Chapter 12: Illumina of the Lake

The cold breeze of the early morning made everything seem like it was winter. The time was 4 am, Ryan did not sleep that much seeing that his thoughts were overflowing his head. At exactly 9 am tomorrow, he and the others must venture into the lake and try to see if they can take at least one clear photo of the creature he saw so they can prove to the people that it is real. But he couldn't help but think that what if Wendy and the others end up getting hurt or worse, get killed by the monster itself? He would never live with that conscience if that were to happen, knowing that he came face to face with the terrifying creature and barely escaped its Jaws of death. The possibility was becoming too real, too real for him to take, why didn't he think of the possibility that someone might die when they execute this action?! His heart raced in his chest, even with the shivering cold, sweat still dripped down from his forehead before his whole body soon heated up. He would never let any of them die, he didn't care what happens to him as long as they are safe he is satisfied. Suddenly his pupils started to shake, looking like a person who was about to lose his mind, he was afraid, afraid of what might happen to them so with one gulp of his saliva and with a clench of his fists, he stood up from the chair he was sitting in his room and quickly headed downstairs to the basement where Lucas kept all of his unused equipment. He searched for something that can help him prevent the possible tragic future, anything, anything at all, he was desperate, desperate to protect them, and there he saw a large Harpoon Gun, hidden underneath a pile of boxes filled with nothing but old clothes and Styrofoam. The Harpoon gun didn't look like it was used for a long time but still had that shine to it that can make others think that it was still brand new. The lad immediately thought of the aquatic weapon as something he could use when dealing with the creature. His attention instantly focused on a strange symbol on the Harpoon Gun, the symbol looked like an eye with strange straight lines on top, it was probably a tattoo idea or something, nothing strange there. or is it? Without further overthinking anything, he picked up the large harpoon gun which was surprisingly light for some reason. There was only one Harpoon for the gun so if he were to use it, then his one-shot must count. With a black sack that he found lying on the floor, he placed the harpoon gun inside to make his carrying easy and proceeded to head to the living room, where he started to make a warm tea to calm his nerves after placing the sack with the Harpoon gun on the side of the door frame. After the warm tea was made, he walked outside and sat on an armchair by the Shop's porch. He gazed at the dark yet satisfying view of the forest, where fireflies are seen lighting up the darkness and making the view even more beautiful. Ryan truly missed being around trees, watching the light of the fireflies made him remember the time where his father would often take him outside his house to catch the same lightning bugs and place them in a jar, where they can shine brighter in a small, transparent place before setting them free after a few days. He took a sip from his green tea, the taste was something he only failed in making, he could never make a good tea like Sasha but he still wanted to try, try until he can share his hot green water with his Uncle and friends. The pleasant sight indeed relaxed the lad. The cold, yet calm winds of zephyr made his hair dance across the light breeze, feeling the beauty of the moonlit night as he waited for the rising sun. But little do the Peculiar boy know, that deep inside the shadow of the forest, there was a tall, black hooded figure with a bow and arrow attached on its behind while crouching on a large branch of a tree. Their eyes were laser-focused on nothing but the distant boy before disappearing faster than a blink of an eye. With the sun finally, in the desired position, the moment of truth was finally in place. The time was 8:30, and Ryan was already walking towards the direction of Shooting Star Lake after leaving a note to Lucas saying that he went out jogging. A small lie for a big truth. During his walk, he felt a sudden presence behind him, he was alerted and didn't hesitate to execute a punch if he had to. But all rested assured when he realized that it was just Wendy, attempting to surprise him as she snuck from behind but failed to do so of course.

"How did you notice me?" She complained with a playful pout to start a good mood between them.

"Haha, just reflex I guess"

"What's with the sack, dude?" Wendy asked, referring to the sack with the large harpoon gun inside.

".. A fail-safe..." "Why would we need that?" "Because I just realized how dangerous this is... what if...you get hurt or worse..? Maybe you and the others should sit this one out, I'll be the one who'll go inside-"

"No. Don't say that, because no matter what you say I will still accompany you. Put yourself in my shoes, would you let a cherished friend walk into a place reeking with death alone?" She replied with a strict tone.

"But Wendy... if anything were to happen to you. I can't live with myself. I just can't… I can't afford to lose another friend..." Wendy's eyes quickly shifted to their corner, staring at Ryan in suspicion when he said that last sentence. 'What does he mean by another friend? She asked herself in her head before brushing off the thought and focused on Ryan for now.

"That's really sweet.. but I can't live with myself as well if you go there alone and never come back... we do this together okay? You're not alone" She said with a reassuring voice.

Ryan gazed at her with pity in his eyes but he removes those emotions and placed his trust in Wendy, she really did remind him so much of that blue-haired girl, every time she stared at her, all he could see was Selena, but Wendy keeps getting nervous when she noticed that Ryan keeps staring at her like that. She brushed the side of her hair behind her ear in a shy manner but smiled all the way before they heard a faint voice that shouted their names. It was Joseph, jumping up and down as he waved both of his Hands freely in the air, behind him were the two people that never seemed to be seen without being separate from each other.

"Sorry if we took so long," Ryan apologized before turning his eyes to the other two. Josie was smiling towards him at the back, waving her right hand in a friendly manner towards him while Manny still had the same look towards him since they first met at the clubroom.

"It's alright dude! By the way, what's with the sack? You know what? Never mind, let's do this!" Said the chubby male with eyes that were burning with excitement.

"Let's get this over with already, I still need to buy a lipstick" Manny muttered making Wendy irritated towards him.

"Oh, you wear lipstick? Haha, no wonder your lips are always red" She said as an insult.

"No, it's for Josie. Her father gave me a list of what to buy for her. Nice burn though, but my lips can never be as red as your cheeks when you're with that guy next to you" Soon it was Wendy's turn to clash with Manny on who has the stronger dominance but Josie broke up the tension.

"Alright guys, that's enough" The pink-haired girl spoke.

"Guys, seriously... this is really dangerous... there are a lot of possibilities that you might get hurt, so I understand if you have second thoughts" Ryan announced, still afraid of the possible outcome that he feared. But Josie spoke for Wendy and Joseph.

"Hey, as members of the Mystery club we never leave anyone behind or leave a mystery unsolved. You helped me realized that the people beside me right now are everything thing I ever needed so please let me repay you by being by your side to catch this creature"

"Josie..." Ryan muttered her name, he was surprised that she had the courage and thought to announce those words towards him. He gazed at Wendy and Joseph who had the same confident smile as Josie, Manny kept that serious look but he still knew that if Josie was to go inside then he would too. He may not know Josie and Manny that well besides the fact that Manny dislikes him, but he knows that he will protect Josie no matter what, he just doesn't know why he is like that towards her, either because he has a debt to pay on Josie's father or for other unknown reasons.

"And I hope that after this you would give me a chance and go on a date with you" She boldly asked that shocked Wendy and filled her with fury while Ryan and Joseph let out a short laugh.

"Josie It's not the time!" Wendy shouted.

"Relax, I was just joking" She admitted with a tongue sticking out of her lips as she placed both her finger and thumb with a shape of an L on her forehead towards Wendy that infuriated her even more before Joseph shouted the words.

"Let's go!"

And with that, the mystery club members ventured towards the entrance of the lake. Outside it was clear but as they made it closer and closer to the entrance, the thick fog started to slowly appear to the point they were surrounded by it. They couldn't see anything, not even the Silhouette of the background was seen. They slowed their walking to avoid potential hazards as Joseph pulled out an old Video Camera from his Fanny Pack to capture everything in case they saw the creature from within the fog. Manny looked like he was bored out of his life while Wendy and Josie couldn't help but feel a bit nervous seeing that the place was indeed creepy, but Ryan was the only one who acted differently. His memories started haunting him with each further step, not just the monster that chased him or the Sprite that almost drowned him, but it was the wolf. His memories, or to be more accurate, nightmares still haunted him since that very day. It was as if he could somehow hear the voices of his parent's screams from within the fog.

"Robert! Don't let him get to Ryan!"

"Julie No…! Just kill me to satisfy your hunger But don't lay a hand on my son!"

Screams of Agony echoed through the area they were in but Ryan seemed to be the only one who could hear those words of pain and sorrow. Where did those words come from and why now? Ryan asked that same question to himself before the voices grew louder and louder, he could feel the pain from the screams of those familiar voices as if he was there when it happened. Soon all the others could see was how Ryan fell on his knee, gripping his head with both his hands as he shouted and repeated the same words. "Stop it Stop It! Stop It! STOP IT!!"

Joseph diverted the camera towards Ryan before dropping it to the ground as it rolled next to the water of the lake with them being recorded. Wendy and Josie sprang into action and assisted Ryan, holding both of his arms as their concern towards him grew stronger.

"Ryan what's wrong?!" Josie asked but he still kept repeating the same words with his head facing the ground they were standing on.

"Ryan it's okay! We're here for you, just tell us what's wrong!" Wendy yelled as well in concern but seeing Ryan act like this pains her the most, there even tears seen flowing down her eyes as she failed to hold them back. His left eye soon glowed repeatedly, like a light flickering on and off. No one could see what was happening in his eyes except for the camera that was still recording them.

Soon he let out a very loud and final scream that showed how painful he was feeling inside before passing out and collapsing hard on the ground. Wendy and Josie were so nervous that both of them almost got paralyzed before crying, but they knew that crying won't help any of them. Joseph and Wendy tried to wake him up but he was out cold, while Josie asked Manny to call for help which he immediately did, not because he was told to but because he was as nervous and shocked as them. He may dislike Ryan but he still couldn't bear to see a member of the club collapse like that and ignore him.

"What happened to him...?!" Wendy asked out loud while tears were kept rolling down to the side of her pink cheeks.

"He just. suddenly yelled 'Stop It." Joseph muttered.

"Who cares?! We must get him to the hospital, Manny call the sheriff now!" She turned her gaze at Manny who was just standing there, staring at something in front of him with his phone next to his ears but didn't call anyone yet, which made Josie angry. “Manny what are you doing just standing there?!"

"M..M…Monster..." He pointed with a shivering finger towards them. They shifted their head in unison to see a Silhouette of a large long-neck creature moving on the water. Wendy and Josie stood up while Joseph carried Ryan across his shoulders as they all gazed at the creature in disbelief. Soon it stopped and revealed a glow of its deep blue eyes before the fog cleared to reveal the appearance of the Creature. All of them were indeed paralyzed in shock as they stood face to face with the creature of the lake that Ryan had feared. Soon their nerves reached their highest peaks when it let out a loud hiss. Their fight or flight response was scrambled due to fear, Wendy wanted to yell the word Run but in just a blink of her eyes, she found herself surrounded in a fog with no one beside her anymore, she was left alone. The same thing happened to Josie and Manny except for Joseph who was confused to see the three people shouting each other's name as if they were looking for them

"Guys, where are you?" Wendy asked with a loud voice, not seeing anyone but the colorless fog.

"Josie where are you?!" Manny yelled in a panic but neither of them heard each other except for Joseph.

"Guys, what's wrong with you? You're still here" Joseph spoke, trying to reassure them but when he gazed into Josie's eyes, he could see that her usual chocolate brown eyes turned into deep blue ones like the monster, he immediately assumed that they were in a trance. Wendy yelled for their names but only heard her echo as the only response. She soon heard a familiar female voice.

"I thought you were my sister. but turns out... I never had one from the start"

Her eyes widened in shock, she never heard those lines in her life before but the way the female voice said those words made her remember someone, it was just a glimpse but it was too vague for her to process. All she remembered was her Sister dying after food poisoning and the voice was different from her sister but why was it so familiar? Why was she having these flashbacks? Soon her senses scrambled when the soft yet angered voice changed into a scream, hearing nothing but the sound of a roaring fire and whispering blizzard. She tried to mute the sound by covering her ears but it did not affect her at all. The scream was starting to shake her thoughts, slowly reducing her Sanity along with the others. "No... Stop it, please stop it!"

"Wendy, snap out of it! It's not real!" She heard a faint, echoing voice but failed to listen to the full sentence. Josie and Manny had it worse. For the Pink haired girl, all she could hear was the scream of panic from a crowd of people where she was left standing in front of a lifeless boy. Manny on the other hand heard multiple voices, all of them was something he regretted dearly in his life, whispering in his ears of the vengeful voices of his past.

"Murderer..."

"There is no going back after what you did…"

"Blood won't wash off so easily..."

With the voice growing louder for him to endure, he soon started to slam his head repeatedly on the ground till it bled. Wanting to feel the pain in hopes it would stop the voices but it was a fruitless effort until his senses came back when he heard Josie's cry. It was true that his past still caught up to him but there was only one person that made all those whispers go away and that someone needs his help. With sheer willpower and loyalty devoted to Josie, Manny broke free from the trance, regaining his usual dark brown-colored eyes. He wiped off the blood from his forehead and immediately went to Josie's aid who was I seen crouching with her knees together on the ground, clawing her head to rid the same voices that can drive anyone insane.

"Josie, I'm here What's wrong with her?!"

"They are in a trance I tried everything but they won't wake up!" Joseph replied. Manny then turned his gaze towards the Monster that was still hissing with its eyes of death laid focused on them. He clenched a part of his shirt on his chest as if he was gripping something underneath before gazing over at Joseph and breaking his grip like he didn't want to show something to him. Then something shiny came to his eyes, a small portion of the sunray was being reflected towards his eyes from within the sack Ryan was carrying. Without hesitation, the silver-haired male pulled out what was glistening inside and realized that it was a harpoon gun. He quickly aimed it at the creature and fired a bolt of sharp harpoon with both speed and power, but the creature's hide was too tough to be penetrated with such a mere hunting weapon. The Harpoon bounced after making contact with the creature's skin and landed somewhere on the ground within the colorless deep fog, but it helped in losing control of the creature's focus towards them after blinking, freeing Wendy and Josie from the horrifying illusions of their past. With their thoughts slowly being regained, all they could hear was Manny, shouting the most obvious word in their position.

"Everyone, Run!"

He assisted Joseph in carrying Ryan to increase their chances of survival. All of them ran as fast as they could without turning back. Soon the fog returned and was thicker than ever before, but they still kept running forward to the exit, or were they? Something felt strange on the path they were taking and all of them felt the same. Then they arrived at a dead-end, seeing nothing but a huge wall of stone.

"What?! But the exit was just here!" Manny complained.

"Are we trapped...?" Josie asked as her body started to sink in a void of fear.

"No, don't be scared Josie, I'll protect you"

"We need Ryan, why hasn't he woken up yet?" Wendy asked.

"What if he is awake? Then what? You expect him to beat that thing with his moves?!"

"At least Ryan can still help us! Unlike you who just wants to leave him to die!" Wendy defended the unconscious lad.

"I just saved your ass!" Their argument could have gone further if it weren't for Ryan's faint voice who just woke up.

"That's enough.. fighting won't solve anything. thank you for assisting me, Joseph"

"Ryan, you're alright," Josie said, giving her a nod with a smile as a response.

"We need to kill that thing so we can escape."

"Skin is too tough to be penetrated, I used your harpoon, didn't work"

"There's got to be away... Everything bleeds.."

Suddenly, a loud roar was heard which alarmed the members of the mystery club. The colorless deep fog in front of them cleared and revealed the creature, raging towards them with hostile intent, shaking the earth they stepped on with each leap it made. Ryan told them to divide and that they did. The fog came into place once more to rid them of their sense of path. Without knowing where to go or what to expect, all they could do was run in circles only hearing the roar and sound the creature makes with each step. Ryan was correct in his thoughts, he led them to their doom and this he regretted the most. Joseph stumbled and fell on the hard yet grassy ground, as he picked himself up, he noticed that the creature was already standing in front of him, staring fiercely towards him that immediately sent the chubby teen with charcoal hair to paralysis of fear. The hair on the pack of his neck perked up as he couldn't help but stare at it dead in the eyes. The creature lowered its head and blew a gust of air through its nose towards him, and there he noticed something on its forehead, it was dark and was the only color difference to its skin, it was an old wound that failed to heal, the wound made Joseph realized something, what if Ryan was right when he said everything bleeds, then Ryan shouted from behind the large creature who was just staring at him without any hostile intent.

"Hey! Get away from him!" Yelled the selfless lad who was prepared to do anything to keep everyone safe. The creature turned its back to face Ryan before snarling with a slight hiss and leaping towards him as if he was the primary target. Ryan planned to use himself as bait for the monster while the others escaped but with the monster chasing him with a speed that can catch him at any moment, he can't stop telling the others about escaping without him. In the meantime, Wendy stopped in her tracks to catch her breath but where is she? Just like the others, she was lost in the fog. She called out everyone's name until Josie responded by calling her name back. The girl with the light brown hair walked towards Josie's voice and found her on top of a large boulder, which presumed to be one of the weird yet beautiful things that this lake had to offer in the past, with Manny who never left her side.

"Wendy over here! The fog is too thick and unsafe" Josie yelled from high above the boulder she was on. Wendy quickly followed her advice and climbed the steep boulder where Manny grabbed her by the hand and pulled her up.

"Where are Joseph and Ryan?" She asked as she panted heavily due to all their running.

"We can't see them, the fog is too thick" Manny replied before Josie pointed at a clearing fog ahead of them.

"Look! The Monster is chasing Ryan!" Josie pointed before the others looked over to where she was pointing, seeing Ryan running as fast as he can to avoid its jaws of death.

"We have to help him" Wendy stated but many refused.

"No, it's too dangerous, I saw we find the way out before it catches us next"

"What are you saying..? Are you just going to abandon him! We can't leave him here to die you, coward!" Wendy shouted in sheer anger and contempt towards the silver-haired male.

"What do you want us to do then?l Go full Spartan and charge towards that thing that can swallow us all in one gulp?! I'm not a coward, I am only here to protect Josie and that is my primary task, Ryan has nothing to do with my mission!"

"Mission or not, are you just going to let students in our school die?!"

"Then tell me, Wendy! Tell me what to do and I will happily do it!" As Manny expected by her sudden silence, Wendy had no idea on how to help the lad whose death is just right behind him in the form of a scaly monster. "Just as I thought, come on Josie

"No..." Josie replied, looking over towards Ryan with emotions overflowing from her eyes.

"What?"

"Wendy is right.. we can't leave him"

"But~"

"Manny… we have to help him...if we were to leave Ryan… then all of this will just be the same incident 7 years ago. I can't live to see another lifeless body because I failed to help a person in need... I just can't… please… Manny, help him" Manny wanted to object to what she said but seeing that she suddenly embraced herself to give herself some comfort made him have second thoughts.

"Alright then... we'll save him"

"But how, nothing is sharp enough to penetrate it'' Wendy muttered audibly that placed the others in deep thought. Soon Manny thought of an idea that he will regret soon, he promised himself that will not show anyone this side of him but seeing that Ryan's life was at stake he had no choice. Once again, he gripped his shirt to feel something underneath, as if he was clenching a necklace but before he could do anything, Joseph yelled from behind them, exhausted and tired after climbing the rock.

"It's forehead..." He muttered under his panting breath.

"Joseph, what are you talking about?" Wendy asked.

"The Monster's forehead, it had a deep black scar... that is its weakness... We must shoot it at the forehead"

"But we left the harpoon gun back at the lake" Wendy replied before Manny sprang into action by jumping off the large boulder, shocking everyone by the sudden stunt he pulled and disappeared into the fog.

He sprinted with all his speed and reached the lake waters where he found the Harpoon gun they left, now all that was left was the harpoon he fired but it was nowhere to be seen. Without no one there to notice him, he clenched his shirt once more and revealed a silver medallion from underneath with the symbol of a fox, then his nose caught the stench of the metal and followed its scent before the metal scent leads him to the missing harpoon that was seen leaning on a tree. Without any hesitation, he grabbed the harpoon to reload the weapon before dashing towards where Ryan was seen cornered by the monster. Wendy and the others yelled as loud as they could to make the monster divert its attention towards them but it ignored their noise and focused on Ryan who was too weak and exhausted to even move his feet.

"Just get out of here! Save yourselves!" Ryan shouted with his remaining few breaths before his lungs started to hurt seeing that he continued to run earlier even when he had no more breaths to use. But even after what he said, they still didn't want to leave him, but either way, in his situation, he would end up falling to his last knees before the reaper executed its final strike towards him. The creature let out its final roar before leaning its long neck forward in an instant to end Ryan's life with a quick, final bite from its teeth but came to a sudden stop when all of them heard a distant howl yet the sound was still loud and audible. Ryan and the creature gaze over to the location of the howl, his eyes widened slowly when he saw a shadow of a large wolf, standing with its own two feet and howling as loud as it can from the other side of the lake as if it was distracting the monster. Soon a spark of hope lit up the darkness of the fog, Manny yelled Ryan's name out loud and threw the harpoon gun towards him with all his might.

"Aim for the forehead!"

The silver-haired male yelled as soon as he let go of the weapon. The lad quickly processed the situation and tumbled to the side to catch the weapon Manny threw and swiftly turned to aim it at the Creature who was still staring at the distant wolf. With a simple 'Hey' that Ryan yelled, the monster instantly turned its attention back towards him, seeing the split-colored boy aiming the Harpoon gun on its forehead. His left eye glowed in bright amber once more than shocked by making its eyes widened as a response, the symbol on the Harpoon gun glowed in a bright white light that the others could see as well as Ryan but he cast it aside for now and fired the gun. The harpoon that fired from the weapon was suddenly different, glowing in bright light that made them all turn to look away. The white bolt of light pierced through the back of the creature's head, its deep blue ocean eyes became darker and darker before falling lifeless onto the ground as the fog cleared, revealing a fogless view and returning the lake to its original beauty. The loud sound of the collapsing creature made the others feel light inside, yet they still couldn't believe that Ryan successfully killed a creature of unknown myth with one fire from the Aquatic weapon.

"Is it... over...?" Ryan muttered before gazing at where the world was previously seen but it was gone as if it wasn't even there from the start, soon his senses came back when Wendy hugged him in a rush, embracing him tightly as she tried her best to hold in her tears.

"I'm so glad you're alright... I thought you were going to…~"

Ryan smiled sweetly at the girl who was embracing him as tightly as a bear would do to its offspring. He placed a warm hand on her head and gently caressed her head to make her feel at ease which made her stop on what she was going to see before responding.

"It's okay, I'm here.. thank you for worrying"

"Don't do that again or I swear I will punch you" Wendy stated, as she failed to hold her tears back but kept a smile to show how happy she was to see him alive.

"Manny, thank you" Ryan thanked the silver-haired male but replied with a cold gaze and a scoff.

"I only helped you because Josie told me to." Josie suddenly appeared beside Manny and elbowed him to the side, gesturing to him to tell him something besides his cold version of Your Welcome'.

"Listen... I apologize for what I said to you back at the Clubroom, turns out you were right about the creature of the lake. I'm sorry and thanks to you, Josie is safe so... I thank you for that."

"No need for that, Manny... if it weren't for you... I would have been killed. I hope we can be friends from now on.."

"Not a cha~" Josie gave him another elbow to his die, and this time, it was painful. "Sure..."

"Where's Joseph?" Ryan asked before Wendy broke her embrace.

"He went back to look for his Camera. By the way, what was that strange light earlier?" Wendy asked before responding.

"Yeah, it happened when Ryan fired the Gun"

"It didn't light up when I fired it" Manny replied as they placed their eyes on Ryan, thinking he did something but his answers were the same as them which placed them all in a more confused state. Suddenly, everything turned black for Ryan as if he closed his eyes without noticing before Light took place to illuminate the darkness, but to his surprise, he was no longer in the lake. The lad was suddenly transported into a white room filled with nothing but light and more light, anyone could become insane if they were left here for more than an hour, but why here? And how? Soon the answer arrived in the form of the same monster which he killed earlier at the lake but this time, it acted more passive instead of hostile.

"Fool! You made a terrible mistake coming into this godforsaken town!" Yelled the monster with a deep female voice placing Ryan in a state of shock.

"You can talk? What are you?"

"I am called Illumina, and you made another mistake by killing me!" Illumina spoke with a death glare towards Ryan, but his eye glowed quickly again as he kept a calm look before responding.

"It was either you or me, you attacked me for no reason along with that Water Sprite. What mysteries are you hiding from the people of this town? What secrets does Shooting Star have?"

"You're calm look disgust me, I will not answer that question but I will give you a hint to the future. We are not after you for no reason, you Ryan Cunningham will bring Damnation into this world of yours, and to prevent that, you must die. A small price to pay for salvation is what they say" Illumina spoke before leaning further to stare at Ryan's glowing eyes, with its fearful gaze but somehow Ryan showed no response of fear or any emotions at all besides the feeling of having his unanswered questions finally answered.

"Why would I bring damnation? I only killed you because I didn't want any of my friends to die, I was prepared to die for them"

"How selfless" Illumina commented with a laugh before the room they were in started to crumble into pieces.

"The white dimension would not last long. I am getting weaker"

"Wait tell me more" Ryan stated aggressively as their eyes locked into each other, none of them blinked for a while as if they were asserting dominance onto one another before Illumina laughed lightly.

"The eye on your left, it's the eyes of someone we all fear."

"Who do you fear? And what do you mean 'We'? Does this mean there are more of you?"

"I don't have much time, the dimension is collapsing. Ryan Cunningham, you killed me, the last of my kind, stared at me in the eyes and showed no fear and for that I respect you. If you manage to survive the tides of death from others that are more powerful than me, then beware the Dark One… Good luck, Little Boy" With her final words, Ryan was transported back into the real world while Illumina stayed in the crumbling dimension as she waited for her final breath before passing away towards the afterlife. "That boy has his father's brown eyes Sasha and Ronald raised him well… maybe I should have trusted Arthur.. at least I would still be by your side, Lesthovayne."

His mind came back into places after a quick blink, seeing Wendy and the others, staring at him with a look of confusion.

"Earth to Ryan, what happened to you? You zoned off for a while" Wendy spoke.

"Oh, sorry it was nothing what did I miss?" Ryan remembered everything that Illumina told him but refused to tell it about the others, seeing that their troubles are finally at rest. But what could she mean by the tides of death? And who is the Dark One? He asked these questions in his head before the lifeless body of Illumina started to disappear like sand being blown away by the wind in front of them, along with the Harpoon Gun. All of them stared at the disappearing body in surprise until there was no trace of it left. They all gazed at each other in silence before nodding as if all of them thought of the same thing, leave the area. Upon walking back to the exit, they saw Joseph, sitting on a random rock with a frustrated look.

"Joseph, what's wrong?" Josie asked referring to the look on his face.

"Here" He tossed his camera on the ground to reach their view but it was broken, judging by the large claw marks and the camera's circuits shown on the outside, it was obvious that an animal did this, or something else.

"What could have done this.. well at least we still have its corps for proof right?" The four had a look that resembled someone who didn't want to ruin on others parade but Josie took the role to burst his bubble.

"About that… the body… disappeared, like it was gone in a matter of minutes"

"What?! How?! Ugh…. I guess all of this was for nothing then…"

"No it wasn't, we brought back this lake's beauty"

"Yeah, I guess…

Ryan noticed something from inside the camera and when he reached for it, is revealed to contain a note, catching the attention of the others in the process.

"Where did it come from?" Wendy asked, looking over at Joseph who replied with a shrug, confused as they as he never noticed that letter before. Ryan didn't hesitate to open the folded letter, his eyes widen as a response before reading the words out loud for the others to hear.

"Find the four books and all will be revealed"

All of them soon stared at the Eye symbol below the last texts, it was the same symbol as the one on the Harpoon Gun and Ryan was the only one who recognized it. Then a sound of water splashing was heard, they immediately turned their attention to the lake to see a green, scaly female creature, crawling towards them looking weak and pathetic, it was the Water Sprite who almost drowned Ryan.

"What is that?" Joseph asked before the Sprite elevated her head and stared Ryan in the eyes.

"What have you done..? You killed a member of the Guardians." Said the sprite before collapsing to the ground and passing out, leaving everyone in a state of both Shock and Confusion. The scale on her body started to disappear and her green skin tone was slowly being replaced by the same pale skin tone of a human, revealing her private parts and lower parts in view but Ryan thought ahead and covered her upper body with his jacket before picking her off the ground and carrying her like a married couple.

"Ryan. what does this all mean.?" Wendy asked the same question the others were thinking. He was left in blank thoughts as well as he never expected for things to elevate this quickly, all he wanted was to rid the creature so his problems would disappear, but by doing so, it seems it made everything much more complicated for him.

"I think it means... that the mystery... is just beginning"