A force pierces through Lucas' chest and he finds himself at the base of the bathtub. He gasps in response. Instant mistake. Water flowing through his lungs, he plants both hands outside the rims of the bathtub and hoists himself to the surface. 'Air!' was his first thought, taking huge heaps of his salvation. He places a hand on his chest, calming his racing heart. He freezes.

'Clothes, dry.'

He's wearing a shirt. A fully dried shirt.

Lucas scans through his surroundings. He wasn't in the cabinet anymore. An intense fog covered the area, making it hard to see where Lucas is but he could deduce that it was a forest of some kind. Lucas lays back on a tree stump and the grass below his feet gave it away. Also, he could only make out faintly the shape of trees branching outwards, completely blocking out the sky.

So, the orb magically transports him to a foggy forest. What next?

Picking himself up and dusting the debris from his lower half, he wanders off hoping to find answers to his 's not like he had a destination to begin with but it's better than standing around and doing

nothing. But all around him was thin trees, gnarled branches and a lot of fog.

"Hello?! Is anyone there?! I have no idea what I'm doing here, a little help would be really useful."

No answer.

Okay, so now he knows he's alone. For now, that is.

The further on he walked, the denser the fog became. Lucas could hardly see what's in front of him. Would it have hurt Mr. Ono to give him a heads up before shoving the orb down his chest? No, it's

no time to blame the old man. He couldn't possibly know what would happen while merging with the orb. Just the consequences if Lucas fails.

Lucas stops walking. What the hell is he supposed to do? It's not like he can ask for help. Or maybe he can.

He places a hand on the ground. "Biokinesis!" He can't contact Mr. Ono and the gang but he could ask the forest for what he got back was radio silence. It's not that they won't respond, no, far worse than that. It's like they're dead. Lucas could tell, they weren't alive. His powers weren't totally useless. Now he knows he's not just stuck in a forest; he's stuck in a dead forest. That doesn't seem all too alarming now, does it?

"Urgh!" Lucas drops to his knees. And the fog wasn't any ordinary fog. He could feel it. The toxicity,it was tightening, sucking the energy dry from him. If Jessica was here, she could blow the fog away with a snap of a finger. Obviously, that'd be too easy. He had to be transported out here alone. The mush from the ground were slowly creeping their way up to Lucas' arms and feet. He didn't have the strength to fight back, too weakened by the fog. At this rate, he's going to be sucked up. No, he must try. He commands his hand to move but they won't listen.

Damn. 'Is it really gonna end here?' Lucas thinks to himself. He didn't get a chance to fight back...

"If you give up now, you're definitely going to lose to your orb." A female voice calls out from the distance.

A voice? Someone, someone's out there! He's not alone. "Who's out there? Reveal yourselves!"

"Hm, you shouldn't take that tone with a woman. I might reconsider helping you."

Dropping down from God knows where, Lucas and his supposed saviour's eyes lock. Lucas jumps a little, startled by her sudden appearance. Green, her eyes also glowed bright green. Hanging upside down on a branch, bright sunset locks cascade from her head. The approximation of their faces give Lucas a good look at the freckles dotting her cheeks. She glares her emerald eyes at him, analysing Lucas. Lucas stays still, eyes locked on her gaze but subconsciously moving away from her as she tilts closer to him. Her face explodes in a smile.

"I'm kidding!" the girl bellows a rich laugh.

"Huh?"

The girl hops down from the branch supporting her. "I'm here to help you win against your orb."

"Win against my orb?" Lucas couldn't help but repeat.

"You don't know? Well, I guess it can't be helped, it's your first time." The girl walks up behind Lucas, wrapping her arms around him from his back. The girl grunts, struggling to pull Lucas out from the gunk. "You and your orb are fighting for control over your body back in the real world." The girl finally pulls Lucas out and they both crash to the ground together, Lucas on top on his ginger-haired friend. Lucas is quick to get off her, already mouthing an apology and thanks.

"Sorry, here." Lucas extends a hand, getting the girl to her feet.

"No need. You're not the first guy to fall on my lap." The girl says with a flirty wink.

"Uh, okay...?"

"Oh right, no time for flirting." The girl chastises, hitting herself lightly on the head. Lucas had no comment.

"To put it bluntly, you're losing to your orb."

Completely ignoring this girl's weird attempt at courting, he's losing? "Then how am I going to win?"

The girl closes the gap between her and Lucas. She pokes his head lightly. "It's your mind. Take control back."

'Take control back of his mind'

Lucas ruminates on the girl's words. If he's stuck in his mind, then he should be able to do whatever he wants. It's a fight for control, proof of who's strongest, not with fists but with heart. Lucas must prove himself to his orb. It's his body and he's in charge.

In an instant, the fog disperses. Lucas is stunned for a second before curling his fist in determination. Just by willing for the fog to go away, his mind did just that.

"There you go!" the girl says, giving Lucas a pat on the back. "Keep up that mindset and you'll be out in no time."

Lucas gives a nervous chuckle at the girl's compliment. "I gotta thank you again. I would've been a goner if it wasn't for your help." He goes to shake her hand, but something pops up in his mind. Thisgirl, who is she? And why would she go out of her way to help him?

Already too late to find the answers, the trees surrounding them start to move. One immediately swings a branch at them, almost hitting them if Lucas didn't push himself and the girl away in time.

"Congratulations on making it to stage 2." The girl winks at Lucas, unfazed by the imminent danger. Not that she has any reason to worry, she's a manifestation of his mind or at least Lucas thinks she is? It's still unclear where she came from.

The trees break from their roots binding them to the ground, limping almost until their barks morph into legs. Their branches twist and turn, forming into arms, then outstretching to hands. The trees were morphing into semi-humanoid forms right before Lucas' eyes. No matter how much Lucas willed it so, they wouldn't go away or transform back. The orb wouldn't allow it.

There was only one thing he could do.

"Elemental energy of the forest!"

"Bark blast!" His fists were sent flying, hitting one of the morphed trees at the centre of its chest, knocking it back.

"Ya know, you didn't have to transform into your gormiti form to do that?" The girl asks from behind him.

Lucas regenerates his fist. "I know, it just feels natural to fight in this form."

Another morphed creature runs towards Lucas; however, Lucas deflects any attempt of attack, shooting his fists and flinging the creature away knocking him and his friends down like a stack of bowling pins.

"It's my mind after all. Why shouldn't I give myself the advantage?"

Lucas sends another flurry of attacks, taking another row of monsters down. He's going to get out and back to the real world no matter what. If he believed so, then he knows he'll make it out. All he's got to do is believe.

"To break it down, I'm stuck inside my head in a mind battle between my orb and I of who has the strongest conviction to take back control of my body, thus evolving my powers as an earth gormiti, fully mastering the pure essence of the earth itself if I want to get out of here and back to my friends?"

"Yep. That's the gist of it! You catch on real fast, Nick!" says Nick's accomplice, dosing his feet in the cold waters of the oasis.

After the intense weight of Nick's orb plunged into his body, Nick found himself in a vast desolate desert fully dressed in dry clothes. Nick wandered the desert alone, sun beaming down on him wetting his clothes once time but in sweat and mostly around his armpits. Right about to pass out from the intense heat, a young fellow, brown hair slicked back with what Nick predicts an enormous amount of hair gel, came to help Nick, giving him a bottle of water. Nick chugged it down like it where life essence itself. His saviour laughed at him (seriously, can he blame Nick?) before leading him to an Oasis. Nick swore he travelled that same path and there was no oasis when he first passed there.

Regardless, it's here the boy gave Nick the rundown on his current predicament. With this new knowledge, it alleviated any doubt Nick had. A battle of minds? Pfft, easy-peasy. If there was one thing Nick knew better, it was his mind. All he had to do is think of Kagami and nothing could sway his conviction.

"Don't worry about it too much Nick, for you have me to guide you! I, too, fought the earth orb and obtained a mighty victory! No help whatsoever!" the boy chuckles to himself.

Nick isn't really worried in the slightest, though he isn't going to come out and say it to this guy's face. Though it is weird that this guy seemingly came out of nowhere to save Nick's life. Insert question mark on life because Nick isn't 100% sure he would've died given that this is all in his mind. Back on track, this guy being here in Nick's mind was strange. He'd expect a fake Toby or someone else from his life to save him, not a stranger. Wait, didn't he say he went through the same thing?

"So, you've merged with the earth orb too?" Nick had to ask.

The boy nods. "It seems really scary and dangerous but controlling that awesome power? Worth it."

That puts two and two together.

Mr. Ono continues. "Back when I was a lord, my companion did the same and I believe you can too."

Mr. Ono's friend, it's him.

"You're the previous lord of the earth," Nick says matter of fact. Nick's right, he knows it.

The boy smiles profusely. "Yep! You've probably heard tales of my great chivalry. I've had to have gone down in the books in the primal pad."

Should Nick tell him he has no idea who this guy is? Heck, none of the earth gormiti seem to know him. He's not mentioned in the tomes of the primal pad and Nick's read the whole catalogue. In Gorm this guy is an utter nobody. Shouldn't break his spirits. If this is the guy Mr. Ono was talking about, then would it mean if Nick fails, he'd be stuck here,trapped in his own mind? But that can't be right, Ono's friend said he achieved a 'mighty victory'. Or does he not realise he failed?

"Say, if I fail and the orb takes over, would I be stuck here? Or rather, if you won against the orb, why are you here? Shouldn't you be back in the real world?" Nick poses.

The guy lets out a huge guffaw, vibrating his deep vocals out to the world. Nick really didn't know how to respond. Was the guy in denial?

Nonetheless, Nick's met with a swift punch in the arm. Nick supposes it was a friendly punch but that doesn't negate that it hurt a lot, like it really hurt.

"Oh Nick, I'm not the real lord of earth that beat the orb. You could say I'm the copy of the original."

"A copy?" If he's a copy, then there needs to be a source. The source must be the orb. "Incredible! The orb is like a database, storing information. Does it have copies of the other previous earth lords?"

The boy shrugs his shoulders.

"Wait, if you're a copy from the orb, why help me?" Nick is in a battle with the orb. It made no sense to go out feeding information to the enemy or help him out in the desert. And that is just going by what this guy has told him.

"I don't know, I just felt like it. Or maybe it's what the original would've done."

Abruptly ending their conversation, the ground shakes violently. Humanoid creatures emerge from the sand surrounding Nick and the copy. The copy doesn't seem the least bit fazed.

"Nick, this is where your true test begins." The copy says, walking past Nick towards the desert. The monsters ignore him, setting their sights on Nick.

"Wha-? You're going to leave me here?"

"Pfft! You expect me to hold your hand and guide you through like a baby?"

What's with the shift in attitude?

"It's your trial. From this point onwards, you're on your own." The copy stops in his tracks. "However, since you're not as clever as me, I'll give you a small hint." The copy's whole demeanour changes, no longer smiling. He's dead serious. "Don't let go of your desires. Keep them close."

A huge blow of wind comes out of nowhere, throwing sand everywhere. Nick couldn't see a thing. "Make sure to get back to the real world and tell the same thing to Takahashi for me." The copy said though Nick couldn't pinpoint where his voice came from. "Say it's from Adam. I'm sure Adam in the real world would want Takahashi to hear it too."

The wind stops and the sand clears out. The monsters were still here but Adam, the copy, is long gone.

Don't let go of your desires, huh?

"Elemental energy of the stone!" Nick screams from the top of his lungs, a bright flash of lights surrounding him, transforming him into his gormiti form.

"Okay, then I'll do just that. Sit tight and watch, Adam."

Nick summons his stone hammers, swinging his arms flinging the creatures left and right, turning them into dust in mere split seconds.

"Wait for me, Kagami," he says out loud, no hint of embarrassment since he's in his own mind. He'll be out of here in no time and then, he'll get to Kagami.

Shujin returns to the apartment with Kinkaede. With Mr. Ono gone to…wherever, he goes to skip work. The old geezer's car was gone too, so it was completely certain Shujin wouldn't have an awkward confrontation with the man. However, Shujin wouldn't spend too much time here. He just came to pick up more of his belongings and scoot. His time staying with Kinkaede is up in the air. A talk between them had to happen eventually, Shujin couldn't be mad at the old man forever. Unless Kagami comes back first. When? The old man never gave a date.

"Damnit, why can't he tell me how long she will be gone?!" Shujin curses already finished packing his spare clothes. In contrast, Kinkaede sits quietly by the sitting room sofa, pulling out his laptop.

"Seriously, how can Kagami just go up and return to her father and the old man allows it!" Shujin rants, brushing a hand through his hair. "And the bastard won't tell me why that bastard wants Kagami back. Seriously, what the hell is the old man thinking?"

Kinkade silently types on his laptop, nodding his head here and there.

"What if the bastard changes his mind and wants Kagami to stay in Japan? The girl would be miserable living with him. I thought the plan was to keep Kagami away from her father and he just hands her back, no questions asked?"

Kinkaede nods his head.

"Shit, I don't know why that bastard wants Kagami back in the first place! The old man won't say a word."

Kinkaede nods.

"Just, oh isn't the odon lovely or hey maybe we should change up the menu. Bastard! He must be hiding something."

Kinkaede nods.

"Are you even listening?!" Shujin asks, perturbed over the constant nodding and no input.

Kinkaede stops what he's doing. "Of course, I'm listening. This is the part where you say 'Why can't the old bastard tell me what's going on'" Kinkaede says, giving a pretty good impression of Shujin, down to the accent and rasp of his voice.

Shujin looks confused. "How do you know that?"

"Because you've been going on and on about the old man for days now, Shujin."

Has he really been going off like a broken record to Kinkaede? "Uh…sorry. It must've been annoying to listen to me ramble on." Shujin takes a seat beside Kinkaede.

"Here, make it up to me." Kinkaede turns his laptop towards Shujin. On the screen was a website and pictures filled with a variation of flowers.

"For our wedding," Kinkaede explains. "Which do you want?"

Shujin scan through the scene. He wasn't so much of a flower person. The flowers on the display were pretty…and colourful. That's as far as Shujin could describe.

"I don't know. That one?" Shujin points to the blue flowers. He didn't possess the attention to detail that Kinkaede did, at least for anything that doesn't concern food. He couldn't give a damn about what flowers they have at their wedding; he just wants to marry the man he wants to spend the rest of his life with.

"Please take this seriously."

Shujin scoffs, "I am! But I don't care what flowers we have, as long as we get married then…uh how do I put this?"

Kinkaede rests a hand on Shujin's calf. "Don't worry about it, I get you." Kinkaede's kind smile radiates off on Shujin. Unbecoming of his usual scary self, Shujin shyly returns a smile to Kinkaede.

He places a hand above Kinkaede's. "Spending my life with you, that's all I need."

Shujin didn't care for a marriage ceremony, they could've applied for a marriage certification and ended it there. However, Kinkaede insisted on a ceremony. Shujin only went with it because Kinkaede wanted it so damn much. "It's a big deal for me, Shujin. I want to celebrate our marriage and what we have together." Shujin recalls Kinkaede telling him.

"Still, it's your wedding too. You can't leave all the planning to me."

"You can't be serious…"

"Well, I am. I want you involved in every step of the way."

Shujin pouts, knowing damn well he doesn't have the option to say no. Regardless, it'll make Kinkaede happy.

Shujin not really wanting anything from the wedding was a bit of a stretch though. He'd want Kagami to be there as his bridesmaid. At least, he hoped she'd be there.

"Bark blast!" Lucas shouts out, hitting one of the creatures dead in the face. He continues to run, being chased by a horde of tree monsters he now dubs as tree freaks. It wasn't that he was tired or drained. This isn't the real world after all. But it did feel like a constant chase of cat and mouse. And the constant part was getting to him.

"Bark blast!" Another round of shots hit the monsters, but more emerged for the group. Damnit, why aren't they letting up?

"Jungle attack!" his feet splice into roots, sinking underneath the ground and emerging from the other side by the horde. Lucas grabs what would be a fistful of them, cursing them under the weight of his vines. But still, it didn't seem he did anything to their numbers. More and more would show up.

Letting his guard down, one speeds right up to him, tackling him to the ground. A little winded at first, Lucas quickly collects himself, shooting another round of bark blast at the weasel. He runs off.

'This is my mind, my head!'

He's gotta keep remembering that. He should have control as the girl said, but honestly, it doesn't feel that way. These monsters weren't anything, but there's just so many of them. He beats one and another ten show up in its place.

"Is that the orb's plan? To keep me in an endless battle with these things?" In that case, how is Lucas supposed to make it out? He can't will them away, he's tried but the orb fights back. Lucas can only fight them, but that isn't getting him anywhere.

"Aah!" Lucas stops in his tracks. A vast field of green is in sight. He's out of the forest.

Finally! It felt like he was trapped there for hours. However, he couldn't celebrate just yet, or at all. The horde emerges from the forest too and Lucas just realized the sheer number of monsters out to get him. Hundreds upon hundreds emerged, enough to fill an army.

Lucas' feet spring to action, racing away from the monsters. Oh, but there was more. From the other side came another army of ravenous beasts. Lucas is locked in place. They're weak, yes, but that many? He couldn't.

"Jungle feet!" Lucas calls, propelling himself upwards towards the sky. He hardened his vines, stabilizing himself, so they couldn't knock him off balance. That should keep them at it didn't. Instead, they begin to climb up to Lucas, using his roots.

Lucas' hands begin to tremble. His view was spinning, turning into a mirage of blues, whites, yellows and oranges.

'It's my mind! So, why the hell can't I do anything?!'

Is this how everything ends. He loses and the orb takes over.

Then what next?

"I don't know, but we both know that we wouldn't want that to happen."

The girl! But where is she? Lucas can hear her voice but –

"I'm right behind you!"

"Aargh!" He turns, frightened, and right as she said, she was behind him…floating. Oh, right, none of this is real.

"Anyways, at the rate, you are going now, you're definitely not going back to the real world."

"Thanks for pointing out the obvious," Lucas remarks, regretting looking down.

"Look, I'm here to help you right? You gotta take control back!"

"For your information, I've been trying to do that for the past – I don't even know how long I've been here for!?"

"Yeah, time works differently here. Hours here could be days in the real world."

"DAYS?" Lucas repeats, looking at the girl like she's said the most vapid thing he's ever heard in his life. Great, what bullshit excuse can Mr. Ono make up to his parents? Lucas didn't think this through did he? Mr. Ono said it'd be bad but this?

"Oh..oh no." the girl says to herself. Lucas, too overwhelmed with doubt, doesn't hear her. The monsters somehow gained strength, climbing faster than before.

The girl cups Lucas' cheeks tightly, bewildering him out of his thoughts. "Whatever you do, don't think negative thoughts, really, don't!"

"Uh, I don't think that's gonna help and could you please stop squeezing my cheeks, it hurts."

The girl tights her grip instead. "I'm serious. You can't lose your resolve not here, not now."

The girl looks Lucas dead in the eye. "You have friends and family waiting out there for you. You've got a world and a girl to save. Losing here…you can do better. Lucas, you're stronger than that."

"Uh…" Usually, Lucas would have a response, but he was lost for words. It's not that anyone didn't believe in him or anything but with being caught up in his fear, he has forgotten why he came here in the first place.

"You're the lord of the forest, this is your orb, your power. Take that power and protect your friends!"

A fist made of vine bursts from the ground the size of an entire building complex. The monsters are taken aback but in a flash the fist comes down, destroying the poor monsters in its vicinity. No time to waste, it lays carnage to the monsters. Another fist bursts from the ground, then another and more till the entire field is covered with fists.

The monsters climbing Lucas' roots, reach his thighs. In some sort of desperate attempt at the carnage laying waste they try to stop him but before they can reach any further, a slew of strong thick branches pop from Lucas' roots, impaling the few that dared climb or knocking back the others to the ground, meeting the fates of their comrades, crushed mercifully by a large fist.

Nick, Jessica, Toby, Razzle, Mr. Ono, the old sage, Eliza. They're all waiting for him. He couldn't let them down. No, he won't.

"I am getting out of here; I'm not losing."

The girl smiles, resting a hand on his chest. "You know what to do."

Lucas nods. "I do."

The girl blinks at him. "You've got this." Then she disappears just like that.

Lucas closes his eyes, raising his hands. It's his power to take, and he's going to do exactly that. The roots Lucas planted, thicken and grow, slowly creeping up to his body, covering him in bark. His hands, already bark, separate into tiny branches, leaves growing in a snap. Lucas was literally turning into a tree.

To live and survive, a plant needs two things. Sunlight and nutrients from the ground. Since this place was created by his orb, then he'd absorb his orb's nutrients. Suck it dry till there is nothing left.

After a gruesome battle, the plain green field is no more. A great tree, stretching its long neck to the heavens takes centre stage amidst a field of hands. Just as the tree, all pointing towards the now, shimmering sun, the light.

Lucas opens his eyes. He's back at the cabinet.

a/n: I guess this is the first Lucas centered chapter? Yay for that..?

No Toby or Jessica but don't fret, they'll return next chapter with more new character(s). Ya'll probably already know how the next chapter will turn out based on this one.

Like before, most of next chapter is already written (probably would've gotten it done already if it wasn't for Nick's section being a pain to write ala i'm in rewriting hell. ) so here's a preview that is most definitely subjected to change:

"Do it! Take me out! This might be your chance to get out!"

"You think I don't know that!" Jessica shouts, wincing a bit as the pain from her side vibrates harder.

"Of course I want...nrgh.. to protect the Gorm!"

"No, no…" Nick puts some distance between them. Why is he suddenly so…nervous?

Thanks to finalfanaticgorm for continuing to beta read this monster fic that'll probably go over 300k words.

щ(ಥДಥщ) - me writing Nick's section.