Claire POV-

"Claire...you seem troubled my champion" Ianite said, standing in a vast field of red roses and gardenias before her.

Jordan found herself in the huge grass field with visible mountains in the distance under a bright blue sky. The place seemed so real that she could even see bees roaming around carelessly working, pollen flying around the field discretely, and every particle of dirt unique.

Meanwhile, her god stood before her patiently, letting her take in the scenery. He wore his usual dark suit which accented every muscle in his body perfectly. His purple hair was combed back neatly, shining under the sunlight. Her god's eyes looked dark green under the shadow of his hair, almost as if they were black, but they seemed kind and focused just as she remembered them.

Ianite seemed...calmer. He still had that god feeling to him, elegance and grace radiated clearly but color had returned to his skin making him look more alive. A part of her was relieved to see that he was in better shape, of course it could all be part of the dream but Jordan wanted to believe that's how he was in real life.

"A ship is approaching the island, a ship that has ways to help you" Jordan said as she went up to her god and bowed once she was a few feet away.

He smiled kindly, gently, and motioned for her hand. Ianite then took it along with her arm and locked it around his, then he began to lead them through the filed of flowers silently with her at his side. It was a few minutes before he began to speak once more, but the pause hadn't been awkward at all, instead it was a moment of peace for both.

"Indeed it is. Has my brother noticed my escape?" he asked softly

Jordan almost broke into a laughing fit.

"The sky turned dark this morning and Dianite temporarily turned into a raging monster, so I'd say he took it well" she joked

Her god only shrugged but a small smile turned at the edges of his lips for a second.

"I hope that didn't cause too many problems for you, I know he can be quite...passionate when he's angry" her god said

"Well, he's not his best self, even asked me to help him put you back in your cell" Jordan said, remembering the events from merely minutes ago

"He did?....Did you consider it?" Ianite asked, planting his feet on the ground making them both stop.

He didn't seem mad at the possibility of her locking him up at all...

"There was nothing to consider. I would never do something I felt was wrong no matter who asked me to do it. You are a good person that doesn't deserve to be treated like a criminal, I won't let him put you back there ever again. If he does, you bet I'll climb that giant tree again even if I fall to my death this time" Jordan said

"I never properly thanked you for the risks you must have taken to go rescue me, and I'm not just talking about the tree. Im also thankful for the risk you took of hurting your relationship with my brother, I assume you didn't tell him?"he asked

"No, kinda snuck out of the island. Had some horse issues, boat issues, tree issues, and overall height issues. But seeing your letter and knowing you were out and safer, it was all worth it my lord"

Ianite looked slightly saddened for a moment as he cupped her cheek with his hand like her mother had done so many times as a child.

"No one has ever risked and done so much for me, aside from my mother of course. Your devotion and care, I don't believe I'm worthy of it at times. Me and my brothers are very lucky to have had the privilege of meeting someone with suck a kind and big heart like yours with enough room for the three of us. I used to fear this land would change you the way it did so many humans before you, drove them mad that they ended up almost killing their whole species" Ianite said, still saddened

"My brother is a lucky man, about time some goodness and beauty came his way. He had a rough life growing up, more than me and Mianite"he added

"You are the same. Dianite has tortured you and kept you a prisoner yet you still wish him love and happiness" Jordan said

"You have a way with words my dear, such kindness in them. But no matter what Dianite does, I would always wish him the things he was deprived of as a child." he said slowly

"Why didn't you make me choose? Between being your champion or being Dianite's partner" Jordan asked, going back to her and Dianite's conversation from earlier

"I have no such authority to do so, nor do I have a desire to. Whats to say you couldn't be both?" He said, slight confusion shining in his eyes

Jordan considered, "It doesn't work very well, I can't make you both happy without hurting you"

"I don't see it as a choice but I do understand your concern. He and I have found ourselves on two sides of a spectrum, with the upcoming war, I'm afraid that will leave you in a rough spot" he began, "You have no obligation to side with me on this war if you believe in what Dianite fights for, if you do side with him, it shouldn't be for the love you fell for him, but because its what your heart tells you is the right thing"

"You wouldn't hate me if I did side with him?"

"Of course not. As my champion, you are to bring balance and justice. If you believe me to be guilty then justice must be pursued. As balance you stand in the middle and look at both sides, from there clear judgment can be seen. If you believe Dianite is right and thats what will bring about balance then you have done your job as my champion, making me prouder than you can imagine even if it puts me on a cell once again."

Jordan didn't know or care if she was allowed to do so, but she hugged Ianite, hugged him like she would never see him again.

"I care for Dianite, but I don't believe in what he fights for and can't find it in myself to consider his side as the right approach. I am your champion, I promise I will do my best to protect you, even from Dianite because thats what my heart tells me is right" she said

He returned the hug and shortly after they began strolling through the flower fields once more, stopping every now and then to smell a few.

"I guess absolute jealousy doesn't run in the family, thanks for letting me choose" Jordan joked a she sniffed a rose nearby

"Has my brother displayed such emotions?" Ianite asked

"More than you know. I ride off with Miante and he gets salty, I dance with Tom and the same result happens, I slide down a stair railing with one of his guards and his anger radiates through the room like summer heat, I spend time with you in my dreams and he gets upset" Jordan ranted without realizing

"My bother doesn't know how to share I suppose, never learned that lesson from anyone" her god confessed "You slid down a stair railing?" he asked after a small pause

When Jordan looked up she saw Ianite had a small smile splattered in his face, eyes wide with wonder.

"Dianite's guard dared me to! I had to prove myself!" Jordan said, sounding like a foolish child

Still, her god didn't seem to judge or be ready to scold her. Instead he seemed to beam at her response

"I hope the guard is still alive after such crime" Ianite mocked...actually joked!

"Hahaha yeah he is, Dianite just sent him away"

"Odd" Ianite said quietly, almost to low for her to hear

"Were the celebrations cancelled because of the news of my escape then?" He asked suddenly

"Yeah, but I was kind of upset that you wouldn't get to attend so I don't mind very much" she said "Wouldn't have been the same without you"

Ianite didn't say anything to that, he did giver a nod of thanks before turning back to the flowers before him.

As she was about to ask more information regarding the ships a scream came from the sky, a voice she knew all too well

"Jordan wake up!!!! Not this again!!! JORDAN!!!!!" Sonja's voice screamed from the sky

"Woah! Guess thats my cue"Jordan said to her god

He turned to face her and took his hands in hers, bringing a rush of heat to her cheeks from the surprise of his sudden actions.

"I would have loved to attend as well. Did you dress up for it?" he asked

"Yeah actually but I almost died the day before so I had a last minute outfit change which I destroyed when Dianite came to kill us in the morning" Jordan said

He stopped breathing, a question lingering in his eyes as he scanned her over probably checking for injuries. Jordan just bobbed her head from side to side, to let him knows was ok.

"May I see them before you leave?" he asked with such sadness in his voice she decided whatever was going on with Sonja could wait a few minutes

She wasn't sure how it worked, but she closed her eyes and focused on the dress Sonja lent her, focused so much on ever detail, ever stitch and embodiment as vividly as she could.

Once she opened her eyes the dress and flower crown resembling the roses around her appeared in the place of her nightgown she had on seconds ago.

Then she closed her eyes again and did the same procedure for Tom's gift.

When she opened her eyes, Ianite's eyes were locked on the tiara above her head, but instead of scolding her like the other two gods had, he smiled and fixed it in place.

"I know, humans don't wear crowns" she said before he could tell her

He frowned and intertwined his hands with her again

"Yes you can, you're just as worthy as we are of them. Wear it, and wear it proudly my champion" Ianite said

Her shock left her still for a few seconds, not being able to speak or move.

"JORDAN!!!!! STOP SNOGGING WITH YOUR GOD AND GET YOUR BUTT BACK HERE!" Sonja screamed which made her blush with embarrassment

"She's just joking! I never told her that we were like that or anything...."Jordan began

He smiled and placed a kiss on her cheek.

"Perhaps one kiss was in order" he said "Now return my champion, before your friend drags you away unconscious and you wake up in a river somewhere"

"Haha right!" she let go of his hands and paused before turning around

"I promise I'll get your heart back. You'll be walking freely among us in no time, and thanks for the beautiful trees" Jordan said with a smile and a respectful bow

""I thought the land around you should match your beauty equally" he said "Until we meet again"

The sky and land went black and all of the sudden and everything was blurry before her. Sonja came into focus slowly as her eyes grew accustomed to the lighting in the room.

She looked worried and angry as she shook her shoulders in frustration.

Jordan glanced at the sky, it was almost sunrise.

"What are you doing here so early!" Jordan asked softly, her voice still a bit hoarse from waking up

"A ship is docked on the western shores" Tucker said from behind his girlfriend "What took you so long to wake up"

Jordan swore. Those two were practically her parents at that point in time, laying out fresh clothes before her and rushing her out of bed as Sonja combed over her hair with her fingers.

If she didn't love them so much, she probably would have complained but her still sleepy body was too weak to fight back.

"Get dressed and lets run to the docks before Tom wakes up" Tucker said

"I swear next time you spend ages making out with that god of yours ill snap you out of it quicker than you can say apple pie" Sonja added

"Yes mom and dad, and for the record he did kiss me because of what you said, we both heard you" Jordan said jokingly to her best friends

"What!!!!! Really!" Sonja asked, practically jumping away from the bed in shock

"How opportunistic of him" Tucker joked with a smirk

Jordan bagan to put on her clothes in the small room attached to her bedroom as she laughed

"It was in the cheek Sonja, don't fuss over it. Next time just don't embarrass me in front of my god, I must have turned as red as a tomato when you screamed about snogging into my head" , She added, stepping out of the room and rushing her friends into the elevator

"So Ianite did escape?" Sonja asked in the elevator

"Yeah, and before you ask I had nothing to do with it" Jordan replied, causing both her friends to keep their mouths shut

They didn't say anything else until they arrived at the shore where a ship was not so neatly docked. Jordan froze in amazement, she had never seen a ship in her life, and the one before hers was a pirate ship!

It was big enough to carry more than one person with ease, it wasn't too old and stood firm against the occasional waves coming from the ocean side.

Jordan didn't have time to ask what to do since the ship was a bit far out thanks to it's 'perfect' docking job since her friends had already began swimming away.

They were finally there! The pirates, just a few feet away!

A bit of panic rose in her mind when she realized Furia wasn't dead yet and that she had never met a pirate before, what if she did something to offend them, or what I they didn't think she was worthy of being Ianite's champion. Now any of them could take her place as his champion since they were also his followers.

Jordan pushed the worries aside and began climbing the side of the ship, careful not to slip.

Once on board she expected a not so friendly welcome, instead she found no one aside from her friends.

"Hello!" Sonja screamed

"We come in peace" Jordan added, to not alert the pirates

After no response, they searched the deck below and the rest of the ship finding nothing but rum and other variations of alcohol, a few sleeping quarters, scraps of recently eaten food, and chests containing various pirate outfits.

"Odd, there is nothing here that can help us, no super armor or crazy powerful object" Tucker complained from the deck above

"Where are they" Jordan wondered, worried something may have happened to them

Perhaps Dianite had found them first and they had been too late.

Once her and Sonja rejoined Tucker above, they saw Tom was making his way over to them, a playful smile and wicked eyebrows in place.

"WHAT IS THAT! THATS SO COOL!!!!!!" Tom screamed, as happy as a boy on Christmas Day.

"Nothing to interesting here" Tucker told Tom as he boarded the ship "Unless you want to get crazy drunk"

"Maybe we can take it out for a spin!" Tom suggested, pointing at the ship around them

Just as Jordan was about to complain on how many horrible things could happen if they did, a few human figures appeared on the shore, they faces hidden by the glare of the sun.

Her friends were looking through the chests when Jordan jumped overboard and made her way towards them.

Once on land, she brushed away the salty water from her eyes and looked for the pirates but found no one nearby.

Perhaps she had imagined them?

No. Footprints. There were clear footprints on the wet sand before her, heading inland. Jordan followed them until she reached the grass and they were no longer visible.

But the pirates were there, standing behind some bushes not so discretely. A part of her wanted to laugh at their feeble attempt, even she could hide better than that.

"People!!!! Over there!!!!!" Tom screamed in the distance, running towards her at a staggering speed she had never witnessed him use.

The pirates became alarmed and began to run away.

"NO no!!!! "Jordan screamed at them "I just want to talk"

With an annoyed sigh, she ran after them, her wet clothes slightly slowing her down. After cursing a few times she dropped a few of her heavier weapons, holding on to her sword before continuing her pursuit.

The others had caught on by that time, running along side her, rejoicing in disbelief and awe. Tom carrying all the stuff he had looted from the pirates with him, some items falling out of his grasp as he ran along.

"Look! Booty and Grog!!!" Tom said "You and I are gonna have a party later"

Everyone scolded him and he left his stuff behind a tree before joining them back on the hunt.

Jordan was equally as excited like her friends but decided to be cautious as well, who knew what those people were like, or so Tucker kept screaming.

They must have chased them all around the island for hours. The pirates ran faster than she thought was humanly or 'potion-ly' possible. Even when Tom took a swiftness potion, they still ran ahead with ease.

The champions had tried to corner the pirates after a while, and failed miserably.

Frustration bagan to build up on their faces and hearts, Jordan almost her sword at them in frustration!

Bottles of Grog fell behind the pirates as they ran by...how could they be drinking at a time like that?!

Tom picked up some on the way and drank the leftovers as he ran without a second though.

Thought that slowed them all down a bit, the pursuit continued until they suddenly disappeared. Once second they turned a corner, the next they were gone!

Her friends all swore and dispersed along the island, after a few hours they were still nowhere to be found!

"Where on the god's name did you all go to" Jordan asked herself as she ran, she asked over and over with the hopes that it would make them appear.

No luck....