Day 5 10:00 A.M.

~MAKOTO~

"Milkshakes!" I squealed, sitting anxiously in my seat.

EliaseAnne stared at me with a soft smile on her face as she rested her head on her crossed arms that laid on the red table.

"I don't know how you have so much energy after staying up all night," she mumbled.

"Because it's milkshakes! I've been waiting for this moment." I beamed.

Scarlet, who was next to Eli and sat across from me relaxed, smiling at my excitement. "You haven't tried a milkshake yet? It's not hard to make at home," she suggested.

"I don't know how. Maybe I should have looked in the recipe books Elias gave me. There's a bunch of stuff in there," I mumbled more to myself than Scarlet and Eli.

Scarlet turned to EliaseAnne.

"You and Elias are siblings, right?" she asked.

"Sure," Eli replied, closing her eyes.

We'd agreed to leave them in the dark about Elias and EliaseAnne until they were both ready to tell our new group of friends that they were the same person.

"Why weren't you at the campfire, EliaseAnne? We saved you marshmallows," Scarlet asked.

"I wasn't feeling well, and Marcus would have told scary stories at the campfire to freak me out," Eli replied.

"You afraid of ghosts?" Scarlet asked.

"I don't like scary stuff that lurks in the dark," she replied.

"Oh. But ghosts aren't real," Scarlet reminded.

"We live in a world with vampires. I think I can assume ghosts and zombies exists. If unicorns can exist, anything is possible," she replied.

"Eli! I will want to be introduced to the unicorn shifter!" I stressed.

She opened her eyes. "She's in school right now, far, far away in a different galaxy," Eli revealed.

Scarlet and I glanced at one another and turned our attention to Eli.

"But....there's only the realms, right?" Scarlet asked.

"Ya. In literature, it only talks about the realms in this galaxy created by the Starlight gods," I defended.

Eli lifted her head up, relaxing against the red booth cushions.

"Our galaxy is one of many out there. Think about it this way. Earthala assumes there's a whole bunch of planets in the solar system. They have no idea about the realms unless they find out or become a shifter in their lifespan. Just because the literature tells us that there are ten realms, doesn't mean that’s it. Shifters are the most open-minded species. There are definitely more galaxies out there, and my unicorn friend is from one of them," she concluded.

We sat there gawking at her.

"So...can we travel there! Like uhh, what's those people called who wear those weird suits and purposely plunge themselves into space?" I asked.

"Astronauts, Mako." Scarlet giggled.

"RIGHT! Are we gonna be astronauts and go there?" I asked.

"When you're older," Eli explained.

"Why do I have to be older?" I complained.

"Is there an age restriction?" Scarlet asked, just as confused.

"Yes, twenty-six," Eli smirked.

"You’re bullshitting!" Scarlet and I yelled, causing the other people in the restaurant to glance over at us. She laughed.

"Nope. Twenty-six, so you guys gotta wait till next cycle."

"Awww." I sighed.

"No fair," Scarlet mumbled.

"Stop moping. I'll ask her to stop by when she has a break. Okay?" Eli suggested.

Scarlet and I squealed.

"We’re gonna meet a unicorn!" I giggled.

"I'll make sure we get tons of pictures," Scarlet suggested.

"Vanilla, chocolate and strawberry milkshake supreme. I made sure to add extra chocolate syrup, cherries, and vanilla ice cream. Enjoy," the server announced, placing out drinks on the table.

"YES!" we all cheered.

"Mako, come on this side. Let's take a picture." Scarlet shuffled out of the booth, encouraging me to sit in the middle.

Scarlet tried to get us all in the shot, but struggled.

"You know, right now I wish I had long arms," she huffed.

"Or your sexy boyfriend could come and assist you."

We looked over our shoulder to see a smiling Christian.

"Hi, Christian!" I greeted.

"Hey, Princess. You look extremely energetic after staying up all night," he pointed out.

"It's the milkshake. She's been dying to try the strawberry one ever since she found out about strawberry milk," Eli explained.

"Ah. Mako and her milk addiction," Christian commented.

"I don't have an addiction. Milk is just awesome," I defended.

"Uh huh. Did Ethan tell you a sleepwalking princess snuck into our room this morning to steal some milk from the fridge?" Christian asked, leaning down to kiss Scarlet before taking her phone from her.

I blushed; EliaseAnne giggled.

"Please tell me you guys moved the alcohol elsewhere," Eli asked.

"Ya. Kai said we should swap out the alcohol and put the remaining cartons of milk we bought yesterday in our fridge since the main one was full of all the leftovers. Of course, lo and behold, Mako in her green onesie sipping on chocolate milk. Ethan almost died of a heart attack." Christian chuckled.

"That...wasn't...my fault," I mumbled, knowing my face was beet red at this point.

"I think her sleepwalking is adorable. Wait, doesn't Ethan always put a weird lock on his door?" Scarlet pointed out.

"Ya. That was nothing for sleepwalking Mako. Ethan was shocked and is now figuring out how she managed to unlock it," Christian explained.

"Don't even bother wasting your brain energy. If sleepwalking Mako wants something, she'll get it. No spell or lock will stop her," Eli commented.

"Can we take the picture now?" I wanted to shrink and disappear.

Eli and Scarlet giggled.

"Don't be like that. It's not embarrassing." Scarlet rubbed my back.

"C'mon. Let's devour these massive things before the ice cream melts. Christian, take a picture!" Eli encouraged; her arm wrapped around my waist to pull me closer. Scarlet shuffled next to me.

I couldn't delay the chance to try the milkshakes before me. I stared at all three of them in concentration, trying to choose which one to taste first. An idea popped into my mind, causing me to grin in satisfaction.

"Alright, say cheese."

"Chee— Mako? You can't drink all three at the same time!" Eli cautioned.

"Mhbmkddl." I slurped on three straws, enjoying the triple flavor combo.

"She's gonna get a brain freeze," Scarlet giggled.

"I'll just stand over here and take random pictures," Christian announced as he pulled back to laugh.

"Mako, don't laugh after drinking or you’ll have milkshake spurt out of your nose!" Eli warned, making me laugh louder.

"We're so getting kicked out." Scarlet laughed.

"It's sweet! My brain hurts!" I announced.

"I told you!" Eli scolded through giggles.

We continued to laugh as we dove into our milkshakes, which Scar and Eli let me share.

Strawberry milkshake was indeed my new favorite.

~SCARLET~

"Where did Mako and Eli go?" Christian asked.

"I have no clue. We were all together one moment and Mako completely wandered off somewhere. Eli's tracking her down." I sighed with a smile. I thought Cece was energetic, but Mako had beaten her ranking and deserved an Oscar award for the most energetic shifter of 5032.

Either way, I loved her for it, but her wandering must be a hassle for her knights.

Christian tugged at my hand, cueing me to stop.

"What's wrong?" I asked, noticing his stern gaze as he looked off to one of the stores.

"I think we're being followed," Christian announced, lowering his voice.

I followed his gaze, noticing three men in black looking rather suspicious as they pretended to be interested in the rack of lady’s sports bras.

"Well...they aren't doing a good job blending in," I mumbled, noticing the weird look an old lady was giving them.

"I'll take care of it. Just meet me at the fountain. Text Mako and Eli as well. Don't cause trouble," he whispered, pulling me into a hug before he gave me a deep kiss.

"I don't cause trouble and okay. Be safe," I whispered against his lips, claiming them one more time.

He groaned, squeezing my ass before he pulled away. "Addicting, I tell you," he mumbled, causing me to giggle.

"Go have fun," I cheered, turning around and taking my leisurely time walking away as I pulled my phone out.

I quickly texted EliaseAnne and Makoto, thankful that they both brought their phones with them. Hopefully, this goes smoothly.

I went into agent mode, being aware of my surroundings as I made my way around the mall, scanning for a quiet area. If this was going to get ugly, I wanted to make sure no one was hurt.

I felt my phone vibrate; the muffled ringtone followed. I pulled it out, looking at the caller ID to see ELIASEANNE.

"Eli? What's wrong?” I asked.

"Is Mako with you?" she asked, sounding out of breath.

"No. I thought you found her. I texted her saying to be careful or wait outside the mall for the boys. Christian's weeding out whoever is following me. I doubt they're after—" I explained before a loud ring went off.

"Fire alarm?" Serenity asked.

"That was so not by accident," Aurora commented.

I groaned, watching a few customers run out of the nearby store.

"Please evacuate the mall. I repeat, please evacuate the mall," the automated voice announced.

"Eli! Go to the entrance. Makoto should be there. She can defend herself if anything happens. Jaxson and the others will be up front in a few minutes," I ordered.

"Alright. Be careful, Scarlet," Eli cautioned.

"I'll be fine. Don't worry. See ya in a few," I bid farewell, closed my phone and slipped it into my back pocket.

I took a scan of my surroundings noticing it was deserted. Perfect.

"Risuki," I commanded, letting go of the hold on my magic.

I waited for his familiar form to appear, but instead a portal appeared and Risuki walked out of it.

He yawned, rubbing his eyes.

"What's wrong, Scarlet?" he mumbled, barely opening his eyes.

I took a slow up and down glance at his appearance – bare chest, black sweatpants and a well-defined set of abs. I opened my mouth to say something but stayed silent as my eyes locked on his V lines.

Starlight’s sake. Even the gods are hot? Is he allowed to be hot though? What happened to that notion of gods being created in His image?

"That's Jehovah and in the bible. It doesn't count for the rest of us and can you stop checking me out? You have your own harem, leave me out of it," he mumbled.

I blushed. "I'm not checking you out! You’re...just distracting! Why the fuck are you naked?" I shouted.

"I'm not naked and I was asleep. What's with the loud ringing?" he mumbled, snapping his fingers. The alarm systems shut off, the annoying sound ceased.

"You can't turn the alarm off because it's hurting your ears! There could be a fire!" I yelled.

"There's no fucking fire and stop yelling at me," he complained, opening his turquoise eyes.

I groaned, crossing my arms. "Do you actually sleep naked, and why are you in your human form?" I asked.

"I'm not naked. I'm clearly wearing pants, Scarlet. And I was busy."

"Sleeping."

"Yup."

I eyed him; an idea popped into my head. "Were you with Nightmare?"

"...."

I grinned, my heart swelled with excitement as I walked to face him, looking up at my six-eight familiar who was the Starlight god of Lightning.

"Risuki and Nightmare, sitting in a tree. K.I.S.S.I.N— OW! You did NOT just shock me," I began before I felt a jolt of energy run through me.

"Serves you right. Stop poking into my personal life," he mumbled; his cheeks grew red.

"So, you were with Nightmare! O.M.G, is that why it was storming this morning? You two had sex didn't you!" I accused.

"Scarlet has no shame," Serenity sighed.

"Well, that's what makes Scar...well, Scar. I guess, it's good to be fearless once in a while," Aurora commented.

"You think the gods will spare us if Risuki tries to end it all?" Serenity asked.

"Maybe. But I'm naughtier than you, so I may be screwed," Aurora pointed out.

"It's okay. If they decide to choose only one of us, I'll stay by your side and we can both get a toasty seat in hell," Serenity assured her.

"I'll bring marshmallows," Aurora vowed.

"Risuki isn't going to kill me! He knows I'm just a little nosey and want to know every detail about his blossoming romance with Nightmare. O.M.G, I should ask Mako! She'd—" I proposed before my body was pushed to the side – the gigantic ball of energy that whirled past us missed and crashed into the wall, causing the ground to tremble as the wall began to crumble. Holy Shit!

Risuki cursed; his eyes glowed brightly as his body was immersed in a light blue shimmer – his godly attire materialized as his cloak draped across his shoulders. He scooped me up with ease, moving so quickly everything was a blur. When we stopped, I realized we were on the other side of the now deserted mall.

"You really are a magnet for trouble," he huffed, setting me down on my feet.

"What just happened? Please don't tell me Nightmare’s mad at me and sent a flying ball of energy as punishment." I frowned, quickly scanning my surroundings.

"No. Nightmare's with Makoto and that was your good old buddies from the auto-plex," Risuki disclosed, brushing off some dirt that managed to get on his shoulder.

"What! Those shifters who tried to steal Cassandra? Jeez, talk about grudges! Didn't Cece say demons held grudges? Their boss is totally a demon," I rambled.

"Scar. I need you in agent mode for a moment," he ordered.

I took a calming breath, closing my eyes as I tried to ignore my frantic beating heart. When I opened my eyes, I was focused, staring at Risuki with confidence. "What do I need to do?" I asked.

"The shifter and his group of lackeys are headed this way. They want payback for the fact you and Mako managed to kill half their gang and their boss and vice are getting their souls sold to Lucifer."

"Oh shit. So, they do sell your soul to Lucifer if you’re bad," Serenity commented.

"Ya. I guess he doesn't let them roast marshmallows, huh."

Risuki and I shared a look, rolling our eyes at my spirits’ inner monologue.

"Can you two focus for a moment?" Risuki asked.

"My bad," Serenity and Aurora said in unison.

"Alright. So, their remaining gang are pissed that we fucked their plans so they're out to single me and Mako out and kill us, right?" I summarized.

"Yup. The others are here, but are having difficulty getting in. It's just us till they arrive. Any questions?" he asked.

"Three."

"What are they?" he asked.

"Are you planning to fight in that form?"

"No. I'll switch to whatever weapon you want," he replied.

"Is Makoto safe?"

"The Princess survived sixteen years in a facility with a one percent survival rate. She'll do just fine on her own."

"I can kill them, right? This won't add to my list of sins to sell my soul to Lucifer later on? Cause if it does, I just want to know in advance if I truly have to buy some marshmallows for the trip to hell," I asked.

Risuki raised his eyebrow, staring at me in disbelief. "Is that seriously a concern to you and your spirits?"

"Yes," I replied, my face blank.

"..."

"..."

"I'll make sure Lucifer knows you’re doing the world a favor by ridding such hindrances from this realm, so you don't have to spend money on marshmallows. Happy?"

"Yes. I feel more relieved."

He sighed. He smiled; his hand brushed across my cheek. I felt a warm sensation; the skin that I hadn't noticed was bleeding healed immediately.

"Be careful and no more scratches on your face. I don't want to hear Michael's vow to destroy whoever dared try to ruin your flawless skin."

"He's not that bad, you know. He just loves perfection and hates when I get hurt," I defended.

"Uh huh. You’re gonna be his daily hair model like what his brother does to Mako," Risuki commented.

"Daniel doing Mako's hair every morning is absolutely adorable. Don't be jealous cause he didn't trim your coat." I crossed my arms.

"Hmph. He said he was busy," Risuki mumbled, trying to hide his apparent disappointment.

"I'll make sure he helps trim your coat before they leave so you can look oh so handsome for your beloved Nightmare. Deal?"

"...Not for Nightmare...but deal," he agreed, blushing.

We flinched at the loud crash to our left.

"Better get serious. Thank you, Risuki." I gave him a confident smile.

"Always, Scarlet," he replied; his body glowed.

I closed my eyes; the words flowed into my mind with ease as I opened the faucet of power within me.

"Summon thy flames of power and might. Seek revenge and judgment on those who dare hunt us for their crimes. Show them our strength as we fight for salvation, Risuki!"

I opened my eyes, Risuki now in the form of a gun floated before me. I grabbed onto it, taking the safety off as I opened my stance, taking a deep breath as I opened my senses.

It didn't take long till I heard multiple footsteps – whipping my head to the left in time to see five men in black racing towards me.

I smirked, feeling the power of fire run through my body, waiting to be used and abused by its master.

"Let's try not to burn up this mall. FLAMES! Come to my aid," I commanded; my back grew hot as a magic circle morphed beneath me.

The flames materialized out of thin air, circling around me as it took shape – a dragon emerged as it rose above me.

The men began to skid to a stop – only two of them restarted their sprint towards me, forming balls of white energy in their palms.

"Burn your enemies to ash, great flame of vengeance," I commanded, letting go of the hold I had placed on my power.

The fire born dragon roared; the sound echoed against the walls strong enough to make the nearby store windows shatter. It rose upward, diving straight towards the two shifters who raced towards me.

I began to sprint the opposite way, avoiding the shots that were aimed towards me. I heard high pitched screams followed by an explosion, cueing me in that my flaming dragon had done his part in ridding the world of those souls.

"I'm glad fire is on our side," I mumbled to myself as I turned the corner, attempting to find the exit.

"You're doing good for a newbie, I have to admit," Risuki pointed out.

"Why thank you. I would have wished I had more than one training lesson," I reminded, having only tried to control the flame once before and failing miserably. I was pleased I hadn't short-circuited or put something on fire at all this week.

"Where is this damn exi—" I began, but was cut short by a huge explosion – the wave of air hit me hard enough to blow me off my feet.

"AIR!" I commanded; a fresh breeze of wind caught me before I hit the ground.

"What the fuck was that?" Serenity yelled.

"Did you just curse? We need a swear jar in here," Aurora huffed.

"Can you two stop bickering and help?!" I screamed, turning around to run back from where I came. I cursed as four other men appeared, pointing in my direction as I turned down the corridor, running towards the main mall fountain.

"Scar! STOP!" Serenity and Aurora ordered.

I skidded, attempting to stop, but slid right into a string that hooked around my ankles. FUCK.

I was lifted into the air; my body dangled in the air.

"SERENITY!" I yelled.

Serenity took over; my mind pushed back.

"Really, an angel is among them. So much fucking hate!" she screamed.

I felt our eyes sting as power flowed through her.

The strings that wrapped around my ankles loosened, glowing a bright yellow before releasing me completely. I flipped my body so my legs would land on the ground – Serenity and I switched fast enough for me to conduct another spell.

I summoned; my back once again burning as onyx black, magic circles appeared beneath my feet; a block of cement shot up.

The wind around me slowed my descent as I landed perfectly, a block of earth beginning to fall to the ground, giving me enough time to jump off to the white tile floor. I wobbled, shaking my head in an attempt to rid the wave of dizziness.

"C'mon body! A little more," I told myself, sprinting forward. I heard the voice of another group who appeared on my right – raising their guns to fire.

"RISUKI!" I commanded, lifting my gun and aiming it at the middle of the group.

I fired; the small bullet tripled in size and hit the bunch of men like a bowling ball hitting the pins.

I turned the corner, sighing in relief when I noticed the big entrance sign – ENTRANCE B in bright blue lights.

"Thank the Starlight go—" I began, but was tackled down – a female shifter crashing into me. I quickly went into action, kicking her stomach before lifting her off me with my feet.

I rolled to the side, jumping to my feet and going into a fighting stance as my opponent scrambled to her feet.

"Fucking bitch! I'll be the one to fucking kill you!" she screamed.

"Well, the least you can do is tell me what the fuck I did before you go name calling," I argued. I glanced to the side, noticing Risuki had slid out of my grasp during the takedown.

"Risuki, tell the others I'm here. Now," I ordered.

"But—"

"Risuki! Trust me."

"Okay."

The gun seemed to dematerialize into a blue light; the ball of light began to race towards the entrance – Moonlight's black fur and tail appeared as he reached the clear doors.

"Pay attention, bitch!" I ducked, missing the red headed shifter’s punch. I immediately tackled her; both of us fell to the ground.

I quickly pinned her with my body as I began to punch her face repetitively.

"Don't go talking smack when you can't do shit!" I screamed through punches. By the time I was done, she was knocked out cold.

I got to my feet, but dropped to the ground; the world spun.

"Scar! Let me take over!" Aurora ordered.

I nodded, switching immediately and allowing Aurora take over.

~AURORA~

I got to my feet, turning to go to the entrance when a wall shot out of the ground, blocking our path.

"You're really shitting me right now." I took a deep breath, turning slowly to face five men – the one to the left still in casting stance.

"Give up, doll face. You’re surrounded and we’ll make this as painless as possible," the man in the middle who had green hair and brown eyes cautioned.

"Uh huh. Don't they always say that in movies before they torture the shit out of the person? As a matter of fact, seeing as I'm a girl, you probably have plans to have a good time with this sexy, curvy body of mine before you rid of me. Correct? Or did I miss something?"

They all blinked, exchanging glances.

"Well...yea. You got it," he stuttered.

"Jeez. For future reference, you know, the next time you come to this life, can you at least be more creative? Like why not have a group orgy with your victim or something," I complained before I lifted my leg, slamming it hard into the ground – the action caused the ground to quiver as a wave of air blasted towards them – blowing them off their feet.

"Time to run, farewell!" I called out as I dashed back to the right, trying my hardest to stay focused.

“Scar? How are you holding up?"

Tired as fuck, but I can take over, Scarlet’s weak voice noted.

“The guys should be here shortly, I think if we go this way we can—”

I screamed; our body was blasted off the ground – slamming into a glass advertisement poster. I cursed; my body felt like I was being stabbed by thousands of pins and needles as pain radiated all over. Bloody fuck, fuck, fuck.

"Aurora switch!" Serenity called out.

I didn't hesitate, my vision already blurred. I switched before I passed out.

~SERENITY~

"OW! I swear to my heavenly Father, I'm murdering someone and won't give a flying fuck if I go to hell," I mumbled, lifting myself into sitting position before I spat the pool of blood out of my mouth.

"Serenity. Do you have enough energy?" Scarlet's worried voice asked.

"I'll be fine, but once I heal you, you're alone. You're almost at your limit, Scarlet. The moment I heal you, hide," I ordered; my fears of my host actually dying began to thrum through me.

"I'll be okay, Serenity. I promise."

"You better or no marshmallows for you," I replied, taking a look at my roughed-up appearance. Glass shards were deep into my skin along with the multiple scratches. I didn't even want to glance at my left leg which I currently couldn't feel.

"So much for not getting a scratch," I huffed, closing my eyes and calling upon my magic.

"String of healing, bestow upon me your grace as you mend my wounds and return my body to its healthy state. Give me fortitude to fight for my beliefs and escape the enemies that wish our defeat."

My body grew warm, the pain reduced at an accelerated rate as multiple strings wrapped around me – healing all my wounds with ease. I sighed in relief, falling on my back as my conscious faded – Scarlet, please...run.