Main Storyline

Many subplots and back stories tie into the Magic Game story, but the main events occurred from the Magic Team's formation to the end of the Great Power War. The key points of the biographies of the main characters are contained within this story.

Light and Dark
It all started with light and dark...Power World and Matravin...Kurt and Anthony.

First there was Kurt

Kurt was one of many on Power World to be gifted with supernatural abilities, his being the power to turn into animals. But Kurt was also born with leadership and ambition. It is unknown why Kurt decided to take on the task of creating a team that could work for the greater good without the intervention of politics or private interests, but he made it his mission. He first approached some of the planet's greatest soldiers and warriors, but was quickly told no and labelled as a dreamer who couldn't cause change. But there was one man, Hugh Devalle, who saw Kurt's vision as something worth working for and joined his team.

With very little help, Kurt decided that he would try to work with Devalle and see where it went. He invested in the remains of a large underground testing facility, later to become the teams' base of operations, and some personal weapons. He then intercepted a report that a group of mercenaries were raiding small towns in Invisible Isle's dominion. But nothing went according to plan. Kurt and Hugh were able to fight of the mercenaries but it cost Hugh his life and Kurt his freedom. The death of his first teammate would haunt Kurt and force him to do whatever was necessary to prevent future casualties. Invisible Isle, being the strictest in law enforcement, imprisoned Kurt for his "vigilante" tactics and possession of high-level firearms.

And then there was Anthony.

After completing his Avatar training in his homeland of Invisible Isle, Anthony felt that the only way fighting and battle could end in the universe was if he was in control of it. While he believed his goal was justifiable, he knew that creating a perfect universe would be a dark process and there would be consequences along the way to perfection. However, he firmly believed that he had to rule the galaxy to put it on the right path. No one knows why a once cheerful person could become so dark. Some believe he completely lost it when his right arm was cut off during training, and he had to have it replaced by a mechanical one. Others say his cheerful persona was a guise, and that he was always evil to the core.

Anthony saw opportunity with the civil war erupting Power World's neighboring planet Matravin. After, spending weeks determining which side would win, he took a ship to Matravin and anonymously started a political party with goals that would satisfy both sides of the conflict. Official from both sides began to take interest in his ideas, and support for his party grew rapidly. As popularity increased, Anthony began preaching ideas about how Matravin could dominate the galaxy and come out of Power World's shadow. His party brought both sides to peace, and the people elected him as their new leader. He told his people that he would remain anonymous, as he didn't want to represent one man, but rather all of Matravin. As things were being set up, Anthony found that the Avatar spirit had left him. He was not distressed by this, however, as he felt he played a much larger role in keeping the peace now. Still, he returned to his home on Power World in search of powerful individuals like himself that would help his plan progress.

Serving as a high-ranking officer at a prison in Invisible Isle, Anthony met Kurt. After having engaged in numerous conversations, the two grew close, and Kurt shared his dream of creating a unique team of talented individuals. Anthony saw this team as a chance to find other people that could help him fulfill his own ambitions. Anthony pulled some strings to get Kurt free on the condition of joining this team. It was Anthony who gave the team its simple name, Magic Team. In hopes that new powerful individuals would reveal themselves, Anthony secretly ordered the Matravinians to attack Magic Castle. After some low level missions with Kurt, a distress came in from Magic Castle. Kurt wanted to respond as quickly as he could, but Anthony spoke for patience, as he still wanted the Matravinians to win in the end. Since Anthony came from military training, Kurt begrudgingly accepted his advice for the time being. But when reports got worse, he finally convinced Anthony that the Magic Team was the only help they were going to receive.

Upon arrival, Kurt saw soldiers from Matravin. Seeing now that the planet was no longer in a massive civil war and had invasion resources, Kurt knew it was time for the team to expand. He and Anthony joined with local forces to drive the soldiers back. During the battle, he noticed an exceptionally powerful individual fighting off twice the number of troops as any of the other militia. Once the soldiers had departed, Kurt made himself known as a friend and helper to the militia and gave them his thanks for the help. Once most had departed, he met Nolan,  A mage with incredible skill and power. After a quick discussion with Anthony, Nolan was given an invite. To say the least, he accepted. And the team moved into its modern phase. By showing its good intentions and great leadership, the Magic Team was officially recognized as protectors of the peace, and while they were given no official government support, they were given permission to act in militarized conflicts.

Completing the Team
Electronic World, a nation of Power World that was by far the most technologically developed, severed its trade agreements with Invisible Isle after several disputes and entered an alliance with Magic Castle. Furious, Invisible Isle sent in forces to attack Electronic World. Now a strong and committed team, Kurt and Nolan had to work together to convince Anthony that telling his own people to step down was the right decision. When peace talks failed, the team moved in to protect the peace by aiding the resistance efforts.

The team flew to Electronic World. Invisible Isle had been bombarding cities across the zone. Electronic World had superior technology, but the early attacks had hit key defensive military targets and industrial sites, so the forces were having trouble recovering and preparing. All three members of the team were decent pilots, so they took to the skies when another airstrike was coming from the east. The battle commenced.

A few minutes in, Anthony spoke. "Kurt, this isn't looking good. We should consider pulling out and cutting our losses."

"I'm not ready to quit yet," said Nolan from the cockpit of his plane, the X-1.

"Reinforcements are coming, Anthony. We can hold out for a few more minutes."

"Can we though?" asked Anthony skeptically. Things weren't looking good outside. Many of their fellow fighters had fallen. The ships were advancing and would escape to their target soon if they couldn't be contained. Then he looked to the north east and saw a small squadron of resistance fighters coming in led by what looked like a blue biplane. They started to close in.

"That's our reinforcements? A biplane?" whined Anthony. As if on cue, the biplane transformed. It's wings formed an X, the propeller retracted, and the tail moved up to expose a large jet. The blue fighter raced into the fray. Kurt and Nolan watched in awe as their ally shot down several enemy fighters in a row as if it were a video game. The tide of the battle started to turn. But no one was perfect. Nolan saw the blue jet with a fighter tight on his tail. He moved in and shot it down. Grateful, the blue plane pulled alongside him. Nolan looked and saw the pilot give him a thumbs-up, which he promptly returned. Then the pilot gestured for Nolan to follow him and the two went off after some of the ships that were trying to flank them and get to the target city. They chased them down successfully. By the time they returned to the main battle, the enemy forces were retreating. The team and the resistance fighters headed back to their airfield.

"We need to meet that pilot," declared Kurt.

Jackson MarKev, stepped out of his plane, the Tornado, and onto the tarmac. The Magic Team fighters started approaching him. They stopped when they saw Jackson crouch down and transform into a towing vehicle and pull is plane into the hangar. They ran over to him as he transformed back into a human. He looked up at the three approaching him. "Some people were trying to convince me you guys weren't real. I knew better. My name is Jackson. Magic Team, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Jackson," Kurt spoke up.

"I have to admit, Jackson," said Anthony, "That was some pretty fancy flying out there. I'm a bit surprised at your ride though."

"Ah, yes, this is the Tornado, inspired by a plane from one of my favorite video games. Even with its transformation its not the most advanced plane out there, but I'd much rather be flying a plane that I built. Plus, I'm not actually with the military; I'm just helping the resistance voluntarily, so I don't use one of their ships. You should see the new plane I'm working on though. It's going to put these ones to shame." In the time he spoke, numerous other pilots came by and patted him on the back and gave him praise.

"They sure seem to accept you though," said Nolan.

"When you're flying in the air side-by-side with someone, they tend to grow on you a bit."

"I most certainly agree," said Nolan, already liking Jackson.

"Listen, most of the warpgates in the zone are shut down right now, but I have a special access code that will get me back between here and my home town. If you guys want, I'm sure my folks would love to have you over for dinner. If there's an alert, we can be back here in minutes."

"I don't see any harm in that," said Kurt. Let's go.

Over dinner with his family, the team learned much about Jackson and his family. Jackson’s father, Richard MarKev, was the head of MarKev Industries, the largest technology company in the world. Among other things, they designed technology for spaceships and aircraft. Unfortunately many of their facilities had been damaged in the initial bombings. Still, the company continued to supply whatever they could to the resistance at discounted down-payment rates. "Our duty to our zone comes first," Richard said, "The money will come later."

More importantly, however, they learned that Jackson not only had transformation powers, airbending, and chaos abilities, but he was also the guardian of the sacred Master Power Crystal. Kurt was beyond impressed, and considered asking him to join the team right then and there. He decided that he should best discuss it with Anthony first.

Agreeing to let Jackson assist Nolan during the next day, Anthony and Kurt went to the capital to try and fix the situation politically.

Jackson and Nolan went to assist Jackson’s brother Bennett and his friend Alex in taking over an enemy weapons depot. The two dropped off a squad of troops with Nolan's helicopter, and then joined Bennett and Alex on the ground. Together, they destroyed the heavy tanks and cannons that were stopping their convoy from advancing on the weapons depot.

The following day, Nolan and Jackson teamed up again. Together, they flew up in the Tornado to attack one of the lead enemy battleships, which served as the headquarters of an Invisible Isle general. However, the little biplane wasn't quite fast enough to out maneuver the ship's cannons, and ended up crash landing. Nolan put the crashed plane in his sword pack, and when they got home, Jackson immediately resumed work on a project he'd been holding back on. Two days later, he revealed the X-Tornado, a 4-seat jet plane, also from Sonic the Hedgehog. With a faster plane, the two were able to disable the battleship, board, and take the general into custody. Afterward, the pair traveled to the capitol to assist Kurt and Anthony.

The battle ended shortly after. After fighting alongside him, Nolan formed a strong bond with Jackson, and told him he would gladly fight beside him any day.

While waiting for the conference to begin, Anthony asked Kurt his thoughts on Jackson. "I was going to talk with you about that after this was taken care of, but now that you mention it, I want him on the team. Obviously, his abilities are great, but his skill as a pilot and as a technician would be incredibly valuable. Not to mention adding him would be great for our political relations, since the team would have a representative from each of the world’s zones."

"I suppose," replied Anthony.

"What, do you not agree?"

"I can't deny that the boy would be useful, but he's young and naive. I don't know if he'd be capable of making the hard choices, doing what's best for the good of all people."

"He has much to learn, but he definitely has heart, and having him could take us far. Think of how he inspired his fellow pilots."

Anthony replied "If you want him, by all means ask him to join. I'll defer to your judgement. But no matter how good we make this team or what we do, conflict will always arise. I've been working on a plan to try to stop this problem at its source and I want you to be a part of it."

But before Kurt could reply, the meeting started and that thought was forgotten. Within the next four days, a peace treaty was signed and both sides agreed to work together.

When they regrouped with Nolan and Jackson, Nolan proposed that Jackson be allowed to join the team. Kurt easily agreed, as he had already been considering doing so. Jackson accepted the invitation enthusiastically. His parents allowed him to go, claiming that they knew that he would one day go off and use his powers for a greater purpose. As a parting gift, they gave him their summer home overlooking the ocean, which Jackson would use as his workshop and his home when not residing at the team base. Before they left, Richard pulled Kurt aside and handed him a credit transfer slip. "This is for Jackson's food and lodging," he said giving Kurt a wink.

"Sir, this is far too much, there must be a mistake," replied Kurt.

"Not at all Kurt. With Matravin's recent attack on Magic Castle, I don't believe good times are ahead. I truly believe, however, in your organization. And until the Magic Council and the rest of the world's leaders believe in it too, I am happy to privately fund your team."

"Thank you sir. This will make a difference, I promise you."

"Don't mention this to my son...and definitely not to my wife. Take care of Jackson, Kurt. Make sure he does me proud!"

The Emerging Threat
Kurt saw Jackson's father's suspicions become true when Anthony claimed he had found out why the Matravin soldiers had attacked Nolan and the other mages a couple months before. He said that Matravin had ended its civil war under a new leader who had plans of galactic conquest. And that the battle was a diversion to set up a base on Power World, and he had found the base. Anthony told the team the story of who would become known as Anthony's Betrayed Friend or ABF. Jackson, as with Kurt and Nolan, was unaware that the person Anthony spoke of was actually Anthony himself. He identified ABF as an old friend of his from Matravin, who had recently become its leader and had plans of galactic conquest. Anthony went on to explain how when he had tried to talk his friend out of it, his friend engaged in a fight with him, claiming that Anthony had "betrayed him," hence the name "Anthony's Betrayed Friend." When Nolan asked what his friend's name was, Anthony replied that he couldn't bear to say it, and informed them that he was simply going by "King of Matravin."

Anthony spoke of a powerful prototype stealth bomber being housed at ABF's base, but also told them that they could get into the base through an underwater entrance. The team traveled to the dock for the team submarine. On the way to the underwater base, Jackson noticed something on the radar, and identified it as a torpedo. Kurt launched a counter-torpedo, while Jackson, Anthony, and Nolan boarded the mini-subs to fend off the attackers. A hole blew open in the side of Nolan's sub, apparently from a torpedo, so Jackson got out of his own sub, swam over to his friend, and turned into a submarine himself so Nolan wouldn't drown. When they finally arrived at the base, Anthony used a great deal of his energy to phase through the wall and open the docking bay doors.

After entering, Jackson and Anthony got separated from Kurt and Nolan when a blast door closed. Anthony said hadn't recovered enough to phase both himself and Jackson back through, so Kurt told the two to look for the prototype while he and Nolan tried to find the control room.

Anthony saw this as a chance to deal with Jackson, but after seeing a few of Jackson's abilities, he began to consider that he might be useful as well. After dodging a few security guards, Jackson and Anthony found the ship. However, several security robots showed up in the hangar. Thankfully, at the same time, Kurt and Nolan arrived at the command center and shut down the security doors in the hangar, allowing Jackson and Anthony to take the ship and flew out of the base. Jackson's piloting skills impressed Anthony to the point where he was pretty convinced he'd want Jackson in his plan too. However, then Jackson started flying the plane in loops and recklessly while laughing and smiling. Anthony then reconsidered, realizing that Jackson was too carefree to serve his cause. Nevertheless, he went along with it and pretended to laugh and enjoy himself while he considered a different approach.

They met up with Kurt and Nolan in the sub at a rendezvous point. Before returning to the sub, however, Anthony claimed he had noticed a guardhouse nearby the base. Jackson was confused, as Anthony didn't point it out when they were together. Kurt and Anthony went to investigate it. Nolan guarded an escape route while Jackson watched the entrance to make sure no guards entered. Jackson felt tense at first, but then began to relax. After a few more seconds though, he found it hard to concentrate, and before he could realize that gas was being dispensed from the air-duct beneath him, he fell unconscious.

Kurt and Anthony quickly took out all the guards in the tower and made their way to the control room at the top. On the way, Anthony inconspicuously activated the communications-jamming signal and the knock-out gas at the entrance. When they reached the control room. Kurt asked Anthony about his source for these locations. Anthony asked if Kurt trusted him, with a reply that he did. He then went back to his plan of how to truly protect the people and how he wanted Kurt to join him in his plan to remove all war and battle from this galaxy. It would be "His legacy to the world". But before an answer could be made, there was a gunshot and Anthony fell to the floor, playing dead. Kurt panicked and tried to get his friends for help. As soon as Kurt left the room, Anthony got up and left through a secret exit. Anthony then slipped away in the prototype.

Kurt called for his team, only to find Nolan's radio jammed, Jackson unconscious, and the prototype gone.

He ran as quickly as he could to the door to help Jackson. As he helped him get on his feet, the sun disappeared from the sky. Once he got Jackson back to the submarine, he turned to see a fleet of warships. The Great Power War had begun.

Anthony made contact with his fleet or Matravin warships stationed nearby. Before docking with them, however, he quickly flew to the base, grabbed some of his things, made it look messy, stole the security footage, and left before the rest of the team returned. Anthony had decided that showing was better than telling. Kurt would have to see his plan in action before he would believe it. After joining with his fleet, he returned to Matravin and announced that he, the King of Matravin, would now be going under the alias "ABF."

Striking Back
On the way back to their base, Kurt informed Jackson and Nolan of what Anthony had said. They came to the conclusion that Anthony had been murdered by ABF.

"I know this is a difficult time, but we need to stick together now more than ever. We need to increase our numbers, but in the meantime, I need one of you to take Anthony's position as second-in-command. Nolan?"

"Kurt, I'm just a soldier. I'll fight until my last breath for you and this cause, but Jackson's the one who can lead."

So Kurt turned to Jackson, and he accepted.

Kurt said to Jackson "Should anything ever happen to me, I'm counting on you to lead and rebuild this team. Power World needs us now more than ever."

The team arrived to find the base ransacked. ABF, presumably, had gone through Anthony's things. "Shit, how could he just get in like that?" asked Nolan.

"We have our priority number one for the time being; We need to make this place into a formidable base of operations. We can't afford to have break-ins like this."

"Leave that to me, Kurt," Jackson spoke up, "With my father's funding and my know-how, we can make this place impenetrable if we work together."

Jackson assisted Kurt and Nolan in making the base more secure. Even after the improvements, Kurt wasn't satisfied. Jackson suggested removing the main entrance entirely and making a warpgate entrance to the base, with a warpgate that could only be accessed by a certain code. Jackson took his friends to his workshop where he showed them some models of some other improvements that could be made, which included having the hillside in front of the hangar entrance slide up to hide it away. The changes were implemented and the base soon became one of the most secure places on Power World.

Meanwhile, the Magic Council was successful in unifying the four zones to contribute to the war effort and strengthen the global military. The majority of the military forces came from Magic Castle and Electronic World. Magic Castle had warriors and Electronic World had ships and technology. However, the initial blitz of the Matrivinian forces took its toll. They had landed and built outposts all over Power World, and had a strong footing in Animal Kingdom and Invisible Isle. Driving them out would be a long process. In addition, MarKev Industries was still getting many of their shipyards up and running after the previous attacks from Invisible Isle, ruling out the possibility of a counterattack on Matravin for the time being.

ABF's forces soon began to spread. A fleet of his ships were moving towards Magic Castle. The team took off in their planes to assist the combined Electronic World and Magic Castle military. The three were put at the head of Silver Squadron, with Kurt serving as Silver Leader, Jackson as Silver 2, and Nolan as Silver 3. Silver Squadron's mission was to take out the flagship, which they engaged over the Blue Ridge Mountains. "We'll have more luck taking down the ship from the inside," Kurt declared, "but we won't be able to land unless we can get past those heavy cannons. Jackson, clear out all the cannons you can. Nolan, you and I will go after the fighters and keep him covered". Jackson activated the X-Tornado's extra booster and swept along the flagship's surface. There were a couple close calls, but none of the enemy fighters were able to hit him before Kurt and Nolan shot them down. Once enough cannons were disabled on the middle deck, the three flew into the ship's main hangar. Once inside, Nolan put the team's planes in his sword pack, and they made way towards the bridge. Jackson used his powers to transform himself into a guard robot and a mech droid, which helped the team navigate without having to fight and blow their cover.

They arrived in one of the turret bays, and after taking out everyone in it, Nolan suggested using a turret to fire on other parts of the ship. After trying however, he found that the turrets were programmed so they couldn't even aim at the ship. Jackson, however, transformed into a mech droid again and overrode the program, allowing Nolan to aim and shoot the turret freely. As the ship started to fall, Kurt determined that they wouldn't have time to make it to the bridge, and should instead go to the hangar to escape. However, in the hall, they encountered a dark figure in a black, hooded cloak: ABF. Kurt spoke up. "You won't get away with what you did. Surrender now!" Before they could say anything else, ABF shot a dark energy blast. They all managed to dodge it, and it blew open the window behind them. Nolan began to charge up an energy blast himself, but ABF waved his arms and a gust of wind sent the three of them flying out of a window and falling down to the world below.

As they approached the snow-capped mountains below them, Kurt turned into an owl, while Nolan drifted over to Jackson in an attempt to warp them both away. Nolan found himself unable to warp, as they were in the middle of an anti-warp zone, set up to prevent people from cheating climbing some of the tallest mountains on the planet. Thinking quickly, Kurt turned into a pterodactyl to save them both. They landed softly in the snow. Nolan took out his sword pack; the weather was too rough for the planes to take off, but they were still able to use the emergency supplies stored inside them.

They trudged through the snow almost an hour. The weather was only becoming worse. To their luck, they found an old cabin. Nolan used his sword to break the lock. They started a fire and slept for the night. The next morning Kurt started making some pancakes. Jackson asked Kurt for an extra, claiming it would work perfectly for the new "buttermilk-powered engine" he was working on. After searching through the closets, they found some snowboard and ski gear, along with some maps. They found that the anti-warp zone ended near the base of the mountain in a small village. The three each took a snowboard and emergency supplies, left some money and a note thanking and apologizing to the owner of the cabin for his trouble, and stepped outside and breathed in the fresh, mountain air. Together, they slid down the mountain until they were finally clear of the anti-warp zone. Once they were ready, Nolan warped them all to his tree house.

Shadows and Doubts
After their first encounter with ABF, Kurt made it his priority to find out his true identity, for vengeance and to stop him. But with seemingly no evidence or information on the man, his identity remained a mystery. It appeared that Matravinian records had his true identity well protected. All he could figure out was that he must be an airbender like Jackson, since he manipulated the wind, but he also possessed some dark energy powers.

A few days later, Kurt and his team were notified that a next avatar was trained and ready to replace Anthony in his death. Knowing that such a feat required years of discipline, this person must be extraordinary to accept this role so quickly. The man was traveling from his home planet of Bugdum, so Kurt sent Jackson to meet him at Astro Avenue, an orbital space port, while he and Nolan continued working to stop ABF. Jackson flew the X-Tornado to Astro Avenue and met up with Shadow. While initially annoyed by Jackson's upbeat attitude, Shadow couldn't help but feel an unusual connection with him as they flew back to the base. Puzzled, Shadow tried to figure out what it was. It wasn't until they were flying down to the base that Shadow noticed Jackson at ease behind the controls and realized the connection. "You're an airbender, aren't you?"

"That's right," replied Jackson. Shadow's theory was all but confirmed; Jackson would be the next Avatar after him.

Just minutes after Jackson had left, Nolan ran to Kurt's chamber. "I just got an alert. You should come and check this out." Something big was moving toward the planet, but it did not match any known Matravin warships. Both ran to the warpgate and warped to the scene. It was like nothing either had seen before. Two giant robots (nick-named the "Squids" for their appearance) came flying down from orbit. With little hesitation, they moved to attack everything they saw. The first thing Kurt noticed was their use of shadow missiles. He knew that that technology only existed in the team's base, and must have been stolen during ABF's ransack. He and Nolan sprang into action, attempting to do everything they could to stop the robots. But it was in vain. Even Nolan's must powerful attacks could not get through any of the shields. There were no weak points either could find. But they did see the optic sensors. And with that, Nolan blasted them with everything he had. Though no damage had been done, the resulting attack had blinded them and forced them both to retreat somewhere safe to repair.

Jackson and Shadow arrived at the base. Jackson prepared some lunch for the both of them, as Shadow explained his revelation to Jackson. While Jackson would not be the true Avatar until it was really his time, Shadow told Jackson he would teach him how to bend water, earth, and fire and tap into the Avatar spirit so that he would be ready when the time came. But before they could discuss the matter any further, Kurt and Nolan arrived at the base.

Before Kurt could even speak, Shadow muttered "As of right now, you have no trust from me. No respect. And no compassion. I am on your team, but that is it."

With that, he walked away. Kurt informed Jackson of what he and Nolan had just done and then proposed that the team train. He and Nolan had not fought very well together, which had allowed both of the "squids" to best them. They explained how they had just encountered the squids. Kurt said the team needed more training if it wanted to stand a chance against them. Jackson and Kurt began to convert an old flight test chamber into a fully functional training room. Here, the team worked on training for the next couple months. Jackson worked on mastering his spin technique, as well as chaos control, chaos spear, and chaos blast.

Then Shadow began to teach Jackson how to use the other elements. They started out with water. Shadow being a firebender, and water being his most difficult element to master, became somewhat frustrated at how quickly Jackson picked it up. Earth, on the other hand, took Jackson much longer to figure out, as it was his natural opposite. Fire however, was not as difficult, especially because Shadow could teach his own element best. Lastly, Shadow taught Jackson about the Avatar state. While Jackson did find power in the Avatar state, it was difficult for him to access and he wasn't able to use it to its full capacity because he was not the true Avatar yet.

In the meantime, some friendly competition started to build between Jackson and Nolan. Although, the teammates were battling each other, it helped them learn about each other's fighting style, which would help them when fighting together. Nolan also took interest in the X-Tornado and its ability to land vertically by rotating its thrusters.

Kurt also felt that they should also work on their team piloting skills as well. Shadow, not being a huge fan of flying, usually just rode in the X-Tornado with Jackson. However, while practicing one day, what appeared to be a bolt of fire sliced across the X-1's fuselage. Nolan was just barely able to eject before his plane exploded. The bolt of fire slowed down and revealed itself to be a dragon. Kurt and Jackson were about to start firing on the attacker before Shadow told them to hold. After landing, Shadow introduced them to the dragon, Firespear, an old friend of his. Shadow revealed that he too was part dragon, explaining many of his dark abilities. Firespear apologized to the team for her misunderstanding. Nolan, while impressed with meeting two dragons, was upset with the loss of his plane. Jackson felt bad for his friend, but had an idea. He took Nolan to his workshop, where he revealed the designs and a few parts for a new prototype he was building. Jackson told Nolan he would give it to him as a gift for helping him become part of the team. With a red marker, he wrote a large "X-2" on the top of the blueprints. Jackson designed the plane with Nolan's interest in mind. It included the X-1's speed, but with the added ability to land using its engines as "feet." It also featured a second seat. Nolan was very happy with the new plane. In return, Nolan gave Jackson a storage cube similar to his sword pack.

The day after the X-2's completion, Jackson and Nolan returned to the base. The five later heard of a report that two massive robots had landed in Electronic World. Jackson new he had to return home and help his people. The team arrived at the scene to find the mini mind control squids swarming everywhere. Jackson felt uneasy though as he and the team tore through the small squid army, then he realized what it was: The Master Power Crystal. Jackson quickly told Kurt why he had to leave, and then used chaos control to travel to Altar Emerald. He arrived to see ABF and his first lieutenant Zactus making their way off with the Master Power Crystal. Jackson lunged for them, but was thrown back by ABF's attack. As Jackson lay on the ground, barely able to move due to ABF's stun blast, he watched in horror as the Master Power Crystal was taken away. But as they flew up towards their ship, ABF and Zactus did not notice 7 balls of light appear from the Crystal. The two got in the ship and left with their treasure while the 7 balls of light floated gently down to Jackson. They revealed themselves to be the 7 original power crystals. Jackson knew that stopping ABF would be the way to get the Master Power Crystal back, and these crystals would help him do it. He grabbed the crystals and returned to Electronic World.

Upon returning, he found conditions had worsened. While the team had taken out many of the mini squids, the large missile squid was pulverizing buildings everywhere, and the mind control squid was making its way towards the zone's main intelligence core. Jackson regrouped with the team and came up with a plan. He told Shadow and Firespear to attack the mind control squid's tentacles, which were about to start siphoning information out of the intelligence core. Meanwhile, Kurt and Nolan would have to trick the missile squid into firing its shadow missiles at him. Jackson used the power crystals to transform into Super Jackson for the first time. His body and clothes glowed gold and three spikes formed at the top of his head. He flew towards the mind control squid. Kurt and Nolan managed to get the missiles to fire, and they headed right towards Super Jackson. Super Jackson accelerated and flew straight into the mind control squid's eye, breaking through the outer layer. The shadow missiles followed, and impacted the squid, causing it to fall off the intelligence core. Jackson turned around to attack the missile squid, but being new to his super form, he had difficulty maintaining it. As he felt his energy draining he had to land, and he turned back into his regular form. The mind control squid retreated, but the missile squid started advancing on the group.

Shadow turned to Jackson and skeptically asked "Now what?"

Jackson was horrified that only half his plan had worked. Luckily, the missile squid stopped and retreated, along with the remaining mini squids. Their objective was the intelligence core, and that couldn't be accomplished without the mind control squid. Back at the base, Jackson left to his room quickly after dinner. Kurt came in a little later.

"You should be proud of today. Your quick thinking saved your zone."

Jackson solemnly replied "Yes, but only by luck. I didn't leave any room for error in my plan, and it almost cost us."

Kurt smiled. "But it didn't," he responded, "Part of being a leader is learning to accept what has happened, not what could have happened, and work with that. However, another part of being a leader is that you should always have a backup plan, and that you will learn with time."

Jackson thanked his friend, but told him that wasn't the only reason he was upset, and told him that ABF now had the Master Power Crystal.

"Oh," said Kurt "Now that's a problem worth worrying about."

Back to the Old Grind
Kurt and Jackson could only imagine what ABF could do with the Master Power Crystal, and they both continued to search for any leads as to his history and what he might have in store. Jackson was still troubled over his failure as a guardian, and often stayed at his workshop, tinkering with his own inventions and the team's gear in solitude. One day, he went out for a run at one of his old favorite places to explore: Rail Canyon. Jackson would slip on his custom slide shoes and grind along the endless miles of rails that winded through the canyon. One day Jackson noticed some activity on the distant rails. This seemed unusual, as the canyon's rail system had been unused for years. Curious, he made his way over and spotted an active facility of some sort on one of the old cargo stations. Jackson couldn't tell exactly what it was, but it was definitely military, and not theirs.

Once back at the base, Jackson told the others what he had seen. Kurt decided that they would all go to investigate, and asked how long it would take to make some slide shoes for the rest of the team. Jackson replied that he had already made some. The team arrived at Rail Canyon and started grinding towards the facility. Kurt noticed some of the robots constructing the facility. Although they were unmarked, Kurt easily recognized them as MDI models, so they were definitely not friendly. Soon lights started flashing and Nolan realized something.

"They're going to electrify the rails!" Kurt yelled "Well, we're close enough!" as he turned into a flying squirrel and glided over. Jackson and Shadow used airbending as Firespear flew and picked up Nolan. Once they landed, the five began tearing through the lines of attack droids and made their way inside. There, they found a huge supply of shadow missiles.

"That's as far as you go," said a voice. A man appeared in a large robot suit, accompanied by two not-quite-as-large robots. Jackson recognized him as the one who had helped ABF steal the Master Power Crystal, and asked who he was. He replied saying he was Zactus, the head designer and production manager at MDI. He sealed off the chamber from the Shadow missiles, claiming that he didn't want them to be distracted by their "most recent delivery." He then claimed, however, that he was not as merciless as ABF, and that the team could either leave or be destroyed by him and his two companions. No one on the team was ready to back down. Shadow struck at the robot to the right while Nolan took the one on the left. Kurt, Jackson, and Firespear proceeded to attack Zactus. Jackson and Kurt found that the robot's armor was too tough for them to do much damage. Kurt, however, noticed a week spot: the groin area. After Kurt hacked at it with his sword for a little bit, Firespear charged at the head and managed to topple the robot. Jackson then used his spin attack and charged at the robot's groin, smashing it and leaving the legs useless. Zactus's hover pod ejected from the robots head and fled the scene. As Nolan and Shadow finished off the other two robots, Kurt went to investigate the shipment of shadow missiles, while Jackson and Firespear pursued Zactus. However, it was in vain, and he escaped with his warships.

Upon regrouping, Kurt found that the entire stock of shadow missiles and other weapons in the base had been rigged to self-destruct in 45 seconds. With the base on lock down and equipped with an anti-warp shield, they knew there was no way they could get out in time. Nolan revealed that the initial blast would probably deactivate the shield, and he could warp them out of there quickly. However, such a quick warp would be difficult to focus, and they could end up almost anywhere on the planet. Jackson told him to go for it, as they didn't have any other options. Nolan managed to get them out of there safely.

The team appeared in some old basement. A quick assessment revealed that Kurt and Shadow both had severe burns. The team decided to leave, just as they heard someone coming and hid. However, Jackson was caught as an old man pointed a flashlight at him and asked "What the hell [he was] doing in [his] house?" Thinking quickly, Jackson claimed he was a boy on the run from home, noticed an empty window, and jumped in, trying to find a bathroom. The man asked why he didn't go in the woods, Jackson replied that there wasn't any toilet paper in the woods. The man rolled his eyes and told him to make it quick. Jackson went into the bathroom and then reunited with the team.

"We have to go now." said Kurt.

"But I already went!" said Jackson, "and he'll be suspicious if he hears a lot of flushes."

"I meant we have to leave" explained Kurt. The team made their way up through a window and found themselves surrounded by MDI robots, the old man revealed himself to be one of ABF's undercover officers, and he had recognized Jackson from pictures. However, the robots nor the officer were any challenge to the team. They soon had the officer in chains and the robots in pieces.

The team gained permission from the Magic Council to question the officer, Neil Estepp. He revealed that ABF wanted to bring Matravin out of Power World's shadow and then dominate the entire galaxy. Estepp also disclosed several hidden base locations, and listed a couple of other undercover officers. Jackson asked what ABF wanted with the Master Power Crystal. Estepp said that ABF intended to use it as a power source, but there was a rumor that he also needed it for something else. Jackson asked him what the something else could be. Estepp told him that those rumors were even shakier, but the most common one seemed to be that ABF needed the Master Power Crystal to find something. Jackson new that this something could only be the Dark Master Power Crystal.

Later that week, Kurt met up with the bounty hunter, Savage, who promised to lead the team to an abandoned outpost of ABF's, which still had a computer that could access his network. That is, he promised he would do it for the right price. The team flew to the outpost in Nolan's helicopter. When Jackson started to access the computer, he was electrocuted and fell unconscious. Savage pointed his guns at Shadow and Kurt as guard robots stormed into the room. Nolan and Firespear, however, were quick enough to disarm him, but he had other tricks up his sleeve. Robots flooded into the room. Kurt grabbed Jackson's body as Shadow, Firespear, and Nolan covered their escape to the helicopter. However, Savage had planted a bomb near the rotor. Jackson regained consciousness on the helicopter just after it detonated. Shadow quickly got his help to use air and waterbending to ease the craft's sudden water landing as they plummeted into Chao Lake.

The next month was fairly laid back. Jackson and Nolan took out a few battleships in the X-Tornado and X-2, but nothing major occurred. However, the team was later alerted that the squids were attacking Magic Castle, so they sprang into action. Upon arrival, Jackson unleashed his super form once again, now that he could better manage his power. He focused his attack on the missile squid this time, and with help from Shadow, he was able to take out almost all of its missile launchers. As the squids made their retreat, Nolan placed a micro tracker on the mind control squid. Jackson later traced their location to near Matravin's Dark Lake.

Time for a Showdown
The team traveled discretely to Matravin, and they set up a temporary safe-house near Villain's Gulch. After Shadow and Firespear did some scouting of ABF's lakeside base, they put together a plan. Nolan would go with Shadow and Firespear to cause a distraction, while Kurt and Jackson would sneak into the squids' storage area and put them out of commission. After entering the base by hiding in a cargo container, Kurt and Jackson made their way to the squids. They arrived to find the squids being recharged. They were both hooked up to the Master Power Crystal. Kurt and Jackson both knew that reclaiming the Master Power Crystal was critical, even if it meant blowing their cover and preventing them from permanently stopping the squids, which it did. However, they managed to escape with the Crystal and their lives.

They rendezvoused with the others and prepared return to Power World. However, a small robot arrived at their landing site with an audio message.

"Your efforts have been admirable but futile. It is already too late. You might have taken the Master Power Crystal, but hours ago, I found it's dark counterpart. Its dark powers combined with my own will make me unstoppable. But first I will use its darkness to do something special: Destroy your precious Power World! However, if you return the Crystal and the five of you swear allegiance to myself and my empire, your planet will be spared and you will become my own elite team of operatives. You have one hour to return the Master Power Crystal to the base where you took it from. Once it is returned, I will meet you there and we will discuss the plans for your future. And make no attempt to stop me. My real base's location remains a secret and highly doubt you will be able to find it in an hour." Jackson stood up, saying "I don't need an hour, just 2 minutes." He placed his hand on the Master Power Crystal, which showed him the Dark Master Power Crystal's location: ABF's base in the middle of Mt. Zodum, Matravin's largest active volcano. The team flew to the volcano. Shadow felt the base underneath them with his earthbending, and then used firebending and earthbending to transport the team safely to the base through the lava-filled caldera. They discovered that the Dark Master Power Crystal was powering a super laser housed in the volcano. This laser was charging up, and once it was at full capacity, it would fire at Power World. Kurt told the rest of the team to look for ABF while he went to disarm the laser. Kurt found the control room. He deactivated the laser, and then he turned around to see Anthony. "Hello old friend."

"Anthony?"

“I'm surprised you didn't catch on earlier!" said Anthony as he pulled up his hood, revealing himself to be the one they had all called ABF. "I asked this question to you twice before, and both times you said no. But now you see why I did this. This galaxy is beyond saving. Only through complete control can we prevent pointless wars over lines on a map." He smiled and put his hand on Kurt's shoulder and smiled. "Join me Kurt. Convince your team to serve my cause and together we can bring complete peace to the galaxy. Isn't that what you want?"

"I trusted you!" shouted Kurt. "I believed that you were a good person. I will never join a traitor bent on galactic reaping and devastation! You say you want peace? You're lying! If not to me, then to yourself. This is about power, and you know it!" Kurt drew his sword, but was immediately overwhelmed by ABF's dark powers.

As Kurt began to lose consciousness, ABF whispered in his ear. "We'll see how you feel about my offer once your pathetic team is out of the way."

Jackson, Nolan, Shadow, and Firespear opened a door and found ABF waiting for them. Jackson immediately powered up to his super form and began to attack with his Master Power Crystal Sword. ABF easily countered with his own sword. Nolan then assisted Jackson with his own swords, and with Shadow and Firespear attacking, it was almost a fair fight. The battle shook the base, as everyone shot all kinds of blasts back and forth. The base eventually started falling apart and magma started leaking in.

Kurt woke up with some magma inches from his head. He got up and started running toward the sound of the battle. He engaged ABF in a sword fight. Kurt was the only one who could match ABF with a sword, but ABF's other powers kept the rest of the team at bay. However, as they continued to attack together, the team felt an unusual sensation. Eventually, a deep blue aura started to appear around each team member. They then unleashed a sonic wave of energy (later known as a team blast) that severely weakened ABF. Then he grew angry. His darkness flared, and he charged at them, about to unleash one last attack on the team, when magma burst through the floor in front of him. Half of his body was engulfed in the magma, while the other half caught fire. As ABF screamed in pain, Kurt ran up to him and stabbed him, ending his misery. Then they all turned away. His mechanical arm fell to the ground, and Kurt picked it up along with his sword.

Firespear pointed out that there was no sense waiting around; The deed was done, and the base wasn't going to last much longer. The team fled, picking up the Dark Master Power Crystal on the way out. After escaping the volcano, Shadow suggested keeping the Dark Crystal, but Kurt and Jackson agreed that it was too dangerous to have around. They returned to the Dark Lake, and Jackson used his chaos spear technique to shatter the Dark Master Power Crystal and send its shards flying into the lake. The team investigated the lakeside base to find the squids gone. They saw no immediate threat, however; ABF was dead, and it would take his forces a long time to reorganize.

The five returned home to a hero's welcome. The members of the Magic Team were now truly honored as the defenders of Power World. But little did they know that this was only the start of the Great Power War, and only the first of many adventures.

The Battle Begins
Even in the apparent defeat of ABF, Matravin continued to pour most of its resources into the war. And thus the team continued fighting. After two months, however, attacking seemed to lessen. The team was awarded a break, so they spent a week at a local amusement park. Jackson won a young chao in a contest, and named him Harvey. Harvey would become Jackson's sidekick for the rest of his life. The two shared a unique bond.

But ever since ABF's demise, Jackson realized that Kurt was not himself. He didn't transform nor did he help in training. The only time he got a laugh was when Jackson's car got stuck in a haunted house ride. It was as if his agenda had been changed. When asked why, Kurt replied with, "If I can't believe in those around me, in those I trust, what can I believe in?"

For weeks, Kurt stayed deep in his room or the database, sometimes reading books, sometimes staring at the remains of ABF's robotic arm. This greatly unnerved Jackson, since the team needed a strong leader and he felt that he wasn't ready yet. Then one night, Kurt burst into his room asking for some supplies, babbling like a madman saying "I've got him now." over and over again.

He then turned to Jackson and said, "You will need to be strong the next three days. Terrible things are about to happen, but I cannot let this lead go. You will lead the team till I return."

Still half asleep, Jackson mumbled, "Ok." And watched Kurt sprint toward the hangar. Without another moment he went back to sleep. Only to be awoken by the critical alarm. The Magic Council, the seat of government, had all been killed in a brutal attack led by Zactus. Jackson called the team into their ships, and they all sped toward the capital. But it was in vain. Zactus had left. The Council was dead. The army had no directive and was falling into disarray. And Kurt was nowhere to be found.

However, Zactus' battleships still lingered in the sky. Jackson and Nolan took command of starfighter squadrons from Electronic World and Magic Castle and led an assault. Enraged at the slaughter of his people, Nolan held nothing back. He landed on one of the battleships and destroyed it single-handedly. At 1:00 at night, the battleships retreated. One of the guardians of the Magic Council chamber, Clayton Hamernik, had been working secretly with Zactus. Clayton had been one of Nolan's childhood friends, and Nolan was furious to find out he was a traitor, and he swore revenge. Jackson calmed his friend to the point where he could at least get some sleep. Jackson sighed to himself in bed, and said to Harvey, "Being a leader really isn't easy. I wish I at least knew where Kurt is."

As Jackson put his mind to ease and began to drift off to sleep, when he and the team were abruptly awoken again by the alarm. An urgent distress was sent out by the head generals of the Power World military in Tanner City. Again the team scrambled to their ships and rushed to the scene at Baker Tower, Power World's military strategy building. Only to find all the leaders dead in their conference room. But Zactus' troops weren't as quick this time and the team spotted their escape. Nolan sent a fire blast at two while Firespear charged at another. Jackson and Shadow subdued the last, keeping him separate for questioning. It was dawn.

But Zactus had trained his soldiers well. Not one of the team's techniques could get a single word out of the prisoner. They spent all day trying. Tired from frustration and lack of sleep from the night before, the team chose to retire for the night. It was Shadow who felt it first, the dark presence of something powerful, but nonliving. Shadow then moved to wake the rest of the team, and just in time. Something small clinked down the hallway near the kitchen and echoed through the base. It was Nolan's quick thinking of putting up a shield that saved the team from the plasma charge. Their prisoner, however, was not so lucky.

With a hole in the side of the base, the team saw both of the Squids staring in, but something was different. Both had shards of the Dark Master Power Crystal attached to their frame, augmenting their abilities further then what should have been possible. Everyone sprang into action. Jackson went into his super form. Nolan began shooting anything and everything he could muster at the robots. Shadow went into the Avatar State and even took off his inhibitor rings, which released his energy in great amounts. Firespear blasted her way toward them. But the squids held their own against the team.

After twenty minutes of battle, exhaustion was present in everyone. But the squids kept on as though no time had passed. Jackson had worn out his super form, and he was attacking in the Avatar State when, he noticed a warp portal opening between the squids. But instead of the usual oval shaped, this one was rectangular. A figure stepped out. Kurt had joined the battle. Without wasting a second, he sprung into action, pulling out his sword and jumping for some weak points on both of the squids. With this new distraction, and the morale boost from the return of their leader, the team was able to push the squids into a retreat.

As they flew away, the team began to barrage Kurt with questions. But knowing their exhaustion, he told them it could wait till morning. As everyone left, Jackson remained.

Instead of a warm welcome, he turned to his face and shouted, "You left us. You left us when we need you most. And for what? Some fancy new warp? You said you were on to someone and yet you came alone? What kind of leader are you?!"

Kurt calmly replied, "I know why you're upset. You were scared you couldn't do it. You feel I didn't give you a warning. But I had to do it. I needed to learn this power. Anthony knew it. And he will use it."

"Will?" replied Jackson. "We killed him."

Kurt didn't respond but pulled out the remains of ABF's robotic arm. "This only responds to his mental thoughts. I tried for hours trying to move any of the fingers. Nothing budged. But five days ago, the pinky twitched. The squids only respond to ABF's commands. Zactus has no control over them. How did they attack you tonight?" As Kurt stared at Jackson's shocked face, he ended with "This war is far from done."

The next morning, Jackson apologized to Kurt for the outburst the previous night. Kurt accepted. "It's alright, but realize I was only gone for a day when I said it would be three. And you seemed to handle the team just fine. There's nothing you could've done to prevent the killings, but you lead the team fine in battle. True, it took you by surprise, but you proved that you can be a leader."

Jackson, Nolan, and Shadow spent an hour in the training room trying to destroy the mechanical arm, each taking turns firing different blasts at it. They could barely scratch it. Jackson took it outside, went into his super form, flew to an open field, and unleashed a fully charged Chaos Blast while standing above the arm. When the dust finally cleared, the arm rested at the bottom of the resulting crater with no sign of a dent. Shadow suggested disassembling it, but Nolan pointed out that there were no visible screws or anything that they could start from.

"Even when he's dead," said Shadow, "ABF still manages to make our lives difficult."

That afternoon, Kurt was in the control room where he detected a faint distress beacon. It's signal came from the planet Isoma, the star system's second most outward terrestrial planet. Only a handful of people from Power World had ever been there. It claimed that he was the last surviving member of Magic Council. With Power World in chaos, Kurt knew that the people needed a leader to rally behind, someone who could help get things back in order, so Kurt suggested a rescue mission. He proposed that he and Nolan travel to Isoma while Jackson, Shadow, and Firespear stay back on Power World to keep the peace in this time of need. However, Nolan wished to stay on Power World to find Clayton and bring him to justice. Kurt granted Nolan's request, opting that Jackson would accompany him instead, but he warned Nolan not to let his personal emotions sway him from making the right decisions. "Magic Team, let's go to work," he concluded.

Their destination planet would be very difficult to reach, especially at the current date, where Power World and Isoma were on almost completely opposite sides of the system. It was also far beyond Jackson's range of chaos control and very few ships had the necessary interplanetary hyperdrive capability. Kurt put the team to work on building a ship that could get them there. Jackson went to his father for help with the hyperdrive. His father revealed that he did have a prototype ready that could make the distance, but the issue was it would only work once, so the return trip would not be possible. Nolan came up with a solution: Upon arrival, Kurt and Jackson would set up a warpgate on the planet and simply use that to travel back to Power World. This would also make it easier to make the ship, as it would only need to last a one-way journey.

The team spent the next few days working at Jackson's workshop until, finally, the spaceship Integrity was complete. With food, supplies, and warpgate pieces in the cargo hold, Kurt, Jackson, and Harvey boarded the ship. Using the Master Power Crystal as the energy source, the ship took off, and once it was clear of planetary orbit, it made the jump.

Planet Isoma
The Integrity arrived almost an hour later outside of Isoma. As they approached the planet's atmosphere, many of the instruments started to go haywire, and Kurt found it difficult to maintain control of the ship. "Something's pulling us toward that continent!" Quickly, he handed the controls over to Jackson. While not the smoothest or most comfortable landing, Jackson brought the three of them safely down in the edge of a forest. One thing was for sure: the Integrity would never fly again.

After departing the wreck, Jackson went to set up the warpgate. He hooked up the generator, flipped the switch, and nothing happened. Puzzled, he spent three hours trying to get it to work before finally concluding that the planet's strange energy readings would not allow the warpgate to connect to all the others ones in the galaxy. Kurt then suggested that they look for the council member, and hope that he could help them get it working.

They began walking along a small animal trail to the east. After an hour or so of walking, they passed a large boulder and came across a fork in the road. Jackson opted for the path on the right, for it was peaceful and looked much safer. Kurt had a good feeling about the path on the left, despite the heavy overgrowth and gnarled trees. So they chose to split up and meet back in an hour to inform the other of what lay ahead. As they departed, Harvey shot a glance at Kurt that seemed to say he actually thought Kurt's path was the way to go. "Well," Kurt thought to himself "At least someone thinks I know what I'm doing."

Jackson and Harvey had no trouble going down their path. A fresh smell of flowers and sunlight aided them in their journey. About half an hour in, their path ended in a dark looking cave. So they took a look inside. Three human skeletons were lying in the rear, and appeared to have been doing so for more than a decade. Jackson turned to leave the cave, and in doing so heard a rattling sound. He turned to see all upright and slowly walking towards him. Screaming, he ran as fast as his legs would carry him.

Kurt, on the other hand, was making slow progress. After forty five minutes of climbing over roots and scraping by trees, he came into a clearing near the bank of a small river. Near the edge was a metal hatch, something he didn't expect to see in the middle of a large forest. Seeing it was unlocked, he opened it and climbed down the ladder. A fire was flickering in the stove, but beyond that Kurt couldn't see anyone home. As he began to take a seat, a man materialized before him.

"I'm glad you found me Kurt." he said. "Your friend triggered my skeleton trap. It was supposed to stop curious pirates. But oh well. They'll chase him to this clearing and go back to their cave. So Jackson will be here shortly."

"How do you know our names?" Kurt asked.

He replied with, "My name is Edward Hilless, and as someone in charge of Power World, it is my duty to know who are potential friends and foes. I'm glad to have put you on the friend list."

A sudden banging on the hatch door startled both of them. "Let me in!!!!!! They're singing happy birthday or something!!!"

Chuckling, the councilor went to let Jackson and Harvey in. Once inside, the Edward began his tale as well as gave them some useful advice about the planet. Jackson inquired as to how he manged to escape. Her revealed that he was the Magic Council's Keeper of Tradition. In the event of a disaster, he was to make sure that the council's practices and traditions were kept alive. When Zactus' soldiers attacked, the other members defended him while he threw a one-way warp pearl that transported him away instantly to this secret place, where he could stay until things were safe. The area of the planet had a strange electromagnetic area that would help shield him from being detected (although it was also what brought down their ship). With the team's arrival, he assumed that it was safe to return. He also warned them of the Takturan (a native bunny-like species of the planet), but more importantly, he told them about a way to get a warpgate past the anomaly planet's atmosphere. If you synchronized the warp with the planet's gravity, a break in the field could allow a warp out. And most important, he invited Kurt and Jackson to join the council as well as continue their positions on the team. Both were initially taken aback.

"With all due respect, while it is a huge honor, I don't think we're qualified to be members of the Magic Council."

"The job of the Magic Council is to defend and protect the rights and freedoms of all citizens of Power World. In that, you are both more than qualified." With that, the two both accepted. The next morning, Kurt, Jackson, and Harvey headed back to the Integrity to calibrate the warpgate.

On the way back, Kurt heard something in the bushes. Then a small bunny hopped out of the bush. Jackson recognized it first and told Kurt to duck. Kurt dove to the ground as Jackson turned into an old computer and Harvey flew upward. The bunny shot out a ring of light that almost knicked the top of Kurt's hair.

Afterward, the bunny stood immobilized. "This must be one of the Takturan," Kurt said as he examined their bunny-like attacker, "Good call Jackson, but why did you turn into a computer?"

Green text appeared on the screen "Because he said it only hurt non-plant organics."

"Alright," said Kurt, "you can stop that now." And Jackson turned back into his regular form.

After a quick calibration, the warpgate was ready for use. While Jackson checked that the user lock was on, to prevent unwanted people from coming, Kurt went to get Edward. All four stepped through and came out of a warpgate in the heart of the council chambers. Kurt, Jackson, and Harvey were thanked for their help and then let free to roam the chambers as they liked. All three declined, feeling that they hadn't checked on the team in a couple days and needed to get back in touch.

Team Dissension
The base was in shambles. Power was inoperative. The three arrived to what looked like a storm had blown through. On guard, they began to move toward the reactor. After many stumbles and bruised toes, they reached the reactor room. Someone had sabatoged it. Jackson quickly went to work while Kurt and Harvey checked the rest of the base with flashlights.

Papers were everywhere. Cables were pulled. A dark aura lingered. As he passed by the team's quarters, Kurt noticed that Nolan's, Firespear's, and Shadows were all picked clean. "Oh great," Kurt groaned. "Not only do they have my team, but also all their resources." He and Harvey decided to return to the reactor room to check on Jackson and wait for power before continuing the assessment.

After two hours of hard work, power was restored to allow basic systems to work. Jackson suggested they all take a break and continue to explore since the lights were on. Every room looked the same. Someone or something had ransacked through every possible paper. Kurt's original observations were confirmed. Most of the teams' rooms were picked clean. The library was in disarray and the computer gone.

"What could they have been looking for?" asked Jackson. "These footprints are less dusty than the one's in Shadow's room, so they must not have found it in any of our rooms." Kurt remained silent, then walked over to the kitchen. The food was untouched but every book had been thrown angrily on the ground.

"NNNNNOOOOO!!!!!" He heard Jackson shout from down the hall. "They took my designs for a buttermilk powered engine!!!!! WHY?!?!?!?!" Ignoring Jackson, he checked the stove. The ashes hadn't been touched. Breathing a sigh of relief, he went to calm Jackson down.

When the base had been fully assessed of what was missing and what needed repair, the list was simple. Shadow, Nolan, Firespear, several of their personal possessions, the database computer, the security tapes, Jackson's engine design, and ABF's robotic arm had been taken.

"But they didn't find what they were looking for," murmured Kurt. "And I burned it so they never will."

"What was so important, that they had the men to take down our entire team in order to get? Wait a minute. The base doesn't have any signs of battle. Yes, it's been ransacked, but there are no scorch marks or slashes. Everything looks like someone snuck in. Or it was an inside job." Both were silent. Afraid of what this realization meant.

After a couple minutes, Jackson asked again, "What were they looking for?"

"A manuscript detailing how one can warp between dimensions. ABF knew how to do it so Zactus probably believes that he left him something in one of the dimensions. But I memorized it, and burned it so they couldn't get it under any circumstances."

Three days passed. And three days worth of repairs took place. And three days of no incident passed. And three days of no contact from the missing members of the team. Life for citizens of Power World, however, had started to go back to normal. Halloween arrived, and Kurt and Jackson decided that they both needed a mental break from all the stress, and they agreed to have a fun night at Jackson's workshop. With Harvey, they watched old horror movies and gave out candy to the trick-or-treaters that came by. They were both surprised to see several kids dressed up as themselves and other members of the team, and the children were delighted to see them open the door. It warmed both of their hearts to know that the team had become a world-wide symbol of hope and bravery. One girl in a Firespear costume asked Jackson where the rest of the team was. Jackson didn't know how to respond, so Kurt jumped in saying they were busy fighting vampires and witches.

A little after midnight, as The Rocky Horror Picture Show ended, Harvey saw that Kurt and Jackson had fallen asleep on the couch, so he hovered over to the TV to turn it off. Then he looked out the window and noticed a dark figure walking up Jackson's long driveway. Curious, Harvey went up close to the window for a better look and recognized the figure as Shadow. He immediately went to wake up Kurt and Jackson, screaming in chao language and frantically pointing towards the window. Kurt and Jackson investigated, quickly recognized Shadow, and ran outside to greet him.

No sooner had they stepped outside, when Jackson realized something was wrong. He tackled Kurt to the ground seconds before Shadow's dark blast flew over their heads. Both sprung up, swords in hand, but it was too late. Shadow had vanished into the darkness.

The two had trouble going back to sleep. They reached the conclusion that the team had turned against them and were working with Zactus. Kurt commented that it was a good thing they took the Master Power Crystal with them to Isoma, or Nolan, Shadow, and Firespear would've given it to Zactus. The next day, they flew the X-Tornado to Magic Castle and spoke with Edward Hilless. He told them they had heard nothing of Zactus' whereabouts, but he did have news about their traitorous team. Security footage from the night before revealed Firespear and Nolan stealing power crystals. Kurt vowed that he would get to the bottom of this and deal with it in whatever manner necessary.

As they left, the three traitors arrived, accompanied by a large battle robot. While Kurt and several mages dealt with the Nolan, Shadow, and Firespear, Jackson and Harvey climbed in the X-Tornado and transformed it into the X-Cyclone to battle the large robot. With a final kick, the X-Cyclone knocked the robot down and out of commission. Jackson and Harvey then rejoined Kurt, who was locked in mortal combat with Nolan. Jackson snuck up behind Nolan and disarmed him and was about to deliver a blow to knock him out, when he hesitated due to their close friendship. Nolan, however, used this opportunity to strike back with a fire blast. Jackson then threw Harvey in his spin attack. Shadow and Firespear closed in. Kurt, Jackson, and Harvey were quickly overwhelmed. As they stood on their knees in defeat, Kurt noticed an odd purple glow in their eyes. Jackson asked them the reasons for their betrayal. "Shut up, you greedy swine! You never stop asking for more, do you?" Nolan replied.

Kurt spoke up. "Jackson has done nothing but give to us since he joined this team!"

"Don't you say that word team again!" snapped Firespear. "You've done nothing but give us pointless orders, and we risk our lives for nothing? This is no team! We're your slaves. Jackson is the only one stupid enough not to see it because you butter him up with that puppet 'second-in-command' title!"

Shadow interrupted. "Enough. We need to make ourselves clear. Execute the Chao!"

"No!" yelled Jackson. Just then the three were knocked back by simultaneous blue and green blasts. Hilless and another man had joined the fight. The tides turned, and the three traitors retreated in the X-2 and Firespear's starfighter. Jackson hopped in the X-Tornado, about to pursue them, but the man stopped him saying there was no need. Jackson inquired the man as to who he was. He replied saying that he was Master Shaa, Nolan's old mentor. He went on to explain that he had the mages place a small homing-tracker on the X-2 during the battle that they could use to locate their hiding place.

Hot Topic
Kurt, Jackson, and Harvey joined Master Shaa, Edward Hilless, and some workers in the communications center. They located the X-2. It appeared to be approaching the sun. As it got close, the tracker lost signal, presumably destroyed by the heat. "A suicide mission?" asked a worker.

"I don't think so," replied Kurt, "Jackson, I think we need to take a trip to your father's."

They arrived at Jackson's family's house, and his dad used his scanners to pick up a large object rotating near the sun. It seemed to be a space station.

"Only Zactus could've constructed a base that advanced," said Kurt, who quickly noticed Jackson's parents (particularly his mother) shuddered when they heard his name. Kurt didn't think much of it though, he had other things to worry about. "We know where we have to go."

"Using Chaos Control to get to places I don't know is very risky. If I'm unsure of the destination, we could end up slightly off target, which would make for a very toasty ending in this situation," Jackson said solemnly.

"Then we'll modify the X-Tornado to withstand those temperatures," suggested Kurt.

"Sorry boys," said Jackson's father, "but that kind of technology is beyond my capability. It would take a miracle."

"Or a little magic," Jackson declared. "Come on Kurt, let's see our new fellow council members."

"Wait!" yelled Bennett, Jackson's younger brother who was listening to the whole conversation with his best friend Alex. "We're coming with you. We can help, and you'll need us."

"Hmm..." said Jackson, "Well Kurt, the X-Tornado does seat four, Harvey doesn't need a chair, and these two did prove themselves in the conflict with Invisible Isle. What do you say? We do need all the help we can get."

Kurt agreed.

The four traveled to the magic council chambers. On the sight of Master Shaa, Jackson ran right up to him. "MasterShaaweneedyourhelptheresabasefloatingaroundthesunandweneedtostopitsoweneedtogotothesunan-" Kurt pushed him out of the way. "What my eager friend is trying to say is we need a way to get to the sun without frying." Shaa thought for a moment, "I may have something that will interest you, follow me."

They followed Shaa down the stairs and into a storage room. "Before most of the council was killed, we were helping them with a compound that could withstand immense energy and damage. It was only in an early stage, so it is impervious to high pressure and heat. But energy blasts, standard lasers, and brute strength punch right through it. And speaking of punching through, punches go right through it as well."

"Wouldn't want to make things too easy," Jackson replied. "I'll go get it installed. I could use your help guys." As they began to leave, Shaa pulled Kurt over. "I won't keep him too long," he told the others. He then turned to Kurt, "As you know, I can glimpse the future. Occasionally. It's one of the benefits of being a telepath. And something will happen to you on that base. Not your death, well not likely your death, but something that will change you and the direction of this war. I advise you not to go."

"I have to go. My team is out there and they need my help," Kurt said. Shaa's reply was swift. "That's what Zactus is counting on. Whatever he's planning, you're a part of it. I know what it means to you, but you can't go." Kurt thought for a minute about what Shaa had said. "I'm going. I'll heed what you said, but this is my decision and my team is in trouble."

With a nod from Shaa, Kurt left to go help Jackson with the modifications. He arrived at the workshop to find little of the plating in place.The four finished the rest of the job in a couple hours, with a few breaks of course. They took a rest for the night, and prepared to leave in the morning

The group gathered their supplies and took off in the X-Tornado. As they approached the sun, Jackson had the team put on goggles from under their seats so they wouldn't be blinded. Soon, the scanners picked up a large object and they set their course towards it.

On the base, Zactus dispatched his forces to take down the X-Tornado. Jackson responded by transforming the X-Tornado into battle armor mode. On one of the bases "arms," Alex spotted a large hangar bay and suggested Jackson head towards it. Tearing through the forces, the X-Tornado approached the shielded entrance, transformed once again (this time, into the X-Cyclone), and landed safely inside.

Zactus' robot soldiers quickly swarmed into the hangar, and after a quick fight, Bennett suggested that the team split up. Kurt devised a plan in which he, Bennett, and Alex made their way through the base to find the traitors while Jackson and Harvey made their way to the command deck by using the X-Cyclone outside of the base.

Kurt's group blasted and sliced its way through hall after hall. Bennett and Alex's combat skills left Kurt with little fighting to do, allowing him to focus on navigating through the base. Meanwhile, Jackson continued to progress from the outside, dodging turret blasts while firing his own cannons. As they approached the command deck, however, a near-direct hit knocked Jackson out and sent the X-Cyclone careening out into space, drifting slowly towards the sun.

Alex heard what sounded like small rockets. Savage the bounty hunter came flying down the hall with a jetpack and unleashed a barrage of laser-bullets with his twin machine guns. Alex chose the right moment to jump, snatched one of his guns, and chased after him down the hallway. Nolan showed up and engaged in a sword fight with Kurt, while Shadow took on Bennett. Shadow appeared to have the upper hand, but Bennett held his own, countering Shadow's dark blasts with his energy manipulation techniques. When Shadow had him pinned, Bennett used metal bending to give himself a literal iron fist and smack Shadow, who was especially surprised since he had no idea Bennett was an earthbender, let alone a metalbender. But his luck was short lived; as Shadow fell to the ground, Firespear showed up. No sooner had he turned than he felt the muzzle of Savage's gun on the back of his head. He used his jumping ability teleport behind Savage, but Savage quickly electrocuted him and put anti-power cuffs on him, throwing him next to Alex, who had a severe gunshot wound in his right leg, and Kurt, who was at Nolan's sword point.

They were taken to the command deck. With no sign of Jackson, Kurt assumed he had failed his part of the mission as well.

Harvey finally managed to get Jackson awake. Jackson felt like his head was spinning, and the fact that the X-Tornado was actually spinning didn't help. Jackson tried to speak to Kurt, but couldn't get a signal from Kurt's comm.

Zactus informed the captives about his base. "I built this years ago as a secret lab-facility. It runs solely on a very valuable asset: the sun's energy. There are so many different ways to use that energy. Using shards of the Dark Master Power Crystal to focus that energy, this base could fire a blast that would turn all of Magic Castle into a charred wasteland. Today, however I have a different goal. ABF's arm keeps him anchored in the physical world. Using a large amount of energy, I knew could use the arm to resurrect him. Without using the complete Dark or regular Master Power Crystal, it would be difficult to gather enough energy to accomplish such a task, so I turned to the next most powerful thing in the system, the sun. But I need one more thing to channel his energy, and you know this, Kurt. That's why you tried to hide it in another dimension. I need his Dark Sword."

"It's back where it belongs now! In the Dark Dimension!" scowled Kurt.

"And you're going to get it for me now, or your friends die and this base will unleash the power of the sun on Power World. You know exactly where it is. You have two minutes to fetch it. Go!"

Kurt knew it had to be done. He immediately dimension warped to the Dark Dimension, where he found the Dark Sword, just where he had left it. With Jackson presumably dead, Alex and Bennett in peril, the rest of the team turned against him, and his nemesis about to be resurrected, Kurt wished there could be a little light in this dark hour. Then Kurt realized there could be. Darkness is just the shadow cast by the light. While he was gone he still had a minute and a half to go to the Light Dimension and get the Light Sword, which could return his friends from their evil state. He'd never been there before, but he focused on arriving at the opposite of the place he was now. It worked. He was in a room full of light artifacts. Kurt wasted no time and returned with the Light Sword in a storage cube. He would have to catch Zactus and Savage off guard. He knew he would still have to give him the Dark sword. Zactus ordered Kurt to throw the Dark Sword on the ground ahead of him. Kurt did so. And as soon as Zactus' back was turned Kurt took out the Light Sword and swung it in a wide arc, unleashing a ray of light that neutralized the dark spell over Nolan, Firespear, and Shadow. But the three were dazed, and Zactus and Savage quickly recovered from the shock and cuffed them as well. Zactus commended Kurt's effort, but informed him it was all too late.

The Resurrection
Zactus inserted the Dark Sword into the machine. He pulled some levers, and a beam of energy came flying across the room towards a shard of the Dark Master Power Crystal, which focused the energy across the tip of the Dark Sword and on to ABF's mechanical arm. There was a flash of black light, and when it was over, the team saw ABF standing there smiling. He walked over to Zactus, who was kneeling.

"Get up!" said ABF "No need for that, it's thanks to you I'm even here. Took you a little longer that I would've liked, but still I'm impressed!"

The casual nature of ABF's conversation reminded Kurt that ABF was indeed human, and not only that, was once his close friend. The stinging feeling of betrayal burned in his heart. Zactus asked ABF if he wished to use the Dark Master Power Crystal shards to make the team evil again, make them all his servants, but ABF decided he would rather have all of them launched in a capsule towards the sun. The entire team was anti-power cuffed and marched to the capsule by Savage and Clayton Hamernick. To discourage the captives, ABF had all of their weapons ,including the Light Sword, launched first in another capsule. Then, as their capsule launched, the team huddled together, awaiting their doom. Shadow, Firespear, and Nolan apologized, explaining how they had been led into a trap when looking for Clayton, and Zactus had used the Dark Master Power Crystal shards to increase the evil inside them, and make them resentful towards Kurt and Jackson. It was getting hot, Then Jackson appeared in the capsule while holding all of the team's weapons in his arms.

"Jackson, you're not dead!" exclaimed Kurt.

"I almost wouldn't be able to say the same about you guys." He cut Kurt's cuffs and handed him his sword. "I'm assuming they're all back to normal now?" Kurt nodded, and he and Jackson cut everyone's cuffs. "Alright, everyone gather close. Chaos control!"

The team appeared in the hangar where Harvey was waiting with the X-Tornado. Jackson and Shadow used waterbending to heal Alex's leg. Jackson noticed that Nolan and Firespear's planes were also there.

Kurt spoke up "Let's fly out of here before they find us."

"They found us," said Bennett as ABF, Zactus, Savage, and Clayton walked into the hangar. They wasted no time. The fight was on. Nolan and Clayton immediately began dueling. Bennett and Alex went to even the score with Savage. Firespear, Jackson, and Harvey went after Zactus in his robot suit. Kurt and Shadow engaged ABF, Kurt taking on his sword, while Shadow dealt with his bending and other powers. The battle's intensity grew. Jackson, Harvey, and Firespear ended up following Zactus back to the control room. Where he activated the device preparing to fire at Power World. If it hit, the blast could take out half a continent. Jackson and Firespear panicked, then Firespear had an idea.

"Jackson, do you have the Master Power Crystal in your storage cube?" Jackson got it out and handed it to her. "Now use chaos control to send me to the tip of the cannon! You stay here with Harvey and keep Zactus busy!" Jackson did so. Firespear flew into the barrel of the cannon with the Master Power Crystal. As the energy came flying down, she held the Master Power Crystal strong and the energy deflected back, causing great damage to the entire station. Zactus sent in guard troops to keep Jackson and Harvey occupied while he escaped.

Meanwhile, Bennett and Alex managed to take down Savage, and threw him out into space, putting an end to him for good. Nolan managed to stab Clayton, offereing some heavy words as his former friend fell to the ground. Nolan, Bennett, and Alex, joined Kurt and Shadow in fighting ABF.

Firespear returned to the control room and revealed to Jackson that the Master Power Crystal was able to deflect the energy focused by shards of the Dark Master Power Crystal, but at the price of shattering the Master Power Crystal. She gave all the pieces to Jackson, who put them in his storage cube with a sigh. The base wouldn't last much longer, so they decided to meet up with the others back at the hangar.

ABF was cetainly not at full power, and took Zactus's opportunity to escape when he flew into the hangar in a shuttle. ABF began to threaten Zactus for this failure, but Zactus assured him this was only the beginning of his plan.

The team too, retreated from the base in their planes. They made it back to their own base feeling pretty successful. Jackson returned the Master Power Crystal to Altar Emerald, where it would take a few months to heal.

Tale of Two Planets
They woke up the next morning to horrible news. Both Power World and Bugdum were under attack from massive amounts of MDI forces. "What the Hell is he doing? This strategy makes no sense!" shouted Jackson.

"This isn't strategy," said Kurt. "This is revenge."

"This is a desperate move," said Shadow. "I think he's slipping and we can take advantage of that. Firespear and I will go defend our home world. I need to make sure my family is safe. ABF is probably leading the attack here. The rest of you can take him and end him for good this time." Shadow and Firespear left for Bugdum while rest of the team made their way to Electronic World, where most of the forces were concentrated. The squids rampaged through the city. Kurt, Jackson, and Nolan fought alongside Alex and Bennett in battle, bringing down ships and slicing through troops. Eventually Kurt spotted ABF flying in the sky. Jackson and Harvey powered up into their super forms, and Nolan used the Light Sword to transform into Light Nolan. Super Jackson extended his power to Kurt and Nolan, creating a sphere of energy around each of them that allowed them to fly, as well as enhancing their strength. They flew up to ABF and engaged in an incredible battle. Neither side held anything back.

Blinding light erupted from the blades each time the Light Sword and the Dark Sword struck each other, but ABF had no choice but to block Nolan's strikes. Kurt and Jackson began to pick up on this strategy, and used it as an opening to attack ABF. As ABF took damage from Kurt, Jackson, and Harvey's blows, he began to counter with some brutal attacks of dark energy. Eventually, Nolan powered up a huge blast of light energy that met with one of ABF's blasts of dark energy. The two blasts pushed against each other, with a great ball of energy where they met in the middle. Nolan and ABF were essentially locked in a game of reverse tug of war, and ABF appeared to be winning until Kurt, Jackson, and Harvey flew next to him and began filtering their own power into Nolan's blast. It evened the playing field, but it seemed to be draining them faster than ABF. Jackson could feel his power dropping, and knew it was only a matter of seconds before he would stop being Super Jackson, which would effectively put him and Kurt out of the fight.

"Can't you see?" yelled ABF "You have nothing!"

"Nothing but a badass baby brother!"

Bennett flew up in his super form, with Alex at his side in an energy sphere much like Kurt and Nolan's. They attacked ABF, which broke his focus on countering Nolan's blast. ABF couldn't hold it back, and was hit square on with the light energy. Nolan held the blast steady and drove ABF all the way into the ground. After a few seconds, Nolan stopped, and he and the team glided safely to the ground and powered down to their regular forms.

In the huge crater from the blast, the team could not identify any remains of ABF but a few torn-up pieces of his black cloak and the Dark Sword. They came to the conclusion that ABF was truly dead...again. Kurt was a little disturbed that there was no sign of his arm, reminding Jackson that it had been impossible to destroy before. Jackson suggested that this time it must've died with him, which also meant that he couldn't be brought back. Kurt was still somewhat uneasy, but he convinced himself that he was just overthinking it and started to celebrate with his team as the MDI forces retreated.

Shadow and Firespear returned that evening with the news that Bugdum had successfully forced Zactus and his MDI forces into a retreat. Shadow also introduced his 12 year old son Aang, and his two four-year-olds Katara and Sokka. All waterbenders. At the base, the whole team partied, including Bennett and Alex, who were now recognized as honorary members. Even Shadow was enjoying himself, exchanging funny battle stories with Nolan. Kurt pulled Jackson aside, thanking him for staying with him through it all. Jackson promised that no matter what happened, he would always have Kurt's back. For the first time in almost four months, Kurt found himelf at bliss. Even though he would never forget Anthony's betrayal, he understood that he had a team of true friends. And not even an evil spell from the Dark Master Power Crystal itself would take them away from him.

Little did he know that ABF had survived, hanging on to a thread of life in a separate dimension, where he would take years to heal. But the team had a much more imminent problem to worry about...

Troubling signs
Shadow felt sick the next morning after the party. Jackson and Nolan joked that he must've went a little too hard the night before. Firespear came to comfort him. "Firespear, you're my closest friend. I can trust you with anything right?" She nodded. "Firespear, something hasn't been right in my head. It feels... dangerous. Please keep this between us for the time being. Don't tell the others, not even Jackson."

After a couple days, Shadow eventually began to feel better, and he joined the team in the training arena. Harvey and Firespear sat in the observation deck while the rest had a tag team spar: Kurt and Shadow vs. Jackson and Nolan. The battle was fairly even matched from the beginning. However, about 6 minutes in, right after blasting Jackson away, the purple glow of the Dark Master Power Crystal's spell reappeared in Shadow's eyes, which only Firespear noticed, and he began to attack Kurt. All three of the combatants yelled at Shadow asking what the hell he was doing. After a few seconds, he snapped out of it. The four stood for a moment in awkward silence. "Sorry, Kurt, for a second I was thinking I was with Nolan. You alright?" Kurt nodded, and the battle continued. Kurt was on edge the whole time, however, and Jackson and Nolan claimed victory.

Shadow went to Firespear's quarters immediately after the match and met her there. "Please don't tell me I saw what I thought I saw!" she cried.

"I'm afraid you did," Shadow sighed, "Some of the darkness from the Dark Master Power Crystal shard must be living inside me."

Firespear gave in. She had to tell someone. She was too worried about Shadow. Unfortunately, Harvey really didn't have much advice to give, so she kept quiet until later when she offered to go with Jackson to his workshop. They took off in the X-Tornado. Trying to make small talk, she asked why Jackson didn't simply use chaos control to get to his workshop. Jackson replied saying that he liked to fly and see all the sights, but he could tell something was on her mind, so he asked what was going on. Firespear would've rather told Nolan, her closest friend on the team besides Shadow, but knew that Jackson was Shadow's student and deserved to know what was going on. Jackson agreed that he would only tell Kurt and Nolan if it became absolutely necessary. They didn't want to stir anything up.

The following day, the team headed to a local amusement park. Nolan, Shadow, and Jackson ran for the roller coasters, while Kurt, Firespear, Harvey, and the kids headed for the swinging ship. The team met up later in the day, with Shadow complaining of nausea.

Firespear didn't sleep well she awoke in the middle of the night to the sight of Shadow staring down at her menacingly with the purple glow in his eyes. She shuddered and turned away, but when she looked back, he was gone. She went back to sleep, assuring herself that it was just a bad dream. She then awoke to Nolan violently shaking her, telling her that Shadow was gone. They rushed to Shadow's room. A huge hole was blasted in the wall.

"Someone must've broken in and taken him," declared Kurt.

"No way!" said Aang. "My father wouldn't let anyone take him without a fight, and there are no signs of a struggle."

"And look at this hole," added Nolan, "All of the rubble is down there on the ground below, none of it is here in the room. This hole was blasted from the inside."

Firespear and Jackson knew that they couldn't keep the secret anymore, and confessed what had been going on with Shadow. "So where is he going now?" asked Nolan. Then they all realized. Jackson used chaos control to take them to the base, commenting to Firespear that it was an example of a time where there was no time to fly and see the sights. Harvey stayed behind with Aang, Katara, and Sokka.

They arrived outside the base near the warpgate. They entered the code, and went inside. Kurt told the team to split up. Kurt was about to enter the infirmary when Shadow pinned him in the corner near the laundary room. Kurt was able to throw him off, and drew his sword. "Snap out of it Shadow!" he yelled.

"Silence!" countered Shadow. "You keep defending the weak just to be a rebel, perpetuating this war! We must stay on the side of true power if we want to stay on top!" Kurt noticed Jackson sneaking towards Shadow from the kitchen, and Nolan approaching carefully from the analysis room. Kurt continued to stall Shadow, arguing against his distorted philosophy, but when Jackson and Nolan made their move, Shadow easily countered and fled.

"He didn't take anything, did he?" asked Jackson. Kurt said he didn't think so, and began to ask himself why Shadow even came to the base when Firespear called them on the com, telling them to come to the power generator. The three joined her and found a large bomb attached to the power generator, and the count-down clock was at 2 minutes. Jackson immediately went to work on disarming it. Then a thought came into Nolan's head.

"Guys, look at this! We're all in a tight, confined space with a bomb! For all we know, that timer means nothing. It could go off any second." The team began to exit quickly, but Jackson was the last to leave and was hit as the bomb went off.

Chasing your own Shadow
Jackson woke up in the infirmary in pain. Aang was doing his best with Waterbending to help him heal. Nolan was standing guard by the bed. He gave Jackson another power cure and told him that he was assigned to look over him just in case Shadow returned to the base while Kurt and Firespear were out in pursuit. Jackson asked what happened to the generator. Nolan informed him that it was completely destroyed, and they were running the base with Jackson's power crystals.

Kurt and Firespear searched across the Magic Castle zone looking for any clues to Shadow's whereabouts. After talking to some locals they learned that he had indeed been in the area, but had already left toward Animal Kingdom. Unsure of his motives, the two rushed toward Animal Kingdom to find him. As they got closer, Kurt heard a distress call over his communicator. "Is anyone there? This is Kingdom Patrol, we're under attack! Please hurry! I don-". Firespear and Kurt gave each other worried looks and picked up the pace.

Upon arriving at the location, the two could see what kind of danger the patrol was in. Dark blasts were flying in every direction. It was Shadow. The two landed, with Kurt running toward him on foot and Firespear taking back to the air. "Cowards!" they heard Shadow shout. "You will bow before true power!" Without a moment to lose Kurt lunged at Shadow with his sword, but Shadow simply knocked him to the side.

"You dare fight me again?" he challenged.

Kurt's reply was swift. "Listen to what you're saying Shadow! Think of your son! Is this how you want him to remember you?" Shadow stopped for a second, "My s-son?" he stuttered. But before Kurt could respond, the anger flared back in his eyes. "My son will see me as the future! I will free him from weakness!"

With that he unleashed two dark blasts towards Kurt. Using monkey agility, he was barely able to dodge the first but had his sword and right forearm armor blasted away from him by the second. "Think of your son. Think of all the good you could do to make his life better. He loves you."

Shadow stopped again. "He l-loves m-me?" he said slowly. "All I wanted was to keep him safe." The darkness flared back up. "And the only way to do that is to kill you!"

But before he could charge up another dark blast, Firespear was on him.

"NO!" Shadow screamed.

"No one else has to die today," Firespear calmly told him. Kurt ran over and put a pair of anti-power cuffs on Shadow to prevent him from blasting Firespear off.

With Shadow screaming for revenge, Kurt walked over the the survivors of the patrol. One of them ran up. "You're Kurt! And that must be Firespear! I've never seen a dragon before! Who is that over there?! Oh my god we almost died but we didn't and now we've helped the Magic Team I can't believe it this is so amazing!!"

Kurt calmly replied, "I want to thank you for your help. And I want you to know the difference you made here today. What's your name?"

"Sergeant John Redders, Sir."

"It's just Kurt, and thank you, Sergeant Redders. You made your planet proud."

Kurt head back over to Firespear to hold Shadow on her back while they flew back to base. When they got there, Nolan and Aang ran up to help get Shadow somewhere for his safety.

On seeing Aang, Shadow stopped stuggling. "My son.....I'm so proud of you.....Look to Jackson for guidance....He'll set you on the right path....and give him these...Forgive me." Shadow launched his inhibitor rings off his wrists, leaped in the air, and broke off his cuffs with a massive dark energy burst, knocking everyone down. He ran over to Nolan and used a dark blast to knock the Light Sword away from him.

Shadow then walked over, picked it up, looked Firespear in the eyes, said, "No one else has to die today", and stabbed himself with the Light Sword, ridding himself of darkness and letting his soul be at rest.

In the following days, the team stuggled with the death of Shadow. Aang told Jackson what Shadow had said as he handed over his father's inhibitor rings, and Jackson accepted the mentorship of Aang, and placed the rings on his wrists. Firespear told the team that she couldn't handle staying with the team after what happened to Shadow and decided to return to her home planet of Bugdum. There, she would become it's first guardian and keep it safe from Zactus. Katara and Sokka went with her back to Bugdum to stay with their mother.

Free Time
It had been six months since Shadow's death. Aang was accepted as a full member of the team, to fill Shadow's place. Meanwhile, Nolan and Master Shaa joined Kurt, Jackson, and Edward on the newly reformed Magic Council. Edward kept his old position, while Kurt, Jackson, Nolan, and Master Shaa held the seats of planetary defense. The squid's hadn't been seen since the last duel with ABF, whom the team still considered dead. Zactus still kept the team on alert, but even he needed to recuperate. As a result, very few major battles took place. This gave the Magic Team some time to improve its gear and training.

Shadow had shown that the current anti-power cuffs were not powerful enough to hold everyone. He had also shown that Kurt's armor and sword couldn't withstand more than one dark blast. Jackson went to work.

One of his first projects was new battle gear for Kurt. Jackson created a sword for Kurt that was similar to his old one but more durable and with energy tipped edges that could be activated with the push of a putton. This would make it much more effective at cutting through robots. Jackson also noted that Kurt had no type of power blast, so he constructed an energy rifle for him. Kurt had an aversion to guns for many years, but after a few battles, he got used to it. While a sword was still his weapon of choice, he wouldn't hesitate to pull the rifle out in battle if he needed to. Lastly, he created some new, lightweight armor with micro-tubes running throughout it in which chaos energy flowed, giving the armor extra protection. Jackson said it was "the perfect combination of magic and science."

But Jackson's endeavors did not stop with Kurt's new tech. He found a way to use chaos energy to make anti-power cuffs pretty much unbreakable to the person who was wearing them. He continued to upgrade the team's ships, and even created a second submarine, which he and Nolan took on several underwater adventures. He also built another Sonic-inspired ship for himself, the Hyper-Tornado. Aang was fascinated with Jackson's work and tried to assist in any way he could. In fact, it was Aang that gave Jackson the idea of creating hoverboards for the team, in which which Jackson found a niche. After practicing with them, the team eventually entered in a hoverboard racing tournament, with a six-person team of Kurt, Jackson, Nolan, Aang, Bennett, and Alex. They took first place.

Nolan wanted to try different types of training, so Jackson reprogrammed some of Zactus' old robots for training drones. Jackson also upgraded the X-2's arsenal for Nolan, and gave him some utility gauntlets with all sorts of gadgets and weapons. He also found a way to increase the range of power cures, allowing them to sometimes heal multiple people at once.

Jackson's workshop became a second home for himself and Aang, who lived there for sometimes weeks at a time. When Katara and Sokka were on Power World, they would come too, and Harvey would do his best to keep them entertained. Jackson had to remember that while he was having fun making new toys, he had to do his duty as the Avatar and honor Shadow's last request, both of which encompassed keeping Aang on the right path. Over the next two years, the whole team watched in astonishment as Aang's power grew, reaching the potential of his father. Unlike Shadow, however, Aang cared deeply about everyone and only wanted to do good. Kurt was very impressed, noting that Jackson's good nature had certainly rubbed off on Aang more than Shadow's darkness. He saw Aang as the future powerhouse of the team.

Every Avatar has a different purpose, and Jackson's purpose was to finish raising the powerful Aang and keeping him on the side of light. And so, two and half years after Shadow's death, the Avatar spirit moved on from Jackson to Aang, who was finally ready to accept the responsibility. Around this same time, Katara and Sokka, now seven years old, moved to Power World to be with their brother.

Stranger from Another World
After he, Kurt, and Jackson traveled to Magic Castle for a Magic Council meeting, Nolan decided to stay for the weekend visiting Master Shaa. He spent Saturday night in his old treehouse (which was bigger on the inside than the outside) partying with his old war buddies. He spent Sunday with Master Shaa again, who showed him some how to make some new potions, including one that cured his hangover from the night before. Sunday night, he was up late again at the tree house using his holo-communicator to talk to Firespear, who he remained in contact with, as the two had been good friends. After the conversation came to a close, he drifted off to sleep. He dreamed that he, Kurt, and Jackson were battling ABF above Electronic World again, but this time Aang was with them. But in the heat of the battle, Aang started struggling in confusion. He then went into the Avatar state and started attacking the team. A loud noise woke Nolan from this strange dream, and he looked out the window to see an unfamiliar ship crash in the field nearby. He climbed down the ladder and ran to the wreck to find the pilot unconscious, but alive. And Nolan could feel that he had powers. Nolan knew he would have to cut his vacation a little short. He warped himself and the man back to base. He arrived at the warpgate, entered the code, and went inside. Right away, he heard the others in the kitchen. Kurt and Jackson were telling Aang about the team's earlier adventures.

"And I think it was after that when Nolan asked if the X-Tornado had a bio-engine. And I'm like 'Nolan I run the thing on Power Crystals, I'm pretty sure that's cleaner for the planet than taking a dump and powering it off that.' Regardless, I put one in the X-2, so it can be run off that, power crystals, or regular fuel. Now did either of us tell you about the prototype ship we almost captured?"

"Oh great," Nolan muttered to himself, "They're drunk." Nolan startled the group as he walked in and showed them the man he just found. He and Aang carried him to the infirmary and then brewed one of his new potions to sober up Kurt and Jackson.

The man's vitals were stabilized, and when he finally came to, he began asking questions about where he was. The team's responses didn't help, as the name of the planet was the only thing that sounded even vaguely familiar. The team then began asking questions about who he was and where he was from. His answers were just as unhelpful. All he could remember was that his name was Ricky, he had cosmic abilities, and that he had been flying a ship. The next morning, the team took the ship to the base to inspect it. Nothing in the team's knowledge nor the database could identify the origin of the ship. Nolan used some of his rare ingredients to brew a truth potion to see if Ricky really couldn't remember anything, or if he was a spy and a liar. As it turned out, he really couldn't remember where he was from or who he really was. Kurt saw this as an opportunity to bring the team's membership back to five, and because he didn't have anywhere else to go, Ricky was invited to join the team.

The Hard Truth
Six months after Ricky's arrival, or three years since Shadow's death, Aang began having strange visions in his meditation sessions. He dreamed of a narrow, deep canyon with a cave at the bottom. One night he had a dream where he entered this cave to find that it wasn't a cave at all; It was an underground temple. As he looked at the bookcases, he heard his father's voice and saw him standing there, but also noticed a strange figure in a dark cloak with a hood standing in the corner. And then he woke up. Kurt, Jackson, or Nolan would have recognized the figure as ABF, but Aang didn't know this, and didn't think it was important when he mentioned the dream and the visions at the breakfast table.

After some discussion, the team decided to investigate Aang's dream. He was the Avatar after all, and he sometimes received visions. By his description, the team easily realized the canyon he was talking about. They left Katara and Sokka in the care of Bennett and Alex. A casual flight in the planes soon had the entire team at the top of the canyon known as Villain's Gulch.

"This gulch blocks my powers," Nolan said. "I can't warp us any closer."

Jackson added, "And I can't use chaos control." They got ropes out of Jackson's storage cube, and set to work on repelling down.

"It looks like they're vents of gas down on the cliff face, so watch out," Kurt called out.

They began their descent. Kurt first, followed by Jackson, then Aang, then Ricky, then Harvey, and finally with Nolan bringing up the rear. Climbing was smooth at first but as they made their way down, it became more treacherous. The gas vents became next to impossible to avoid. Both Jackson and Kurt were blasted by one and were knocked away from the wall. They swung back and hit the rocks hard. Jackson's rope snapped, and he was barely able to catch Kurt's hand.

Nolan called down, "I can't see the bottom. Should we turn back?"

Jackson called back, "I'm fine. Let's keep going."

They continued their descent. After more close calls, they're feet hit solid rock. Jackson ran over to the nearest rock and gave it a hug. "Solid ground! I missed you!" The team gathered their gear, and began to search for a cave. Sulfur pools and other geothermal activity littered the ground.

After an hour of searching, they came across a small hole in the side of the canyon. "It looks like someone tried to cover this entrance," Aang observed. Jackson and Aang tried to use earthbending to clear the way, but found themselves unable to move the rock. Nolan reminded them that the gulch was blocking their powers. So they pulled out the shovels.

When the excavation was done, a large entrance was revealed. With flashlights in hand, the team cautiously entered the cave. It was about ten feet deep, all rock. The ceiling was low, and it was empty. "There's nothing here," Nolan said.

Aang wasn't listening, "Someone tried to bury this cave. There has to be something worth burying."

Out of curiosity Nolan tried to light the way with some fire, and to his suprise it worked. "Guys, our powers work here."

Aang replied, "I knew something was special here!" The team continued the search.

But even after attempts of digging down and through the walls, nothing new was found. Out of desperation, Aang used earthbending to see if he could sense anything in the surrounding stone. He came back empty. "I think this was a dead end," he finally admitted. The team began to pack up their gear and get ready to depart.

"I think we should spend the night here," Kurt said. "It's dark, and we should wait for some light to start the climb back up."

They started a fire, cooked some food, and one by one fell asleep except for Aang. He was on the first guard duty. As the fire began to die, the moon shone into the cave. And where the light hit, symbols began to appear on the floor of the cave. Careful not to wake the others, Aang walked over to see them. Despite not being any recognizable language, he understood it perfectly. "Look away. And you will find what you seek." He turned around, and at the entrance of the cave was another set of symbols. He walked over and read them. "Now, turn back." He again turned around, and saw a temple where the cave once stood.

"This looks like an Avatar temple," he muttered to himself. A book was lying near the bookshelf. He walked over to pick it up and discovered it was a list of all the Avatars and their family trees.

He started flipping through the pages, until he came across the recent avatars. Had he spent more time on Jackson's page, he would have noticed something very unusual about his uncle. He turned to his page, and dropped the book. The page showed that Anthony was an avatar before Shadow, but what shocked Aang more was the information that Shadow was not his father. Aang was overwhelmed with sorrow and couldn't take it; he lost it and went into the Avatar state. The air, the water, and lava in the temple began swirling around him.

Jackson awoke feeling a disturbance. He noticed that he could now see through the cave into the temple, and in the middle of it was an enraged Aang in the avatar state. He awoke the others and they ran inside. As they ran in, Jackson's eyes began to glow just as Aang's were.

"I've been living a lie all my life!" shouted Aang in an unusually deep voice. Shadow isn't my father! Katara isn't my sister! Sokka isn't my brother! I can't trust you or anyone!" With a nod from Kurt, Jackson advanced and floated towards Aang with airbending.

"Aang!" Jackson yelled over the sound of the wind, "Blood relationships mean nothing! Family is who you make it, who truly cares about you. Shadow is your family. Katara and Sokka are your family. We're your family! Please, Aang..." Jackson extended his arm out, touching Aang's wrist. As the contact was made, Aang felt an unusual sensation. Next thing he knew, he was in a strange, yet peaceful looking place. And there was Shadow.

"I wish I'd had more time to tell you the whole truth, my son, but I had been wrestling with darkness my whole life and I couldn't risk anyone else getting hurt." Aang stood there silent in disbelief, so Shadow continued. "This is the Spirit World. Most souls end up here after they die in the physical world." Aang's eyes widened. Shadow quickly clarified. "No, you are not dead. You have the ability to spirit warp, to enter the spirit world on command while your form is anywhere in the physical world. Only a handful of Avatars have had this ability. Most Avatars need to meditate in sacred places to do this."

"But what makes me special?" asked Aang, finally gaining the courage to speak up.

"I've known you were different from the day I first met you. I could feel it. Your birth mother was an old friend of mine, but she had let her life fall apart. She was incapable of raising you, so Kaela and I took you into our care. We raised you as one of our own. Aang, your actions will determine how this war plays out. You must not succumb to the curse of darkness like I did. Now return to your family, the team, the ones who care."

"Father? Before I go, am I allowed to take people with me through spirit warp?"

"The dead cannot come back with you. You are able to take other Avatars with you to visit the Spirit World, but the dead may never leave."

"I understand. One last thing; You mentioned that only most souls go here after death. Where do the others go?"

"You will learn of that later, now is not the time. Your team is worried and concerned. Return to them. I love you, my son."

Aang blinked and found himself back in the middle of the temple, elements swirling around him. Jackson, now in his super form but hoping he wouldn't have to use it, was still holding his wrist. The rest of the team was watching from the entrance. Aang slowly floated down and returned to normal, dying down the rushing air and returning the water and lava to their respective pools.

"I'm sorry," said Aang, falling into Jackson's arms "You guys are my family, Shadow is my father, and nothing will ever change how I view that." Kurt, Nolan, and Ricky walked over and all patted Aang on the back and Harvey let out a small cheer. They walked out of the temple to find a large staircase made of light that wound up out of the canyon.

"That definitely wasn't there before," said Ricky.

"I still wish it could've been an escalator," replied Nolan. The team made their way up the stairway and warped home.

Chaos ensues
Even though Aang was at peace from his cave vision, other visions kept him shaken at night. There was one of a place of immense power surrounded by volcanic eruptions. There was a vision involving mirrors breaking. One with Kurt dying. And in each vision, the cloaked figure kept reappearing. After a week of the visions, he tried to fight them in his mind. He was on a large plain. Something was happening around him but he only focused on the two clear images in front of him. Kurt and the cloaked figure were locked in combat. Aang tried to run forward, but his legs wouldn't move. He heard Kurt shouting, "Stay out of this Aang!" But he still wanted to help. He tried his bending but nothing responded. As he was about to quit and let Kurt die for the second time, he felt a strange sensation come over him. It was some form of energy that wanted to be let out, so he looked toward the cloaked figure and released it.

Aang awoke to alarms and sprinklers. The other end of his room was on fire and the fire system had kicked in, dousing him with water. Kurt and Jackson quickly burst through the door. Jackson used fire bending to snuff out the fire while Kurt went over to Aang, "Are you alright?"

Aang replied, "I-I think so. What happened?"

"You tell us." Kurt went over to Jackson to assess the damage.

Jackson then said, "This looks like a chaos blast. See how the scorch marks all come from one point. What happened Aang?" Aang looked down and saw his power crystal in his hand, confirming Jackson's theory. He thought about what Shadow said. These people were his family now, and he should be able to trust them with his visions.

Aang then told the two about his vision. Though, this time he added the cloaked figure to the description. Kurt was frustrated. "That was Anthony you saw. And if that was a glimpse of the future you saw... I don't like this. He should be dead. No squid attacks. No major assualts. Nothing that gives any reason he could have survived. I mean, he was very weak and we were at full strengh. How could he have survived?" Jackson and Aang were just as confused as Kurt was. Pushing that matter aside, Jackson told Aang of how he had subconciously induced a chaos blast.

He and Aang spent the next couple days in the training room. Ricky stopped by the third day to see how it was going. After a brief description, he tried it out for himself. And to everyone's suprise, Ricky used chaos control to teleport around the room. Jackson tried to hide his excitement, and eagerly began teaching them how to control it and all the powers that came with chaos abilities.

Back in Action
Nolan would never admit it, but he breathed a huge sigh of relief when he heard Zactus' fleet was attacking Magic Castle. For three years, he had been waiting he and the team had idled in a false sense of security with nothing resembling a major battle occurring, but always with the fear in the back of their heads that something big was coming. Finally, it had come. No more anticipation, just action. And just like old times, he looked over to see Jackson in the X-Tornado off of his port wingtip.

"I've got a visual," announced Ricky from his fighter.

"Copy that," replied Jackson, "I see it too. It really does look like one of those old squid robots, but it looks different. This must be Zactus' own version."

"It's headed for that bridge. That could be a good spot, Jackson. You can probably make it there before it crashes through. Ricky and I will handle the fighters for now, you make the drop," said Nolan.

"Thank you," replied Jackson as he approached the bridge. "You two get ready back there! Three...two...one!" The X-Tornado's second cockpit opened, and Kurt and Aang leaped out of the plane. Jackson then pushed a series of buttons and launched the two's hoverboards from the plane and they both successfully mounted them midair. They safely reached the ground and sped along the bridge as the squid-robot approached. As it broke through the two jumped onto its frame. Kurt dug his sword into an area near the head while Aang held on to the mid-section and started using chaos spear on the individual tentacles. Kurt managed to make a hole large enough for Aang to fit through. Aang looked up at Kurt, and Kurt nodded back. This was the cue. Aang swung himself up to the head and dove into the hole as Kurt jumped clear. After he landed, he watched the squid travel about fifty more meters before its entire head exploded as Aang unleashed a chaos blast from inside it. As it fell to the ground, Kurt waited for Aang to appear from the wreckage, but he didn't see him. He started running towards it concerned. Then Aang appeared right in front of him with chaos control.

"Well that worked well!" Aang laughed.

"What the-? Geez, Aang, don't scare me like that! But good work. I will admit though, they certainly don't make squids like they used to." They fought through a few standard ground units and made their way back to the remains of the bridge. Aang's board was mostly intact, while Kurt's was completely crushed. "Oh well," said Kurt, "I barely used the thing anyway."

Meanwhile, in the sky above, Jackson, Nolan, and Ricky had landed their planes in an MDI Imperator warship. After storing the three planes in Nolan's sword pack, they made their way through the halls quickly and avoided any real trouble until they encountered one hallway full of guard robots. Thinking quickly, Ricky generated a sphere of cosmic energy that rolled through the hallway like a giant bowling ball, knocking aside the robots. "Strike," said Jackson to himself as Harvey let out a small cheer.

They finally made their way to the power generator. Jackson threw Ricky the bag with the charges. "You two take care of things here, I have a score to settle." and he and Harvey started to leave when Nolan called out.

"Jackson, please don't do anything stupid."

"Don't worry. Meet me in the command bridge when you guys are done. Then we'll blow this dump, literally."

Jackson transformed into a tank and blew the doors of the general's quarters open. Zactus was in there waiting for him. The room was large and nearly empty, save for the small desk that he sat at and a water cooler near the door. "You could've just opened it. It was unlocked," he critiqued. "But why send the second-in-command to fight the leader?"

"Word on the street is ABF isn't really dead. You're still a number two, just like me."

"Ah yes, but there is still a chance for the both of us to be so much more."

"If you're trying to sucker me into joining you, you can forget it," retorted Jackson as he walked over to the water cooler and poured himself a cup. "I know what I stand for and what I stand against."

"Hmph, so loyal and stubborn, but I guess it must run in the family." Before Jackson could think anything of this comment, Zactus' new battle-suit formed around his bdoy and he launched an energy blast at him and Harvey.

"I see you've got a new toy. Let's test it out properly!" And with that, Jackson and Harvey powered up into their super forms. It was a brawl from that point on; fists and lasers flying every direction. Super Jackson and Super Harvey charged at him with their spin attacks, which knocked Zactus through the wall and brought the battle to the outside of the ship.

Nolan and Ricky made their way towards the bridge. Ricky stopped. "Ricky, it's this way. Let's go!"

"I don't think we'll have to go ther," said Ricky pointing out the window at Super Jackson and Zactus battling on the deck. "Does that count as stupid?"

"No that's...that's awesome! Let's get in on that!" And within moments, they had joined the fight.

"Ah, I see some of your friends are here. What were they doing all this time?"

"This!" declared Nolan as he pushed the button, setting off the all of the charges. They heard a bang and felt the ship begin to drop.

"Fool!" Shouted Zactus, "You do realized that this ship has not yet cleared the castle?"

"Oops." said Nolan.

"And you told me not to do anything stupid!" remarked Jackson. Zactus began to flee, flying off in his battle suit. Jackson and Ricky both launched chaos spears at him while Nolan shot a lightning blast. All three hit, and Zactus suit started spinning off into a distance in a way that was almost cartoony, but extremely satisfying. Then the three focused on the immediate issue of teleporting off the ship.

Back on the ground, Aang tapped Kurt on the shoulder and pointed towards the massive ship that was coming down towards them and asked if that was normal.

"Normal, yes. Stupid, yes. Good, no." But to their relief, the ship had enough momentum to glide over the castle and crash into the hills nearby. And with a flash, Jackson, Nolan, Ricky, and Harvey appeared. Kurt looked at them sternly. They looked back, concerned. And then everyone broke out into laughter. Despite some haphazardness, Kurt considered the first major battle with his new team a job well done, and watched as the remainder Zactus' fleet retreated.

Chao time
While Kurt, Jackson, and Nolan traveled to Magic Castle for a Magic Council meeting to discuss Zactus' return and preparations for the upcoming months, Aang, Harvey, Ricky, Katara, and Sokka went to visit a local chao garden. But the scene surprised them when they arrived. The garden was ablaze in destruction. Ricky and Aang gave each other desperate looks and sprang into action. Ricky grabbed a fire extinguisher and Aang used fire bending to quell the inferno. Out of nowhere, a giant robotic arm knock them both off their feet.

They jumped up and looked around. "I can't see anything with this smoke," Ricky commented. "I'll use earthbending to see if I can follow its movements!" Aang shouted back. Before long, they had both found the robot hiding in the smoke. It was humanoid shaped, but about twice as tall and wide. To say that it was incredibly well armed and armored would be a ridiculous understatement.

Ricky and Aang remembered what was most important. "Katara! Sokka! Find all the hurt chao and get them to safety! We'll take care of this guy!" As they ran off, the robot began to target Aang and Ricky. It shot a pair of lasers from its shoulder cannons. Ricky formed a shield and blocked them both. Aang jumped over its head, and began to use fire bending to attack it from behind. But before he could get it hot enough to melt, the robot turned around and opened fire. Ricky ran over, again using an energy shield to block the laser blasts.

"I can't get it hot enough!" Aang shouted to him.

"It must have some kind of cooling system inside to keep everything cold!" Ricky shouted back. "Try using water bending to mess with the system!"

Still behind Ricky's shield, Aang focused his energy on finding any water inside of it. After a minute, he was able to move the coolant inside the casing. "I've got it, just hold that shield a little longer Ricky!" And with that, the robot's chest plate burst off with a torrent of water behind it. Aang began to continue his earlier assault with fire bending, but the robot backed away. Its eyes turned from blue to red, and it triggered its self-destruct. The blast knocked both Aang and Ricky backwards, as well as any chao in the blast zone.

Surveying the devastation, Ricky was quick to act. "Many of these chao won't make it if we don't get them help quickly. I'll get them on this side and you look on that side." The pair split up and began gathering as many chao as they could find. Once they had finished, they quickly traveled back to the base using chaos control and rushed them all to the infirmary. "I'm going to call the rest of the team to help us," Aang said. He pulled out his communicator and began to do so.

As the team rushed through the door, Harvey motioned Jackson to a certain chao. It was his uncle, Henry, and he did not look good. Jackson was frantic, "Nolan, go get one of your potions!" Before Nolan could even leave the room, Jackson knew it was too late. Even though the rest of the chao were nursed back to health and left throughout the afternoon, both Jackson and Harvey chose to stay by his uncle's bedside long into the night.

Two of the rescued chao wanted to stay and help the team. One of the chao who was rescued by Ricky was named Tiger, and he wanted to stay with Ricky. The other was rescued by Aang. His name was Moe, and the two quickly bonded.

Later the next day, Kurt, Nolan, and Jackson, with Harvey as copilot, flew in formation over Chao Lake, where they released Henry's ashes into the water.

A New Threat
Jackson was angry. Harvey was angry. They were the first into the sky the next day when the alarms went off. Zactus' new robots were sighted somewhere in Animal Kingdom. As the rest of the team struggled to catch up, Jackson had already begun his pursuit.

Three of the robots were found in a small clearing. Without waiting for anyone else, Jackson went into his super form and attacked. "This for Henry!" But these robots didn't yield as easily as the last one. Zactus had installed barriers that blocked all powers inside of them. But that didnt stop Jackson. He turned into a tank and began using explosive shells to blast the robots apart. The robots were strong however, and as they fought Jackson grew angrier. And when one fired a blast that knocked Harvey out of the fight, Jackson completely lost it. He used the negative energy of his power crystals, which caused them to lose their color and shine, and turned into Dark Super Jackson. In this form, Jackson tore through the robots and smashed them. And as before, each robot went into a self-destruct mode right before it died.

By the time the rest of the team had arrived, all they could see was a forest fire and a crater in the ground. Jackson turned back to normal, the color and light returned to the power crystals, and he attended to Harvey. Nolan, Aang, and Ricky ran over to the fire to keep it from spreading to the nearby trees, while Kurt went over to Jackson.

"Are you alright?" Kurt asked calmly. Jackson didn't respond. "I need to know that whether or not this will become a habit. I know you're upset Henry died, but what you did won't bring him back. And now you've destroyed our only lead to Zactus, started a forest fire, and scared some very nice people with your anger. I need to know I can trust you. Is this the example you're trying to set for Aang, Katara, and Sokka. Jackson kept staring at the ground. Kurt sighed, "Those robots weren't here to fight. That's why I didn't mobilize the team when the alarm went off. I wanted to track them and see what they were searching for. And I definitely didn't want a forest fire started in the process."

Jackson broke down. "I hate him. First he was just annoying. But now I hate him. He killed Henry. He could have killed everyone there" Kurt put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll get him. Just be patient."

Upon returning to the base, Jackson went to cool off by training Aang and Ricky more with the chaos powers while Kurt and Nolan sat down in the meeting room and tried to examine Zactus' recent attacks in search of a pattern. An area of Magic Castle nowhere near the Magic Council chambers, a chao garden, and a random clearing in Animal Kingdom. They couldn't think of anything. They spent hours in the library looking for some sort of connection but still came up dry.

Aang had another dream that night. This dream was focused on the volcanic eruptions he saw before. He saw the robots, Zactus, and missiles firing at the team's planes in the sky. And just for a second, he saw what looked like two of Jackson fighting each other. And then he found himself running down a long hallway with curvy, twisted walls that were covered in clocks that ticked backward.

He woke up, and looked around to make sure he hadn't blown anything up this time. He decided not to waste any time and talk to Kurt immediately. As he walked down the hall, he suddenly felt dizzy, fell to his hands and knees and threw up outside Nolan's door. Nolan was awake and came out of his room to see what was happening.

"Gee, I didn't think the calamari was that bad." Aang groaned. "I'm just kidding, you alright?" He said helping Aang to his feet. As he helped Aang to the infirmary, he knocked on Kurt's door. He stuck his head out and helped Nolan bring Aang down the hall.

When everyone had been assured that he was ok, Aang began to recall his dream. Kurt again was unsettled. "If the events in these dreams are real...I really don't like this. I don't know of any volcanoes active like the way you describe. What about you Nolan?"

"What about the two ones Matravin? They aren't exploding active but still have lava flow."

Aang cut them both off, "I've seen both of those. And this volcano was bigger and more violent than both combined."

Nolan went off to bed, Kurt went to the library to see what he could find, and Aang tried to calm himself on the bed. He spent the rest of the night trying to make sense out of his vision. Two Jacksons? Non-existent volcanoes? Weird clocks? The rest of the team woke to find him sleep deprived and hungry. After Nolan whipped up a quick breakfast and Jackson helped him relax, Aang was feeling a lot better.

Until the sirens went off. The team rushed into the briefing room and Kurt layed down the plan. "One of those robots is searching the eastern shore of Invisible Island. Nolan and I will go observe it to see if we can learn anything. Jackson, hold down the fort." Jackson grumbled, "Will do."

The two warped half a mile from the sighting. "Man there's a lot of fog here. Good thing my scanner works. It says they're this way," Nolan whispered. They slowly moved toward the blinking dot. After five minutes of walking, Kurt spotted it in the distance and motioned to Nolan to get behind cover. The robot was taking canisters and firing them into the ground. After a few seconds, he would begin walking to another location and repeat the same process. Nolan whispered, "Do you think they're bombs?"

Kurt replied, "I don't think so. You go over there and see if you can get a better angle on this thing."

Kurt continued to observe it, noting its structure as well as any weakness he could spot. After two hours, the robot finished whatever it was doing and ignited its thrusters. Kurt radioed Nolan to come find him so they could check out the cylinders. He walked over to the closest site and began digging with his hands. "Where's Aang when you need him?" he thought. A minute later, Nolan showed up. "I swore I just saw Jackson over there in the fog," he said, pointing to where he had just come from.

Kurt scowled, "I told him to stay back at the base. Can you pull a shovel out and keep digging, I'm going to go check it out."

As Nolan continued to dig, Kurt began calling out for Jackson. But no response came and he couldn't find anyone else in the area. "Hey Nolan, can I check your scanner?" But the scanner revealed no one within a ten mile radius. "I'll have a conversation with him back at base." The two continued digging. When they pulled the cylinder up, Nolan knew exactly what it was.

"That's a really ancient device. It works like sonar. You fire it into the ground and it detects how long the waves take to bounce back from something dense."

"So, it allows you to see underground without digging anything up?" Kurt asked.

"Exactly. But it's obsolete with modern scanners and hasn't been used since earthbending was first introduced to a widespread population. Why would Zactus be using such old technology?"

Both stumped, they returned to the base with their findings. Nolan approached Jackson. "You just couldn't stay away, could you?" Jackson was confused, so Kurt and Nolan explained what the latter saw.

"I was here the whole time!" protested Jackson, "Aang, Ricky, and I were trying some new techniques with our chao. You can ask them. Even Katara and Sokka can vouch for us." Nolan confessed that it was very foggy and he must've seen someone or something else. The matter was dropped and they got to the point that Zactus was using unorthodox methods to look for something, but this was interrupted by another thought.

"Kurt, that robot flew away from us, but those thrusters were definitely strong enough to break atmo." Ricky jumped in "So that means Zactus probably has a base or outpost somewhere on this planet." "That's plausible," replied Kurt, "But Zactus and ABF haven't built a base here in over three years! With the planet-wide security measures the council has developed since then, how could he establish a base here nowadays without being noticed?

The team thought for a moment. "He doesn't have to," Jackson spoke up, "He could easily be using one of his or ABF's old hideouts." "And even if not," Nolan added, "He could have taken resources from them to work on a new base rather than bringing them from Matravin. They might give us clues to what he is doing or where his real base is." The team determined the only three of such bases that they hadn't completely destroyed: The base where Anthony was supposedly killed, the outpost that Savage led them to, and the outpost where Nolan, Shadow, and Firespear turned evil.

"I'd like to explore these places as soon as possible," said Kurt. "But if he really is still keeping tabs on all these places, he'll know somethings up when we start snooping around them and stop us from searching the last one or two," Aang commented.

"Well, if we search them all at once, we'll have to split up, and then one of us five will have to go on their own, and I don't like the sound of that," replied Kurt.

"We could call in for backup," Nolan said turning to Jackson.

"Nolan, do you mean..?" asked Kurt.

"Kurt, they've certainly matured in the last three years, and whether or not we like to admit it, we'd be dead if it weren't for them," Jackson interrupted.

"Fine," Kurt gave in, "Let's go visit them.”

Not Exactly Treasure Hunting
"Are you sure this is the place?" asked Kurt.

"Unless they moved it since last time," Jackson replied, "He does that sometimes." He felt the ground. "Yep it’s here. You feel that, Aang?"

"I sure do."

Jackson began pounding the rock with earthbending. "BENNETT! ARE YOU HOME?" he yelled.

The rock opened up and Bennett and Alex appeared at the entrance to their underground house. The brothers exchanged hugs "How'd the earthbending tournament go, you two?" "It was awesome. We took first for the second year in a row! I was a bit worried that I would be tempted to use other elements. I've been working on them ever since I found out." (About a year ago, Bennett found out that he was next in line to be the Avatar after Aang.) Alex joined in, "And after, these two girls started hanging out with us. And man, could they suck..."

"Alex!" Bennett yelled shooting a glance at the two children Katara and Sokka.

"...suck...at Mario Kart," Alex finished, saving himself.

The team went on to explain that they were looking for something. "Good thing you came to a treasure hunter," said Bennett. "Well, it's not exactly treasure hunting," Jackson replied and explained the situation. "So the plan is you and Katara going with me to the base that Savage once led us to, Alex going with Kurt and Aang to the first base the team ever attacked, and Nolan, Ricky, and Sokka going to the base where Zactus used the Dark Master Power Crystal shards. And, Bennett, if you see anything there that you want and I don't need, it's yours for the taking." The deal was made and the individual teams split up.

Although he hated the very feeling in his stomach, Kurt led his team onward to the abandoned outpost. They used the submarine to enter, just as before. And just as before, he was separated from the rest of his team by blast doors. "Just keep making your way down the hallway. No one should be here anymore so we should be able to just open the doors from a switch," he called to Aang, Alex, and Moe. Since he had some time to himself, he went to the guard tower where it all began.

It was exactly how he had last seen it, window broken in and all. He took a look at the room. "I missed so much in here because I panicked," he thought to himself. "I missed this bookshelf. And this map. And this-" He stopped mid-thought. The map wasn't like any other he had seen before. It was a map of Anthony's goals. Every planet was under his leadership, and they would all play they're part in galactic well-being and peace. But the corner had been folded up, and behind it was a switch. Anticipating a trap, Kurt went over to slip it. A small door openned on the far side of the room. "This is how Anthony must have escaped." He walked over to the bookshelf and noticed the dust settled on all of the books. There was one spot that didn't have any though. "Recently removed? Or maybe just fell down?" There weren't any books on the floor.

He was thinking about the missing books when he finally met up with the others. After confirming that there was nobody and nothing in the base, Kurt gave to order. "Flood this place. Its purpose is long over." From the submarine, Aang flooded the base with water while Alex used earthbending to bring down the supports.

Jackson's team landed in the X-Tornado and went to work. Jackson and Bennett went around seeing if they could feel anything with earthbending while Katara and Harvey explored some small hard to reach areas. In the central room, Bennett approached the computer console in the middle. "Let's see when this thing was last accessed." Then Jackson remembered what had happened before. "Stop!" he yelled, "It will only electrocute you!" and he went on to explain what happened to him with Savage before.

"Wow, good thing Alex and I threw that bastard out into space. The sun has probably incinerated his body by now."

Katara and Harvey ran into the room. "Uhm...so me and Harvey kinda accidentally activated some of the bad robots and THEY'RE COMING THIS WAY!" The fight was on as the robots swarmed the room. The old robots weren't particularly tough, but their numbers made up for their weakness. Bennett smashed through them with earthbending and metalbending. Katara was holding her own surprisingly well for her age, but her supply of bending water was diminishing quickly. Seeing this, Jackson smashed some exposed pipes with his spin attack, giving Katara access to all the water she needed. Bennett noticed some robots flanking her and went in to defend, taking a laser shot to the shoulder in the process. This did not weaken his resolve, and upon seeing this bravery and tenacity, Katara was inspired to fight harder. Jackson attacked the robots with a variety of elements, even using airbending to send Harvey flying towards the bots in a spinning vortex of fury. Eventually, the four heroes each turned ready to face their next foe when they realized that they were the only ones left in the room.

Katara went to work on Bennett's shoulder, thanking Bennett for protecting her in battle. Jackson concluded that there was nothing interesting in the base and that they should leave. Katara spoke up saying that she had found something and ran off to get it. She came back with a small box full of jewels and gold coins. "Here Mr. Bennett! I know you like treasure!" Bennett was stunned by her generosity, and asked Katara to reach in and take at least a handful of it for herself. Once Bennett's shoulder had healed, they returned to base.

Nolan, Ricky, Tiger, and Sokka initially observed the base to be inactive, finding no signs of activity inside. Nolan began telling his team the story of how what had happened at this place in the past, how darkness consumed his mind. He suddenly cut himself off and whispered to the others to be quiet. "I think I hear something," he said under his breath. Sokka got scared, as Nolan's story put him on edge. Ricky thought Nolan was being cruel "Nolan, stop trying to scare the poor guy." "No, I'm serious! Listen." They all listened carefully and heard the sound of mechanical parts echoing down below. Ricky slid his fingers along the floor and discovered a secret entrance. Nolan was able to pry it open with his sword, and they went down the hatch and found themselves in a hidden hangar where two of the elite robots were deactivated for recharge and being loaded onto a ship by more standard MDI robots. There were also racks of new canisters throughout the hangar. They looked like the canisters Nolan and Kurt thought back and remembered that he once lost his sensibility in this place. He swore to himself to do the sensible thing, and told his team to stand down, remain undetected, retreat, and report back to Kurt with what they found. Unfortunately, they were spotted about two seconds later by the two of the guard robots in the hangar Nolan told them to scratch the last order.

As the battle began, Nolan quickly took note of Sokka's fighting style and decided that he could make a decent swordsman, but these thoughts were put a side as Ricky called out that the ship was taking off. Seeing this, Nolan attempted to throw a tracker on the ship, but it was destroyed by a laser blast. As a last resort, he warped into the back of the ship just as the cargo doors closed. Ricky immediately got a call on his communicator from Nolan, who told him to make sure he took out all the robots so they couldn't report the incident, and so that Kurt would be able to track him with the tech at the base. Just as the message finished, Ricky turned around to see a robot with his gun pointed at him. "Surrend-" was all the robot was able to say before Ricky delivered a chaos spear into its face. Tiger and Sokka assisted Ricky in finishing off the bots. Ricky decided there was no time to waste, and used chaos control to warp back to base.

The team all met up at the base. Ricky's team was the only one that had anything important to report. They gathered in the control room to trace Nolan's signal. They were surprised when it did not stop at Matravin. Kurt, Jackson, Aang, and Ricky waited in the control room for hours until the signal finally stopped at a point beyond Isoma's orbit. "A space station?" suggested Jackson. "No," replied Kurt, "It must be the mysterious seventh planet."

"Seventh planet?" asked Jackson in disbelief, "It's a good explanation to Nolan's signal, but why would Zactus build a base there? He's got all the space he needs on Matravin" "Maybe he wants to keep this business apart from regular MDI affairs," replied Ricky. "I suppose. Few people even know it exixts, and even fewer know much about it. Do you know much aboout it, Kurt?" Kurt confessed that he did not. "Well," explained Jackson, "Almost the entire planet is volcanically active. Not prime real estate conditions, but this is the same guy who built a base right by the sun."

"So should we take the warpgate to Isoma, and fly to the planet from there?" asked Kurt.

"I don't think so, said Jackson. "Look at the charts. Isoma is almost 120 degrees off from this planet it its rotation right now. That would still be a massive difference."

"Then we need to find a ship that can get us there. Every second we waste, Nolan is in more danger."

"There's no need to find one, said Jackson. Aang and I spent a lot of time with my planes in the last three years, and while Ricky's interplanetary drive was beyond repair without parts from his world, we were able to study it and managed to upgrade the X-Tornado and Hyper-Tornado's inter-planetary drives. We should be able to get there without issue.

"But Nolan could be captured or worse! We're going to need all the help we can get if we want to rescue him. The four of us, Bennett, Alex, Katara, and Sokka plus Nolan on the way back make nine seats. The X-Tornado and Hyper-Tornado together only seat five. We would need a second X-Tornado or something."

"Jackson, we should show them," said Aang. "What?" asked Kurt. "You'll see," said Jackson. For now, everyone come to my workshop."

Jackson took them all down to the hangar of his workshop and showed them his surprise. Everyone noticed an orange and red four-seated fighter with powerful looking thrusters and unusual translucent blue tri-foils on the wings. "This is the Firefly. We built it primarily for Aang, but also for the team. Its dragonfly wings have special properties that give it lots of maneuverability without causing additional drag. It has lots of speed too."

"Well then, let's not waste time. Let's take it for a test drive to the volcanic planet."

"Sounds good!" said Jackson, hopping in the Hyper-Tornado with Harvey on his lap. Aang took the pilot seat of the Firefly with Moe at his side and Katara and Sokka in the rear cockpit.

"Wait a minute," interrupted Kurt "Who's flying the X-Tornado?"

"Well, you of course," replied Jackson. "You're a good pilot and you've flown with me enough times to get it." Kurt was flattered by Jackson's trust and took his place at the pilot's seat, hoping he wouldn't crash Jackson's favorite plane. Ricky and Tiger hopped in right behind him while Bennett and Alex took the rear cockpit. And one at a time, the three planes were raised from the hangar to the runway and took off.

Playing with Fire
The team saw rivers and seas of lava coating the planet all the way from space. "I didn't know it was this active," confessed Jackson. Jackson looked down at his display indicating the direction of Nolan's signal. "I'm coming buddy," he whispered, not realizing his com was still on. The rest of the team, however, didn't say anything. They were all thinking it too.

When they entered the atmosphere and neared the signal, they kept their eyes peeled for any signs of buildings. "I have a visual!" announced Ricky. They saw a large mining facility in the middle of a massive lava river.

"It looks like we have company!" shouted Aang, as MDI fighters swarmed towards them from their starboard side. The fighters were relentless.

"Kurt, activate the afterburner and put the X-Tornado into battle armor mode!" Jackson called out.

Kurt did as instructed, but Jackson had troubles of his own. There was a fighter on his tail that he just couldn't shake. He pulled his plane into a steep climb and the enemy craft followed. "Harvey, take the controls and hold it steady!" Jackson pulled out a bazooka made similarly to Kurt's rifle, opened the canopy, and used airbending to launch himself upward further. He aimed the bazooka and shot at the enemy fighter. Direct hit. Then he landed safely back in his plane. As the crippled enemy plane exploded.

"How long have you been waiting to try that?" asked Kurt, still stunned by Jackson's move.

"I think it was the reason I wanted to become a pilot."

Aang tore through fighters with the Firefly, with Sokka manning the rear cannon. However, Alex soon saw a problem beyond the fighters. "Where the heck are we gonna land?"

"Good point. Aang, deploy the package." A large metal box shot out of the underside of the Firefly. Before it reached the lava, however, it unfolded many times until it was a full size landing platform.

Once the fighters had been dealt with, the team landed on the platform and put the planes in Jackson's storage cube. Well, they're expecting us now. I don't think we can just walk through the front door," said Jackson.

"I think I have an idea," replied Alex.

Jackson and Bennett went into their super forms and brought back a giant boulder and hollowed it out. They went back into their standard forms and the whole team went inside. The Jackson, Aang, Bennett, and Alex used firebending and earthbending to move the boulder safely through the lava into one of the lava collection tubes of the facility. It worked well at first, as they were able to keep most of the heat out by redirecting it with firebending, but it caught up to them eventually, and they started to feel the heat. They could feel the boulder deteriorating around them. Just as they were about to give up, they surfaced inside the base and escaped to the solid floor.

They made their way through the base. After finding only a few guards, the team was able to move more freely. After ten minutes of separate searching, Aang got a buzz on his communicator that Ricky had found Nolan. With the team all together, it took seconds to metal bend the thick cell door away and free Nolan. "Are you alright?" Kurt asked once Nolan had collected himself. "I think so, they were pretty rough with me after the sixth time I escaped. But I think I'm well enough to make it back home."

"I hate to break up the reunion," Bennett said. "But we need to get out of here before anyone shows up."

With the boulder gone, the team looked for an alternative way back to the landing pad. Jackson stopped, "Hey guys, that sign says 'Hangar'. The landing pad has to be nearby."

Everyone turned and followed him down the hallway to the two large doors at the end. But as they all burst through the doors, they realized their mistake. All of Zactus' remaining elite robots were in their charging bays. On the far end of the room, a rare human guard began sprinting frantically toward the wall. "STOP HIM!" Aang yelled. But he had already reached the control panel.

Seconds later, every robot had activated and moved to fight. Jackson, Alex, and Ricky took on the first two while Bennett and Aang together fought the next four. Kurt stayed back with Nolan and used his rifle to shoot at the six from afar. Nolan did what he could, but he was still too weak to do any real damage. Aang called for Katara and Sokka to protect Nolan. Jackson and Ricky attacked with Harvey and Tiger. Aang looked at his friends battling around him. Despite the team's perseverance, he knew that they didn't have the upper hand. "Moe, go with Harvey. Alex, cover me!" he called as he sat down and calmed his mind. Then his eyes started glowing. Jackson and Bennett's eyes flashed for a second but did not linger like Aang's. Aang started to rise up and float in the air; he was in the Avatar state and ready to roll.

Then an energy blast hit him from the side and he fell to the ground only to be caught by Ricky. The rest of the team's eyes turned to the attacker. Zactus had joined the battle in his new combat armor. Jackson ran over to Aang. "He's still alive," announced Ricky, "but his energy is all out of wack." Jackson felt the anger rising, and felt himself about to turn into Dark Super Jackson again. Then he looked to Kurt, his brother, and Alex, still bravely fighting and remembered Kurt's words. He wouldn't lose himself again. Instead, he took a deep breath and got out the power crystals. He started waterbending to heal Aang as the crystals started rotating around him. There was a flash and he and Aang were both floating there in super form.

"Let's get him!" said Super Aang with a smirk.

"No," said Super Jackson, remembering the promises he made to Shadow and Kurt. "Let's not make this about revenge. Let's start taking down those robots." He turned to Ricky. "That way, you and Kurt can focus on Zactus."

Even though he was reluctant to abandon Nolan, Kurt knew that Katara and Sokka wouldn't leave his side. So he went to join Ricky. The two began to flank him, and Zactus had a difficult time keeping both of them in his sight. Ricky shot a blast of energy, Zactus turned to block it. But he failed to see Kurt slide next to him and kick one of his legs. But before he could fall, thrusters all over his suit fired up, setting him back upright. As he landed Ricky fired another blast, this time actually blasting off his left shoulder armor. Cursing under his breath, Zactus fired every rocket he could at Ricky, who barely managed to block the barrage and was knocked back in the process. He fell to the floor, leaving it to Kurt to fight Zactus.

The rest of the team was defeating the robots. One by one, they were smashed, overloaded, battered, and blown up. But the energy needed to destroy each was slowly draining everyone else of energy until everyone's combined strength was barely able to match the last robot. Aang shot a fireblast at it's head, but it was slow and the robot easily dodged. Alex tried what he could to punch through its armor, but he could only dent the casing. The battle waged on until finally Nolan, who had still been recuperating, shot an energy blast at one of Alex's dents. This blew out a key support structure, and the robot fell to the floor. Though completely drained, Jackson took off his rings and successfuly mustered enough energy use chaos blast to finish the robot off for good.

Ricky regained conciousness shortly after the robots were all gone. He looked around. Kurt was holding his own with Zactus. Alex and Bennett were making their way over to help him. And the rest of the team was helping Nolan get to the exit. Jackson noticed him lying on the ground and ran over. "Come on Ricky! The hangar is falling apart!!" And sure enough, he could see blast marks on the walls and holes in the ceiling. Jackson helped him up, and he began hobbling toward the exit.

Kurt was focussed on Zactus. "You and I aren't so different, you know. We both want change. And we'll do anything for it. Isn't that right?" Zactus said calmly to Kurt as he dodge a sword slash. "Your change is all for you! You don't care what happens to others if you get what you want!" Kurt shouted back as he leaped out of the way of Zactus' last missile. "Don't presume that you know me Kurt. There's a lot that you don't know." Zactus coldly replied. Kurt tried to not get distracted by that last comment, but it was eating at him. His confusion was all Zactus needed to win. He jumped up and prepared to fire a shot, but a chunk of rock knocked his gun off his suit. The two looked up to see rock and magma falling from the ceiling. Their eyes met, but it wasn't the look of anger. It was the look of sadness and fear. Kurt had the feeling it wasn't from the lava. They ran in opposite directions.

Bennett and Alex finally caught up with Kurt as he ran by. The two turned and joined him. Moments later, Bennett heard the sound of a ship taking off. Zactus had made it out. When the team had made it all back together, Bennett realized how bleak their outlook was. No one could warp them out since those members were still too weak. Jackson shouted at Bennett, "We need to get to the landing pad and fly out of here!

Bennett found a window and blew it out. With what energy he had, he used earthbending to launch the team to the landing pad. Kurt looked over his shoulder to see the base fall in on itself with the advancing lava and rocks. The team boarded their ships and took off. With a victory finally in hand, Kurt saw a huge moral boost to his team. With Nolan and Ricky both patched up, everyone was happy to be together. He thanked both Bennett and Alex for their help and effort. Though he was sad to hear they planned to take a leave to travel to Bugdum to treasure hunt with Firespear, he was grateful that they would consider his offer to become full members of the team. Jackson was right; they certainly had grown up. While he was recuperating, Nolan had had a lot of freetime. To thank Katara and Sokka for helping protect him, he gave them each a gift. Sokka recieved a small sword made out of a rare space-metal that was stronger and lighter than any metal found on powerworld. For Katara, he made a modified infinite sword pouch but it held water, so she would never be without it.

False Accusations
Days went by with little activity. Kurt was gone most of the time talking to politicians and giving talks around the planet. Jackson and Nolan were tinkering around in Jackson's workshop, seeing what they could modify and improve. Ricky spent his time training and relaxing. And Aang spent his time watching over the younger ones.

Jackson, Nolan, and Harvey were enjoying a nice weekend at Jackson's workshop. The Nolan's new plane, the X-3, was nearly complete. Then there was a knock on the door. Jackson ran upstairs to get it and found Power World United police officers with weapons out. "That's him!" one yelled as he proceeded to tase Jackson before he could do anything about it. Jackson lay on the floor in pain as the officers put anti-power cuffs on him.

Nolan ran upstairs. "What's going on here? Tell me!" He screamed at the officers.

"He's under arrest for thievery. We're taking him into custody."

"Like hell you are!" shouted Nolan as he began to attack the officers. The fight didn't go on for long before Jackson spoke up.

"Nolan! Stand down. It's not worth it." The officers arrested and cuffed Nolan too for assisting a suspected criminal.

The two soon found themselves on an aircraft on the way to the holding center. Jackson smiled as he noticed that the anti-power cuffs were of the old school design. He gave Nolan a few glances. The two had worked with each other enough that those were sometimes all they needed to communicate. Then, Jackson asked to show what he was being charged for. One of the officers pulled out a datapad. "Here we have security camera footage of you stealing two power crystals from a museum. And here," he said switching to a different clip "We have evidence of you attacking an outpost in Magic Castle. Not only did we ID the form as you, but the powers match yours too. You honestly thought you'd get away with this just because of your reputation?" He shook his head, "It was only a matter of time before one of you went bad. And you, Nolan, you're making a fool of yourself for defending him."

"Impossible..." muttered Jackson, "Unless...I got it! Thanks boys, that's all I need to know." And with that he shot his inhibitor rings off his wrists and broke the anti-power cuffs. "We told you guys to upgrade these things! Should've listened." Nolan used the opportunity to knock an officer down, still cuffed. However, some of the other officers showed up from the front of the plane and pointed their guns. Jackson used chaos spear to blow the hatch door open and more or less threw Nolan out. The officers fired at Jackson, but he was able to avoid their fire by rolling right by their legs and sweeping up to grab his and Nolan's utility belts, along with his rings. "Later!" he said as he escaped out the hatch on the other side.

Jackson found himself flying in the air. He saw Nolan falling a few hundred feet below him. 'Alright,' he thought, 'Now I just have to chaos control down to him, and get us both out of here.' However, Jackson found himself unable to use chaos control. He looked down at the city below. "Shit," he said to himself realizing he was above Tanner City, a metropolitan city in Electronic World known to have a giant anti-warp zone surrounding it. Thinking quickly, he used airbending to speed up his descent and caught up with his friend. It wasn't easy to catch up, as the cuffs prevented Nolan from sticking his arms out.

"You idiot!" shouted Nolan. "This is an anti-warp zone!" Jackson could barely hear him over the sound of the wind, but pulled out his sword. Nolan saw this and stuck out his arms backward, allowing Jackson to slice the cuffs. "Now what?" Jackson could only think of one way out. He reached into his storage cube and took out his airboard. Nolan nodded at him. He reached into his sword pack. A couple of rudimentary board parts came out and a group of his magic swords formed around it to create a complete airboard. They used these to control their descent a little better, but they were still going pretty fast. As they neared the ground, Jackson created a powerful air bubble that allowed them to land safely, and they were soon boarding down the steep-sloped streets of the city.

Unfortunately, the officers had contacted the cities defense force, and guard robots were on their tail within minutes. Nolan got out his comlink. "Kurt, trace our coordinates. We need immediate evac!" Jackson joined in on his comlink, "Tell Aang to get in the Firefly and get us out! It shouldn't be too far." But within a few minutes, Jackson and Nolan found themselves in narrow streets surrounded by tall buildings.

"Aang, are you above the city yet?" Asked Nolan.

"Yes, but I can't get to you guys in that position."

"Are there any warpgates nearby?" Nolan suggested.

"Uhm..." said Aang, scanning for them. "Yes, there's one twelve blocks ahead and two blocks to the right."

"Get it's coordinates and have someone get it set up for us."

Aang sent the coordinates back to base. Kurt was in the control center and looked up the codes. As soon as he had them, Ricky ran up to the base's warpgate, punched in the codes, and jumped in. As soon as he was out in the city, he turned around, put in the 50 credit service charge, and entered the base's warpgate's password. The people in the pavilion were puzzled, and looked at him strangely. Ricky waited for the Jackson and Nolan, who rounded the corner just seconds later, guard robots hot on their tail. Ricky set the delay for four seconds, and jumped in. Jackson and Nolan raced on their boards into the warpgate's portal, which closed just milliseconds after. The guard robots didn't make it in. Jackson and Nolan threw themselves off their boards and to the floor as they skidded in to safety. Ricky ran over to help them.

"Are you alright?" asked Kurt frantically as they got up. "Yeah we're fine," said Jackson, "Thanks to this guy's quick thinking." "Hey, you were the one that got us out of that police plane," replied Nolan. Kurt was taken aback. "Since when was I working with criminals?" "No, no," replied Jackson. "It was a setup, and I know who's responsible." Aang buzzed in on the comlink. "Did everyone make it out alright?" he asked. "Everyone's fine Aang," assured Jackson. "Do me a favor, please, and pick up Harvey from my workshop on your way back. Afterwards, I have a story to share with all of you about an old friend."

The Doppelganger Deception
"One day in fourth grade, a new student joined our class, and his name was also Jackson. Everyone in the room did a double-take. The resemblance was incredible. Our faces were nearly identical, and the only incredibly distinguishing features were his deep blue eyes and jet-black hair. At first we kept our distance, but eventually, we started talking. Within a week, he was my best friend. Everyone would start saying 'There's Jackson and his double,' and the name Double-Jackson came about. I even made him a shirt like mine that was blue and black and said 'D-J' in the the center. Soon we discovered that we shared more than looks and a name; we had the same powers too, including the chaos abilities and airbending too. We knew now that this was too much to be a coincidence. That summer we had a camp-out one night in my back yard.

"That night, Double-Jackson told me his big secret. He did not know his biological parents. He was found five years before in the middle of a city not far from where I lived. At the time, he had no memory and all he knew was that his name was Jackson. Five years before also happened to be when I got my transformation powers. I don't know what exactly happened. All we could figure out was that we had some deep connection. Sadly, he moved away the year after. We kept in touch through sixth grade, but I never heard from him after that. And now I can only assume that he's been the one giving us trouble. He always did have a slightly darker attitude. I know this seems a bit far-fetched, but you can ask Bennett or my parents about him. I swear it's true."

"We believe you," assured Ricky. "Now, you say that he shares all your powers?"

"I would assume all of them with the exceptions of water, earth, and firebending." replied Jackson.

"Correct," said Aang, "It's only in incredibly rare cases like Alex that someone can bend more than one element without being the Avatar, and nobody except the Avatar has ever been able to bend more than two."

"Unfortunately for us, his unusual electromagnetic manipulation is stronger than mine. He could charge his attacks with electricity that he generates."

Nolan chimed in, "Do you think he could use a super form too?"

"Oh, most definitely! Which is why if we run into him, I shouldn't use all seven power crystals. He could also use their power. If we run into him, I'll need you guys to give me the edge over him."

Harvey let out a cheerful "Chao!"

"Plus, I've got Harvey and he doesn't, so that's a point for us."

Kurt spoke up. "Before we plan any further, we need to get Jackson's name cleared, and probably yours too, Nolan. I'll have the police department look into your elementary school's records. The team took off in the Firefly, X-2, and Ricky's ship. They were about halfway to the department headquarters when Ricky picked up something unusual on his scopes.

"Jackson, you're in the Firefly, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Because I'm picking up the outline of the X-Tornado on our six." The plane got closer. Jackson was in the rear gunner seat, and pivoted his chair around to see.

"What is it?" Sokka asked him. "It looks like the X-Tornado, but it's black."

Seconds later, shadow missiles were fired from the mysterious plane. Jackson was able to shoot the ones trailing the Firefly down, they never locked on to Ricky, but the X-2 was hit. The plane went down, and Kurt and Nolan had to warp out to safety. Then, the X-Tornado copy turned into the X-Cyclone copy and landed near Kurt and Nolan. Jackson used chaos control and teleported himself down there. He stood by his teammates as the cockpit of the mysterious plane opened up. There, behind the controls, was Double-Jackson. "Hello, Jackson. It's been a while. Do you like the Shadow X-Tornado? Zactus thought it only appropriate that I use it."

"Double-Jackson, stop this! Whatever is going on, you can still end it. Zactus is the enemy, not us!" Double-Jackson shook his head, "You really haven't changed, Jackson. Always the chauvinist. You continue to perpetuate a pointless cause. Zactus' plans will set things on the correct course. Now, shall we take care of business?"

He jumped out of the Shadow X-Tornado, transforming into a battle tank in midair and launching a missile at the team members. Jackson used earthbending to block the missile, but the blast still sent them flying. "Ah yes, your one skill set that isn't shared between us. Remember mine?" Double-Jackson used his spin attack, generating a large amount of electrical discharge around him. Jackson was able to dodge the lightning, and turned into a robot resembling one of Zactus' battle suits and fired energy blasts at his attacker. Double-Jackson avoided this attack, but didn't see Nolan's energy blasts coming from behind. Nolan and Kurt charged with their swords, Double-Jackson activated the gauntlet's he was wearing, which formed energy blades running down the length of each one. He was quick and able to block all of their strikes long enough for him to send them flying with airbending.

Using this opportunity with his teammates far away, Jackson used chaos control to teleport right up to his foe. Double-Jackson apparently had a similar idea. "CHAOS BLAST!" the two boomed. The red sphere of light was nearly blinding.

Seconds later, the two were continuing there fight in the large crater they'd just made, Jackson's sword against his gauntlets. They charged at each other with spin attacks and launched themselves out of the pit. Seconds later, they turned into race cars and tried to t-bone the other as they raced in circles. However, Ricky was able to take a few shots from his ship and hit Double-Jackson, forcing him to return to normal to avoid his fire. Then he chaos controlled to the top of Ricky's ship, but Nolan saw this move coming and warped up there as well. Nolan tried to attack with his sword, but Double-Jackson blocked it with his left gauntlet blade and slashed the other one across Nolan's left bicep. "Agh!" Nolan yelled as he fell backward off the ship. Aang, who had landed already, used chaos control and brought Nolan down safely with airbending. Double-Jackson went back to business, and was about to attack Ricky's cockpit when he saw there was no one in it.

He turned around to see Ricky behind him with Tiger on his shoulder and a power crystal in his hand. "Autopilot, bitch," he said as he launched him off the craft with a chaos spear. As he fell, he was hit by a combined chao attack of Harvey and Moe from Jackson and Aang. While his airbending kept his landing safe, he found himself at Kurt's sword point. The other four members circled around.

"Surrender yourself now!" ordered Kurt. Double-Jackson chuckled. He swung his gauntlets and let out an electrical wave that knocked all five members off their feet.

"Zactus has the coolest toys," he said, "I'll be seeing you guys again soon." With that he got back in his plane and took off before anyone could do anything about it.

As the team got back on their feet one by one, Kurt went to look at Nolan's shoulder wound. "It's not too bad," Nolan insisted, I've had much worse. That caught me off guard. I kept trying to fight him like I would fight you, Jackson. His fighting style is just so different from yours."

"And better," said Jackson in dismay, "When was the last time I was able to best you in a fight?"

"It's okay, Jackson!" said Ricky, slapping Jackson hard on the back as he said it. "He's not better than you, he only got away because of Zactus' tech and the element of surprise." This made Jackson feel a little better.

"You're still the best Jackson around," added Aang, "No faker is going to ruin your name. Speaking of which, Katara and Sokka, did you get it all?" The two poked there heads out of the Firefly with a video camera in Sokka's hand. "Good, now that should be enough evidence to clear your name."

"Excellent," said Kurt "Now, Aang and Ricky, take the kids and chao back to base. We'll take the video camera and warp the rest of the way." After Aang and Ricky had left, Jackson decided to try turning into a plane instead of warping. However, he couldn't do it. He found himself unable to turn into anything electronic or mechanical. Kurt told him it was probably just the stress, and that he shouldn't worry about it. However, he knew what was really happening.

After Kurt, Jackson, and Nolan showed the police the footage, they cleared Jackson of the charges. Based on their current record and a call put in with the Magic Council, Jackson and Nolan were let off with a warning for attacking officers and escaping custody. For the moment the team was all smiles, but Kurt had something else on his mind. Just like he had experienced himself with Anthony's betrayal, Jackson was dealing with a betrayal that had caused him to loose his primary power. And not only that, someone with Jackson's abilities teamed up with the one person who surpasses Jackson's technological intellect. And that was scary.

Dogfights and duels
Though Kurt kept a careful eye on him, Jackson was handling this betrayal better than he had handled his own with Anthony. The team devoted all their resources to hunting down Double-Jackson. They took shifts monitoring the radio signals as well as patrolling Power World's airspace.

One night, Nolan had just taken over for Ricky and sat down for what he thought would be another boring evening. A week had gone by and nothing had happened. He looked for something to keep his attention and pulled a newspaper out of the trash. The head article was about how some politician named Howard Lane was trying to get a warrant into the Magic Team's headquarters to investigate their violation of all non-vigilante laws and disrupting police activity. Curious, he went to Kurt's room and showed it to him.

Kurt was analyzing some blueprints when Nolan walked in. "Check these out. One of our spies got these shadow missile blueprints out of MDI. Would you be suprised that their insides are the same as normal missiles but they have a special cloak that makes them appear as a shadow? If we find someway to disrupt it, they could easily shot down by our computer defense systems. But we have to figure how the cloak works first... Anyway, you wanted to tell me something?" Nolan held up the newspaper, "In all your political meetings, did you ever run in to this guy?"

Kurt started laughing. "Haha, Lane is quite the idiot. He thinks that we're trying to take over the entire planet. He thinks that we're just a liability to the real army because we have no formal training or any hierarchical status to lead troops and for me to be a political adviser. And he was outraged when you, me, and Jackson were appointed to the council. The Magic Council as well as every region's individual government has basically told him to shut up because he has no real evidence. But he does have political power and he's trying to find some. Even if he gets a warrant, it's only a piece of paper. He can't actually come in if he can't find us too...so don't worry about him."

Reassured that government officials weren't about to swarm the base, Nolan went back to listen to the radio waves for some Double-Jackson linked broadcast. He put the headset on to hear the middle of one. "-len many international treasures."

Another voice cut in, "Ma'am, could you describe what the theif looked like?" Nolan listened as the woman describred Jackson. Bolting from his chair, he ran to the alert button. Within moments of pressing it, the team was assembled in the briefing room. Nolan stood up and relayed what he had heard to the rest of the team.

"The Power World International History Museum and Archives have just been robbed by Double-Jackson. I'm not sure what he stole, but whatever it was, Zactus wants it."

Kurt jumped up, "Let's move." The team ran to the warpgate and seconds later found themselves standing next to a very frightened curator. Kurt told everyone else to split up while he and Jackson calmed the woman and asked her a few more questions.

Aang Stayed on the bottom floor and used earthbending to sense if anyone was hiding anywhere on it. When he came back negative, he radioed to Nolan and Ricky to see if they had found everything. They hadn't either, and another two hours of searching yielded no new results. Disheartened, they returned to Jackson and Kurt. As soon as they got there, Ricky explained the situation. "He isn't here. He must have got what he wanted and left as quickly as possible. Did you find out what was stolen?" What Jackson and Kurt told the team only made the situation more confusing. He had stolen ancient texts, from before the modern era. And what was on them was all public knowledge. It could be found in any history database that existed. since it was simply an old decree from an ancient warlord about who was allowed to have powers and who was "undesirable".

"Maybe there was something else on those pages that isn't online?" Aang asked. Jackson shook his head, "The curator told us that there is both a text copy, holocopy, and a high definition picture available to the public for free." Confused, the team decided to take the X-Tornado and the Firefly back to base. "Maybe the flight will help us think," Jackson added.

Ricky was looking out the rear cockpit of the X-Tornado when he felt a sudden lurch. "Hey Jackson, watch how you're flyi-" He looked foward to see the Shadow X-Tornado just above them. Jackson continued the maneuver, pulling the X-Tornado into a steep dive. Nolan and Ricky felt their stomachs jam into their throats. Aang wasted no time in moving the Firefly into pursuit. He fired two seeking missiles after it. Nolan watched them close in, only for them to explode twenty feet away from the engines.

'What the hell?' he thought.

Kurt's voice came through the com system. "DON'T FIRE!!! HE'S GOT KATARA AND SOKKA!" Jackson desperately pulled up and looked into the enemy cockpit. And to his despair, both of them were bound into the back seat.

Kurt continued to talk. "Jackson, if that's the same plane as yours, you can infect it with a virus and remotely override the controls. Remember you have that doohickey that you made last month?"

Jackson leveled the plane. "Nolan, take over for me. Ricky, help me set this up." Jackson opened the canopies, and Nolan too his place. He hopped into the rear cockpit. As they bounced around, Jackson and Ricky tried to set up the override beacon.

"Nolan, keep us level for a moment!" Ricky yelled.

Nolan yelled back, "IT would much easier if he wasn't trying to kill us!"

After several minutes of dropping and losing parts to the moving plane, Jackson had the device ready to go. "Nolan, level us out and open the canopy." He aimed at the Shadow X-Tornado and fired. He watched the device clamp on and the plane began to respond to its new controls. "That ought to do it," he said to himself. "Wait, now it's not working!" He looked up in horror to see the enemy plane begin to lose altitude as it plummeted to the earth. "GO AFTER IT NOLAN!!" he frantically shouted. But as Nolan began to dive toward the falling plane, he saw something else. Kurt and Aang were both falling too. Kurt was wildly motioning Nolan to come get him.

Despite Jackson's orders, Nolan flew over to scoop up Kurt and an apparently unconscious Aang. With his four teammates all perched on top of the X-Tornado, Nolan decided it be best to land it for safety reasons. Jackson watched in complete shock as the Shadow X-Tornado crashed into the hillside, killing anyone on-board. Before Jackson could speak, Kurt explained what happened. "No one was on-board. When Double-Jackson saw that you overrided his controls, he took Katara and Sokka and chaos controlled into our cockpit. He did so with such force that he knocked Aang out. As you can see, we were both thrown out to what he wanted to be our deaths. But now he has Sokka, Katarra, and the Firefly. It's time we brought the fight to him."

Back at the base, the team decided on a plan. With the tracking chip onboard the Firefly, they knew where Double-Jackson had gone to deliver the texts to Zactus. Kurt would go to fight Zactus with Nolan and Aang. And using the next location the Firefly went to, they knew where Double-Jackson was hiding. This is where Jackson and Ricky would go to finally stop him.

Before they set out, Kurt went to Jackson. "I don't normally do this, but I'm going to need some kind of suprise for Zactus. Do you have any new tech that might come in handy?" Jackson smiled and led Kurt to the hangar. "I've got this small winged-jetpack. And if I make some quick adjustments to it, it'll be ableto auto-fire your gun and another at him. So you'll be able to keep your sword free and distract him with energy shots." Kurt thanked him and got ready to depart.

Kurt and Aang met Nolan who warped them all a mile from Zactus' location. They made their way toward whatever he was hiding in. Though it was night, they made sure they were extra stealthy. Upon arriving, they came to a large estate, located in the middle of a large forest. There were no guards, and the team was easily able to walk over to the cellar door. On reaching the cellar floor, they moved into the next part of their plan. "Ok, you guys go find Katara and Sokka. This cellar door will be our rendezvous point after everything is done." Aang and Nolan nodded and snuck off into the dark.

Kurt pulled out the jetpack and began setting it up. Not a moment after he had put it on did a blinding white light turn on. "I wondered how long it would take for you to come after me. I see Jackson gave you some new tech." When Kurt finally regained his vision, he looked around to see Zactus standing in his power armor. "I would really hate for my house to get damaged, why don't we continue this outside?" With that, he sent an energy burst at Kurt's feet which knocked him back through the open cellar door. He used his new jetpack to stablize himself and turned around to see Zactus step into the cool night air.

"It works well," he said motioning to the jetpack. "I guess great minds think alike. Don't be angry with me Kurt. Don't think I'm the same as Anthony. You don't know me."

Kurt stared into his eyes. "You aren't like Anthony? You, who have put billions of lives at risk and killed millions more? You're keeping his legacy alive! It's because of you he came back! You build his weapons! Why are you any better than he is?!"

That pushed Zactus over the edge. "ENOUGH!" He sent two missiles at Kurt, the first was blown up by one of the auto-guns but the other took out the built in gun. "Do you think I'm proud of what I've done?" He fired another, which Kurt barely rolled out the way for. "I've done what I've had to stay alive!" Kurt jet forward, but Zactus simply caught his chestplate and ripped it off, sending Kurt one way and the jetpack another. He fired another shot which blasted Kurt into a tree. Kurt watched the jetpack ram into the ground. He tried to lift himself, move, anything to not give up, but Zactus put his foot on his back. He leaned down, till he was whispering in Kurt's ear. "I'd take it all back if I could. And now, I can." With that, he brought his fist down and knocked Kurt unconscious.

Kurt awoke sometime later to find himself in the infirmary. He looked over to Nolan. "What happened?" Nolan called out, "He's waking up!" And turning to Kurt, "It's been two hours since we found you. Katara and Sokka are safe. We're still waiting to hear back from Jackson and Ricky. And Zactus is no where to be found."

Jackson and Ricky landed the X-Tornado in a small clearing near where they picked up the Firefly's signal. Daytime had arrived, and although the two were tired, they were ready to rumble. Harvey and Tiger, on the other hand, rubbed their eyes as they dismounted the plane. "Ricky, if I can't bring myself to do it, you'll have to bring him down." "Got it, but we'll take him alive if we can." The two stumbled across some old ruins. Jackson recognized it from one of Nolan's books. "This must be the inverted temple, or at least what's left of it. Most of its surface was destroyed, but most of the temple is actually underground. They found a large hole in the roor of the main chamber. The floor was about thirty feet down, so Jackson used airbending to slow their descent. They saw something over in by the wall flashing. Ricky picked it up, "Damn it's the Firefly's tracking chip."

"Don't worry, it's not far. I didn't want to damage such a unique craft in our battle. I was hoping you would be in the group that came here, Jackson," said Double-Jackson as he stepped out from the hallway. "How should we do this?" "You're cool with one on two plus two chao?" replied Jackson.

"It seems a bit unfair, so I'll even the odds." Two commando robots stepped out from the other hallway. "Okay, that's better," affirmed Ricky. "Anything else?" asked Double-Jackson.

"Uhm...well shit, do you want to just say no super forms? It would just be kinda pointless," suggested Jackson. "Alright," agreed Double-Jackson, approaching his foe, "Fair enough. I'd say no turning into tanks either, but apparently we're both having an issue with that. While were at it, we're all men too, so nothing below the belt."

"And just like old times," said Jackson with a smile taking another step forward, "No distracting the other by making up an upcoming Sonic game where..."

A chaos spear exploded between the two of them. "Jesus! Are we gonna wait for you two to kiss on it, or are we gonna fight already?" shouted Ricky. And with that the brawl was on. Ricky was on Double-Jackson quickly, countering his spin and electricity attacks with cosmic shields and his own energy blasts. Jackson and the chao focused on taking down the two commando robots. Jackson cut through the first with his sword as the chao distracted it and then used a combined chao spin attack to blow through the second. Soon Jackson and the chao were back in on the main fight. Double-Jackson was able to knock the two chao out of the fight with an electrical pulse, which enraged Jackson and Ricky.

Chaos spears were being launched everywhere. The battle intensified. All three found themselves constantly getting up an being thrown back down. They were rarely ever standing; they were either flying around in midair, bouncing off the walls, or getting up off the ground. Ricky shot Double-Jackson back with and energy blast, but then he retaliated by chaos controling above Ricky's head and slaming him to th ground. His head hit hard. Jackson knew he couldn't hold anything back. As Harvey started to get back up, Jackson took off his inhibitor rings and unleashed a powerful spin attack and chaos controlled rapidly around to confuse Double-Jackson. It worked and Harvey smacked Double-Jackson into the air as Jackson pounded on him again and again with his spin attack. As Double-Jackson lay defeated, power crystals knocked out of reach, Jackson approached him and held him at swordpoint. "Now you will tell us what Zactus is up to."

"No!" shouted Double-Jackson, leaping for one of his power crystals before it was knocked further away by an energy blast. Ricky was standing up. Jackson couldn't tell what it was, but something seemed different about him, but that wasn't important at the moment.

Double-Jackson sighed. "I'm sorry, Jackson. It wasn't supposed to be like this. I figured out a long time ago that I was just a copy of you. I was created the day you got your primary powers, which we both now seemed to have lost. Even being like you, I still felt insignificant. You were Jackson, I was Double-Jackson. When I found out that you had joined this team, I was more angry and jealous than ever. Then one day, Zactus approached me, saying I could do greater things. Things that you wouldn't and couldn't do." Jackson thought of all the times Zactus had wanted him to join him. Double-Jackson continued, "He told me we could end this war. He said we could end all the suffering and set things right. Make it as if it never happened."

"That's impossible!" said Jackson.

"That's what I said too!" replied Double-Jackson, "but then he told me that if I helped him find something it would be possible. Something that would make everyone forget."

"Looking for something..." Jackson and Ricky said simulataneously. "No, the only way to make people forget is to rewrite the past!" exclaimed Ricky. "Zactus wants to find the time powers," realized Jackson. It fits with Aang's vision. The hallway with all the clocks! Time! Zactus wants to manipulate time!"

The three looked at each other. "If he manipulates time, he could prevent the team from ever forming! He could stop me from ever being born!" shouted Jackson.

"And if you're never born, then you never get your powers, and I never exist!" replied Double-Jackson. "We can't let him get away with this. I had no idea his plans would involve this! I...I just wanted...all I ever wanted was to be on your level. Please..."

Jackson pulled away his sword. "Zactus has hurt many of us, old friend. Take us to the Firefly." They picked up the Firefly and the X-Tornado nearby.

"Now we need to get back to base," declared Ricky.

"There's a warpgate inside the temple," replied Double-Jackson, "follow me". The group returned to the temple, got Harvey and Tiger, and ran down the hallways. Eventually they found one that had a broken wall and floor, exposing a magma flow. Through the crack in the wall and down the magma river was another hallway. "Just jump across these rocks!" yelled Double-Jackson leading the way. Jackson and Ricky followed and found a warpgate up the stairs.

"Punch in the codes, Ricky."

"No need, said Double-Jackson, "Zactus hacked the signal after you guys used your warpgate to go to the museum. That's how I got in to get the kids. Sorry, about that."

"Works for me," said Jackson jumping through.

Jackson and the group stepped into the base. Nolan and Aang ran over. "What's going on? What's he doing..." "Nolan, we need to find Zactus and stop him now. He's going after the time powers! Where's Kurt?" Nolan rushed them into the infirmary, where the team had a meating.

"Time powers," said Kurt." those canisters, 'I would take it all back if I could,' it all makes sense now. We need to stop him."

A Lost Leader
With the team assembled in the meeting room, Kurt began the briefing. "Zactus is massing his forces for something big."

"How big are we talking?" asked Nolan.

" About half as big as Anthony's first invasion; the one that kicked off the war. But this time we're ready, and now is the perfect time for a strike. If we can wreck his armada enough, maybe it can buy us some time so we can stop him from finding the time powers. Jackson, is Nolan's new ship ready for deployment yet?"

"Just about."

"Good, then you and Nolan will lead two squadrons of fighters to keep his fighters distracted. Jackson, Blue squadron is for you since I know how much you like their daring tactics. Green is for you Nolan, they're very brave and will follow you wherever you lead them. Ricky, you and Aang will lead our bombers to their targets. Your job is to lead yellow and the 402nd squadrons to escort the bombers. Yellow is mostly new recruits so watch them and the 402nd is one of the oldest and most reliable groups there is. I am going to infiltrate the flagship and see what damage I can cause from within. Nolan, I'm counting on you to also get me aboard that ship in the middle of the battle."

With the plan laid out, the team began preparing. Double-Jackson walked up, "I can help. I know you don't want it, but I know the layouts of those ships. You need me." Kurt looked towards Jackson, who nodded in response. "Ok, change of plan. I will lead Blue squadron, while Jackson and Double-Jackson infiltrate the flagship."

The team moved to the hangar, and prepared their ships. Jackson rode in the X-3 with Nolan while Double-Jackson squeezed into the tiny backseat of the Akira behind Kurt. They took off, and rendezvoued with the rest of the fleet orbitting the planet. Each of the squadrons checked in with its leader and turned toward Matravin and Zactus' Fleet. When they arrived at Matravin, the command ships waited in orbit while the fighters swarmed to the planet below. Zactus' fleet was taking off. The fighters from each side swarmed toward the other and broke off into battle. "You have to get us on that flagship before they get into the upper atmosphere. Move us toward the port-side bow," advised Double-Jackson to Kurt. "Roger," replied Kurt, "Nolan, did you copy that?" "Loud and clear Kurt, we're right behind you." The two fighters swept over the front of the ship, and Jackson, Double-Jackson, and Harvey dropped down towards the command ship.

Then Jackson realized "Aren't the shields still up?"

Double-Jackson smiled, "I got it!" And he dove down faster and delivered an electrical shock that opened a hole in the shields. Jackson and Harvey landed as Double-Jackson opened a hatch with a code. "We need to be quick. Follow my lead."The trio raced down the halls. Double-Jackson was able to bypass many of the defense mechanisms, as he still had security clearance. They knew, however, that the security cameras would still see them, and it was only a matter of time before they would cut off his special privilege.

"Are we going for the reactor?" asked Jackson.

"No," replied Double-Jackson. "Zactus hast the reactor completely blocked off now, since he knows that's how you guys usually sabotaged his ships. But if we hit the bridge with a few chaos blasts, we should be able to take it down. They made their way to an elevator. Halfway to their destination, it stopped. The Jacksons looked at each other, and then felt the elevator drop. "Now's the time, Jackson!" Jackson got out the power crystals and all three went into super forms, blasting through the elevator's ceiling just before it crashed at the bottom.

"Oh, isn't that cute. You two made up," Zactus said from above in his battle suit. They flew up and he descended until they met in the middle. "Now before you guys do something that we'll all regret, let me offer you an explanation. Both of you have more in common with me than you might realize. The two of you and your little chao friend could all help me in serving a much more noble cause. Jackson, the truth is, I'm your..."

"...My equal, I know. My rival. The counter-Jackson. The only person besides my father that can compete with me on a technological level. I've heard it all before."

"Actually, about your father..."

"We don't need anymore of your deception Zactus!" yelled Super Double-Jackson. "I would never have agreed to help you if I'd known you were trying to get the time powers. Someone with half a brain your size should know that time is not to be meddled with!"

"You both waste your intellectual and physical gifts with your closed-mindedness! If I can't have you on my side, I'll be damned to have you in my way!" The battle was a blur. Walls and floors were broken through, curse words and energy blasts were exchanged back and forth, and Super Harvey was thrown just about everywhere.

Nolan and Kurt ripped through squadrons of fighters, helping to clear the path for the bombers. Eventually, Aang and Ricky's bombers made it to their targets. As their command ships moved in, Zactus' battleships began to fall. Aang and Nolan landed on top of one and took it down from the inside. Kurt looked toward the flagship, still flying, but there were definitely some internal explosions going on. Then, he saw Zactus get thrown out of the ship followed by three fast golden streaks.

The two super-charged Jacksons were pelting Zactus back and fourth with Harvey's chao attack. They damaged one of his boosters, causing him to lose stability. But he still had a few tricks up his sleeve. He waited until they got close, then he activated a temporal field that quickly expanded and stunned them before its eff+ut he savored his victory too long, and Double-Jackson delivered a blow that knocked his mask off, leaving him gasping for breath in the cold, thin upper atmosphere. He grabbed Zactus and slammed him onto the battleship. He had him in his hands, he could've ended it right there. Then Harvey let out a concerned "Chao! Chao! Chao!" pointing frantically downward. Jackson was clearly knocked out and falling down to ground far below. Double-Jackson, hesitated, but then he let Zactus go, grabbed Harvey, and dove after his friend. Zactus flew away back into the flagship to get in his escape craft. Super Double-Jackson caught up to Jackson and used chaos control to bring them safely to the planet's surface. His super form went away. He was about to try contacting one of the team members when he saw a fighter flying down towards them. He prepared to fight, then saw that it was Kurt's. It landed in a clearing next to them.

Kurt stepped out of the Akira, "I saw the whole thing."

Double-Jackson got defensive "Look, I'm sorry I let him go, I just couldn't let..."

"No, Double-Jackson, you did the right thing. Zactus will be back eventually, and we will get him then. Today, you've earned my trust."

"Yeah, well that still doesn't make up for my other crimes. No matter what I do now, I can't legally escape from what I've done, even if I joined your team."

Kurt began to imagine what Howard Lane would say, but he still wanted to help Double-Jackson. "We'll figure something out," he said. Jackson came to, much to Harvey's joy. Together, the four of them watched Zactus' ships explode in the sky far above like mini-fireworks. Nolan, Aang, and Ricky flew down to them. And they all flew back to the base together.

They convened in the meeting room. "Today was a great victory," began Kurt, "Hopefully if bought us enough time to set up preventative measures to protect the time powers. Double-Jackson's actions were heroic today without a doubt. But the question remains, what will happen to him now? We'll lose all funding and credibility for housing a criminal, but we can't just let him get locked up."

"I have a solution," announced Ricky. All heads turned toward him. "Earlier today, I took a pretty significant blow to the head, no hard feelings though, Double-Jackson. In fact, I should actually be thanking you. I finally remember who I am. I come from the world of Daexa, a planet in a nearby solar system. I'm supposed to be one of its defenders, one of the guardians. But after I crashed here, all of those memories were lost until now. Guys, working with you for the past seven months has been incredible, and I've become closer with you than some of my closest friends and family back home, but I need to go back. If I can get in contact with them, they can send a ship here to get me."

The team was at a loss for words. Finally, Nolan spoke up. "So, how is this our solution?"

"Simple," replied Ricky, "Double-Jackson comes with me. You guys can say that he died in the battle, and then he comes with me to my world where he can help me," he declared. "He'll...He'll remind me of a part of this team, a part that I will always have by my side," he said looking to Jackson. Jackson looked back up at him and felt tears welling up in his eyes. "Jackson, can you help us set up a long range transmitter?" Double-Jackson and Ricky both looked to him.

Jackson sniffled. "Sure," he said feebly, "Anything for you two." Together, the three walked down the hall. After a few hours, they made contact. The two Jacksons left the room. "Double-Jackson, I should go instead. You saved my life today, you shouldn't have to go into exile. You look enough like me, if you dye your hair and wear contacts, you could..."

"Jackson, you're speaking nonsense. This team needs you, and you need them. I've done wrong, and you shouldn't be going away because of it. Besides, I need a fresh start."

Around noon the next day, the team members gathered outside the hangar as a group of ships arrived. One of them carried a new interstellar drive for Ricky's ship, which a group of their men got to work on installing. Aang had brought Double-Jackson's foster parents in the Firefly. As the ships were prepared, Ricky, Tiger, and Double-Jackson went around and said their goodbyes. Tiger, Harvey, and Moe grouped together and did a little chao dance one last time. Ricky thanked Jackson for the knowledge of the chaos powers, holding up his power crystal and promising that he would put the powers to good use. He thanked Aang for being his training partner and close friend. Kurt thanked Double-Jackson again for his help, as Double-Jackson apologized for his troubles. Nolan gave one of his rare hugs to Ricky, promising that they would meet again one day. Double-Jackson and Jackson hugged for a solid minute, agreeing that this wouldn't be goodbye forever. Jackson handed him a copy of the design specifications for the X-Tornado, assuring him that Ricky's people would be able to help him build it. They exchanged one last quick hug before he boarded the ship. Ricky finally turned to Kurt, "If you ever need me back for something big, just give me a call. I'll be back before you know it."

"It's been a pleasure having you aboard, Ricky. Your planet is lucky to have be under the protection of someone with heart and courage like yours." Ricky got in his fighter, and all the ships took off. Everyone watched as they disappeared into the sky. The foster parents, Katara, Sokka, Harvey, and Moe went inside for a snack while Kurt, Jackson, Nolan, and Aang kept staring where the ships had gone.

"What now?" asked Nolan.

"Well, the chao and kids are getting snacks. Let's follow their lead and get some lunch," said Kurt.

Plan of Action
After Double-Jackson's foster parents left, Kurt went to alert the Magic Council of Zactus' intentions. But to his dismay, Howard Lane was already discussing something with Master Shaa.

"Excuse me Master Shaa, but I have a very urgent matter to discuss with you." Kurt spoke when he walked up.

"Isn't it rude to interrupt your superiors?" Lane was looking at Kurt. "Master Shaa and I were discussing your lack of cooperation with my department."

"Well it does get difficult to work with people who can only see what they want to," Kurt snapped back. "And I'm on the council too, although I do defer to Master Shaa's experience, and so, as I was saying, I have real business to discuss with Master Shaa. Alone."

"Don't be rude Kurt. I'm sure whatever you have to say involves the safety of Power World, which is what Mr. Lane here is in charge of. I'm sure he will respectfully hear what you have to say." Master Shaa replied. "Please go on."

Kurt gave him an angry look. "I have very strong evidence that Zactus is seeking the ability to control time. My team and I don't need an army for this mission, but we do need a group of operatives tha-"

"Did you say time powers?" Howard interrupted. "I will not commit my resources to find and protect something that doesn't exist."

"Mr. Lane, Kurt would never say something if he didn't fully believe it was true. Maybe-" Again, Lane interrupted.

"This is my final say on this. I don't care what a crazed old man and a naive young vigilante have to say about it. Your popularity is the only reason I don't arrest you on the spot. It's not good for re-election. But mark my words, the moment you screw up I'll be there." Howard then stormed from the chamber and left the grounds.

Kurt looked at Master Shaa. "I know I'm right. I just don't have any leads. We may have set Zactus back with our battle last night, but he's resilient, and probably getting desperate. He will act soon. That's why I came asking your advice."

"Well, there is an old myth about a woman who had lived in every age of our history. And theorists have found mention of her throughout history, but whether or not you believe those accounts is up to you. It is said that she lived on a planet as beautiful as Power World. But the only planet that used to be like that is Matravin, and that planet lost it's beauty a thousand years ago."

Kurt thought for a moment. "It's more of a lead than I had before. Thank you Master Shaa." Despite the lack of support from the government, Kurt still gathered the team for a briefing. "I don't even want to think of what terrible things Zactus plans on doing. So I'll get straight to the facts. Master Shaa gave me some information that they may be hidden somewhere on Matravin. That isn't much of a lead, but it is better than scouring the entire galaxy. We will be staying together the entire time, I don't want to lose anyone to Zactus. Jackson, I'm going to need you to get your brother and Alex with us, assuming they're back from Bugdum. Without Ricky or Double-Jackson, we'll need all the help we can get. Aang, I want you to see if you can sense any strange power fluctuations from Matravin. And Nolan, I want you to see if you can track or even find Zactus' signal. Magic Team, let's go to work!"

They all went about their separate tasks. Jackson, along with Harvey, arrived at Bennett amd Alex's secret house and earthbended the door open and closed. "Way to barge in, you...you...Ah, damn, I had something for this..."

"Good to see you too, Alex. When did you guys get back?"

"Just last night," replied Bennett, stepping out from the kitchen. "What's this I hear about Double-Jackson coming back? Mom and Dad mentioned it last night but said that you had the story."

"It's a long one. Bottom line is Ricky is back on his home planet, and Double-Jackson is with him. Now we need your guys' help again. Are you ready to commit to this team?"

Bennett and Alex looked at each other and nodded. "We're in," they said in unison.

Aang stepped out of his room after an hour of meditation and walked toward the kitchen, Moe floating out after him. Kurt looked to him hopefully, but Aang shook his head. "I'm sorry, Kurt. It's worse than I thought. My spiritual connection has been so weak ever since Zactus hit me with that blast. I thought it was just the Avatar state, but it's not. I feel so out of contact with the Avatar spirit. I feel so useless."

Kurt placed his hand on Aang's shoulder. "Aang, Avatar state or not, you are an indespensible member of this team. You're already the most powerful bender I know, you've come close to mastering the chaos abilities, and you have a heart of pure gold. At your young age, you still stand strong next to Jackson, Nolan, and me, and when you come to our age, you will be more powerful than any of us ever were. We will figure this out, I promise you, but right now we need to focus on Zactus."

Nolan came out of the control room. "I have a possible hit on Zactus. Come and check it out."Everyone gathered around the screen. "Did you find a burst of strange energy or something?" Jackson asked.

"Actually the opposite. It's a place on Matravin where I can't detect any energy whatsoever. I think Zactus might have set something up to try to block prying eyes."

Kurt spoke first, "It's worth checking. I didn't even know that area existed on Matravin which makes it all the more strange. Warp us out Nolan, we can't waste time flying there today. "They found themselves on an unfamiliar cliff on Matravin. "This is as close as I could get us. Something is definitely blocking us from warping any closer."

"That's fine Nolan. Everyone start searching, see what we can find."

Aang and Jackson began checking the edge of the cliff, while Kurt and the rest began scoping further in. Bennett felt a strangeness where he was and called out, "I can feel something weird the farther we get from the edge...Woah! Nolan get over here!" Nolan rushed over to Bennett to find a woman dead on the ground. "She looks like she was killed recently, and from a laser blast." The two looked at each other. Zactus.

They began to scan the area, looking for anything or anyone that might give them some more direction. Aang passed a bush when he saw another body. This time, it was a reptilian humanoid, but nontheless hurt. "Everyone get over here!" "I didn't know they were any reptilian aliens in this galaxy." Alex commented to Bennett as they ran over.

Kurt knelt beside him. "Are you ok?"

"Go away."

"Not till we find out what happened here."

"You mock me human?" He stood up, ignoring any previous injury. "I will not tolerate humans...who..." He collapsed back to the ground.

Kurt sighed. "Nolan, get him a power cure. Katara, Sokka, Aang, see what you can do for him."

Jackson walked over. "What is he?" he asked as the waterbenders went to work.

Kurt shook his head. "I wish I knew. It isn't likely he's from around here. Maybe from Ricky's solar system? I don't know."

Nolan got back up. "I don't know how much I can heal him, his anatomy is so different from ours. We did what we could."

Before Nolan even finished his last words, the creature got back up. With no sign of injury. He reached his hand to a button on his belt and the team each felt themself strung up by invisible ropes. "I am Tu'van, last of the Z'Lurkan . I am the voice of a dead people. And you dare mock me!" He threw them all into the ground.

Tu'van walked over to Nolan and the benders. "Why did you heal me?"

"You...You needed healing. And I wasn't going to let you die.

"All humans have wanted is to kill me."

"Why?"

"Because we were better. And now there are none left."

"We're looking for the man who attacked you. He was in a power suit, kind of like a..."

"I know what a power suit is. My people invented them! Don't you thi..."

"Hey, calm down. I'm sorry I thought less of you. But we really need to find him."

"I know of the man you speak of. And it is too late. Don't believe me? Wander to the caves to the north. You will see that he has already traveled through time. There was only one other guardian, and he isn't here anymore. Now, leave me be."

Tu'van walked toward the edge of the cliff, pressed his belt, and warped away.

Kurt spoke first. "I guess that's it. If Zactus is already sometime else, there's no way to stop him."

"Maybe there is." All eyes turned to Jackson. "Well now that time has been opened up, I bet that two chaos users should be able to chaos control to go after Zactus. Aang, I know this has never been done, but I'll need you to help me with this. Let's get to the temple."

They made their way to the cave entrance. When they got inside, they found a large open space with pillars and a large circle in the middle. They had the team gathered around Jackson and Aang in the circle. Jackson and Aang each took out a power crystal and locked their arms. "Chaos control!" Nolan and Kurt watched as the air shimmered around them. The ground tore around them and they began to move through time. The circle at the center of the room remained at their feet, as well as a small dome of space around it. They could still see the surrounding part of the cave, but it was as a tunnel of light was moving through it.

"So, how do we know where or when to stop?" Nolan asked.

Jackson thought for a second. "I'm sure we'll figure it out. What do you think Kurt? Kurt?"

Kurt wasn't looking at any of them. "We have a passenger."

Everyone turned to see a stranger moving with them. He glared at them all, then spoke. "You should go back. Now."

He turned to walk away when Kurt shouted to him. "She's dead. Zactus killed her. Your enemy is our enemy. Help us stop him."

The stranger stopped. "She never told me her name...I knew her as the Observer. She shouldn't have died this way...What of Tu'van?"

Nolan joined in. "I healed him. And then he left."

"Tu'van has given more than enough. You will help me stop this usurper Zactus."

Jackson asked, "What should we call you?"

"I am not your friend, so any questions will wait till this mess is fixed. See that blue spot ahead? End this control-whatever you call it when we reach that spot. That indicates where that man arrived in time and space. Ending it there should take us directly to his location.

Mech Vs. Magic
"So, what's the plan? Come out guns blazing or try to talk some sense in to him?"

Kurt thought for a moment. "I don't know how he's manipulating time. So the last thing I want to turn this into is a chase around history to stop him. Ok, I got it. The plan is to distract him while you determine how he has time travel. If it's a device, then we'll stop it before we engage if not-"

"We're here," the stranger interrupted, "End it now!" Jackson and Aang pulled their arms apart a tad too late. Kurt, Jackson, Alex, Katara, and their new companion fell out of the dissipating bubble into a strange location on Invisible Isle.

"Where is everyone else?" Asked Katara.

"I'm sure they'll be okay," replied Kurt, right now we need to worry about Zac-," but there he stood on the hill above them. Full armor. Waiting for his target to pass by.

"Zactus!" Jackson yelled. They heard a shot fire off and he turned around.

"You made me miss!" He shouted. "I was so close!"

Kurt looked around. He looked at the date on his wrist communicator, linked to Electronic World's atomic clock. "No," he said, "This is..."

"That's right Kurt. This is the day that you were put in jail in Invisible Isle, where you will meet Anthony, and Jackson here caused me to miss shooting down the ship that carries you to the prison, which would've prevented you from meeting him and forming your team. So I have to try something else. He held up his arm. Jackson could see the device on his wrist with a small, glowing, yellow stone inside. Zactus pushed it and a triangular portal opened up. He went through, and the portal started closing rapidly. With no time to spare, Jackson couldn't think of anything to try except..."Chaos control!" he shouted. Suddenly, the portal grew much wider and the group went through.

"How did you know to do that?" asked Kurt as the moved through limbo.

"It was almost instinctive," replied Jackson, "but chaos control is a distortion of space and time, so I suppose it amplified the rift Zactus created in time." They came out of the portal seconds later on a small ledge on a cliffside overlooking a foggy bay. "We're still on Invisible Isle," Jackson commented.

"Zactus!" yelled the stanger, but it was too late; he had already blasted off over the water.

Kurt knew they couldn't lose sight of him, or they would be done for. Jackson, however was already on it. Without saying a word, he deployed Kurt's jetpack from his storage cube. "Go get him."

"Wouldn't it be better for you to go after him as Super Jackson?" asked Kurt as he strapped in.

"Kurt, I've fought 3 battles in the past 48 hours. I'm too exhausted for that."

"Very well, Follow my signal in the X-Tornado!" he shouted before blasting off.

"I can't deploy my plane on this tiny place..." Jackson started to say before he felt the ground shake. Alex was earthbending the whole ledge up to the top of the cliff, where there was a large open space. "Perfect," replied Jackson, "Thanks Alex."

"What the hell is wrong with you, earthbender?" shouted the stranger before Alex could reply to Jackson. "You can't manipulate the environment while we're in the past."

"What? You think that one day that ledge would've run for office?"

"Your lack of seriousness in this situation is astounding! Someone could do something important on this cliffside!" the stranger snapped back.

"Yeah, hopefully one day, you'll jump off of it," said Alex without missing a beat.

"Hey! Alex, just do what he wants and let it go. There's no time to waste fighting with him! Kurt needs our help." The voice who spoke wasn't Jackson's; it was Katara's. Alex stood frozen for a moment before nodding and moving the ledge back to its old position as Jackson got the X-Tornado ready.

"Bugdum children really do mature faster," Jackson said as Alex hopped in the seat behind him. They took off and followed Kurt's signal. Alex looked down at the clock.

"Jackson, why would Zactus come to this date?" Jackson was puzzled. Nothing about the date seemed significant to him. "Dunno," he shrugged, he hit the speaker for the rear cockpit, "So it would be a lot easier if we had a name to give you."

"If you must know, my name is Troy. But don't think that we're any closer to being friends. You're here to help me stop Zactus, and that's it."

Jackson chuckled. "You remind me all too much of Shadow. My name is Jackson, up here with me is Alex, and right in front of you is Katara. We're following Kurt, who is going after Zactus." His tone shifted suddenly, "And YOU are helping US stop him, Troy. We're closing in on them. Get ready, team."

Butterfly Effect
Nolan, Aang, Bennett, Sokka, Harvey, and Moe wandered throughout the altered version of Electronic World with the bubble still surrounding them. The terrain started shifting again. "Aang, it's happening again. Use chaos control to stabilize it." Aang did as commanded, and the environment became clear again. They kept walking through people, as if they were ghosts. Due to their incomplete teleportation, they could observe the past, but not interact with it.

"Why does that keep happening?" asked Sokka, "Why does everything around us start to change?"

"I really don't know," said Nolan, "But my best guess is we're stuck between different timelines. Luckily, Aang here can keep us focused on at a time. Whatever Kurt, Jackson, and the others are up to, it must be critical to he flow of time. Let's hope they don't let Zactus screw everything up." They spotted a group of people scurrying along the streets to their homes. Night time had arrived. Suddenly some Matravinian robot soldiers began walking down the street.

"Curfew is in three minutes. Any citizen found outside of his or her home will be placed under arrest." They watched as the patrol group turned the corner. Then a group of people in hoodies ran across the street into an alleyway, and began knocking on a small door. Sokka started pointing frantically and silently motioning for the group to investigate, but only Bennett saw."

"Sokka, you can speak. No one out there can here us. Come on, guys, let's check it out." The group walked over and went through the door behind the teenagers in hoodies. They found themselves in a large room with a stage and about 150 people. They saw a banner on the wall that said J.A.B. in large letters, and below it it said "Justice Against Brutality."

"I feel like they were trying too hard for a clever acronym," said Aang.

"Funny," said Bennett, "J, A, and B. Jab. That's what Jackson, Alex, and I decided we would be called if we formed a rock ba- oh my God." The group looked on stage to see the curtain open. Out walked Jackson with a guitar, behind him was Bennett with a bass, and Alex sat with the drums. The Master Power Crystal sat at the foot of the drumset. Jackson took the microphone.

"First of all, I would like to thank our contacts from Magic Castle for helping to make this room magically sound proof, so we can make all the noise we want, and not have to worry about those Matravinian A-holes tonight!" The crowd erupted. The team looked to Bennett, and then back at the stage in disbelief. "On a more somber note, after tonight's show, but before we go on our operation, we will be having a tribute to our fallen comrades. Their sacrifice will not be forgotten. This is not just a resistance; this a revolution. They will not die in vain! We will free our city! We will free our zone! We will free our planet!" The crowd went nuts. Nolan took out his communicator and started recording. "We are JAB, and now it's time to ROCK! ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR!" They started playing. And they were actually good.

"I never knew you guys played," said Aang.

"In this timeline, I guess Jackson kept practicing," commented Bennett. Harvey and Moe were completely dancing around Sokka, who had his hands up in the air as he jumped up and down. Nolan, Aang, and Bennett couldn't resist nodding their heads and listening. By the second song, they had forgotten that they were observing an alternate timeline...until a missile shot through the ceiling and exploded right in front of them.

Several more explosions went off and then ABF's familiar voice boomed from above the roof. "Jackson, surrender yourself and the Master Power Crystal, or everyone in this room will be reduced to smithereens." Several members ran toward the exit door, only to be gunned down as soon as the opened it. ABF and several armed guards descended into the center of the room. Jackson, hesitated, picked up the Master Power Crystal and started walking toward them.

Then he shouted, "Bennett, now!" as he threw the Master Power Crystal down. Bennett shattered it with earthbending and sent many of the shards flying into the guards. Everyone in the room drew weapons and the fight was on. Jackson took on ABF, but more guards showed up and the resistance members were quickly overwhelmed. Distracted by one of his fallen comrades, Jackson was hit by one of ABF's dark blasts and knocked back against the wall. Anthony moved in for the kill. Aang took the moment to cover Sokka's eyes. Nolan stopped recording. Anthony drew his sword back and thrust it forward just as Bennett dove in front of his brother, taking the stab right into his chest.

The observing Bennett froze. Anthony pulled his sword out of his victim. Jackson scrambled over to his brother. "Why the fuck would you do that? Get up!"

"Cool it dude...you woulda...done the same... for...m-..."

"No! Don't leave me!" Jackson screamed, he turned to Anthony as the guards handcuffed him. "You killed my brother. You will pay for this, you son of a bitch!" He and Alex were both loaded onto a ship along with a couple other prisoners and the shards of the Master Power Crystal, some of which were still lodged in the corpses of the guards. Jackson took one last look at his brother's body before the ship doors closed.

Anthony opened his wrist com. "Zactus, I have captured one of your nephews, the older one, I believe...No, unfortunately the other one was killed by one of your careless robots...Don't be going soft on me. We'll be returning soon." Bennett got strange glances from both Nolan and Aang. ABF turned to one of the officers. "Our work here is done. Let's burn this city to the ground." And they took off in a hovercraft.

The team went outside to see capital ships beginning to bomb the entire city. Nolan recorded a small segment of it. Then the area around them started to become distorted again. Aang got out his power crystal to fix it, but Bennett grabbed his hand. "No, Aang, let it fade. I don't want to see anymore of this reality." Aang obeyed and the bubble around them gradually slipped back into the same limbo as before and then quickly reappeared in a large space ship orbiting the planet. They saw Nolan, Kurt, and Shadow in a prison cell, each strung up by their wrists and ankles. Suddenly the three of them received a powerful electric shock for 5 seconds. One of the officers stood behind a control console with a guard.

"You Goddamn Geosaklis! You stupid idiots is that the best you got?" Shouted the chained up Nolan before being electrocuted again.

"Geosaklis?" asked Bennett. "I thought they lost the Matravinian Civil War?"

"Partially due to Anthony's intervention. Perhaps in this reality they didn't get that help," replied the observing Nolan.

The chao were pointing out of a window on the ship. "Guys..." said Aang. They looked down to see Power World in a disastrous state. They could see the fires from several dozen burning cities all the way from space.

"I feel like I'm getting tickled. I can't believe you think this will get us to answer their stupid questions. Right, guys? Guys? Fuckers! Reply when I'm talking!" said the imprisoned Nolan.

Kurt and Shadow each let out a grunt.

"The one in the middle is attempting to keep the other two mentally strong," said the guard to the officer. "Perhaps if we eliminate him we might break the other two faster."

"Excellent idea," said the officer, "Do it immediately." The guard turned up the center dial on the control console and hit the button. The captured Nolan yelled at the top of his lungs and then fell silent as he was given a brutal shock. The guard then went back to giving Kurt and Shadow a few more shocks, then the officer approached Kurt. "Your friend is now dead, and your other one will soon be dead as well if you don't tell me what I need to know. Where is he hiding it? Where is Zactus hiding?"

"Never..." whispered Kurt. The officer frowned.

"Put them up to level 7 he commanded!" Kurt and Shadow both yelled out in pain as they were electrocuted once more.

The air started to shimmer again. "Should I just let it go?" Asked Aang. Bennett and Nolan nodded. When the environment around them stabilized, they found themselves standing in the base.

"Well at least we're home," Nolan joked. "I even see Kurt over on that chair."

The door clicked and they all turned to see Jackson and Aang walk in.

Both stopped. "Kurt!"

"You knew this day would come. I've informed Lane about your pathetic base so even if you stop me now, the law will get you." He drew his sword and jumped at Jackson. Aang was quick and blasted Kurt aside with airbending. Jackson grabbed his power crystals and blasted Kurt in his super form. He was sent flying through a wall, but instinctively fired two dark blasts back. The blasts knocked Aang and Jackson unconscious but Kurt wasn't in much better shape. The sound of the fight drew Nolan and Bennett in. Both raised their arms.

"Stand down Kurt! You can't take us both." Kurt threw a smoke grenade, blinding the two, and dark warped out.

Still in the time rift, Bennett looked over at Aang. "Now what's up with this reality?"

"Maybe in this one Kurt joined Anthony rather than rejecting him?" Nolan replied. "But what did he say about Lane?"

Alex ran through the door with the answer. "Someone is locking on to our coordinates with one of the orbital cannons! We have to move now!" Bennett picked up Jackson and Nolan picked up Aang.

They followed the team through the passageways. Adorning the walls were old headlines, "MATRAVIN'S NEW LEADER: Anthony works for Everyone, MATRAVIN CHIEF DIPLOMAT KURT SENT TO SECURITY TALKS, MATRAVIN AND POWERWORLD SIGN PEACE TREATY, OUR SAVIORS: KURT AND HOWARD STRIKE DEAL".

The team got out just in time before the orbital strike hit. They dove to the ground. Jackson came to and looked over at Nolan, who looked right back and said "We should've killed the bastard when he betrayed us years ago."

"I will take him down!" declared Aang as he woke up. "I will avenge my father and Firespear!"

"Get in line, Aang. Son of a bitch killed mine and Jackson's parents too," put in Bennett.

"I don't care who does it, but he needs to be stopped. But Anthony should be our main concern right now," commented Alex, "We still have the five of us. What's the play, Jackson?"

Jackson sighed and stayed silent for several moments. "Guys, I'll be honest. Anthony and Kurt are going to have both of these planets under their tyranny, and they'll be after Bugdum soon. I don't see a way we can win this. The smartest thing we could do is go to Bugdum, pick up Aang's brother and sister, and start a new life on the distant planet Isoma. But that's not our style. I aim to misbehave. If we get ourselves killed, so be it. But we will make the worlds know what we fought for. We might not be able to bring them down in this lifetime, but maybe inspire future generations of freedom fighters. Regardless, this will be the Magic Team's last stand.

"Damn it all!" shouted the observing Nolan. "I'm sick of this crap. Bennett can use chaos control if he's in his super form, right? So why don't you guys try using it and get us out of here?"

"I suppose we could try again, although I'm worried we'll get separated even further if we mess up," replied Aang.

"We're pretty screwed either way, Aang. It's worth a shot," said Bennett as he disassembled his Power Crystal Sword and went into his super form. Aang joined in as well. Together, Super Bennett and Super Aang crossed their right arms and shouted "Chaos Control!" Soon the bubble was back in limbo and they saw the same blue area as before, except it was now turning green.

"There!" said Aang, "Let's end it on three. One, two, three! Now!"

The bubble dissipated and they found themselves in front of Kurt, Jackson, Alex, Troy, Katara, and Zactus.

The Quest for Redemption
Zactus noticed Kurt was in pursuit and slowed down to engage him as they reached the city. Kurt was ready this time and avoided Zactus' blasts swiftly, and more or less tackled Zactus all the way through the roof of an old warehouse. Zactus' battle suit still allowed for more agility, and he was soon back on his feet. Shots were being fired everywhere from Zactus' arm blasters to Kurt's blaster rifles. For about five minutes, it was a firefight, as the two alternated between flying around and blasting at each other to ducking behind pillars.However, Kurt gained an advantage when the dust got thick and he was able to hide behind a large stack of crates. He waited for the dust to clear up and listened for Zactus' movements. He could hear him approaching the other side of the crates. He concentrated a moment more, and then made his move. Activating the jetpack once more, he jumped over the large stack of crates and shot down at Zactus. Zactus tried to avoid his fire, but he was hit on the shoulder and thigh, which gave Kurt the opportunity to land right in front of him and deliver a shot that sent Zactus flying out the wall.

Kurt dropped the jetpack and ran outside through the hole with his sword and one of his rifles. Zactus' armor was significantly damaged, but far from compromised. Zactus could deploy arm blades, but he knew they would be no match for Kurt's expert swordsmanship, so he used his blasters to keep Kurt at a distance. He then shot a charge blast that Kurt was barely able to dodge, resulting in him losing a grip on his rifle. As it flew out of his reach Kurt was left with only his sword. "Less than two miles from here, Anthony is still working on his Avatar training. He is vulnerable. We could end him together now, Kurt! Stop the man that has caused us both so much pain."

A small part of Kurt was intrigued by this thought, but his own sense of principle quickly took over. "That isn't our place to do. I will accept what the future has in store. I might not win this fight Zactus," he claimed as he glanced at only his sword in his hand, "but I would rather die than stand back and watch you jeopardize reality just because you feel guilty!"

"So be it! Your future ends here!" shouted Zactus as he charged at Kurt with his arm blades and blasters, but was interrupted by laser fire from above. The X-Tornado was transforming into X-Cyclone to land, and Alex and Katara jumped out as the plane descended. Alex immediately bombarded Zactus with fire blasts while using earthbending to break open a nearby water tank, giving Katara plenty to work with. Troy and Jackson jumped out as soon as the plane landed. Jackson went over to attend to Kurt while Troy went after Zactus. Alex and Katara had made the most of their surprise attack and didn't allow Zactus any window for recovery. When Troy moved in, they covered his approach, and he was soon right on top of Zactus. Zactus was able to block a few of Troy's sword strikes with his arm blades, but soon Troy got a direct hit on the time mechanism, knocking the stone out. "No!" shouted Zactus as Troy dove to the ground, grabbed the time stone. Zactus was about to come down on him with his arm blades, but Jackson knocked him back with a distant air blast.

"I've got it!" Troy yelled. "Don't hold back!"

Alex unleashed another fury of firebending to keep Zactus grounded, then used earthbending to pull his legs a foot into the ground. "Now Katara!"

Katara shot several small streams of water at the joints of Zactus' suit and froze them as they made contact. The expansion of the ice forced the panels out a little bit. Unable to move, Zactus watched in horror as Alex used his strength to rip his battle suit apart. Alex stood victorious, the gestured to Kurt. "He's all yours, boss." Kurt walked over to Zactus and held his sword to his throat.

"No need for that, Kurt. I surrender." Kurt lowered his sword. Suddenly, there was a flash of light and Nolan, Aang, Bennett, Sokka, Harvey, and Moe walked into the scene. Hugs and greetings were quickly exchanged among siblings and team members. "But you must understand," Zactus continued, " I only did this to try to prevent this awful war. Most of you would've lived better lives!"

"You would think that," interrupted Nolan, "But as we stumbled through limbo, we got a glimpse of some of these realities that could result from your attempts." He showed Zactus the recordings and watched as his face grew sadder and sadder. Eventually Zactus held up his hand, and closed his eyes.

"No more," he begged as tears ran down his cheeks. "All I wanted was to redeem myself for all of the horrible things I'd done. Now I see that nothing I do can ever change that."

"You might not be able to change what you did, Zactus," replied Kurt, "But that doesn't mean you can't redeem yourself. Start anew. Turn MDI into a company that helps the people. And use your power to end the war."

Zactus paused. Everyone was silent for about thirty seconds. "The war council and the MDI board of directors will never allow me to such actions. Any suggestions of peace I've made in the past were immediately shut down. But as I'm sure you've figured out, Anthony is not dead and will return one day. I will abandon Matravin entirely, rally my supporters, and we will do everything we can to make sure that when he returns, he won't go far with his plans. I promise you, Kurt; I promise you all, the Zactus you thought you knew is a broken man who only wants what you want, and now wants to accomplish it with you." With that, Alex released Zactus' legs from the ground, at which point he stood up and shook Kurt's hand.

"Now, what do we do about this place?" asked Jackson, looking around at the trashed area. It's definitely not how it was before.

"Actually, you're alright this time," replied Troy. He pointed to some notices attached to the fence. "This whole place is set to be demolished tomorrow. It won't make a difference at all. Guess we got lucky."

"Don't get used to it. It never works out that well for us," replied Jackson.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Troy

"We're a member short, you fight well with us, and your temple has been compromised. Face it Troy, you've got nothing to do but join our team."

Troy began to raise his arm about to argue, then he paused, lowered it, and actually smiled. "I suppose you're right." Kurt and Nolan nodded at Jackson in approval.

Everyone gathered around in a circle, and Jackson and Aang used chaos control. This time, everyone came out at the right time and place, arriving safely at the time power temple in their own present time. Troy handed Aang the stone. "What do you want me to do with this?"

He pointed to Jackson and Aang. "Using your chaos control and the stone, you two should be able to travel to the infinity pool, the place where time and space truly become one. There you will insert the stone and lock the course of time for good. Once you've done that, the only way for it to be removed will be by at least one of you with another chaos user."

"Wait," said Zactus, "Before they do that, is there anyway we can go back in time for observation? I want to show Kurt, Jackson, and Bennett something. I only want to show them something, not manipulate time. I'll go handcuffed, I just need to..."

"Settle down," interrupted Troy, taking the stone back from Aang and handing it to Zactus, "The viewing pedestal is over there. Place the stone on the pedestal and let your mind move you and those three through time and space.

They gathered around. Zactus closed his eyes and focused. He, Kurt, Jackson, and Bennett joined hands.'

They found themselves at Jackson and Bennett's parents' wedding. They looked to the altar to see the man standing to the right of the couple. Jackson and Bennett gasped. Zactus was there, and he was their father's best man. "Richard and I worked together for many years before you two were born. We were two of the greatest minds in Electronic World. We may not have had supernatural powers, but our minds together were unstoppable. We were like brothers, and then we became brothers when he married my sister." Jackson, Bennett, and Kurt were at a loss for words. "Yes, it's true. I'm your uncle, and you two used to be a very important part of my life." The area faded and Zactus moved to a different time. The group recognized it as Jackson and Bennett's childhood home. Zactus was playing with Jackson and a stack of building blocks. "I was born sterile, and I will never be able to have kids of my own. Your parents knew this, and after you were born, Jackson, I spent a lot of time at your home. Your parents were kind enough to let me be a part of your upbringing. "

The scene transitioned to a lab in Electronic World. "It was a about six months after Bennett was born that I got word of a new opportunity for myself and your father. Matravin Technology Innovations was starting up, and they wanted both of us on there head design team. I wanted us to go together as a family, but your parents couldn't abide us working on projects that would aid Matravin, whose political position with Power World was already growing more unstable. But I was a man of science, and I couldn't pass up on the opportunity. Power World had so many legal limits on what we could do with technology, but the possibilities on Matravin seemed infinite! I kept throwing the idea around when we were at work, but your father wouldn't budge, and as he became more bothered by it, his responses got harsher. One day, we both snapped.

"There's nothing to support that it's solely a military company. Think of the possibilities! We could finally try out my..."

"Zactus, you're insane. If you honestly think it would be okay to throw away all the good we do for people here to sell out to a potentially evil company under the premise of fancy toys and a higher pay-grade, then your sense of ethics is truly gone."

"Sense of ethics? Think about what you're passing up for your family. Think of Jackson and Bennett..."

"I am thinking of Jackson and Bennett! And right now I'm thinking I don't want them to be around you anymore!"

"How could you say that? I'm a better father to them than you could ever be."

The fight started then. Punches were thrown everywhere, projects were knocked over, and the observers were horrified to see the two best friends in a fierce brawl. Zactus fought fiercely, but he couldn't keep up with Richard's airbending. The scene faded back to the house. "We were both fired that day," Zactus added. And that was the last time I ever spoke with your father. Knowing that I would be barred from your house, I went to say one last goodbye to you two. I didn't even get that."

"No," shouted Jackson and Bennett's mother, "I don't want them to ever see you again!" The scene faded once more.

"I left for Matravin, but I still watched out for you two from afar. But there was one final gift I wished to give. In my research on brain-controlled technology, I found out about the part of the brain that interacts with transformation abilities. With the labs at Matravin Technology Innovations, I was able to devise a way to give special abilities to someone. And after two years, I returned to Power World, when you were 5 years old, Jackson."

"Are you saying...?"

"Yes, Jackson." They found themselves by an Electronic World Energy reactor on a cloudy day, and a young Jackson and Bennett were on a walk with their parents. "I knew you were the guardian of the Master Power Crystal and I wanted you to have more than just airbending. I gave you your powers that day. I would've given them to Bennett too, but I feared it might be dangerous to try it with someone so small and young. The discharge of power targeted you as planned. However, I used far too much power, and the excess was deflected miles away. It formed itself into an imitation of the last form it had touched, and so Double-Jackson came to be. I never tried this again.The project was abandoned later that year, as Matravin Technology Innovations became Matravin Defense Industries, exactly what your father feared." He removed the time stone from the pedestal, and they were suddenly back in the room in the temple.

"So, the part of the brain that deals with transformation abilities..." Kurt began to conclude.

"Yes, it's also the part of your brain that deals with the trauma that you experience with betrayal. When Anthony betrayed you, and when Double-Jackson and Jackson had to fight, those powers were lost."

"But my powers, Double-Jackson, and likely my joining the team... were all thanks to you?"

"I should've just told you years ago. I never wanted..."

Jackson hugged Zactus. You may have been my enemy, but you changed my life in the most important way. I see now why I always felt we had so much in common. I...I'm ready to forgive."

"Jackson, your forgiveness means the world to me. But to say that I've influenced your life more than your parents and these two," Zactus said, indicating Bennett and Kurt, "Is simply false. They've made you into a better young man than I ever could have." Jackson and Bennett joined Zactus in one last hug.

Moving Forward
Jackson and Aang picked up the stone in their left hands, and crossed their right arms with their power crystals in those hands. "Chaos Control!" they shouted. They found themselves in the bubble in light tunnel again, but this time they pushed through further and found themselves on a small island of rock with a small pool of water in the middle of it. Around them was infinite blackness. They saw a small slot in the shallow water that would fit the stone.

"Well," said Jackson, "let's put it in and use chaos control to seal it forever."

"And then do you think we should make sure it can't be undone?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean as long as you and I are alive, this can be changed. Do you think we should...?"

"Aang, you are one of the bravest people I've ever met, and you've grown so much in these past three years, but we don't need to go there. As noble as it would be, we don't need to sacrifice ourselves for this now. The galaxy needs us. We're Avatars and heroes. A little more responsibility won't kill us. I've gone through a lot these past few days, but now I'm finally convinced that as long as we stay true to who we are, and not give into darkness and temptation, there's nothing we can't accomplish."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound..."

"Plus, I made your father a promise. And you made me a promise to never give up."

Aang finally smiled. "Alright, let's do this."

Together, they put the stone into the slot in the pool. One last time, they crossed their right arms with their power crystals. "Chaos Control!" they said together. The pool lit up, the tunnel suddenly appeared again, and they were sucked back quickly through it. They arrived back in the temple right after the moment they left. "It's done," they confirmed.

Everyone went outside and got the planes ready for takeoff while Zactus pulled Kurt and Jackson aside for a word in private. "I can't believe I'm saying bye to this place after so many years," said Troy sentimentally, "And yet, it feels so right." Once everyone was ready, they gathered around. It was almost sunset, and a small remote drone ship had arrived with a new battle suit for Zactus.

"While the battle last night was mostly an elaborate distraction to lull you guys into a false sense of security about the time powers," Zactus explained, "It did take a major toll on my forces "I will do what I can to cripple MDI before I leave, and I will take as many loyal supporters as I can into exile with me on Isoma. I can say with certainty that Anthony will return one day. It could be in a month, it could be many years. But, I can, assure you that when that day comes, you will have our support. And he will face justice."

"Until that day, Magic Team," he concluded, "Defend Power World. Defend this system. Just as you have today, just as you have for years. And never lose sight of what you stand for." With that, he blasted off in the distance. The team stood in silence for several minutes, and then got in their planes and flew home.

The entire team slept like rocks that night. Kurt approached Jackson and Aang the next morning. "Jackson, I want you to take a couple weeks off."

"What? What did I do? You can't..."

"This isn't punishment. I just think that some time away from the base, away from all this, might be good for you. Aang, you should probably go with him too. Spend some time relaxing, tinkering, playing with Harvey and Moe."

Jackson and Aang looked to each other, and then back at Kurt. "Alright," said Aang, "Sounds like a plan."

"And don't worry about Katara and Sokka. We'll be keeping them plenty busy around here."

Kurt and Nolan watched as the X-Tornado and Firefly took off and made there way to Jackson's workshop. "Those two need each other more than they realize," Kurt said, still gazing out at the sky.

"We certainly need them too," added Nolan.

"Fair point, but I think you'll be able to handle what we've got set up for the next few weeks," Kurt commented,

"Whoa, when did this become a "me" thing?"

"I'll be joining you when I can, but I'm going to have to be with the government explaining the whole Zactus situation and planning the next strategic move in the war. It's gonna be a lot of paperwork to deal with, plus Howard Lane. Trust me, your getting the better end of this deal."

"Fair enough," said Nolan as Kurt climbed into the Akira's cockpit. "Everything alright?"

"It's just strange. I've feared that Anthony wasn't completely dead ever since our last fight with him. And I now know the day will come when we face him again. After Shadow's death, I was worried everything was gonna fall apart, but here we are now. We have the upper hand in the war, Zactus is an ally, we've still got a team. And when Anthony returns, we'll be ready for him. Finally, I'm confident again."

"Well, it took you long enough. I always knew you'd pull us through, and you know I'm no optimist. That's Jackson's job."

"I couldn't do it without my team."

"Take care, my friend." Nolan said as Kurt took off. After the ship disappeared and the hangar door closed, Nolan walked to the elevator. He came out on the main level where Katara and Sokka were waiting eagerly. "You two ready to go to work? I'm gonna need your help getting these scrubs up to Magic Team standards."

The two kids cheered and followed Nolan down the hall to the other elevator. They arrived in the training room, where Bennett, Alex, and Troy ready to start training as a team.

"Let's get this party started!" said Nolan.

Tactics and Troubles
MDI wasn't dead, and Matravin's offensive was far from over. A month after Zactus' departure, the X-Tornado, X-3, and Firefly tore through the sky and squadrons of fighters. The capital ships were closing in on major cities, so Jackson, Nolan, and Aang knew blowing them out of the sky wasn't an option. Harvey took over for Jackson, Katara took over for Nolan, and Moe took over for Aang. They dove out of their planes, mounted their hoverboards in midair, and raced along the hull of the command ship toward the bridge, dodging cannon blasts and slicing through robots that arose to the surface of the ship. They crashed into the bridge, and immediately went to work disarming everyone and destroying all of the guard robots. Within a minute, Nolan had the general at sword point, Aang had the others frozen in ice, and Jackson was landing the ship safely on the ground. Suddenly, Aang's eyes flashed for a second like he was going to go into the Avatar state, but then he started clutching his forehead in pain. "You alright, Aang?" asked Nolan.

"Yeah," said Aang, "I think it's...just a headache."

"Good," said Jackson helping him up, "Contact the fleet, tell them the enemy has surrendered -- you have to do that by the way, general -- and they will be landing for prisoner exchange. Then let's fly out and pick up Kurt from his meeting."

Meanwhile, Bennett and Alex were on a recon mission, investigating a place in Blue Ridge Zone where MDI possibly had an outpost. They were both using firebending to keep themselves warm. Finally Bennett felt something with earthbending and the two moved in to investigate. The two found an encampment of robots and a few officers. They launched themselves into the middle and tore through the robots like they were nothing, and soon had the officers cuffed. Then Bennett's eyes lit up for a second and he fell over in pain. The officers tried to use the opportunity to escape, but Alex knocked them all back down. "You okay, man?"

"Ugh, yeah, it's just...weird. Let's get these guys turned in to the authorities and meet the rest of the team back at the base."

At the military strategy convention in Tanner City, Kurt walked out of the meeting room arguing with Howard Lane as usual. "You're insane if you think that could truly solve the issue."

"You just don't want anyone but your team getting the credit for defending this planet. We could easily develop the technology"

"Obliterating populated cities on Matravin won't win us this war. The problem isn't the cities, it's not even the people in them. It's the corrupt leaders that are in control of the central government and military. But if we take innocent lives, I guarantee everyone on that planet, not to mention many people from ours, will be aggravated. They'll see us as monsters and rightly so. And with a population united, there will be no stopping them."

"A horse can only take so many beatings before it collapses. They will surrender whether it takes five cities of fifty. You say that it's only the leaders that matter, but ABF and Zactus are both gone, and the fighting goes on. Someone will always step up if the people think they have a chance. We need to show them that fighting us is futile. As for our people, they'll find it quite justified if the enemy strikes first."

"What do you mean?"

"If we orchestrated a fake attack, destroyed a city in Electronic World or Invisible Isle with a moderate population..."

"You've lost your mind!" shouted Kurt, "Sacrificing the innocent lives of thousands of people for..."

"What makes them more innocent than our soldiers? Than you or me? Wake up! This is war, Kurt. Lives have to be sacrificed, and if you think that seven freedom fighters can circumvent that, then you're truly more naive than I thought. You put too much trust in people. If everyone was reasonable, we wouldn't need laws or government at all. But people won't just do the right thing, and sometimes coercion is necessary for order."

"Lane," called Nolan as he and the others walked down the hall from the hangar. "I'm glad you've pulled that stick out of your ass, but you shouldn't be waving it around and pointing it at people."

Lane frowned, and looked to Kurt. "I hope that one day you can get off your high horse and take a reality check."

"At least I don't wound my own horse," replied Kurt. Lane turned and walked away toward the hangar. Jackson and Nolan approached. "I find it harder and harder not to punch him every time," said Kurt.

"What's his bright idea this time?" asked Jackson.

"He wants the military to develop a way to destroy Matravinian cities with the push of a button. Speaking of which, make sure that your father does a background check on any projects he's assigned. I wouldn't want him to be tricked into helping with this."

"I'll call him as soon as I get the chance. He's pretty good about that though. Aang, are you sure you're alright." Aang was bent over clutching his forehead again," said Jackson.

"It's like a headache, but it feels deeper, yet from out of my body at the same time."

"I'll take a look at it when we get back to the base," assured Nolan. "Speaking of which, shall we leave?"

They walked into the hangar to get in their planes. "What the hell are you guys doing?" shouted Jackson at some men who were scanning the X-Tornado, X-3, and Firefly.

"Just a standard security check," said Howard Lane from the boarding ramp of his shuttle.

"Bullshit! They've never done that before and those are your assistants, not this place's. I built those planes, and their inner workings are my intellectual property, not the government's, and especially not yours."

Howard Lane frowned. "You complain so much that I don't trust you, yet you don't seem to display any trust in me or the government. Maybe one day you won't be so selfish and you'll share the technology that could help us win this war instead of keeping it all to yourself." With that, he left.

"Harvey, Moe, do a quick sweep around the planes. Look for anything they might've attached." Sure enough, the two chao were able to find a small homing tracker on each of the planes.

"He's trying to find the base. And he wonders why we don't trust him," said Kurt.

"Can I smash them?" asked Sokka.

"No, I have a better idea," said Jackson.

They flew over a large waste dump on the way back to the base. "Now, Sokka!" shouted Jackson. Sokka hit the button in the X-Tornado, which dropped the three trackers down into the sludge below. "Trust that, Howard."

The Quest for Answers
The group arrived back at the base. They found Troy and Alex in the training room with Bennett watching them from the observation room. Aang approached Bennett. "Has it been getting worse for you too?"

"Yes," replied Bennett, "It has."

Kurt was puzzled. "What's going on, you two?"

Aang looked to Bennett. "I think it's time we tell them." Bennett nodded. "Kurt, it's time for a team meeting."...

All seven members gathered in the meeting room. Aang took a deep breath. "Ever since Zactus shot me in the side when we rescued Nolan from the volcanic planet, Bennett and I have been having some headache-like pains from time to time. It wasn't until around the time power incident that Bennett and I found out that we were both going through this. And recent weeks, the pains have become more frequent, and they've been accompanied by the same glow in our eyes that we get when we go into the Avatar state. We were hoping we could figure this out without worrying you guys, but we need your help. All we have is that it probably has something to do with the fact that we're both Avatars and my near-death experience. As I told Kurt before, I've felt that my connection to the Avatar spirit has weakened since then. Moreover, we all know that Jackson's time as the Avatar was very short, and if my time ends soon, which it feels like it might, mine will be even shorter. These things could all be related."

"We fear the possibility that the Avatar spirit might be dying," added Bennett.

"Well if it's an Avatar thing, wouldn't Jackson be getting the pains too?" asked Troy.

"I may be an Avatar, but not the current one. The primary spirit moved from me to Aang months ago. Bennett is next in line"

"Death does strange things to spirits," said Nolan, "so it's understandable that a near death experience would put your spirit out of balance."

"But then why is Bennett going through this too?" questioned Alex.

"I have a thought." All eyes turned to Kurt. "Forgive me, I've studied many forms of Magic, but my knowledge of things pertaining to the Avatar is limited. However, my best guess is that when Aang nearly died, part of the Avatar Spirit must've started moving on to Bennett. When Jackson healed Aang, that could've stopped the transfer, resulting in a spirit that is torn between you."

The room was silent for a few moments. "That's a more plausible theory than anything we've come up with," conceded Aang, "But what can we do about it?"

"Like I said, I'm no expert. I don't know if you'll find your answers here. You may have to go to some place like an Avatar temple."

"Well the one on Power World is pretty much destroyed, and I'm really having some mixed feelings about returning to the one at the base of Villain's Gulch on Matravin," said Jackson. "I don't even know if that would have the information we need."

"Bennett, what about the one on Bugdum?" suggested Alex, " The one we visited when we went treasure hunting with Firespear?"

"That place was filled with murals and scrolls. It has to have something," agreed Bennett.

"Sounds worth the trip to me," concurred Aang. "Bugdum will have answers. The two of us should get going immediately."

"While I don't think it's necessary to bring the whole team for this one," interjected Kurt, "I don't think you should be going alone either. Jackson, I'd like you to accompany them."

"With all due respect, Kurt, I'd like to go as well," added Alex.

"Very well, Alex. Aang, if you don't mind. I'd like Katara and Sokka to stay here. Just in case we need some healing where a power cure won't cut it."

"Agreed," confirmed Aang.

Within the hour, Jackson, Aang, Bennett, Alex, Harvey, and Moe were all ready to go in the X-Tornado. "Say hi to Firespear for us!" called Nolan as they blasted off. He watched until they were nothing but a dot in the sky.

The Avatar Temple
Firespear waited outside her village as the X-Tornado landed nearby. She ran over and hugged Jackson and Aang. "It's been so long!" she exclaimed.

"Far too long," replied Jackson. "So, this is Bugdum," he said in awe looking around at the lush landscape.

"Ah, yes. I forgot that you've never been here, Jackson. Welcome to Bugdum!"

"It reminds me a lot of Isoma. It's beautiful."

"Power World, Matravin, and Bugdum were once known as the three sisters. All three were lush garden planets until Matravin was hit by a massive Asteroid," informed Bennett. "It hasn't been industrialized as much as either of the others, so that means there's always treasure left to find."

"That's not what we came here for this time, Bennett," reminded Aang.

"Right," said Bennett, "Firespear can you lead us to the Avatar temple again?"

"Absolutely," she replied.

"Great, you can take the seat behind the pilot's seat so you can help us navigate there," suggested Jackson

Firespear laughed. "You won't be able to get there in that plane. And you can't warp there either. You'll have to travel bugdunian style." And with that, she transformed into a fully-flegged dragon.

Within the hour, the group flew through the sky on the backs of dragons and aproached a large canyon. Hundreds of natural bridges and massive columns filled the canyon, forming a layered spiderweb-like network. Jackson could see why flying in a plane was a bad idea. In the center was a large building, almost like a castle. They landed gently on the ground and gazed upon the magnificent temple. "Let's hope this place has the answers you guys are looking for," said Alex. Firespear joined the four team members in exploring the temple while the other three dragons remained outside. The temple was grand, and surprisingly well lit. And there were areas of grass and wildlife that looked like they were under an open sky. Jackson was amazed.

The group split up; Firespear went with Bennett, Aang, and Moe while Alex went with Jackson and Harvey. They found several libraries full of scrolls and murals. Alex found a mural that interested Jackson. It displayed Altar Emerald and one of the previous Avatars. "The inscription speaks of Avatar Yangzen, the first Avatar. She was the guardian of the Master Power Crystal," Alex explained. "This part is hard to interpret, but it seems to say something like the Master Power Crystal shined spiritual light on her to give her the power of the Avatar."

"So I'm not the first Avatar to also be the guardian of the Master Power Crystal. I had no idea the that the Master Power Crystal had anything to do with the Avatar spirit. Definitely something worth noting."

Bennett, Aang, and Firespear eventually made their way into a large circular room full of statues. "These must be the previous Avatars," commented Aang. They walked through the concentric circles of statues. "Who builds these anyway?"

"I've heard legends that the spirits add a new statue every time the Avatar spirit moves on," replied Bennett." On the far right side of the room, they found the end. They looked at the statues of the last three Avatars. "Anthony," Bennett said, "Of all people, why do I share the title of being an earth Avatar with ABF. All of us really. How can someone like that be an Avatar? He stood for darkness, not light."

"Shadow, too, wrestled with darkness for much of his life," added Firespear, "but he had so much light in him too. But after he, Nolan, and I were possessed by the shards of the Dark Master Power Crystal, the darkness won over."

"For much of his life? He raised me, he was married. What would've caused so much darkness?"

"It's not in my place to say right now, but it did haunt him for a long time. No one knew better than Kaela. After they adopted you and got married, Shadow thought things would get better. Raising one child was a lot for him still, but he eventually felt ready to have more, and after many years, Katara and Sokka were born. They were only four years old when he got the suggestion to join your team. He thought it would be good for him. Kaela was still worried though, so she asked me to go to Power World to look after him. That's how I joined the team."

"But it didn't quell the darkness within him, did it."

"No, it was too late. And the Avatar spirit moved on."

They turned to Jackson's statue. "And yet then we get to him. He's been...well a light for all of us," commented Aang. "Avatar aside, he is one of the most caring people I know. And he's a spiritual person; he's the guardian of the Master Power Crystal. Why did he only carry the Avatar spirit for two and a half years?"

"More importantly, why after six months of you being the Avatar did the spirit become split between us because of a hit you took?"

Aang paused, then his face lit up. "We're asking the right questions but in the wrong place. My father has been living in the spirit world for the last three and a half years. He should know a lot about the spirits. We can talk to him in the spirit world."

"Aang, meditating into the spirit world could take hours. Plus I've only been able to do it twice, and Jackson only a handful of times. I think our time would be better spent looking through this place for more information."

"We don't have to meditate. I have the ability to spirit warp. I can go instantly. And I'm able to take you and Jackson with me."

"Take us where?" Jackson asked as he, Alex, and Harvey came into the room.

"I'm going to spirit warp us into the spirit world and get some answers from my father."

"Okay...if you say s-say, what a damn fine looking statue they've got here. I like the pose. And they got my nose and chin just right."

"Jackson, you can be narcissistic later," interrupted Firespear, "Right now, your brother and your friend need something."

"Sorry, let's get going. Lead the way, Aang."

"We'll watch over your bodies while you're in there," assured Alex.

"Chao!" affirmed Harvey.

Aang, Jackson, and Bennett grabbed hands. Almost instantly, they were in the middle of a lush, beautiful forest in the spirit world.

Spiritual Truths
Bright, glowing, and colorful spirits walked and floated everywhere. "I always forget how incredible this place is," Jackson said to no one in particular.

"Now that we're here, let's try mediation to find our previous Avatar," suggested Aang. They sat down on the ground, and soon the space of the Spirit World started moving around them. Moments later, they were in front of Shadow.

"Hello Aang, it's been a while. And even longer for you two, Jackson and Bennett."

Aang went up an hugged the man who raised him. "I missed you, Dad."

"I'm always here whenever you need me," replied Shadow. "What brings the three of you here?"

"Months ago, I took a nearly fatal hit while in the Avatar State. In fact, if Jackson hadn't just then discovered I had a super form, it might have been over. But since then Bennett, the next Avatar, and I have been having sudden pains, and my connection to the Avatar Spirit seems so weak. I can't even access the Avatar State. The spirit is within me, yet I still feel so out of touch."

"I was hoping it wouldn't come to this, but I believe I understand what's happening. A few years ago, Kurt, Jackson, Nolan, Firespear and I defeated ABF and discovered his identity as Anthony, the Avatar before me. Weeks after the battle I met with the Avatar sages here on Bugdum. They told me that Anthony's actions would likely have corrupted Avatar spirit by tainting it with darkness.Times of war already upset the spirits of light, so they told me that it was crucial to keep the Avatar spirit aligned with good, so that the it would eventually clear out the corruption.

But shortly after I arrived in the spirit world, I was told that Raia, the spirit of light, was having trouble linking with the Avatar spirit. I heard rumors that Raia's bond with the channel that connects her to the physical world had been disrupted. When she tried to reconnect, she couldn't fully lock onto the Avatar spirit because the corruption allowed Vaxu, the spirit of dark, to interfere."

"So then the Avatar Spirit still isn't fully connected with the light?" asked Jackson for clarification.

"And so it hasn't been able to purge out the darkness?" asked Bennett.

"Yes," said Shadow after a brief pause, "And now the limited light that can get through to you is split in half between Bennett and Aang, allowing the corruption to fight back."

"But what could've caused the disruption? How could that happen?" asked Aang.

"I have my theories," said Shadow, "All I can say for certain is that it happened shortly before I died, but...but...I'm fairly certain that...That it's all my fault!" he shouted as he fell to his knees, tears running out of his eyes. Clouds gathered in the sky as Shadow became overcome with grief. Aang went down and held Shadow trying to calm him. Jackson was horrified, he had never seen Shadow like this.

"I let myself become consumed with darkness. After we returned from Zactus's sun base, I knew something was wrong. So when the battle of Bugdum happened, I brought back my children with me to Power World, hoping that it would help me shut away the darkness. But it was too late. I finished what Anthony started in truly compromising the Avatar Spirit."

"Shadow, you can't blame yourself for that. You had been under the influence of the Dark Master Power Crystal," said Bennett trying to reassure him.

"Nolan and Firespear recovered from it fine! But I'd let too much darkness into my life already to truly escape it. I was no different from Anthony; I wanted power, and I was willing to turn to darkness to do it. And because of that, you and my son are suffering."

No one said a word for several seconds. The only sound was the thunder clouds rolling in. "It's not because of that!" exclaimed Jackson suddenly. "Earlier today Alex showed me a mural with the Master Power Crystal shining light onto the first Avatar. That light must have been the power of Raia. If their truly is a channel that connects Raia in the spirit world with the Avatar in the physical world, it must be the Master Power Crystal."

"So what's your point?" asked Aang.

"My point is that during the battle on the sun base, Firespear used the Master Power Crystal to deflect the blast, causing it to shatter! That's what caused the link to break!"

"Of course!" said Shadow "The Master Power Crystal and its its altar exist here in the Spirit World too. If you go to Raia, perhaps one of you can reconnect her with the Crystal!"

"Where can we find them?" asked Bennett.

"She and Vaxu both live in the mountains in that direction. You should find the gates at the base of the largest mountain. Aang and Bennett, you should get going immediately."

"I'll go with them," declared Jackson. "There's no time to lose. Let's go guys. And Shadow, thank you."

"No thank you, Jackson. Your words, they've brought me peace again. Follow this path through the mountain pass. You should find the spirits soon enough. Take care, my friends. Take care, my son."

The three started walking, and again, the space of the spirit world seemed to move around them, allowing them to travel quickly. They soon found themselves at a large set of gates at the base of a mountain. Two spirit sentinels awaited them at the gates. "What is your business here, outsiders?"

"We need to cleanse the Avatar Spirit. We need Raia."

"We'd hoped this day would come. Very well, you may proceed." The three began the climb up the mountain trail. After about ten minutes of climbing they reached the mesa at the summit where they found the two spirits were staring intently at each other. One looked like glowing angel of light, the other a black demon of darkness.

"Visitors, at last," said Vaxu in a shrill, cunning voice. "Care to see what true power feels like?"

"Don't listen to her!" shouted Raia. "I recognize you. What is your business, here young Avatars?" Her tone was much more pleasant and soothing.

"We're here to reconnect you with the Master Power Crystal, and therefore, us," stated Bennett.

"At last this day has come! Because of Avatar Anthony's corruption, I was never able to fully reconnect after the Crystal shattered" said Raia.

"Let's get to it then," said Jackson.

"But it's not so simple. In order to reconnect with the Master Power Crystal and the physical world, I need to attach myself to one of your spiritual forms and go with you."

"We will do whatever it takes," assured Aang.

"However, the times of war and the evil of Avatar Anthony have made Vaxu grow strong. Without me here to control her, she could go as far as to take over the physical form of who is carrying me. Avatar Aang and Avatar Bennett, if one of you two is still willing, I am too, but there may be consequences."

The three turned to each other. "Alex, Firespear, Harvey, Moe, either of you, and I can probably hold off whichever of you volunteers in the physical world. The question is, can we do it without using lethal force?"

"I'll do it," said Aang. "If worse comes to worth, the Avatar cycle must be preserved. If this is my destiny, then so be it."

"Thank you, Aang," said Bennett, giving him a small hug. Aang turned around about to face Raia.

"Aang!" shouted Jackson as he ran up and gave him a tight hug. "I'm so proud of you. No matter what happens, you will always be the most incredible person I've had the privilege to mentor."

"Thank you, Jackson. I'll see you on the other side, alright? Don't let my body rough you up too hard."

Jackson and Bennett sat down and meditated out of the spirit world. As soon as they disappeared, Aang turned and faced Raia. "I'm ready," he said confidently.

"This ought to be fun!" snickered Vaxu from nearby.

"Let us begin," spoke Raia. She flew up and dove into Aang's spirit. "For this journey we are one."

Vaxu flew away from the mountain top and disappeared.

Journey of Light
Jackson and Bennett were back in their physical world bodies. The others stared and gave confused clances to Aang's body. Jackson spoke up before they could bombard him with questions. "Okay guys, here's the short version. Aang is going to fix things through the spirit world, but while he's doing it, a dark spirit is going to manipulate his physical body. We have to hold him off from causing any major destruction, but do not use lethal force! I swear if any one of you kills him, I will make you wish he'd killed you. Now get ready!"

Suddenly, Aang's eyes opened and he went into the Avatar state, but his eyes were glowing red instead of blue. For a second, he merely floated in midair, but the next he used to unleash a wave of airbending that knocked the whole group back. Bennett was the only one to land on his feet, and he began his earthbending fueled counter-attack toward the possessed Aang.

Meanwhile, Aang walked through a dark forest in the spirit world. Raia lit the way has he traveled. " Vaxu left this area dark to deter light spirits. And I fear that may be the least of our worries. We must press forward no matter what happens. Together."

"I need to ask. My father, or not really -- I mean, the Avatar before Jackson, Shadow...did he damage the light of the Avatar Spirit?"

"No Avatar is perfect, and Shadow was a prime example of that. He was confused and struggled. His actions weren't necessarily selfish, but they weren't for the good of others either. Whether or not he is partially responsible for the corruption, I may never know. But if he is, I know that his contribution is insignificant in comparison to that of the Avatar before him."

"ABF...Anthony."

"That is right. Never before has the Avatar Spirit been so abused. I felt it more and more difficult to maintain my connection to the physical world. I tried to recover during Shadow's time, but when the Master Power Crystal shattered, I was so drained that I let Vaxu get in the way and stop me from fully reconnecting."

"Well he was an earthbender, so once Bennett's time is complete, a whole cycle will have passed, and he will be ancient history."

"That reminds me," said Raia, "There is something I should've told your friends before they left. While we're making this journey, I'm solely bound to you. Therefore..."

Meanwhile in the physical world, Jackson and Bennett found a complication in holding off their foe. "Someone counter his waterbending attacks!" yelled Firespear.

"I can't!" replied Jackson, "I can only bend air right now!"

"And I can only do earth!" yelled Bennett.

"Really wish we'd brought the kids for this one!" shouted Alex as he vaporized the streams of water with firebending. Jackson charged Harvey and Moe with their spin attacks and threw them at Aang, knocking him back.

Raia and Aang heard a voice as they continued down the path. "This fight is oh so interesting. I wonder who is going to come out on top. If they kill you, you'll be trapped here forever. If you kill one of them, you'll be left with guilt forever. Just go back. End the fight now." A projection of Vaxu appeared nearby.

"Ignore her. Vaxu will do anything to prevent us from succeeding. You are brave and your friends are brave. We musn't give up."

"Isn't she selfish?" Vaxu chimed in. " She would have you lay down your lives for her."

"It's not for me. It's for the future of all Avatars."

"If you leave Raia unconnected, no one will have to be the Avatar! You've always been afraid, Aang. Imagine a world where no one is burdened with that responsibility. Imagine being free. You would be the last Avatar. Join me Aang. With my power, all four elements, and the power crystals, no one could stop you."

"Enough!" Bugdum, Power World, and Matravin will always need an Avatar!"

"Who are you trying to convince, Aang? Me or yourself? Don't be another one of Raia's pawns." Her figure morphed. While she still maintained her darkness, she looked like a gentle, elegant woman. "Darkness can be beautiful too. It's all a matter of perspective." Aang's stride slowed slightly.

"She's trying to deceive you Aang. She's getting desperate. Look! I can see the altar in the distance. Don't give up on our journey. Don't give up on everything you've stood for."

"Bennett, Harvey, Super forms now! Alex, cover us." The three gathered and Alex and Bennett quickly made a big dome of earth around them. The possessed Aang tried to bring it down, but Alex and Firespear kept him at bay with fireblasts and charged-Moe-spin-attacks.

"Be realistic, Aang," Vaxu said cunningly as Aang's pace began to quicken, "There will come a day when you and your team fail your planet. Everyone on Power World will despise you, and punish you and your team for your failure."

"That's ridiculous! They know what we do. They know what we stand for."

"Look at history. Leaders who failed to live up to their promises were always brought down by the people. But if you joined with me, you would be all powerful. Show the world your power, and they wouldn't dare mess with you. They would be forced to respect you, instead of waiting for the day you fail."

"You're insane. I protect people no matter what they think of me!"

"You would serve people that people that would love to bring you down."

"You overestimate selfishness and greed. That's why you will never be one with the Avatar spirit. Or with me. And even if the world decides that I'm their enemy, I will fight like I always do; not against them, but fight to prove I'm not." He started bending; not the elements, but the spiritual energy in the forest, and shot it all at Vaxu.

The projection of the dark spirit faded as it uttered the words "I gave you a chance. So be it, Avatar."

The possessed Aang picked up Firespear by the throat. He was about to deliver the kill when he was hit by Super Harvey. Jackson quickly followed up with a swift kick, while Bennett brought Firespear down safely. The three super charged heroes then charged at their foe, but a chaos blast sent them all flying back. The possessed Aang then flew and attacked Alex. Bennett struggled to reorient himself and help his friend. Alex was putting up a good defense, but Vaxu's power was too much. Super Bennett flew into Aang and forced him up against a pillar. Come on Aang, hurry up. Please don't make me do this!"

Aang could see the altar on the top of the hill. "We're so close! Hurry!" chanted Raia. Aang started climbing the slope.

Then they heard a voice again. "Your tenacity and devotion are impressive, but you could be so much more if you let go of your narrow sense of morality." The voice wasn't Vaxu. It was a male voice, one Aang found familiar."

"I've heard that voice. Yes, from the glimpse I got of an altered timeline. You're him...you're Anthony."

"I grew beyond the black and white view of dark and light or Vaxu and Raia, and only then was I able to discover true power. The man who raised you flirted with that possibility but he was weak. You Aang, have the potential."

"I have the potential for a lot more if I stick to my path" said Aang.

In the physical world, Super Jackson and Super Bennett had pushed Aang out of the temple. They were fighting in the massive canyon, Bennett and Aang smashing through the rock column.

"This isn't about steering you away, it's about opening more doors for you in the future. I will return one day and there is nothing you can do about that. When that day comes, there may come a time where it would benefit both of us if you opened your eyes a bit. You could be my partner, my equal, successor. You are special Aang, and I would hate to have to waste you. Consider my words or ignore them, it makes no difference for me in the grand scheme of things, but if you are to take anything away from this, its that you are special, and that you won't be able to reach your true power if you keep placing limits on yourself. "

"I've had enough of this!" Aang shouted defiantly, panting as he reached the top of the hill.

Super Jackson, Super Bennett, and Aang were at a standoff. "Then they heard Vaxu's voice speak through Aang's body. "You had your chance, Aang." Then the possessed Aang started diving toward the Canyon floor below. Jackson and Bennett were confused, and then realized what Vaxu was doing; it was a suicide dive. They teleported after him, trying to grab him but he countered them both.

Aang ran up the stairs of the altar and placed his hands on the Master Power Crystal. "I am one with the light, as every Avatar will be!" Raia reconnected, and the Crystal began shining extra brightly in both the spirit and physical world. Back on Power World, Kurt, Nolan and Troy observed the phenomenon from the base. A large beam of light shot from the Master Power Crystal toward Bugdum in the sky. Aang began to fade out of the spirit world as he and Raia both connected to the physical world.

In the physical world, the light beam hit Aang's body, and his glowing eyes changed from red to blue. He found himself plummeting toward the ground about 100 feet from impact. He quickly began airbending and rapidly slowed his descent, still hitting the ground with a thud. Jackson and Bennett flew down and landed by him. Jackson picked him up in a panic. "Ugh," muttered Aang, "talk about a jump scare."

More Discoveries
After using earthbending to clean up the large craters and broken walls and columns in the temple, the team left back for Firespear's village. Aang's mother Kaela was waiting for them. "You're late. You promised a visit every four months and that was six months ago," she scolded as she hugged and kissed Aang.

"I have no defense, Mom. I am guilty as charged."

"Well, I'm going to get something started for dinner. You and your friends get cleaned up. I don't care what you just fought or what planet you just saved, I just cleaned that kitchen and you will not be dragging your dirty bums into it."

Jackson and Alex snickered a little bit. Aang just smiled. "Home sweet home."

They showered off an enjoyed a delicious meal. "So, are you going to be staying a while," Kaela asked "or are you all set to go?"

Then Aang spoke up. "We'll leave tomorrow, but Mom, there is something I need to do before I go, and I need your help."

Kaela's smile faded. "Aang, if this is about what I think it is, you might not like what you find."

The next morning, after a short flight, Aang found what he was looking for. "Over two years ago," he sighed as he looked down at the gravestone of his birth mother.

A groundskeeper came over. "Pardon me sir, I come here sometimes. I never expected to find someone else here."

"Did you know her?" asked Aang.

"No, not at all, but I will never forget her funeral. It was my first day on the job here. "Not a lot of people, but the hardest part was seeing the three babies there, confused about what was happening."

Aang, perked up. "Three babies?" he asked.

"Yes, a boy and two girls. Triplets. They were brought back to the orphanage after the service."

"You mean, they were hers?" asked Aang.

"Yes," replied the groundskeeper. Jackson, Bennett, Alex, and Firespear all exchanged glances.

"Where is this orphanage?"

"I can take you there. Do you know those kids?"

"Not yet. But that woman was my mother, and those kids are my half brother and sisters. Mom, did you know about this?"

"I had no idea. I wasn't at the funeral."

They arrived at the orphanage and spoke to the workers at the desk and explained the situation. "We will take your word for it now and let you see them, but we will need some paperwork to prove your relationship to their mother if you want to proceed any further."

The group approached the play area. The worker whispered something to one of the caretakers. The caretaker nodded her head. "Ty Lee, Zuko, Toph, come here please." The three small children approached. Aang knelt down.

"This is incredibly hard to say, and might be hard for you to understand, but I'm your older brother."

The girls stood frozen, but the boy ran up and hugged Aang. "Does that mean you're gonna sleep in my room sometimes?"

"No, well, not exactly. I live with my friends. But we're going to take you to a new home. You're going to have a new family."

The desk worker came back and pulled the group into the meeting room. "Sorry about the confusion earlier! We didn't realize you were the Avatar. We're happy to help you. Now, all three children are triplets. Your birth mother was a binder, meaning she could bend two elements, air and fire. The father was an earthbender. Toph is the dark brunette girl in green, and she is an earthbender. Ty Lee is the lighter brunette girl, and she is an airbender. And Zuko is the boy, he is a firebender. All three of them are very bright, and healthy too. Here are their medical charts and favorite foods. You being the Avatar also helps us from spending time doing our usual extensive background check, and since you are their next of kin, we can release them to you as early as today."

Aang turned to Kaela. "Mom, do you need more time to...?"

"Aang, I'm sorry, I know these are your siblings, but I simply don't have the home or the youth to raise three more kids. They should go with you."

"What? Mom, I can't."

Jackson, Bennett, and Alex started whispering.

"You've done a wonderful job with Katara and Sokka this past year. Having them stay with you and the team has been wonderful for them.

"Mom, I... I don't know if I can do it."

"You won't be alone." said Jackson. Aang turned. "If we take these kids to Power World, I will take responsibility for taking care of Ty Lee."

"And Bennett and I will take care of Toph," added Alex.

"That means you will handle Zuko. They will always be your brother and sisters, and they will always be close, but you don't have to be a father figure for all of them. And one day, they will make up the Magic Team." “That could work well,” said the desk worker, “They may be siblings, but growing up in an environment with so many children all the time, it has a little less meaning to them. All three are very independent. We can release them to you individually, as long as Aang agrees.” "I can't thank you all enough," said Aang, "Thank you. Let's do this."

Hours later, the X-Tornado and the Firefly were ready to go. "All set, everyone," announced Jackson, "There's just one thing I should do before we go."

Back at the base, there was a call incoming. Troy picked it up. "Hello, Jackson did everything go well? Are Bennett and Aang feeling better?"

"Everything is good, Troy. Everything got sorted out. Hey, would you mind putting Kurt on."

"Yeah one second." Troy walked down the hall and knocked on Kurt's door. "Kurt, Jackson wants to speak with you." Kurt got up and walked over to the command center. Troy and Nolan listened from just outside the kitchen.

"Yes...good...that's a releif...uh-huh...wow...well, I'm glad it didn't come to that. Everyone is okay? ...Good... uh-huh...yes...yeah.........................You guys are bringing back what???"

Matravinian Matters
About three months after the visit to Bugdum, the whole team flew to Matravin. Their target was a large fortress. It had an outer wall, four stories tall, surrounding the central building. The team advanced on foot and in planes from the south east until the enemy discovered their approach.

"Kurt, we can't get any closer until you guys get those AA cannons taken care of," Jackson called from the cockpit of the X-Tornado.

"And I'd like it if we could close in and land before they get any launchers set up," Nolan added from the X-3. "If our contact is right, and they really have as many shadow missiles as she says, then those AA cannons will be the least of our worries soon."

"I know, I know," Kurt grumbled as he crouched behind a tree stump avoiding enemy laser shots. He then pulled out his rifle and returned fire, taking out two perimeter guards.

"At least get one of them down," said Aang, "Then we can take care of the others."

Bennett ran over and crouched next to Kurt "I've got a good enough line of site to the one on the east tower. I can jump to it."

"I don't like it," said Kurt, "We can't tell how well defended it is down from this angle. You could be teleport in and be overwhelmed."

"Well, we're running out of time. We need the planes to smash the inner defenses, and they won't stand a chance against shadow missiles. I could teleport up high and get a good look, but if they see me doing that, it might give away that I'm coming.

Kurt thought for a moment. "Time's not on our side, so let's just have me go with you."

"Fair enough. Jumping is a bit rougher than Nolan's warping, so try not to vomit after."

They teleported to the east balcony with the cannon. Six soldiers and the gunner were there. Bennett shot a fire blast at the three on the right and an air blast at the three on the left. This allowed Kurt to approach the latter of the two groups and get in close with his sword. Bennett then concentrated on the three on the right. He caught an energy blast from one soldier's gun, threw it back at him. Then he took his gun and took out the other two as Kurt finished off the last of the soldiers in his group. The cannon gunner was fumbling to get out of the seat and grab his hand blaster, but Bennett had his sword on the back of his neck before he could even switch the safety off. "Son, this isn't your day," said Kurt as he pulled out a pair of handcuffs and secured him to a rail, while Bennett disabled the cannon.

"East AA cannon is down guys. I don't think the West one will be able to hit you if you approach from the east. Alex, Troy, where are you guys...?" Bennett turned to see Kurt throwing up, some of it landing on the soldier's left leg.

"Sorry about that," Kurt said to the soldier. "Let's go, Bennett."

"Jackson, Aang and I will take the north cannon, you take the south. Aang, I'll stay on your port wing and drop a bomb on the west cannon before it can take a shot at us."

"Sounds good," affirmed Jackson. "Hold on tight little ones," he said to Ty Lee and Harvey sitting right behind him. When they neared the east corner of the wall Jackson, Nolan, and Aang broke off and approached their targets. Jackson had to accelerate to avoid the flak from the south cannon, but was able to take it out while only gaining a few scorch marks. Aang and Nolan took out the north cannon easily, and the west cannon only took one shot before Nolan blew it away. "Alright guys, we're all clear. Ground team, sit tight. We'll have all the guard towers in the inner compound down in less than a minute."

"Shoot, we left Alex and Troy down there alone," Kurt said to Bennett. There was a pause.

"This is Alex," was soon heard over the com chat, "I just realized my mic got busted. I'm using Troy's com now. He took a few hits. Probably needs some attention. Should I carry him back to the Akira?"

"Negative, I can get him back faster," replied Kurt. "You guys are in the north-east woods right?"

"Yep."

"Stay with him until I get there, then join the team in the compound. Jackson, get down here."Jackson swooped over, transformed his plane, and landed the X-Cyclone just inside the wall. Kurt jumped the second story stairs onto the top of the plane.

"Ty Lee," said Jackson, "It's time to push the green button."

"Yes, dad!" she said cheerfully as she pushed the button. A hatch opened between the two cockpits and Kurt's jetpack deployed from inside. Kurt strapped it on his back.

"Aang, I want you and Katara or Sokka to meet me back at the Akira to work on Troy after I fish him out of the woods. Bennett, wait at the top of the wall and help Alex over when he gets here. Then you two keep yourselves on top of the wall, make sure no one escapes. Jackson, find that stockpile and make sure it's secure. Nolan, get to the command center, find who's in charge and shut this place down. Hard part's over. The sun's about to set here, and I'd like to be all wrapped up by twilight."

With that, he blasted off to go help Troy. After all the inner defenses were taken out, the X-3 and Firefly landed inside the compound. Toph hopped out of the X-3 and ran to Bennett. Katara and Zuko hopped out of the Firefly, and Aang took off again.

"There you are. Ready to help me out?" Bennett said to her.

"We should get moving," Nolan said.

"Right," said Jackson as he and Nolan put their planes in their storage devices. "Magic Team, let's go to work."

Nolan, Katara, and Zuko ran for the central building while Jackson, Ty Lee, and Harvey ran for the weapons depot to the side.

Jackson and Ty Lee encountered a few armed guards, but only a few of them were bold enough to fire when surrounded by explosives. They used airbending and Harvey attacks to quickly incapacitate the guards. Once they were all cuffed up, Jackson surveyed the supply of weapons in the warehouse. There were general munitions, a few bombs, and several missile stacks, but he only saw one rack of five shadow missiles. "That can't be right," he said to Ty Lee. "There are supposed to be way more than this."

"Maybe ask one of them?" Ty Lee suggested pointing to one of the surrendered guards.

Jackson approached a young male guard. "Hey buddy. Look, I get it. You're just doing your job. But I can do you a lot of favors if you help me out. What's your name?"

"Sergeant Samuel Riley," the guard said reluctantly.

"Alright, Sammy boy, our contact says there are a lot more shadow missiles than I see in that little stack over there. She's got a lot riding on this operation, so I doubt she would risk lying about it. Where are the rest."

Samuel sighed. "There's a blast door hidden behind the stack of proton bombs. The bomb's move aside by pulling a lever, but only the top 3 people in the fortress can access the eye scanner for the door."

"That will do. Thank you, Sam." Jackson, Ty Lee, and Harvey approached the bombs. Harvey found the lever and Ty Lee pulled it. "Now for the doors. This would be way easier if I could ever figure out metal bending" Jackson said as he pushed a button on his storage cube. He pulled out a pair of blue and red robotic gauntlets, which he slipped his arms into, and then drew his Master Power Crystal Sword. He stabbed his sword into the middle of the blast doors, and then tugged hard on his sword to pull the doors open. Once they detected the pressure from his hands, jets activated on the gauntlets, aiding his efforts significantly. The door mechanism soon gave way, and the way was clear. "These are what I've been using against Alex in training. He usually overpowers them, but I've been secretly making them stronger recently. Don't tell him though. That needs to stay our secret."

"You got it," she replied with a wink that ended up being more of a blink. Jackson smiled. It had only been a few months, but Ty Lee was already a daughter to him. She gave him a sense of purpose beyond the team. The two of them and Harvey stepped on to a freight elevator and began the descent to the shadow missile storage.

Nolan was careful to be more merciful with the guards than he usually was. Katara had seen killing before, but he didn't want to scar Zuko at such a young age. He went for knockout blows. It didn't take long for them to get to the command center. Two elite guards waited outside the door. "Katara, Zuko, stay back. I've got this." He drew his sword and began to take the two guards at once. They tried to psyche him out with wild, over-the-top advances with their blades, but Nolan saw through the act and kept his calm, causing their intimidation technique to backfire right on them. Nolan disarmed one of them. "Look away kids!" he called out as he prepared to stab his opponent.

"Wait!" called the other guard as he dropped his blade. "I will surrender. Or you can kill me, but please spare him."

Nolan kicked both weapons away. Both guards dropped to their knees as Nolan held his sword to them. "I accept your surrender." He paused. "You knew you couldn't win, and I normally don't like quitters, but your actions did not come from cowardice. No, you were willing to give your life for his. You have honor, soldier, and you have my respect. Katara, toss me the cuffs."

Nolan handcuffed them back-to-back. Katara froze their cuffs to a nearby pipe. Nolan then deployed enchanted swords and opened the door to the command center. A few guards inside pointed their guns at him. Nolan held up his right hand and each of the swords floating around him angled its tip to one of the people in the room. The commander stood paralyzed with fear. "We can do this one of two ways. One where you all drop your weapons and everyone walks away okay, or one where you shoot, I wave my hands, and it ends badly for everyone." All the guards dropped their weapons immediately. "Katara, Zuko, go gather their guns. And be careful with them." He turned his com back on. "Guys, the place is ours."

"Great," said Kurt from the Akira. " Aang and Sokka have Troy healed up pretty well. We can finish patching him up when we get back to base. Jackson, what's your status?"

"I'm with the stash of missiles now. It's so dark down here. I can make out about a half dozen stacks of five, but I think there's more...ah Ty Lee found the light switch. Pull the lever!...Holy sh...This room is a lot bigger than I thought." Jackson gazed around in awe and horror. "There must be at least a hundred stacks. Five missiles in each stack."

"Five hundred shadow missiles...That's over six times as much as she guessed there would be," Kurt said to no one in particular. "Alex, Bennett, is the rest of the facility locked down?"

"All done, sir," replied Alex.

"Better get a hold of Redders now. He'll talk to command. Better bring a cruiser; I don't think dropships are gonna be enough to haul all this out," said Jackson.

"I don't think that will be necessary," replied Aang, pointing to the sky. Kurt, Troy, Sokka, and Moe looked up to see two Power World military cruisers descending toward the fortress.

"Let's get in our planes and meet them there."

Kurt and Aang spoke with the officers as the Power World troops began sweeping the fortress. "Who sent you?" asked Kurt.

"The military had eyes on this place, and when word got out that you were attacking, Howard Lane requested we move in and secure it."

"Lane. Of course," Kurt sighed.

"He also requested a meeting with you upon your return."

Jackson, Ty Lee, and Harvey walked over from the weapons depot. "There are several hundred shadow missiles in the basement. I got the door opened for you. There's a man in there, Sergeant Sam Riley. Make sure he is treated well when you take them prisoner."

"Actually, sir, our orders are to kill everyone here besides your team."

"What?! That cannot be!" said Kurt, thinking in particular of the gunner whose pants he ruined earlier.

"These guards fought honorably," said Nolan. "I'll be damned if I let you dishonor their surrender."

"You're talking to three members of the Magic Council, Colonel," said Kurt. "I think that's enough to warrant an override to your orders."

"Don't have to tell me twice," said the colonel, pulling out his communicator. "Men, change of orders. Load the prisoners up in the brigs of the ships."

"Thank you, Colonel," said Jackson.

"Lane can eat his hat. Arguing with the Magic Team is way above my pay grade."

Appointed Figures and Pointing Fingers
The team split into two groups as their planes entered Power Worlds atmosphere. Kurt in the Akira, Jackson and Harvey in the Hyper-Tornado, and Nolan and Ty Lee in the X-3 made their way to Tanner City while the rest flew back to base. Aang, Katara, Sokka, Zuko, and Moe flew in the Firefly while Bennett flew the X-Tornado with Alex, Troy, and Toph. Kurt's group arrived at Baker Tower and stormed angrily to the lobby. Jackson stopped for a moment. "Harvey, Ty Lee, stay here in the lobby. Hopefully it won't take that long to deal with this jerk." He handed Harvey some money. "Get some snacks from the vending machine. Don't get her those Bugdum Gumballs though; they have so many nasty chemicals."

They walked to the escalator and made their way up. Kurt had himself prepared, but he just now considered his company. He turned around to address his two strong-opinionated friends. "Look, I resent this guy as much as you do, if not more. But I've been dealing him for months, so I know how to be patient around him. So I'm asking you to please, please let me do the talking."

"You honestly expe-" piped up Nolan.

"Nolan, do you really think anything you want to say to him will end up benefiting us in the long run?"

Nolan opened his mouth about to say something, then stopped as he considered it. They reached the top of the escalators, then walked into the elevator that would take them to Lane's level.

"We have to remember, in this environment, we're representatives not just of our team, but the Magic Council too. How this guy influenced his way onto the military strategy committee or got promoted to director is beyond me, but as long as he holds an official position like this, we have to keep our cool." They reached their floor and walked to Lane's office. Kurt stopped them by Lane's secretary's desk. "Promise to only speak if one of us directly addresses you." Jackson and Nolan nodded, but all three members knew there was only a fifty percent chance that they would keep that promise. Kurt faced the woman at the desk. "Hello, we have a meeting with the director. The secretary let Lane know the three were there and buzzed them in.

"Good afternoon, gentleman. Sit down."

"How was your visit to Blue Ridge Zone, Howard?"

"The mountains are wonderful in the summer. Enough snow for picturesque scenery but not so cold that I'm freezing my tailbone the whole time. I would highly recommend a visit."

"I'll keep that in mind next time I have to choose a vacation."

"That may be sooner than you think."

"Excuse me, sir?"

"I'm going to get to the point of this meeting. What was your meeting with Caitlin Brooster about?"

"Troy and I found Ms. Brooster with a group of Matravinian soldiers in Animal Kingdom a two days ago. When she told us she had information about a huge stock of shadow missiles, we had her moved out of the POW camp and into a regular prison. We promised that if we found her information to be correct, we would let her return home to her family. Then we headed out early this morning.

"And on what authority did you make such a deal?"

"Sir, you do remember we are members of the Magic Council?" Jackson spoke up. Kurt shot him a look. Jackson closed his mouth, but it was too late; Lane blew up.

"Yes! And it's time for you to start acting like it! You're supposed to be dignified representatives of our planet, not costumed hooligans who go gallivanting off to Matravin every time they want to show off."

"Howard, our positions on the Council are the three of the four seats of planetary freedom protection. We, along with Master Shaa, always act in the interest of the people."

"Hogwash! Did you consult with all the people? Did you even consult with Master Shaa?"

"Master Shaa trusts our judgement on these matters of urgency, as does Edward Hilless and the rest of the council."

"Edward Hilless trusted Clayton Hamernik, and look what that did for the council."

Nolan's fists clenched, he stood up. Kurt face-palmed. "Are you comparing us to that traitorous scum? Because if you are..."

"All I'm saying is that you think just because you've become celebrities in the past few years, that you can continually disobey regulations, ignore precedent, and undermine authority." Kurt nodded at Nolan, and he sat down. Lane continued. "Your team has done a few favorable services for our world, I won't deny."

"Yeah, like stopping it from getting blown up twice or..." Kurt cupped his hand over Jackson's mouth.

"But you act rashly, and too independently. If you had consulted with me before, I could've not only informed you that we knew about the weapons fortress, but also have sent you in with a battalion of troops. But of course, you had to show off."

"But you didn't know there was an extremely dangerous supply of shadow missiles in there. In fact, I think there are more things that need to be investigated. I'd like to lead a reconnaissance mission..."

"I've had enough of this behavior. Our military is strong, and doesn't need to be pushed around by a few young adults. As of right now, your team's activities are sanctioned by the Magic Council, but in addition to what comes out of Richard MarKev's back pocket, your team receives what is classified as military funding. And since I am a director, I can immediately shut down any program that receives military funding." Kurt, Jackson, and Nolan froze. "Yes, the council can reinstate you, but only after a few months of hearings and committee meetings. I offer a better solution, however. Kurt, promise me you will disband the team for a couple months and cease any of your...activities and stay on this planet. Take some time off, vacation, check out those mountains we discussed earlier. And let us handle things for a while in a dignified manner. You can still serve on the council, and I promise you, once things have settled down and we have things in order, I will reinstate the team and make sure you have everything you need to make it even better than before. What do you say, Kurt?"

Kurt stood up. "As a member of the Magic Council in a seat of planetary freedom protection, I cannot make a decision that I think is foolish for the safety of the people, so if you want us out of your way, you're going to have to make us. Now if you'll excuse us, we have a prisoner to free." Jackson and Nolan stood up as well.

"You can have her body and give her a proper burial if you wish, but you aren't permitted to leave this planet."

"Body?"

"I forgot to mention. Some of the other prisoners weren't too happy about having a Matravinian around. She was stabbed and killed earlier this morning. Unfortunate for her, but her information was of no real use anyway. My secretary, Sandra, will give you the forms for you to accept her body. I'll be seeing you next time we meet with the council. Enjoy your time off," he concluded as he gave a smug look of triumph. The three walked out of the office.

"Well, that could've been worse," said Jackson. Kurt turned around and stared at him. "Actually, no, it really couldn't have."

"Do I have to put muzzles on you two when I take you anywhere?"

"Oh come on, Kurt," said Nolan, "He was gonna give you that ultimatum no matter what."

Kurt sighed. "I guess you're right. You two go with Ty Lee and Harvey back to base, I'm going to pick up Caitlin's body."

Jackson and Nolan were silent on the elevator, but began talking once they started going down the escalator. "You got any thoughts as to our next move?" Nolan asked.

"A couple. You?"

"Yeah, I got a couple ideas, but it might just land us in more trouble."

"Has that ever stopped us before?"

"Of course not. We'll talk over the coms on the flight back."

After stopping by the prison, Kurt carried Caitlin's body to the Akira. He put her in the back seat and took off. "I'm sorry, Caitlin," he said out loud as they flew above the clouds, "I failed you. You were right, and I made you a promise. And I failed you." He got a message alert, and saw that the order had already gone through and the team was to cease any operations. As he approached the base, he took some deep breaths and cleared away the tears forming in his eyes. He landed in the hangar. Everyone except Katara, Sokka, and Troy was in the hangar. Jackson and Nolan were unloading Kurt's jetpack from the deployment bay on the X-Tornado. "Anyone care to tell me what's going on here?"

"Troy's fine, thanks for asking," said Bennett.

"We're getting ready to head back to Matravin and get some answers," replied Aang.

"Did Jackson and Nolan not tell you guys how the meeting went?"

"We told them," replied Nolan. "Not that it matters."

"Nolan, we're grounded. Lane sent out the order already."

"And since when do we make our decisions based on people like Lane?" Jackson replied. "I wasn't there when you first started this team Kurt, but I know you didn't have government approval back then. And now, we're no longer a government affiliated group! We're completely privately funded. If you ask me, we're now more free than ever."

"Guys, I see your point, but this is..."

"Kurt, you told me that what we do isn't because of some mandate; We do what we do because we know it's right," said Jackson.

"Something fishy is going on over on Matravin, and I think Lane is trying to keep us in the dark about it because he knows if we find out, we're going to act no matter what," added Nolan, "His mistake was underestimating our curiosity. Now, if you're really gonna put the Magic Team to an end, than so be it. No one will be in charge, no one is under any obligation, but anyone is still welcome to join me and Jackson on our mission. That being said, it would be really nice to have our leader on board and stay a team."

Kurt paused for a moment. "Where are you guys headed exactly?"

"Well, we're going to check out the area around the fortress and see if we can find any old supply lines or other leads," said Jackson. "Go in disguise, talk to locals. Something in that area is going to give us a clue as to what's going on."

Kurt sighed and paused again. Then he perked up. "Lane wants to paint us as rogues. Fine. Let's go rogue."

"Yes! Welcome aboard, captain!" Jackson cheered.

"But I want this to be a small operation. We just take the X-Tornado. Senior team-members only."

"Aw, come on!" shouted Alex.

"Lane probably knows where the base is by now. If he finds out we're on Matravin, someone has to be here to defend it. And defend Troy."

"Fair enough," Alex sighed. He, Aang, Bennett, Moe, and the kids started to leave the hangar.

"Aang, where are you going?" called out Kurt. Aang and Moe stopped and turned around. "I said senior members. You're with us." Aang smiled and walked over toward the X-Tornado. "And as long as we pack lightly, I think we have room for two chao." Harvey and Moe cheered with joy.

"Before we do anything else there, we're going to take her back to her family," Kurt concluded pointing to Caitlin's body in the back of the Akira.

Howard Lane was playing a game of chess with a colleague of his. "No, no! You moved that rook already. You can't castle if you've moved one of the two pieces."

"I'm pretty sure that only applies to the king, but as long as the rook is in the original position at the time of the move, it's fair game."

"I think you made that up. What good is that castle move going to do you anyway? It's not going to hinder my knight's advance?"

"You just don't want me to mess up your bishop's approach, so you're tampering with the rules."

"No! That's just how it is. I'm having my assistant fetch a rule book now." He hit his intercom. "Sandra!"

Meanwhile, the X-Tornado was dancing through the clouds as it ascended toward the upper atmosphere. Aang looked out the rear canopy at the ground far below, smiling from his feeling of acceptance with the other three members, as well as the team's new thrill of rebelliousness.

"Sir," Sandra buzzed in, "I couldn't find the rule book yet, but your stealth fleet near the MTB spotted the X-Tornado on a course to break atmo."

Lane spat out his tea. "What?!"

"MTB?" asked his guest.

"Magic Team Base. Sandra, I give the fleet permission to move in and intercept. And patch me through to Kurt's com signal!"

Jackson spotted a dozen ships up ahead as they reached the upper atmosphere. "They're closing in on us. They're trying to form a blockade. Hold on tight guys, this might be a little tricky." The X-Tornado climbed and dove in succession, weaving its way through the battleships. Harvey clung to Kurt's seat belt as the plane roller-coastered through the blockade. Finally, they were clear. "Didn't see those on our scopes. Lane's?"

"Probably, said Kurt from right behind him. His com started buzzing. He looked at the ID. "Speak of the devil...Hello Howard, sorry, I'm not getting a very good signal in the Blue Ridge mountains. Great recommendation, by the way, it's beauti-"

"Quit your games, Kurt! Do you understand the ramifications of what you're doing right now."

"I'm sorry sir, I'm about to hit the slopes. Call you later." He ended the transmission.

"Uh...Guys..." said Nolan from the rear cockpit. A large cannon on one of the battleships appeared to be charging up, and it was pointed straight at them. "Jackson..."

"The hyperdrive is ready. The computer just needs a few more seconds and we'll make the jump."

"We might not have that," said Aang.

The cannon fired, but the X-Tornado made the jump and the shot missed.

Lane slammed his fist on his desk after hearing they got away. "Is there anything else you'd like to do, sir?" asked Sandra.

"I would love nothing more than to have our commandos breach the base and sack the place right now, but I need to be patient. Set up my secure private line, I need to make a call."

"To whom, sir?"

"Mind your own business, Sandra. Don't you know why I call it a private line? I'll make the call myself."

Camping Out
The X-Tornado approached Matravin's atmosphere. Jackson modified the approach vector. The intel package that Zactus gave them included a few literal holes in Matravin's security grid where they could slip in without being detected. Zactus said he made use of these for his private missions. They landed in a forest about a hundred miles from the fortress and began to set up camp. "Well, said Kurt, "After six hours, we're back. It's 1:30 in the morning here, people won't be out and about for another seven hours or so. We might as well eat dinner and attempt to get some sleep."

"We were up late last night planning and early this morning prepping. Don't think taking a nap for a few hours will be a problem for me," said Nolan.

"I'll start grilling us some dinner," said Jackson, pulling an electric grill from his storage cube and hooking it up to the X-Tornado. "Aang, can you bring one of those lamps over here please? And then airbend to keep the smoke down?"

"Sure thing."

Nolan went to work putting a protective shield around the site. Not one powerful enough to stop a missile barrage or a very determined foe, but enough to deter large forest animals or a lost hiker. Still, the team decided not to make a campfire to avoid making excess smoke, so they ate their dinner around one of the lanterns.

"Man," said Jackson, "With the exception of Moe here, this is just like old times. Way back in the day before Ricky joined us."

"Keep in mind that was only a little over a year ago," said Kurt. "Still, it feels like half a lifetime."

"So, with this mission considered, don't think we're gonna be reinstated anytime soon," said Nolan.

"Probably not," said Kurt. "And when we do, Lane's probably gonna try and turn it into some sort of bureaucracy."

"Well, a little of that might not hurt," said Aang.

"What do you mean?" asked Kurt.

"Well for instance, besides you and Jackson, none of us really have titles on the team."

"He makes a good point, Kurt," said Nolan, "What are me and Aang?"

"Well, Aang's title is easy. He's the Avatar, as is Bennett apparently. The team has almost always had an Avatar on board. And Nolan, you're like our magical combat expert and battle strategist."

"You could just call me 'resident badass,'" Nolan suggested.

"That works too," said Kurt.

The team laughed, then sighed and looked up at the stars. "We've really been through a lot in the past year haven't we?" said Jackson.

"Yeah, we have. That reminds me," added Nolan, "Aang, what about your dreams and visions? Anything new?"

"Nothing interesting," replied Aang. "But now that my connection to the Raia has healed, I'll hopefully be able to see more."

"Many of the things you've seen have reflected things that have happened, haven't they?" asked Kurt.

"I mean, the Avatar Temple on Matravin was obvious. And when I saw a volcano and robots, we went to a volcanic planet. Two Jacksons fighting must've been the whole thing with Double-Jackson, and the clocks ticking backward must've been the incident with the time powers."

"What's missing then?" asked Kurt, partly knowing the answer.

"There were a bunch of shattering mirrors or some sort of glass structures. I honestly have no idea what that could mean. And then, there's Anthony."

Kurt, Jackson, and Nolan all frowned and looked at their feet. "It seems inevitable that we're gonna be fighting him again. Damn it," said Nolan.

"Well, my visions have been more representative than exact. It could just mean we'll be fighting some other dark force."

"True, but you never even saw Anthony before you had this vision. Given that your description perfectly matches him, plus what Zactus told us all before he left, it seems pretty concrete," said Jackson.

"We'll be ready for him" All eyes turned to Kurt. "This team is at least twice as strong as it was last time we faced him, and he won't have Zactus backing him this time. I'm not worried about that right now and you shouldn't be either. Right now we should be focusing on our current mission. Let's get some shut-eye. We're gonna have to be up in a few hours." Everyone got in their sleeping bags and tried to get to sleep. Before he dozed off, Aang thought about the one part of his vission that he hadn't told anyone about: the part where Kurt died.

Jackson woke up later to Kurt tapping him on the shoulder. "Please don't tell me it's already time to go."

"No, I just...need to talk with someone. Let's go for a little walk."

Jackson got up and made a small flame in his hand. They walked deeper into the woods. "So, you lied earlier?"

"Yes, I'm worried. I've been worried since Aang first told us about that vision months ago. And we're not ready. Even though you, Nolan, and I are stronger than before, and Aang, Bennett, Alex, and Troy are great, they've never faced him before. Bennett and Alex only got a brief experience with him on Zactus' sun base."

"I never imagined it would be easy...Should we finally talk about what Zactus told us before he left?" asked Jackson.

"I see it as one of the only ways we can truly overpower Anthony, but I got word from Zactus recently. He and his people haven't been having much luck."

"What about Rost? Any new leads on that? That's the name of the sword Zactus wanted us to look for right?"

"That's right, but any information sources on it are few and far between. Not to mention that the gauntlet needed to hold Rost might be separate from the sword itself. At least Zactus was able to narrow down the location of the temple to Isoma, but even he hasn't been able to find it yet. Rost could be pretty much anywhere from Power World to the volcanic planet."

"Should we be telling the others about all this?" asked Jackson.

"No, I don't want it distracting them from what we do. Right now, we keep it between us and Zactus. That being said, we need to start considering other options in case this plan falls through."

"Well, we could bank on the hope that after getting his ass kicked by us twice, Anthony abandons his plan for domination and upon his return decides to pursue his dream as an interior decorator," said Jackson with a chuckle.

"Would it really kill you for once in your life to take anything seriously? This isn't a game. You're second-in-command of this team. You're on the Magic Council. Those aren't just flashy titles. Something happens to me, it's all on you. Are you going to be able to be mature enough to handle that?"

"You think I don't ask myself that question every fucking day? I may try and maintain a carefree attitude on the outside most of the time, but that's just a defense mechanism. Lot's of times, deep inside, I'm just as scared as you. What we do is crazy, Kurt, absolutely crazy. . It's nuts, and honestly, there are days where I question what I'm doing, think about quitting and living a simple life away from this danger, especially now that I have a daughter to look after. But at the end of the day I know I can't. Millions of people across our planet have some sort of supernatural ability, but no one comes close to doing what we do. If we don't do it, no one else will. The planets need the Magic Team, and the Magic Team needs you, and you need a backup. And Kurt, we know that Nolan is as loyal as they come, but he prefers to do the fighting without worrying about commanding others. Aang is too young, Troy is too new, and my brother and Alex are...my brother and Alex. Whether we like it or not, I'm all you got.

There was a long silence. "I'm sorry about that. It was wrong of me to say that. I sounded a bit like Howard Lane there, didn't I?" asked Kurt.

"It's perfectly alright. Sorry for exploding back at you." Jackson paused. "And don't think for a moment that I don't appreciate everything you do for me, and for everything you put up with. Not just for me, for all of us. This team wouldn't be what it is without you."

"Same goes for you." There was another awkward pause, but the mood had lightened. "So," began Kurt, "hypothetically speaking, if I were to die or quit, what would be your first move?"

"First thing I would do is make Nolan second-in-command, and then recruit a new member to keep our numbers up."

"Who would you recruit?"

"Assuming this in a few years, Melissa Redders."

"The sergeant's sister?"

"Yep, John says she only started really figuring out her powers recently, but in a couple years time, I think she'd be perfect material for the team, assuming her brother will let her."

"I'll keep her in mind," said Kurt. "Now let's say a team member betrays the team. Not being possessed like Aang was, but actually going evil by their own choice. What do you do?"

"Kurt, I have a countermeasure contingency plan for every single member of the team, yourself included."

"Sure you do. What's the one for me then?"

"I'm not telling you, that would defeat the purpose."

"Fine, Alex then."

"I won't tell you the whole thing, but you know those robotic gauntlets I've been using against him in training?"

"The ones he always overpowers and breaks?"

"Because I only ever run them at 30% in training. And I have a pair of them for everyone else on the team to use."

Kurt was surprised and impressed. "Remind me never to piss you off."

"Oh, then I would be reminding you pretty often."

The two laughed. "So tomorrow, we bring Caitlin's body back to her parents and then look for clues to this mystery."

"That's the plan."

"Then let's get some sleep." They walked back to the campsite and settled into their sleeping bags.

"You two done making out yet?" Nolan mumbled.

"Yeah, with your mother."

Nolan's head turned and shot a confused look. Because the voice that said it wasn't Jackson's, it was Kurt's. Jackson just smiled.

At dawn, the team traveled less than a mile from the Brooster's house. Jackson used chaos control to take them the rest of the way; He wasn't about to land the X-Tornado on a residential street on an enemy planet. Jackson, Nolan, and Aang held the coffin, while Kurt knocked on the door. A middle-aged woman answered the door. She gasped, recognizing Kurt. "Ma'am, I've never done this before, but I had to do what's right. Your daughter, Caitlin, is one of the bravest women I've met, and if there were more women like her fighting for Matravin, this war would've been over a long time ago."

"I was told she was captured...I was just hoping that...Oh, my sweet Caitlin!" She started sobbing. Her husband had been listening in and came to join her.

"I tried to protect her," Kurt continued "She helped us and I tried to get her free, but she was killed before I could. But her actions might've saved thousands of lives on both sides, and I owe it to her to at least bring her home to you." Jackson, Nolan, and Aang carried the coffin into the house and placed it on the living room floor, then walked back out.

"If you're going to report seeing us, we won't stop you, but we do wish to keep our presence here a secret if possible. Nevertheless, we will be leaving you now." They started to walk away.

"Caitlin often said that she thought the cost of a Matravinian victory would be too high for the sake of everyone," said her father. The team turned around. "She actually admired your team and said that a peaceful ending would likely only come from your efforts. In a way, she was the closest thing Matravin had to an equivalent of your team."

"By what I've seen, I'm confident that's true," said Kurt. With that final thought, Nolan warped them back to the X-Tornado.

Train Truckin'
They flew around the area surrounding the fortress and found a small town, so they landed beyond the outskirts. While Kurt and the chao stayed with the X-Tornado, the rest of the group changed into casual clothes and put on sunglasses,and made their way to the local market and began talking to people.

Kurt took the time to call the base. Troy picked up. "How is it going?" asked Kurt.

"I'm feeling a lot better. Not a lot happening on this end. A few angry messages from Lane and his associates. I spoke with Master Shaa. He's looking into what it would take to get us reinstated, but it's not looking that great. He suggests calling an emergency meeting of the Council once you guys get back."

"We'll deal with the official business later. Once we figure out what business Lane's trying to keep us out of."

"Well, best of luck to you then. I'll keep you posted if anything new comes up back here. Let us know when you're heading home."

"Will do," said Kurt. He found himself sweating. 'No wonder so many evil people come from this planet. It's to damn hot here.' He climbed back into the X-Tornado, closed the cockpit and cranked up the air conditioning. An hour later, his teammates returned. "What did you guys find out?"

"Well, most people were talking about the battle yesterday evening. Hearing cannon blasts, explosions nearby, and ships flying over," replied Jackson.

"But once we got past that," continued Aang, "we found out about the guys in the train truck."

"Okay..."

"I was talking to a bartender," said Nolan. "A few days ago, a band of strange individuals ride into town with a giant train truck coming from the east. About a dozen trailers. They were a weird, scary-looking bunch. Everyone in town was avoiding them. But a lot of them came to the tavern. Some of them went on about how they were 'gonna be set for life'. But last night after the battle, a group of them were in the tavern and the leader got a call. Afterward he slammed his fist on the table and shouted 'Damn it!' and told something to the others. They all seemed pretty pissed after that. Some of them started drinking heavy and starting bar fights."

"And a couple hours ago, they all packed on into their train truck and headed back east," finished Jackson.

"So, you're saying us taking over the fortress ruined something for those guys in the train truck?" asked Kurt.

"We don't know for sure," said Aang, "but there's one way to find out."

"Wheeled vehicles might be a lot more common here than on Power World, but a massive train truck shouldn't be that hard to find. And it's slow. Couldn't have gone more than 120 miles down the highway by this time. They've probably had to refuel too."

"But we won't know exactly where they are. So we'd have to go along the highway, flying low and drawing a lot of attention to ourselves on a planet we're at war with, while looking for a train truck that we're assuming hasn't already pulled into a secret hideout?" questioned Kurt.

"Didn't think of that. It is a little risky." said Jackson.

"But, I don't this lead seems promising and I don't really see another way. Plus, the area to the east is pretty barren, and that fortress was the only major military compound nearby. So, if you're willing, Jackson, then I say we do it."

Minutes later, they were flying the X-Tornado along the highway. After about twenty-five minutes, they had visual contact. "Alright," said Nolan. "I'm warping down there. Join me when you can," and he warped out of the plane. Kurt, Jackson, Aang, Harvey, and Moe watched expecting to see him appear on top of the roof of one of the trailers. Instead, he appeared midair about 300 meters behind the truck. He quickly warped back into the plane.

"Fuck!" shouted Nolan. "They got an anti-warp field on that thing. Lucky I hit it at a shallow angle. I almost fell into the field and I would've just hit the ground...shit that hurt though."

"Maybe if Nolan and I warp ahead, I could cushion the fall with airbending?" suggested Aang.

"If it was just you, maybe," said Kurt, "But cushioning both of your falls and still hitting a precise moving target seems risky. Jackson, can you get us closer?"

"I can't go that slow and stay airborne. If they jump, they might just role right off the truck, but I have an idea. I'm getting your hoverboards ready for launch." Jackson looped the plane around and came at the train truck from behind again. "Alright, and... go!" Nolan and Aang (who grabbed Moe as well) jumped out and Jackson deployed their hoverboards. They mounted them and coasted along the ground at high speed. The boards decelerated as they made their way alongside the truck, and the pair grabbed a ladder on the side of the ninth trailer and climbed their way up. Nolan put their boards in his sword pack. Moments later, members of the group started making their way out of the trailers and climing onto the roofs. A hatch opened on the top of the fifth trailer and a mounted turret came out and started shooting at the X-Tornado.

"Well, the element of surprise is gone," lamented Nolan shortly before shooting an energy blast at the group on the tenth trailer. Aang managed to knock a few people off with airbending. One person maintained their footing, but Aang attacked with Moe to finish him off. "Come on!" shouted Nolan. They made their way toward the turret. As they reached the fifth trailer, two brutes came out and blocked their path.

"You're not going anywhere," one of them spoke.

"Leave these guys and the turret to me," said Aang. "You go on ahead!" Nolan jumped down between the sixth and fifth trailer, and started making his way through the fifth. Aang went on fighting the two brutes. He quickly discovered not only did they have large swords, but they were firebenders as well. Fire was Aang's weakest element, he still held his own against the two. Despite being two heavy guys, they were surprisingly agile and they were able to dodge his airbending and waterbending attempts to knock them off. But he surprised one of them with a chaos spear, which somewhat stunned him after. Aang took the opportunity to blow him off the side of the truck.

"Pah!" Shouted the other brute. "Shane was weak. I'm not letting you get to that turret!"

"You don't have to," replied Aang. Moe had sneaked along the side of the trailer and surprise attacked the man mounting the turret, knocking him from control. The remaining brute was surprised to the point where Aang took advantage of the distraction and sloshed him off the side of the trailer with waterbending. Then he assisted Moe in finishing off the gunner. A blast blew out part of the roof of the fourth trailer. A warrior was launched out of the hole and Nolan leaped out after her and finished her off.

"If you got the turret taken down, let's get go-" he was interrupted by a near miss from a laser blast. A group of five warriors with jetpacks had flown out to greet them. Aang began engaging one of them immediately, using his bending water to keep her at bay, then he managed to freeze part of her jetpack, causing her to fall down to the road. Nolan had his hands full with the rest, but he was able to take out one with an energy blast. Another attacked him. Nolan was able to dodge the laser attack, but the warrior came swooping in and knocked him off his feet. Nolan almost rolled off the truck. The warrior stood above Nolan, about to finish him off, but Aang hit him in the head with a chaos spear, killing him. "Thanks," said Nolan. The remaining two warriors were now a bit nervous and flew a bit further from the truck, attacking from a distance. Aang tried to hit them with firebending blasts, but they were too slow and the warriors easily avoided. One of them was a better shot than the other. Aang took a graze to the side of his lower torso. Nolan tried to retaliate against the warrior, but didn't have luck. Then Jackson did a fly-by, his wings just a few feet from the warrior, who lost control of his jetpack and spiraled toward the bottom of the trailer. Nolan and Aang almost lost their footing as the tires ran over him. Nolan attacked with Moe and managed to hit the last warrior. Moe managed to disable the jetpack, and the warrior fell, hitting the ground with a thud.

Aang got out some water and started to heal his wound. Nolan started doing some work on it as well. "Another man down here would be pretty useful!" he shouted into his com.

"I can use chaos control to send Kurt and Harvey down there, but until you get that anti-warp field down, you're on your own."

"I'll be fine," interjected Aang. "Let's finish the damn mission." They approached the cab.

"Matt? Greg? Aaron? What's your status? " called the driver over the intercom. There was no reply. He looked to the man sitting in the passenger seat. "This isn't looking good chief. I'm pretty sure it's the Magic- What the Hell?" Moe started crawling over the windshield.

The leader pulled out a gun. "I'll kill you, you little-." Nolan broke in through the side window and kicked the leader in the side of the head. Then he broke the sun-roof with his sword and Aang dropped in. The driver panicked tried to reach for his blaster, but Aang grabbed it first.

"Both hands on the wheel, buster. Now tell us how to disable that anti-warp field. Jackson, land your plane and warp aboard."

Soon Jackson and Kurt were on the train truck, the vehicle was stopped, and everyone aboard was in handcuffs.

Kurt spoke to the leader in the first trailer from the cab while Jackson and Harvey explored the rest of the trailers. "You Power World elitist scum," snareld the leader, "Fighting to preserve a flawed system. What do you really hope to acheive?" asked the leader.

Nolan, Aang and Moe sat in the cab. "Good job today, Aang," said Nolan.

"I've learned a lot from the Resident Badass," replied Aang.

"Damn straight," replied Nolan.

"I checked again," reported Jackson. "Besides the cannon mechanism, their food, and the anti-warp generator, there's nothing in the trailers."

"So why would you guys haul all these empty trailers?" Kurt asked the leader.

The leader just scowled and wouldn't reply, but the driver spoke up. "Because you guys robbed us of our score. We had a means to use them for our own means, but you guys ruined it all for us."

"The shadow missiles..." said Kurt.

"Harrison! If we make it out of this, you'll be branded as a traitor to the Hounds!"

Nolan overheard that from the cab and perked up.

Kurt turned to Jackson. "So, we have another piece of the puzzle."

"Lane must have known this group was after the Shadow Missiles. But why would we keep us in the dark about it, besides trying to maintain his feeling of superiority?"

"That's bothering me as well. We'll have to do more digging if we want those answers. I don't think he's going to be up to speaking with us right now," replied Kurt.

"We probably won't be able to speak to anyone besides Master Shaa and Edward Hilless. He's probably stripped us of our credibility by now."

As if to confirm they're susupicions, Alex came in with a message over the intercom. "We got a tip off. Base isn't secure anymore. We're moving everyone out of the base. We'll contact you with more details later."

"Yes," sighed Kurt, "We're on our own now."

"Maybe not," said Nolan, walking in. "I know some folks who also have some issues with the Storm Hounds. These people we have here are part of a terrorist group that exists on Power World and Matravin. They've been targets of my other team for a long time."

"Oh no," said Kurt and Jackson in unison.

"Yes," Nolan, "It's time to calll in my assasin friends."

Unlikely Allies
They rendevouzed on a large plateau on the edge of a valley in animal kingdom near the border with Magic Castle. They waited around for about a half hour. Troy was feeling much better and was walking about. A helicopter arrived and landed. Three people and a robot stepped out. Nolan stood up.

"Gentleman, ladies, allow me to introduce you to my other team." The robot stepped forward. "This is 3605 or Soge. He is a custom assault droid commissioned by the previous leader, Jon.

"Good day, I am honored to be in the presence of such skill."

Nolan continued, "Next up is fire support and tactical destruction, Kate."

"The news doesn't do you guys justice. Ya'll look ready to kick some ass."

"Next is a new recruit, Jeremy. He opens doors." Nolan said giving him a wink.

"Seven years of psy. education, and five of applied psychological manipulation and you think i just open doors."

"Any door." Nolan corrected.

"And last is Meli she's..."

"The first person you killed." Meli interrupted, "You will never live that down."

"Nolan," Kurt asked, "is this all we're getting?"

"Yes sir, but they'll get done what we ask, I assure you." Nolan answered.

Meli smiled, "Ooo, it's weird to hear you talking to a superior with respect."

"I wear different hats when I have to," he said as he turned. "To all of you, I would like to introduce Kurt and Jackson, leader and second-in-command of the Magic Team, respectively. And these gentlemen are my fellow team members Aang, Bennett, Alex, and Troy. The two chao are Harvey and Moe. And Over here, we have the future of our team, Katara, Sokka, Ty Lee, Zuko, and Toph."

"It's a pleasure to meet you all. We're grateful for your support," said Kurt. "I was told you know where the enemy is?"

"Yes," replied Meli. "A few years back, there was Matravinian attack on a city just across the border to the west of here. Well a large branch of the city was quarantined due to undetonated weapons. The government never bothered to go clean it up due to the amount of damage, they figured it was cheaper to relocate people. But the Hounds used it as a chance to gain some territory and weapons. If you need answers, that's where you'll find them."

"If these people are your enemies, and you've known they've been here, why haven't you dealt with them yourselves until now?" asked Kurt.

"The whole place is a fortress now," replied Kate. "Anti-warp field, and tons of guards. Infiltration isn't an option. It will need to be an assault, and for that, we need your team."

"Then an assault it will have to be, and I'd like to do it tomorrow morning" Kurt decided. "Nolan, let's come up with a battle strategy, assess what roles everyone should play."

"We're going to need a better idea of their current defenses before we can finalize anything. They change them up from time to time," said Nolan. "Kate, can you do some recon?"

"I'd like some backup. Can I take Soge?"

"Soge needs some work if he's going to be ready for an assault," interjected Meli, "I'm going to have to spend some time with him back here."

"How about Jackson goes with Kate?" asked Kurt.

"Ah, you want one of your boys keeping an eye on me?" Kate shot back.

"Relax, Kate," assured Nolan, "Jackson's had my back countless times. I trust him with my life. You two should get along just fine."

Jackson and Kate trudged through the thick forest toward the outskirts of the city. After a few minutes of awkward silence, Kate broke it. "Geeze, Nolan said you were supposed to be the funny one. Say something. So far all you've done is check out my tits."

Jackson's cheeks turned red. "Well you got me, but don't think I missed you checking out my ass."

"In my line of work, you have to inspect everything around you. Otherwise you get killed. And some things merit a second look"

"Well inspect away then."

Kate chuckled. "Okay, you are funny. Well I'm not famous like you, and I know Nolan has kept this side of his life private for the most part, so what do you want to know about me?"

"Well, have you and Nolan ever..?"

"I knew you would ask that!" Kate laughed. "And no, never. I think we'd both be lying if either of us said we hadn't ever thought about it, but I'm pretty sure any notions of that are long gone. Plus I think he's got his eyes elsewhere now, and while he's fairly good looking and a decent guy, he's not my type."

"What is your type?"

Kate hesitated. "I'm not sure."

"It doesn't happen to include funny guys with nice asses though, does it?"

Kate smirked. "It just might. Now what else do you want to know?"

"Let's just start with everything."

"Well that might have to wait a bit. They reached a good vantage point. Kate took out her sniper rifle and began using the scope. She flipped a switch on the side so that it would record. "Alright, it actually isn't too different from last time we checked it out, but it looks like they have some new gun platforms. That may limit our approach options, but not too bad." She stood back up. "We'll have to hike around to a point where we can get another view. I know you can use chaos control, but they have an anti-warp generator here, I'm not sure exactly how far it goes."

"It's alright, we can walk. So, we were starting with everything, right?"

Kurt and Nolan had a makeshift command center set up under a large canopy tent. A hologram of the city was projected on the table. "It's going to be weird in there. Like a post-apocalyptic ghost town," commented Nolan.

"It's definitely not like the base we attacked the other day, but I actually think a similar attack might work. We can't send everyone in together. They'll box us in way too easily and overwhelm us. We need to keep them somewhat scattered, as long as we don't spread ourselves too thin."

"With our extra manpower, drawing them out shouldn't be a problem. That said, once we cleared a lot of them out, we should all close in on the industrial park. That should be their main center of operations."

"Hopefully Jackson and Kate's recon mission will help confirm that," replied Kurt. They heard a short but loud rumble and turned to face it. Bennett and Alex were letting Toph help them build an earth shelter in lieu of a tent. Meanwhile, Aang was helping Zuko learn to counter Katara and Sokka's waterbending attacks with firebending.

"Have you thought about kids of your own?" asked Kurt.

"I'd be lying if I said it hadn't crossed my mind lately," replied Nolan. "At first, I thought they were crazy bringing children so young into all this. But I felt similar when Katara, Sokka, and even Aang first joined us. Like I said earlier, they are the future of this team. I used to never see myself as a parent to be honest, but watching Katara and Sokka grow over the past couple years has definitely opened my eyes a bit. So, it's nothing I'm dead set on, but I'm considering it much more than I would have before. What about you?"

Kurt paused for a moment. "You know there was a time in my life where all I wanted was the simple life: A wife, a couple kids, five-day work week, and a house that I don't have to enter via warpgate or hidden aircraft hangar. But one day I just had enough of the injustice in the world and wanted to do something about it, so that idea's kinda gone out the window. I don't think I've had a third date in over two years. Don't get me wrong though, I'd still love to get married and have kids one day. I'm pretty sure we're on the tail end of the war, so once it's over, I can focus on all that."

"Well considering you'll be one of the most decorated heroes of all time after that, I don't imagine you'll have trouble finding women to go out with you. But ultimately you have to do what makes you happy, so I gotta ask..."

Meli walked in. "Sorry to interrupt. Nolan, do you guys have any hydraulic fluid? Soge is a bit low on his left side."

"There should be some in the X-Tornado. Ask Ty Lee, the girl in pink, and she'll open it for you."

"Thank you," said Meli as she walked out. Kurt noticed that she brushed Nolan's bicep with her hand as she left. Nolan noticed him staring at him.

"What?" Nolan asked.

"Nothing," replied Kurt smiling to himself. "Let's get back to work."

After walking and chatting with Jackson for another 40 minutes, Kate found a vantage point that she liked. She then did her thing again. The sun was setting, so they had to be quick."

"Patrols seem a bit heavier than usual. And if looks like they're moving some equipment, but it's packed up. Woah! They've got some new jets. If you guys go for an aerial approach, you'll have to deal with those too. Not that you should even consider that until you take care of those gun platforms. So with that anti-warp generator, at the very least some people will have to approach on foot." She stood up again. "Alright, I think we have everything we need. We should head back." Suddenly, they heard voices and footsteps approaching. They scrambled for a place to hide. They found a fallen tree, and Jackson used earthbending to make a small ditch beneath it. It was tight, but they huddled close together.

"I'm fed up with these shifts," said one voice. "What's the point of these forest patrols?"

"Could be worse. The guys who gotta come out in an hour have it rough. I wouldn't want to be in the forest at night."

"Well for all of our sakes, I hope things go according to plan and it's all over soon."

Jackson and Kate waited silently for a minute after just to be safe. "I think we're clear."

"I'd give it another minute before we expose ourselves," said Kate. "Boy, that really got the adrenaline going. Glad you could make this little hiding place."

"It's a little cozy."

"It gave you an excuse to put your arm around me."

"I was hoping you wouldn't notice."

"Really?" asked Kate.

"...No." They closed the distance and started kissing. "Well, we know we have at least an hour." They went back to kissing.

"We really should get back before dark though," interrupted Kate. Jackson looked disappointed, but knew Kate was right and nodded. "But this ain't over. After we put together the plan and everyone's asleep, come to my tent." Jackson smiled.

Kurt and Nolan watched the sun sink behind the mountains as they continued working. "I agree, said Kurt. "Three groups should be the best way. We just need a way to coordinate so that no one group gets overwhelmed."

"Jackson, Bennett, and Aang should all be in separate groups. If one group gets pinned down, they can get to them quickly with their super forms to provide additional support."

"Alright, let's start forming these groups then. Should we keep your assassin group together or separate?"

"I think separate, but lets see what Kate brings back."

"Well, here she comes now," Kurt gestured as Jackson and Kate walked back into camp. "It's getting pretty dark, I was worried you two weren't coming back."

"We had to dodge a patrol. Don't worry though, they won't come this far out." Kate pulled the data cartridge from her rifle and handed it to Nolan. They plugged it into a computer and started reviewing the footage. "Let's make a battle plan."

After a few hours, interrupted only by dinner, they had a plan. "Well, it's late now," said Kurt. "Let's let everyone know they should get some rest, and we'll brief them in the morning."

Jackson waited until he was sure Ty Lee and Harvey were sound asleep, then he crept out of his tent and made his way over toward Kate's.

"Well at least you're not making out with Kurt."

Jackson jumped, and turned to see Nolan. "When are you going to let that go?"

"When it stops being funny, so probably never," he replied. "So, you and Kate, huh?"

"What? No I just have to pee."

"Your lips were covered with her lipstick when you came back. And yes, Kurt noticed too."

"Well, you got me. I'm sorry, I know you..."

"You don't need to apologize dude. You have gone through a lot in the last 6 months, between Double-Jackson, Ricky, Zactus, and Ty Lee. And to be honest, Kate isn't the most open person in the world, but she seems to have enjoyed her time with you. You're a good guy, so by all means, I have no qualms. Just be safe." He handed Jackson a condom.

"Thanks...You just happened to have these on you?" Jackson asked suspiciously.

"Do you really want to stay here talking with me right now?"

"Fair point," said Jackson. He walked to Kate's tent, but before he stepped in, he looked back and saw Nolan going into Meli's tent. "Got his eyes elsewhere. Got it," he said to himself. He stepped in.

"Is that you Jackson?"

"Yeah," he said. He laid down next to her and started snuggling with her. "I have to confess, it's been quite a while."

"Same. Our line of work sometimes gets in the way of pleasure doesn't it?"

"Yes it does."

"Not tonight though." She pulled his head in and they kissed.

A Day on the Town
Jackson had set an alarm for just after sunrise, just loud enough to wake him up, but not anyone outside of the tent. He slipped his clothes back on and gave Kate a kiss. "See you in a little bit," she said stroking his cheek as he got up. The morning air was cool as Jackson went back over to his own tent. Ty Lee and Harvey were still sound asleep, as he had hoped.

In the next half hour, more alarms started going off across the camp, and one by one, everyone emerged from their tents. They all grabbed bagels and met in front of the makeshift command center where Nolan and Kurt stood to address the group. Jackson and Kate stood off to the side of them.

"Today we uproot the Storm Hounds and uncover their secrets, bringing an end to their terrorist operations," Kurt began as he pulled up the hologram of the city and highlighted several points. "Their point of central operations is the industrial park, here. The answers we're looking for will hopefully be there. But before we can close in on that, we need to thin their forces in the rest of the city so we don't get surrounded and pinned down. We can't just do a full-frontal approach..."

"That's what I told you last night," Kate said to Jackson, winking and lightly elbow-jabbing him. Nolan caught the innuendo and nearly spit out the bagel he was chewing on.

"We've decided to split into three teams for the first phase of the mission," continued Kurt, "Team A will consist of myself, Bennett, Troy, Katara, and Jeremy. We will be approaching the south side of the city. We will be striking first to draw the forces away from the other teams. Jeremy will help create false security alerts to further confuse them."

Nolan spoke up. "Next, Team B will approach the city directly from the east here, and make their way for the industrial park through the wide roads. It will consist of Jackson, Kate, Harvey, and Soge, with Ty Lee, Toph, and Zuko in the X-Cyclone. This path is the Hounds' main route for ground transport, and therefore an obvious route for attackers as well, so they likely have it well defended with mines. Jackson will deploy the X-Tornado in X-Cyclone mode from his storage cube once you arrive in the city. Soge will scan for mines and Kate will disable them. This will allow the X-Cyclone to advance safely."

"I'm driving!" cheered Ty Lee.

"Lastly," Nolan continued, "Team C will consist of myself, Aang, Meli, Alex, Sokka, and Moe. Our goal is to destroy their anti-air weapons on the north side in case we need to fly out, as well as circle behind the industrial park to prevent anyone from being flanked from the west. If there aren't any questions, I suggest we move out in 15 minutes."

No one spoke. "Alright then," said Kurt, "Magic Team, Assassins, let's go to work."

Despite some mild disagreements between Bennett and Jeremy on stealthy approach strategies, Kurt's group was soon in position. They arrived at one of the Hounds' security centers. Katara peered in through the bathroom window and sent water spilling out of the toilet. When the Hounds inside came to inspect the situation, Bennett and Troy sneaked in and took them out quickly. Jeremy got to the computer and went to work. "Alright, I've set up a timed pattern of security alerts. They'll go off in a pattern looking like we're going in a completely different direction than any of the groups are. It won't stop any reports that they issue, but it should at least keep them confused."

"Nice work," said Kurt, "Let's get some distance and then distract more of their forces. Once we've engaged them, we'll give word for Jackson and Nolan's teams to move in. That reminds me, Katara, stay behind us when we get into combat." Before she could open her mouth in protest, Kurt continued, "We have a few power cures, but without Nolan, Aang, or Sokka, you're the best shot we have at treating wounds." She reluctantly agreed.

They made it about seven more city blocks without being noticed. Bennett spotted them first. He brought up a wall of rock and earth in front of them before the shots hit. "Snipers! Rooftop to the right!" he declared. Kurt smashed the window of the building to their left with a sword and they all ducked in. Then Bennett crumpled up the wall into a boulder and sent it flying back at the attackers, taking out two of the three snipers.

"Let's make our way out the back," suggested Troy, "The last sniper will call for backup, and we can give Jackson and Nolan the go-ahead in a few minutes."

Kurt nodded, and spoke into his communicator. "Alright, let's get moving. Get ready for a firefight soon." They broke out of the back of the building and charged down the street behind, heading west. They made it a few more blocks before encountering a patrol.

Jackson got the call from Kurt to proceed. He could hear gunshots in the background. He looked to Ty Lee, questioning whether she and her young siblings should really be there. 'At least they'll be in the X-Cyclone,' he thought to himself.

The team takes on a militant terrorist cell back home on Power World. This terrorist cell has been the enemy of Nolan's assassin group for some time. Nolan encounters a young girl, Mai, the daughter of one of the terrorists who disagrees with their practices. Nolan takes her in and has her train with him. They become very close.

The terrorists appear to be posing as soldiers from Matravin. After defeating the terrorists and discovering their weapons stash, the team discovers that their planes are based on the X-Tornado, X-3, and Firefly. They discover that Howard Lane was paying off the terrorists to pose as Matravinian attackers by giving them technology based on Jackson's.

After things have calmed down, Kurt and Jackson take a walk on the beach and discuss the future of the team.

It's Just Personal
Two years had passed since Zactus disappeared. MDI's new leader and chief innovator was not as effective or tenacious as Zactus. The last of the Matravinian presence on Power World had finally been cleared out. However, they appeared to be building up. Power World was no longer solely a defender. Under Kurt's recommendation, their world was finally on the offensive.Kurt, Jackson, and Nolan were given the titles of generals as they lead Power World in striking back at Matravin's military forces. A new generation of battleships by MarKev Industries made up the new Power World fleet, which stayed in orbit protecting the planet, and stood ready to strike at Matravin whenever necessary. And with the team leading the battles, Power World was winning. Still, Kurt and his team all knew that one day their real nemesis would return.

That day came.

It was very late afternoon, and Jackson was experimenting with some new tech in the main garage area of his workshop. He felt a massive shockwave from an earthbending attack shake the cliff side, and the front side of his house began to tilt down towards the water. He immediately used chaos control to teleport himself to the 3rd floor bedroom, where Ty Lee and Harvey were. Jackson looked out the window and saw Anthony standing near the shattered portion of the runway, with ships moving in and firing at the house. He then teleported again to the warpgate outside the base and said clearly to Ty Lee "Tell Kurt that ABF is back, and he's attacking the workshop. I'm going back there, but I'll return as soon as I can." With that, he teleported back to the workshop. Jackson knew he was running out of time, he could feel the earth beneath the house and hangar falling away. He ran throughout the workshop, putting the most important things he needed in his storage cube, starting with his planes and a few pieces of tech from the lab. Then he ran out to his transformation platform where the rest of his power crystals were waiting for him, and just as all seven began to circle arournd him, a missile shot destroyed the platform and blasted him back into the garage area. He got up from beneath rubble and focused. One at a time, the power crystals floated to him through the holes in the roof and began to spin rapidly around him. Finally, he became Super Jackson and engaged ABF. The battle was intense and Jackson watched as the entire front half of his home slide into the ocean. After a period of fighting, ABF vanished away. Jackson was relieved but confused.

Then, he called Nolan and warned him and Mai to get out seconds before Anthony's fireblasts began torching the treehouse. Jackson showed up to aid his friend, but Anthonywas off quickly. Nolan and Mai retreated to the Base, where they received a call from Alex saying that his and Bennett's house was under attack. They were ordered to come back to the base and bring Toph with them. Meanwhile, Jackson quickly teleported to Altar Emerald to secure the Master Power Crystal. They were all back at base, in full lockdown. They knew that's where ABF would be heading next.

The seven team members stayed ready to defend, while Harvey, Moe, Katara, Sokka, Zuko, Ty Lee, Mai, and Toph remained in the high security vault. Soon the the hangar was blown open and dark soldiers swarmed in. Meanwhile, ABF proved too powerful for the high security hallwway and was able to phase and blast through the heavy security measures. He came into the vault and looked at the terrified faces. "Sorry, you had to get caught up in this personal business, but for the sake of it, you all must die now." It was the quick intuition of Nolan and Alex that prevented what would surely have been a bloodbath. "ABF, catch!" Anthony turned around to see Nolan's energy blast two feet from him. He was thrown against the wall, giving the young ones and the chao a window of opportunity to escape and join the others in the hangar. Anthony took note that his opponents' prowess had grown greatly over the past few years, and he had underestimated them. Still, he was not worried. Despite not being able to devastate the team by killing the young ones, he'd made his message clear. Nolan and Alex were able to avoid Anthony's critical blows, but he managed to push their two-on-one fight back to the hangar, where he was able to escape in the chaos of battle.

Kurt spotted ABF and indicated to Jackson to go with him. The two raced after him out of the hangar. Anthony shot dark blasts and bending attacks at the pair. Jackson and Kurt counterattacked. The three soon arrived in a clearing in the nearby forest with a bunch of tall rocks. Kurt and Jackson engaged him, and actually fought very well against him. However, they were overwhelmed as several of his elite dark forces arrived and began to attack. Jackson attempted to even the odds by turning into Super Jackson, but Anthony shot him with a dark blast before he could finish the transformation. Jackson was knocked down and his power crystals were thrown in all directions. He was still conscious, but extremely hurt. Kurt ran over and knelt down by Jackson as Anthony walked slowly towards them.

"It's personal now Kurt. You and your team will pay for your insolence and getting in my way. If you had aided me in taking over the entire system before, none of this fighting would exist and we would all have peace."

"You can't have peace under tyranny," Kurt snapped back as he slowly picked up Jackson's sword. ABF chuckled.

"I disagree, but I suppose I'll have to wait and see."

"Unfortunately for you, Anthony, you won't be around long enough to find out!" Kurt wielded both his and Jackson's swords and charged at ABF, cutting through his reinforcements. He managed to put a couple stabs into ABF, knocking him over. Kurt continued to take down a few more troops, threw his sword into one of them, drew his rifle, and fired an energy pulse that sent ABF flying just as he was starting to get up. Kurt ran over towards his foe, but suddenly felt great pain and couldn't move. The full moon was rising, and ABF was bloodbending. He threw Kurt against a tree.

"I could kill you right now...but I'm not done with you yet. You and your world will burn, Kurt. I will take any hope you have and crush it before your very eyes. You will regret ever trying to stop me. And then you will die." And with that, he fled.

As soon as he could move again, Kurt ran over to his friend, who was just starting to sit up. "He really wanted to hit us where it hurts didn't he?" mumbled Kurt, helping Jackson up.

"It was a low blow," replied Jackson as they started gathering the scattered power crystals.

"Did you hear everything he said?" asked Kurt.

"Yep. It just got real again, didn't it?"

The Team Regroups
Kurt helped Jackson walk the mile back to the base. He didn't know what state the rest of the team was in, and need Jackson back as soon as possible. With Jackson safe in the infirmary, Kurt broke into a frantic run to find the rest of the team. He found remains of Matravinian soldiers and robots scattered throughout the base. The base itself was heavily damaged, with broken glass and bits of wall everywhere.

"Heellpp..." someone moaned. Kurt ran over to the rubble to find Bennett barely conscious underneath one of the heavy security doors. After five minutes of prying the door off Bennett, Kurt was able to help him to the infirmary. With Bennett and Jackson safe, Kurt continued his search. Finding no one else on the main level, he went down to the next. 'The damage is even worse down here,' he thought. 'This is where Anthony w-' A laser shot flew right by his face. "Oh my god!! I'm so sorry Kurt, I thought you were one of them!" He turned to see Aang hiding next to a dead Matravinian soldier, holding his gun.

"Are you hurt?" Kurt asked. Aang shook his head. "Do you know where anyone else is?"

Aang thought for a moment, "I did see Nolan, Alex, and Troy leave with the kids and the chao to keep them safe. I don't know where Bennett or Jackson is though."

"Don't worry about them Aang, they're both in the infirmary."

Aang's mouth dropped, "Kurt, there are still troops in the base! That's why I almost shot you!"

The two broke into a sprint back to the infirmary, but it was too late. Six troops were waiting for them, one was holding Jackson out in front of him as a shield with a gun. Bennett was still unconscious but another had his gun on Bennett's head just in case. The commander stepped forward and removed his helmet. "I have a message for you." He placed a disc on the ground and a hologram of Anthony projected into the empty space.

"Kurt, do you see my efficiency? It hasn't even been an hour and I already have three members of your team hostage." Kurt spun around to see another soldier holding on to Aang. "Try anything, and they all die. And to show my resolve..." He nodded at the commander, who in turn pulled out a knife and stabbed Aang in the side of his gut. Anger flared in Kurt's eyes, but ABF continued. "Now you will listen. He doesn't have time for you to argue," he said while motioning toward Aang. Kurt met Aang's eyes and saw fear. He had to do something to stop the bleeding and get rid of the damn soldiers. "These soldiers are here for you Kurt. If you surrender to them, they'll patch up the young Avatar and everyone else can walk out. The choice is yours." With that, Anthony ended the transmission.

With little option, Kurt got down on his knees and allowed the soldiers to handcuff him. As he was led from the room he heard the commander tell his troops, "We have our orders, shoot them." This was enough for Kurt. He tapped his communicator's distress signal and kicked off the guard in front of him. Before the other guards could react, Jackson released his inhibitor rings from his wrists, giving him a large enough boost of energy to fight back with firebending, airbending, and chaos spear. The guards were forced back, so they began shooting. Jackson did what he could to dodge the laser blasts, but taking a few hits while still fighting off the soldiers was beginning to be too much for him. Kurt grabbed the MDI rifle that Aang had picked up earlier and began firing back, trying to ease the pressure off Jackson. But to his dismay, their armor was able to redirect the energy to a storage canister on their back. The rifle didn't have enough energy to overload the canisters by continuing to fire. But he could try to outright shoot the canisters.

Before he could do anything, reinforcements had arrived. Nolan, Alex, and Troy came running from the entrance of the base. They had gotten his distress call. Nolan began throwing energy blasts, while Troy charged with his sword and Alex unleashed some furious firebending. The three made quick work of all six. Jackson gave in to his exhaustion, and passed out onto Bennett's bed as he was bending over to pick up his rings. Suddenly one soldier sat up and shot at Jackson in revenge, but Bennett had woken up, caught the energy blast, and threw it back into the soldier's groin, finishing him off. "Nice shot," said Troy.

"I was aiming for his head," replied Bennett as he flopped back down on his pillow. Nolan helped break the cuffs off Kurt, then ran over to help Aang. Despite losing a lot of blood, Nolan was able to save him after a couple hours of healing. Meanwhile, Kurt ordered Alex and Troy to go get the kids and chao and bring them back to base. They couldn't risk leaving them alone where the team couldn't protect them. Nolan insisted that they would be safe with Master Shaa, but Kurt didn't want to take any chances that night. They left through the warpagte, leaving Kurt on his own. He waited impatiently in the meeting room while Nolan healed Jackson and Bennett.

Alex, Troy, the kids, and the chao returned to the base and joined Kurt in waiting. Ty Lee cried while holding Harvey in her arms as Katara tried to comfort her and Zuko, Toph clung to Alex and wouldn't let go, and Mai and Sokka tried to hide their emotions. The young waterbenders asked Kurt if they should go to the infirmary and help Nolan with the healing, but he decided it would be best to check with Nolan first. He didn't want them to be traumatized if it was too gruesome. As if on cue, Nolan called for him asking for an extra set of hands or two, so Kurt sent Katara and Sokka to join him. When Nolan was finally done and entered the meeting room, everyone jumped up to hear the news. "They'll all make it. But they need rest." A huge weight had just been lifted from the room as everyone ran forward to give him a celebratory hug.

"From now on," said Kurt, "We all stick together."

The next morning, when Jackson finally came to, he reunited with Ty Lee and Harvey. The threesome joined Kurt and Nolan in surveying the base for damage. Besides the security level, the hangar was the most damaged area. The entrance was still blown open, the runway couldn't extend, and the Akira and Firefly were damaged beyond repair. Jackson and Nolan had their planes in their individual storage packs, so they weren't damaged. "Great," sighed Kurt, "We don't have enough planes to transport everyone through an anti-warp zone."

"Not necessarily," said Jackson. Kurt gave him a puzzled look, but before he could ask what Jackson meant, Nolan interrupted.

"Jackson, you and Alex should try to seal off the hangar as best you can with earthbending."

"Him and Alex?" called out a voice. Bennett, still limping a little, hobbled into the hangar with Alex and Toph at his side. "Please! Leave it to some real earthbenders." Jackson smiled, glad to see that his brother was alright. Bennett, Alex, and Toph sealed off the hangar, and Bennett metalbended the wall back together. "Toph, you and Ty Lee go play with Zuko. I need to talk with these guys." Jackson sensed Bennett was tense, and told Harvey to go with them. As soon as they left, Bennett spoke up. "So as soon as Aang's well, we're all going to go and kill the bastard, right?"

"We don't have a plan yet, Bennett."

Bennett looked shocked. "You guys knew this was coming for five fucking years! And now you're telling me you don't have a plan?!"

"Bennett," said Jackson, "You need to under-"

"Shut up! Last night was a complete clusterfuck! If it wasn't for the pure luck of Nolan and Alex double-checking the high security hall, my little girl and your little girl would be dead right now. The future generation of this team would be gone! You and I both know that if we weren't extremely wounded, there's no way either of us would've slept last night! And now tonight, I have to tuck her in and tell her everything's gonna be okay when I have no idea if it will be, because you three guys have been dicking around this whole time."

Jackson and Nolan were stunned in silence, and looked to Alex who just shrugged. Kurt spoke calmly. "Bennett, you have every right to be angry. Putting Toph and the others in the vault where we couldn't watch them was a mistake, and that's on me. If Toph is severely harmed, you have permission to duel me, and I will be unarmed. However, ABF is unpredictable. We couldn't see this coming, and we don't even know where he is now. But I have one lead as to a method for defeating him, and I assure you, within a week, we will find him and make him pay." Jackson and Nolan looked at each other, concerned. "He will die painfully," Kurt finished.

Katara and Sokka rushed into the hangar, reporting that Aang was waking up. Everyone rushed to greet him. "Amazing work Nolan," commented Aang as he inspected his scar, "I thought I was a goner."

Kurt meanwhile turned to Jackson. "It's time to fill them in on everything. I'm going to get prepared, gather everyone in the meeting room in ten minutes."

With all the team present, Kurt began his briefing. "Before he left, Zactus shared some information with myself and Jackson. I hated keeping you in the dark, but it was for the best and we had no leads at the time. When he was researching time powers, he came across a term that was used over and over again. Ronost. Whatever this ronost thing was, it had some great importance long long ago. And Zactus wanted to know what it was. He searched every database on Matravin and even broke into half the archives on Power World. But nothing else contained the term. He gave up the search until he overheard one of his officers telling a legend from his local town. The story told of a great warrior who infused all of his commanding prowess into a magical sword, which he called Rost, also known as the sword of redemption. That way, his men would stay loyal to whomever held the sword, but it also amplified his control. But when he passed, his men fought over the sword. And it ended with all but one dead. He buried his fellow soldiers in a great tomb, and took his life when it was all done. The moral is power corrupts, but Zactus pieced the story with the books about time powers. Ronost was the tomb that held the soldiers. And whoever ever placed the sword at the tomb would be able to command the spirits of his men for the day when darkness rises again. A prophecy says that that when that battle against darkness concludes, these spirits who stand against the darkness will finally find peace. But any location or images of either two was lost to myth."

Zactus knows that we can't win this conventionally," he continued. "We're winning now but we'll need a bit more to defeat Anthony. He's boosted the moral of Matravin and it won't be much longer until there is a major offensive reopenned. Zactus went to search for Ronost and asked me to search for Rost. We've been keeping in contact and sharing information. Last week, I found a lead and I think I know where Rost is, at the bottom of the Dark Lake."

The team was quiet. The Dark Lake was huge, and not to mention it was very close to Matravin's capital. Bennett was the first to respond. "Is this it? Find some stupid sword that goes to an unknown tomb to bring back some fucking zombie soldiers?" He paused, "Yah know what? I'm done here. I'm going to straight to his front door, and I'll make sure my little girl never has to be afraid again." He stormed out of the briefing room. Alex and Jackson ran after him to try and talk some reason into him before things got out of hand.

Kurt looked at Nolan. "What do you think?"

Nolan thought about his response for a second, "I'll follow your lead. But I've done extensive study of ancient powers and weapons. And there is nothing out there that can bring people back from the dead like that. And even if we find this sword and tomb, who's to say these soldiers are any good? They might have come at a time before any of our modern weapons. We could bring them back just to use them as cannon fodder. But I don't have any other dea of what to do. We can't take the fight to Anthony directly. But I don't like the idea of sitting around doing nothing."

Kurt nodded and turned his gaze to Aang. "Kurt, I've seen some crazy things. I've followed you on some crazy missions. But this is too much. Bennett is right. Nothing about that story makes sense. And I still don't trust Zactus. He's always been good at making people see his point of view. It could be a wild goose chase designed to keep us busy. And the Dark Lake itself is suicide. If we can actually get to it undetected, we'll have to deal with the lake itself. It's unnatural and there are many reasons why the locals avoid it. Something rightly evil lives in those waters, and in the thousands of years before us no one has been able to slay it."

Saddened, Kurt turned to see Jackson come back alone. "He convinced Alex to come with him. But if you and Zactus both truly believe what you said, I'll be right behind you."

Kurt lastly looked to Troy, "What about you?" Troy looked back, "This is a strange world. I don't doubt there are many other powers that have been hidden away for good reason. This could be one of them. I'll help you find it."

Kurt turned back to Aang. "Aang. There are four of us. And I really want four of us to come back from this mission. We need your help with this. Please."

Aang thought for a few minutes, "I had hoped that enough people would convince you that this is foolish. If it isn't there, you promise me right now not to listen to Zactus anymore." Kurt was shocked, but agreed. Jackson too was both shocked and a little angered, but he calmed himself. Katara and Sokka were listening in.

"We're going with you too!"

"Guys, said Aang, I know that..."

"Big brother, we're old enough to fight. We know this mission is important and we'll do whatever it takes," said Katara sincerely.

Master Shaa came to the base, promising to look after Ty Lee, Mai, and Zuko. The brave team of seven and the 2 chao made their way to the remains of the Hangar. Jackson, Harvey, Kurt, Sokka, and Katara took the X-Tornado, Nolan and Troy flew the X-3, and Aang and Moe flew in the Hyper-Tornado.

Suicide Mission
Because of the proximity of the lake to the capital, the team had to fly in stealthily as to not draw any unwanted attention. "This wind is going to make landing tough," Jackson shouted over his radio to the others. After fighting the wind, all three planes were able to safely land. Everyone hopped out and made their way over to the lake.

Everyone was on edge, but Aang was the first to talk about it. "Something doesn't feel right here. This wind feels wrong. The air feels wrong. We should leave."

"No... We have to keep going," Kurt replied. Jackson and Aang excahnged worried looks. Nolan, Kurt, and the kids moved along one side while Jackson, Aang, and Troy moved along the other. Though Kurt didn't want to admit it, Aang was right. The air was cold and dense, colder than it should have been. The fog that rose from the lake limited viewing distance, to the point where no one could see more than ten feet in front of them. The water wasn't naturally moving. No lake of this size could have completely still water. Nolan kicked a stone in, but the water didn't ripple. Just sucked the stone in.

Nolan spoke up, "Let's go back with the others. I don't like this." Kurt agreed and they made there way back. As they made their way around the beach, Katara heard movement. "Big Brother!" she shouted as Aang came running into the group.

"Move!" he shouted. Puzzled, Nolan turned to see a colossal dark spirit flying toward them through the fog. Everyone scattered and ran for cover. Once safe behind a rock, Nolan asked Aang what was going. "Well, Jackson and I were walking around the beach when we felt a surge of-WATCH OUT!" He shoved Nolan aside as the spirit knocked him into the water. Nolan sent a energy blast after it, but it was already gone in the mist.

Jackson and Troy meanwhile were doing what they could to make it back to the team. "TROY! On your left!" Hearing his, Troy dove to his right. But the spirit grabbed him. Jackson ran over and used fire blasts to lossen its grasp and allow Troy to escape. He heard Nolan yell in the distance and turned to run towards his friend.

Once he arrived at the spot, he tried to use water bending to clear the mist. But it didn't respond, leaving him blind. Then he remembered. "Troy! Where are you?!" There was no response. He glanced at Harvey, then he frantically ran beack to where he had lost Troy. But he was gone.

The mist started to clear. Jackson turned toward the water to see the spirits. They had captured everyone. Kurt and Nolan were upside down, unconcious. Aang was struggling to break free with Moe, and Troy and the kids were all restrained from moving. The spirits just hovered there. A fourth who was not holding anyone flew up to Jackson, barely inches from his face.

In a cold and deep voice, it spoke. "You. You seek what is lost. You know not of what it does. We wait here, for ignorance to come. Ignorance is why it cannot be found. Leave." It flew back to the others, leaving Jackson alone on the beach. Before Jackson could speak, he was knocked over.

"Jackson! I thought you could use a hand." To his surprise, Bennett, Alex, and Toph had joined the fight. Jackson looked at Bennett, who nodded, and Aang, who followed suit. The three of them began to meditate, and each went into the Avatar state. Kurt began to wake up and saw the spirits placing everyone back onto the beach. They all left, except for the one who spoke earlier. He again flew up to Jackson. "Perhaps ignorance has not come, but instead enlightenment. Do not let it corrupt its bearer, they will be consumed by it." The spirit turned and looked away. "Ignorance approaches." It flew back with the others, and into the lake.

"What the hell was that about?" Bennett asked. Someone threw out a response. "That was proof I was right Kurt. There is something wrong with the universe and it was our job to fix it." Kurt, still lying down, flipped over to see Anthony walking forward. He looked...off, but still dangerous. The team drew arms against him. "Is it really so hard for me to have a conversation with my old friend?" The words stung Kurt who got up and drew his sword as well. "Pity, you should have let the spirits take you."

He sent out a spray of dark blasts and the battle was on. Jackson went into his super form, along with Harvey, while Aang and Bennett opted for the Avatar state. The three began to collectively knock him back. While he was preoccupied, Nolan and Kurt ran up to attack him from behind. The tactic worked, forcing him to sacrifice one defense to stop the next wave of attacks.

Within minutes, Jackson and the others felt the strange sensation of linked energy, and he and Kurt took the opportunity to initiate a team blast. Once the attack was finished, the team had Anthony at his knees. Breathing heavily, Anthony did what he could to buy time. "You think you've beaten me?!" He shouted. "You think you're saving the world?!" He looked up, and returned his gaze to his attackers."YOU ARE NOT!" He stood up. "KURT! CAN'T YOU SEE WHAT YOU'RE DOING IS WRONG?" His anger gave him new strength, allowing him to send out a dark wave that knocked everyone back. "YOU THINK I'M EVIL? I'M DOING WHAT HAS TO BE DONE! FOR THE GOOD OF EVERYONE!" He ducked as a landing craft flew overhead. "THIS ENDS TODAY!"

Nolan jumped up, ready to fight. But the ground shook, and he fell flat on his face. He looked up to see a dozen soldiers repelling ou of the craft, and one of the squids standing behind them. He got back on his feet and joined the rest of the team. Troy sent an energy blast at the ship, but all the soldiers were out. The blast flew in vain to hit the escaping ship. Kurt and Jackson were tag-teaming to hold back Anthony. Aang and Bennett were working on taking down the squid, but it's shadow missiles proved very difficult. Nolan joined Alex who was working desperately with Katara, Sokka, and Toph to overload the soldiers.

It had been a while since the team had fought anything the size of the squids, which gave Bennett and Aang a severe disadvantage. They needed to get close, but the missiles kept them away. "Bennett, I can't redirect them!" Bennett shouted in agreement. Thankfully Troy joined them, which is exactly whet they needed to get around the barrage of missiles.

Kurt and Jackson knew they were fighting a losing battle with Anthony, even with Jackson and Harvey in super forms. "How's your power, Jackson?" asked Kurt holding back Anthony's sword.

"It's alright. Been better," replied Jackson as he caught Harvey and shot a chaos spear at Anthony, which he was able to block while still pressing against Kurt's blade.

"Good enough to get really excited?"

"Worth a shot."

Kurt focused on just holding ABF off with Harvey's help for a moment while Jackson stepped out of the fight. Jackson, still in super form, focused his mind. The power crystals surrounded his body again. Then they started growing until they were over three times as big. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" shouted Jackson. There was a blinding flash of light. Kurt and Anthony looked over to see Jackson standing there in his hyper form. He looked like Super Jackson, but instead of gold, his body and parts of his clothes kept changing between a rainbow of light, crystalline colors. "Are you ready for Hyper Jackson, Anthony?" His voice echoed as he spoke.

Kurt slammed Anthony aside with his sword. Hyper Jackson picked him up threw him into the air, knocked him around and slammed him down into the lake. Jackson knew his power was draining fast, much faster than in his super form, and he would have to make the most use of this form while he could still maintain it. He gestured toward the squid. Kurt nodded. And Hyper Jackson flew over to Aang, Bennett, and Troy. "Where have you weakened it the most?" Asked Jackson. Troy indicated the left side of the mid-section. Hyper Jackson started charging his spin attack. "Give me a little extra oomf, guys!" Aang and Bennett surrounded Hyper Jackson's attack with earth and fire, then using airbending, they helped launch him at the squid. He tore right through it.

The soldiers were horrified at the sight of their war machine. Jackson had punched a hole right through its core, leaving the squid nothing more than a giant hunk of dead metal, which toppled over and splashed into the lake. Every soldier through down their guns, and raised their arms above their heads. "Ok, cuff them. They'll be spending the next few years in jail," ordered Kurt as Jackson turned back into his normal form and wearily stumbled over to join the group. Nolan held up his hand to him for a high five, Jackson missed and would've fallen flat on his face if Alex hadn't been there to catch him. Kurt held him up. "You did well, my friend."

"What about him? Did I do it" said Jackson to Kurt, feebly pointing to where ABF had gone under the water. The water was pitch black not far beneath the surface in that area.

Kurt frowned. "I truly doubt it, but it's way to dangerous to check. He'll be back soon enough." He walked over to where the spirits had been. They had left behind a chest. The team approached it slowly and circled around. "With any luck," said Kurt, "it should be the sword. They opened the box. Inside, they found a golden, left-handed battle gauntlet with some unusual markings and strange text. Kurt indicated the text. "Can anyone read this?"

"Kinda," said Aang. "It looks similar to Bugdunian, but I can't quite..."

"I got it," replied Bennett. "It's a lost language for everyone except some skilled historians and a handful of us treasure hunters. It says 'With this gauntlet, Rost may be wielded by those who have knowledge.' I have no idea what these markings over here mean. It looks like some sort of..."

"...Inter-dimensional map," interrupted Kurt, "That part I've seen before. I used a map like these to learn the locations of both the light and dark swords. It must lead to Rost, but the only way to read it is if we're in the center of all dimensions."

"By those with knowledge..." repeated Nolan, "For the time being, it sounds like it's one of you two," he said pointing to Kurt and Bennett. Kurt nodded.

"Bennett, for now, I will entrust this to you. Take this as an apology and a token of my gratitude."

Bennett held the gauntlet and put it on his left hand. "Good thing I'm a lefty too. An inter-dimensional treasure hunt: My kind of game. Thank you Kurt, I'm sorry for having doubted you."

"We'll start first thing tomorrow. We all need a rest."

"Speaking of which," said Troy, "How are we all going to get back now that we have three more of us and all these prisoners. Does anyone have the strength to warp us all back home?" Jackson, Nolan, Aang, and Bennett all shook their heads.

"Well, we can't stay here," commented Kurt, "Reinforcements are sure to show up soon. We need to find a place to hide, or maybe the four of you together might just be able to..."

"I don't think that will be necessary," said Alex, pointing to the sky.

"Ahh," exclaimed Jackson, "I was going to ask if you remembered."

Kurt squinted and saw what Alex was talking about. "Jackson, did you really...Four of them?"

"You bet," he smirked as four different colored versions of the X-Tornado flew down to their position and landed in X-Cyclone mode in a circle around the team and prisoners. The canopies opened on the yellow one, and Ty Lee, Master Shaa, Mai, and Zuko hopped out. Kurt and Nolan were at a loss for words.

"How the...Why the...?"

"I talked with Alex right before he left. We agreed that he was the only one who could convince Bennett to help us out, no offense Bennett."

"Ehh, you were probably right."

"I gave him a photo of the dark lake too, so Bennett could jump to it. But I knew that even if Alex was successful, we'd need some extra seats getting back. That's why I told Alex to contact Ty Lee if he managed to change Bennett's mind, since she knows about the base's secret hangar, where these four backups are stored. All she had to do was activate the evac-mode, and they fly right to my position," he said as he pointed to a small blinking light on his utility belt.

"Why didn't you tell us this earlier?" asked Kurt, who was borderline furious.

"I didn't want us to be counting on backup if it wasn't going to come. It's like what you told me years ago, 'hope for miracles, but don't depend on them.'"

Kurt's expression changed drastically. 'Wow,' he thought,' he really has learned a lot.'

"Speaking of backup," Aang spoke up, hearing the sounds of approaching ships.

"We still don't have nearly enough seats for the prisoners," said Troy.

"Nolan! Aang! Let's commandeer an empty gunship! Everyone else, get in one of the X-Tornadoes!" commanded Jackson. Nolan deployed the X-3, the Hyper-Tornado, and the original X-Tornado from his sword pack. He and Mai hopped in the X-3 and Jackson, Ty Lee, Aang, and the chao hopped in the X-Tornado. Bennett took the Hyper Tornado, and the rest took seats in the backup X-Tornadoes. Jackson and Nolan found a large landing craft, but before Jackson could drop Aang off over it, Kurt buzzed in from the red X-Tornado he was flying.

"Jackson, forget about the prisoners. We have to get out of here. We will be overrun. Look at all the ships coming in. And when Anthony returns to the fight, we'll be done for."

"How will the prisoners face justice?"

Kurt sighed. Then he locked on and fired away. The entire team was silent as the missiles hit their targets. "Justice is served differently today."

The Dimension Collapse
They returned to the base late that night. Everyone was exhausted, but surprisingly hopeful. Master Shaa spoke to Nolan, and wished him the rest of the team the best of luck before he returned to Magic Castle. The team members went to their quarters to sleep except for Kurt, Jackson, Nolan, and Aang, who went to the meeting room. "Tomorrow is it," Kurt began, "Tomorrow is when we find the key to bringing this conflict to a permanent end. Everyone is going. Once we know where Rost is, we're not holding anything back. For over five years, I've relied on and trusted the three of you with my life, and no matter what happens, we cannot fail this mission, no matter what sacrifices we have to make. We must do whatever it takes." All four were silent for ten seconds. "And I'm sorry about the soldiers. I didn't know how much time we had to get out and I was to angry with Anthony to let them simply walk away. I know that was against our principles, but we have to prepared to do anything and everything to set things right tomorrow."

"We're with you until the end," assured Aang.

"Let's make it all count," said Nolan.

"Let's get some rest. Tomorrow we battle for everything we've stood for," concluded Jackson.

The next morning they all gathered in the hangar. Jackson and Nolan got everything they needed in storage cubes. They stood in front of the remains of the Akira and circled around, holding hands. In order to use the interdimensional map, Kurt had to bring the Team into the center of all the dimensions. Essentially, a control center for power and maintenance of all dimensional activity.

Once the team was safe inside, Kurt proceeded to whatever was in charge. Bennett handed him the gauntlet. Once inside the complex, he was roughly greeted by the beings who keep the dimensions. He was led through a series of twisting corridors towards the center of the building. They reached two very large metallic doors. The guards motioned Kurt inside while planting themselves at either side of the doorway. When he entered, he saw another being above a control console, staring blankly at a monitor. When Kurt spoke to it, he felt his entire body go rigid and locked. The being slumped over, a sword in its chest.

"And so goes the greatest being in the universe. Control over billions of dimensions, and yet killed by a sword." Kurt was spun to see Anthony standing behind him. "I bet you're suprised I found this place. It took me some time. But when you're in hiding while trying to recover, you get bored. So, my friend, I found an answer to my problem." Anthony then walked toward the main console and began punching some numbers in. "You see Kurt, I lost all hope when Jackson threw me into that lake. As I sat under the water, trying to find some way to come out on top, I found what I needed. The last two pieces of the Dark Master Power Crystal. It will take a few months to restore itself, time which I will use to get everything ready. And when you see what I plan to do with it this time..." Kurt tried to draw his sword, but Anthony's bonds held.

"Stop this Anthony. How many more innocents will die because of you?" Kurt said, glancing down at the gauntlet, knowing he would have to figure out a way to read it before Anthony did something drastic.

"Because of me? What about those soldiers? Day one on the job and you killed them just for being there! What about your troops?! The ones you send blindly to their deaths so this keeps going? Your team? Huh? Shadow? It was your initial quest for power that pushed him too far! Don't talk like you're above me. We both do what's necessary for the good of everyone." Anthony was shouting at Kurt. "You've killed people I love! You've taken what I hold most dear! So I plan to return the favor." And with that final word, he pulled the master control lever and warped out.

Three things happened simultaneously. The first was the alarm. Blaring to warn everyone in the vicinity. The second was the absence of Anthony's bonds. Kurt could move. The third was the gauntlet; it was starting to glow. Kurt scrambled to a circle in the center of the room, knowing time was a factor. Light reflected off the gauntlet's map pattern. Images started forming on the domed ceiling above. In a regular dimension, these images would be impossible to make out, but here Kurt could see Isoma coming into focus, along with a cave in an area perhaps a hundred miles from where he and Jackson once crashed. There was water flowing into the mouth of the cave. But before he could get a clearer idea of where it was, he was interrupted by guards. They burst in to see the controller dead and Kurt standing over his body. Without a moment to waste, Kurt jump through the side window away from the guards. As he saw the shards of glass falling next to him, he realized he saw something similar. The ground under the complex and mass generators was cracking. He began to run as fast as he could toward his team, desperate to get them all out alive. But it was too late. The ground broke from under him and he was forced to warp out. The warp was not smooth as it usually was, he felt like he was being knocked around until he came out back in his own dimension.

As he flew out of the portal into a forest he began to grasp what had happened. His team was lost. He was trapped on Matravin. Anthony was gathering his forces. And he was running out of time.

The Dark Days
Kurt was trapped on Matravin, with very little food and other resources. He wandered around looking for anything or anyone who would help him. After three days outside of the forest, he saw that he would have to stop somewhere. The heat was unbearable. He found a local town and saw the news in the general store's windows. "DIMENSION COLLAPSE: Who and Why?". A quick read through the story revealed that the King of Matravin was recuperating in a dimension when Kurt and his team had knocked out the energy source sustaining the dimension network in an attempt to kill him. It was unclear if there were any survivors. One local took a great interest in the stranger reading the news-screen. Tom Alvino.

Tom was a fugitive. Had been one since Zactus' fall from power. Tom thought that Zactus' estate would be empty and ripe for the taking. He was wrong. Guards surrounded his band of thieves and killed everyone. But Tom was clever and managed to escape. He had followed the wanted posters, looking to see what his face would be this time. And he recognized Kurt the instant he saw him.

Feeling that some monetary benefit would come from aiding Kurt, Tom approached him and asked him if he would go get a drink. Arriving at the local, and only, tavern Tom was frank. He told Kurt that he knew his identity and would be willing to keep it a secret and would help him, for the right price. Kurt knew he had to agree to this for he could not take on ABF's full strength alone if Tom gave him away. And so Tom brought Kurt to his camp near the outskirts of town. And again, at the edge of a forest.

Kurt confessed that he had no money to give to Tom. Tom told him that Power World currency would be no good to him anyway. Tom needed Kurt to help him find money by any means possible. Through his assistance, he would repay Tom. Until he got paid, however, Tom needed some insurance from Kurt: his battle rifle. Kurt saw no other option, and handed it over. Kurt went to sleep that night feeling like he had made a huge mistake.

For days the two traveled. Kurt looking for an unguarded warpgate or some other means home. And Tom looking for something to steal or some way to get money quick. But after 3 months of searching, neither found what they were looking for. Tom became more and more agitated, leading Kurt to believe that his betrayal was likely to be soon. But there was nothing Kurt could do, so he stared up at the stars, longing to go home. The same thing he did every night.

After Tom nodded off that night, Kurt saw it. A flash of light in the sky. A meteor was falling. As he watched it fall, he looked closer and realized it was a man. With quick instinct he looked to see that it would land a couple miles over. And in that direction Kurt began to run. An hour later, he came upon the crash site and got his first view of the Unknown Being. He looked human. But had a yellow glowing aura to him. With him unconscious, and knowing that some Matravin local had spotted it, Kurt put the Being onto his back and began to carry him back to the campsite.

Tom regarded the addition with shock at first and awe later, claiming it was a demigod. Whoever he was, he could not speak. But he understood English and responded with gestures to Kurt's questions. After a drawn out interview, Kurt had learned that this being came from an alternate dimension. He had fallen into darkness during the collapse and fallen into this world. Kurt also learned that this being possessed incredible power in this world due to differences in energy and forces. Tom was the first to propose that he join their group. Kurt agreed, but still eyed both of his "friends" with suspicion. He had a terrible feeling deep down.

And so the trio traveled. Day after day, wandering throughout the land. A week or two after Kurt had rescued the being, a group of Matravin soldiers found their campsite. The company leader instantly recognized Kurt and gave the order to arrest him. Tired and weak, he gave in without a fight. Tom was a little more reluctant, but couldn't see a way to escape with his life. The Unknown Being, however, chose a different route. With nothing but a blink of an eye and a gesture of his hand, every soldier caught fire as their campfire was immediately snuffed and the logs crumbled to ash. But this fire that consumed the soldiers was unnatural in appearance, and the soldiers were all dead before they could even react. The Being had shown his potential.

By reading local newspapers and hearing gossip, Kurt had learned that Anthony was recruiting men and women to replace his guard, since he was sending the seasoned troops to support a new outpost near Isoma. With only low experience protecting him, Kurt saw a chance so stop him right then and there. Tom saw a chance to raid ABF's vaults. And it was never known why the Being would help, but he did. So the plan was set in motion.

It would be a quiet job. All three would enter the palace unseen. Find Anthony. Finish the job. Then find a warpgate to get back to Power World. They would go during the day when it was louder, and the guards were less alert. But like all simple plans, nothing ever goes according to plan.

The guards patrolling his complex were thorough. All entrances, exits, vents, and walls were either monitored or patrolled. Not the work of new recruits. But a simple distraction, releasing an angry cat near one of the guards, allowed all three to sneak seamlessly in. The next part was the ventilation shafts. It was a tight fit, especially for Tom, and there was no map or guide. It took two hours of aimless crawling to reach anywhere remotely close to ABF. Upon dropping into the empty room below, Tom rushed off towards the vaults saying, "Meet you guys after payday."

Scowling, Kurt and the Being made their way towards Anthony's private chambers. After sneaking behind servants for a bit, they found it. The unmistakable voice of Anthony. Kurt could feel himself opening the door, but what awaited was beyond his knowledge. An empty room. Stone, and dim lights. But nothing more. Both walked toward the center. Upon reaching it, Kurt saw a shadow fall over them. He turned to see ABF standing on a balcony above the door.

"I was wondering what took you so long." ABF smirked. "Did you really think I'd let slip that my private guard was an untrained bunch of recruits? No no no. I told it to you. I led you here. Because you have been beyond my grasp. And you are beyond helping me. But I see you brought a friend. I shouldn't forget my manners, let me introduce myself. My name is Anthony. And you are?" The Being didn't respond, but just stared. Stared with the black unblinking pupils it had. But not at ABF, at Kurt. It was waiting. "Your friend must be shy. Pity. I guess I'll come to you." And with that pulled out his Dark Sword and jump toward the pair.

But Kurt was quick and had already blocked Anthony before he could swing. The Being did nothing. Anthony swung again, bouncing off Kurt's sword. But when Kurt looked over, the Being still did nothing. Just stared at him. Before Kurt could shout anything, ABF was back. Attacking this way and that. "Your efforts are useless Kurt. You don't have Bennett or Jackson to bail you out this time! Your team is gone, and it's only a matter of days before the Dark Master Power Crystal will be completely restored. An then, my plans will be unstoppable!" He didn't leave Kurt an opening, forcing him to concentrate on the battle rather than the Being. Anthony struck again, both swords in a lock. Then came the screams. From Anthony, from the Being, from every magic user in the complex. ABF dropped his sword and covered his head shouting, "Make it stop!".

But Kurt didn't want the Being to stop. He wanted revenge. "Keep going!" he shouted at the Being. But despite its efforts, the Being was straining under whatever it was doing. When it tried to stop, Kurt ran over to it, pointed his sword at it, told it to keep going. A channel of energy had opened up. Whatever it was it had melted the ceiling and was moving along the arms of the Being. The bolt erupted from his chest, forcing Anthony to warp out, unscathed. The awesome event blew a crater into a large chunk of the planet, then continued out of the atmosphere. Everything went dark.

Kurt woke after what seemed to be a couple hours. The complex, although it still stood, was in ruins. The Being, or what was left of it, was hunched over in a charred husk. Kurt went into the hallway to see Tom dead under rubble, gold in his hands. Kurt bent down, shut his eyes, and took back his battle rifle. The sky was red. A hole in the ceiling showed the sun, and it's health. The Being had taken the sun's energy to perform its last act. It left him dead, and the sun dying. Kurt limped towards the hangar, looking for something that could still fly. He found a modified elite MDI stinger with hyperspace capability. It was beat up, but still flyable.

Blasting out of the atmosphere, Kurt saw the true damage the Being had wrought. A massive crater was left in Matravin surrounding the palace. He flew toward home and looked in horror. Power World had been hit too. He would see the fires all the way from space. His home zone, Animal Kingdom, had it the worst, with millions of acres in flames. Already he could see most of the fleet had scattered over the planet, likely starting a mass evacuation. The atmospheric conditions were probably becoming unstable. And of course, Kurt could see the massive red sun. Its lifespan could be as low as months. And there was no way to stop it.

Kurt knew only one place he could go; Power World was burning, millions of refugees would be heading to Bugdum, and Isoma was being overrun by ABF's forces. The damaged ship sputtered on past Isoma to the volcanic planet he and the team had explored all those years ago. No one knew of the landing pad, and he could heal for the days in self exile. He had caused this. And it was too much to bear. He had given in.

Four days he spent lying in that makeshift shelter on the landing pad. And four days he healed. But not mentally. And on the fifth day, he'd had enough. He spent almost an hour debating whether he would stab himself with his sword, blow his brains out with his rifle, or cast himself into the lava below. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard shattering glass. But not something he had caused. He looked up to see the air above him cracking. It broke, and with it fell his team.

Old Friends
Jackson, Bennett, and Aang found themselves in the spirit world. "Really?" asked Aang, "Of all the ways we could've gone, we got death by virtual..."

"You're not dead, I brought you here," said Shadow's familiar voice, "This will only work for a few moments so listen up. You and the rest of the team besides Kurt are falling through interdimensional limbo, and you're all scattered. Your connection to the physical world created a time-space rift around all of you. It will keep you guys in reality for a few minutes tops, but it is shrinking. Find each other and gather everyone else before you disappear from any reality forever!"

"How do we get back to our own dimension?" asked Bennett.

"The collapse is weakening the dimensional membrane, if all three of you use chaos control in your super forms, it might just be strong enough to pierce it. Now go!"

Jackson found himself in a realm of infinite darkness, except for the strange crystalline colors that made up the network of narrow pathways throughout the area, but he could see the ends of them deteriorating. Just as Shadow had said, the sphere around them protecting them all was shrinking. At the moment, it had a radius of about a half mile. He had to act fast, he started running. He found Troy first, told him to look for others as they made their way toward the center. Troy came across Sokka and Mai. Then Jackson spotted Ty Lee jumping a gap as the path she was just standing on disintegrated. Jackson ran over, picked her up, ran with her. They made their way to the center. Bennett showed up with Zuko, Harvey, Nolan, and Moe. Aang arrived too with Katara, Toph, and Alex. "This is everyone except Kurt. And he's fine! Bennett, Aang, now!" He pulled out the power crystals and the three powered up into their super forms. The time-space rift was falling apart. It only had about a 40 foot diameter at this point. Everyone huddled together.

"Chaos control!" shouted Jackson, Bennett, and Aang. They heard something crack beneath them, but it wasn't the floor, it was the air. They fell through as it shattered like glass. They fell onto the landing platform of the unnamed volcanic planet they had visited years before. There, they saw Kurt and an MDI Stinger.

"Oh great," Kurt mumbled. "More hallucinations."

Jackson got up first and ran over to Kurt. "Oh my god Kurt! What happened to you?" he shouted.

"You show up now. As figments of my thoughts. And you want me to remind myself of what happened these past four months? Is that how this torment works?"

"Kurt, we are real," stated Nolan. "We were only gone for like eight minutes, what makes you thinkKurt stared at them all in disbelief. "Guys, some terrible things have happened in the course of this time. Time must have moved differently between the dimensions." He pointed up at a large red star in the sky. "See that? That's the sun. It has a few months left at most. It released a ton of energy, now it's dying, and half of Power World is burning. ABF is on Isoma's moon, and his forces are massive. All these planets are doomed. We've failed."

Everyone was silent. Alex spoke up. "Did you at least find out where Rost is?"

Kurt had forgotten all about it. "I was able to determine it's in a cave on Isoma with water flowing into it, not that it matters now."

"Of course it still matters," said Troy. "We can still bring ABF to justice! And then maybe after we can find some way to save the sun. And even if we can't, at least everyone in the system will go out under freedom instead of tyranny!"

"Kurt," said Jackson as he pulled Kurt to his feet, "We have nothing to lose and everything to gain. We can stop Anthony. Let's go to Isoma, find Zactus, find Rost and Ronost, and take him on!"

Kurt forced a smile. "Alright, let's do it!" Jackson deployed the planes. Then he whispered something to Aang.

"We'll meet you at the rendezvous point in a day or so. Send us the coordinates," said Jackson to the group.

"What are you guys doing?" asked Kurt.

"We're going to recruit some old friends!" And with that, he, Aang, Harvey, and Moe got in the original X-Tornado and took off. "Next stop: Bugdum," he announced to Aang.

Hours later, the X-Tornado arrived outside Bugdum. Many ships from the fleet were nearby. "They must be refugees seeking safety," said Jackson. He, Aang, and the chao glanced at the sun in silence. "You told her where to meet us, right?"

"Yes," replied Aang, "She should already be waiting." They landed and Firespear greeted them. They went to her home and filled her in.

"I will stand by you all and do what I can, but do you think it's really all worth it?" She sighed as she looked at the red sun, "For a precious few months, maybe a couple years?"

"We have to try!" said Aang, "There might be away to fix this. we can't stand by waiting. Once ABF is out of the way, we can find a way to make it work, even if we have to start over in a new solar system."

Firespear paused. "Alright, let's go for it. I would rather die for this cause than in a supernova."

"Thank you so much," Aang replied, giving her a hug.

"Speaking of other solar systems," interjected Jackson, "I need access to a long range transmitter."

Within an hour, Jackson had made contact. " You two can meet us here right?"

"You bet. Things have been boring here lately, we could use some excitement," said Double-Jackson.

"Plus, I'm sure Tiger would like to see Harvey and Moe again," added Ricky.

"Be prepared for the fight of our lives. I'll send you guys the coordinates and see you tomorrow. This is Jackson, out." He ended the transmission. He looked over to see Harvey and Moe asleep on the couch. Firespear turned to Aang and Jackson.

"You guys should follow their lead and get some rest for tomorrow. You've had a long day."

"A four-month-long day technically," said Aang. They picked up their chao, both still unconscious, and Firespear showed them to an area with two cots set up.

"So what's the word on Power World exactly?" Jackson asked Firespear.

Firespear spoke reluctantly. "There are some conflicting reports, but by what I've gathered, some of the most powerful sorcerers from Magic Castle are trying to get the fires out, especially in the more populated areas of Animal Kingdom. Ships from the fleet are evacuating the citizens of the planet to here. It's a bit disorganized now, but even when they do make it more efficient, not everyone is going to get out. Evacuating a whole planet is just unheard of. Even if they do get the fires out, the atmosphere won't hold up. Average global temperatures are expected to rise daily, resulting in an ecosystem collapse within months. Top scientists and magic experts are trying to find a way to restore the sun, but nothing seems possible. It doesn't look good for your world, or any of these worlds for that matter. I know this is a lot to take in, and I almost didn't want to tell you, but you need to rest now."

They attempted to sleep. "Jackson?" asked Aang

"Yes?"

"Do we really have a chance?"

"The odds might not be in our favor, but giving up isn't an option. It's our only way."

"There might be another."

Jackson tensed up. "Aang, if you're suggesting what I think you are..."

"I mean, wouldn't it save a lot of..."

"Aang, it's not an option. We cannot unlock time! Things will carry out the way they were meant to. We connot try to manipulate that. We can only deal with what's here and now. As long as either of us is alive, we bare that responsibility. Do you remember that day? We almost decided to take our own lives to protect it. "

"Jackson, did it ever occur to you that those powers exist for a reason? That maybe this is an instance where they're supposed to be used?"

Jackson paused for a moment. "Even the supernatural forces that made this universe did not make it perfect. There are temptations and evils. They made the time powers; they made the Dark Master Power Crystal; they made ABF. But we need to stick to our roots, our morals that we've stood for and fought for all along. If we don't, it was all for nothing."

Aang sighed, "I suppose it's true. Well, good night."

Jackson woke up the next morning to the sound of Aang's voice. "They're here."

"How do you know?"

"Remember, Jackson, the bond between a man and a chao has a very distinct energy, and energy that I can sense. They ran outside to see a black version of the X-Tornado landed in the clearing with two men and a chao jumping out of the front cockpit. Jackson and Aang ran and greeted Ricky and Double-Jackson with hugs and cheers. Harvey, Moe, and Tiger were dancing with joy.

The reunion was cut short however, as Firespear interrupted. "Word is that a bunch of Power World military ships are on their way to Isoma's moon. Kurt must've called in some extra support."

Jackson looked down at his communicator. Nolan had sent him the rendevous coordinates the previous night. "No sense waiting around then. Let's go." Just before leaving, however, a messenger came up to Firespear.

"Jackson," said Firespear, there are some people who want to see you. The messenger took Jackson to a group of refugees and saw his parents. He ran towards them, tears flooding from all of their eyes.

"You're alive! All these months, we thought we'd lost our two boys!" sobbed his mother. "Is Bennett alright? Why isn't he here?"

"Bennett's fine, but our job isn't done, Mom. I love you, but we have to fix this. We will set things right."

"Jackson, this isn't your problem! Please, get Bennett, and come back with him, Ty Lee, and Toph. We can't lose you again! There might only be months left in all of our lives. Let us spend it together as a family!"

"Mom, Dad, we need to stop Anthony, we need to save everyone. It's not an option."

"But you..."

"Honey, he's right. We always said our children would do extraordinary things. We'd be failures as parents if we tried to prevent that." He turned to Jackson, "Make us proud, son."

"I will Dad. I love you both." Hugs and kisses were exchanged, and he left, tears still in his eyes. He met up with the rest of the group. "Let's go."

The two X-Tornadoes lifted off into the sky and made their way to Isoma.

Our Finest Hour
The X-Tornado and Shadow X-Tornado arrived at the Isoman moon to see the entirety of both Matravin and Power World's fleets orbiting opposite sides of the moon. Both were out of range, just waiting for the signal to start firing. They landed on the Power World side and found their way through the makeshift camp. When they found Kurt, he was in the middle of a pre-battle speech to the troops. "What's going on?" Aang whispered to Bennett.

"New plan. We couldn't get a hold of Zactus, think he might've been captured, so we're foregoing the Rost plan and taking ABF head-on. We gathered all the forces we could from Power World and rallied here."

"When was this decided?"

"Kurt brought it up after we couldn't get a hold of Zactus. We had to reach a decision quickly, so we took a vote. Troy and I were against this, but Nolan, Alex, and Kurt were for it."

"What about the sun?" asked Jackson. "Do all these people realize that..."

"We're banking on the idea that once Anthony and his forces are out of the way, we can find a way to save it," Nolan chimed in, "Now listen."

"Many of you are afraid. Don't be," Kurt declared as he approached the end of the speech, "There will be a day, when your children, and your children's children look to now. And they will say, 'This was their finest hour. This is where we freed ourselves from fear.' They will look to you as the saviors of the galaxy. And the defenders of justice. You each are here because you are the best. We will show Anthony that machines don't win battles. You win battles."

With cheers from the troops, Kurt left the podium and headed over to the rest of the team.

As he approached, Nolan spoke. "Nice speech."

"Thanks, but speeches don't win wars. I need to tell you all something." The team perked up to listen.

"It is very likely that Anthony will try to single me out today. He thinks you're all still dead, and that means I'm the only threat left to him. When that happens, do not come to my aid."

Jackson interrupted. "Like hell. I won't stand by while he kills you. "

"Neither will any of us!" Nolan added.

Kurt saw their concerned looks, but he remained calm. "This isn't something I expect you to understand. But his death is my responsibility. I know I can beat him. These last couple months have shown me that. Just give me this. When I kill him, his troops will more than likely surrender and end this war. I need you to lead all the other parts of our army."

Everyone relunctantly agreed, but Jackson and Nolan exchanged worried looks. Though they didn't say anything, they agreed to come to Kurt's aid if things didn't go as planned. Kurt was supposed to be leading the main group of soldiers, but he decided to leave this to a general and fight alongside them. Jackson, Double-Jackson, and Troy were given command of the air force, since the space forces would be under the command of an admiral. Aang didn't want a command, so he would do what he could on his own. Nolan decided to leave the mages in their support of the main troops, and Firespear, Ricky, Mai, and Master Shaa would fight alongside him. Bennett and Alex planned on being part of the front push, being the first to fight in the battle.

Within hours, both sides were lined up on the ground, in the air, and in space. There was no clear beginning to the battle, since it started differently on all three fronts. Once the ground forces had engaged, one of the admirals contacted Jackson. "Blue leader, you are clear to move in and engage."

"I copy that. Blue Squadron, Silver Squadron, Green Squadron follow me!"

"We copy Blue Leader."

The fighters were in high orbit and dove in sharply for a bombing run on some of ABF's battleships. They were able to disable many of the cannons before getting out of range of the remaining ones "Nice work. How are we holding up."

"We lost Green Three and Silver Seven," replied Double-Jackson.

"Looks like they're sending in company for us from the south." said Blue Four.

"That's not all, look at the group heading east," said Green Six.

"Shit," said Jackson, he got a hold of Nolan some of the other ground force commanders. "Watch out guys, it looks like ABF is sending bombers toward our encampment."

Nolan had already set his mages to try to bring them down. "Noted. Let's take them down!"

"We'll give you a hand buddy," replied Jackson. "Blue Squadron follow me. We're going after those bombers. Green Squadron, Silver Squadron, stay here and deal with the fighters."

Soldiers were firing at each other. Ships were being shot down. "Watch it Jackson! Every one of those fighters and bombers you shoot can take out some of our guys when it crashes!" Aang shouted. "I can't knock them all away from our troops!"

"Understood. Troy, Double-Jackson, we need to drive the fighters away back towards the ships! Form your squads up behind me."

"Are you insane? If we push them there, we'll be cannon fodder. That area is too dangerous," replied Troy from the cockpit of the Hyper-Tornado.

"So you're saying we'd be going into a zone of danger?"

"Yes."

"So it's a what kind of zone?"

"A danger zo- God Dammit!"

Ty Lee hit the button and "Danger Zone" started playing over the com channel as Jackson led his group of fighters in a charge toward the large ships. Double-Jackson followed in the Shadow X-Tornado with Silver Squadron. Troy followed after with Green Squadron. "Try and take out the guns! Right now they're focused on our cruisers," Jackson commanded. They passed through and took out several of the turrets on the two ships they were flying between. But fighters were on their tail. "Ty Lee, hold on to Harvey as tight as you can."

"Okay!" She pulled Harvey out of the air and tucked him into her seatbelt. Then Jackson stalled his port engine and did a 180 spin around. Then he transformed the X-Tornado into battle armor mode and charged at the fighters.

Bennett, Alex, and Toph were an iron triangle on their flank of the battle. They were inspiration for the troops. Aang wasn't holding anything back either. He and the kids were a fighting force that helped bottleneck the enemy troops, giving the Power World forces and advantage.

Meanwhile, Nolan was trying to keep an eye on Kurt in the battle, but it wasn't easy with all of Anthony's troops everywhere, humans and robots alike. With Ricky and Mai right beside him and Firespear and Master Shaa not far behind, he was able to punch a large hole in the enemy lines.

Kurt saw him standing there on the steep hillside waiting. He fought his way through the troops and ran up the hill. He stood there sword in hand, ready to charge at Anthony. "Catch your breath first, Kurt. I've waited a while for this, and I want to do it right." Kurt was a lot more grateful for this respite than he let on. "Once again, you really upset me. Your actions caused the death of millions on your home planet, and the possible death of almost everyone in this system, and yet you still think I'm the bad guy? Kurt, I'll deal with the sun problem; it is but a minor inconvenience. With Power World in chaos, I will be the leader everyone unites behind to save our system. Under my rule I will bring together the greatest minds around to save us all. But there is one problem I have to deal with first: the fact that I ever let you out of the prison in Invisible Isle. Your teammates are all busy with my army, and yes I know they're alive, but they won't be for long. I'm not an idiot. There's no base for you to go back to, there's no there's no dimension to escape to, and there's no way out for you. You will never meddle in my affairs again; this is the day that you die."Anthony lunged at Kurt, and within moments, their swords were clashing.

Both had fought each other so many times now that they knew what was coming, so they both changed up their tactics. It was hard to keep up with the battle.

Jackson, Double-Jackson, and Troy had the skies under control. Jackson had just finished completely disabling one of the command ships. "I'm going to fly down and see how we're doing down there," announced Jackson.

"By the way, I see Bennett has the gauntlet for Rost. Did you decide to give it to him?" Anthony asked as Kurt pushed back and swung almost wildly at him. "Very interesting choice, but not the one I would've made."

"Who would you have picked?" Kurt snarled.

"Definitely not Bennett, he's not pure enough. And I don't mean his brother either, but for different reasons. You're thinking in the wrong direction. Rost and Ronost are the works of ancient zealots with naïve views of dark and light, good and evil, but no one on your team capable of holding the sword of redemption. And even if they could, that wouldn't be enough to stop me." Kurt had a sudden epiphany. Then he charged at Anthony and unleashed a furious attack that knocked his blade out of his hand. Anthony looked surprised and quicly backed up.

At this moment, Jackson caught a glimpse of Kurt and Anthony on the hilltop. Nolan, too, looked over and saw Kurt on the ridge. Kurt charged at Anthony, sword above his head ready to make the kill shot. Nolan froze. 'Don't fall for that Kurt!' he yelled in his head. But Kurt did, and Anthony slammed him with a firebending blast, grabbed his sword from his hand, and stabbed him with it. Nolan gasped.

"I told you I would burn you Kurt, but I didn't think I'd do it so literally," Anthony teased. Then Nolan, warped next to him and tried to stab him with the Light Sword, but he deflected it and pushed him aside. "Easy there, Nolan. Nothing you can do now." With that, he disappeared. Nolan ran over to Kurt and held him up in his arms.

"Stay with me Kurt. Don't you dare die on me now!"

Jackson jumped out of the X-Tornado the moment it touched the ground, Ty Lee and Harvey following after him.

"Nolan, Jackson, I'm sorry...I lost my way. This battle should never have..."

"Don't say that yet!" yelled Jackson, "It's not over buddy, we can still..."

"Listen! I know for certain now who has to hold Rost. It has...to...b-"

That was all he could say before his body fell limp. "Who? Who!" Shouted Nolan, shaking Kurt. He and Jackson both sighed and closed their eyes. Ty Lee and Harvey were sobbing. Jackson looked over to Nolan. "What do we do now?" he asked his best friend.

Nolan looked back. "I don't know, you're in charge now."

The team members were all informed and gathered around Kurt's body. Word of Kurt's death spread quickly through the ground troops, and the morale of the troops declined, yet they seemed to still be winning, as Anthony's forces were in retreat. However they soon saw why. Orbital bombardment had started. Anthony's battleships from space had descended and were unleashing all their firepower on the ground below. The troops on the ground from both sides were being decimated. Jackson got in the X-Tornado and contacted the admirals. "We have to get out of here!" All troops! Retreat!" Gunships deployed from the battleships and picked up as many troops as they could. With as many people in the ships as possible they flew out into space. "Why would he start bombing everything? Even his own troops?" asked Ricky.

"Anthony didn't need to win this battle," replied Troy, "He just needed us to lose."

Jackson then got a strange transmission.

"Please copy...any Power World forces, please come in."

"This is Jackson MarKev...leader of the Magic Team. To whom am I speaking?"

"We are Zactus's supporters on Isoma main. We've been trying to reach you, but our communications have been jammed until now by the enemy."

"Send us your coordinates. We'll come to you," replied Jackson.

Plan B
The team landed their planes in a Power World battle cruiser. He went to the command center spoke to the other generals and the Magic Council. "We've made contact with Zactus' supporters on Isoma. We can regroup at their outpost and get ready to..."

"It's over, General," replied one of the admirals. "We're bringing the fleet back to Power World to assist with evacuations to Bugdum. This battle is lost. Anthony promised not to interfere with our evacuation efforts or, but our forces need to leave Isoma. We have to accept that for the time being, for all intents and purposes, Anthony rules the solar system."

Jackson, Nolan, and Master Shaa turned to the other Magic Council members, including Edward Hilless. Edward walked over to the team. I'm sorry, I voted against this, but even when we counted you three and Kurt, it was still six to five. I'm sorry, it is done."

"Not for us!" said Jackson, he ran over to the intercom. "Attention everyone. We, the Magic Team, are going to go and meet up with Zactus' forces on Isoma. Anyone else who's not ready to give up on the fate of this system, all of its people, and freedom itself is welcome to come with us!"

A few hundred men gathered with them in the hangar. The rest of the council spoke to them and informed them that anyone who went with the Magic Team would be officially denounced as rogue soldiers. Some people opted out after that news, but most stood their ground. The team got in their planes once again and flew down to the planet. Edward Hilless, Master Shaa, and a few dozen gunships of men went with them.

"I'm sending out an approach procedure with some specific entry vectors and shield settings. This planet's upper atmosphere is a bit tricky," Jackson announced to the ships following them. He recalled the issue they'd had entering with the Integrity.

"It's a beautiful planet," commented Nolan as they enered the atmosphere.

"I forgot that you've never been here," said Jackson, "I guess only Harvey, Edward, Kurt a-" he stopped and looked back to the X-Tornado's rear cockpit where Kurt's body was. Then he sighed. After landing in the underground facility, Jackson spoke with the former MDI officer that contacted him. "Do you have any coffins?"

The funeral was short. The seven team members each spoke, with Jackson finishing it off. "You were the greatest man I ever knew, and you led the most noble cause this galaxy has ever seen. We will finish what you started. We will not fail you." And with earthbending, he, Aang, Bennett, and Alex slowly lowered him into the ground.

They team went back inside and spoke with the officer from before. "I'm about to ask you a lot of questions, are you prepard for that?" asked Jackson

"Yes, sir."

"Good start. So, what exactly happened to Zactus?"

"He confronted Anthony days ago after the sun incident. He was captured, but he's still alive."

"Did he find Ronost?"

"Yes, but he kept the location to himself."

"We need to get that information and save him. How do you know he's still alive?"

"Because he programmed his suit to explode if his heart stopped beating, and we still have a signal on his suit."

"Where is it? Why haven't you all gone after him?"

"Neetleteque," replied the officer.

Jackson and Nolan froze. "Neetleteque?" asked Troy.

"Ironically enough, it's the prison Zactus built to hold us," replied Nolan. "The entire facility is within a massive anti-power shield, and thankfully he never got one of us there. When I was stuck on the volcanic planet, I would've been transfered there if you guys hadn't come in time."

"Well, how are we going to get him out? You guys should know how, if he designed the place," said Alex.

Jackson shook his head. "Among the things he gave Kurt and me when he left was a schematic of the facility. He designed it to be perfect. If the place has any flaws, he's not aware of them."

"Breaking both in and out of that place would be impossible."

"What do we do then?" asked Aang. All eyes were on Jackson.

There was a long silence. "Give me some time to think." He went to his new quarters and took out the holo-schematic from his storage cube, one of the things he'd saved from his workshop before ABF had destroyed it. He emerged from the room an hour later. "I have a plan, Nolan, Bennett, and Alex, you're coming with me." They sat down at a table. "Nolan was right, breaking in and out of that prison would be impossible, but we might have a chance if we only have to do one of them. The complex has it set up so those captured on the inside are powerless and unable to escape. On top of that, they're constantly chained up. So inner security isn't that tough. Because Zactus knew that if any team member was captured we would try to rescue them, he put most of the most effort into making sure we can't break in and rescue someone."

"Which is exactly what we're trying to do," interrupted Alex.

"Not exactly," said Jackson. "We won't have to break in at all. We just have to look like we're trying to, and get ourselves captured, and therefore, removing all effort needed to break in."

"Jackson I once assaulted an officer, fell out of a helicopter, and raced with you through city streets just to keep you and me out of a Power World prison," said Nolan, "And now you just want to turn yourself in to a Matravinian one? And won't that just make the breaking out part more difficult."

"That's the fun part. When they capture us, they'll take all of a our gear to this room, so we have no way of getting to it. But we can make it so our gear comes to us." He took out his storage cube and a bunch of tiny round metal balls rolled out. "I just finished these before ABF attacked my workshop. Luckily, I thought to save them. These are micro repulsors that we can attach to our weapons and gear. They only go through one burn and then they're useless, but they're inconspicuous and powerful enough to fly our gear right to us if we attach them to it, allowing us to easily cut our way out, once we've located Zactus of course."

"Okay, those are cool, but how are you gonna get those things to fly to us without controlling them?" asked Bennett. Jackson pulled out a syringe needle and jammed it into Bennett's wrist. "Ahh! What the shit, Jackson?"

"I just injected a small bio-chip into your wrist, undetectable by a computer that isn't looking for it. It would most likely be mistaken for a tumor." He picked up Bennett's sword and attached some of the micro repulsors to it, and threw it across the room. "Now, try double-tapping your middle finger and ring finger to your palm. Bennett did so. The repulsors came to life and the sword flew right to his hand. Bennett stood amazed, along with Nolan and Alex.

"Jackson, if only Dad and Zactus could be here to see this. It's...incredible.

Jackson smirked and detached the used-up repulsors from the sword. Then he proceeded to inject himself, Nolan, and Alex with three separate syringes as he continued explaining "This technology, combined with programming from the readout Zactus gave us should be all we need to pull that part the mission off." He paused, and his smile faded, "But this will not be an easy mission. I chose you three because you can fight without your powers, but we all damn well know that we're not used to relying on that type of combat completely. We need to be quick and merciless. There is no room for error in this mission. Alex, attach these to everyone's gear and these four sets of battle gloves and boots I made. The repulsors, gauntlets, and boots are all color coded to each of us; I'm blue, Nolan's red, Bennett's green, and you're yellow. Bennett, leave the Rost gauntlet with Aang and tell him that he's in charge while we're gone. Nolan, put the X-3 in your infinite sword pack, which Alex should then put repulsors on. Let's get to work, I want us in the X-Tornado and ready to go in ten minutes!"

Jailbreak
It was dusk on Matravin when the X-Tornado landed far outside Neetleteque. Jackson put it in his storage cube and the foursome approached on foot towards the outer perimeter and hid behind a tree to dodge a search light. "We're entering the anti-power zone now. Remember, we need to get ourselves captured. Don't just give yourselves away, but don't get yourselves killed. Watch my hands once we're captured. Once I double-tap to summon my gear, you guys do the same. Now, let's use the jump-jets on these boots to get over this wall. Any questions?"

"Wait for the search light to pass to the left before we hop the wall," said Alex, "It lingers more to that side."

"And once we're in there, let's cut the chatter unless absolutely necessary. Use hand signals instead," added Bennett. "Also, cut the jump-jets just as you reach the top of the wall. That way, they won't be able to see them."

"This is why I'm glad we have you two," said Jackson, "Nolan?"

"I'm ready when you guys are. Let's get this over with. And, Jackson?"

"Yes?"

"If we die, I'm going to murder you."

"Thanks Nolan, now let's go." They rocketed over the wall and moved immediately to the base of a guard tower once they were on the ground, avoiding another search light in the process. As they rounded a corner, Alex silently took down a guard before he could make any alarm. Once he was down, he motioned for the others to follow him. Before they made the jump up to a balcony-level walkway, Nolan threw a small metal orb into the air. It sent and image of what it saw back to his wrist com. He gave the all clear signal, and the group once again used their jet-boots to ascend.

Bennett noticed first and pointed to the floor. The others realized it shortly after. "Pressure sensors," muttered Nolan.

"It's okay," whispered Jackson, "We're close to the holding area. We knew this would happen at some point." Moments later, they were blinded by floodlights and found themselves surrounded by armed guards.

"Put your weapons down and surrender yourselves!" ordered a guard. Jackson nodded and the team dropped them. They were handcuffed and taken away. As they entered the internal facility, Jackson took note of the handprint ID and key codes that the guards used to get through doors.

'827459...827459...827459...' he thought to himself. As they passed a doorway, Bennett nodded to the left. Jackson looked and saw Zactus' battle suit inside. At last, they arrived in the holding chamber, where Zactus was strung up with his wrists and ankles chained in the back left corner of the room. The commanding officer ordered half of the guards to lock-up the four new prisoners, while the others took their gear and weapons to be analyzed. Jackson was chained up on the front right side, Alex on the front left across from him, Bennett in the back right corner facing Zactus, and Nolan on the middle of the right wall between Bennett and Jackson. One guard stayed in the room with them as the others left.

"Zactus," Nolan spoke up, "Are you alright? Do you..." He was cut off as the guard jabbed him with an electric pike.

"No talking!" shouted the guard. Zactus looked to the team, mouthed the words "I'm sorry," and sank his head. Meanwhile, Jackson waited for the right moment; He didn't want to make their move prematurely, but he knew it would be all over if the analysts discovered the micro-repulsors. After about seven minutes, the guard sat down and started to read the news on his tablet. Jackson saw his chance, but then the commanding officer walked in again.

"I've just contacted ABF. He says he will be coming within the hour to personally execute Jackson and Zactus."

Jackson knew they didn't have a moment to lose and nodded at Alex, looked upwards, and double-tapped his palm with his ring and middle fingers. Alex nodded to Nolan and Bennett as he double-tapped and they copied.

"And what of the other three?" Asked the guard.

"Two of them will be kept for questioning. I will have the honor of executing one of them of my own choice, as my reward for their capture." He turned to Bennett and pulled out a sword.

"Now hold on!" said Jackson, "You really think he meant just do it now? Not wait until he gets here?"

"What does it matter to you? You're both dead anyway!"

"I'm just saying," Jackson replied glancing nervously at his brother and the doorway, "Do you really want to risk going over the boss' head like that?"

"While you raise a valid point, again, why do you care?"

"Well, to be completely honest..." all heads turned as Jackson's sword came flying through the doorway and into his hand. He cut himself down and raised his blade, "...I really don't." His storage cube came next, followed by Alex's gear, then Bennett and Nolan's. Within seconds, they'd all broken out. Alex took initiative and freed Zactus. Nolan was slicing apart the guard that had jabbed them. Bennett had already impaled the commander on his own blade. Once the room was secure. Jackson gave his next command. "Alright, let's get out of here and take off and find Ronost!"

"Not without my suit!" said Zactus.

"There's no time!" shouted Alex.

" The coordinates to it are saved in my suit! There's no way I could find it in that jungle without those coordinates!" Jackson and Bennett looked to each other.

"This way!" commanded Bennett. They ran down the hall and found the room with Zactus' suit. Zactus held his palm up to the suit's chest piece and it opened for him. As the suit booted up, guards came running down the hall.

"Everyone grab on to my arms!" shouted Zactus. Jackson and Bennett grabbed his left while Bennett and Alex held on to the right. Zactus soared down the hallway toward the exit door. They dismounted at the end of the hall.

"The code is 827459," said Jackson.

Zactus entered the code, but it stayed shut.

"Damn, they must've changed the password!" shouted Jackson in frustration. Guards were making their way down the hall toward them.

"You four hold them off! I'll cut through this door!" Zactus activated a laser cutter on his right wrist and began slowly cutting a hole in the wall. Jackson handed Alex a grenade, which he threw with incredible precision and managed to take out half of the guards, but a second wave was on the way. As they started to fire, Alex threw down a temporal shield orb, but Jackson knew it wouldn't last long. It was at 6% when Zactus cut through the door. They grabbed onto his arms again. "Hold on tight!" he yelled as they blasted off and soared across the compound. They landed outside the main wall and deployed the planes. Jackson, Bennett, Alex and Zactus got in the X-Tornado while Nolan took off in the X-3. Just as they were in the air they saw Anthony's shuttle landing at the facility. "Bennett, I'm glad you killed that commander. I'm sure that was much more humane than the punishment Anthony would be giving him in five minutes." As soon as they left the atmosphere, they activated their interplanetary drives and made their way to Isoma. The four exhausted warriors slept the entire way.

The Other Twenty-Nine Months
Immediately after Zactus and the four team memebrs returned, the rest of the team gathered around. Troy and Aang informed Jacskon that a couple thousand of Anthony's troops had abandoned him after the bombardment, since it killed many of their fellow men. Some of them had even joined up with them at their facility. As soon as Zactus and the four were settled in, everyone began asking questions, so Zactus told the Magic Team to hush, and he would tell them everything that happened since they'd last seen him. He took a deep breath and began.

"First of all, my sincerest condolences for the loss of Kurt. He was an admirable leader to you all, and he taught me a great lesson. After I accepted that manipulating time was not the way to redeeem myself, I committed to ending this war. Unfortunately, if I even suggested this to the war council, I would've been thrown out anyway, so I resigned. Regardless, Kurt and I knew Anthony would return, and we had to be prepared for that day with something he wouldn't see coming. That's why we wanted to find the Gaurdians' Army, and use it to bring him down with their effort combined with that of our own troops. However, it appears we're now limited in that department." There was a pause. "Anyway, I had info to believe Ronost was here on Isoma, and I spent nearly the past two and a half years looking for it.

"My men and I combed the jungles, and the takturan and other creatures claimed many of their lives. Morale and resources began running extremely low a few months ago. We were all about ready to give up. Then one of my most trusted advisors returned from a mission to Power World. He told me about the dimension collapse, Anthony's return, and, worst of all, the disappearance of the Magic Team. We all got back to work. Our efforts were increased, and there were talks of mutiny among the men, and I knew we had to find Ronost quickly before it would be the end of me. In an attempt to appease my men, I gave them weekends off and made solo expeditions out into the jungles. One night I was exhausted, cursing at the universe, and prepared to give in for good when I spotted a glimmer of gold in the starlight. I'd finally found Ronost, the Gaurdian's temple. I logged down the coordinates and returned here. I told my officers the good news, but they looked at me solemnly and told me about what happened to the sun. I was furious. I told them to try and contact Power World forces for support, while I took a ship to go after Anthony.

"As I approached Matravin, I hailed him on one of our old private frequencies. 'I was wondering when you'd finally show yourself,' he said. 'I'll send you some coordinates so we can settle this properly.' I landed at the outskirts of his ruined estate. He approached me there. 'I knew it was only a matter of time before you betrayed me. You certainly timed it poorly, but you haven't done any real damage, so if you've come to your senses, I'll give you this chance: Will you reclaim your position here, and take your place at my side once more, old friend?' I'm ashamed to say that in my desperate state, I considered it for a moment. Until I thought of you guys, that is.

"'After you killed my nephews and burned my home world? Enough! I will not be a slave to you any longer! Today I atone for my past mistakes and end you once and for all!" I shouted as I armed my weapons systems.

"'Pity,' he snarled back, 'So be it, then.' I'll spare you the details on the fight, there isn't much to tell. It just ended with my faceplate broken, my arms and legs pinned in rock, and his sword pointed at my head. 'I would love to end this all right now, but I may still have uses for you. I have an invasion to strategize. I have big plans for Isoma. Ironic isn't it? Once you resurrected me, and now you stand against me. And what better place to keep an ironic man than the prison he built.' A day later, you four came and rescued me and now we're here. I'm sure ABF isn't done with Isoma, and a large invasion is probably coming to crush us for good. I'd hoped you guys had found Rost, but without it, I don't think we stand a chance."

Bennett perked up. "Well we have the gauntlet, and Kurt said Rost was on this planet too. In a large cave with water flowing into it.

Zactus' eyes widened. "I think I know the place you are talking about. Perhaps there is hope after all. I have a rough idea of where it is. We'll have to do some searching, but it's a much better lead than I had with Ronost."

"Perfect. And then I'll take the sword, bring it to the temple, and we'll see how good these soldiers really are."

Jackson and Nolan looked at each other. Nolan spoke first. "Bennett, before Kurt died he...he said that he became certain of who has to hold rost."

Bennett froze. "So, is it me or is it someone else?"

"We don't know. He died before he could finish talking," explained Jackson.

"Well, I'll try and if it's not me, someone else can give it a shot."

"I don't know if it works that way," said Nolan, "We may only get one shot. I just wish he could've told us."

"Well, why didn't you guys tell me that earlier?" Everyone looked to Aang. "If you guys haven't forgotten, I can go to the Spirit World, where everyone's soul and thoughts can go on for eternity. Jackson, Bennett, and I will go there and find Kurt, and see what he has to say."

"Works for me," agreed Jackson and Bennett in unison. The three sat down, closed their eyes, and held hands. Within seconds, Aang had them all in the Spirit World. They started walking down the path surrounded by trees, when Shadow came up and spoke to them.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"We're here to find Kurt. Do you know where he is?"

Shadow frowned. "He is not here. I saw Kurt's soul go to the Nether. Aang, I told you once that only most souls end up in the Spirit World. A few dark souls end up in the Nether."

"Dark souls!" exclaimed Jackson, "I think we all know Kurt does not fit that description."

"Something happened with Kurt in that four months you were gone. I do not know what, but something he did must've been unforgivable enough to earn him a place there."

"I can't believe it," sighed Bennett, "I assume spirit warp can't take us there?"

Shadow shook his head. "However, you might still be able to get there from the physical world. You happen to be on a very strange planet. With Rost and Ronost, you've barely scratched the surface of the secrets that Isoma holds. Isoma is essentially a barrier between the realm of the living and dead. The planet's strange electromagnetic properties come from the forces that quite literally keep all Hell from breaking loose. In turn, these effects make the planet a great place for hiding magical entities."

"Dad, this is interesting, but what's the point? How do we get there?

"Ah, my apologies. You learn a lot when you're dead." Shadow snapped his fingers and they were instantly transported to a temple. They turned to a stained glass window. It showed a path with a fork in it, near a small pond and a large boulder. "Under this boulder is the entrance to the Nether. As Avatars, you should be able to go through the Nether portal and receive safe passage through the Nether and back."

"Great, more hunting for common landmarks," groaned Bennett, "How are we going to find this place on an entire planet that's a massive jungle?"

"Can't you just jump us there since you have this picture of it?" asked Aang.

"No, this stained glass isn't a good enough image. We need a photo or something."

"No we don't. I know exactly where that is," replied Jackson, "That's just beyond where Kurt and I first landed the Integrity. I'd never forget that fork in the road. The path on the right led me too...nevermind it's not important. The point is, I can get us there."

"Then good luck, you three," concluded Shadow, "Beware of what you might find in the Nether. And please be careful about trusting Kurt. He's done many great things, but no one ends up in the Nether by accident."

In the next moment, Bennett, Aang, and Jackson were back in the physical world with the rest of the team looking intently at them. "Kurt's in the Nether," Jackson announced, "We don't know why, but he's there so we're going to speak with him while you guys find Rost."

"Jackson, you and Aang go speak to Kurt," interrupted Bennett, "I'm going to help the rest of the team look. My earthbending sight will be necessary if we want to find the cave." Jackson looked down at the gauntlet on his brother's left arm. "And no, I won't try and pull the sword until you guys get back with Kurt's confirmation."

"Very well. Alright then, let's move out!" Before he and Aang left, Jackson quickly pulled Nolan and Troy aside. "Keep an eye on Bennett. Make sure he doesn't do anything he'll regret." And with that, he and Aang departed in the X-Tornado.

Jackson's Inferno
Aang spotted it first. "Yep, that's it Aang. The remains of the Integrity." He transformed his plane into the X-Cyclone and landed near the wreck." They both took note of the warpgate that was set up and still operating. "I'm tempted to go through and see what Power World looks like now."

"No," replied Aang, "It will be traumatic, and we don't need that right now. Plus we're in a hurry."

They hustled down the old animal trail and found the large boulder. "No turning back now," said Jackson as he used earthbending to open up the top of the boulder.

"So, how exactly is it that you remember this fork in the road so well?"

"I...I don't want to talk about it." They climbed down and found themselves in a hallway. At the end, there was the glowing purple portal. "Let's go," and they jumped through.

They came out in a small lobby area where the newly dead waited for their sentences. A guard saw them and approached. "What brings the Avatar here?"

"We're here to speak with our friend Kurt. He should've arrived here yesterday," replied Aang, "The fate of billions depends on it."

"You can speak with him, but only this once. This way," said the guard as he led them outside. The Nether was dreary looking. It had a red sky, few signs of water or vegetation, and lava rivers running everywhere. And as far as the eye could see, people were suffering. Some were being tortured, others appeared to be plagued with awful diseases. They eventually walked to a gated area with thousands of tiny houses in it. "We're approaching the neighborhood of virtuous sinners. Your friend is in here." Two guards were at the gate.

"Two visitors?" one of them asked.

"Yes, they can visit for a short time." replied their escort.

"Very well," said the guard.

"Wait..." said Jackson, eying the guard, "Savage the bounty hunter?"

"Yeah, it's me, kid. Turns out having an honor code doesn't make you honorable. I have a few decades to spend here on guard duty before I can move on to the Spirit World."

"Well, I'm sorry you couldn't lead a better life," said Jackson bitterly.

"Ain't that the truth. At least I'm gonna move on at some conceivable point. Can't say the same for many people here. If your little brother hadn't thrown me out the airlock while I was in my prime, I might've earned myself a much deeper hell. " Jackson looked at him puzzled. "Don't think I don't still hate the little bastard for killing me. Now get moving, kid, if you want some time to see your friend."

Jackson and Aang wandered through the many rows of small houses. The guard knocked on the door and opened it seconds later. "You have visitors, he announced." Jackson and Aang rushed in. There on the bed, sat their old friend. He looked to them both, and then looked down in shame. This didn't stop them from running up an hugging him. The guard closed the door.

"I wondered if you would try to find me here," he said solemnly. "I don't have it so bad. I have books, television, a decently soft bed, and a small kitchen. I have to do hard labor every 6th day, and in 50 years, I will be able to move on to the Spirit World." Jackson and Aang were silent. Kurt sighed. "I know what you must be thinking, and I owe you both an explanation for why I ended up here."

He told them everything. All about the Dark Days and everything that had happened since the Dimension Collapse. "So yes, I am responsible for the deaths of hundreds of millions of people because I wanted revenge on one person. Despite my noble actions in the past, something as costly and selfish as that isn't easily forgiven."

"I still believe in you Kurt," assured Jackson. "If there is anything we can do for you, we..."

"There's nothing you can do for me here. Just don't let him win. Do what you can to save the people of this system. Saving the sun might take every sorcerer alive, but there has to be a way to save them. But you won't be able to get anything done until ABF is out of the picture. And if he succeeds in whatever he's planning to do with the Dark Master Power Crystal, then it might truly be a lost casue You have to stop him, and you have to stop him soon."

"We're already working on that, we rescued Zactus, and he knows where Rost is. And Bennett and the others are closing in on Rost now."

"About Rost," interrupted Aang. "Who do you believe is supposed to hold it?"

"Ah yes, in our duel, Anthony reminded me that Rost is also known as the sword of redemption. Who do we know that has been seeking redemption more than anybody?"

"Zactus," said Jackson softly.

"That's right," said Kurt.

"Bennett won't like this," said Aang.

"Bennett is an incredible warrior and Avatar," replied Kurt, "He can prove himself as a hero in another way. Time is running out. Jackson, you are in charge now. I know you are capable of leading the Magic Team. Anthony feared having you on the team from the start, and for good reason. He will likely try to single you out in the upcoming battle. Make of that what you will. You stand a much better chance against him than I did, but do not underestimate him. I'm sure you'll make the right call. And make sure your brother doesn't try to hold Rost. Tell him I'm sorry. Not just for this, but for endangering Toph too. Aang, you are the best of your father without his flaws. I know he's proud of you. Watching you grow up into an incredible young man has been a privilege. The Avatar spirit chose both of you wisely. You're both as powerful as you are full of heart. Give my best to Nolan, Troy, and Alex. You should get moving."

"One last question before we go, Kurt?" asked Jackson.

"Was it all worth it? Was starting the team, and giving up any chance at an ordinary life all worth it?"

Kurt paused for a moment. "I suppose that really all depends on what you're able to do in the coming hours. But I will tell you this: Not for one second do I regret forming the team and meeting all of you. Good luck, my friends. Magic Team, go to work."

"Goodbye, Kurt," said Jackson.

"Thank you for everything," concluded Aang as they walked out the door.

Kurt watched them walk away, realizing it would be over half a lifetime until he saw them again. He started sobbing and buried his face in the thin pillow on his bed. There was no real concept of time in the Nether, but in what felt like the next morning, he awoke to another knock on his door. The guard was there when he opened it, accompanied by a cloaked visitor. "You're popular," said the guard. "Don't expect that to last though." The cloaked figure stepped in. Kurt thought it was Anthony.

"Did you really come here just to rub it in?" asked Kurt.

"I'm not who you think," said the cloaked figure in a voice that startled Kurt, because it sounded exactly like his own. The stranger removed the cloak and revealed himself. He was the Unknown Being.

Intervention and Preparation
Zactus and the others searched for the cave. "I swear, it's around here somewhere," he said over his com to Nolan. They all split up, but agreed to call each other on their coms if they discovered anything.

Troy just cleared through some brush and saw Bennett in a clearing down the hill from him. He was about to call out and say "hey" when he saw Bennett freeze suddenly, then put his foot down for a second, and then start running towards the trees on the other side of the clearing. 'He found it,' said Troy to himself. He called Nolan up on his com individually. "Nolan, I think Bennett found it, and he's not telling us. He's heading north."

"Damn it! Go after him. I'm gonna try to get a hold of Jackson and Aang. I'll try to find you soon."

Troy ran off after where Bennett had gone and came upon a small river. And there was the cave with the water flowing into it. Bennett had gone in. Troy called everyone else at once. "Guys, I found the cave past the clearing to the north. I'm going in and checking it out." The cave descended deep underground. As it got dark however, glowing stone started to light the way. Eventually, there was a large drop in the cave, but a small rock platform protruded out over the gap as water fell into the abyss. And on the end of the rock platform was the glowing sword jammed into the stone, and Bennett was approaching it. Troy was again about to speak up, but this time Bennett beat him to it.

"I know, you got me."

"Remind me what you said to your brother right before he left?"

"I told him what he needed to hear. Jackson is scared, so he's literally going to hell and back just to get Kurt's opinion on something. But it's a waste of time. I'm done wasting time, Troy."

"The other day you voted for patience with me."

"I voted against that all out guerrilla battle against ABF's forces because it was also a waste of time! We should have just gone looking for Zactus and gone looking for Rost and Ronost right then. Instead, we had a massive battle that resulted in our leader and thousands of our soldiers killed and the fleet abandoning us. Because of that, this is all we have now."

"That battle happened because of hasty, reckless decision making which is exactly what you're doing now. Can't you see that?"

"But in the months we were gone, Kurt clearly lost his mind! The old Kurt we knew would have never have done something like that. You saw it in him too, Troy, I know you did. He changed. But before all that happened, he assumed this was my duty, and I trust the old Kurt's judgment better than I trust his judgement after the dimension collapse."

"What you say might have truth, but you didn't answer my question. Can't you see that this is the same kind of reckless decision making that got us here?" Bennett didn't say anything. "Bennett, step away from the sword. Deep down, you know I'm right." Bennett hung his head and sighed. He turned back toward Troy and walked toward him.

"I'm sorry," he said. Troy smiled. Then Bennett hit Troy with an airbending blast that sent him flying backward. As soon as he was on his feet, Bennett then locked them into the ground with earthbending. Troy was stuck. Bennett started to approach the sword as Troy summoned energy from the glowing stone and shot energy blasts at him. Bennett deflected them with his energy manipulation skills. Troy broke himself out of the rock and approached Bennett with his sword. Bennett drew his power crystal sword and the two engaged in a duel.

Jackson and Aang finally stepped out of the portal. Immediately, their coms were lit up with message alerts. Jackson answered an incoming message from Nolan. "What's going on?"

"We think Bennett found it, but he didn't tell us! We think he's trying to hold Rost.

"Damn it! Stop him! Give me your rough coordinates and we'll meet you there as soon as possible. Zactus needs to hold the sword! I repeat, Zactus needs to hold Rost!"

Troy did his best, but when Bennett went into the Avatar state, the battle was over. As he got knocked down, Bennett walked over to Rost. He heaved with all his strength and the sword eventually slipped out. Its glow intensified. He smiled. Troy looked over at him, and smiled back in relief. "I guess I owe you an ap-." His words were cut off as the glow started to become horribly bright and the cave started to rumble. There was a loud ringing noise that started to become unbearable. Bennett attempted to warp out but found himself unable to. He dropped the sword, but as it hit the ground, it unleashed a wave of energy that sent him flying back behind Troy. The blinding light subsided, but the rumbling and ringing persisted. Troy stood up, determined to put Rost back. He pulled the gauntlet off of Bennett's hand and put it on his hand. Then he walked carefully over to the sword and picked it up. Immediately, he felt a burning sensation throughout his body. He approached the slit in the ground where Bennett had pulled it out. He collapsed to his knees in pain. He tried to insert the sword, but he felt incredibly weak. Nolan stepped into the cavern, ran over to Troy and forced the sword back into the slit. The rumbling and loud noise faded away. Nolan helped Troy and Bennett recover. As they both started to stand up again, the rest of the group entered, including Jackson and Aang.

"There's no time for fighting or pointing fingers now," Jackson spoke. "Everyone here has always done what they believed is the right thing. But now we move forward. Zactus, the sword of redemption is yours. Take Rost, redeem yourself, and bring us to victory."

Zactus stood stunned for a minute, until he received nods from Nolan, Bennett, and Double-Jackson all indicating for him to proceed. He held out his arm, and armor over his hand on his battle suit retracted, revealing his flesh. Troy placed the gauntlet on his hand. With the gauntlet hand, he grabbed Rost and drew it from the stone. The sword's glow intensified again, but only for a moment this time. There was no loud noise, and the cave stood still.

With few words, the group left the cave, got to their transports and flew to Ronost. The temple was golden, though still well hidden among the thick jungle. They walked into a large room with a short pedestal in the middle. The pedestal had a slot, much like the one in the cave. Zactus inserted Rost and rotated it. Suddenly the temple walls and floors transformed, revealing a massive vault below. Creatures began to emerge from primitive stasis chambers one by one, already wearing gold armor pieces and armed with swords and old fashioned blasters. Several team members recognized the creatures as Z'Lurkan, like the one they had met years ago on Matravin just before meeting Troy.

There was also an arsenal of tanks and low altitude transport craft. The apparent leader of the army stepped up to Zactus. "State your name."

"Zactus."

"Very well, Zactus. We will fight for you in the righteous battle to come. Take the sword, lead us, and may we achieve victory. The Guardian Army stands with you."

Within a couple hours, everyone had arrived and Zactus' base. Just as they started to gather, they got an alert of large ships approaching orbit. They panicked for a moment; they had their army, but they weren't organized yet. But their terror soon became joy. They were Power World warships. Admiral Hawkins, the fleet's leader, contacted the base and informed them that they were there to lend support. Jackson and Zactus went to speak personally to the admiral as her shuttle landed.

"We'd like to thank you for your bravery to join our cause," said Jackson.

"Electing to be disavowed wasn't an easy decision, but don't thank me," replied the admiral with a smile on her face, "Thank them. It was their idea." Jackson's parents stepped out of the shuttle behind her.

"We called in every favor we could to make this happen," said his mother.

"You always did make sure I had the best toys," replied Jackson, hugging them both.

"We're here for you until the end," said his father.

The two then made eye contact with Zactus. Jackson's mother stepped slowly toward him and gave him the first hug they'd shared in decades. "Part of me will always be mad at you," she said, "But it's time this family stood together again." Everyone except the admiral was at least shedding a tear.

Jackson's father shook hands with his old friend. "We're back in business. Let's get to work."

A couple more familiar faces stepped out of the shuttle. "Captain John Redders," said Jackson going to shake hands. "I haven't seen you since the promotion."

"I don't know if that promotion means anything now that we're rebels," he replied. "Melissa and I are here to help you all the same though."

"I can't commit to joining your team yet," said Melissa, "but I might as well give it a trial run."

"Thank you both for coming."

Nolan walked over. "Good to see you both again. Jackson, it's time."

The Magic Team, Zactus, and the other leadership met in the meeting room. "Anthony will surely come after us soon," declared Zactus, "There's no way that mass movement of troops went unnoticed. He seems confident in his doomsday plans, but he knows we're a threat and doesn't want us in the way. It will take him some time to mobilize, but I'd be very surprised if he didn't strike tomorrow. We need to be ready."

It took Jackson a moment to realize that all eyes were on him. "Then we have no time to lose", said Jackson. "Whatever his plans are with the Dark Master Power Crystal, they cannot come to fruition. Tomorrow, we can put an end to his reign, and his plans. He's a powerful man, but he's only one man. Without his power base, which is already showing signs of weakness, he won't be a threat to the greater good anymore."

"We hurt Anthony's fleet a lot in the last battle," said Jackson as he moved onto strategy, " but he'll still have naval superiority over us. The planet's unusual atmosphere should be enough to deter him trying the orbital bombardment again, but I'd be a lot more comfortable if we could get a large shield around the base."

Zactus's top officer was skeptical they could get their shield generator to produce a large enough shield, even if they had enough power. Jackson suggested using the Master Power Crystal, but Master Shaa assured him that he and Edward Hilless could gather enough people to create a magic shield instead.

The planning continued for hours. The best landing zone for ABF's forces would be to the west, so they expected the forces to come from there. Between that and the base was a couple square miles of fairly open space. That was where they predicted the bulk of the fighting would take place. Zactus would lead the main charge of soldiers with Nolan at his side. Aang, Bennett, and Troy would lead the attack from the south while Firespear, Ricky, and Double-Jackson would lead the attack from the north. Jackson's father and Admiral Hawkins would command the fleet and fighter squadrons, while Jackson's mother would lead operations in the base. Alex, the kids, and the chao would assist in protecting the base from flanking soldiers.

Meanwhile, The unknown being informs Kurt that he is him from an alternate dimension. While he has the ability to convert positive energy (the sun) to dark energy (the attack), Kurt has the ability to turn dark energy into positive energy. A process he'd been inadvertently doing with the team with small acts for years. He informs Kurt that there is a way to get out and redeem himself. Kurt knows what he has to do. He realizes that there is no dark or light energy. It's all how you use it. He escapes and confronts Anthony in battle, while regaining his Transformation ability.

The Final Battle
Minutes into the battle, Anthony calls out over a massive loudspeaker in all of his command ships for Jackson to come and face him above his flagship. Jackson, already in super form, nods to Nolan and goes to take on Anthony, taking out two battleships on the way. He knows he has little chance against him in a sword fight, so he uses bending and chaos spear to keep the fight from being close combat as long as he can, before he eventually switches to his sword and spin attack.

Alex is pushed back by a small group in the battle near Zactus' outpost. He takes a wound in the arm, but is saved by Sergeant Redders, who tells him how Kurt saved his life once, and how he wishes he could do the same for Kurt. He kneels down next to the grave and Alex joins him. With earthbending, Alex hears thumping inside Kurt's coffin and rescues him. And tells Redders how he did save Kurt after all. Kurt turns into an eagle has he, Alex, and Redders rejoin the battle.

Jackson holds his own against Anthony for a while, but is eventually hit pretty badly, and he is sure he is doomed. Super Aang sees him and flies in just in time. Together, Super Jackson and Super Aang are able to put up a good fight against Anthony, knocking him around in the sky.

Bennett, Troy, Double-Jackson, and Ricky are pinned down and taken as prisoners. Bennett and Troy start a fake fight with each other in order to break free, but they are still overwhelmed. Luckily Kurt flies in as an eagle, lands with his sword and rifle and takes out several troops in a matter of seconds. "Hell yeah! He's back! Kurt's here!" Nolan shouts as he sees Kurt, and he and Zactus gain momentum on the battlefield again.

Anthony becomes enraged when he sees that he is losing the battle. He unleashes a massive dark blast at the forces below. Super Jackson and Super Aang try to hold it and push it back toward Anthony but they can feel their super forms slipping, knowing that the second they lose them, they would either be incinerated by the blast or fall to their deaths. Jackson removes his rings in desperation. The group on the ground looks up to see a massive purple light. Bennett goes back into his super form, grabs Kurt and flies him up to Anthony. Kurt lands on the battleship and takes a shot and hits Anthony, while Bennett throws power cures to Jackson and Aang.

Judgement Day
Kurt, Jackson, Aang, and Bennett fight ABF on top of his battleship. Kurt manages to weaken ABF's defense, the three Avatars take away his bending. ABF is very vulnerable, and is forced back down to the battlefield where Nolan, Zactus, Alex, Troy, and the rest of the team are waiting. Together, the team is able to push Anthony and his forces into retreat, but he still has his plan to destroy Isoma and release all the Dark Spirits from the Nether, using a device with the Dark Master Power Crystal. Anthony now believes that dark energy is more powerful than light, wants to use the dark energy to fix the sun. Kurt says he will face Anthony alone and stop him while everyone else escapes. Jackson and Nolan remind him of what happened last time he did that. Kurt tells them he will not put anyone else's lives at risk for himself, especially after considering that he should already be dead. However, Jackson and Nolan continue to protest, and Kurt concedes that they can come, but must stay hidden and only intervene if absolutely necessary.

Kurt, Jackson, and Nolan stay behind and risk everything to stop Anthony while the rest retreat to Zactus' ships. Jackson tells Aang and Bennett that if they fail to stop Anthony, they must lead the future team together and gives them his permission to use the time powers if they agree to do so.

Kurt, Jackson, and Nolan race Anthony through the forest and battle him near the device. The clock is ticking and after a couple minutes of fighting, Kurt seems to be struggling. Nolan tells Jackson they should jump into the fight, but Jackson tells him that "Kurt's got this." Almost immediately after saying that, they witness Kurt get stabbed with the dark sword. Anthony said he enjoyed that even more the second time. Jackson and Nolan jump in immediately. The fight lasts about a minute before Jackson knocks Anthony up in the air with airbending as Nolan jumps up and stabs him with the light sword. Nolan pulls the light sword out of Anthony while Jackson pulls the dark sword out of Kurt. Suddenly, Kurt stands up, grabs Anthony's hand then his head with his right hand and the Dark Master Power Crystal with his left hand. Looking at sun he focuses on channeling and converting what appears to be the dark energy within the crystal, the sword, and his former friend. He orders Jackson and Nolan to warp back to Zactus' base and take off in the X-3. Nolan does as commanded. There is a large flash of white light and the two enemies both draw their last breaths as the sun is restored. From above the atmosphere, Jackson hears Kurt's voice say "Thank you for all the years, my friend."

Kurt says those words as he moves up to the spirit world, where he is greeted by Shadow and his old friend Hugh Devalle.

Jackson and Nolan arrive on Zactus' ship greeted by cheers, which are somewhat dampened by the news that Kurt is once again gone. While the others proceed to the bridge to get ready to make the jump home, Jackson, Nolan, and Aang look out at the planet in silence and remember their friend who taught them so much.