Written & Created By: Eddie Yagami24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwJrwyaYDmS
*Readers Discretion is Advised*24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8dzvb2a9rm
Two weeks go by without anything out of the ordinary happening for Mac, his friends, and his family... but there is a tense, eerie calm that permeates the world. Mac didn't let the oncoming battle with The Order distract him from his normal day-to-day activities and relationships. Mac had been keeping his grades up in school, spent time with JR and Lucky, continued his training with Mr. Lou, spent time with Stephanie after getting some advice from Danielle, connecting further with Alpha and his powers, and checking in with his parents as well.
As the weekend began, Mac was hesitant after getting home from school on that Friday afternoon because he knew that he would need to talk with Lucky and reveal the truth to her, including her father's identity. Over the last 2 weeks, Mac reached out to his parents and explained everything that had happened and asked for their advice for his talk with Lucky. "Just be honest with her and make sure you're there to comfort her," Mac recalled what his mother had told him.
"The news will be devastating for Lucille, so make sure to go easy on her. Don't overwhelm her," is what Mac's father told him, Mac never wanted to involve Lucky, but now he had no choice. Mac was under a lot of stress, so Danielle did what she does best to help him calm down and that was to use his weakness against him. Danielle had Mac sit down on the couch and she got on top of him and let Mac use her body as a stress ball of sorts, squeezing her tits and grabbing her ass.
After a few minutes, Mac had finally calmed down and had a clear mind, so he came up with a plan, one that would bring in everyone to help Mac tell Lucky the whole truth. For the rest of the day, Mac made phone calls to everyone, Mr. Lou, JR, Stephanie, and his parents, then lastly, he called Lucky to ask her to hang out with him tomorrow. Lucky readily agreed. Mac also asked Danielle for help and she agreed to meet them at Mr. Lou's studio where everyone was to gather. With that the plan was set in motion.
Throughout the 2 weeks, Lorenzo had been keeping a close eye on Mac, following him everywhere he went: school, Mr. Lou's studio, his apartment and even when he visited his parents at Santera HQ. While following Mac around, Lorenzo did some digging on Mr. Lou, but couldn't find anything unusual about him that wasn't public information. Lorenzo was suspicious of Mr. Lou because after catching a brief glimpse of him, Lorenzo thought that he recognized him from somewhere.
Lorenzo couldn't find anything that could tie Mac with The Alchemist's power. Either Lorenzo was wrong or Mac was really good at hiding his secrets. But then an opportunity arose for Lorenzo, he learned from his daughter, Lucky, that she was going to hang out with Mac on Saturday, so Lorenzo created a tiny listening device out of elements of The Darkness. During the night, Lorenzo would quietly plant the device in Lucky's phone while remaining in the shadows, this device would hopefully help Lorenzo in finding out the truth about Mac.
Saturday arrived and it was time, while Mac went to meet with Lucky at the mall like they planned, everyone else headed to Mr. Lou's studio to prepare. They all felt that in order for Lucky to believe anything, some things of the supernatural variety had to be shown to her. During their visit to the mall, Mac and Lucky were having fun and enjoying their time while Lorenzo kept his distance and used the listening device to hopefully find something out. As the day whined down, Mac and Lucky were leaving the mall, but Mac had something to say to Lucky, "Lucille, thanks for hanging out with me today, it's been awhile since we've had this much fun," said Mac.
Lucky noticed Mac's demeanor change, "Yeah, it was fun, but are you alright?", asked Lucky, Mac let out a heavy sigh, "Lucille, can I ask you for a favor?" Lucky was surprised, Mac hardly asks her for anything, "Yeah, of course. What is it?", asked Lucky, Mac looked at her, "Can you come with me to Mr. Lou's studio? There's something that we need to talk about," said Mac. Lucky became confused, what did Mac need to talk to her about at the studio, then a black car pulled up and Mac opened the door. Lucky got inside and noticed that Mark was driving, "Hey Mr. Rickson, what are you doing here?", Lucky asked, Mac got into the car right after Lucky, "He's here to take us to the studio," Mac simply said.
The drive to the studio was awkwardly quiet, Lucky had no idea what to say to Mac, but she had to break the silence somehow. "Chandler, why are we going to the studio?", Lucky asked, Mac sighed, "Because there's something that I need to tell you and the studio is the safest place to do so." Lucky started to get concerned, what did Mac mean by what he said. In the distance, Lorenzo continued to follow Mac and Lucky, he had heard that they were going to the studio to talk, but he wondered about what exactly.
Once they arrived at the studio, Mark parked the car and they all got out and headed for the entrance. Mark went on ahead to prepare everyone inside while Mac and Lucky stood outside for a brief moment, "Lucille, when we go inside, I need for you to keep an open mind," Mac said. Lucky didn't know how to respond to that so she just nodded her head and followed Mac. Mac opened the door and had Lucky walk in first, and instantly, the listening device inside Lucky's phone was destroyed and this alerted Lorenzo, something was off about the studio.
After Mac and Lucky were inside, Mac locked the door to the studio, the room was dark but was instantly lit up and Lucky is met with everyone close to her and Mac. JR, Mark, Mr. Lou, and even Crispin and Samantha were there, then she also noticed Stephanie along with the one person she hadn't met yet, Danielle. "Uh, what's going on Chandler? Why is everyone here?", Lucky asked with a confused look on her face, Mac walked up to her and put his hand on her shoulder. "Lucille, there's something that I have to tell you and you're probably not going to believe me at first," Mac said, Lucky was clearly nervous.
Mac started to explain everything to Lucky that has happened to him since the pillar of light, about Alpha, the mystical side of the world, The Order, and The Darkness. Lucky was astounded at first, but managed to understand it all, "So, you're telling me that you're supposed to be some sort of savior for the world?", Lucky asked, Mac simply nodded. Lucky looked around at everyone, "And everyone knew about this except me," exclaimed Lucky, Mac was noticing her frustration, "That was my decision, I wanted to keep you out of danger," Mac began to explain.
"Mr. Lou and my parents knew before Alpha awakened because they were expecting it, just not so soon," said Mac, then he continued. "James and Mark found out because they were there when Alpha awakened. I hesitated to tell Stephanie, but she was persistent about being more involved in my life, and Danielle was brought into the fold because she's my personal bodyguard," explained Mac. Lucky didn't know how to react to all this information, but then she referred back to Mac's initial comment, "So, you didn't trust me is what you're saying," said Lucky.
That comment didn't sit well with Mac, "It has nothing to do with trusting you or not, I was protecting you from possible threats," said Mac. "The Order and The Darkness are dangerous entities and are not to be taken lightly," Mac told Lucky, but now she was curious, "Ok, then why tell me now if you were trying to protect me?", Lucky asked. Mac let out a heavy sigh, "Because recently, we learned something important that unfortunately involves you, Lucille," said Mac.
Mr. Lou grabbed a chair and placed it next to Lucky, "Here Lucille, you'll probably want to sit down for this because what comes next will be devastating," said Mr. Lou, Lucky was concerned but still went ahead and sat down. Then, Mac began to explain, "Within The Order sit powerful members with immense strength," then Mr. Lou interrupted, "Under the leader of The Order, sit four high ranking generals labeled as The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and we learned the identity of one of The Horsemen." Mac looks at Mr. Lou, "Really? Now is when you share that tidbit of information?", exclaimed Mac.
"Anyways, as Mr. Lou said, we learned the identity of this Horseman and it's...," Mac pauses for a moment, "It's your father, Lucille," Mac said while looking directly at Lucky. Her expression changed from confusion to utter distraught, "Wha—What are you saying Chandler? That my father is not the man who raised me, cared for me, watch me grow up? That he's this dangerous person with a dark past?!", shouted Lucky, but before anyone could respond, a loud crash is heard.
Earlier, when Mac and Lucky had originally arrived at the studio, Lorenzo positioned himself close-by and waited with baited breath. He was finally about to learn what Mac is truly hiding, but much to his surprise as soon as they entered the building, the listening device that Lorenzo created was instantly destroyed. Lorenzo was confused at first, "How did it get destroyed?", he asked himself, with no other option, Lorenzo scanned around the building to find anyway to look inside.
Unfortunately, Lorenzo was unsuccessful, so then he tried to look through the walls of the building and was instantly blinded by a mystical force, one he didn't recognize. Lorenzo was growing impatient, he needed to get inside and see what was going on and if mystical powers were involved, then the only way to dispel them was for Lorenzo to activate his true form. Of course, the downside to using his true form is that Lucky will find out and his time with her and the family that he created will be over, but enough was enough.
Without a moment of hesitation, Lorenzo made his decision and sealed his fate. He approached the main entrance to the studio. Lorenzo took his true form as The Ashen Reaper of Death and crashed through the doors, breaking the protection barrier and colliding with Mr. Lou as he flashed in front of him, blocking his path. Lorenzo has finally come face to face with everyone inside, including his daughter, they all stood there in shock as Lorenzo looked around. Then he looked at Mr. Lou, "Luis! I thought I recognized you, The Alchemist's little guard dog," said Lorenzo, Mr. Lou wasn't fazed by his insult.
"Takes one to know one, how's working for Kassandra been for you lately?", Mr. Lou says as he toys with Lorenzo, then in a fit of rage, Lorenzo struck Mr. Lou and sent him flying backwards. Mr. Lou recovered with ease, landed on his feet and looked back at Lorenzo as he stood there looking very menacingly, then Lucky speaks up. "Dad?! Is—Is that really you?" Lorenzo looked towards his daughter and removed the skull shaped mask that he was wearing, "Lucille, what have they told you?", Lorenzo asked.
Lucky was so shocked that she couldn't speak, so Mac took the opportunity to respond, "She knows everything Lorenzo, about who you truly are and your allegiance to The Order," shouted Mac. Lorenzo become enraged, dawns his mask again and immediately attacks Mac, but in the moment that it took Lorenzo to reach Mac, he activated Alpha's powers and conjured a large shield to block Lorenzo's attack. Lorenzo is stunned to see that power, "You! I knew something was odd about you ever since I saw you talking with that shadow," exclaimed Lorenzo, Mac was confused for a moment but then realized what he was talking about.
"The shadow from the school?! So, those Creatures that ran off reported back to you," said Mac, and in retaliation Mac punched the inside of the shield with enough force that it caused a shockwave, sending Lorenzo sliding backwards. "So, you're the carrier of The Alchemist's power, his final creation to fight against The Order," Lorenzo stated as his dark aura intensified. Mac became concerned for the safety of the others, "Mark! Danielle! Get everyone out of here, Mr. Lou and I will handle this," ordered Mac, and without hesitation Mark and Danielle did exactly what Mac ordered them to do.
But Lucky couldn't move, she was still in shock, so JR tried to help her move, but she couldn't and watched as her father and Mac were about to begin fighting. Lorenzo summoned a unique looking scythe, resembling who he was as The Ashen Reaper of Death. Mac saw this and also summoned a unique looking sword, one that can counter Lorenzo's scythe. Lorenzo reacts accordingly, "Time to take thing seriously Chandler," exclaimed Lorenzo, then he shouts, "COME MY CREATURES, DESTORY THOSE WHO OPPOSE THE ORDER!!!"
A swarm of Creatures suddenly spawn all around Mac, Mr. Lou, JR, and Lucky. Mr. Lou yells out to Mac, "Chandler! Only you and Alpha are capable of defeating Lorenzo! I'll handle these lowly Creatures!" Mac nods his head and prepares to fight Lorenzo who just simply laughs, "You think one puny human can defeat me?!", Lorenzo shouts. Mac smiles, "Only one way to find out," then he lunges towards Lorenzo and they begin their clash as it echoes loudly throughout the studio.
Mr. Lou began to destroy all the Creatures around the studio with ease, one after another, so the Creatures upped their numbers and began to spawn more quickly and frequently. Mr. Lou noticed the increase of Creatures and began to fall behind, so much so that he had a few close calls with JR and Lucky, who were still there. As the creatures kept coming, Mr. Lou kept getting pushed away from JR and Lucky which made it harder to protect them. Then he noticed that the Creatures were intentionally targeting JR and Lucky. Mr. Lou tried his hardest to reach them, but was unsuccessful and became concerned, then a large group of Creatures hurled themselves towards JR and Lucky. He was unable to reach them in time.
Then, out of nowhere, a bright flash zoomed by the entire studio destroying every Creature that was inside, Mr. Lou realized it was Danielle and was glad that she came back in time to help. Danielle is seen stepping in front of JR and Lucky almost stumbling over them, "Damn, Luis! These enchanted boots you gave me really helped!", shouted Danielle. But that didn't stop the Creatures as they continued to spawn into the studio, but thankfully with Danielle there now, it became easier to fight the Creatures.
The fight between Lorenzo and Mac carried on as Lucky watched from afar, her mind was racing with thoughts of despair, "Why is this happening to me? Why is my father this monster? What should I do?" Mac was holding his own against Lorenzo, even with brief moments where he overpowered Lorenzo and managed to land a few hits, but that only ended up enraging Lorenzo even further. As the fight progressed, Alpha chimed in to remind Mac of something important, "Chandler, remember if things get too tough for you, then you can switch with me. But for now, I've enhanced your overall defense so that you can handle Lorenzo's more powerful attacks."
As the fight reached its climax, Lorenzo became frustrated as he could not believe that this fight was taking so long, so he slammed his scythe on the ground and pushed Mac away for a brief moment. During that pause, Lorenzo flipped his scythe around and stuck it to the ground, then he raised his hand, "Let the Ashes Reap Your Soul!!!", yelled Lorenzo. A large, shadowy cloud shot out of Lorenzo's hand and began to engulf the entire studio in complete darkness, effectively trapping everyone inside an illusion that Lorenzo had full control of.
Mac began looking around, wondering what was going on as he had lost sight of Lorenzo, but then Lorenzo appeared next to Mac, so he swung his sword. Nothing happened when the sword made contact, it's as if Lorenzo just disappeared, this happened a few more times until Alpha figured it out. "Enough Chandler! They're just illusions, spectral shadows of Lorenzo. He's trying to wear you down," Alpha told Mac, so Mac stopped moving altogether, "So what do I do then?", Mac asked.
Alpha began analyzing the situation trying to figure a way out of the illusion that everyone was stuck in, but during the time inside the illusion, Lorenzo began playing with everyone's minds. Mac was hallucinating a version of Lucky who despised him, hated him for not loving her and being with her and choosing Stephanie over her. This affected Mac momentarily, "Don't listen to it, that's just an illusion to confuse you," exclaimed Alpha, Mac snapped out of it and the illusion disappeared.
As Mac walked around this shadow realm created by Lorenzo, he kept hearing odd noises and seeing more spectral shadows of Lorenzo, Mac was becoming slightly frustrated. "Alright Lorenzo, how about you stop playing games. Come out and fight!", shouted Mac, but Lorenzo had other plans. "Patience Chandler, let's have a chat for a moment," said Lorenzo as his voice echoed, Mac was not interested, but he played along. "Alright then, why are you doing this? Why are you betraying Lucille like this?", Mac asked as he tried to get a reaction from Lorenzo.
"Why you ask? It's simple really, my loyalty is to Lady Kassandra and The Order," said Lorenzo. He then launched a surprise attack on Mac, "Chandler, Look Out!!!", shouted Alpha. Mac turns around at the last second and manages to block Lorenzo's attack, "Very good Chandler, The Alchemist's power must be giving you heightened senses," said Lorenzo as he disappeared into the shadows once more. "So, who's this 'Kassandra' you mentioned? Is she really more important than your own flesh and blood?", taunted Mac, but that wasn't going to work on Lorenzo.
"It seems that The Alchemist's pet hasn't told you the whole story about who he truly is," said Lorenzo, unfortunately this caught Mac's attention since he had been so eager to find out more about Mr. Lou and The Order. "You say that as if Mr. Lou hides some deep, dark secret," said Mac, Lorenzo begins to laugh, "Mr. Lou?! That's adorable. Well, did you know that your precious 'Mr. Lou' was one of the original founders of The Order?! Or as it was known back then, The Order of Santo Domingo!", said Lorenzo.
"What?!" questioned Mac, this revelation distracted him enough for Lorenzo to attack once again, "Chandler! Now's not the time to be distracted," shouted Alpha, but Mac wasn't reacting and Lorenzo was closing in fast. "CHANDLER! MOVE!", yelled Alpha, but in a stroke of luck, Mr. Lou arrived at the last second and countered Lorenzo's attack and sent him flying backwards. In that brief moment, Mr. Lou turned to Mac and looked him in the eye, "Chandler! Don't let what he said distract you. I know that you have so many questions, but now is not the time for answers!" exclaimed Mr. Lou.
Mac managed to come back to his senses, "Is it true?", Mac simply asked, Mr. Lou sighed, "It is," Mac took a step back, but Mr. Lou held on to him. "Do not falter now, Chandler. Look, once this is all over, I'll tell you everything about myself and The Order," said Mr. Lou. Mac looked at Mr. Lou intensely, "I hope so, Mr. Lou," Mac said, Mr. Lou nodded, "Now, in order to get out of Lorenzo's Shadow Realm, you'll need to awaken Alpha and have him take full control. Just like during your first encounter with The Darkness," explained Mr. Lou.
"Okay, how do you propose I do that? It's not like I want to try and die again," Mac said jokingly, Mr. Lou just shook his head. "It's simple really, first give Alpha control of your body, then he needs to use the trigger phrase that was implemented into his being by The Alchemist," explained Mr. Lou. "Ok, Alpha you're up!", said Mac as he gave Alpha control of his body, then once Alpha was in control, he looked at Mr. Lou, "Luis... what trigger phrase are you talking about?", asked Alpha.
At that moment, Lorenzo retaliated and attacked Mr. Lou head on, their weapons clashing together, "You know Luis, you were always such a nuisance. Even back then, you were always so clingy to Kassandra and her brother, it was sickening," exclaimed Lorenzo. "After you and her brother betrayed The Order and Kassandra put out a kill order, I was so ecstatic that I went on a killing spree while hunting for the two of you," said Lorenzo. Mr. Lou was not fazed by him at all. While keeping eye contact with Lorenzo, Mr. Lou shouted towards Alpha, "Alpha! Search through Bartolo's memories and find it! I'll keep Lorenzo busy for now!"
And with that, Mr. Lou pushed Lorenzo away and took their fight elsewhere. This gave Alpha a moment to focus and quickly scan through Bartolo's memories. Meanwhile, Danielle continued fighting Creatures of Darkness while still trying to protect JR and Lucky, "You doing alright, you two?", Danielle quickly asked, then JR responded, "We're fine for now, but please be careful." JR was trying his best to keep Lucky calm and collected, but she was still unresponsive, because in her mind, she was still in disbelief about her father. Plus, the illusions from Lorenzo's Shadow Realm were not helping as it intensified her distress.
The fight between Lorenzo and Mr. Lou continued at a stalemate, both of them just kept countering each other without being able to land a single blow on one another. Alpha, on the other hand, continued to scan through his creator's memories, trying to find some clue as to what this trigger phrase was. "C'mon Bartolo, what is it?", Alpha kept asking himself, then he started piecing together a constant phrase that Bartolo kept repeating as Alpha hears echoes of the phrase forming together.
The words came as whispers at first, faint and fleeting, like a distant breeze, "Together... we rise..." They grew stronger, reverberating in the air and in Alpha's chest, "Together... we rise as one..." The sound swirled around him, pulling at his core as golden light sparked in the shadows. Both Lorenzo and Mr. Lou notice the golden light getting brighter, "What is happening? I feel my shadows are evaporating away!", exclaimed Lorenzo, Mr. Lou chuckled. "That Lorenzo, is Bartolo's creation coming to life," Mr. Lou responded, Lorenzo panicked and immediately broke off from fighting Mr. Lou and quickly ran towards Alpha.
Mr. Lou knew that Lorenzo was too late. The phrase became whole. A voice both ancient and eternal spoke out, "Together, Our Bond is Eternal and We Rise As One----Awaken!!!" As the tip of Lorenzo's scythe was about to make contact with Alpha, time froze all around Alpha as he was the only one able to make any kind of movement. Then Alpha opened his eyes and a bright golden flash emitted from them and the same golden circle of strange symbols from before forms around him and the entire area begins to rumble. The golden circle expands outward, dispelling the entire Shadow Realm created by Lorenzo while also simultaneously knocking Lorenzo back, hitting the wall of the studio as his body suffered significant damage from simply making contact with Alpha's awakening. Then he fell to the ground, stunned and damaged.
This surge also destroyed all the remaining Creatures that Danielle was fighting and prevented others from spawning since the studio was now under the protection of Alpha's mystical power. Everyone was safe for now as they all looked towards Alpha and his immense glowing aura. It even brought Lucky out of her catatonic state and was stunned by his presence. Then she looked towards her father as he laid there, broken and defeated, trying to force himself up off the floor.
Alpha walked over to Lorenzo and picked him up by the collar of his now broken armor, instinctively punching and destroying his mask. Lorenzo begins to laugh, "Well, well, well... so this is the true power of The Alchemist's final creation," Lorenzo said as he was coughing and spitting out blood. The worst of the damage to him was internal. "Any final words, Ashen Reaper of Death?", exclaimed Alpha. Lorenzo coughed and chuckled one last time, "Yeah... you should pay attention to those around you!"
In a flash, Lorenzo conjured a dagger of Darkness and threw it towards Lucky in a last-ditch attempt to distract Alpha. He was slow to react, and was not going to make it in time to stop the dagger. In a heroic moment, JR jumped in the way of the dagger as it hit him in the shoulder and then fell to the ground. This triggered a hidden connection between JR and Kassandra, but only she notices it as the pain that JR is feeling is also felt by Kassandra back at The Order's HQ.
Magdelena, who was with Kassandra at the time, sees her reaction. "My Lady, is everything alright?", Magdelena questioned, but Kassandra could not reveal this secret to Magdelena. "Something's wrong with Lorenzo, go find him! He'll probably be hiding in The Darkness if something has happened to him," ordered Kassandra, Magdelena nodded and left immediately. After she was gone, Kassandra was alone in her chambers, "James, my son... what happened to you?", Kassandra asked herself as another stunning revelation is made.
Back at the studio, Mr. Lou went to check on JR to see how badly he was hurt. Mr. Lou pulled out the dagger and tossed is away, but he noticed the wound was infected by The Darkness, "Don't worry James, you'll be fine in no time," said Mr. Lou. As he placed his hand on JR's wound, Mr. Lou began to cast a spell, "Omnia Vestigia Tenebrarum, Be Abi!" in an instant, The Darkness that was invading JR's body was expelled and JR was able to move again. Kassandra felt this as well and is relieved. But now Lorenzo had to answer to her and she was not happy.
As soon as JR was healed, Alpha rushed back to Lorenzo, but he was too late as Lorenzo took that brief moment and escaped into the shadows. This was different compared to the Shadow Realm that Lorenzo cast because it was The Darkness in its purist form. Not even Alpha's power could touch it or Lorenzo. "Get back here you coward! How dare you attack your own daughter like that?!", shouted Alpha, but Lorenzo chuckled. "She is no longer my daughter, that life is now gone," said Lorenzo, but what he said resonated with Lucky as she finally gets up and runs towards her former father, but Alpha stops her.
"Why, dad?! Why are you doing this to me?! To Mom?!", cried out Lucky. Lorenzo softens momentarily, acknowledging his love for her. "I... I'm truly sorry, Lucille. But, my duty to The Order supersedes everything, even family. Besides... your 'Mother' is not even real, just a pawn that I created to make the illusion real for you."
This statement ends up breaking Lucky's heart and she starts to cry. Alpha angrily looks at Lorenzo, "You're a monster!", he shouts. Not fazed by Alpha's comment, Lorenzo looks at Alpha, with a hint of guilt in his eyes. "If you can hear me Chandler, please take care of Lucille for me," said Lorenzo, Alpha was feeling Mac's anger and hate towards Lorenzo, but also a hint of understanding.
"As for you... Alpha! This won't be the last that you'll see me. I will come back stronger and ready to defeat you next time, mark my words," Lorenzo promised as he finally retreated into the shadows. With the fight now over, Alpha powered down and gave control back to Mac.
Alpha goes quiet as he needs to rest after using so much energy. Mac, on the other hand, embraces Lucky as she continues to cry her eyes out, devastated by her father's betrayal, she is completely heartbroken and Mac has no idea on how to properly comfort her except to just let her cry.
One Month Later....
In the wake of the fight against Lorenzo and The Darkness, the fallout takes a toll on everyone, but most of all, Lucky. After learning the truth about her father, Lucky went into a state of depression. When Mac and Mr. Lou went to go investigate and see if what Lorenzo said was true about Lucky's mother, which it unfortunately was. Any trace of who or what used to be Lucky's mother had disappeared.
That didn't help Lucky's state of mind because now she felt truly abandoned, however there was light at the end of the tunnel because Mac was going to keep his promise and protect Lucky.
So, in order to keep his promise to Lorenzo, Mac went to his parents and asked them to adopt Lucky and have her become a part of their family. Without hesitation, Mac's parents filed the paperwork and officially adopted Lucky into the family. No longer Lucille Garcia, she was now Lucille McCullen. Then Lucky became a completely different person, ready to seek answers about her former family and how she came into existence if Lorenzo was never truly her father.
As for Mac, he continued his relationship with Stephanie as they grew closer together, but he still wasn't ready to cross that line with her. After the fight, Stephanie saw how exhausted and battered Mac was, but she still supported him, affirming that she would stand by his side despite the risks. Their relationship deepened further, with Stephanie vowing to help Mac out on his quest to rid the world of The Order and The Darkness. This sparked something within Alpha's core, but he didn't think much of it at the time since he was resting.
Back at Mac's Apartment, the shenanigans between Mac and Danielle continued, although sometimes it did almost escalate into acts of the sexual variety. But, Mac knew when to not take it too far. Still, for Danielle, after the fight she became more concerned for Mac, warning him that he is now marked as an active threat to The Order and that he needed to remain on high alert. With Lorenzo temporarily out of the picture, the other three Horsemen or even their leader Kassandra could show up at any time.
As Mac stood on his balcony, Alpha shared a fragmented memory from his creator, The Alchemist, who Mac recently learned goes by Bartolo. Alpha suggested that Bartolo left more than just powers behind; there may be hidden knowledge or tools that could tip the balance in the coming war.
Alpha urged Mac to find these relics, hinting at a new journey that awaited the duo. Mac was still waiting for the day that Mr. Lou would honor his promise and tell him everything about who he is and how he was a founding member of The Order. But, Mac was afraid that if he learned the truth, then he would end up becoming a different person altogether. A person set out to get revenge rather than protecting those close to him or even the world.
As Mac and his friends continued to recover, Mac received an ominous message from a familiar shadowy figure in the same form that he's received those previous cryptic messages, "The true storm is yet to come." And with that, the initial conflict between Mac and The Order comes to an end, but it's far from over as Kassandra and the other Horsemen plan on how to avenge their comrade. Kassandra looks out into the vast, empty mountain range outside The Order's HQ, "Let the war commence!"24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPfOJZB90jm
To Be Continued in Volume 2!!!!
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