Hi everyone. Welcome back to J-WITCH.

First of all, I apologize for the delay. I just took something of an extended break. No special reason, just an extra week off from my usual schedule.

Last chapter was quite something, wasn't it? Well, this chapter is going to be quite interesting too as I've got more than a few surprises planned which I think you'll enjoy.

Now, without further delay, let's get into it.

Power Intoxicate

It had been a whole day since the attack on Zamballa orchestrated by Nerissa and the Demon Sorcerers. A whole day since Drago and Miranda had been captured. During that time, Uncle and Yan Lin chose to stay in Zamballa along with Kadma to inform of her of everything that had happened recently regarding Nerissa's return and Drago's story. Currently, the queen of Zamballa was with her former teammates at the top of her pyramid.

"Kandrakar has fallen…" Kadma began to list off. "The Oracle and the rest of the Council are imprisoned… Nerissa has somehow raised Cassidy's spirit and enthralled her along with Halinor… But most surprising of all… Drago's survival. Not only that, but the Drago whom we have imprisoned actually hails from the future of an alternate timeline and came to our present to exact revenge on the Guardians for the death of his Nerissa."

"Yeah, that pretty much sums it all up." Yan Lin confirmed.

"And the Drago from our present? He currently resides in a pocket dimension on Earth inhabited by a tribe of people under the protection of the Thunderbird spirit?" Kadma asked.

"Yes." Uncle nodded. "But he shows no signs of going down the same path of his evil self."

"And said evil self, tried to eliminate his younger version, without Nerissa's knowledge." Kadma said as she put a finger to her chin.

"Yes. And while Nerissa and the demons may have been beaten back, but they will try again." Yan Lin said. "Even if she and Drago are currently at odds with each other, I have little doubt she will try to retrieve her son."

"And who is to say we can't use that to our advantage?" Kadma wondered. "Find a way to use Drago against Nerissa…"

"Even if Drago can be used against Nerissa, you must not lose focus on Demon Sorcerers." Uncle advised. "Each one has the capability to inflict genocide multiple times over!"

"And yet they were soundly defeated." Kadma said. "They were defeated not only here, but also against the Thunderbird tribe, and at the hands of your family before this new generation of Guardians, correct Jin? They may be powerful, but they are not invincible."

"That doesn't mean we shouldn't take them seriously, Kadma." Yan Lin advised. "Especially Drago's father. Shendu's cunning rivals and even surpasses that of Nerissa."

"Which is why we will take advantage of their current divide and strike them when we have the chance." Kadma stated as she turned around and proceeded to leave the chamber.

"And where are you going?" Uncle asked questionably.

"To begin taking that advantage." Kadma replied, keeping her back turned before exiting, leaving Uncle and Yan Lin alone as they shared concerning glances.

"Glad to see she's as hard-headed as ever." Yan Lin said unsurprising. "I would have hoped being burdened with the responsibility as queen of this world would have humbled her somewhat."

Uncle gave his titular scoff. "Kadma spend too much time in palace. Lives like queen, acts like queen. No humility at all."

"But she's still our friend, Jin." Hay Lin said to her ex. "Whatever tension remains between us, we need to put it aside to work with her and stop Nerissa and the demons before they do any more damage."

"Uncle understands that." Jin nodded. "But Uncle also know that arrogance is a dangerous foe, especially to one's self."

Meanwhile, in the lowermost level of the pyramid, several Zamballans, along with Caleb, stood guard surrounding a glowing energy cube that had Drago and Miranda trapped inside, the pair having a bowl of fruit to serve as food.

Miranda picked up something that looked like a grapefruit and was far from impressed. "This is the best Zamballa has to offer? I would have preferred at least some meat."

"Be grateful that you are eating at all." One Zamballan said.

Drago lightly squeezed a fruit in his hand to puncture its skin and leak out some juice, causing him to smirk somewhat. "Surprised your sticking around here. But I do appreciate the company, Caleb."

"Don't flatter yourself." The rebel said, keeping his back turned towards his half-brother. "I just can't afford to take my eyes off you."

"Nothing wrong with some quality time between brothers." Drago grinned.

"You are not my brother." Caleb stated with slight growl, while the half-demon's grin only grew.

"Would you say that to the other me? And don't pretend. We both know your precious Cornelia told you the whole story." Drago continued. "Would you disown him like you did me?"

"That's none of your business." Caleb turned his gaze slightly towards Drago but looked away a second later. "So just shut up."

"Speaking of siblings, you met your girl's little sister?" Drago went on. "A cute little toddler, that one."

"Shut up." Caleb was really getting annoyed at this point.

"I wouldn't mind getting to know her myself, being future in-laws and all." Drago couldn't stop sneering. "I do like kids… well done. What about you? How do you like your meat? Medium rare? Maybe we can have both blondes for dinner, but I call dibs on the older one, what with her more developed and juicier thighs and all."

"I said shut up!" Caleb finally turned around and put his hand on the hilt of his katana, ready to draw it instantly. The Zamballans would have intervened had Kadma not arrived on the scene.

"That's enough!" The queen of Zamballa stepped forward. "Caleb, was it? Take a break, I'll handle this."

"With pleasure." Caleb said, glaring at Drago one more time before walking away and leaving the dungeon.

Kadma then found herself staring at the face of the son of her former leader. As she did, her mind couldn't help but race back to when she saw the infant Drago many years ago. And with that memory came many complicated feelings, such as the memory of Cassidy's passing shortly after. But she quickly pushed down that sentimentality and put on a stern glare as she looked at the half-demon in front of her.

"Drago." She acknowledged.

"Sup, Auntie Kad." He waved causally.

"You have done a lot of damage, and not just here in Zamballa." Kadma stated. "Innocent blood is on your hands and no amount of repentance on your part will wash it away."

"What makes you think I want to wash it away?" Drago questioned. "And besides, your one to talk. From what Mom's said, you weren't exactly the perfect Guardian you pretend to be."

"Still a far cry improvement over the murderer that your mother has become." Kadma replied.

"If you're here to lecture me then save your breath." Drago said, leaning back against the wall of his cube.

"I'm aware of your circumstance." Kadma began. "You come from another timeline and came here to enact revenge on the current generation of Guardians. Though I do find myself surprised. If you had the ability to travel through time, why not go back further? Find a way to prevent your mother from killing Cassidy and preventing her from going down the path she is currently on."

That caused Drago's smile to vanish, which then caused Kadma to smirk.

"You couldn't, could you? But you wanted to." The former Earth Guardian stepped closer. "I see it in your eyes. Underneath all that bluster, underneath all that fire and hate, all you want is a loving family. That's the reason you tried to eliminate your younger self, so you can have your mother all to yourself. But you won't find any familial love on your father's side, and you know it." Drago growled at that, which caused Kadma's smirk to grow. "Your mother is a lost cause, has been for a long time. And with the recent stunt you just pulled, going behind her back and lying to her, I doubt she'll be open to taking you back. But if it's family you seek… Perhaps I can provide?"

Drago scoffed. "You? Don't flatter yourself. You're not mom material."

"How do you know if you won't even give me a chance?" Kadma questioned. "Before Cassidy passed, our whole team did have the idea of raising you together."

"I know. Mom told me." Drago replied before glaring at her. "She also told me how you were dead set against it and even considered dropkicking me off a cliff."

"I wouldn't use those exact words, but yes I was against the idea at first." Kadma said. "But clearly being 'dropkicked off a cliff' isn't enough to kill you. And the fact that you wield Quintessence on top of your father's fire magic… that alone is proof that perhaps you are worth raising. You just need a proper mentor."

"And you're volunteering?" Drago questioned skeptically.

"I have wielded the Heart of Zamballa for many years, so I'd say I'm more than adept when it comes to wielding magic." Kadma granted. "Of course, your only other option is to rot in my dungeon for all your crimes."

Drago growled once again, but before any argument could begin, the castle quickly rocked as the ceiling chipped slightly, the chips falling to the ground and alerting Kadma and the guarding Zamballans.

"What is happening?" Kadma questioned as Ironwood quickly entered the dungeon.

"My queen, the demons have returned and are attacking the castle!" Ironwood informed.

"Stay here and guard Drago. I will deal with the defilers myself." Kadma said as she used teletransporting to zap herself out of the dungeon, leaving Drago and Miranda still trapped in the magic cube with Ironwood and the other Zamballans guarding them.

"And here I thought Wong had a big ego." Miranda commented before smirking towards her lover, who had a smirk to mirror her own.

Uncle and Yan Lin ran outside, standing at the top of the pyramid to look in shock at the sight of raining fire and lightning bolts, all courtesy of Shendu and Tchang Zu, alongside Hsi Wu, as they threw their respective long-ranged attacks at the pyramid, causing explosions to erupt all over.

"Aiya!" Uncle exclaimed.

Yan Lin then saw Blunk hiding around the corner of the entrance and quickly pulled him out. "Blunk! Fold to Earth and summon Jackie and the girls! Now!"

"There is no need for that." Kadma appeared in the air, hovering on her leaf. "I am more than capable of handling this."

Before anyone could protest, the queen of Zamballa hovered up into the air to confront the flying demons, all of whom shot their respective elemental powers at her. However, Kadma raised a protective magic barrier around herself before reaching backwards to telekinetically call thousands upon thousands of leaves from all the trees behind the pyramid and thrusted her hand forward to send the storm of leaves at the trio of demons. Shendu and Tchang Zu retaliated with blasts of fire and lightning respectively while Hsi Wu flew straight up; but Kadma split the storm of leaves into three separate streams; while two of which were clashed against Shendu and Tchang Zu's attacks, the third shot upwards to catch up with and overwhelm Hsi Wu, slicing him all over and knocking him out of the sky.

As Shendu and Tchang Zu were focused on the attacks in front of them; Kadma quickly teletransported behind Tchang Zu and jammed the Heart of Zamballa into his side to unleash a point-blank blast of pure magic power to send him falling of his thundercloud and onto the hard ground below. Shendu then turned to her and unleashed his fire breath upon Kadma, who spun her staff around like a helicopter blade to deflect the flames before raising her fingers to call upon several stone projectiles from the ground to strike at Shendu from below and knock him out of the air.

Kadma's attention was soon drawn to the sight of her forest being uprooted by an unseen force that made its way closer to the pyramid, which was then later revealed to be Po Kong in the form of a giant cobra, though Kadma seemed quicker to counter by summoning a cluster of tree roots and vines to bind and ensnare Po Kong and force her to the ground. However, the former Earth Guardian was enveloped an aura of dark energy before an intense gravitational force pulled her hard to the ground, creating a large crack on impact as Kadma was brought to her knees, all thanks to Tso Lan who hovered over her.

Bai Tza and Xiao Fung both appeared at the front and back of Nerissa and unleashed a stream of water and a cyclone of wind respectively at her. Both attacks came together to completely freeze Kadma. With her appearing to be trapped, the ground nearby exploded as Dai Gui jumped out and pulled back both of his fists to try and smash her while she was frozen. Thankfully, she teletransported out of her icy imprisonment just as Dai Gui smashed and shattered the ice.

Re-appearing above all four Demon Sorcerers, Kadma summoned more roots and vines from the ground to bind and ensnare all of the demons, including the recovering Shendu, Tchang Zu, and Hsi Wu.

"These are the Demon Sorcerers that caused Jin and his family so much trouble?" Kadma questioned mockingly. "Here I thought you'd be something of a challenge. Little wonder Drago was captured so easily, he has rather weak kin."

"Naturally wielding the full power of a Mystic Heart would make one rather strong." Shendu granted before sneering. "Wouldn't you agree, my dear Nerissa?"

Right as he said that, Nerissa herself teletransported directly behind Kadma and hovered in the air alongside her.

"Speak of the devil. Are you finally ready to fight your own battles, old friend?" Kadma challenged.

"Give me back my son, and you and I can settle this ourselves." Nerissa glared.

"You want him back? You'll have to fight me for him." Kadma wielded the Heart of Zamballa once again as it glowed a bright purple.

The former Quintessence Guardian narrowed her eyes. "Then another time." She used her power to teletransport herself as well as the other Demon Sorcerers away.

"Check on Drago." Kadma looked up towards Yan Lin, Uncle, and Blunk. "I want to make certain he's still imprisoned and that this wasn't a distraction."

Though the three nodded as they re-entered the pyramid, they couldn't help but feel uneasy. "Um… Blunk confused. Demons ran away too quickly. When Blunk sees demons fight, there always big explosions!" He shot up his arms for emphasis. "But demons run and no boom?"

"I agree. That was too easy." Yan Lin said seriously.

Uncle glowered. "Nerissa… what are you planning?"

Nerissa and the Demon Sorcerers then reappeared in their underground cave hideout. "We were soundly defeated. I imagine Kadma will be quite proud with herself." Xiao Fung said with a sneer.

"Then everything is according to plan." Nerissa confirmed with a sneer of her own.

Tchang Zu growled for probably the hundredth time. "Pretending defeat at the hands of that arrogant wretch! This is intolerable!"

"A necessary evil, brother." Shendu reigned him in. "In order the claim the Heart of Zamballa, we need its queen to grow more confident."

"Kadma and the Heart aside, we really should do something about Drago once he's retrieved." Hsi Wu said.

"As I told you, I will deal with him once we have." Nerissa reminded in annoyance.

"But can we expect him to just remain trapped?" Po Kong wondered.

"Indeed. The boy has proven to be every bit as cunning as his parents." Tso Lan agreed. "He will no doubt use his predicament to his own advantage."

"I will tunnel underneath the pyramid and retrieve him myself." Dai Gui said.

"Kadma will see it coming being a wielder of your element, brother. You would only let yourself be captured." Bai Tza told him.

"Where we stand, there is nothing we can do about Drago." Shendu stated. "So, instead of complaining about what we can't control, we focus on what we can, and that's bringing Kadma and the Heart of Zamballa into our thrall."

"Which is now only a matter of time." Nerissa said evilly.

Earth – Heatherfield

Will was currently spending the day with her father, Thomas. The two were in the rooftop swimming pool of the apartment that the latter had rented out for his stay in Heatherfield and appeared to be in a race, and Will was already way ahead of her dad, having already made it to one end of the pool before turning spinning around, planting her feet on the wall and pushing herself out toward the other end, which she made in record time.

"Ha!" Will emerged from the water, grabbing the ledge of the pool. "Will Vandom wins! No contest! Only one question remains, will the pool evaporate before Thomas Vandom finishes the race?" She joked as her father made it to the end.

"Hey, I'm not that slow." He replied with a half-grin.

"Oh I know. I'm just so fast." Will chuckled.

"No kidding. Seriously, Will, you're like record-breaking fast." Thomas commented, sounding very impressed.

"Thanks, been keeping in shape. Taking Kung Fu lessons with Jade's uncle." Will replied. 'That and constantly being in life-or-death battles doesn't hurt either.'

"Kung Fu, huh? Here I thought my little girl was dreaming about swimming in the Olympics." Thomas said. "You gonna try out for any martial arts tournaments or one of those Kung Fu movies now?"

"Oh, the Olympic dream is still there." Will responded. "The Kung Fu stuff is just some exercise, both in body and mind. Plus, it's a great way for me and my friends to hang out. Right now though, I'm just happy to be spending some quality alone time with my dad." She gave him a brief hug.

"Yeah… alone." Thomas said as they broke off. "See, that's kinda what I wanted to talk to you about."

Right as he said that, someone else came onto the scene. It was a woman with slightly tan skin, dark brunet hair and green eyes, and she wore a bathing suit as well and had a towel with her.

"Oh? Expecting some company?" Will asked as she saw the woman.

"Hi." The woman waved.

"Uh… you're early." Thomas said in surprise, much to Will's confusion.

"I am? But you said… nevermind, I can come back later." The woman looked like she was about to leave.

"N-no-no-no! It's fine!" Thomas quickly said as he got out of the pool.

"Um… what's going on?" Will asked.

"I guess I just… lost track of time." Thomas said as he stepped next to the woman and put his hand around her hip. "Will, this is Sarina Sanchez, she's my friend. Girlfriend. Fiancé. We're getting married."

With that, Will's eyes became circles as her mouth hung open. Fiancé?! Did she just hear that right?!

"Hi Will." Sarina greeted friendly. "I've really been looking forward to meeting the other woman in Tony's life."

"I… uh…" Will took a moment to process it, while also getting a sense of déjà vu. This felt very similar to her finding out about her mom dating Professor Collins. The only difference being that her mother kept it secret and Will found out on her own, while at least her dad just told her. But it was still a shock. "Sorry I just… I just need a minute…" She got out of the pool. "W-when… how…?"

"Oh, we met about a year ago while I was traveling in Brazil." Thomas explained. "We were on the same tour, I was taking in the sights and she was there for the photography. She's a total whiz with the camera."

"I try my best." Sarina said humbly.

"I…" Will was still trying to process it all when she heard her phone ring from her duffle bag on a nearby pool bench, complete with Ed talking to her.

"Will, Jade's calling. It sounds urgent."

"One sec." Will said to her dad and soon-to-be stepmom before running to her bag to answer the phone. "Yeah?"

"Need you at the shop, Bestie. Heading back to Zamballa." Jade told her.

"I'll be right there." Will hung up with a sense of relief. Out of the awkward moment and into the more comfortable and potentially life-or-death battle against genocidal demons. "Sorry, Dad! I really gotta go! Gotta meet up with the girls for study group!"

"Uh, sure. Okay. We'll talk later." Thomas accepted.

"Thanks, I…" Will picked up her bag, but it slipped in her wet hands and caused all het stuff, including her clothes and the Heart of Kandrakar to spill on the ground. "Crap." She muttered as she tried to collect her stuff.

"Here, let me help." Sarina offered as she kneeled down to help pick up Will's stuff and happened to pick up the Heart of Kandrakar. "Huh, this is pretty."

Will gasped slightly and instinctively took the Heart, rather quickly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean…" Sarina tried.

"No, it's fine it's. It's just… Personal." Will said as she put the Heart away with the rest of her stuff. "Sorry Dad, talk later?"

"Sure thing, kiddo. Text me when you're free." Thomas said as Will quickly left.

Sarina happened to approach her fiancé. "That didn't quite go the way I thought. But maybe you could have at least told her beforehand?"

"Figured she'd like the surprise, but maybe you're right." Thomas acknowledged.

Uncle's Rare Finds

"A fiancé?" Jade questioned in surprise as she, the other girls, along with Matt, Jackie, Tohru, and Blunk, were gathered at the shop's back room. It seemed like that Will wanted to get this off her chest first before going into battle.

"Yeah, just sprang that out of nowhere!" Will continued as she paced back-and-forth. "And where does he get off proposing before I even met her?!"

"Yesh, first your mom dates Collins and keeps it secret, now this? You're like a magnet for weird family drama." Matt said, causing Will to give him the stink-eye. "Sorry! Sorry! Bad joke!"

Jackie put a hand on Will's shoulder to calm her down. "I'm sorry that happened Will."

Will sighed as she calmed down. "Thanks."

"Whoa! Nightmare thought here! Caleb's dad fell for a disguised Nerissa, remember?" Cornelia reminded. "What if Will's dad…?"

"Do not go there!" Taranee cut her off. "Remember what happened when we thought Collins was working for Phobos? We nearly put the guy in the hospital!"

"And Nerissa is on Zamballa with the demons." Tohru added.

"Yes. Demons and Nerissa attack. But Queeny scare them off." Blunk confirmed. "Blunk saw it all."

"But Nerissa can hop between dimensions like we can, remember?" Irma reminded

"Or, what if this Sarina-lady is a real person, but she's brainwashed? Kinda like what happened to me and Jackie." Matt wondered.

"Don't you think you're all over-exaggerating about this?" Jackie asked, quickly picking up on Will's own growing distress at the thought of this.

"Drago does have it out for us, especially Will." Alchemy reminded. "And we know he's not afraid to get personal with us."

"He did kidnap Will's mom." Hay Lin added.

"But we caught Drago. He's doing time in the magic slammer on Zamballa." Jade countered. "And besides, we gave the rest of his family a pretty scary warning not to mess with our families again."

"You really think Shendu of all demons is actually gonna listen to that?" Cornelia questioned. "Look, I'm really hoping that I'm wrong here. But after everything those guys put us through… I don't know, I just would rather be safe than sorry. You of all people know what Shendu is capable of, Jackie."

Jackie knew that Cornelia was at least right in that regard. Shendu has proven to be viciously cunning on several occasions and has managed to trick and manipulate so many people in the past, including himself and his whole family. And Nerissa was just as much a puppet-master as he was, not to mention Drago does have a persona grudge against Will due to her alternate self for killing the Nerissa from his timeline. He could also sense that this was getting to Will, briefly looking to see the uncertainty in her own eyes.

"How about this? I'll call Captain Black, and he'll perform a background check." Jackie offered. "We'll know for sure if this Sarina is a real person or not."

"But what if she is real and is brainwashed?" Matt asked. "Pretty sure government investigations don't cover that."

"Detective Blunk report!" The Passling stood up on the desk and saluted. "Blunk have strong nose. Can smell magic. Blunk will follow Sarina-lady and smell for any spell, or if Nerissa or Drago have been around Sarina-lady."

"That… is actually a really good idea." Jade said. "Blunk's got a nose that can put bloodhounds to shame. No offense Scruffy." She said to her dog, who barked in response.

"Alright. I'll call Augustus right away and let him know, and we'll head to Zamballa soon after." Jackie said.

Will sighed with relief, at least that was covered. She hoped that they were just being paranoid right now. Worst case scenario, Sarina was really either Nerissa in disguise or being controlled by her, and Will would probably end up revealing her Guardian identity to her dad like what happened with her mother. But hopefully that wasn't the case. Still though, this was really starting to get to her. First Drago kills Jewel, Nerissa mind controls Jackie and Matt, then she targets Jade, then Drago kidnaps and almost kills her mother, and now her dad could be a potential target? It felt like everyone in her family was in danger, and Nerissa and Drago were at the source of it all. Oh, what she wouldn't give to finally be rid of them once and for all.

Zamballa – Kadma's Pyramid

Arriving via Folding, the girls were all transformed into their respective Guardian forms of J-WITCH, as they stepped into the jungle world alongside Jackie, Tohru, Matt, and Alchemy. Much like before, due to the twelve-hour time difference, it was now night time in Zamballa just as it was daytime on Earth.

They were immediately greeted by Uncle, Yan Lin, Caleb, Kadma, and Ironwood. Hay Lin immediately went to her grandmother.

"You doing okay here, Grandma?" Hay Lin asked.

"Kadma is a wonderful hostess." Yan Lin replied. "But she can't cook worth beans. Or even cook beans."

Cornelia shared a hug with Caleb as well. "Hey, what happened with Blunk?" Caleb asked, noticing the Passling's absence.

"He's got a job to do on Earth. Just need him to check something. I'll explain later." Cornelia answered.

Will, Jackie, and Jade met with Uncle and Kadma where Jackie noticed the sour expression on his uncle's face. "Uncle? Is something wrong?"

"Kadma has made terrible plan!" Uncle stated.

"It's the only plan that makes sense, Jin." Kadma argued.

"Okay, what happened here?" Jade questioned. "Blunk said Nerissa and Shendu attacked but you beat them back, right?"

Kadma looked towards Jade questionably before turning to Will to speak to her. "We were able to fend off Nerissa and her newfound demonic allies with ease. Unfortunately, they won't stop until they've obtained the Heart of Zamballa and corrupted Yan Lin and myself. Fortunately, I have a plan that will turn the tables on our enemy."

Jackie and Jade were a little concerned by how Kadma seemed to ignore the latter but chose to let that slide as Will spoke to the Queen of Zamballa next. "So, what's this plan of yours?"

"Oh, you are gonna hate it."

At the sound of that familiar voice, the Guardians and their friends were put on edge as they saw a certain half-demon step out from the shadows with a sinister grin.

"Sup." Drago waved.

Immediately Will flew at Drago, grabbed him by the throat and flew further to smash him into a nearby wall keeping him pinned as her fellow Guardians appeared by Will's side and readied their respective elements.

"What are you doing here?!" Will glared viciously.

"Nice to see you too, Red." Drago kept his sneer if only to further goad her.

"How did Drago escape?!" Tohru questioned as he stepped in front of Yan Lin protectively with Jackie right by his side.

"He didn't. I let him out." Kadma revealed, much to the group's further shock.

"You did what?!" Matt exclaimed.

"Are you crazy?!" Alchemy shouted.

"Drago has been by Nerissa's side since the start of this crisis." Kadma explained to all of them. "He knows how she operates. With his aid, we can not only capture Nerissa and the demons, but even take back the Heart of Meridian and liberate Kandrakar."

"Hold the hell on, you want us to work with this psycho?!" Irma questioned.

"Do you have any idea what he put us through?!" Taranee questioned as well.

"He attacked you on several occasions, threatened your families, invaded your dreams, attempted to seize the Demon Chi…" Kadma listed off.

"Don't forget that he killed people! Including mine and Will's sister!" Jade added, though she also noticed Kadma rolling her eyes at that comment.

"That is exactly why I protested this plan!" Uncle said. "Drago too dangerous!"

"Wait, you guys knew about this?!" Hay Lin was in even further shock before looking to her grandmother. "Grandma…?"

"I don't like it either. But Kadma is correct in that Drago could have inside information." Yan Lin said.

"Then keep him in his cage so that we can interrogate it out of him!" Cornelia clenched her fists.

"That's what I suggested!" Caleb added. When he heard about Kadma's plan, he too was vehemently against it.

"Your concerns are noted, but this is my realm and my word is final." Kadma said as she put a firm hand on Will's shoulder while she still kept Drago pinned. "You wield the Heart of Kandrakar, and I the Heart of Zamballa. That's two Mystic Hearts while he has none. Drago is ambitious but he's not stupid enough to try anything."

"You don't know him or what he's capable of." Will glared.

"I do know that I am capable of ending his existence should he cross us." Kadma said before leaning close to Will. "But if it means finally ridding yourself of Nerissa, wouldn't it be worth it to take this risk?"

Rid herself of Nerissa… The one thing Will wanted for herself and her friends more than anything. Both Nerissa and her twisted son. So far. everything they've done to try and achieve that goal has either failed spectacularly or made things worse. As much as she hated this, maybe doing this one thing she didn't like could finally end this whole nightmare.

She leaned in close to Drago's face. "You so much as sneeze in a direction I don't like, I'll put you in the ground myself." She finally let him go and stepped back closer to her friends, Matt and Jade both being by her side as Drago pushed himself up and rubbed his throat.

"Pretty dark threat there, Red." The half-demon commented before looking towards Jackie. "Real good job with this student of yours." Jackie crossed his arms and wordlessly glared at Drago before looking toward Kadma.

"This may be your world, Kadma. And you may indeed wield a Mystic Heart, but do not underestimate Drago." Jackie warned.

"I'll manage." Kadma said, waving it off slightly.

"Someone's cocky." Jade commented.

"What about his partner in crime?" Alchemy asked Caleb.

"Miranda's still locked up below." He answered.

"That's something at least." She said reluctantly.

"Here is the plan." Kadma began. "The Guardians will join Drago and myself as we go on the offensive and begin hunting Nerissa and the demons." She then turned towards the group consisting of Jackie, Tohru, Uncle, Yan Lin, Alchemy, Matt, and Caleb. "The rest of you will stay here and watch over the palace and Yan Lin should Nerissa attempt to strike here while we are away. If you need assistance, Ironwood and the others will provide."

"Hold on, Jackie's not coming with us?" Jade questioned.

"I'm afraid I must insist on joining…" Jackie tried, only for Kadma to cut him off.

"If you are truly every bit the skilled warrior that your uncle made you out to be, then your skills would best be put to use defending someone who needs it." Kadma said. "Unless you don't have faith in your students."

Jackie glared at that and looked ready to argue, only for Will to step in. "Jackie, it's okay."

"Will?" Even Matt was surprised by how she seemed to be in agreement with all of this, given how against it she was just a few moments ago.

"Kadma's right." Will said. "Every time we think we've gotten the upper hand, Nerissa and Shendu somehow pull the rug out from under us. I don't want to fall into another trap where they ultimately win in the end. I know you guys can handle yourselves and maybe you should be here to act as back-up, just in case."

"She's not wrong." Tohru admitted reluctantly. "Perhaps we can work on devising a protection spell for the palace, one that'll keep Nerissa and the demons from entering."

"And I don't wanna leave spider-girl alone either." Alchemy said. "She's no Drago or Nerissa, but I still don't trust her."

"Fair point." Jackie accepted.

"Will? Are you sure about this?" Jade asked, standing next to her. "I totally get having a defense-team and all that, but working with him?" She referred to Drago, who just waved with his sneer.

"No. I hate it. But at least we can keep an eye on him. And if he tries anything, you and I can kick his ass like we did before." Will said.

Jade looked back to the other Guardians as they seemed rather reluctant themselves, but none of them seemed to have a counterargument to give, so they all nodded with serious expressions.

"Alright." Jade nodded.

"Then we mustn't waste any more time." Kadma walked through the pair of spirit sisters, knocking her shoulder into Jade's to separate her from Will and making her way towards the pyramid's entrance. "Drago, come."

"Isn't this great?" The half-demon put his arms around both Will and Jade's shoulders as he sneered at them. "We're on the same side now."

Jade immediately shoved him off. "Just show us how to find your folks so that we never have to see your ugly face again."

"Oh, I almost forget." Kadma waved her finger, causing a series of rocks and stones to emerge from the ground below Drago and bind his hands in front of him. "Use your mother's power without my knowledge, and I will know."

"Fine with me, Auntie Kad." Drago said as he walked past the glaring Guardians next to Kadma who summoned another giant leaf for them to step on before it took off with the other Guardians being right behind them.

But before Jade could take off, Matt came up to grab her wrist. "Hey Jade, look out for Will, okay? This whole thing reeks of scam."

"Good to know it's not just me. Don't worry, I'll keep our girl safe." Jade assured as she flew to catch up, leaving everyone else behind at the pyramid.

"I don't like this." Caleb crossed his arms. "How could it to have come down to us working with Drago?!"

"Desperate times, desperate measures I guess." Alchemy shrugged.

"Things may be bad now, but I didn't think we were at that level of desperation, yet." Tohru said.

"Uncle, Yan Lin, I know that you two have a history with Kadma, but this plan of hers… using Drago…" Jackie began.

"It is arrogant and foolish! Kadma may watch over Drago, but he is every bit as manipulative as his parents!" Uncle said.

"Kadma's pride has gotten the best of her at times, yes." Yan Lin said. "And I would be a fool to not think Drago will try something. But I also trust my granddaughter and the rest of our girls will do the right thing when it matters most. After all, they do have the best role model." She said to Jackie with a smile, causing the man to smile back.

"Yes, I trust the girls. I know they'll do what's right." Jackie said with confidence.

Earth – Heatherfield

"Six PM, Heatherfield Health Club. Blunk PI and partner Augustus Black have picked up Subject Sarina trail." Blunk narrated, the Passling currently dressed with an overcoat and a top hat like a noir detective. Both currently resided in a black van that was parked outside the street of the aforementioned health club and looked through a partially open window with a pair of binoculars.

"I'm pulling up Sarina Sanchez's files now." Captain Black said as he sat at a computer built into the van. "Doesn't look like there are any criminal records here. Everything seems legit, and Nerissa isn't particularly tech savvy enough to forge these kinds if IDs."

"Captain Black find Subject Sarina records. Nothing suspicious to note." Blunk continued to narrate. "But Sarina could be controlled by Nerissa."

"True. Wouldn't be the first time we've seen brainwashing." Captain Black noted. "Also, why are you narrating?"

"PI Blunk sneak into Health Club. Try and get closer look to smell for Drago or Nerissa." Blunk said as the window lowered even more, with the Passling attempting climb out.

"Wait." Black stopped him and handed Blunk an earpiece. "Use this to contact me if you spot anything suspicious."

"Oooh, Blunk have earpiece! Blunk PI upgrade to super spy!" He put the piece into his ear and pressed it slightly. "Testing, testing, Black hear Blunk?"

"Black hear Blunk." Captain Black confirmed, relaying it back through his own earpiece.

"Now Super Spy Blunk begin mission!" Blunk hopped out the window and made his way across the street towards the building, all while Captain Black resumed his work on the computer in front of him.

Zamballa

The Guardians, along with Kadma and the restrained Drago all arrived at the top of a small mountain that overlooked a vast forested landscape.

"Okay sonny-boy, where's your fam?" Irma questioned the half-demon.

"No clue." Drago answered, to which all the girls glared at him. "What? You know I split from them before we arrived here."

"You gotta have some idea though, right?" Taranee questioned. "Like a tracking spell or something."

"You think my folks wouldn't see that coming?" Drago raised an eyebrow.

"There is no need for any of that." Kadma said as she approached the edge of the. Mountain. "We will find and track down the assailants ourselves. Earth Guardian, approach."

"Could at least say my name." Cornelia muttered as she stepped by Kadma's side.

"We will school you to commune with the vegetation of this world." The queen of Zamballa said. "On Earth, we call this Greenspeaking."

"Yeah, I can see why 'Purplespeaking' doesn't have the same ring." Cornelia joked.

"Concentrate, child." Kadma insisted as she stood straight and closed her eyes. "Every plant on the planet will aid in our search."

Cornelia sighed and did as instructed, closing her eyes and concentrating her power. She tried to reach out to all the nearby vegetation, already feeling a connection to the plants and trees that were close by.

"Heart of Zamballa, fuel our power over the land." Kadma began, using the Heart's power to amplify her magic and that of Cornelia's. "Help us, to hear all our loyal subjects."

Cornelia then began to hear a series of whispers, all coming from the various surrounding plants. "I think I hear something." She said while keeping her eyes closed.

"Good, focus on that." Kadma said. "The trees closest to us will reach out to those further away and they will seek out Nerissa and her forces."

As the girls continued to watch, Drago hung a bit in the back, leaning against a nearby tree. Glancing up, he saw a fruit that looked like a purple grapefruit, the same kind of fruit he was given as food earlier in Kadma's dungeon. Pulling his leg back slightly, Drago kicked the tree with just enough force to cause one fruit to fall to the ground in front of him.

He leaned down to reach with his restrained hands for the fallen fruit, only for his hands to be wrapped up by a lasso of shadow magic.

"What do you think you're doing?" Jade warned as she and the other Guardians, sans Cornelia, glared at him.

"Grabbing a snack. I'm hungry." Drago answered.

Irma grabbed the fruit as Drago stood up. "Hey Queeny?" She got Kadma's attention. "Should we be worried about this?" She tossed the fruit Kadma's way, which she caught and quickly analyzed.

"It's only a Zambellon, a common fruit here." She answered.

"So, it's not poison or magical or anything?" Hay Lin asked.

"It's fine." Kadma tossed it back, which Jade caught. "Now, if there are no more interruptions…" She turned back towards the forest and continued to commune alongside Cornelia.

"So…? Don't keep a dragon hanging?" Drago offered his bound hands expectantly.

"Here I thought you were a carnivore." Taranee narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"You try getting a decent meal on a plant-only world." Drago replied.

Jade shared glances with her friends before handing it back. "Alright, eat it." She said as the girls all crossed their arms and didn't take their eyes off him for a second.

Drago rolled his eyes and bit down on the fruit, causing some juice to spill all over his face and even leak down on the ground. "Hmmm, tasty." He licked his chops.

"Ugh, at least chew with your mouth closed." Hay Lin cringed.

"Alright, fine." Will accepted as the girls lowered their guard with most of them turning back towards Cornelia, though Will and Jade still kept an eye on him.

However, as Drago chewed, none of them noticed how he used his tongue to stick one of the fruit's seeds in between some of his teeth in the upper right corner of his mouth.

Earth – Heathfield Health Club

Being able to sneak his way into the vents, Blunk had found a place to hide in a laundry hamper filled with dirty towels. From there, he found a clear view of Sarina as she ran on a treadmill, while listening to music on her personal music player.

"Agent Blunk report to Captain Black." The Passling spoke through the earpiece. "Subject Sarina spotted, running in place for no apparent reason."

"Are you able to sniff out anything fishy?" Black asked.

"Agent Blunk smell no fish, only dirty track shoe." Blunk replied.

"I meant can you pick up Drago or Nerissa's scent from her?" Black asked on the other end, sounding annoyed.

"Hmm, Agent Blunk move in for closer look." Blunk dove deeper into the hamper and discretely moved it closer to the treadmill, getting closer to Sarina, who didn't seem to notice. Once he was close enough, Blunk stuck his nose out slightly took a few whiffs. "Agent Blunk no smell Drago or Nerissa scent." He then spotted the music player. "Unless bad guys use magic on listening-thing to give Sarina orders. Agent Blunk check and find." He reached out to subtly snatch the player, but he happened to reach through a pull-down weight machine, where the weights came down to crush his hand.

Blunk would have screamed but quickly covered his own mouth with his other hand to keep himself from blowing his own cover as he retreated deeper into the hamper.

"What happened?" Blunk questioned urgently.

With tears in his eyes, Blunk waved his crushed hand. "Pain shoot through Agent Blunk like Mama stogey root soup. Or like weight crushing down on hand. Still, Agent Blunk not leave post." He peeked out through the hamper again, only to see that his target was no longer there. "Unfortunately, subject Sarina not so dedicated. She gone."

"Don't worry, I see her." Captain Black said as he looked through the windshield of his van where he saw Sarina step out of the gym while she drank from her bottled water. "We'll tail her until we hear back from Jackie and the others. You read me, Blunk?"

"Agent Blunk read. Agent Blunk continue to follow." Blunk relayed back as Captain Black drove his van down the road.

Zamballa

Cornelia stayed silent as she heard the subtle whispers of the forest below, giving her the info she needed. "Thanks a lot, that really helps. Love to the wife and pods."

"What's the word?" Will asked.

"Bai Tza's been spotted in the Swamps of Shenea." Cornelia reported.

"Only Bai Tza? What about the others? Not even Nerissa?" Jade asked.

"No, just our favorite demonic mermaid." Cornelia replied.

"Then we must greet her." Kadma used teletransporting on herself, the other Guardians, and Drago to zap them away from their current spot.

The group appeared on a hillside that overlooked the foggy swamp. From their vantage point, they spotted Bai Tza in the shallow water.

"What's she up to?" Taranee wondered.

All eyes set on Drago, who just shrugged. "Don't look at me. I can't read my family's minds."

"So much for inside information." Cornelia groaned.

"Guys, look." Hay Lin pointed to Bai Tza, who waved her hand to clear away some of the water to reveal the ground.

The Water Demon held some fruit in her hand and crushed it all to squeeze out all the juice. She then tipped her tail into the juice and began to paint a series of symbols on the ground. "Lai Shui Zai. Lai Shui Zai. Lai Shui Zai. Lai Shui Zai."

"I know what she's doing…" Jade recognized the markings, and the spell Bai Tza recited. "That's a summoning spell."

"What's she trying to summon? An ocean to feel more at home?" Irma asked jokingly.

"Yep." Jade confirmed seriously.

"Uh… I was kidding." Irma said somewhat nervously.

"I know and I'm not." Jade continued. "She tried this back in San Francisco; summon a flash flood to jar the San Andreas fault and sink the city. Does Zamballa have any oceans?" She asked Kadma.

Kadma looked at Jade before staring straight forward and answering, something Jade took notice as she did this once before. "Zamballa does have a great many lakes and swamps to provide water for the plants, but nothing vast like an ocean."

"My guess? She's trying to summon a big enough flashflood to wipe away a good chunk of the forest." Taranee assumed.

"But why is it just her?" Cornelia wondered. "Why aren't the rest of the demons doing the same thing? Like Shendu and Tchang Zu starting a forest fire, or Tso Lan from flatting the whole place?"

"It does not matter." Kadma stated. "One of Nerissa's minions is here and we will capture her. Will, I will need you and Drago's assistance for this."

"What?" Will and the other girls questioned. "Me and Drago?! Are you serious?!" Will questioned.

"Yes, I'm serious." Kadma confirmed. "Bai Tza's element is water. You and Drago both share that of Quintessence. By combing your powers with my own, we can create enough plants and vegetation to consume Bai Tza's water and render her powerless enough for me to trap her."

"Makes sense to me." Drago went along with it.

"Oh, well if you think it makes so much sense." Irma said sarcastically.

"Why don't we all go in and just overwhelm her?" Taranee questioned. "I could probably evaporate the swamp."

"Because you will all be on standby in case Nerissa or her cohorts try to spring an ambush." Kadma instructed. "Or to catch Bai Tza should she somehow slip from our grasp."

"Or… I could use a black hole to suck up all her water and then you capture her." Jade offered as she created a shadow-fireball in her hand for emphasis.

"I'd rather not use the wild card unless I have to." Kadma said, not even looking at the Shadow Guardian.

"I'm the wild card?! Not the demonic psychopathic murderer you got on your leash?!" She gestured to Drago.

"Hey! Why don't we keep arguing?! Give Bai Tza more time to finish her spell and wash away the forest we're supposed to be protecting!" Will got in-between them.

"Finally, a rational mind." Kadma said, turning with a glare in Jade's direction, who only glared back at her before looking to her best friend.

"Will, come on…" Jade tried to talk with her.

"I don't like it either, but remember, two Hearts against Drago? He doesn't stand a chance against that." Will said. "Besides, if Bai Tza does slip past us, I'll know you and the others can catch her."

Jade looked away with a reluctance. "Alright, fine."

"Let's go." Kadma instructed as she summoned another leaf for her and Drago to ride on as they and Will flew up above the swamp, leaving the other Guardians behind.

"Hey, you guys notice that she's trying to single out Will?" Jade asked her friends.

"A little… but the whole 'plant absorbs water' thing does make sense." Hay Lin granted.

"So why not have me help them? Plants are my thing too." Cornelia said.

"Jade might have a point though." Taranee said. "And it's not just that… I've seen the way Kadma looks at you." She spoke to Jade. "Or how she doesn't look at you, anyway."

"Yeah, and what's with the whole 'wildcard' thing?" Irma questioned. "Sure, Jade's chaotic, but why chose freaking Drago over her?"

Jade couldn't help but feel suspicious about all this. Every instinct was telling her that something was going on here, and it wasn't just her worry over Nerissa or Drago. All of this was pointing to Kadma, who seemed to have something planned for Will. Maybe she was overthinking it, and she hoped that was the case as while Kadma was annoying, she wasn't evil. But for whatever reason, she really wasn't liking where all this was going.

"Lai Shui Zai. Lai Shui Zai. Lai Shui Zai." Bai Tza looked almost completely finished with her spell circle, only to hiss in shock as a tremor struck the surrounding area. The ground in front of Bai Tza split open, tearing apart the magic circle as an enormous tree suddenly grew out in front of her.

"Bai Tza!" Hearing her name, the Water Demon turned around to glare at the hovering Will and Kadma with Drago right next to the latter on her leaf. "Zamballa is my domain, there is nowhere you can hide from us!"

"And no way you can beat us, not when we got two Hearts against you!" Will shot a beam of Quintessence towards Bai Tza, who swiftly dodged and avoided it and tried to scurry away from the scene, only for stone wall to rise and block her path. She could only watch as the stone wall began to expand in both directions, stretching and curving to form a perfect circle around herself and the tree.

"Go, now! Use your Quintessence on the tree!" Kadma told Will and Drago as the latter leapt from the leaf to the canopy of the tree above Bai Tza, but right before he landed, Drago used his tongue to pull out the seed from the Zambellon fruit he previously ate and spat it into his hand, which nobody noticed.

"You dare to betray me, Drago?!" Bai Tza hissed.

"Runs in the family." Drago said as he put his bound hands onto the tree, including the seed. "Quintessence!" Dark red energy bolts began to quickly spread around the tree, which Will added to with a beam of pink energy herself. The two forms of Quintessence mixed together, creating a disturbing aura of pink and dark red energy that caused the tree to grow a pair of large flower hands from the trunk of the tree. Bai Tza tried to spray water at the hands, only for the flowers to absorb the water and quickly grow before the grabbed the Water Demon and hoisted her high up into the air.

"This will not hold me for long!" Bai Tza's arms turned into razor-water blades to shred the plant restraints, only for her to suddenly find herself trapped in a purple energy cube, courtesy of Kadma as she continued to hover over her.

"It held long enough for us to capture you, demon." Kadma smirked. "You should have known better than to mess with your superiors."

As Will, Kadma, and Drago began to regroup with the others, bringing their newfound captive with them, none of them seemed to notice that at a reasonable distance from the scene, Hsi Wu was perched on a tree and saw the whole thing.

The Sky Demon only smirked knowing that the plan was proceeding accordingly before spreading his wings and quickly flying away.

"You captured Bai Tza?" Tohru asked in surprise as everyone was gathered in the pyramid's dungeon where the imprisoned Water Demon, still trapped in her magic cube, was put in the same space as the cube that contained Miranda.

"She was trying to flood the forest, but we got her before she did it." Will explained.

"And no sign of Shendu or the others? Not even Nerissa?" Jackie asked.

"No. Checked, no one else was there." Jade answered.

"Are we sure this is gonna hold her though?" Alchemy asked as she looked at Bai Tza, still trapped in her cube.

"Nothing can pass through that barrier." Kadma informed. "And she is isolated in the deepest chamber where there is not a single drop of moisture for her to use. She is properly contained."

"But what's to stop Dai Gui from digging his way in and busting her out?" Hay Lin asked.

"While you were all gone, we casted a protection spell over the pyramid to keep any unwanted visitors away, just like the ones we did for all your homes." Yan Lin informed. "No demon is entering this palace."

"Speaking of…" Will glared back at Drago.

"Yeah, yeah." The half-demon waved off as he walked into the dungeon, allowing for Kadma to imprison him in a magic cube as well, making three in total.

"And Drago cooperated with you guys?" Matt asked in surprise. "No escape attempts? No backstabbing?"

"As said before, it would be foolish of him to betray the combined force of two Mystic Hearts." Kadma reminded. "Drago has proven to be a useful asset."

Uncle scoffed. "Only one demon captured. Seven more remain, and Nerissa herself."

"If we must capture them one-by-one, then that is what we must do." Kadma said. "It is only a matter of time before Nerissa is ours, and we claim another Heart."

"Claim?" Cornelia, Caleb, and Alchemy all questioned simultaneously, looking to each other with concern as this wasn't just a Mystic Heart, but Elyon.

"Finally! Right, guys?" Will sounded with relief.

"Whoa, you wanna absorb the Heart of Meridian?" Taranee questioned, much to Will's surprise.

"Wait, who said anything about 'absorb'? We just wanna get it away from Nerissa." The redhead replied.

"Is that the royal 'we'?" Irma questioned skeptically.

"It's what we've been trying to do ever since we found out about Nerissa." Will argued. "But we've failed every time. Nerissa either found a way to escape at the last minute, or we just played into another one of her grand schemes. But maybe this time we finally have a chance to rescue Elyon. Isn't that what we all want?"

"Of course it's what we want, Will." Jackie responded. "But we still have to be careful. We might have captured Bai Tza, but we cannot let our guard down. Nerissa aside, Shendu is just as dangerous, as are each of the other demons."

"Nerissa and the demons will be captured, and Elyon freed." Kadma stepped up. "But once that is done, the question will remain of what to do with the Heart of Meridian's power."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Alchemy looked to Kadma questionably.

"Elyon was tricked by Nerissa and lost not only her power, but her freedom as well." Kadma explained. "And that wasn't the only time. She was also manipulated beforehand by Phobos and his forces. Clearly, she is unprepared and not ready to continue reigning with that power. Once she is freed, she will need a regent to hold onto her power until she is older and maturer enough to properly wield it." She then put her hand on Will's shoulder. "Someone she can trust."

It didn't take long for everyone to put together what Kadma was implying and for all their eyes to widen. "Wait… you wanna give Will the power?! Are you serious?!" Matt exclaimed.

"Very serious." Kadma confirmed. "Based on what Yan Lin has told me, Will has proven to be more than capable of wielding a Mystic Heart's power, I believe she may be the best choice."

"Kadma, just because Will did a good job with the Heart of Kandrakar does not make it any less of a burden." Yan Lin stepped up with a serious look on her face. "Adding a second Heart on top of that, and that will be too much for any one person."

"It wouldn't be permanent." Kadma countered. "Not until Elyon is more prepared to handle her power."

"That's not really your call to make." Caleb stepped up too. "You might be Zamballa's queen, but not Meridian."

"Elyon was tricked twice, yeah." Cornelia flew forward. "But we should at least talk about it with her and not just steal all her power without her consent!"

"Plus, don't you need someone's consent in order for them to give up the Heart they got?" Alchemy added.

"And even if Elyon agreed to this, I'm sure we can think of another person who can hold onto her power." Jackie asked. "It doesn't have to be Will."

"Why not?" Will asked, much to everyone's surprise.

"Will…?" Jade looked in genuine confusion.

"Hey, I wouldn't be holding onto it forever." She quickly said. "If anything, only until we take down Nerissa and the demons."

"But Will… you of all people know that power is a burden." Hay Lin said.

"I know. But… it's not just Nerissa." Will explained. "Shendu and the rest of his family? They don't have a Mystic Heart, but they're strong enough to the point that they might as well have one. So, the bad guys practically got two hearts on their side. Why not an extra one for us? Help balance the scales. Only until Nerissa and Shendu are defeated."

"Even if we agreed to that, why you? Do you want Elyon's power?" Jade asked.

"Of course I don't want it." Will said. "I just… I just see a chance to end this whole nightmare, and I want to take it."

"And end it, we shall." Kadma stepped towards Will, purposely barding her away from Jade, which Uncle and Yan Lin quickly noticed. "Will is a strong and intelligent warrior and more than capable of handling this burden. If she needs assistance in controlling that extra bit of power, I shall provide." She looked to Will herself. "As you said, you're seeing an opportunity, so seize it. Take victory before the enemy gets their chance."

"I… I think you're right, I…"

"And strong warriors need rest." Uncle quickly raised his finger. "Jackie, take girls and return home so that they may rest."

"We have plenty of room here at the pyramid." Kadma said. "Will and the others will be provided for."

"Actually… there's something I gotta get done at home, too." Will put in. "A… personal project."

Kadma looked more disappointed than anything. "Very well then. But I expect you to return soon. We must not stop when we have the advantage."

With that, Will used the Heart of Kandrakar to open a Fold, allowing herself and the other girls, along with Matt, to enter. Jackie was the last one to go in before turning around toward his friend who remained where he was. "Tohru?"

"I will stay here and help maintain the spell on the pyramid, as well as help guard Drago and the others." Tohru volunteered.

"Alright." Jackie accepted before stepping into the Fold, which quickly closed up.

"Tohru, Caleb, why don't you go outside and help the Zamballans keep an eye out for any demons." Yan Lin suggested. "Jin and I need to have a chat with Kadma."

"Whatever you say." Caleb nodded. With that, he and Tohru left the dungeon, leaving the three former teammates, the former Earth Guardian quickly picking up on the animosity that seemed to be directed to her.

"Well?" She questioned expectantly.

"You've always been controlling, Kadma." Yan Lin said sternly. "But never once have I seen you try to manipulate someone like this."

"I am not manipulating anyone. I am only suggesting the best solution for our current predicament." Kadma argued.

"You are filling Will's head with false confidence." Uncle pointed at her. "Driving a wedge between her and the others."

"You yourselves have said that Will has been an exceptional Guardian, proving more than capable of wielding the power of the Heart of Kandrakar." Kadma countered.

"But she has stumbled before and made mistakes. There were times when that burden was almost too much for her." Yan Lin replied. "Adding a second on top of that, and it will do more harm to her."

"Do you fear Will becoming like Nerissa?" Uncle questioned. "Is that why you seek to control her? To guide her down your intended path? Jackie already good influence."

"Are you sure about that?" Kadma questioned. "Jackie Chan is a good and honest man, I can acknowledge that. His niece, on the other hand? She leaves a lot to be desired."

"Ah, knew it." Yan Lin narrowed her eyes.

"What?" Kadma questioned.

"Knew you were trying to separate those two." Yan Lin continued. "Don't think we didn't notice the way you've acted around Jade, treating her like she's some sort of plague. Is this because of her status as a Guardian."

"There have only ever been five Guardians, never a sixth." Kadma argued. "And for her powers to originate from a dark source as you have said… Ow!" She felt her forehead where she was dope-slapped by Uncle.

"Jade has proven capable of handling those powers!" Uncle countered. "Thanks to good influence from her friends! From Will, her spirit sister!"

"That right there! That's the problem!" Kadma stated. "Spirit sister?! I already know of the spiritual bond phenomena and how it works. But for one to form to bearer of the Heart of Kandrakar?! Such a connection can be exploited by our enemies! In fact, it was exploited! You told me how Nerissa and her son created an Altemere hybrid of those two! She could have used that to connect to the Heart and corrupt it! She may have failed once, but what's to stop her from doing something like that again?"

"Do you intend to sever the spiritual bond between Will and Jade?" Yan Lin narrowed her eyes. "To destroy their friendship?"

"You are blowing it out of proportion." Kadma glared. "I am only saying that Will may be better off under my guidance and mentorship. I can show her how to wield the power of both Mystic Hearts until Elyon is ready to wield her power again."

"Provided she accepts your offer." Uncle replied.

"She'd be a fool not too." Kadma replied.

However, as the trio continued to argue, Bai Tza gazed at them through her energy cube prison. Despite seeing the argument, she was unable to hear what was going on between them. It seemed that Kadma had cut off all sound and communication from the outside, smart move on her part.

"Wow. And here I thought our family argued all the time."

Bai Tza hissed at the sound of Drago's voice in her head and looked in the direction of his prison cube as he sat down with crossed arms and smirked in her direction.

"Drago?! How is this possible?! For you to commune telepathically…" Bai Tza questioned.

"A little spell I've been working on since after that whole mess with the Thunderbird Tribe." Drago explained. "When I hit you with my Quintessence, I established a link. It's only temporary though, about five minutes before it fades, so let's make this quick."

"You are a traitor! You deceived us like your father did!" Bai Tza argued.

"You want to waste your time arguing, or do you wanna get out of here? Cause that's what I'm offering?" Drago replied, causing Bai Tza to narrow her eyes. "Let me guess, Mom sent you to that swamp alone? She wanted Kadma to gain a victory to feed her already overly inflated ego, to bring her into her thrall. I get the feeling Kadma's next move will be her last, and when Mom and Dad will make there's, and they'll bust you out right after. Did I miss anything?"

"You suspect they'll abandon me here?" Bai Tza asked.

"No. Like Mom said, she needs you for that spell she's planning." Drago answered. "Plus, you guys did sorta put that little insurance policy on her too, so she couldn't leave you here even if she wanted to. But, if you're willing to listen, I got a plan that could speed things along."

Bai Tza looked her eyes at her nephew with a hard, yet intriguied, expression. "I'm listening."

Drago grinned, briefly looking to the side to see that Uncle, Yan Lin, and Kadma were still arguing and not paying that much attention to them. "This telepathic spell isn't the only thing I slipped inside you with my Quintessence. Fish around a little bit. I'm honestly surprised you didn't notice it yet."

The Water Demon felt inside her partially-liquid body and could feel indeed something solid. Shifting her own aquatic body to move the solid object to her left arm and up into her palm, she looked in confusion to find a fully grown fruit inside.

"Used my power on a little seed to make it grow into a full fruit." Drago explained. "Zambellons are nice and juicy, and make quite the mess."

Bai Tza poked a tiny hole in the Zambellon to let some sticky juice leak out. The Water Demon smirked as she let the fruit sink back into her so that the old heroes outside wouldn't notice. "Yes, this will do nicely."

As they conspired, Miranda remained seated in her own floating cube and smiled sinisterly herself.

Earth – Uncle's Rare Finds

Everyone arrived in the back room of the Chan family shop via Fold. "You should all go home and get some rest." Will said to her teammates. "We're going back to Zamballa tomorrow."

"Ooh, can't wait." Irma said sarcastically.

"Me neither." Will put in as she prepared to leave.

"And what are you going to do?" Hay Lin asked.

"I need to check in with Captain Black and Blunk, see if they found out anything with Sarina." Will was about to grab the door handle, only for Matt to put his hand on hers.

"Before that, can we talk?" He questioned as Jade was right beside him, looking to Will in an expression that mixed seriousness and concern.

Seeing how they wouldn't budge unless she said yes, she shrugged with reluctant acceptance. "Alright." She, her boyfriend, and spirit sister left the room, leaving the other girls and Jackie behind in the back room.

"Gee, look who's ready to suddenly rule the universe?" Cornelia muttered bitterly.

"Cornelia, that's enough." Jackie said.

"What? How else am I supposed to react to the idea of my best friend having her powers stripped from her without even being asked about it?!" Cornelia questioned.

"You're right to be upset about that." Jackie granted. "What Kadma is suggesting is taking things to an extreme."

"Doesn't seem to bother Will all that much." Alchemy said.

"Yeah, I wonder if going power mad is a Keeper of the Heart automatic." Irma added.

"That's a little extreme, don't you think?" Jackie questioned.

"Two Hearts though, Jackie? All that power in one person's hands? It's kinda scary to think about." Taranee said.

"And the fact that Will seems willing to go along with it…" Hay Lin shivered slightly.

"I understand what you were saying." Jackie nodded. "But try and look at from Will's perspective. This conflict with Nerissa and Drago has been trying for all of us, but out of everyone here… Will has arguably had it the worst. You all know this. Her family was hurt by it… her mother and Jewel… Drago may hate all of us, but he is putting so much more on Will and it's taking its toll on her. More than anything, she wants this battle to end. Is using the combined power of two Mystic Hearts taking it to an extreme? Alright, maybe. But, at least try to think about why she's considering it."

"So, what make an intervention?" Irma questioned. "Stop her from going all power mad?"

"Interventions are more than just stepping in to get someone to stop what they are doing." Jackie replied. "It's about finding an understanding and helping the person who is hurting, and Will is still hurting. Intervene by talking to her and helping her, reach that understanding."

Jackie looked to Taranee at that last part, reminding her of the tension that was once there between her and her own mother. Her mom messed up, but Taranee made mistakes as well and they both hurt each other. But they were able to talk with each other and not only find a compromise but also mend the rift.

"He's right." She said. "We should just try talking to Will. She might be our leader, but we're still her friends. Drago put her through the ringer, so let's remind her that she's not alone."

Irma, Hay Lin, Cornelia, and Alchemy looked towards each other as they seemed to process what it all said and reminded themselves just how much this whole conflict has been affecting their leader, all the times that she's been brought to tears over it.

"We'll talk with her tomorrow, right before we head back." Alchemy said.

Jackie smiled. "Sounds good. Now, you should all go home and get some rest. Because I know this has been affecting all of you as well."

Hay Lin came up to hug Jackie. "What would we do without you, Uncle Jackie?"

"Probably be six feet under." Irma joked.

"Yeah, probably." Cornelia chuckled.

Meanwhile, just outside, Will was having a similar talk with Jade and Matt with Scruffy right beside them.

"Look Will, we get it." Matt told her. "You want to end all of this as quickly as possible."

"No duh." Will muttered.

"But don't you think taking a second Heart is a bit much? Even if it's just for one day?" Jade asked. "As cool as it sounds, it also sounds kinda terrifying."

"You think I can't handle it?" Will questioned. "You of all people, Jade…"

"I know you can, but that's not the point!" Jade stated. "I know you, Will. Probably better than most people. I mean, sure. If there was no other choice and we needed the extra power to save the universe, fine. I'd probably do it to. But we're not that desperate yet. And besides, the whole thing wasn't even your idea, it was Kadma's. That's the problem."

"She's right, Will." Matt added. "Maybe I'm not spiritually connected to you like Jade is, but I know you too. And you are plenty strong on your own. You don't need a second Heart."

"Tell that to all the times that Nerissa and Drago have slipped away from us, only to come back and cause us more pain." Will looked down, clenching her fists. Only to gasp slightly as her left hand was gently grasped by Jade, and her right by Matt, both looking to her with understanding smile.

"And you're not the only one in pain." Jade said. "What happened to Jewel hurt me too. And Nerissa's been singling me out, targeting and hurting my family just as much as Drago hurt yours… But I also know that I'm not alone. I've got my family, I've got all our friends, and I got you. And you got us."

"All this talk about gaining extra power… it's just not you, Will." Matt added. "The Will that I fell for was the girl who knew who she was and was fine with it. Even if you made mistakes, you accepted it, you got back up and got stronger, no extra Hearts required." He rubbed the back of his neck somewhat nervously with a bashful smile. "It's the reason I fell in love with you."

"I…" Will was at a loss for words as she processed all they said. All this time, she thought back about how badly Drago and his family have hurt her… but in that thought process… she forgot what happened right after… about how all her friends, family, and loved ones were there to help her pick up the pieces. That's right. She wasn't alone. And when those thoughts came in, suddenly the idea of taking a second Heart… didn't sound very appealing… or necessary even.

"I… I need some time to think…" Will said. As much as she wanted to agree with them, some of Kadma's own words had stuck to her too. "Plus, I do need to check out what Captain Black and Blunk found out."

"Sure, do what you gotta do." Matt put a hand on her shoulder.

"And hey, if something did come up with your soon-to-be stepmom…" Jade began.

"I'll let you know, I promise." Will assured.

"That's all I ask." Jade smiled.

Will then prepared to leave the shop, but just as she opened the door, she stopped somewhat briefly. "Thanks, guys." She said before leaving.

"You think we got through to her?" Matt asked.

"Oh yeah." Jade said without even a hint of doubt. "She'll come around."

"Client approach Agent Blunk and Captain Black." Blunk narrated as Will had entered the van that Captain Black was stationed in. "Fierce, yet fragile. Happy, yet sad. Tall, yet short."

"Has he been narrating out loud the whole time?" Will asked Black.

"Yeah, I just tried to ignore it." Augustus replied.

"Out loud, yet… only Blunk listened." Blunk said.

Will then got back to the main issue. "Well? Anything on Sarina?" She asked Black, who pulled up all her records on his computer.

"Sarina Sanchez, born in Rio, Brazil." Captain Black began. "Moved to the States after graduating college, major in photography. No criminal records whatsoever."

"And none of its forged?" Will asked.

"Nope, all legit." Captain Black confirmed.

"So, she's not Nerissa in disguise." Will said. "But she could still be enthralled."

"Agent Blunk follow Sarina with Captain Black." Blunk explained. "Agent Blunk close enough to pick up smell, but far enough to avoid being seen. Agent Blunk smell no trace of Drago, Nerissa, or any magic. Sarina not enthralled."

"She's clean, Will." Captain Black told her with an assuring smile.

Will breathed a sigh of relief as she leaned back against the wall of the van. "Oh, that's a huge relief. Sorry to make you guys go out of your way."

"Don't worry about it. In this line of work, you can never be too careful." Captain Black waved off.

"Yes, Mama always tell Blunk, 'a careless Passling is a dead Passling'." Blunk added.

"And I'd prefer to be not dead. Thanks again for the help, guys. Really appreciate it." Will said before leaving. "Now I'm gonna get home and get to bed, I got some other stuff I need to sort out."

"Client leave, Agent Blunk mission accomplish." Blunk saluted to Captain Black. "Maybe Captain Black bring Agent Blunk into Section 13?"

"You do have a good nose and are surprisingly good at espionage." Black granted, causing Blunk's eyes to widen with sparkles and a hopeful smile. "But we also have a strict hygiene protocol…"

Blunk's jubilation turned into a look of horror. "No! Blunk prefer to be smelly! Blunk going back to PI! Secret agent lifestyle not suit Blunk!" He leapt out the window and scurried into an alleyway to literally dive into the nearest dumpster, all while Black had something of a mischievous half-grin.

The Next Day

School had just got out and Will was preparing to leave the Sheffield campus but was surprised to find Sarina at her car waiting just outside.

"What are you doing here?"

"Ambushing you. After all, I'm gonna be your wicked stepmother." Sarina teased.

Will couldn't help but giggle somewhat. This was the same stuff Jade used to do with her when they first met. She knew now that Sarina was clean and not part of an ongoing plot by her enemies, so it wouldn't hurt to at least get to know her a little, right before their mission anyway.

Sarina had driven Will to the Heatherfield Health Club where it had an indoor pool. After getting changed into their respective swimsuits, Sarina sat at the pool's edge as she saw Will swim from one end to the other.

"Nice breath control." Sarina complemented. "Your dad wasn't kidding when he told me you were a swimmer."

"Thanks." Will said as she pulled her self up and sat on the ledge next to her. "Sorry about before, if it kinda felt like I was bailing."

"It's alright." Sarina assured. "Looking back on it, maybe it could have been planned better."

"At the very least, I would have liked to have met you before you got engaged." Will commented before signing. "But it's already done. I know Dad, and I trust him. If he trusts you, that's enough for me." She said with a smile.

Sarina smiled. "I'm glad to hear it. I'm really looking forward to being part of your life, Will."

"Yeah, as crazy as it is." Will muttered before glancing down at her own reflection in the water. "Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Well… have you ever been asked to do something that you feel you wouldn't normally do, but you think you have to do it, even though your friends don't want you to….?" Will asked.

"That's… a bit of an odd scenario." Sarina noted with a curious look.

"I uh… Have this project at school." Will tried to explain it without going into details. "It's supposed to be a group project and I kinda want to do with my friends. But my teacher wants me to do it alone, says I'm capable and I can do it. And maybe I can… but… should I? It just feels… uncomfortable."

"I see…" Sarina seemed to understand. "Well… you are allowed to work with your friends, right? It's not against the rules?"

"No, I can work with them." Will said.

"And you trust your friends?" Sarina asked.

"Of course I do." Will confirmed.

"Welp, there you go." Sarina smiled. "If you feel uncomfortable doing it on your own, and you trust your friends to help you, what more do you need?"

"Yeah, it sounds easy but… why does it feel so hard too?" Will wondered.

Sarina gently placed her hand over Will's. "I know we only recently met, Will. But from what I can see, you're a smart and talented girl. But even the smartest and strongest people need help from time-to-time. There's nothing at all wrong with that. But, in my opinion, the strongest people are not only those that know when to ask to help but also know to trust themselves."

"Even if I end up making a mistake?" Will asked, looking to Sarina.

"Even if you make a mistake, you're only human." She confirmed. "I won't ask for details about what's troubling you but, trust yourself, trust your friends too. I'm sure you'll work it out."

That caused Will to smile as she stood up. "Let me show you something." She let her soon-to-be stepmother back to her bag and pulled out the Heart of Kandrakar. "You asked about this before. I got this jewel from my friends. You could say it's like… a promise to always have each other's backs even when times are tough. Things have been pretty rough for me lately, and I guess I kind of forgot about that. But I think I remember now. Thank you, I needed hear this." She then went up to hug Sarina, much to the older woman's surprise before hugging her back.

Uncle's Rare Finds

Will entered the Chan family shop where everyone else was waiting. "Hey, guys."

"Hey." All her friends greeted.

It got awkward for a few seconds before Will sighed and spoke first. "Look, I'm sorry if I gave any of you a hard time, yesterday."

"We get it, Will." Taranee assured. "This whole thing has been a rollercoaster to hell and back. It's been rough for all of us."

"But we know that you've probably had it the worst." Cornelia added. "What, with Drago and his little vendetta."

"And we're sorry if it felt like we were putting pressure on you or made you feel like you had to make the harder choices alone." Hay Lin said.

"You might be our leader, but you're our friend first and foremost." Irma put in. "And no matter what, we'll always have your back."

"But that's also gotta work both ways." Alchemy said. "We trust you one hundred percent, but that doesn't mean we don't get a say."

"I know, and you don't have to worry. I trust you guys and I'll never doubt any of you." Will said as she took out the Heart of Kandrakar. "I might the bearer of the Heart, but this burden isn't just for me. We all share it. We started this whole adventure of ours together, and that's how it's gonna be. We'll end it together." She looked to Matt and Jade with an assuring smile, which was all those two needed to see. Their Will had come around.

Even Jackie looked with pride. "So, I take it this means you've made a decision." He said to her.

"Yeah, I know what I have to do." Will assured as the Heart glowed in her palm. "Guardians Unite."

Zamballa

After entering the pyramid via Folding, the Guardians, along with Jackie, Matt, and Alchemy met with Uncle, Yan Lin, Kadma, Tohru, and Caleb.

"Anything interesting happen while we were gone?" Jade asked.

"No, things have been pretty quiet." Tohru answered. "Though I did hear how Uncle and Yan Lin argued with Kadma most of the night. I didn't hear what they were arguing about, but I can at least make an educated guess." He looked to Will as she approached Kadma. Uncle and Yan Lin both looked ready to intervene, but Jackie happened to cross paths with them and gave them a knowing look with a wink.

"Glad to see you are well-rested, it is time for us to resume our hunt." Kadma said to Will. "Hopefully today, we'll finally claim the Heart of Meridian."

"Yeah, about that… I'm not going to take Elyon's power." Will said firmly.

A frown formed on Kadma's face. "Excuse me?"

"I said I'm not going to do it." Will said firmly without a hint of hesitation in her voice. "You were right in that Elyon got tricked twice, and now her power has fallen into the wrong hands. And if she decides to give her power to a regent until she feels she's ready, fine. But that's not going to be me. I'm fine with just the Heart of Kandrakar, and I don't need any extra power, nor do I want it. I got everything I need, right here." Will looked back to all her friends, every one of her fellow Guardians, the Chan Clan, and everybody else, all of whom smiled towards her, causing her to smile back before turning back to Kadma. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm gonna stick with just one Heart."

Uncle and Yan Lin both looked towards one another with proud smiles, which followed to the latter giving Jackie an approving thumbs up, which he returned with one of his own.

Kadma, on the other hand, was deeply disappointed. She looked past Will and found herself glaring at Jade. "What did you do?"

"Me?" Jade questioned while everyone else, especially Will and Jackie, looked more than a little upset at that accusation.

"Were you trying to convince her to give up this chance to defeat her enemies?" Kadma stepped towards Jade. "Perhaps find a way to take the Heart of Meridian's power for yourself?"

"You need to back off, Ms. Control Freak." Jade stepped up to meet her. "I wasn't the one who tried to get in my best friend's head and mold her into some kind of weapon."

"You shouldn't even be here. You shouldn't be a Guardian." Kadma argued. "There have only ever been five, no more. It seems that whatever link you share with your leader is influencing her judgement."

"That is enough!" Jackie quickly stepped in-between them. "You will not speak to my niece like that. I don't know why you feel you cannot trust Jade, but she is trustworthy and has more than exceeded anybody's expectations as a Guardian. Even the Oracle and the rest of the Council approved of her."

"And don't think I didn't figure out that you were trying to separate us." Will added as she also stepped by Jade's side. "Jade isn't just my spirit sister, she's my best friend and I trust her with my life." She grasped her hand, to which Jade smiled before they both turned to Kadma with glares as Will continued. "You might be queen here, but I won't tolerate you treating any of my friends like garbage, especially when you seem keener on working with a known murderer like Drago! So, here's what's going to happen. We're going to find Nerissa, Shendu, and all the other Demons. If we manage to beat them and free Elyon, great. And once we've freed her, we'll talk with her about a possible regent. You can have a say in that discussion if you want, but it's not your choice, its hers. Maybe we do need your help, but you also need ours." Will then stepped up to Kadma and looked her dead in the eye. "And the only way you're going to get our help, is if you started treating me and all of my friends with the respect that they deserve."

Kadma narrowed her eyes at Will… Such disrespect. But glancing past her, and Kadma saw the same sort of expressions on the faces of every one of the other Guardians, including Jade, as well all their allies, with Jackie being among them. Kadma then turned towards Uncle and Yan Lin, the former smirked triumphantly while the latter looked to her expectantly with a raised eyebrow.

"Have it your way." Kadma muttered.

That caused everyone to smile with relief, especially with Will sharing a high-five and hug with Jade and Matt respectively.

"So, seeing as how you are taking charge, what do you propose in how we should find our enemies?" Kadma questioned.

"We still got Drago locked up, right? So we'll use a scale or something from him to make a locator spell to find Nerissa and Shendu. He is their son, after all." Will said.

"That could work." Tohru said.

"Kinda like the other way around for when we used Shendu to make a locator spell to find Drago." Hay Lin recalled.

"Why the heck didn't we think about that sooner?" Alchemy wondered.

"Cause we've been trying to do all these complicated plans, that we forgot about all the simple stuff." Irma commented with snark, earning chuckles laughs from the group, sans Kadma.

"Very well." The queen of Zamballa said. "But, I insist that Drago still accompany us, if only because I do not trust him alone."

"What about Bai Tza?" Taranee asked.

"She will remain contained in the dungeon." Kadma answered.

"Oh, so you don't wanna leave Drago alone, but you're fine with leaving the walking tidal wave behind?" Cornelia questioned.

"Bai Tza is cut off from any and all water and that prison can contain any meager attacks she can use. She is better contained how she is." Kadma said.

"I'll stay behind to keep an eye on her, just in case." Yan Lin volunteered.

"What about that protection spell that'll keep the demons out?" Will asked Tohru.

"We gave it an extra boost of strength last night. And there is a small army of Zamballans outside, all ready for a fight." The sumo answered.

"And you do not mess with the foliage around here." Irma commented.

"Alright, then everyone else comes with us." Will said. "If we find Nerissa and Shendu, we'll probably find the other Demons too. We'll hit them hard with everything we got. If we can still end this nightmare once and for all, then we're going for it."

"Sounds like a plan." Jackie said with approval.

"You heard our fearless leader." Jade said to the rest of their friends. "Get ready for an epic smackdown."

As everyone cheered and began to prepare, Kadma looked away with a scowl. She knew she shouldn't have let Will return to Earth with Jade. She could have molded her into an unstoppable warrior for good, a much better version than what happened to Nerissa. But it seems like she's made her choice. A part of her did consider forcing Will to take the Heart of Meridian, but… no. She won't do that. Aside from that inevitably leading to a fight with the other Guardians and their allies, forcing an innocent person against their will to do something they don't want to do was a line that even she won't cross. Fortunately, she did have a back-up.

The magic cube surrounding Drago vanished as he was let out of his spot in the dungeon, while Bai Tza and Miranda remained in their respective prisons. He found himself being escorted by Kadma, Caleb, Will, and Jade.

"Let's move." Will told him as Kadma erected another pair of stone cuffs for his hands like before and Drago was escorted away. Though Jade did stop for a brief moment, turning around to glare at Bai Tza and Miranda before catching up with her friends, leaving only a pair of Zamballan guards.

Once the heroes were gone, Bai Tza turned around with her back towards the guards and brought out the fruit that Drago smuggled in for her. Once it was in her palm, she crushed it in her grip, allowing the sticky juice to leak out before she began to use it to paint along the wall of the magic cube.

Uncle was at the front of the group consisting of the Guardians, Chan Clan, Alchemy, Matt, and Caleb along with Kadma and the imprisoned Drago as they trekked through the jungle. The elder chi wizard carried a dried lizard, which glowed green from the locator spell they had devised from a drop of Drago's blood.

"This will never work." Kadma denied. "I've spent all night yesterday communing with the jungle, and we have yet to uncover Nerissa's lair."

"You mean the time you weren't arguing with Uncle and my grandma?" Hay Lin questioned.

"And don't underestimate Uncle." Jade added. "He knows how to whip a good spell."

Uncle soon came to a stop as the lizard he was using glowed a bright green. "We are close." He picked up the pace and led the group out of the jungle and towards a large clearing, revealing a patch of baren land that had a radius of at least a hundred feet.

"Um… did we do the spell right?" Alchemy asked. "Because I'm not seeing anything."

"Wait a moment…" Kadma recognized the location. "This is where the stone quarry is supposed to be."

"Quarry?" Matt questioned.

"A pit where stones are extracted, often used in construction." Jackie explained.

"It is the place where we gathered the stones to build my pyramid. It is the only place where the jungle couldn't touch." Kadma said.

"A place invisible to the jungle. And a perfect place to hide." Will said with realization.

"But I do not understand how it could have been filled so quickly." Kadma said in confusion.

"Dai Gui's handiwork, most likely." Tohru assumed.

Uncle pointed his dried lizard down towards the ground, where the locator spell glowed its brightest. "Shendu and Nerissa are here."

"What about the other demons?" Taranee asked.

"Let me check. Cornelia, could you make a hole? A small one so that the bad guys don't notice?" Jade asked.

"No problem." She used her powers to create a rather tiny hole in the ground.

Jade then kneeled down to the hole, taking a quick peek inside where she saw only darkness. Perfect. She placed her hand over the hole and closed her eyes. Using the same sort of method she used to free Ironwood from her chrysalis the last time she was here, Jade connected to the darkness and tried to feel for any living shadows, and she quickly picked up on several.

"One… two, three… four, five… six, seven… eight." Jade muttered and she recognized them all. "They're here. All of them."

"Good, Cornelia will tear it all open and catch them by surprise and we'll go in guns blazing." Will instructed the group. "Make sure to take down Shendu and Tso Lan first, they're the most dangerous, and keep the others separated. Jade, you go for Nerissa. Your shadow powers can counter hers."

"With absolute pleasure." Jade smiled with approval.

"Kadma, you will stay up here with Drago." Will told her. "Keep an eye on him and make sure no demons escape."

"Very well then." The Queen of Zamballa seemed to accept, though she did share brief eye-contact with Drago, who remained silent the whole time, something Uncle noticed.

"Knock, knock!" Cornelia sung as she flew up and reached out with her powers, connecting to the ground over the whole area and began to tear it open. A large crack formed in the middle of the area and quickly spread up and down, appearing to cut the land in half before she spread her hands out to pull apart the ground cover, revealing the deep and hidden quarry where Nerissa and the seven remaining Demon Sorcerers were located.

It looked as if all eight of them were caught by surprise, gazing up in shock at the open hole. "They found us!" Shendu exclaimed.

Tchang Zu attacked first, throwing out several lightning bolts, but Jade quickly erected a black hole to draw in all the lightning and cancel out the attack before Hay Lin retaliated with a whirlwind from her hands, striking Tchang Zu and sending him crashing towards the wall.

"Go! Now!" Will ordered as she grabbed Jackie and flew in along with her fellow Guardians. She and Jackie went straight for Shendu where she spun him around quickly to build up momentum before throwing Jackie out, who stuck his foot outward for a kick, landing a successful strike in the Fire Demon's face to send him careening downward. Though Will quickly flew in from behind the falling Shendu and unleashed a blast of pink energy to send him tumbling hard into the stone wall, face-first, before Will followed through with another blast at the stone wall to try and burry Shendu alive.

Taranee coated herself in fire and flew at Tso Lan, not giving him a chance to attack as she punched him across the face before following through with multiple rapid flaming punches and kicks all across his body, moving so quick that the Moon Demon seemed unable to counter before she pulled back her palm, which carried a condensed fireball, which almost turned blue from how strong and focused it was, and slammed it into his chest with explosive furry to send him crashing into the wall as well.

Hsi Wu attempted to fly up and out of the pit, only for Matt and Caleb, both of whom slid down from the opening to a ledge, to jump and grab the Sky Demon by his wings, pulling him down.

"Where do you think you're going?" Matt grinned as Caleb drew his katana to slash at Hsi Wu and bring him closer towards the ground. Hsi Wu's eyes began to glow as he prepared to fire his heat-beam eyes, only for Matt to kick up some dust in his face, temporarily blinding him and allowing Matt to follow through with a roundhouse kick towards Caleb who grabbed him by his shoulder and hauled him over to slam him hard to the ground.

Hay Lin flew at Dai Gui, who swung his fists to try and swat her away, but she proved too nimble for him and quickly landed underneath him to erect a tornado to pull the Earth Demon up from the ground and trap him in the growing vortex. Xiao Fung hopped behind Hay Lin and looked ready to blast her with his own wind, only for Irma to trap him in a sphere of water, which she lifted upwards to haul the Wind Demon up before slamming him down hard to the ground.

Po Kong had stomped her way forward and looked ready to crush her enemies, only for Cornelia to pull out several rocks from the wall and smash them into the Mountain Demon's face, forcing her backwards as Uncle, Tohru, and Alchemy followed through with a dried lizard in the former's hands, and blowfish with the latter two as they unleashed a salvo of stun spells to further push Po Kong back.

In the chaos of the battle, Nerissa looked ready to join in, only to be ensnared by a shadow lasso and pulled towards a nearby wall where the shadow-rope grew and changed shape, springing out more tendrils to bind Nerissa to the wall as Jade hovered over her.

"Take my advice and stay down, save yourself another trip to the hospital." Jade warned.

"No! I will not be imprisoned again!" Nerissa placed her hands on the wall and used her own Quintessence power to not only break the wall apart, freeing her from the shadow restraints, but also reform the broken stone into a giant golem-like creature which advanced towards Jade.

"Really?" She was unimpressed by this as she conjured a large two-handed battle-axe made from shadows to bisect the golem, cancelling out the magic that animated it. But this also gave Nerissa a chance to bolt into a nearby cave which Dai Gui had dug beforehand. "The hag is getting away!" Jade warned.

"Now is our chance." Kadma said to Drago as she summoned a large leaf for the two to ride on.

"Lead the way." Drago said as Kadma directed her leaf to fly down into the battle and into the cave in pursuit of Nerissa, much to Jade's surprise.

"Kadma's going after Nerissa, and she's taking Drago with her!" She alerted the group.

"What?! Why would she do that?!" Will questioned as she flew closer to Jade.

Uncle gasped in realization. "Kadma intends to absorb Heart of Meridian!"

That took everyone by surprise as all the heroes looked in absolute shock and mortification.

"She's gonna what…?!" Cornelia growled in anger.

"Jade, Will, go after her! Stop Kadma! The rest of us will handle the demons!" Jackie instructed.

"Okay!" Jade nodded as she and Will looked to each other with nods and they both flew into the cave.

However, this caused Shendu to sneer as he picked himself up, the rocks and debris falling off his body. "Just as we have planned." He shot his fire-breath at the wall atop the cave entrance, causing a rockslide to seal off the cavern.

"They're trapped inside the tunnel!" Tohru exclaimed.

"Not for long they're not!" Cornelia was about to clear away the rocks herself, only to be caught off guard as Cassidy's ghost suddenly appeared in front of her. This distracted her enough for Halinor to appear as well and erect a fire sphere around Cornelia. She wasn't burned, but the fire burnt hot enough to suck up all the oxygen, causing her to suffocate and fall to her knees. The fire vanished as Cornelia fell to the ground.

"Cornelia!" Alchemy cried out, but Caleb quickly leapt to catch her as Alchemy quickly joined them. "Is she…?"

"She's alive, but she's down for the count." Caleb said.

"Though that is more than I can say for the rest of you." Xiao Fung said as he appeared before them.

One-by-one, the other Demon Sorcerers began to regroup and recover. Po Kong picked herself up as she took the form of a giant bison, Hsi Wu shot to the sky and hovered over everyone, Tchang Zu shot a lightning bolt at the tornado that had trapped Dai Gui, allowing the Earth Demon to land on the ground with a tremor. Tchang Zu recovered as well as the debris and rocks around him cleared away from the gravitational force surrounding the Moon Demon, and Shendu stood at the center of it all.

Jackie, and the rest of the heroes soon found themselves surrounded on all sides with no way out. Any confidence they might have had before quickly vanished as the reality of their situation sunk in.

"Anybody else feel like that we've been played?" Matt muttered in fear.

Back in the pyramid's dungeon, Yan Lin had come onto the scene to check on the status of the prisoners, the two Zamballans still standing guard. "Any trouble down here?" She asked.

"No, ma'am." One guard answered. "The prisoners have not caused any issue and the barriers remain strong."

Yan Lin smiled but looked towards the prison cubes herself. Miranda appeared to be sleeping, though Bai Tza was active with her back turned to the guards, something that made Yan Lin suspicious. While she knew Kadma had cut the Water Demon off from anything related to her element, she knew not to let her guard down either.

The former Air Guardian made her way towards the front where she saw Bai Tza's face. Despite the soundproofing on the magic prison, she saw Bai Tza's lips moving… as well as the symbols the Water Demon was painting on the side of the cube, all from a sticky fruit that she had somehow gotten her hands on.

Yan Lin quickly read Bai Tza's lips and could identify the words she was using. "Lai Shui Zai. Lai Shui Zai. Lai Shui Zai." And the symbols… all patterns to a spell… a summoning spell!

"No! Stop her!" Yan Lin exclaimed, alerting the guards.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"She's using a summoning spell! She's trying to escape!" Yan Lin shouted.

But it was too late. Bai Tza had painted the final symbol in the middle of the spell circle and had already incited the incantation. "Lai Shui Zai! Lai Shui Zai! Lai Shui Zai!" The circle glowed a bright green as a great deal of water shot out of the circle and into the cube. It didn't take long for the whole cube to become filled with water, but it didn't stop there. More and more water poured directly into the cube, so much so that the pressure inside began to build up, causing cracks to form on the side of the cube, much to Yan Lin's horror.

"Bad day…"

The cube shattered, causing a tidal wave of water to flood the whole dungeon, sweeping up Yan Lin and the pair of Zamballans, to which the imprisoned Miranda opened her eyes with a sinister smile.

As the two Zamballans sank underneath the flooding waters, Yan Lin struggled to swim through it, only to suddenly find herself trapped in a sphere of water as Bai Tza emerged from the surface to gaze at the struggling grandmother with a sneer.

"Having trouble breathing?" The Water Demon mocked.

Yan Lin tried to escape, but quickly found herself short of breath. It wasn't long before she lost consciousness, and that's when Bai Tza released her, dispersing the water bubble allowing the knocked out Yan Lin to fall into Bai Tza's grip, still soaking wet and alive, but no longer a threat.

"The boy came through after all."

Bai Tza then heard a knock on the only remaining magic prison, courtesy of Miranda tapping her hand against the magic barrier and looking at her expectantly. Bai Tza narrowed her eyes before shifting her free hand into a water blade and used it to slice the prison apart and freed the shapeshifter, who turned into her draconic spider form to cling to the ceiling and stretch her limbs.

"Oh, that feels good, it was quite cramped in there." Suddenly, Miranda was ensnared by Bai Tza's tentacles as she pulled her into gaze into her blood red eyes.

"I would reign in that arrogance of yours, insect. You and my sniveling nephew still have much to answer for." Bai Tza hissed. "The only reason I don't drown you myself is because I can see some use for a shapeshifter. But cross me or my siblings again, and I will show no mercy. Is that clear?"

Miranda glared back. "Crystal."

With that, she clung onto Bai Tza's back while the Water Demon continued to carry Yan Lin and swam out of the flooding dungeon.

Meanwhile, Nerissa ran through the tunnel as fast as she could, Kadma in hot pursuit as she rode her leaf while keeping Drago close by. It wasn't long before she reached a dead end, and it seemed like Nerissa was cornered, left with nowhere to go.

"It's over, Nerissa." Kadma told her as she caught up. "Surrender now."

"NEVER!" Nerissa defiantly shot a bolt of Quintessence energy at Kadma, who raised a wall of stone to block the bolt before channeling her power into the surrounding walls, causing a pair of large rock hands to emerge from Nerissa's sides and grab her by her arms before pulling them outward, exposing her.

"Drago, strike her now!" Kadma commanded, releasing Drago from his stone cuffs.

"As you wish." Drago rushed in front of his mother, and the second he appeared in her line of sight, all time slowed to a crawl for her.

She was exactly where she needed to be… but now so was her son. Everything had gone according to plan… until now. She heard from Hsi Wu how Drago aided in Bai Tza's capture, no doubt Kadma forced him to do so. But now he was here and about to deliver a blow. Even if she could recover… she would have to fight him to in order to claim the Heart of Zamballa. Even after his previous betrayal… could she fight her own son…?

"Play dead." She heard Drago's whisper as he punched her stomach, though the force behind it was not nearly as strong as he'd normally do.

The two made eye-contact, and the second she saw his eyes… she knew exactly what to do.

Her own eyes closed as she appeared to go limp. "She's down, but not out." Drago told Kadma.

"Then seize the Heart of Meridian, now!" Kadma ordered as she saw the jewel that hung from Nerissa's grasp.

"As you command." Drago reached for the Heart of Meridian, causing Kadma to smile ambitiously as the claws of her ward reached for the powerful jewel…

Only to be caught off guard as Drago was suddenly trapped in a pink energy cube, preventing him from taking the Heart of Meridian, much to Kadma's own surprise.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Will exclaimed as she and Jade both came onto the scene.

"Stay out of the way, this does not concern you!" Kadma told the pair.

"The hell it doesn't!" Jade exclaimed as she came up to Kadma's face. "Uncle thought you were gonna steal Elyon's power… but were you seriously about to give it to Drago?! Have you lost it?!"

"Drago is under my guidance, now!" Kadma argued.

"Are you serious?!" Will looked in disbelief.

"It's not hard to think about." Kadma glared. "Underneath all his fire and rage, the boy desires a family and I have now provided that. He is my ward and I intend to mold him into the ultimate instrument for good."

"By giving him Elyon's power?!" Jade questioned.

"He will be the regent of Meridian under my instruction until Elyon is ready to take her power back." Kadma replied.

"So, what, you rule Zamballa and Meridian?!" Will argued before looking at Kadma hard. "You know… ever since you tried to get in my head, I couldn't help but think of how I could become like Nerissa if I went down the wrong path. But you know what? You are more like her than I could ever be!"

"Enough!" Kadma slammed the end of her staff down onto the ground, creating a wave of magic that not only broke Drago out of his imprisonment, but also created a pair of large rock fists to emerge from the ground underneath Jade and Will to grab them both. "I've had enough of your childish antics! Drago!"

With that, Drago seized the Heart of Meridian and took it in his claws. "Got it."

"Excellent work, my boy." Kadma walked up to him as Will and Jade struggled to escape their bindings. She then put a hand on his shoulder. "And with my guidance, you shall truly be the ultimate warrior that we always knew you could be."

That's when Drago sneered evilly. "I got a better idea."

*PIERCE!*

Kadma's eyes widened in shock while her pupils shrank as she felt her stomach being pierced, and looked down in shock to see Drago's claws in her gut. Her body shook as she was brought to her knees, holding her wound with her free hand, blood oozing out from in-between her fingers, and while still holding the Heart of Zamballa for some form of support. And Drago stood above her as the claws on his right hand dripped blood, much to Will and Jade's own surprise.

"D-Drago…" Kadma muttered in pain.

"Relax, it wasn't deep enough to be fatal. But it will keep you out of the way as I give my mom back what's rightfully hers, the Heart of Meridian." He tossed the jewel back to his restrained mother, which teletransported into her hand as a sneer appeared across her face.

"B-but you… you said…" Kadma stuttered.

"You are so arrogant, way more than my dad even." Drago told Kadma mockingly as he continued to stand over her. "So arrogant and so predictable. All I had to do was say 'yes' to almost every question you gave me, tell you exactly what you want to hear, and just like that, you felt you had me at your leash and let your guard down."

"Indeed, Kadma's always been so prideful of herself." Nerissa finally spoke, revealing she was still fully conscious, much to Will and Jade's further shock. "And your time as queen here has only fueled that arrogance." She spoke to Kadma directly. "You believe yourself capable of controlling any and all power, no matter how awesome. Pride is the greatest of all the deadly sins, and the key to the darkness of your soul, Kadma…" She drew the Tiger Talisman alongside the Heart of Meridian, both magics mixing together as streams of dark energy emerged from both of them to envelop the injured Kadma, drawing out all her negativity and allowing Nerissa's power to work its way into her mind.

"No!" Will and Jade both exclaimed as they used their respective powers to escape their bindings. But it was too late.

"…And all I need to make you mine!" Nerissa declared.

With that, Kadma's eyes became dull as she was now completely under Nerissa's thrall. She then held out the Heart of Zamballa in its staff form to her new master.

"Don't mind if I do." Nerissa sneered.

Jade and Will tried to fly in and stop them, only for Drago to come in with a tail swipe to both their faces and knock them both down, giving Nerissa the chance to take the Heart of Zamballa in one hand and use the Tiger Talisman in the other with the Heart of Meridian to combine all three relics together. A glow of dark energy enveloped the chamber as a single magic relic appeared before them all and fell into Nerissa's hands.

It appeared to be a staff; one made entirely out of pitch-black wood. Near the top, the staff split into two wooden snakes, one black and the other white, and swirled together before both heads came at the top of the staff, their mouths open and connecting to an obsidian crystal ball which glowed a dark purple.

"Behold, the Seal of Nerissa!" The sorceress declared, taking ownership of her new relic as her son stood by her side.

"Now whose got the two Heart advantage, Red?" Drago said mockingly to Will, who looked more frightened than anything.

"All this to crawl back to Mommy?" Jade tried to put up a front. "You really need to get a girlfriend, dude."

"Already got one, but thanks for the advice." Drago smirked.

"Now let's test out my newfound power, shall we?" Nerissa aimed her staff at the two Guardians and unleashed a massive and deadly Quintessence bolt from the crystal ball at them. Jade tried to erect a wall of shadow flames to negate the energy like before…

Only for her shadows to be extinguished and overpowered, much to her own surprise, resulting in an explosion that knocked the pair back to the other end of the chamber.

"M-My powers…" Jade muttered as her hands began to shake with fear. "They… they're supposed to cancel it out… why didn't…?"

"Two Hearts… it's too much for us…!" Will picked her up. "Jade, we gotta get out of here! Gotta get back to the others!"

"Right! Hang on!" Jade grabbed Will and enveloped both of them in shadows before sneaking into the ground, retreating from the area.

Drago smirked evilly as he looked at the Seal of Nerissa, now wielded by his mother. "Love the design. You really do have the best taste, Mom."

"My son…" Nerissa began, her face appearing straightforward, and not seeming to carry any emotion. "…You have much you need to answer for." She finally turned to him, revealing a heated glare.

"Fine, fine." Drago held his hands up. "But first, let's head back outside. I got a bit of a surprise for you." He said with a knowing grin, causing Nerissa to raise a curious eyebrow.

Jade and Will emerged back outside via the shadows, with Will taking a brief second to catch her breath, but their respite was incredibly short lived as they looked in terror to see all their friends surrounded by a flaming vortex, courtesy of Hay Lin and Taranee, and the two making it as big as possible to try and push back all the demons while Jackie, Matt, and Caleb stood close to the still-unconscious Cornelia. However, Tso Lan and Tchang Zu used their respective powers of gravity and lightning to blast away the vortex.

Though Irma quickly released a wave of water, which Uncle, Tohru, and Alchemy enchanted with Chi magic from their tools. The water riddled with chi magic did strike Po Kong, Dai Gui, Xiao Fung, and Tchang Zu, shocking and immobilize them; but Shendu, Hsi Wu, and Tso Lan took to the sky to avoid it before the Fire, Moon, and Sky Demons unleashed their own long ranged attacks towards Irma and the Chi-Wizards; but Will and Jade quickly flew in and clasped their hands together to throw out their combined Yin-Yang attack of shadows mixed with Quintessence. The attack clashed with that of the flying demonic trio before exploding to blast it all away, and that seemed to stir Cornelia awake.

"What hit me…?" Cornelia wondered.

"Nothing like what's about to! We gotta go!" Jade stated.

"What happened?" Jackie questioned.

"Drago stabbed Kadma in the back and gave the Heart of Zamballa to Nerissa!" Will explained.

Almost on que, Nerissa teletransported herself, Drago, and the now-enthralled Kadma directly in front of the group and were soon joined the enthralled Halinor and Cassidy's ghost, which caused Uncle's face to go pale.

"Aiya…"

Suddenly, the ground began to quake as something big was approaching the group fast, catching the attention of the demons as well.

"Now what?" Irma complained.

The group looked up towards the opening of the quarry to see a tidal wave of water pour into the hole and would soon begin flooding it. Acting quickly, the Guardians picked up each of the non-flyers in their group and made their way out of the hole and back to the surface before it quickly flooded, with the Demon Sorcerers doing the same.

The heroes set down and looked in shock to see Bai Tza emerged from the flooded hole with a hiss. "And Bai Tza is free. Awesome." Jade groaned.

"You all think that's bad?" Miranda's draconic-spider form revealed itself, perched on a nearby tree, along with a certain old woman who was cocooned in her web and still unconscious. "Look what else we've claimed."

"Grandma!" Hay Lin screamed in shock with Uncle gasping in terror.

Before anyone had a chance to try and rescue her though; they soon found themselves surrounded on all sides by the eight Demon Sorcerers, both on the ground and in the air, along with Nerissa, Drago, and their enthralled servants.

"Somebody please tell me that we got a plan!" Taranee hopped.

"Yeah…! I got one! I'm about to teletransport for the first time!" Will revealed.

"But Grandma…!" Hay Lin tried to reach out, only for Jackie to grab her by the wrist and pull her in.

"Hay Lin, we have to go!" Jackie exclaimed. As much as he hated to leave Yan Lin behind, he knew that they've lost this battle. They had to escape and regroup before they too were captured, or worse.

"Group hug! Everyone get intimate!" Jade exclaimed as Tohru was able to pull all ten of them in his enormous arms and Will closed her eyes tightly, concentrating all her power as she pictured Kadma's pyramid and performed the teletransporting spell, causing them all to disappear in a flash of light.

Dai Gui and Tchang Zu growled in annoyance as their enemies escaped, but Xiao Fung noticed Bai Tza's presence. "Sister. You escaped on your own. Quite impressive."

"And claimed a rather nice bonus prize." Hsi Wu added, perching himself on the same tree as Miranda and looked with a grin towards Yan Lin's unconscious form.

Bai Tza hissed. "As much as I would love to take credit, this was all Drago's plan." She revealed before looking directly at Nerissa, who seemed just as surprised to see Yan Lin herself. "Your son anticipated your plan and found a way to work it more to our advantage. While I was deprived of my element, Drago gave me the means to not only free myself but capture the final former Guardian of your team ahead of schedule."

"Hmm, quite impressive." Tso Lan granted.

Nerissa turned her surprise gaze to her son. "Yes… this is indeed quite the generous gift, Drago." She smiled. "I would expect nothing less from my boy."

"Thank you, thank you very much." Drago said, putting on an Elvis impression.

"But nothing comes without a price." Shendu appeared directly over his son. "Nor does it erase your previous attempt at deception, Drago."

"Didn't intend to." Drago replied seriously. "So, why don't we have a little family chat?"

The Guardians, Chan Clan, and their friends appeared near the base of Kadma's pyramid via teletransporting, with so much water surrounding the whole building that they were all ankle-deep in it, and many of the surrounding Zamballans worked to clear it all out.

"Whoa…" Jade got her head on straight as everyone set down when she noticed Will looking rather dizzy. "Will… you okay…?"

"Yeah…" Her cheeks suddenly bulged as she fell to her knees and she threw up, much to everyone's disgust and sympathy. Matt was quickly by her side and helped her to stand up. "Thanks… But I'm not trying that again any time soon."

"You have returned." Ironwood approached the group.

"I'm guessing that this is Bai Tza's doing?" Jackie assumed, referring to the partially flooded area.

"Yes, somehow she escaped from our imprisonment." Ironwood confirmed. "She captured Yan Lin as well. We tried to stop her, but she was too slippery for us. How she escaped though is still unknown to us."

"Drago. It had to be." Tohru figured. "He must have somehow slipped something to Bai Tza that would allow her to provide the means for a summoning spell." He kicked some of the water.

"What about that anti-demon spell that was made to keep those guys from escaping?" Alchemy questioned.

"Spell was meant to keep demons out." Uncle realized before smacking himself on the forehead with his fingers. "Ow! Uncle should have devised spell to keep Bai Tza trapped!"

"We kept our eyes on Drago the whole time he was out of the cell. How the hell did he pull a fast one on us?" Irma questioned.

"We were so busy worrying about each other, Drago blindsided us." Taranee said.

"Not only that, but Nerissa got what she wanted too." Cornelia added. "She got Kadma and the Heart of Zamballa."

"Is this true?" Ironwood questioned in surprise. "Our queen has been captured and our world's Mystic Heart?"

"It is…" Will looked down reluctantly as Matt put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

"It wasn't your fault, Will." Matt tried to tell her.

"And Drago worked with Bai Tza to capture Yan Lin to try and buy back his parents' favor." Jade grunted and looked away.

"Whole demon family's back together. Just perfect." Irma muttered.

Hay Lin fell to her knees as she held her own arms, tears forming in her eyes as she sniffled. "Grandma…"

Jackie and Uncle both kneeled to her level as the younger man put a hand on her shoulders. "We'll get her back." This caused Hay Lin to look towards Jackie. "I promise." He told her firmly.

"Yan Lin is strong. So much stronger than Nerissa." Uncle smiled. "She will be fine." Hay Lin wrapped her arms around both Jackie and Uncle as they returned the embrace to provide what solace they could.

"So… what do we do now?" Will muttered, looking to Jade and Matt, neither really having any idea what to do either.

"Zamballa is without it's queen, without its protector, without its source of power." Ironwood began. "For now, I will act as regent. And my first act, will be to gather what forces I can and form a resistance against the upcoming rule of the demons as they will try to lay claim to this world. And you, must return to your own."

"What?! We can't just leave you guys!" Will protested.

"Guardian, we know nature of this conflict." Ironwood told her. "This is not just about Zamballa, but every world in this cosmos. The demons will attempt to seize control of all of them just as they have done here. Our people are strong and resourceful, and we will whether this storm. But as a Guardian, you have a bigger mission. You must understand that."

"She's right." Caleb agreed. "Meridian might be fine now, but since Nerissa has that Heart too, how long until she and the demons come there and take that world over?"

"Or any of the other worlds that are all over?" Cornelia said as well.

"Including Earth." Taranee added.

"B-but…" Will looked ready to protest.

"Will, I know how much you wanted to end this today, but it just wasn't meant to be." Jackie said in understanding. "Nerissa, Drago, and Shendu, they were all one step ahead of us. As much as I hate to admit, we've lost this fight. There's nothing more that we can do right now."

"Yeah, it sucks… but it just wasn't our day." Even Jade was in agreement, right before she steeled herself. "But just because we lost the battle, doesn't mean we've lost the war. This still ain't over."

With a reluctant sigh, Will accepted it. "Fine."

"Hey." Matt put a hand on her shoulder once again. "You'll get another chance. Remember, this isn't just your fight."

That caused Will to look past her boyfriend, to all her friends as they shared the same fierce and determined look as they, even Hay Lin who had tears of anger in her eyes. That was right. She wasn't alone in this. They all had just as much a stake in this as she did. She wasn't alone in this. She looked towards Jade, who gave her a nod of understanding, to which Will nodded back.

"Alright. Let's get back home." With that, Will used the Heart of Kandrakar to open a Fold for all of them to enter.

"Live to fight another day, Guardians." Ironwood bid them farewell as they left Zamballa, and the Fold closed behind them. "Live to fight another day."

Meanwhile, the quarry that once served as the hideout for Nerissa and the Demon Sorcerers, was now significantly expanded. Much of the forested area was completely torn up as the ground underneath caved, already clearing out a five mile radius, all courtesy of Dai Gui as he dug his way through the ground. The Earth Demon's horns moved through the rock and dirt like a shark through water, all moving around in a circular motion, expanding the perimeter as the jungle was being uprooted.

After carving out a sizable chunk of land, Dai Gui dug his way back to his siblings, all gathered at the very center of the quarry, which was now even deeper than it was before.

"Someone's making quick progress." Xiao Fung commented.

"Zamballa is my kingdom now." Dai Gui declared. "And I will see this entire planet torn up by the root! Every plant and tree will be brushed aside as my new kingdom is submerged underground! A kingdom fit for the Earth Demon!"

"This is but one of many worlds that shall serve us, my siblings." Shendu said to not only Dai Gui, but the rest of his family. "But first, we are still owed an explanation."

All eyes turned to Drago as he sat atop a pile of rocks, Miranda (in her human form) being right below him, and Nerissa at the ground just below. All eyes set on Drago as he looked at all of them, including his mother. He then looked towards Miranda, who simply smiled and nodded.

"What do you want from me? An apology?" Drago began. "For what? Cause I tried to kill my past self? Come on, none of you would have tolerated a potential rival. One who can wield Quintessence."

"Except that you chose not to tell us." Po Kong said.

"I thought I could handle it on my own." Drago growled.

"And look how that turned out." Hsi Wu flew over him and landed on a perch in the ever-growing crater. "Not only did you get caught, but our intervention ended up awakening your past self's inner power, which from what I can see, is stronger than any of us could have anticipated."

"Except that he doesn't know how to use it." Drago argued. "And he's a pint-sized brat. You really think he's just gonna up and grab a sword? Take the fight to us? No way in hell is that tribe gonna let him! Yeah, I screwed up, so what? We'll deal with him later, after we take this damn universe. And we're already making progress! Not only did I help you bag Kadma, I even got you the last ex-Guardian!"

"For your mother, yes." Tso Lan acknowledged. "But the rest of us are not interested in your sentimentality."

"You not only deceived us, but you failed miserably!" Tchang Zu boomed as thunder surged around him. "Give me a reason why I don't obliterate you, right now!"

"You mean, aside from the fact that his mother now wields two Hearts?" Nerissa reminded as she aimed her seal at Tchang Zu, forcing him to back down. "Though I agree." She looked up to her son. "You still deceived us, Drago. Deceived me. You helping me to capture Kadma, and even bringing Yan Lin to my feet is helpful, but it does not make your betrayal right."

"Yeah, I lied." Drago said. "And yeah, I screwed up. But you know what? So did all of you! Including you, Mom!" He said to Nerissa, who was taken off guard by Drago's tone. "You've screwed up and failed before! Just like the rest of you!" He gestured to all the Demon Sorcerers. "I mean… you all ruled the Earth thousands of years ago! And how did that work out?! You got beaten! You were outwitted, overpowered, and banished to an inter-dimensional pit by a bunch of old wizards that all of you could have squashed in the palm of your hands! Even you, Dad!" He pointed to Shendu, who growled. "And even after you slipped out of that pit, and took over China, you still got taken down by an old guy and turned into a freaking statue! And you were stone for like what, nine hundred years? And when you finally get out, you're only out for a couple hours before some magicless, passive, archeologist and his own pint-sized brat took you down, and even blew you up! Then you tried to help all of them escaped, only for each and every one of you to get re-banished five minutes later!" Drago bellowed, his voice echoing throughout the pit, while the Demons Sorcerers continued to listen. "I mean… even when you rewrote history and took the Earth, it still wasn't enough! That same tool and all his buddies undid all of that! So don't talk to me about failure, when each and every one of has probably failed a thousand times over! And now you chose to complain, when we're actually winning?! We have two Hearts, now! We rule freaking Kandrakar! The center of the damn universe! And now the bullshark over there has a place to call his own!" He gestured to Dai Gui. "And you're all gonna have one at the end of this! You'll each have your own planet to rule as we take this universe piece-by-piece! So just forget about that little stunt at the Thunderbird Tribe! You're all about to get everything you've ever wanted and more!"

"Yes, we get what we want, but what do you want, Drago?" Bai Tza questioned.

"Excuse me?" The half-demon questioned.

"Nobody ever does anything for anyone without expecting something in return." The Water Demon began. "You traveled back in time, freed your mother, attempted to kill your past self, and now promise us the universe. Much like your father, you promise us something grand. But there's always a personal motivation behind it. And you are no exception. Your failure and deception can be acceptable, depending on what your motivation is. So, tell me, Drago… if our reward is the universe, what is yours? What do you seek at the end of this?"

Drago locked eyes with his aunt before looking out to the rest of his family, including his parents. "When I was young, I saw the Will Vandom of my timeline kill my mother, the Nerissa from my time." He began. "Now I know you all probably don't care about that, but I do. And then, she and her little friends, tried to raise me… thinking they can probably make amends for the failure of their predecessors. But nothing they did, could ever erase what they've done to me. When I saw my mother die… it left a wound so deep in me… that it will never heal. You want to know what I want? I want them to hurt. The Guardians… J-WITCH…!" Drago growled as he clenched his fist, dark red Quintessence energy surging around it. "Will Vandom… Jade Chan… Irma Lair… Taranee Cook… Cornelia Hale… Hay Lin… I want them to feel the hurt that I felt… and I want them to feel it a million times over!"

"So, it's revenge you seek." Xiao Fung said. "But why go back in time to achieve it?"

"You've proven to be plenty crafty on your own. I'm certain you can make the Guardians of your time hurt." Po Kong added.

"I came back… because I found a way to take back what they took from me." Drago looked to his mother, whose own eyes widened. "You know what that's like, Mom. I found a way to get you back, just as you're trying to bring Cassidy back and all your friends, your real family. And we can still have that. I didn't tell you about the other me, cause maybe I wanted you for myself. Or maybe I felt that he could end up becoming a threat to us. But yeah, that turned into a mess. And we'll deal with it later." He then turned to the Demon Sorcerers again. "I know you don't care about any of that, and that's fine with me. What I seek from my mother, I don't want from any of you, not even you, Dad." He said to Shendu. "I don't want any kind of relationship with you or your siblings, I don't care about that. That's not the reason I freed all of you."

"Then what is?" Shendu inquired.

"Like I said before, I want J-WITCH to suffer." Drago continued. "It was their duty as Guardians that brought them all together in the first place, right? So that's what I'll destroy first. I'll tear down their precious cosmic order that they value so much, help you establish your new rule, because you guys winning, means them losing. I want them to fail in their jobs as Guardians, make them feel unworthy and weak and helpless, unable to protect anything! And once that's done…"

"You'll kill them?" Hsi Wu questioned.

"No. I'll break them." Drago revealed. "I'll tear their lives apart, attack and murder everyone that they know and love. All their friends, brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, their lovers, everyone that they know and love will all die by my hands! I will make them watch as they fall apart and loose everyone and everything they hold dear! And then, when their spirits are broken, and they lack even the will to live… when they finally run out of tears to shed… then and only then, will I put them out of their misery. That's my end goal. I take back what they took from me, and they lose everything."

That was it. It was all laid out in front of them. The Demon Sorcerers, and even Nerissa, they heard Drago's end goal, what he was fighting for and what he wanted to achieve at the end of this. Of course, Miranda already knew this. And as he monologued his revenge, she couldn't help but stare lovingly at him, falling for him even more.

A smile graced across Shendu's face. 'That's my boy.'

Tchang Zu walked towards the pile of stone that Drago stood atop of, and the half-demon met him half-way as he leapt down to meet his thunderous uncle and they stared at each other.

"I've always valued power, because power determines everything." Tchang Zu began. "The strongest are meant to rule, while the weak merely exist to become food for the strong. That is the truth. But, there is something that I respect, even more than power… and that is revenge. I do not like you Drago, I never will." The half-demon narrowed his eyes. "But… your lust for revenge, is something that I can respect. You, Drago, son of Shendu, half-breed who wields the power of Quintessence… have my respect."

"Indeed." Tso Lan hovered closer. "Such determination to achieve what you want, and unwillingness to give up. That is something I respect as well."

"You take what you desire." Xiao Fung hopped closer as well. "Be it revenge or family, and you tear apart anyone who stands in your way. I can respect that too."

"Spoken like a true Demon Sorcerer." Hsi Wu added, flying above them all. "And I too would love to see those pesky little Guardians suffer, especially Jade."

"I now have a planet of my own." Dai Gui stepped up. "But Jackie Chan and his precious Guardians would seek to take it from me as they have before. I will see them broken and buried under the weight of their failures before that happens."

"You, Drago… are the most vile… most ruthless and sadistic creature I have met in centuries." Po Kong said before laughing. "And I love it!"

"I myself would end our enemies as quickly as possible." Bai Tza slithered forward. "But to watch them slowly drown in their defeat and heartbreak… I admit… that will be quite the sight to see."

Finally, Shendu stepped forward. "When I chose to have you conceived, Drago. I had hoped for a suitable heir. And you… have surpassed all expectations. I understand your desire for revenge all too well, to make your enemies suffer, or at the very least those descended from them. But you need not wait as long as I have. We will see that Chan and the Guardians suffer a slow and agonizing end and break their spirits before we grant them death's sweet release." He put his enormous hand on his son's back as he smiled. "Well done, my son."

Drago smiled at all their praise. Despite truthfully having no love for any of them, or want of love from them, it seemed he found the right partners for this job.

"But." Shendu tightened his grasp somewhat as he eyed his son warningly. "You will not deceive us again."

"And just to ensure that you don't…" Po Kong began as she and her siblings all raised their hand, Shendu included, and casted streams of dark energy onto Drago. He felt no pain, even as the aura vanished and a hanzi appeared on the back of his right hand.

"A tracking spell." Drago identified.

"Just to ensure you don't go running off again." Xiao Fung said.

"No more betrayals, Drago." Tso Lan warned. "If you do, it will be not just your end… but that of your mother, and the shapeshifter you've grown so fond of. Regardless of how many Hearts they wield."

Both Nerissa and Miranda glared at the demons in response at that.

"It's a deal." Drago accepted before walking away and rejoining the two women of his life that this heart did long for.

"You just made me fall for you even more." Miranda smiled as she wrapped her arms over his shoulders.

Drago smiled flirtatiously, pulling her in by her waist. "Wonder how far I can take it?"

"That sounds like a challenge…" Miranda said lustfully as they pressed their lips together before separating, leaving the half-demon alone with his mother.

"My son… never before have I been more proud of you." Nerissa said, causing him to turn towards her. "Though, I wouldn't mind the idea of raising two of you… I can at least take pride in the one that's been by my side since the beginning. And more than anything, I understand wanting those responsible for our predicament to suffer."

"But…?" Drago asked expectantly.

"But I must ask… why not go back further in time?" Nerissa asked. "Why not go back to the moment I lost you… stop that from happening…"

"The point where I met you in your cell was as furthest back as I could get." Drago answered. "That, and I still want Will and all her friends to suffer. Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you everything. Maybe I just wanted you for myself but… can you honestly say that you wouldn't do the same thing?"

Nerissa looked away for a brief moment, considering what her son just inquired. Honestly, the more she thought about it… if she could go back in time… with knowledge of the future and how to prevent what happened on that mountain from happening the way it did… she'd do it. And if it meant killing off her past self and taking her place… maybe it wouldn't be easy… but she'd do it. And nobody would ever know the difference.

"I suppose that's fair." Nerissa confessed.

"So… we're good…?" Drago asked somewhat nervously.

Nerissa looked to him with a glare at first, before it turned into a playful smirk. "We're good. But never lie to me again." She warned seriously.

"Deal." Drago accepted, right before his mother wrapped her arms around him, a gesture he returned himself.

Earth – Heatherfield

After returning to Earth, Jackie had told the girls and everyone to go home and get some sleep, which they were happy to oblige. Blunk helped Caleb Fold to Meridian to get some rest there as well while the others would go to their respective homes, all except Hay Lin, who asked to stay with Jade and her family for the night, not feeling up to going to her house without her grandma. They understood and accepted, and since it was a Friday night, Hay Lin could just text her parents that she was sleeping over at Jade's.

Will had also received a text from her father about inviting her to dinner at his place with Sarina, which she also accepted, having just arrived.

"Hey, glad you made it, sweetie." Thomas greeted his daughter as she stepped into his apartment, the two sharing a hug.

"Thanks for having me over, Dad." Will took a few whiffs of the air. "Hmm, what smells so good?"

"Sarina said she wanted to make a nice big pot of spaghetti for us, and you have got to try her meat sauce, she is a master chef." Thomas said as Sarina had set the hot bowl of Spaghetti on the table for all of them.

"Hi, Will." Sarina waved.

"Hey, Sarina." Will greeted back.

"So, were you able to work things out with that project of yours?" She asked, referring to their talk earlier.

"Yeah…" Will rubbed the back of her neck nervously. "It didn't exactly turn out the way we hoped, but I was able to sort some things with my friends, which really helped. Thanks, for that."

"Anytime." Sarina winked. "You hungry?"

"Oh god, yes. Been running around all day, I'm starving." Will said as she sat down with her dad and her soon-to-be stepmom. And as they sat and talked, Will couldn't help but feel happy. Yeah, they suffered a big loss today… and they would find a way to bounce back from that. But right here, right now, in this moment… she was just having a nice dinner with her father and someone else that she was looking forward to having in her life.

And her life up until now hasn't been easy, but one thing she knew as certain: she wasn't alone. She had her mom and dad, a father-figure and mentor, she had her best friend and spirit sister, her boyfriend, and all her other friends, be it from Earth or otherwise. And now with Sarina, she had another heart…

'Huh… guess I got that extra heart after all.'

Done.

So, yeah, all that happened.

Much of the events from the canon episode remained the same, such as Nerissa enthralling Kadma and clamming the Heart of Zamballa, merging it with the Heart of Meridian to create the Seal of Nerissa (only this time, it also has the Tiger Talisman in the mix).

But unlike canon, Yan Lin was captured earlier on, thanks to Drago's own manipulations as he played Kadma like a fiddle. He and Miranda have also managed to rejoin Nerissa and the Demon Sorcerers, though he's kept on something of a leash now, even if he has gained their respect. And he's made it very clear that his hatred and lust for revenge against the Guardians, especially Will, is his main driving force here and he wants them to suffer as much as possible.

Dai Gui has also claimed the world of Zamballa for himself, though the Zamballans are willing to put up a fight.

We also got the sub-plot of Will meeting her future stepmother, Sarina. Though thanks to some help from Captain Black and Blunk, Will's suspicions of Sarina being connected to Nerissa were halted as the woman is clean. Though I am going to say that both Will's dad, Thomas, as well as Sarina, will not have that big of a role to play for the remainder of this story. But the next one… We'll see. ;)

Anyway, with Yan Lin now captured, the heroes are going to do everything they can to try and get her back, especially Hay Lin. But as for how they do that, and whether they are successful or not, you will see in the next chapter.

Until then, stay safe and stay healthy out there. Love you guys.