then noticed Drago and Nerissa, causing her to gasp as she backed to the dryers on the wall. "Stay back!"
"Wonderful, isn't it? To be truly alive?" Nerissa asked the Altemere. "And not just a dull shadow?"
"I… I know you! Both of you!" She pointed to the half-demon first. "You're Drago! Shendu's Son!"
"The one and only." Drago grinned, small flames emanating from his nostrils.
"And you're the old hag who's been helping the Knights of Vengeance! You're the bad guys!" She took a martial arts stance. "I'm warning you! I know Kung Fu!"
"I'm sure you do, but there is no need to fret, my dear." Nerissa soothed. "Drago and I may be enemies to Jade and Will, but that does not make us your enemies. I gave you life, I'm your friend. And since you're no longer just a carbon copy… you need a name of your own."
"A name…?" The Altemere wondered. "Yeah… I do need a name; I don't have one." She tried to think of one. "Uh… maybe… Wade…? No, that's a guy's name. How about… Jill? Jewel?" She snapped her fingers. "Jewel! I like that! I wanna be named Jewel!"
"Jewel it is. Enjoy your name, and your life." Nerissa said before leaving with Drago.
"Hello? These clothes aren't going to wash themselves!" The washing machine spoke up.
"Oh, I wish!" The dryer added. "Then I can retire to that laundry mat in Florida! Ha, ha, ha!" She laughed at her own joke.
Jewel ended up laughing along with her. "Good one. Hey… that was my first laugh! It feels great! So, laundry… my first-time doing laundry! Let's get going!"
She immediately got to work as she pretty much dumped in all the clothes, as well as the detergent and bleach into a single washing machine. "Hey, easy with the soap! I only got one rinse cycle!"
Jewel gave a tisk that was reminiscent of Jade's. "Don't be such a wimp."
As the hybrid Altemere appeared to be enjoying her newfound life, Drago and Nerissa reentered the alleyway they emerged from. "You sure it's a good idea to just let her wonder around?" He asked.
"Let her experience life. That way, she'll have something to lose, and something to fight for." Nerissa responded.
"What about all those chosen one memories?" Drago asked. "If what you said is true, and if I heard those old monks right when I got that stick, she'll be getting a bunch of memories from a whole lot of different people. How do we know she won't turn on us?"
"If she does, we'll destroy her." Nerissa answered. "And besides, even if she does gain the memories of Jade's previous incarnations, she is has the mentality of an infant, having only just been born seconds ago. It'll be too much for her and she won't be able to properly process it." She chuckled. "I almost feel bad for her, having to deal with all of that. But we need to let this experiment unfold. During our scuffle in the Guardians' dreams, Will and Jade's respective powers grown when their used together, I need to see if the same thing will happen if they share a single host."
Drago understood what his mother was implying. "You wanna use those shadow powers for yourself."
"It's something to consider, but I can't be so quick to jump blindly into it, which is why we're conducting this little experiment." Nerissa replied. "And even if it doesn't work, I have a back-up plan anyway. Now then, my son, you have your assignment, try not to make too much of a racket."
"You know me, Mom. Always discrete." Drago said before running in deeper into the alleyway.
"As for me…" Nerissa spoke to herself. "I have my own meeting to attend to."
Sheffield Institute
Classes had already gotten out, the semester had ended, and it was officially summer vacation. Although many students were still hanging out around the school because of the party that would start in a few hours.
"So, you're moving to Meridian for good." Alchemy said to Elyon with Caleb off to the side.
"Yeah…" The young queen confirmed with reluctance. "But it's not 'goodbye'. I'll come visit, and you and everyone are welcome to come by any time."
"I know." Alchemy replied with a sad smile. "Still doesn't mean I won't miss you."
The two childhood friends shared a hug before Alchemy looked towards Caleb. "You better take good care of my best friend, or I'm coming for you."
"I'll keep her safe. Promise." Caleb assured. Though he knew this would happen, he could tell that it was still hard on Elyon. She grew up on Earth, it was her home for a long time, and now she was saying goodbye to it.
"Alright, enough of all this brooding. We got a party tonight, let's have some fun." Elyon said to perk everyone up.
"Yeah…" Alchemy agreed before smirking. "You're really lucky, Elyon. You'll never be able to open up another math book again."
"I wish." Elyon sulked. "Galgheita says she's going to be my own personal tutor in Meridian."
"Hey, it probably beats listening to Uncle's lectures on Chi-magic. 'One more thing'." She joked, causing them to laugh.
At the same time, the girls of J-WITCH were busy getting all the decorations in the gym set up, which mostly consisted of streamers and balloons. Irma tried to blow in one, but lost her grip, causing the balloon to blow all over the gym before running out of air.
"Irma, be careful!" Hay Lin told her.
"Gee, now we only got nine-thousand, nine-hundred, and ninety-nine left." Irma said sarcastically.
"Well, you can never have enough balloons!" Hay Lin insisted.
"No, you can never have enough shoes." Cornelia corrected. "Balloons, you can definitely overdo." She gestured to the dozens of balloons at her feet.
"Well at least shoes can make good throwing weapons." Jade said as she was on a ladder with Taranee handing her a set of streamers to set up. "Got any extra ammo, Cornelia?" She snarked.
"You touch my shoes Jade, and I'll put yours in a place you don't want them to be!" The blonde warned.
"Maybe you two can put all that extra energy into getting everything set up." Taranee told them. "There's no way the six of us can get all this up in time."
"It'll be a lot easier as Guardians." Irma suggested.
"You wanna get a back-to-back lecture from Jackie and Uncle? No way." Will shook her head.
"This coming from the girl who made an Astral Drop to do laundry." Cornelia replied.
"That was my idea, and we don't have to be full Guardians to do all this." Jade said as she made a brief demonstration. She twirled her hand to control the shadows on the ceiling, grabbing onto one end of the streamers and tying it across the wall with little issue. "See? No fuss, no muss."
"We are on a bit of a deadline, and this is for Mrs. Rudolph." Taranee seemed to agree. "After everything she sacrificed to bring Elyon to Earth, she at least deserves a proper send off before moving back."
Will sighed in concealment as Jade stepped off the ladder. "Okay, but no transformations and nothing flashy! We don't wanna broadcast our powers to the whole school."
"Now Miss Perfect Leader lightens up." Jade put her arm around Will's shoulder playfully, earning a brief chuckle from her as the girls got to work.
Hay Lin already used her powers over air to inflate several balloons at once while Cornelia used her telekinesis to lift them up, while Jade had her shadows on the ceiling work to tie the strands together. There wasn't much Will, Taranee, and Irma could do without their full powers, but they still helped with organizing and lifting objects.
Uncle's Rare Finds
The elder Chi Wizard sat at a cauldron with Yan Lin and Tohru by his side as they worked on the new locator spell to find and locate Drago.
"How long until this new spell is ready?" Jackie asked as he walked in to bring tea for the trio.
"We should have it ready by tonight." Tohru answered. "But even when it's complete, the spell will only be active if it's in the same realm as Drago."
"So, if he were in Meridian while the spell was on Earth, or vice versa, it would not work." Yan Lin added. "But even with this locator spell, I'm more worried that this sorceress ally of his will find a workaround."
"We must discover identity of sorceress soon if we are to defeat Drago and Knights of Vengeance." Uncle said.
Jackie gave a slight sigh. That was easier said than done, this sorceress had been practically one step ahead of them in nearly every encounter. If they could obtain something from her, like hair, Captain Black could perform a DNA analysis to see if she was someone from Earth and learn a possible identity. But that also brought up the possibility that she might not be from Earth. If she was born on Meridian, then the DNA analysis wouldn't really prove much of anything. Why can't things ever be simple?
The bell at the front of the shop rang, indicating that someone had come in. "Aiya… go away. We are closed." Uncle said as he stepped out from the back room and toward the front desk, but looked in surprise to see who it was that had entered the shop.
"I am not here as a customer." The High Mystic said before bowing to Uncle as everyone else came in. Yan Lin too gasped in surprise while Jackie and Tohru looked in confusion.
"Who is this?" Jackie asked.
"This is a holy man…" Yan Lin said as she and Uncle recognized the garb he wore.
"I am the High Mystic of the Ben-Shui order. And I am here on a matter of grave importance."
Laundry Matt
The whole place was a mess as the washing machine was overloaded, water and sudds leaking out in every direction, all thanks to Jewel, who appeared to be having the time of her life with all these new experiences.
"I've got bubbles coming out of every valve!" The washing machine said.
"I know! Everything's all soaking wet and bubbly! This is great!" Jewel said as she took out all the soaked laundry.
"I'm gonna need extra quarters if you expect me to dry all this." The dryer said as Jewel put all the laundry in.
"Say when!" Jewel requested enthusiastically as she put several quarters in.
The dryer burped after the fourth quarter. "Oh yeah, I'm full."
"Full…?" Jewel thought of that word for a moment before she heard her own stomach groan. "Hungry… I'm hungry!" She laughed. "I've never been hungry before! I'm gonna go get some food!" She gasped. "My first meal… this is gonna be crazy!"
"Hey, where are you going?!" The dryer questioned, but Jewel had already left the building.
Sheffield
Elyon, Alchemy, and Caleb had entered the gym just as the girls had finished setting up the decorations. Alchemy gave an impressed whistle. "Wow, not bad guys."
Jade gave her titular tisk. "Did you expect anything less? This is J-WITCH we're talking about."
"You think it's enough though?" Hay Lin wondered.
"We have enough balloons and streamers, Hay Lin." Cornelia groaned.
"Hey, the streamers represent the strands of memory that connect us to Galgheita no matter where the balloons in life take her!" Hay Lin stated.
"Such a beautiful and wise sentiment."
All eyes turned in surprise to the exit door of the gymnasium where three certain individuals and their yak entered the building.
"Uh… party's not started yet. Kinda early." Taranee pointed out.
"What's with the fancy robes? It's not a costume party." Irma said.
"Is that a bull?" Caleb asked.
"It's a yak." Elyon corrected.
"Awe, he's so cute!" Hay Lin immediately went to the Yak and started petting him.
"It is an honor to meet this new generation of Guardians." One of the monks said as he and his three companions bowed their heads to the group, much to their surprise.
"H-how do you know that?!" Will questioned. "Who are you?"
"We are monks of the Ben-Shui order. And we have followed signs and omens to this place in search of the chosen one." The monk replied.
"Chosen one?" Elyon looked to Cornelia who just shrugged.
"Well, we haven't seen any messiahs or anything nearby. Think you might have missed him." The blonde said to the monks.
The yak that Hay Lin had been petting then set its eyes on Jade and moved from her and closer towards the girl, much to her surprise, but she still patted him on the head.
"Uh… good boy."
"He remembers you for he is your trusted companion…. Chosen one." All three monks bowed to Jade.
None were prepared for that. Will, Irma, Cornelia, Hay Lin, Taranee, Caleb, Elyon, and Alchemy all had their eyes widen in shock as they all looked towards Jade, whose own eyes had becoming completely round as she was left completely speechless.
Meanwhile, Drago had entered a specific alleyway and made his way over toward a phone booth that had been deemed inoperable, so that the public wouldn't make the mistake of using it. Once inside, Drago closed the door and pressed a few key buttons, activating the secret entrance.
The phone booth was pulled inside the building and went straight down like an elevator. But just before it came to an end, Drago had leapt up to the hatch on the ceiling, exiting the elevator and entering the shaft just before it entered the underground base of Section 13. Drago then spotted an air duct parallel to him and crawled into it.
Thanks to the copied memories Nerissa had stolen from Jade, Drago knew everything she knew about Section 13. While Jade didn't know everything about the secret base, what she knew was enough for him to learn the base's location, as well as the locations of a few specific rooms.
One such room was storage for riot gear for the agents, the very same room that Drago entered from the air ducts and dropped down. Wasting little time, the half-demon put the gear on and stepped out of the room and into the hallway, having secured an adequate disguise.
At the same time, Nerissa had hung around the side of a certain building as she eyed the entrance, waiting for a specific person to come out. As she waited, she casted a spell over herself. A green energy ring formed at her feet, which raised to cover her whole body. As the ring ascended, Nerissa's physical appearance changed to that of a young Caucasian woman with long black hair with green eyes. This was the appearance of her younger self.
Nerissa rounded the corner and took a moment to gaze at her reflection in a window. She knew this was only an illusion thanks to her glamour spell, but it was still nice to see her old face again. It brought back many good memories, and many bad ones. But she will set things right again.
"One day…" She said before spotting her target out of the corner of her eye exiting her workplace.
"Yeah, I'll have it all set up in the next few days." Susan spoke over the phone she had in one hand a cup of coffee in the other. "Alright. Bye." She hung up before accidentally bumping into the glamoured Nerissa, causing her coffee to spill on the ground, fortunately none of it spilled on either of them.
"Oh, I'm sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going!" The disguised sorceress apologized.
"No, it's fine." Susan assured.
"Let me… buy you a new coffee." She offered. "There is a Starbucks right down the street. If that's alright with you?"
Susan thought for a moment, she was all done with work for today and her daughter was probably going to be hanging out with her friends until the party, assuming the laundry was done. But given how responsible Will has been, she was confident it all got done.
"Alright, thank you." She offered her hand. "My name's Susan."
Nerissa shook her hand. "Stacy. Nice to meet you."
Uncle's Rare Finds
"Chosen one?!" Jackie exclaimed in shock as he, all the girls, Caleb, Tohru, Uncle, and Yan Lin had all gathered together with the High Mystic and his trio of monk companions. The yak was also present, with Scruffy sniffing the larger animal. All of them were still clearly surprised by the recent revelation.
"Uh… yeah, do you mind explaining all of this from the top?" Taranee requested.
"We are monks of the Ben Shui, an order of mystic monks." The High Mystic explained. "The chosen one is our enlightened leader who has lived a thousand life times. When one life has run its course, our leader's chi is reborn in a new vessel."
"Reincarnation." Tohru noted.
"Is that really a thing here?" Alchemy asked Yan Lin. "I mean, I know we deal with magic and stuff but…"
"Reincarnation is real in the world of magic, but it is a rare phenomenon." Yan Lin replied. "Which is true for the Ben Shui's chosen one."
"You've met them before, Grandma?" Hay Lin asked her grandmother.
"After my old team went our separate ways." The former Air Guardian confirmed. "I met the monks on occasion."
"Uncle has learned many things from Ben Shui order in study of becoming a chi wizard." Uncle added. "They are wise and holy men."
"And you think Jade is your chosen one?" Elyon asked, referring to Jade herself as she sat down on a chair, trying to process everything while Will sat next to her for comfort and support.
"Yeah, no offense, but Jade is more of an agent of chaos than an enlightened monk." Cornelia added.
"How do you know this for sure?" Caleb asked.
"The yak knows." One of the monks answered as the yak walked closer towards Jade.
"A yak." Irma said flatly. "You're trusting the judgment of a furry mountain cow."
"This yak is no ordinary beast." The monk continued. "It was the faithful companion of the previous chosen one, the yak shepherd, Chap Yep. He recognizes the chi of his closest friend."
The yak nudged his head against Jade's side, and while she did feel somewhat uneasy about all of this, she could tell the yak was showing genuine affection, which she appreciated and returned as she rubbed its head with her hand.
"But, she can't be your leader, she is our Jade." Jackie stated.
"Yeah, she's a Guardian." Will added, taking out the Heart of Kandrakar for emphasis. "And… she's my spirit sister."
The High Mystic and three monks shared eye contact as the former walked toward the pair. "Extend your hands, young ones." He requested as he offered his own.
Jade looked towards her friends and family, while the other girls and Caleb seemed very concerned, along with Tohru and Jackie, Uncle and Yan Lin gave assuring nods and smiles. Will even pressed her hand against Jade's arm as she smiled assuredly as well. Jade smiled back as she and Will reached out and grasped the High Mystic's hands.
The leader of the Ben Shui closed his eyes and focused, feeling for their chi. After a brief moment, his eyes opened and he let go.
"Your spirits are indeed intertwined." He confirmed. "The bond you have is real, and it has tied your respective powers to one another. Tell me, how is it that you have become a Guardian?" He asked Jade.
"Well…" Jade took a deep breath before giving a basic summation. "I was marked by Tarakudo, king of the Shadowkhan and brainwashed. Will used the Heart of Kandrakar to cure me, but that also caused the powers to mix and create a sixth Auramere, and bing-bang-boom, Guardian."
"We thought it was because of that whole cosmic yin-and-yang thing. Balance and all that." Will added.
"That may indeed a part of it." The High Mystic replied. "However, I also believe that in your process to purge the evil from her body, you have also awakened the dormant chi of the chosen one, which connected to the Heart of Kandrakar and allowed a sixty Auramere to be created."
"Maybe that's the reason Jade's shadow powers are about as strong as Will's Quintessence." Alchemy guessed. "All that extra chi."
"But when a chosen one's chi is awakened, they remember all their past lives and you do not seem to remember yours." One of the monks said. "Do you not remember the yak?"
Jade once again looked at the friendly yak. "Not really… seems like a nice boy, though." She patted the yak's head again.
"Clearly this awakening is different than that of those in the past." The High Mystic observed.
"So… what does that mean?" Taranee asked.
"Are you guys going to try and take Jade to your temple and have her not be a Guardian anymore?" Hay Lin asked worriedly, which sparked a great deal of worry from Jade herself.
"Oh, we would never do such a thing." One monk said as his companions shook their heads. "While this awakening is unusual, we know the Guardians serve a higher purpose and we will not interfere in your mission."
That caused Jade to sigh in relief along with Jackie and everyone else. "That's good." Jackie said.
"Yeah, nobody's breaking up J-WITCH." Irma said with a smirk as she wrapped her arm around Jade's shoulder and playfully punched her in the arm.
"Got that right." Jade agreed. Will especially looked relieved at the fact that her best friend was not about to undergo a drastic change in her life, and that they were sticking together.
"However, we also came here because we sense the chosen one is in grave danger." The High Mystic said, alarming everyone.
"Danger? From what?" Caleb questioned.
"Recently, our temple was attacked by dark forces." The High Mystic answered. "A fire demon and a sorceress."
"Drago." Tohru's eyes narrowed.
"And the mystery hag again." Elyon glared. "Did you at least get her name?"
"I'm afraid not." One of the monks shook his head.
"Why would they attack a temple of bald guys though? No offense." Cornelia said to the monks.
"They have stolen a relic that belonged to the previous chosen one." The High Mystic explained. "This relic contains a portion of his dormant chi; it would have been used in the ritual in awakening the current chosen one's chi. We had come here to find the chosen one and offer our aid in her protection. But upon her arrival in this city, we have sensed a disturbance."
"What kind of disturbance?" Yan Lin asked uneasily.
"We sensed the chi being awakened, but not by natural means." The High Mystic answered. "No, dark forces have tampered with it for their own machinations."
"Wait… if you have sensed that in the city…" Tohru shared eye-contact with Jackie as they came to the same conclusion.
"That would mean that Drago and the sorceress are here in Heatherfield!" The martial artist said in realization. "Uncle, is the locator spell ready?"
"Not yet." Uncle shook his head.
"Then we must find them and the source of this disturbance." The High Mystic said. "We will offer you our aid." He and his monk companions bowed.
"We'll split up into groups and cover more ground." Caleb added. "Maybe call in Captain Black for extra assistance."
"I'm already on it." Jackie had already pulled out his phone as the group quickly left Uncle's Rare Finds, but as they did, Will and Jade were the last ones to leave, with both Scruffy and the yak right behind them, and they shared concerning glances.
"What are the chances this little disturbance they sensed happened when you made that Astral Drop?" Jade asked.
Will winced at that. "Yeah… we should go check on that."
Speaking of…that… Jewel had gone straight to the Vandom residence and was helping herself to all the food in the fridge, having eaten nearly everything in it, such as the chicken leg she had in her hands.
"Though I do appreciate a healthy appetite, perhaps you should slow down before one of us becomes ill." The fridge suggested.
"I can't help it! This is the first time I'm having food!" She said with her mouthful before swallowing. "So many different tastes… I wanna try them all…!" However, she stopped when she felt her stomach. "Okay… yeah… I think that's enough." She then laughed. "I'm full… feels weird. But also great!"
"A full stomach always feels good. Now, if you're finished, please close my door." The fridge requested.
"Okay." Jewel closed the fridge before making her way over to Will's room. When she opened the door, her eyes widened as she saw Mr. Huggles in his little pen.
"Mr. Huggles!" The hybrid Altemere wasted no time in opening the pen and allowing the dormouse to climb up on her arms and shoulders, causing her to laugh. "You're so cute! I love you!" She said as the dormouse curled up against her face. "I still can't believe Mom let me keep you!"
However, she stopped for a moment when she said that. "Mom… my mom… or… is it her mom…?" When she thought of the word mom, two images came to mind. One was Susan Vandom, and the other was Ling Chen currently living in Hong Kong. "Which one is my mom…?" She saw all the memories of Will growing up with her own parents as well as Jade going through the same thing.
All her excited energy faded and turned into confusion as she sat down on Will's bed, allowing Mr. Huggles to climb down. "Those… those are Jade's parents? Or are they Will's parents? Which is… which…? Wait… but who are they…?" Jewel then began to experience several different memories of people she didn't recognize throughout various ages of history, so many men and women, including a man with a walking stick and had a yak by his side. "I… did I have a yak?"
Jewel then found herself looking at Will's desk where a certain portrait caught her eye. She stood up and took it in her hands to get a closer look. It was a picture of Jade, Will, Jackie, along with Cornelia, Hay Lin, Taranee, Irma, Tohru, Uncle, Yan Lin, and Caleb. This was the same magic photograph that Jade had made for Will's birthday. She remembered this, but as she ran her hand across the glass, she also spotted her own reflection, which reminded her the two-faced appearance of the girls she looked like.
"Who… am I…?"
At the same time, Susan and 'Stacy' both sat outside at a table at a Starbucks as they seemed to engage in friendly chit chat with some coffee.
"I always preferred mine sweet." Susan said, adding some sugar to her coffee. "I could never stand bitter."
"Same with me." 'Stacy' agreed. "Though I do try to limit myself. Caffeine makes me jittery, and my work often demands a firm grasp on things."
"So, what do you do?" Susan asked.
"I'm in… management." 'Stacy' replied. "My office is currently undergoing change and I've been trying to set things right. It's rather tedious, but I'm sure it'll work out in the end. And you?"
"Software development." She replied. "It pays well, and I have to provide for my daughter."
"What about the father? Your husband?" 'Stacy' asked.
"Divorced about a year ago." Susan answered.
"Oh… I'm sorry, I didn't mean…"
"It's alright." Susan assured. "It just didn't work out. What about you? Do you have a family?"
"I have two sons." She answered. "My oldest is quite clever and rather ambitious, but he also has a fiery temper, courtesy of his father. My youngest son is… how-should-I-say… rebellious. It makes things… difficult."
Susan gave a slight sigh with a sympathetic smile. "That's the thing about having kids. We can't control what they do, but we still give them our support."
"Indeed." 'Stacy' smiled.
Susan then felt her phone ring and saw a text message, the sender under the name 'Dean', which read 'Party's about to start. You should come.'
"I should go." Susan stood up from her seat. "Thanks again for the coffee, it was nice meeting you, Stacy." She offered her hand to shake.
"You as well." 'Stacy' stood up and shook Susan's hand, though there was a tiny electric shock upon contact.
Susan only flexed her hand but paid the twinge she felt no mind before the two went their separate ways. 'Stacy' then stepped into an alleyway and once she saw the coast was clear, she dropped her disguise.
"Yes, it was nice to finally meet you, Susan." Nerissa cackled before walking deeper into the darkness.
Section 13
Alarms blared as multiple agents scrambled and assembled in vehicles that prepared to move out upon their commander's orders.
"All agents, we have possible confirmation of Drago and an accomplice somewhere in Heatherfield." Captain Black said over the intercoms while he got into the driver's seat of an armored vehicle of his own. "The accomplice is described as an elderly woman with long gray hair. If spotted, do not engage. Report to me as soon as possible. Now, move out!"
With that order, the door to a tunnel opened up as several vehicles rode out of the hidden base and began to scatter throughout the streets up on the surface in an effort to find the villains in question.
However, they were completely unaware that one of their targets was closer than they thought, having made his way to a certain vault in his disguise.
'That wasn't quite part of the plan, but it works better for me.' Drago thought as he used the codes to the vault door, the ones he learned from Jade's copied memories to open it up.
He stepped inside and walked to a single pedestal at the center of the vault, which contained the twelve Talismans of the Chinese Zodiac.
"Daddy's little rock collection." Drago grinned.
At the same time, Will and Jade had just arrived at the laundry matt only to look in complete shock over the mess that it was in, with all the soap and suds everywhere.
"Uh… that doesn't look good…" Jade gulped.
"Hey, where's my… friend?" Will asked the washing machine and dryer.
"Who knows?" The dryer answered.
"Who cares? She almost drowned us." The washer said.
"Was there anybody else here?" Will asked.
"Yeah, two people." The dryer answered. "A walking lizard and some lady who looked like she'd been in the dryer for too long."
The spirit sisters exchanged nervous expressions as they both said the same two words. "Bad day."
"They also did something pretty weird to her." The washer said.
"Weird? Weird-how?" Jade asked, but she happened to kick something underneath the suds on the floor. She reached down to pick up something solid in her hand and lifted it to reveal a certain walking stick. She looked at Will again as they seemed to get the idea that this might have been the stolen relic the monks talked about.
"Well, the old lady zapped your friend and she changed." The washer explained. "She kinda looked like the two of you all patched up together, like one of those plaid sweaters."
The two girls quickly made their way to the door. "Hey, where are you going? Who's gonna clean up this mess?" The dryer questioned.
"Sorry! We'll call someone to come and clean you up, later! Thank you!" Will quickly said as she and her best friend left. "Call Jackie."
"On it." Jade had pulled out her cellphone. "We're so gonna get lectured and slapped for this."
"Oh, big time." Will sighed with reluctant acceptance.
The sun was slowly starting to set as Jewel found herself wondering aimlessly into an empty park. Ever since she was at Will's apartment, she felt so confused. Why was she here? What were all these memories in her head? None of this felt right, but why?
She sat down on a swing and spotted a woman with a carriage, as well as hearing a baby crying inside with the mother smiling as she tried to cheer her baby up. Seeing that gave Jewel an unusual feeling. She didn't have that. She didn't have any parents, she didn't have any friends or family, she never even had a childhood, she was literally born earlier today and yet she had all these memories that weren't hers, she knew that but at the same time, she wanted them.
"What's wrong my dear?"
Jewel gasped as she turned to the side to see Nerissa approaching her.
"You don't seem as enthusiastic as before. Aren't you happy to be alive?"
"Am I?" Jewel questioned, to which Nerissa raised an eyebrow. "People are born, but I wasn't. I was made. I have… all these memories… two different people living different lives and… so many others that I don't recognize…" She looked to her shaky hands. "I… I don't know anything… so many memories but I don't know what to do with any of it…" She looked towards the one who gave her life with a look of confusion and desperation. "Who am I?"
"You are who you want to be." Nerissa answered. "You may not have been born in the same sense as everyone else, but you still live and feel the way we all do. So as a living being you have the right to live the life the way you want to, even when others don't want you to."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jewel asked, not liking where the old woman was going with this.
"Well, naturally, once Will and Jade learn of your existence, they and all your friends will try to reabsorb you into the Heart." Nerissa said, which caused Jewel to look with concern. "But this is still your life, and when others try to take it, are you willing to fight for it? For your sake, I hope so." She sunk back into the shadows from nearby trees, leaving Jewel alone as some unsettling thoughts began to fill her mind.
Fight for her life? Would she have to? Why would they want to destroy her? Sure, she might not be a natural-born creature, but does that make her life any less valuable than someone who is born naturally?
As she sat with all these thoughts in her mind, Irma and Hay Lin had entered the park after having received a group call from Will and Jade about a recent development, one of which Jackie and Uncle were not exactly pleased to hear.
"I swear if I hear 'one more thing' from that old man…" Irma grumbled. "It's not like we made the Astral Drop!"
"Well, we did kinda go along with it." Hay Lin said. However, she spotted Jewel sitting on the swing set, but from their angle, they had caught sight of the black hair that they recognized from Jade. "Hey, it's Jade."
"Yo Jade, where you been? And aren't you supposed to be with…" However, Irma was cut off when Jewel turned to the pair, revealing her full face that caught both girls by surprise. "What the…?!"
"Looks like a Jade and Will fusion!" Hay Lin stated before gasping in realization. "They did say that Drago and the sorceress did something to Will's Astral Drop to make her look like Jade! This has gotta be her!"
"Alright Miss Patchwork, you're coming with us." Irma walked toward her.
"No!" Jewel exclaimed in a panic throwing her arms up defensively, but this also created a blast of pink energy that knocked Irma down.
"Irma!" Hay Lin was about to run and help her, but Jewel had raised her hand towards her, causing Hay Lin's shadow to rise up and wrap around her, binding and ensnaring her and causing her to fall down.
Jewel gasped as she didn't expect to use these powers like this. With all this and all the confused and frightened thoughts in her head, Jewel ran out of the park, fearing for her own life.
"Hey, Astral Drops don't have powers!" Irma exclaimed as the shadow bindings around Hay Lin vanished and she stood up with Irma.
"I don't think that's a regular Astral Drop… She had Will and Jade's powers!" Hay Lin pointed out.
"Come on, we gotta find her. You call the others." Irma instructed as they ran in the direction they saw Jewel run, unaware that the whole encounter was witnessed by the concealed Nerissa.
"Yes, fear for your life. This should prove quite informative." The old sorceress muttered aloud.
"I hope so." Drago dropped down from the trees, having just arrived.
"My dear boy, did you get what you needed from Section 13?" She asked.
"Yeah, but we have a slight problem." Drago said. "They know where here, so they pretty got a whole army sweeping the streets for us."
"That won't be too much of an issue." Nerissa replied. "Our little Jewel has encountered the enemy. They'll be focusing on her for the time being, and we'll be in for quite the show."
Night had fallen as Jewel wandered around aimlessly through the streets of Heatherfield with no set destination in mind. Irma and Hay Lin had spotted her, so it was only a matter of time before the others learned about her too and they would stop at nothing to hunt her down. Maybe she could escape the city? No, Section 13 could still find a way to track her. Maybe steal the Heart of Kandrakar and use it to go to Meridian? But there was no guarantee that it would work for her, even if she had Will's powers, and Elyon also ruled there so they would hunt her down in that realm too. Was there really no place at all for her?
Jewel happened to spot Sheffield Institute, specifically the gym where she could see all the lights and even hear the music from her spot. Curiosity peeked as she had never been at a party before, and she wanted to experience that. But she stopped herself when she realized how unnatural she looked compared to everyone else. She had to find a way to blend in.
The hybrid Altemere spotted a hooded jacket hanging off the edge of a dumpster in a nearby alleyway. Jewel quickly grabbed it and saw how dirty it looked before using her Quintessence powers to wipe away all the muck and grime, though it had some holes in it, it was better than nothing. She quickly put it on and raised the hood over her head, partially obscuring the Jade-half of her face while keeping the Will-half visible.
She tried to blend herself in with the crowd of students that was heading into the party…
"Will." She gasped when she heard a familiar voice say that name, and turned only slightly to see Will's mother approaching her.
"Eh… Mom. W-What are you doing here?" She asked.
"I was invited." Susan answered. "Sounds like everyone here is having fun. You and your friends must have done a great job."
"T-Thanks…" She tried to keep her voice somewhat lowered because while it did sound like the woman's daughter, it wasn't entirely hers. But Susan did notice not only the nervous and low tone in her voice, but how she seemed to be keeping the hood covering a part of her face.
"Will? Are you alright?" She tried to reach over and lower the hood to see if anything was wrong.
"Fine! I-I'm fine." Jewel backed away. "I'll head inside…" She quickly made her way to the gym, leaving Susan to look confused and concerned.
"Hey, everything alright?" Dean Collins asked as he approached her from behind.
"Yeah, it's just… Will's acting a little weird." Susan said. "I'm hoping she's not sick or anything."
"I'm sure she's fine. Let her have some fun, she and her friends worked hard for this." Dean said. "Come on." He offered her his arm, which she took with a smile.
Once inside, Jewel switched the angle and position of her hood so that the Jade-half of her face was visible and not Will's. That way Susan wouldn't see her again. A part of her felt bad for lying to her, but she wasn't her daughter and if she saw her whole face… who's to say how she'd react?
As she saw all the kids inside dancing to the music, a part of her anxieties lowered only slightly, and she found herself bouncing her head to the music.
"Oh Jade, there you are." She was surprised to see Mrs. Rudolph approach her with a smile. "You and your friends did such a wonderful job here; everyone is enjoying themselves."
"Uh… Thanks."
"I just wanted to say thank you for this." Mrs. Rudolph said sincerely. "I was not expecting such a warm goodbye. I'll miss Earth."
"Well, come back and visit anytime." Jewel replied, trying to sound like Jade naturally as she did remember from the shared memories that she had of who Mrs. Rudolph really was.
"I'm sure I will, now you enjoy yourself." Mrs. Rudolph smiled as they parted ways.
Jewel soon found herself in the middle of the gym, where she got a clear view of Matt and his band playing the music. The minute she saw him, all of Will's memories and feelings of Matt came forward, causing the remainder of her anxieties to drop as she found herself tapping her foot to the music before dancing outright with everyone in the gym.
In that one instant, she had forgotten nearly everything and found herself in the moment and thoroughly enjoying her very first party.
"Wahoo! Yeah! This is the best party I've ever been to!"
Meanwhile, outside, Captain Black pulled up to the curb near Sheffield as Will, Jade, Jackie, Uncle, and the High Mystic were in the back.
"I'll have my agents patrol the perimeter and keep an eye out for Drago and his accomplice." Captain Black informed. "The rest of you will search inside."
"Sorry, all this happened, it's just… Ow!" Will felt Uncle dope-slap her before doing the same to Jade.
"Ow!"
"Magic must defeat Magic, not dirty underwear! How many times must Uncle say this?!" The elder chi-wizard chastised.
"Uncle, that doesn't matter right now!" Jackie stated. "What does matter is finding this Astral Drop before anyone else gets hurt."
"How can an Astral Drop even have powers? I thought they were basically robots, empty shells!" Jade pointed out, still having a hard time believing what Irma and Hay Lin had told them all via their phones.
"Dark magic was used on this relic." The High Mystic said as he held the walking stick that the two girls had recovered from the laundry mat. "The dormant chi of the previous chosen one is gone, forcibly extracted and awakened, likely infused with this Astral Drop."
"Then let's go find it." Will said as they stepped outside, allowing Captain Black to drive off as he and several other vehicles from Section 13 worked to establish a perimeter. They would soon meet the rest of their companions, consisting of Irma, Cornelia, Taranee, Hay Lin, Tohru, Yan Lin, Caleb, Elyon, Alchemy, and the other three Ben Shui monks, along with the yak they still had on the rope.
"Good, you're all here." Jackie said.
"Why'd you bring the yak?" Jade asked.
"The yak is a companion of the previous chosen one." One monk said. "He will aid us in our search."
"If the Astral Drop is indeed infused with the chi of Chap Yep, he will be able to find it." The High Mystic said.
Scruffy suddenly popped up on the Yak's head with a bark.
"Awe, Scruffy made a friend." Hay Lin gushed.
"Hay Lin, focus." Yan Lin told her granddaughter.
"Well, we can't exactly bring a live yak into the school without causing a commotion." Taranee said. "If were gonna catch this thing, we need the element of surprise."
"Agreed." Tohru nodded. "The monks, Jackie, Uncle, Miss Lin and I will search outside while the rest of you look inside."
"I'll stay with you guys, we can use our telepathy to keep in contact." Elyon said as she and Taranee exchanged nods.
"The second any of you spot the Astral Drop, let us know and we'll close in on it." Jackie said. "It cannot hide forever."
With that, the two groups split off to head in separate directions.
The girls and Caleb had entered the gym where the party was in full-swing, but with so many people all gathered together, it was nearly impossible to tell where their target was.
"Yeah, good luck finding one person in all of this." Irma commented.
"Split up, it can't hide from all of us." Cornelia said. The group then split up into pairs and went around the gym, with one pair consisting of Cornelia and Caleb, Irma and Hay Lin, Taranee and Alchemy, Will and Jade.
At the same time, Jewel continued to dance and have the time of her life. Even as her hood came off, nobody seemed to notice the in the party. However, her joy ended abruptly as she spotted Irma and Hay Lin out of the corner of her eye.
She was quick to put her hood back on and cover most of her face as she tried to blend in with the crowd and make her way out of the gym. But as she made her way to one end, she gave a slight gasp as she spotted Cornelia and Caleb meeting with Mrs. Rudolph and informing her of the situation, the Meridian native in disguise giving a nod of understanding as she too joined the search, causing Jewel to slip back into the crowd. When she tried to make her way to the other side however, she also spotted the real Will and Jade on the hunt as well, and that made her especially nervous.
Fortunately, Jewel spotted the doorway that led to the locker room and quickly made her way there, but she was spotted by Taranee and Alchemy, and while they didn't see her face, they did notice how quickly she was trying to get out.
"You think that was it?" Alchemy asked.
"Probably." Taranee answered before reaching out with her telepathy. "Hey everyone, I think we found it. It's in the locker room. The only other way out there will lead to the football field outside."
"Okay, we'll try and corner it there." Will communicated back.
"We're already on our way." Elyon relayed.
Jewel was now inside the seemingly empty locker room, taking a minute to catch her breath. They had found her! She had to get as far away as possible, or they'll send her into oblivion! She didn't want to disappear! She wanted to live!
When she gazed up though, she spotted something that made her gasp… But she also spotted the door that led outside and quickly ran outside, but stopped dead in her tracks to see Jackie, Tohru, Uncle, Elyon, Yan Lin, and the Ben Shui monks, along with the yak and Scruffy, waiting for her.
"I think we found it." Tohru said.
Jewel tried to run away in the opposite direction, but Jackie was faster and quickly closed the distance to grab her by her wrist. "That's enough. You're not getting away."
"No! Let me go! Leave me alone!" She struggled in his grip but was unable to free herself. Just as all the girls and Caleb arrived on the scene however, they all watched in surprise as Jewel slipped through the coat she wore and reveal her full self to everyone present.
Jackie gasped, as did everyone else when they saw her face. Her split red and black hair standing out the most as they were now behold to Jewel's amalgamized form.
"Aiya…!" Even Uncle was caught off guard by this.
"She looks…" Will began.
"…Like us." Jade finished.
"Like… some kind of hybrid." Taranee pointed out.
Jackie tried to approach the defensive Jewel. "We need you to come with us."
"I said… Leave me alone!" She threw out a punch at Jackie, one that carried the pink aura of Will's Quintessence. Even as he blocked it by crossing his arms, the force of the raw power still sent him flying back, much to everyone's shock, but Tohru was quick to catch him. "Stay back! All of you, stay back!" All the shadows around her began to move and bend, standing up like streaks as they formed a defensive barrier around her.
"She does have both our powers!" Will exclaimed.
"Well, we know something she doesn't have!" Jade reminded, to which Will nodded as she drew the Heart of Kandrakar and said the magic words.
"Guardians Unite!"
In the usual flashy transformation, Jade, Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, and Hay Lin all transformed into their respective Guardian forms of J-WITCH.
However, none of them would be prepared for what else they saw. Because it was not only them who transformed, but Jewel as well.
Jewel appeared to have adopted a Guardian form as well, and much like her own appearance, this one seemed to be a mixture of the forms that Will and Jade adopted. She had Will's pink shirt connected to the black spikey dress that belonged to Jade. Her right leg had the green and blue stripped tights with a black boot while her left leg had the black and dark blue stripped tights with a pink boot. Her hair had also grown noticeably longer, but unlike before where half of it was red and the other half was black, both colors were mixed together like streaks of red and black in all directions.
Everyone, even Jewel herself, blinked in surprise as they saw her transformed state.
"Well, that can't be good." Irma spoke for pretty much everybody.
Using this surprise as a chance to escape, Jewel flew straight up.
"After her!" Will ordered as the six Guardians flew in pursuit. Elyon was about to fly up herself and join them, until the High Mystic grabbed her by the wrist.
"Young one, we must erect a barrier around the building." He told the young queen. "We cannot afford outsiders to witness this battle."
"He's right." Yan Lin agreed. "Worst case scenario, all our identities could be revealed here."
"Okay, I get it. But I've never done anything like that before." Elyon said.
"We will aid you." One of the monks volunteered.
"Alright, tell me what to do." As Elyon began to converse with the Ben Shui monks, Jackie, Tohru, Uncle, Caleb, Alchemy, Yan Lin, Mrs. Rudolph, and even Scruffy and the yak gazed up to watch the battle that was about to begin.
Hay Lin, being the fastest flyer, was the first to catch up to Jewel and trap her within a large sphere of air. But Jewel was quick to erect a shadow-katana to cut her way through before blasting Hay Lin back with a surge of pink Quintessence energy.
Though this did allow the others to catch up as Taranee attacked first with a blast of fire, which Jewel protected herself against by creating a ball of shadow in her hands to absorb the flames before throwing it back at the Fire Guardian, just as it exploded in a flurry of shadow flames to push Taranee away. Irma was next as she pulled her hands back to generate a sphere of water and then thrusted her hands to blast a stream at Jewel, who created a barrier of Quintessence around herself as protection. But Jade quickly flew in from behind and materialized a battle-axe out of shadows to cut her way through the pink barrier, much to Jewel's shock and leaving her open for Will to tackle her, allowing push her back towards the ground.
"Chanel and focus your power, young one. We will recite the incantation." The High Mystic instructed Elyon as he and his three monk companions clasped their hands together, encircling around Elyon as she took a deep breath focus on her powers. The four monks recited a chant that was difficult to understand, and yet as Elyon let her magic flow around her, she understood what they were saying as if it were perfect English. Elyon then outstretched her limbs as her magic went directly into the High Mystic and the three monks, amplifying their own power before they raised their hands to blast a powerful beam of green energy straight up over the building where it expanded and spread out like a dome to cover all of Sheffield Institute. When it touched the ground, the dome vanished, and a barrier had been successfully erected. If anyone were to look outside, they would see nothing magical, as the purpose of the spell.
They had little time to celebrate their accomplishment however as Will had brought Jewel closer to the ground, but she was able to kick Will off. However, Cornelia then made her move as she placed her hands on the ground to grow a series of roots that exploded up to bind and ensnare Jewel and bring her closer to the ground.
However, Jewel used her Quintessence power to take control of the roots, allowing them to loosen before they shot at Cornelia to bind her instead.
"Hey, no fair using my element against me!" Cornelia complained as she fell to the ground with Caleb and Alchemy quickly rushing to help her as Jackie and Tohru went on the attack, gunning straight for Jewel, who threw a series of shadow balls at the pair. Jackie leapt and flipped to avoid all the attacks while Tohru barreled through them to close the distance and grab Jewel in the form of a bear hug.
"Please stop!" Tohru tried, but Jewel was unwilling to listen as pure Quintessence power built up around her before it exploded to knock Tohru back. She looked up and quickly noticed how Jade, Hay Lin, Irma, and Taranee were about to catch up to her. Jewel then created a large shadow hand and reached forward to grab Tohru before throwing him at the four. They all gasped and were unable to avoid the large sumo as he slammed into them and they rolled across the ground.
Jewel then looked to see Will and Jackie regrouping and making Kung Fu stances as they faced her. She retaliated by unleashing a wave of shadow flame at them, which they avoided by flying and leaping over it respectively as Jackie landed a flying kick on her to knock her back.
"This has to stop before someone gets hurt!" Jackie stated.
"Then stop trying to destroy me!" Jewel exclaimed.
"Destroy you? What are you talking about? You were just an Astral Drop a few hours ago!" Will recalled.
"Not anymore!" Jewel replied.
Cornelia was freed from the bindings as Caleb and Alchemy helped her up. "Thanks guys. Come on! We can…"
"Wait." Yan Lin held her hand out as she stepped in front of them, focusing her attention on the what the Altemere was saying. At the same time, Mrs. Rudolph had also helped Tohru to his feet while Jade, Taranee, Irma, and Hay Lin recovered, but Uncle had likewise stepped in front of them and gestured toward the Altemere, silently telling them to listen to what was being said. Even Elyon and the Ben Shui monks were paying attention.
"I'm not an Astral Drop! I'm alive! I have your memories, your powers, all of it!" Jewel went on.
"Because Drago and the sorceress used magic to bring you to life, isn't that right?" Jackie asked.
"So, what if it was with magic?! Does that make me less alive than any of you! I think! I feel!" Jewel continued as emotional tears filled her eyes. "I won't let you destroy me just because I'm not natural!"
"Who said that?! Was it Drago and the hag?!" Jade questioned as she quickly flew up to get closer. "You're really taking their word for this?!"
"If you have our memories, then you've seen what they put us through! You have to know they're bad news!" Will added.
"Why should I believe any of you?!" Jewel practically screamed as she was practically bawling now.
A bark as well as a grunt caught her attention as she turned towards the source, being the yak the Ben Shui monks brought with them, as well as the dog that rode on his back before leaping off onto the ground.
"Scruffy…?" Jewel lowered her guard slightly as she set down on the ground. She also eyed the Yak and the minute she saw it, her eyes widened as she remembered this specific yak. The same type of yak that stood by an elderly shepherd with a walking stick and would be by his side, even at his death bed. "You…" The yak walked towards Jewel and sniffed her briefly before giving a friendly grunt and rubbed his head against her. Scruffy also came closer and gave a bark before sitting down and giving a whine.
"The yak recognizes the chi of his former companion." One Ben-Shui monk said.
"And I bet Scruffy can recognize Will and Jade's combined scent too." Elyon added.
Jewel went to her knees as she slowly reached her hands forward to pet the heads of the dog and yak respectively, and this caused all her anger and fear to vanish as all she felt was grief over what she had just done, and a sense of longing.
"So… what do we do?" Jade asked as she, Will, and Jackie exchanged looks, but the man already knew exactly what to do.
Jackie walked straight towards Jewel, the moment she saw him, he noticed the frightened look in her eyes, but she in turn saw there was no hostility or even anger in his own before he spoke.
"There's no reason for us to fight." Jackie said, surprising Jewel. "It doesn't matter if you were made unnaturally, you are a living person, and because of that, you are free to live your life how you want."
"I…" Jewel stood up and had a conflicted look on her face, a part of her wanted to believe him, but another part was still afraid. "How do I know this isn't some kind of trick?"
"Do you really have our memories? Mine and Jade's?" Will asked.
"If you do, you know Jackie would never do that." Jade added. "None of us would do that."
"Um… you guys do know that she attacked us, right?" Cornelia pointed out.
"She was scared. She was tricked and manipulated by Drago and the sorceress." Jackie stated before turning towards Jewel with a compassionate smile that showed no hostility whatsoever.
This caused the last of Jewel's defenses to be lowered. "I… I'm sorry…" She fell to her knees and cried into her hands. "I… I never wanted to hurt anyone… I… I was scared…!"
"It's okay." Will assured as she and Jade were the first to kneel to her level, with Scruffy and the yak coming toward her and offering her comfort. "It's okay."
"Ya know something? Will and I are spirit sisters." Jade began. "And not just because of the whole magic thing, she's my best friend. And… if you're kinda made from both of us… that makes you a spirit sister."
Jewel looked to them with a look of surprise and emotion in her teary eyes as Will spoke. "Like Jackie said, you live… and you can live with us. You can be a part of us and whatever you want to do with your life… we'll be there for you, all of us." She gestured to their many friends around them. "Our third spirit sister."
Were they serious? Did they really consider Jewel a friend? A third spirit sister? She knew what that was from all the shared memories she had of Will and Jade, not just the whole magic thing, but how close the two were to one another. And they were willing to let her in and be a part of their family. That made her so happy because that's what she really wanted. To be a part of something, to be surrounded by people who loved and cared for her. And now… it would seem she would have that. She cried once again as Will and Jade gently took her hands and helped her to her feet, but these were tears of happiness and joy.
"Jewel…" She muttered to their confusion. "My name… it's Jewel…"
"That's nice name." Will smiled.
"Yeah, sounds kinda like ours but more unique." Jade added. "Better than Wade or Jill anyway."
That earned a tearful laugh from Jewel right as Jackie offered her his hand with a smile.
"Let's go home… Jewel."
With a tearful smile, she slowly reached out for Jackie's hand…
*BLAST!*
A fiery explosion had struck Jewel in the back, much to everyone's shock and horror, especially Jackie, Jade, and Will as they saw Jewel fall to the ground, smoke coming from her back.
"When did this become a soap opera?" Drago questioned as he stood on one of the football goal posts. "I hate mushy crap like that."
'And we can't afford to let a power like that fall into enemy hands, now can we?' Nerissa thought to herself as she hid in the foliage just behind the goal post.
"Drago!" Tohru exclaimed in anger.
"Get him!" Irma ordered as she, Cornelia, Hay Lin, and Taranee flew straight towards him. But Drago had already used his ring to open a Fold, allowing him to escape. The brief flash of light also allowed a brief distraction for Nerissa to do the same with her own scepter, both sorceress and half-demon leaving Earth, much to the Guardians frustration.
Jade and Will both held onto the gravely injured Jewel with Jackie by their side along with Scruffy and the yak. "H-hang on! Y-you're gonna be okay…?" Jade stuttered.
"W-We can get her to Section 13… the Horse Talisman…" Will also stuttered.
"It wouldn't work." Yan Lin said with remorse as she and Uncle approached them. "Her body is made from magic energy, but now that energy is disrupted."
"Can't we use a chi spell to heal her?" Alchemy asked.
"Maybe I can use my magic?" Elyon also asked.
"No." Uncle shook his head with regret evident in his voice. "She is already fading… the energy that sustained her will vanish… and she will as well…"
It was true. They could already see Jewel's body slowly fading. It wouldn't be long before she vanished completely.
"It's not fair…" Jade muttered. "You… you didn't deserve this…"
"It's okay…" Jewel slowly reached up to caress her hand against Jade's cheek. "Just knowing… that you all feel this way about me… that's enough…"
"Isn't there anything we can do?!" Will questioned desperately. "Jackie…?"
"I… I don't…" As much as Jackie wanted to say yes and that there was still hope, deep down he knew the truth. They couldn't save her. "I'm sorry."
"There is one thing that can be done." The High Mystic said as he approached them with his monk companions. "She has made from the combined chi of the two of you." He said, speaking to Will and Jade specifically. "With your power, you can absorb her. Not into the Heart of Kandrakar, but into yourselves. She may lose her physical being, but all of her thoughts and memories will be a part of you. She will continue to live within the bond that you two have formed."
Jade and Will exchanged eye-contact with one another and with Jackie, who gave a remorseful nod, before they looked to Jewel.
"Only if it's alright with you…" Will said.
"You'll still be with us… I just…. I wish it wasn't…" Jade couldn't find the right words.
"Yes… it's okay. Do it." Jewel accepted with a sad smile, her body fading with each passing second. Everyone had gathered around with looks of guilt and remorse. Uncle, Irma, Hay Lin, Caleb, Cornelia, Taranee, Yan Lin, Elyon, Alchemy, Mrs. Rudolph, many of them already had tears in their eyes.
"We will never forget you, Jewel." Jackie told her.
She offered up both her hands as Will clasped her own around Jewel's left hand and Jade did the same for Jewel's right. As her body broke down, Jewel's fading form glowed a mixture of pink and purple before it turned into energy vapors, with the pink energy flowing into Will and the purple into Jade. The second it did, all of Jewel's own memories entered their minds. They saw her in the laundry mat, in Will's home with Mr. Huggles, her dancing at the party, and even in the locker room… where she saw Susan Vandom, Will's mother, kissing intimately with her history teacher, Dean Collins.
That last part caused Will to look with even more emotional shock just as Jewel's body faded away. Jade grasped onto Will's hands as she looked to her with a sad expression of understanding, having seen that memory as well. The two spirit sisters wasted no time in hugging each other, with Jackie placing comforting hands on both their shoulders.
Some time later, the party had ended as everyone had gathered on the street across from Sheffield. The girls of J-WITCH had dropped their Guardian forms as they and their friends met up with Captain Black to discuss what had happened. Will and Jade both sat on a bench, their moods considerably down as they held one another, even with their friends and family present, including Scruffy who curled up on Will's lap and the yak that nudged its head against Jade's side, they would not be getting their spirits back up for a while, not that anyone could blame them.
"We combed over the entire area, no sign of them." Captain Black said.
"They opened a Fold, so they're probably back in Meridian." Caleb assumed.
"I'll try and get more soldiers to look for them." Elyon added. "Since school's out, I'm Queen of Meridian full time now." She looked towards Will and Jade. "I'm going to do everything in my power to catch them."
Both girls remained silent but nodded in acceptance. Jackie put his hands on both girls as he responded to the young queen. "Thank you, Elyon. Let us know how we can help."
"You got it." Elyon nodded.
Everyone's expressions were that of remorse, save for Captain Black who grunted in frustration. "How could they have slipped past the perimeter? Yeah, I get that magic must defeat magic." He said to Uncle briefly. "But somebody should have spotted them."
"They were probably tailing Jewel the whole time." Taranee guessed. "Must of slipped into the school grounds or something beforehand."
"We know there are two more immortal relics containing Demon Chi that have yet to awaken." Tohru said. "So even if they're not found in Meridian, we will see them again soon."
"And when we do, we'll be sure to put the hurt on them." Irma said clenching her fist.
"Damn right." Cornelia agreed.
Despite that, it did little to perk up the spirits of Jade and Will. That is until the High Mystic spoke.
"Jewel is not gone." The leader of the Ben Shui monks got their attention. "Her spirit forever lives in the two of you, in the spiritual bond that you have formed."
That did seem to ease the pair a bit, not by a lot, but it still helped. "So… what about the whole chosen one, thing?" Jade asked. "Sorry if it feels like you guys were dragged on a wild goose chase or something."
"The universe works in mysterious ways." One of the monks replied. "If your path is that of a Guardian, then it is your path to take. But know that you have allies in this fight. Whenever you are in need, the Order of the Ben-Shui will stand by your side." He and the other monks, as well as the High Mystic, bowed to them.
"Thanks, we appreciate that." Will said with a sad smile.
With that, the monks then departed. The yak nuzzled its head against Jade one more time, who rubbed her hand on its head in response with a brief smile, before the mighty creature followed the monks.
"If it's alright with all of you, I can give you all a lift back home." Captain Black offered as he pulled out his radio to call for a ride.
"Thank you, Captain." Yan Lin nodded.
Susan sat on the couch of her apartment reading a book, waiting for her daughter to come back home. She heard the door opening and got up to see Will walking in, though her hair covered the upper portion of her face.
"Welcome back, Will. Thanks for getting that laundry done, I…" However, Susan saw her daughter's face and gasped as she saw her yes were red as tears streamed down her cheeks, just as the redhead ran and wrapped her arms around her mother, crying as she buried her face into her chest.
"Will… Wha… what's wrong…?" Susan did not expect her daughter to be so upset like this. What in the world happened?
"I-I know about you and Collins…" Will choked, causing Susan's eyes to widened even further. "I saw you…"
"I… Will…"
"Don't… I… I can't be mad right now…" As upset as she was about that, something else hurt her even more so. "Just please… hold me…!"
Susan's expression softened as she held her daughter close, rubbing her hand down her hair. She was sure that Will was mad at her and probably would be for a while, but right now, all that mattered was giving her daughter warmth and comfort in this moment.
"I'm right here, sweetie." Susan spoke softly. "I'm right here."
Meanwhile, back in their cavern hideout in Meridian, Nerissa watched the moment between her successor and her mother from the crystal in her scepter, having a crystal-clear view.
"Get used to the tears, dear Will. For that is the path of a Guardian." She spoke.
"You're spying on her through her mom?" Drago asked. "I thought you were more focused on Jade."
"Jade does present a danger, but I can't afford to take my eyes off my successor either." Nerissa answered. "Especially given the link between them."
"So, how do you think this experiment went?" Drago questioned. "Guess someone can wield both Quintessence and shadow magic. Bet you're pretty happy about that."
"Indeed, although… I do have another plan in mind. The question of whether or not I can wield the power of the shadows is to establish a fall back if my initial idea fails." Nerissa revealed. "Now then, what of your mission, Drago?"
"Got it." Drago opened his palm to reveal the Tiger Talisman. "No fuss, no muss."
"Excellent." Nerissa sneered as she took the small yet powerful Talisman in her hand. "And you replaced it with the counterfeit I created?"
"They won't know the difference." Her half-demon answered. "Unless they try to use it. Speaking of, why not just take all the Talismans? Or that… other thing you want?"
"Despite our enemies using the Talismans far less frequently, there is still a chance they will use them, and I can't afford to raise suspicions just yet." The elderly sorceress responded. "The Tiger Talisman isn't combat applicable like the Dragon or the Ox, so there is very little chance they'll use it. And, I have quite a few plans for this specific Talisman." She eyed the Tiger Talisman. "One such plan, is the acquisition of our true prize. As for why I didn't have you retrieve it, Jade does not know where it is. It wasn't in her memories, otherwise I would have created a counterfeit for that and had you steal it."
"Makes sense." Drago accepted. "So, what now? How long till we need to make our move?"
"Not much longer. For now, have the Knights of Vengeance prepared to locate the next batch of Demon Chi that awakens." Nerissa answered. "Slowly but surely… everything is falling into place."
Done.
Yeah… this was an emotional chapter. Unlike canon that just had a clone of Will, we had something similar here with a hybrid Altemere of Will and Jade, all to test whether or not Nerissa can use the shadow powers in addition to her Quintessence. But that is only a fall back if her initial plan fails. As for what that plan is, you'll see.
It's still quite the tear-jerker knowing what happened to Jewel. Just as the heroes have gotten through to her, the villains snuffed it out quickly enough and have appeared to have gotten the next piece of their plan: the Tiger Talisman, which Nerissa has quite a few plans for. But it seems there is something else she is looking for, as for what that is, again, you'll just have to wait and see.
Feel free to guess and theorize, but I can neither confirm nor deny.
Jade and the others are also aware of her status as the chosen one. It's one of the reasons why her power is just as strong as Will's; just as Quintessence is the most powerful element, making her arguably the most powerful Guardian, Jade's power gets a bit of boost from all that extra chi due to her status as the chosen one. That along with their own unique friendship has allowed them to establish their spiritual bond to balance one another. A bit of a mix of everything, really. You can also expect the Ben-Shui monks to appear again in the future of this story.
And, being one-step-ahead as usual, Nerissa is spying on Will through her mother and that will come into play for many chapters to come.
Things are starting to pick up as we are nearing the half-way point in this story, quite a few chapters before we reach it, and so much action and emotion awaits us all. And I've got special plans for the very next chapter. Until then, stay safe and stay healthy out there. I love you guys.