Date: Sun, 4 Aug 2013 12:38:09 -0700 (PDT)
From: Nick Richards <notoriouslynick90@yahoo.com>
Subject: The Legendaries- Part 6

Disclaimer: This story will contain intimate relationships and sex between
two or more males.  This story will also include strong language and
graphic scenes.  If this offends you, or you are not allowed to read this
due to age restrictions, please leave. Also, please keep in mind that Nifty
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"The Legendaries: Part Six"

	The secluded twilight-lit beach was just as the three young
Legendaries had expected. It was December, two days before Christmas, no
one in their right mind would really want to be in the chilly waters, and
the rush of the holidays had been keeping everyone busy. So, it ended up
being just the three of them and the angry Leviathan, plus a few water
sprites, to keep them company. They had finally gotten the water demon out
from the sea, though he was appearing to be just as dangerous on
land. Having the extra water sprites as back up didn't help the situation.
	Zane managed to summon an ice storm, effectively freezing a sprite
into solid ice, before shattering it into a million pieces. A rippling jet
of water caught the Windsweeper in the chest, knocking him several feet
backwards. He shook his head in an attempt to get rid of the daze as he saw
another sprite advancing on him. He swiftly checked the surrounding area
for his friends, though they were not as focused on the battle as he was.

	"Tori. Heart. You have to be kidding me right now."
	"Coop, we've just never really had time... I mean, we obviously
celebrate and everything."
	"It's hardly celebrating if you haven't decorated yet!!" The other
two Legendaries were bickering back and forth on either side of the giant
water serpent. They tried to establish a plan of action, when it would turn
to one of them, the other would try and attack it. For a water demon,
though, this dragon was very well armored. The Leviathan turned towards
Coop while Tori's eyes flashed black when she attacked the demon, earning
her a pained screech. Through all the commotion, they somehow managed to
maintain their conversation.
	"I really don't think it's that big of a deal, Coop!" This
statement earned a horrendously dramatic gasp from Coop.
	"TORI HEART! Decorating for Christmas is one of the best parts!" He
started before blasting a jet of water into steam. "You get good bonding
time with your family and you get to listen to Christmas music and eat
cookies and drink eggnog and laugh when someone messes up the lights and-"
	"Coop, dammit, shut up and help me!" Zane shouted as two of the
sprites wrapped him in a whirlpool of dark water. The younger teen was
lifted twenty feet in the air by what looked miniature tornado on the beach
as the two water demons made gargling sounds that Coop knew was laughter.
	"Tajeto's Fury!"
	The temperature of the immediate vicinity rose exponentially as a
blast of pure heat vaporized the remaining sprites and temporarily blinded
the Leviathan. Zane began falling from the air, but Coop managed to catch
him telekinetically.
	"You okay?" He asked Zane. Zane grimaced at him.
	"Just finish this up, would you? We have places to be, remember?"
	"Ah, right... Okay, yeah, let's do this!"

*******

	"Aww, don't you look adorable!"
	"Mom, I'm seventeen. I don't look adorable."
	"Fine, handsome." Melissa Storm rolled her eyes as her handsomely
dressed son stepped down the stairs from his room on the second floor. He
wore a very nice pair of jeans with a snug-fitting, deep red sweater that
showed from under his navy pea coat.
	"Yes, handsome is better." Coop muttered, feeling slightly uneasy
as his mother fawned over him.
	"Coop, you said we were gonna go ice skating! Does this mean I can
come?" His ten-year-old brother rang.
	"Evan, this is a date. I can't bring my little brother along."
	"But Coop!! You sai-"
	"I said we would go, brat. That doesn't mean you can come this
time."
	"Mooooomm!"
	"Alright boys," their mother intervened, "Coop, you do need to take
your brother since you promised him." Coop looked incredulous. "Another
night." She finished. Coop sighed a breath of relief as he knelt down to
look a deflated Evan in the eyes.
	"We'll go tomorrow night, alright, bud?" Evan smiled a little and
hugged his older brother.
	"Promise?"
	"Yeah, I promise, squirt."


*******

	"Shit, shit, shit. You're sure this looks alright?" Zane asked
spinning around. Tori rolled her eyes at her brother. ( "Yes, I
promise. You look fine."
	"Fine as in alright, or fine as in sexy?" Zane smirked, quickly
running his hands through his stylish brown hair. Again, she rolled her
eyes.
	"I'm not answering that." Although, she had to admit, he did look
pretty good, with his Docker khakis and argyle sweater.
	"Whatever..."
	"So, he'll have you back by ten?" Another voice came, spooking the
two teenagers in the room. Charles Heart stood at the door, his eyebrow
raised in question.
	"Ten? Really, Charles?" Zane whined.
	"I'm just kidding! Ten thirty." He chuckled, leaving the room.
	"He is kidding, right?" Zane questioned as Tori got up to
leave. She just shrugged.
	"Never know with him. Listen, I'm going to meditate for a
while. Have fun, don't give it up on the first date, it's tacky." Zane
snorted. "And I expect details when you get back."

*******

	"You look spectacular." Coop noted, getting into his Jeep after
opening the door for Nik. The younger teen blushed. When Coop had knocked
on the Davenports' door, Nik greeted him in a nicely put together outfit
and a toboggan with adorable flaps on the side.
	"Thanks. You do too."
	"So, ice-skating still sound good?" Coop asked as he raced onto the
highway.
	"I think what you're asking is, `Does falling on your ass a few
time still sound good?'"
	"Hey, I won't let you fall on your ass. I'll have you every step of
the way.... Besides, your ass is too adorable to let get hurt." Nik was not
the only one to blush at this comment. "I'm sorry, that was a little out of
line."
	"Uhh, it was fine. I mean, yeah, but, no... uhh it was alright?"
Nik stammered out.
	`Too cute.' Coop thought.

	They arrived at the fairly empty skating rink and Coop paid for the
pair. Coop watched the brown-haired boy finish strapping his skates first
to go and look at the ice tentatively.
	"Ready?" Coop asked sliding onto the ice and holding his hand for
Nik. Nik took a deep breath and stepped onto the ice. Perhaps his first
mistake. Immediately he was gathered into a full body embrace from Coop as
he slipped, his feet almost disappearing from under him. He looked into
Coop's eyes and smiled.
	"See, I told you I would have you." Coop whispered as he held Nik's
waist.
	"I trust you."

	Slowly, the pair began to develop a rhythm as their legs carried
them in a circle around the rink. Nik really seemed to have it down even
though he wouldn't let go of Coop's hand. Their conversations seemed to go
on for hours, though they had skated for about two at this point.
	"So, let me get this right. Your favorite subject is art. Your
favorite real subject is Spanish. You don't like peanut butter, you despise
beets, and your favorite candy is thin mints?" Coop asked, recounting their
conversation.
	"And I have a thing for taller blond guys." Nik added before
blushing again. He wasn't usually that forward.
	"Right, how could I forget?" Coop joked, winking.
	"What about you? Let's see, you like to run, you don't have a
favorite subject because "school is dumb," you don't like relish on your
hot dogs, you detest Chinese food, which is going to cost you, and you like
mythology."
	"And I have a thing for adorable, silver-eyed guys." Coop
teased. Again, Nik blushed.
	"Right, how could I forget?" Nik mocked as he dropped his voice to
match Coop's. They left the rink and waddled over to their real shoes while
laughing.
	"Well, how does going to get some Moose Tracks ice cream sound?"
Coop asked, recalling Nik's favorite flavor.
	"I don't know, it's pretty cold out."
	"I'll keep you warm." Coop winked.
	"Only if you promise."

*******

	Zane grumbled as Ethan closed the Dodge Charger door behind
him. He'd slipped on the estate's front staircase and had to be caught by
Ethan. Not that he wasn't charming, but, really, could he be any lamer?
Ethan got into the driver's sear and smiled over to him.
	"So, you've never been to the aquarium?" He asked as the engine
roared to life.
	"I know, you'd think I would have as animal crazy as I am. But,
there wasn't one in the podunk little town I used to live in. And my family
never travelled much."
	"Well, I'm honored to be your first time." Zane may have imagined
the innuendo, and Ethan blushing, but ignored it.
	The truth was, this was Zane's first... anything. He'd never dated
a boy, never kissed a boy, never really talked to another boy that he
liked. He was almost seventeen and had never kissed someone.
	`Yeah,' Zane thought, `just got lamer.'

	Despite Zane's reservations about.... well, everything, this had
actually gone rather smoothly. Ethan was the perfect gentleman and smiled
at the right times and laughed at Zane's awful jokes and put up with Zane's
mostly initial, but somewhat lasting, awkwardness.
	"Oh, hey, here are the penguins." Zane heard before Ethan grabbed
his hand and dragged him over to see the birds.
	"I love penguins. Did you know that when nesting, penguins make
their nests out of stone and will fight each other for the best rocks?"
	"Where'd you read that?" Ethan asked, looking around the exhibit.
	"A library book when I was five." Zane answered as he looked back
at the flightless birds.
	"You're joking. I know you're smart, but, really?"
	"Hey, you don't know how smart, mister."( "Really?" Ethan raised
his eyebrows.
	"Penguins also have exhibited homosexual behavior since first
documented in 1911." Zane winked and squeezed Ethan's hand tighter.
	"Alright, Mr. Encyclopedia, let's get you out of here and go eat
somewhere, huh?"

*******

	Coop exhaled a deep breath as he fell back onto his bed. He smiled
brightly as he recalled the details of his excellent first date with
Nik. They had chosen to leave the rink and instead of getting ice cream,
they got pretzels instead and chose to walk in the park as the sun
set. Funnily enough, it was the same park that he and Tori had fought the
dragon during his first week on Legendary duty. He had smirked at this
memory.
	The boys had talked much more during their walk through the park
where Coop learned much more about Nik. Unfortunately, Coop had unknowingly
brought up a particularly painful topic...

	"So, have you ever been to a party?"
	"Like... with cake and clowns?" It was when the shorter boy started
laughing that Coop realized he was joking. "Yeah, I went to a few back
home."
	"So do you drink?"
	"Do you?" Came Nik's reflective response.
	"Uhh... well, I mean, I have at parties and stuff, but never made
it a habit or anything."
	"Yeah, that was me too. But I don't do that any more."
	"Oh, why's that?"
	"Well... I mean... there was this one party and I had kind of
gotten a little drunk. Okay, a lot drunk." He admitted. "Embarrassingly
enough, I ended up puking everywhere and one of my friends had to take me
outside. I called my parents and had to tell them where I was and then I
passed out. They ended up coming to get me and on the way home.... we
wrecked. My parents ended up dying that night. The police said they didn't
know how I managed to survive. I wasn't even buckled. But another car hit
us from head on and my parents were thrown from the car..."
	Silence followed.
	"I'm sorry, Coop, I totally shouldn't have just laid that on you. I
rea-"
	"No. Don't apologize. I mean, that sucks, dude. But I'm glad you
were comfortable enough to share that with me." He said, smiling. He took
Nik into a tight hug and when they separated they looked into each other's
eyes. Again, it was green on gray.
	`Uh-oh,' thought Coop, `the kiss moment. Crap! Does he want me to?
I mean, it's the first date, should I?'
	They continued to stare, but Coop could feel that they were almost
out of that window; soon they would pass into that uncomfortable stage.
	`Why don't I just...' Coop reached into himself and slowly extended
his mind to Nik's. There, on the surface, was what Coop was looking
for. Nik was imagining what it would be like for Coop to kiss him, to feel
Coop's lips on his.
	He found out.

*******

	"So, Ethan, I know I probably should've have asked you this sooner,
but how old are you?"
	The two young men sat at a small cafe in the city. It was a cute
little place, one that might go unnoticed by passersby, but quaint enough
to have a faithful few attenders. His hunger showing, Ethan had gotten a
full meal - and then some- though Zane only ordered a coke.
	"What, you haven't looked at my file? I thought you'd have read up
on me, Mr. Encyclopedia."
	"What? No! I really didn't!" Zane said, his voice jumping an octave
while defending himself. In truth, however, the Legendary hadn't thought to
do that. He may have had one of the highest IQs in the world, but he hadn't
thought to read up on his date.
	"I'm nineteen."
	"Oh." Zane muttered.
	"What? Too young? Too old?"
	"I don't know, honestly."
	"Well, how old was your last boyfriend?" Ethan questioned before
taking a sip of his water. Zane blushed. Ethan caught on
quickly. "Oh... oh... I, uh, didn't know that you. I thought you would
have.... I mean, a guy like you.... uh..."( "Really, it's okay Ethan. I
mean, if anyone should be embarrassed-"
	"No! I mean, that's perfectly fine! For a sixteen year old, that's
perfectly fine!" Zane smiled at the older man.
	"Thank you. I just didn't expect you to be nineteen. I honestly
don't know how old I expected you to be. I mean, you're a part of the
Company, but you're not... old. I guess I really didn't think about it."
Ethan chuckled.
	"I guess I didn't either. Well, I mean, I thought about the age
difference, and then Mr. Heart came and talked to me and I-"
	"What!? Charles talked to you? About me?!" This time Ethan blushed.
	"He just warned me to be careful and reminded me of what kind of
ground I'm treading on."
	"What, that you're dating a sixteen-year-old superhuman whose
father is an extremely powerful mage and also your boss?"
	"Yeah, something like that..." Ethan muttered. Silence fell between
the two for a few moments.
	"Why are you a part of the Company? We usually don't start
recruitment until prospects turn twenty-one."
	"I'm....a special case." Zane gave him a look. "My parents were
consultants to the Company. Specialized in botany. Somehow, Mr. Heart got
them roped in and they started working in the Center for Extradimensional
Life helping research foreign plant life."( "So you grew up around the
Company?"
	"Not quite. My parents kept me pretty far from all of it,
actually. But my dad was always kind of paranoid and put me in all these
training sessions. I was homeschooled and then trained. By the time I was
twelve, I was proficient in several styles of martial arts and could speak
six languages. I could use several different weapons. Obviously I didn't
have too many friends, so I just trained more. It's paid off, but you know,
it was kind of lonely." Zane gave him a sympathetic smile.
	"So your dad was just training you for the Company?"
	"Apparently. Once my parents got signed on, they caught Mr. Heart's
vision. They wanted to do all they could to contribute to the Company's
work."
	"So you just got in on special orders." There was another pause
between the two of them.
	"When I was seventeen, I came home from a ski trip with other
homeschoolers. It was one of the only things my parents actually let me
do. I came home to find our home in wreckage. It looked like a tornado had
swept through the house. We had a pretty sophisticated system in the house,
as you could imagine, but apparently it had been overridden. I could hear
voices in the house that were not my parents. My instincts took over and I
started creeping around. I grabbed an energy pistol from a compartment in
the hallway closet. Turned out, two mages had broken into our house and
killed my parents." Zane gasped. He could relate to parts of this story
from his own experiences, but he couldn't imagine what Ethan had gone
through. The captain continued his narration, as though he had told the
story a hundred times.
	"I don't know what happened, it was like I was on auto-pilot. I was
able to draw one of them into a bedroom by making some noise. I grabbed him
from behind, shot a blast into his stomach and snapped his neck. The second
one must have felt it or something because he came running. We kind of went
back and forth for a few minutes. He was pretty powerful. I managed to
outsmart him though. He just thought I was some kid, but I managed to take
him by surprise and threw a sussex crystal at him. Bound his powers. I
threw my weight at him and knocked him out by head butting him." Zane's
eyes grew wide at the turns in the story. "I was able to contact the
Company and they came to... do what they do. I didn't have anywhere else to
go and I was more than qualified, so Mr. Heart told me I could join the
Company if I wanted to. And I did."
	Once again, a pause was left between them.
	"Ethan, I'm so sorry." Zane lamented and took the captain's hand
into his own.
	"Hey, no worries." Ethan mustered. "I wouldn't have met you if all
that wouldn't have happened."
	The unlikely couple held hands across the table and smiled at one
another, their bond, somewhat strengthened. Zane only imagined what else
this man, not much older than himself, had experienced. How much had he
been forced into adulthood? How much had he missed out on? Just like
Zane. Maybe, just maybe, they could help each other through hell...

*******

	A warm feeling washed over Coop as he watched the people he loved
bustle around the Heart Estate. He had finally convinced (more like forced)
Charles and Tori to decorate and now he couldn't help but smile at the
Christmas wonderland it had turned out to be. Even though he had done most
of the decorating. The day before Christmas Eve had become the day Coop
gave presents to his friends from school, and then spent the rest with
family. Except today, after giving Sean and Rose their presents, he had
come to Heart Estate to spend some time with his friends and give details
about his date to Tori and Zane. And to get details from Zane.
	"You guys kissed?"
	"You guys didn't?"
	The two teenage boys evaluated each other.
	"Of course I thought about it, Coop. But, it was a little soon, and
that's not really what we had on our minds."
	"Well, it's all he could think about." Coop muttered before Tori
slapped his arm.
	"Cooper Storm, you did not read his mind." Coop gave her a sheepish
grin.
	"Well, I'm glad that it went well." Zane said with a small
smile. "When do you get to see him again?"
	"We're meeting up tomorrow night."
	"Christmas Eve? Isn't that a little close to Christmas for you? You
go into ultra-Christmas mode on Christmas Eve don't you." Tori
questioned. ( "It's true. If I decide to give you my time on Christmas Eve
or Christmas, you're pretty damn important."
	"Ethan is on patrol until the twenty-seventh." Zane pouted.
	"Well, I have something to keep all of your minds busy..."
	"Well hey, Chuck!" Coop greeted as the mage stepped into the
room. "Even though I don't like that tone of voice, I appreciate your
presence!" Charles looked the Legendary over before continuing.
	"I'm sorry to break through the holiday spirit, but there is
something that requires your attention."
	"That doesn't sound good," Zane began.
	"I'm sorry, but it looks like we have a little recon to do."
	"What? No! No Legendary shit until after Christmas!" Coop
whined. Tori gave him a severe look.
	"Is this about Tyros?" She asked. Charles nodded.
	"You know we've been getting closer to locating his power
signals. We may have found a general area."
	"That's great, Charles!" Zane smiled. "With the three of us doing
recon, we could very possibly find him and awaken him before Christmas!"
	"My thoughts exactly. You leave in thirty minutes."
	"To go where?" Coop groaned.
	"You're going to Yosemite National Park. We're picking up power
waves from the mountain range."

*******

	"We're leaving for the freaking mountains. I mean, I know it's
December, but it still only gets like, forty degrees here. We're going to
the freaking mountains." Coop whined.
	"Coop, you have an internal temperature of like, a thousand
degrees. Shut up." Zane snapped.
	"Boys, boys. Come on, we'll be fine. We can only spend a few hours
anyway. Legendaries or not, we should not be up there in the dark."
	"How can Tyros be in the mountain range with the weather being so
cold?"
	"Coop, Tyros is the Legendary of Earth. His powers allow him to be
impervious to cold, heat, wind. He'll be rugged, not afraid to rough
it. Even if his avatar hasn't been awakened, he'll enjoy the challenge of
nature."

	Coop happened to be correct. The mountains were cold. Immediately,
their resident barometer, Zane, registered the mountains at thirteen
degrees below zero. Wind and snow whipped around them, and Coop knew if it
weren't for his Legendary senses, he wouldn't be able to make out his
surroundings. Coop wanted to start blazing the Phoenix's power
immediately. Luckily, their armor had transformed into an extremely well
insulated eskimo suit. Well, not really. The armor itself was white to
blend in with the surroundings, plated for protection, and insulated with
warmth. Something else accompanied their armor, however: a white
hooded... poncho? Parka? Coop didn't know. But it looked kind of like a
hooded cape and they looked badass so he wasn't complaining.
	"Alright, I'm going to mark this spot," Tori bellowed over the
wind. "In one hour, we'll meet back here. Good?" Zane and Coop both gave
her the thumbs up. With that, Tori scorched the earth with purple light and
nodded to her friends. She magically bounded off the landing and down into
a valley. Zane gave another thumbs up to Coop before freeing his scanner
from his suit and taking to the skies.
	`Flame on...' Coop thought as he activated his powers so a thin
layer of heat surrounded him. He also took flight, opposite of Zane, and
began scanning telepathically. This could be a long hour...

	Zane's scanner was picking up nothing, and he was having trouble
controlling the wind and the snow to avoid him. Weather-controlling or not,
he wouldn't be able to fully control the earth's natural storms for a
while. At least until he was fully-Awakened. Gah. His suit did provide him
warmth, for the most part, so that was good. He jumped as his scanner
picked up a blip, but dismissed it as another Yeti. They loved the
mountains. Besides, for something to actually survive up here, they'd have
to be a Legendary. Or a mountain man. Zane's scanner reminded him that
forty-five minutes was up and it was time to head back.

	Coop hadn't been having much luck finding anything, but he'd
enjoyed pushing his heat wave to melt the snow. He hadn't picked up much
more telepathic signal than a few coyotes. And something preternatural. Not
human, so he didn't care. He'd have to ask Zane, but maybe it was an
Abominable Snowman? His scanner went off, notifying him of the time, but
just as he was ready to turn back, he felt something in a valley about a
mile and a half below him. He couldn't turn back on this now. He began
descending as he telepathically scanned the area again. Somewhere out
there, a cave, maybe? Coop found the entrance as the identifiable thoughts
of a human became coherent. As soon as he stepped into the cave's mouth, he
knew he'd made a mistake.

	`Where is Coop?' Tori mentally asked Zane, getting sick of
waiting. It was five minutes past their meeting time and the sun was
beginning to set. Zane only shrugged as he stepped into the circle of
protection Tori had drawn. He felt the cold melt away with the extra heat
she had spelled into the circle.
	`Last I could track him, he was about ten miles to the north.' Zane
answered. `Can you do a locating spell?'
	`It'll take a sec...'

	"Cooper Storm, we meet again." Coop couldn't speak. The moment he
stepped inside the cave it had sealed itself. At the same time, the source
of Coop's inquiry revealed himself. The white-haired mage.
	"I know you're trying to find Tyros, but he's not here. Trust me,
I've looked."
	"I swear to whatever gods there are, I will incinerate your ass
again, and this time it will take." Coop threatened, his eyes already
flaming and the cave's internal temperature rising steadily.
	"Tisk, tisk, such a temper. Relax, I'm here to talk." The mage
whispered. Coop felt some of his power slip away when the mage waved his
hand. "This chamber is lined with symbols that will bind your power. I
could kill you, but that would be too easy." When Coop spoke again, his
voice carried with it a power beyond himself. His voice was still his own,
but the Phoenix accompanied it.
	"Mage, you use borrowed power. It shall not hold against me."
	"Calm yourself, Phoenix. I come to give you a warning." The cave
illuminated with light as a jet of flame raced towards the mage. The flame
dissipated, but the mage was on edge now.
	"Speak your peace, mage, but know I am not powerless."
	"You Legendaries grow stronger, it is true, but we are stronger
yet. Soon, the Demon Kings will devour this world and you can do nothing to
stop it. If you, Cooper Storm, surrender, you and your family will be
spared." The temperature in the cave spiked and both Coop and the mage had
begun to sweat.
	"You can threaten me with your fake invitations and your borrowed
power. But stay the fuck away from my family!"


	Tori had just pinpointed Coop's location when she and Zane felt a
powerful pulse followed by an explosion.
	`Coop.' They thought simultaneously.

*******

	"Hey, Coop, how are you feeling?" Tori's voice came in from the
other side of the line.
	Christmas Day. Coop's favorite holiday. Being at home with his
family was always the highlight of his holiday season. However, Coop smiled
a tired when he answered Tori.
	"Hey. I'm good, I think. I'm glad I was able to recoup before
today. Have you and Zane found anything?"
	"Well, we've not really looked for anything since you left last
night. Dad wanted us to take a break so we could actually take place in
Christmas festivities. Thanks for helping with the research though, I'm
sure we'll find something."
	"We just need to find a way to keep him away from our families,
first, and then find a way to kick his ass out of this dimension."
	"Coop, don't worry, we'll find...something." Coop sighed wearily.
	"I know. It just needs to happen soon."
	"It will. Anyway, I'll let you go back to your family."
	"Okay. Hey, I'm taking Evan ice skating later if you and Zane want
to come."
	"Hmm, alright, just text me."
	"Will do, ma'am." Coop said, his voice taking a southern
accent. "Merry Christmas, Tori."
	"You too, Coop."

	*******

	"Are you sure it's alright for me to come?" Nik asked
worriedly. Coop mock rolled his eyes.
	"Yes, Nik. It is perfectly fine for you to come. Sean and Rose want
to meet you and it'll be a fun time. I want you to be there."
	"You're not going to try and seduce me while we're in the
mountains?" Nik teased. Coop smile and waggled his eyebrows while he closed
the space between the two of them to hold Nik in his arms.
	"Don't tempt me." He whispered, leaning in to kiss the shorter boy.

	So, the next day, the couple was off. Coop had to admit that the
small group of people was going to be a really good time. Sean and Rose led
the caravan up the to the mountain range (which Coop was oh-so-excited to
see again), followed by another few of their friends, Emily, Jay, and and
David. Coop and Nik brought up the rear in the ever reliable Jeep.
	Even though Coop was a little anxious to leave home, Tori had,
surprisingly, convinced him to go.
	"You need the break," she had told him, even though he was pretty
sure the last break she'd had was in the third grade. Still, he did like
the thought of his friends in the mountains, and the time he would have
with Nik. He really liked that thought. Plus, Tori and Zane both said
they'd check on his family and Coop would be able to defend himself in case
anything happened at the cabin.
	"Oh my dear sweet lord..." Nik whispered, clutching the handle
above him for support. "I didn't know the roads were going to be this
rough. Or icy."
	"Don't worry, the good ol' Jeep can handle it. It's made a mountain
trip many a times." He smiled encouragingly as his hand found Nik's. This
seemed to comfort the boy a little, though his knuckles were still white on
the handle. Honestly, the roads were extremely bad, and Coop had been
keeping all three cars of the caravan in check at different times with his
telekinesis. The sooner they could get off the road, the better.

	After another frustrating thirty minutes later and the group of
teenagers were frantically running into the cabin with their luggage in
tow. Coop automatically did a quick telepathic scan of the cabin as he
brushed snow from his jacket and hair. Clear as far as he could tell. The
teens immediately began flinging themselves onto couches and into chairs as
Sean announced he had turned the heat on.
	"Alright guys... for the next three days, this is home."

*******

	Tori and Zane were exhausted from the rush of the past few days,
but even though they were trying to relax, they were, once again, in the
library doing research. Coop left two days ago for the cabin, leaving Zane
and Tori to research, but once he left, they realized they didn't know what
they were supposed to be researching. Finally, after Tori returned from a
psychic powwow with the Darkening, the group had been working to develop a
plan to strip the white-haired mage of his powers. If they could do this,
Zane deducted, they could then use magic to locate him and his super-secret
hide-out, and then, with the mage's powers gone, it would be easier to
destroy his stronghold, and the threat. At least temporarily. It sounded
like a good plan to all of them, but it was proving to be a lot harder than
they thought. They had almost no information about him and they only had
suspicions of the origin of his powers. Still, it was better than no plan,
so they were back at the books and the databases.
	Zane was sitting cross-legged on a leather couch, a book in his lap
and a cup of hot chocolate in his hand. He skimmed the pages, looking for
keywords. Draco, the newest addition to the family, sat on his left side
with his head nestled against his pajama-clad leg. Zane wished he could
take a nap like Draco, even though he and Tori were still in their
sleepwear.  Tori opposite Zane in an armchair reading a tablet connected to
a database in Millennium Hall. It seemed the easiest way to access the
files without being cooped up in a room full of monitors all day. When
Charles entered the room, he raised his eyebrow at the two comfortably
dressed teens who hadn't even bothered to look up.
	"While this is admirable," he began, finally eliciting eye contact
from the two, "you do still need your rest. You've been in the library for
six hours now. Why don't you at least take a break. I've left some analysts
picking up the research where I've left off." Tori sighed.
	"Dad, we really need to get this done-"
	"Victoria Heart, do not lecture me. We are not abandoning our
search, we are pausing it for some rest. It's six o'clock and you didn't
have lunch."
	"I don't know, Tori, why don't we just take an hour or two?" Zane
asked, rubbing his tired eyes.
	"Alright, alright. We can take a break and get dinner."
	"When was the last time you checked on Coop's mom?" Charles asked
as he opened the library door for his children.
	"Hmm...yesterday morning?" Tori thought. Charles rubbed his
daughter's back as she sank into a dining room chair.
	"Why don't you take a trip to see her then, check on her and Evan?"
Zane looked between his father and sister and smiled.
	"I'll go. It'll be good to get out of the house and you look like
you could use a nap." He started, gazing at Tori. "Besides, I told her I'd
bring her more of that chai tea she likes." Charles turned to his daughter
as Zane walked to the kitchen.
	"He's right, why don't you rest. You've been working very hard."
She sighed.
	"Fine... wake me up in a few hours?" Charles nodded, watching her
leave the table and walk up the stairs.
	"Found the tea, I'll just fly over and check on everything." Zane
told his father as he walked towards the door. Charles smiled when he saw
Draco following his son around.
	"It looks like your shadow wants to go too." He said,
smirking. Zane looked down at Draco, frowning.
	"Aww, I'm sorry, boy. We'll go flying again, real soon." The dragon
made a crooning noise and slowly marched away from the front door, its tail
drooping.

*******

	"Mom, Dom is here!" Evan screeched when he opened the front
door. The young boy practically attacked the teenager, taking Dom by
surprise. The snuggly-dressed Dom jumped as Evan hugged him around the
waist.
	"Hey, bud. How's it going?" He asked, stiffly attempting to walk
into the house with Evan still attached to him. Melissa Storm came into the
den from her office, following the noise of the struggling boys.
	"I like your hugs. You're almost as tall as Coop, but short enough
to give back really good hugs." Evan explained.
	"Dom! It's so good to see you! How have things been?" She asked,
leaning in to hug her son's friend.
	"Everything's been pretty swell. I came over to bring you the
standard holiday goodie platter from mom." He presented the aluminum
wrapped plate to Evan, who greedily ran to the kitchen. "Hey, pace yourself
this time! I don't you want you getting sick like last year!" He called
after the boy. Melissa watched him go, shaking her head.
	"So, come on in. Why don't you unwrap yourself and come on to the
study, let's catch up!" He smiled and began to shimmy out of his Michael
Kors Jacket. The slim teen finally ran his fingers through his brown hair
after taking his toboggan off.
	"Coop wouldn't happen to be home, would he?" He asked, sitting
after Melissa motioned to a lounge chair. She shook her head.
	"He and a few friends went up to the mountains for a few days. How
come you're not up there? Doesn't your family usually go up to your lodge
for a few days around Christmas?" He grimaced.
	"Yeah, we were supposed to go a few days ago. We got everything
packed up and we were halfway up the mountain when a really bad storm came
through. We ended up turning around halfway up the mountain, but our car
ended up getting stuck and we had to hike down to the ranger station. It
was a pretty crazy time."
	"Wow, well, I hope nothing like that happens while Coop is up
there."
	"I was kind of hoping he'd be here. I've not seen him since this
party a few weeks ago and I kind of wanted to talk to him..." He trailed
off.
	"You and me both. I haven't seen much of him the past two
weeks. He's either with Tori and Zane or he's with Nik. It's crazy how he's
taken to all these new kids." Dom just chuckled, trying to shield his own
reservations about the group of teens from the woman.
	"You know how it is, we just get busy." He offered. Melissa nodded
grimly before taking another sip of her tea. Yes, she knew how her son
operated. She opened her mouth to ask Dom what he thought about her son's
friends when the doorbell rang. She looked up in confusion. "Excuse me, one
second." She rose from her chair and made her way to the front door. "Well,
Zane, this is a surprise. You know Coop is still in the mountains, right?"
The teen smiled.
	"I know, Mrs. Storm. I just decided I'd drop by. I brought some of
that new chai tea you like." He explained, presenting the box of
teabags. Melissa smiled and welcomed another teenager into her home.
	"Well, come on in. You know Dominic, right?" She asked over her
shoulder when he came from the study. Zane nodded.
	"Hey, Dom. How's it going?" He asked, trying to hide his
uneasiness. Something about the guy had always unnerved him. The taller
teenager replied with a nod.
	"Do you guys see a lot of each other at school?" She asked
cluelessly from the kitchen.
	Zane and Dom had retained their eye contact. What was this feeling
Zane had? Apprehension? Anxiety? This was somewhat similar to the feeling
he had before he went into battle. Was Zephyr trying to tell him something?
Zane's reverie was interrupted when Evan, once again, came barreling into
the kitchen.
	"Zane! When did you get here?" He asked, hugging the teenager much
like the other. Zane smiled at the boy.
	"Just got here, Ev. But I'm leaving here in just a sec. I just had
to drop something off to your mom. And make sure you were safe." He winked
at the boy. "With Coop gone, you never know what you might need protecting
from!" He said before growling and swooping after Evan who had begun to
laugh and run down the hallway. Melissa rolled her eyes and called after
them.
	"Be careful! I don't want another broken picture frame like last
time." She turned to Dom. "And I'd like to see Coop protect us from
something. That'd be the day. " She snorted. Dom smiled weakly while
evaluating a feeling he'd had during the duel of eye contact he'd just had
with Zane. What was that about? Sure, he'd admit the kid was cute, but that
wasn't it. Something about what just happened made him feel uneasy. Dom
decided to shake these thoughts when the sound of glass shattering came
from Melissa. She fell to the floor as he turned to her. Rushing to her
side, Dom noticed the shattered pieces of a wine glass around the
unconscious woman. Footsteps came from the hallway and Zane and Evan
appeared.
	"What happened to mommy?" Evan whimpered from the doorway.
	"Dom, what happened?" Zane asked before snapping his head towards
the far part of the house. A menacing screech came from the far hallway,
piercing the ears of the boys. "Dom, take Evan and get out." He ordered,
taking the older boy by the hand and pushing him and Evan towards the front
door. Zane felt a pulse of energy milliseconds before he raised his hands
to create a barrier. Blue energy struck the solidified air and the three
boys were nudged back by the force.
	`Shit...' Zane thought as a dark-skinned woman clad in blue robes
came from the hallway, several demons in tow.
	"Zane, what the hell?" Dom accused, looking between Zane and the
woman who looked like something straight out of The Lord of the Rings and
then past her to the several snake-like creatures.
	"Dom, you really just need to get out of here." He whispered
looking again at the intimidating group of otherworldly houseguests. "I'll
distract them. You get Evan and leave." Dom started to protest before Zane
stepped out to address them.
	"You have trespassed on protected ground. You are not welcome
here. Leave before I am forced to banish you." His voice rang out, much
more mature and much more confident than he actually was. The woman in the
robes smirked.
	"I am Zafrina, high priestess of the old religion. I've come for
the boy. If you won't give him to me, I shall take him." She threatened,
her voice heavy with accent. Zane's knowledge immediately identified her as
an Egyptian priestess, a dangerous magician who studied the path of the
gods and drew their power from the auras of people and things around
them. Zane, again, stepped forward with confidence that did not match what
he felt.
	"I am Zephyr, the Windsweeper and Stormbringer. You'll want to
leave now."

*******

	Music blared at the mountain cabin and laughter could be heard from
the small group of teenagers. Coop looked around the lounge area where the
group had congregated, but he couldn't find Nik. He frowned and decided to
search the cabin for his boyfriend. Not like he could go too far.
	As Coop walked, he let the word sink in. Boyfriend. It seemed so
foreign to Coop, for so many different reasons. Even though he was only
seventeen, he'd never had a serious relationship before. Or really any
relationship, lasting for longer than three weeks. Another reason lay with
the fact that he harbored an all-powerful being of fire that constantly
demanded he save the world. Could a relationship handle that kind of
strain? What would happen when the couple was on a date and some nasty
demon came blasting towards them? Or what if Nik ever got hurt?
	Luckily, Coop didn't get much further in this stream of thought
before he found Nik in one of the guys' bedrooms. The younger boy lay on
his bed, his eyes closed, even though Coop knew he wasn't asleep.
	"Hey, babe," Coop started as he sat on the edge of the bed next to
Nik. "Everything okay?" Nik started at the sound of Coop's voice, but
relaxed when he saw the older teen's shining smile.
	"Yeah, everything's peachy. Why wouldn't it be peachy?" He sounded
more like he was trying to convince himself.
	"I don't know. Maybe because everyone else is out there having a
good time and you're in here. By yourself. In the dark." Nik sighed.
	"I don't know, Coop. It's just a weird feeling."
	"What is, Nik?" There was a pause before Nik lifted his eyes to
match Coop's. Coop sighed when the younger boy met his eyes. He could stare
into them forever.
	"I... I don't know. There's just...people are drinking."
	"Really, that's it? No one's gonna make you do anything, babe. You
don't have to drink if you don't want to." Nik smiled.
	"I know. It's just, this is really the first time I've been around
anything like a party since then, you know?" Coop nodded and hugged Nik to
his chest.
	"I know. You're fine." Coop held the boy tighter when he began to
shiver. "You okay? Cold?" Nik nodded into Coop's chest.
	"I hate the cold. And snow. Water, I can handle. I like water. But
when it gets all cold and icy..." he shivered again. "I hate it."
	"Well, I'll always be here to warm you up." Coop whispered, leaning
in to kiss Nik with a smile on his face.

*******

	Dom pushed Evan's head down to avoid another picture frame flying
their direction as he watched the unbelievable sight. As soon as Zane had
finished his little monologue, the kid pulled two daggers out of nowhere
and stabbed two of the green-snake things standing beside the robed woman
before she was blasted off her feet and through a wall. It had looked like
Zane made her do that, even though he couldn't see how. The kid was tiny.
	Now, he watched in disbelief as Zane floated around the room,
sending fucking lightning bolts at these things. Dom knew he should be a
whole lot more freaked out, but he felt surprisingly calm about the whole
thing. And another feeling that he wasn't sure he liked was beginning to
stir in him. He wanted to help. That couldn't end well.
	"Evan, stay here." He whispered, grabbing a dismantled leg of a
table and slowly creeping forward. Evan watched in dumbfounded amazement as
Dom crept towards one of the snake-women, hoping to catch one of them by
surprise. Immediately, one hissed and turned on Dom.
	"No, your aura!" Zane shouted in warning while deflecting another
bolt from the priestess.
	Time seemed to slow. The gorgon's eyes seemed to grow brighter as
it turned on Dom, who attempted to shield his face in response. Then, when
Zane expected Dom to turn to a frozen statue, Dom peeked from behind his
hand. The demon stared, temporarily stunned its powers had not worked on
the boy.
	"What magic issss thissss?" She shouted before swiping a clawed
hand at Dom. Though its powers had not seemed to work, the boy was thrown
off his feet and into the wall from her attack.
	"Zephyr, you know you can't keep this battle up. As we speak my
gorgons and I are draining your aura, using your own powers against
you. Give me the sacrifice and I'll let you live." Zafrina muttered,
catching one of Zane's wrists as he slashed with his dagger.
 	"Fuck. You." He whispered before the winds in the room became
exponentially more violent. "Skeiron's Cyclone!" The sorceress was launched
off her feet and several autonomous twisters had begun to malevolently
barrage their enemies. Zane ran to Dom's side as the teen raised his head.
	"What happened?"
	"That what I'd like to know." Zane muttered, checking the back of
Dom's head for blood. "You should be paralyzed. That gorgon should have
sucked your aura up. What are you?" Dom gave him a cautious look.
	"What do you mean?"
	"You've got powers of some kind. How long-"
	"What are you talking about?" Dom asked, hurriedly getting to his
feet. Zane was starting to creep him out even more. He stood amidst the
shaking storms in the living room, which maintained their temporary
distraction.
	"Don't you-" He started, before his mouth dropped open. "No
way. Are you? Could you... Tyros?" As soon as the word left Zane's mouth, a
feeling washed over Dom. Zane smiled.
	"Excellent." Dom began to back away as Zane raised his hand.
	"What are you doing?"
	"I've never Awakened anyone before, but I think..." he
whispered. Dom jumped when Zane's finger touched his forehead.

	Then, the ground began to shake.

*******

	Tori had just fallen asleep when she heard a crash from
downstairs. She paused before rolling over, choosing to ignore it. She was
sure Draco had merely knocked something over again. Even though she felt a
little uneasy, everything was probably alright, right? Another crash
answered this question.
	She leapt from her bed and rushed down the hall. When she reached
the grand staircase the sight of her father firing blue bolts of magic at a
swarm of locusts met her.
	"Tori, it's a demon!" Clearly her father was stating the
obvious. She scanned the swarm and tried to think of a spell to apply to
this situation. She could see Draco darting through the air attempting to
dissolve the fold himself. Tori gathered her magic to perform a spell when
the locusts began clustering together, finally forming a broad-shouldered
human figure.
	"Witches! Cower before Tane-Mahuta!" It bellowed, projecting a deep
bass voice. The figure's arms raised and Charles was knocked off his
feet. Tori quickly threw her hands forward and spoke.
	"Ignus vincete et sectus!"  An eruption of fire exploded from
within the figure, scattering the insects again. Tori ran to her father as
he slowly rose from the floor.
	"Are you alright?"
	"Fine, but I'll have a pretty bad headache later. Tane-Mahuta?" He
asked.
	"God of forests and insects."
	"From where?"
	"It doesn't matter. How the hell did a high profile demon get into
our house with all this protection?"
	"I may or not have invited it in." Tori gave him a severe
look. "I'll explain later." He looked back to the creature which was
already reforming. "You should contact Zane, we may need his help." He
ordered before stepping forward to confront the demon so Tori would have
the space. She quickly placed a few protection charms over her father and
herself and began chanting.
	"Invenire opus mentaliter."

*******

	For a moment, the earth continued to shake and a blinding light
shone from Dom. When the light dimmed, Zane looked at Dom in shock. He had
changed into the Legendary armor, along with all the physical changes that
came with it- another factor of protection. Though he was already muscular,
Dom now looked taller, more muscular, and older. A perk of the armor. The
house had grown still, even temporarily giving the priestess
pause. However, the magician must have shaken the feeling because Zane
didn't even have time to prepare a defense when she flung her arms towards
the teenagers and a violent red light came barreling towards them in a
wave.
	Almost in slow motion, Zane saw Dom smile at him, and then he was
gone. Milliseconds later, he reappeared in front of Zane, taking the brunt
of the attack. Though Zane expected Dom to have dropped to the floor in
pain, the new Legendary stood unfazed.
	"I am Tyros, the Earth-shaker and the Invulnerable. Your powers are
useless against me. Leave now, witch." Dom's voice, though usually lower in
register, rang out deeply, exuding authority. Had the situation been more
appropriate, Zane probably would have been turned on. Zafina only sneered.
	"You may have no aura for me to use, but I can still defeat two
little boys with little experience." She smirked and winked at Dom who was
thrusted off of his feet and through the sliding glass doors that led to
the backyard. Zane made a motion like a whip above his head and the air
snapped, cracking with power. Zafrina grabbed at the air, catching the
invisible whip of power and space between the two glowed with dark
energy. Zane crumpled to his feet when the energy overpowered him. He
looked up to the witch, but before he could muster up another attack, he
felt another presence in his mind.
	`Zane, I need you at the Estate, we have a situation.' He groaned.
	`Tori, I have a situation myself-'
	`I'm gonna have to warp you to the Estate.'
	`What? Tori, no! I have-'
	`Just hang on!' Zane looked around frantically but couldn't find
any trace of Evan. Zafrina began to walk forward before the ground shook
again and the floor began to split. The beautifully finished wood floor
caved in the blink of an eye and engulfed the sorceress, sucking her into
the ground. Dom appeared from the doorway and smirked, obviously pleased
with himself. His expression grew somber when he made eye contact with
Zane. He threw himself at the younger boy as lights began forming around
him. With a flash of light, the two Legendaries disappeared from the
destroyed Storm residence, leaving Evan and Melissa behind.

*******

	The cabin had calmed down considerably from earlier in the day when
someone had decided to start the party on the wrong side of
midnight. Actually, most of the teenagers were in their respective
bedrooms, taking naps. Coop laughed inwardly at that. They partied and then
they slept. And then they ate, and then they partied. A wonderful cycle.
	Coop made his way to the kitchen where Rose was busy getting dinner
ready. If you could call it that- she was just making an abundance of
chicken quesadillas.
	"Hey, need any help?" He asked, sliding his hands under the water
from the sink . She nodded.
	"Sure. Grab a knife, you can dice some chicken." He followed her
orders and began slicing at the chicken, taking pleasure in the comfortable
silence that fell between them.
	"Sooo... how's Nik?" Comfortable, but apparently only temporary.
	"What do you mean?" He shot back. She rolled her eyes at his being
annoyed with her.
	"He just seemed a little bummed earlier. And then you
disappeared...." She trailed off suggestively.
	"No, it wasn't like that. We... we took a nap."
	"Is that what they're calling it these days..."
	"Shut up! We've not done anything we wouldn't do in front of my
mother."
	"Fine, fine." She muttered. Coop was surprised to find himself
blushing. They both looked toward the kitchen door, where Nik had appeared.
	"Speak of the devil..." Rose whispered and winked at Coop. He
elbowed her violently and walked to Nik.
	"Hey, have you seen my phone charger? I can't find it anywhere?" He
asked Coop sleepily. Coop chuckled at his boyfriend and ruffled his hair.
	"Did you leave it in the car?" He questioned, watching the amusing
sight of a groggy Nik attempt to put his jacket on inside-out. "Need help,
babe?" Nik smiled sheepishly. After helping him sort his jacket out, Coop
put his own jacket on and led Nik to the doorway. "Here, I'll come with
you."
	The couple walked into the snow towards Coop's Jeep, splitting the
driver's and passenger's sides to search for the lost charger. Coop could
hear Nik's frustrated huffs at his lack of success. Coop himself was
getting a little frustrated, but after a few moments, he felt under the
driver's seat and procured the lost item and called over to Nik.
	"I found it!" Nik smiled and closed the car's door.
	"How will I ever repay you?" He chided, walking over to Coop who
held the electronic high in the air, out of Nik's reach.
	"I can think of a few ways..." Coop teased, leaning in for another
kiss. A very chapped, cold kiss. Nik shied away, grimacing.
	"Chapstick. Then we can try that again." Coop rolled his eyes and
made a show of furiously licking his lips before pulling Nik into another
kiss.
	Coop could never tire of kisses from the younger teen. They were
euphoria, taking him to a place of pure happiness. He never wanted to stop.
	Realistically, though, they would need to stop, especially in order
to not get stuck to each other. However, when Coop began to pull back, he
gasped. His gasp was quickly echoed by Nik when he saw what Coop saw.
	The couple was being surrounded by white lights.
	`Shit, this can't be good.' Coop thought, before the familiar, yet
still unpleasant feeling of teleportation tugged at his gut.

*******

	When Zane and Dom rematerialized, they found themselves in the
midst of a very confusing battle in the Heart Estate's foyer. Tori opened
her eyes from her chanting and ran to Zane, briefly looking at Dom in
confusion.
	"I found him, Tori. It's Tyros." She smiled before Charles was
blasted into a wall, bringing them all back to the situation at hand.
	"It's a good thing. Dad let a demon into the house. Locusts." She
explained as the three of them immediately leapt to action. Tori created a
bubble of green energy around her that seemed to singe the locusts
attacking her. She threw her hands out at the bubble and small darts of the
same energy would dash from the bubble at the locusts. Zane, too, took
flight, and after a moment's concentration, had covered his skin in
electricity. He looked like he was wearing armor of white fluid. The two
Legendaries looked down at Dom who was darting around the floor at blinding
speed, attempting to scatter the locusts from forming into one body again.
	`Shouldn't we get Coop? Fire would help a lot in this situation.?'
Zane asked telepathically.
	`I really don't even know how to kill this thing. We can't banish
it since it's not from the higher order. But it seems like more of the
locusts keep coming.' Zane looked around, confirming her suspicions. Though
there were hundreds, maybe thousands, of the locusts they had exterminated
on the floor, the swarm seemed inevitably consistent. Tori sighed. They did
need Coop.
	"Uh, Tori?" Came Dom's voice from the floor. She looked down to see
him pointing to the landing on the stairs, white lights gathering.

	Seconds later, Coop appeared. Their eyes all widened with
shock. Nik was with him.

*******

	Coop didn't know what he should do first. They were obviously in
the middle of a battle. Why was this happening at the Estate again? Tori
always said it was protected, but that seemed to be a load of shit
recently. Then, there was some guy on the floor Coop had never seen before,
looking like the fucking Flash, darting around. He looked like he was
wearing their armor. And then there was Nik who seemed to be going into
some sort of shock. Coop released a small amount of psychic energy, safely
pushing his boyfriend into unconsciousness. He caught him and carefully
guided him to the floor before transforming into his own armor. Bright
flashes of fire immediately burned through the air.
	"Someone wanna tell me what the fuck is going on?" He screamed.
	"Locust demon. We don't know how to kill it!" Zane answered back.
	"I'm sorry, Coop! It must have been an accident!" Tori's voice
came.
	"An accident? How do you grab me from hundreds of miles away by
accident?" Tori gave him a pleading look.
	"The magic was already there. I just-"
	"Coop, now's not the time! We have to get rid of this thing!" Zane
reminded them.
	`Alright, to me!' Coop thought to the group, including the foreign
mind who had joined the Legendaries. Coop created a thick telekinetic wall,
temporarily blocking them from attack. He looked to his teammates who each
had small injuries or large welts from the insects.
	"They're not overtly harmful until they start forming into one
being. The demon should be able to form really easily, it must have been
scattered recently for it to be like this." Tori explained.
	"Alright, you have to go."



	"Fools! You think a barrier can shut me out?" The demon had fully
formed again, this time taking on human characteristics. A shirtless,
tanned male met their gazes as he attacked Coop's wall relentlessly. Coop's
telekinesis had grown exponentially, but the attacks were putting a huge
strain on his mind. He turned to look at the demon, feigning confidence in
his abilities.
	"I am the Phoenix, Champion of the Mind and the Fire-bringer. You
were foolish to attack this place. Any one of us could have defeated you,
but now four of the Legendaries have appeared to seal your fate."
	"Where are the others, then, Phoenix?" Coop looked around in
surprise. The others had disappeared. He was alone in the foyer. The demon
smiled, having watched the others teleport away. Another blast from the
demon brought his psychic barrier crumbling down and Coop slumped to the
floor. The demon sauntered over to look at the teenager, smiling brightly.
	"This world is ours, now. We will gather and we will conquer. And
we will kill you and everyone who is dear to you. One by one." He
whispered, kneeling over Coop. Coop grimaced.
	"You think you can defeat us so easily. Even if you kill one of us,
the others will grow stronger and the defeated Legendary will being
gathering its energy again immediately." The demon rose from kneeling and
snarled.
	"Let us test that theory." He raised an arm to strike Coop, but a
blade of air cut through the appendage, immediately scattering into locusts
again. The demon looked up in surprise to see Zane standing there, the air
whipping around him. The demon made to move towards the youngest Legendary,
but his feet were melded into the floor, the ground having come up and
engulfing him up to his calves. Coop rose from the ground smiling.
	"Just like in Biblical times," he started. Dom rubbed his hands
together and then blew onto them, sand appearing.  The sand began to pick
up in the wind, swirling around the foyer. The free locusts began to face
opposition as a sandstorm brewed. "There will be a pillar of cloud!" He
spoke and a giant column of air began to form, blowing any remaining loose
articles away from the foyer. "There will be a pillar of fire!" He said as
his eyes came alive with flame. Another column formed, this one blazing
with orange flames, small strands whipping out at a locust here and
there. The two columns circled the demon as they began to revolve quicker.
	"And you shall meet your end!" Tori's voice came from the
staircase. She held a book and began to weaving magic into her words. "Ego
signates et virtute! I seal you into the dark dimension by the power of the
Darkening!"
	The two pillars and the sandstorm began to converge on the demon
and a wail of pain came before the three elements met each other and
collapsed into nothingness. A silence fell over the teenagers until another
voice came.
	"Holy. Shit."
	The quartet of Legendaries met Nik's gaze from where he had risen
on the stairs.
	"We should talk." Coop muttered, transforming out of his armor.

*******

	"Legendaries." Nik started. Coop nodded. "You have powers?" Coop
nodded again. "Demons?" Coop laughed this time at Nik's incredulous look.
	"I know it's really hard to take in. And you shouldn't have found
any of this out anyway. Apparently Tori's powers got a little out of hand
and she warped me here. With you."
	"Coop, this is just really... I mean, how am I supposed to react?"
	"Babe, I don't know. I wouldn't blame you if you never wanted to
see me again." He admitted, lowering his head.
	"Coop, how could you think that?" Coop turned to look at Nik in
surprise. "Coop, I've been through hell. There's been a ton of shit in my
life that I can't explain and I know that I probably shouldn't be
alive. But I know I have you. You make me feel okay again. You make me feel
like I have something to live for again."
	"Nik, this whole thing... it's dangerous for you."
	"You don't think I haven't gathered that. I mean, today alone is a
good indication." Coop began to say something and then stopped. There was a
pause before he started again.
	"You're human. If anything ever happened to you, I don-"
	"Nothing's going to happen to me. I mean, sure, this might be a
little... unconventional. You have fucking powers. But, I can't imagine
living without you. Even if it means I have to live with this side of you
too. I know it'll take some time to get...used to the idea. But, I think I
can live with this."
	"I'll protect you." Coop whispered, tears growing in his eyes.
	"I know you will." Nik whispered back, a small smile forming on his
lips.

	And then they were kissing again.

*******

	Coop took Nik home and... gave him something to sleep. He
practically just knocked him out again. With Nik's permission, of
course. Then, Coop had to fly back up to the mountains (an experience he
would not recommend to anyone), mindwipe everyone there, and then drive his
Jeep back down. So, hours later, a meeting was called in Millennium Hall.
	"First of all, what the fuck?" Coop asked motioning to Dom. Charles
cleared his throat in regards to Coop's language, but Coop didn't appear
fazed. "How did you get on board?"
	"Coop, there's a lot of ground we need to cover, alright? We'll get
around to it." Tori explained, attempting to calm him. He sighed
dramatically and slumped into a chair.
	"First of all, your family was attacked at your home." Tori tried
easing into it casually. Naturally, Coop exploded.
	"What the hell? You wait til now to tell me this? Are they okay?
Has anyon-"
	"Coop, they're fine! We sent a team over to check on
them. Everything's okay and damage control is fixing your house. Luckily,
Zane and Dom were there when it was broken into."
	"What happened to the enchantments on the house?" Coop asked
suspiciously.
	"We don't know." Zane started. When Coop rolled his eyes, he began
again. "We do know, that this magician," waved his hand and a holographic
image appeared on the table before them, "was able to break through the
barriers and almost got the best of us." The table grew quiet for a moment
while they evaluated the image of the magician. "Her name is Zafrina. The
only thing we know about her is that she is a magician from the Egyptian
House of Life. A branch of magic that is very rare in today's world of
magic. She specializes in what they would call "magic of Set." Chaos
magic. She drains the auras of people for her power, much like gorgons do."
	"Where is she now?" Coop asked. He was unknowingly gripping the
table extremely hard.
	"We don't know." Zane admitted regretfully.
	"What about the locust demon?" Coop asked.
	"That was my fault." Charles spoke up. "I invited it in." The
Legendaries all looked at him in disbelief. "It was... strange. A cloud
came over my mind. When I opened the door, I knew something was not right,
but it looked like a child. I couldn't really control myself. It just
happened."
	"This really isn't good." Zane blurted out. "I mean, guys look at
it. They attacked Coop's house, not even caring who was there or what could
have happened. They attacked our house. They took over Charles'
mind. They're getting stronger and they're getting bolder. These can't be
good omens."
	"Are there such things as good omens?" Dom spoke for the first
time. Coop turned his attention back to Dom.
	"Would someone like to explain what he's all about, please?"
	"He was at your house when I dropped by." Zane explained and
recounted the story from the battle at Coop's house.
	"So you're Tyros..." Coop muttered and looked him up and down.
	"Listen, I don't really know what to think, you guys. I just know
things." Dom started. "Like, I know what you guys are talking about,
gorgons, and magicians, and demons. I know that I have powers and that I
used them to help get rid of those things. I know I should be freaked out,
but I'm not."
	"It happened to all of us." Tori explained. "It'll get better with
time. Now, you just train and get better."
	"What can he do?" Coop asked. Tori grimaced.
	"Well, unfortunately, our records on Tyros are the most
incomplete. We know that in his human form, but more-so when he is
transformed, he can move at ten times the speed of a normal human and has
the strength of ten men. He is practically invulnerable and can control the
earth. We just don't know to what extent."
	"What does that mean?" Dom asked. Zane answered this time.
	"Terrakinesis has never been a clearly defined power. We know you
can control the earth, we just don't now exactly how. Can you lift
boulders? Can you make a rockslide? Earthquakes, volcanoes,
quicksand. These are the things we'll have to monitor."
	"What about Nik?" Charles asked. The change of subject and the one
who had changed it brought all the Legendaries to look at him. Immediately,
Coop got defensive.
	"What about Nik?" He asked, folding his arms.
	"Did you wipe his memory?" Tori asked. Coop scoffed.
	"No, what is that procedure or something?"
	"Yes, it is, Coop! That's what we do to every other human that
might know anything about this world."
	"Nik isn't just any other human, Tori."
	"Coop, humans don't tend to do well when it comes to our world."
	"Uh, isn't Zane's boyfriend human?" Zane blushed, but Tori rolled
her eyes, .her voice escalating to match Coop's
	"You know that isn't a good comparison. Ethan has had years and
years of training to deal with the monsters we fight. Nik is fifteen, has
no experience, and could easily get hurt."
	"I won't let anything happen to him, Tori." They were yelling
across the table now.
	"What about you, Coop? What happens when something goes wrong with
your powers and you lose control?"
	"That's great to hear from the witch who lost control of her powers
and brought him into this mess!" Silence fell. Coop knew he had gone too
far, but they would not talk about wiping Nik's memory. Coop rose from the
table so quickly his chair fell over.  They three Legendaries and their
mentor watched as Coop left Millennium Hall in a fury. Coop tore back into
the human and dimension and slammed the door to the Heart Estate behind
him. He bolted into the air and then he was gone.

*******

	It was late that night when Coop returned to his own home. He
walked through the front door and hung his jacket in the closet. He was
tired.
	He knew what he said to Tori was out of line, but he was too angry
at the time, and too prideful to apologize. Some leader he was.
	He had flown south until he finally landed on some beach in
Mexico. He had stayed there for a while, telepathically manipulated someone
into giving him a drink from a bar. He knew it was getting late, though and
he should at least return home to check on his mother and Evan.
	Coop walked into the kitchen and took a cookie from the goodie tray
sent from Dom's mother. He chewed on a piece of the delicious sugar cookie
and walked to his room to change into something more comfortable- he donned
a pair of gym shorts and comfortable v-neck. He stopped by to look at
himself in the mirror and ran a hand through his blond hair. He sighed when
he saw a bruise forming on his jaw. He looked rough. He walked to the
bathroom and flipped on the light. He jumped at the sight that met him.
	Six bodies lay in the floor of the bathroom, bloodied and
ripped. He recognized one of them as an agent from the Company. Shit.
	Coop ran down the stairs to his mother's study, which at first
seemed empty. Coop walked further into the room and caught glimpse of a
pair of feet protruding from under the desk. He ran to his mother who
appeared unconscious. She had no signs of physical injury, but he could
tell from a swift scan of her mind something was wrong. She was alive, at
least. A sole picture on Melissa's desk caught Coop's eye and he reached
for it. It was a picture of Evan at his tenth birthday party, smiling at
the camera. A red marker had scribbled over the face and the words that
Coop read chilled his blood. He dropped his mother and ran to Evan's
bedroom, bursting open the door. He conjured a fireball, ready to attack.
	But no one was there. The room had been torn apart and the window
had been shattered. And Evan was not there. The words appeared in Coop's
mind again before he slumped to the floor.

	A damning sacrifice of the highest degree shall raise our Kings and
set us free.


*******

What a chapter! I hope you guys liked it! I really enjoyed all the feedback
I got from the last chapter! You guys rock! So, even though I knew where I
was going with this chapter, it was still like pulling teeth to write it
and I don't know why! Haha I thought it was a pretty good chapter, but I
want to hear what you guys thought about it! Also, I wrote this in a little
different format and I'm not sure what it's going to look like when I
convert it to plaintext, so should something go wrong, email me and I'll
send you a .pdf version! And a .pdf version is available of every chapter
thus far, too! So, if you'd like one (they're prettier, too), email me!

Thanks guys!( Nick
notoriouslynick90@yahoo.com