"Life has no limitations, except the ones you make."
-Les Brown

---- Trigger Warning: Suicide----

As soon as Jerome saw the lake, he shifted back into his human form. He hesitated for a moment, standing by the edge of the makeshift dock, watching the fish in the water swim around. He stood there like he was having second thoughts.

His paws balled into fists as he gritted his teeth, battling with his thoughts. But as soon as he heard Mitch, he flinched and turned halfway seeing Mitch in the jungle edge about to make it to the lake clearing. Jerome looked back at the water and jumped in.

Mitch gasped when he saw Jerome jump in. "NO!" Mitch screamed before he jumped over a fallen tree and ran. He ignored Michael and Ant and just ran. He took off his quiver and jacket, throwing the items onto the shore as he ran. 'No way in hell am I letting this happen!' Mitch thought as he ran onto the makeshift dock. He took a deep breath before he jumped off the end of the dock and into the water. He took a moment to collect himself before he swam downwards when he spotted Jerome sinking down towards the bottom of the lake.

Michael and Ant stopped at the edge of the dock, waiting and watching. Ant cursed under his breath and looked around. His eyes widen when he thought was a log actually start moving in the water. "Oh god, alligators," Ant said alarming Michael.

"What?!" Michael exclaimed. Ant remembers the alligators in this lake, after all, this is the same lake that he had fished Max out of a few weeks ago. The captain nearly got bitten a few times and luckily all he got was a few scratches and no bites. But even those scratches he received hurt a lot because they were deep. One alligator is bad enough, but if there is more than one—which there likely is—then this is very bad. Ant looked in the water.

He then grew worried. "Has neither of them come up yet? They've been under for a while," he said. Michael shakes his head. Ant was almost tempted to dive in and get the two generals himself, but he saw no value in that plan. Sure, it would get them out faster, but with alligators in this lake, he would just be another prey for them. Ant bit his bottom lip and dropped Mitch's quiver, bow, and jacket onto the dock by his feet. He was about to take off his jacket so he can jump in when Mitch and Jerome surfaced. Mitch held Jerome, the hybrid unconscious.

Ant got closer to the edge. "General! There are alligators in the lake!" he shouted alarming Mitch. Though he wasn't that alarmed really since he's pretty sure he saw one already when he was getting Jerome. He swam quickly to the dock, Michael and Ant both grabbing Jerome and pulling the hybrid up and onto the dock.

"6 o'clock!" Michael shouted before Mitch felt something grab his ankle and pull him under. Michael gasped. "NO!"

"Stay with Jerome!" Ant shouted before he jumped into the water.

Michael went to Jerome, checking his pulse, and was relieved when he felt one. 'Oh thank notch,' he thought to himself. Though his mental celebration was cut short when Ant and Mitch surfaced.

"Squids!" Ant shouted alarming Michael. Michael helped Ant climb up as Mitch pulled himself up onto the dock, but felt something wrap around his ankle and pull on him making him grip onto the wooden planks. Mitch looked down and saw a tentacle wrapped around his right leg. Mitch gritted his teeth and reached out, yanking his quiver near him before grabbing an arrow and pulling it out. He stabbed the arrowhead into the tentacle, hearing it squeal in response before letting go of him. Mitch let go of the arrow and climbed up onto the dock. Mitch tied his jacket's sleeves around his waist before tossing the quiver strap over his shoulder and grabbing his bow. He drew an arrow, letting it go and piercing a squid, making them go flying back into the water.

"We need to get out of here! Now!" Mitch shouted.

"My portaling device is fired!" Ant said as he slashed at a squid, killing it.

"And mine was destroyed ages ago!" Mitch said.

"I have one!" Michael shouted before pulling it out of his pocket and pressing buttons as Mitch and Ant kept the squids at bay.

"Anytime now!" Mitch said kicking a squid off the dock before shooting it with an arrow, killing it. Michael pressed a button, a portal opening up underneath him and Jerome making the two fall through it and hit the floor of the portaling room in Ian's HQ. Ant jumped through the portal, Mitch soon following.

Mitch looked at Michael and Ant. "Get Jerome to the infirmary, now! Michael close the portal," Mitch said. Mitch walked a few steps but turned around when he had noticed the recruits' sudden changed expression. Squids had managed to slip through the portal before Michael closed it, landing a few feet away from them.

Mitch was quick to shoot two of them, killing them instantly before they attacked. Some of them instantly took the opportunity to launch themselves at Jerome, who is still unconscious. Ant drew his sword, moving in between Jerome and a squid, slashing his sword towards them, cutting the squid in half. Once Ant killed the attacker, the remaining stood still, Mitch armed with an arrow pointed towards the remaining three.

Ant grinned a bit. "Yeah, killing Lieutenant General Aceti ain't gonna be that easy, you pests," he snapped. They heard the squids talking, but in a language they couldn't understand.

Mitch lowered his bow, letting the arrow stay notched on the string before looking at the other recruits who had their swords drawn, ready to fight on Mitch's order. "Take Jerome to the infirmary, now. I want Dr. Alister to give him a full workup," Mitch ordered. The archer looked at Michael. "I want you to tell Alister what happened, what Jerome did," he said. Michael nods before two recruits and Michael helped take Jerome out of the room and towards the infirmary.

Mitch looked at the squids. "You are outnumbered and surrounded, I suggest surrendering while I still feel granting you mercy right now," Mitch spoke. The squids spoke to each other more, seeming to be debating the topic before one of them launch themselves at Mitch, who quickly drew his bowstring back and letting the arrow notched on it fly and pierced into the attacker, killing them instantly. Mitch chuckled softly, cracking a small smile. "Valiant effort, but you are highly underestimating my skills as an archer," Mitch said before stepping towards the two remaining squids, who stepped back with fear written across their faces. Mitch smirked. "I suggest you two revert back to your human forms--"

"How did you--"

"I saw you shapeshift into squids when I was pulled into the lake. Also...normal squids can't speak, only squid hybrids can," Mitch said. To everyone's shock, everyone but Ant and Mitch, the two squids changed, shifting into that of normal humans with blue patches on their skin and piercing blue eyes. They wore squid army attire, swords strapped to their sides, and baring leather armor.

"My, my...we did underestimate you, Lieutenant General Hughes. You aren't what the files say you are--"

"And what's that?" Mitch asked curiously.

"Arrogant, obsessive, unintelligent...doesn't know how to be a leader. Better with a bow than a sword, though your archery skills are quite lacking compared to Larissa Crane," they said. Mitch's expression dropped for a moment. 'Larissa...' Mitch thought. Mitch gritted his teeth together. 'She must have escaped from the dungeons when the Sky Army fell,' Mitch thought.

Of all the archers that Mitch has encountered in the past, he will admit that he was able to beat Larissa out of pure luck. Mitch may have more experience in archery than Larissa does, but she is one of the toughest opponents Mitch faced. She was almost successful in killing the archer multiple times. Mitch won their battle only because of his close combat skills, without them, Mitch was sure she would have killed him.

"That's ridiculous!" a recruit shouted before the other recruits nodded, agreeing with that notion. Mitch gritted his teeth, his eyes looking to the floor as the recruits defended his reputation as the best archer in Allaron. Ant's eyes looked at Mitch, seeing his mind was elsewhere, knowing Larissa is a sore subject when it comes to Mitch. 

Mitch looked at the squid hybrids before he looked at Ant as he put the arrow notched on his bowstring back in his quiver. "Kill them," he said before walking out and hearing the attack and deaths of the two squid hybrids.

Mitch's hands balled into fists for a moment before relaxing. 'If Larissa is working for the Squid King, why hasn't she made an appearance, unless she already has and no one thought it would have been wise to let me know,' Mitch thought before he went to the infirmary. He ignored the nurses who tried to make him sit down so they could give him a checkup, walking right past them. He knows he looks like he is injured but he isn't, if anything, he is freezing after diving into a cold lake.

"Lieutenant General--"

Mitch groaned irritated, looking at the nurses. "I'm fine! I'm not injured or sick! Just pissed off!" Mitch snapped before he turned away. He went to Jerome's curtained off bed, going in and seeing Dr. Alister talking to Ian.

Jason looked over at Mitch. "You look terrible--"

"Larissa Crane," Mitch said making everyone go silent. Mitch scoffed and shook his head. "You knew she was still alive--"

Ian moved in front of Jason. "Now wait a second, Mitch. I kept her survival from you because of what happened last time you two fought--"

"What's that supposed to mean?" the archer snapped.

Jason moved out from behind Ian, going towards Mitch, knowing perfectly well what Ian was talking about. "Larissa got in your head, Mitch. She messed with your head in a way that honestly scared us. She's a master manipulator, Mitch, she screwed up a lot of people before coming after us. Adam banned all of us but him and Seto from going anywhere near her when she was locked up in the dungeons. Adam gave permission to the guards on duty to do whatever was necessary to keep you away from her since he didn't trust you to not take his orders of stay away seriously. Doesn't that tell you something?" Jason asked him.

Mitch stared at Jason, stepping towards him. "Yeah, it tells me that you all don't trust me," he said. 

Jason rolled his eyes. "Wow, get over yourself, Mitch. You weren't exactly a joy to be around when she was active back in the day. You refused to let us help you and that was almost the death of you. And you should be grateful that even after all you did, Adam still allowed you to stay in the Sky Army--"

Mitch nods a bit. "Okay, I'll admit that those weren't my best moments. You make a valid point. But I'm not a child, I had a right to know that she had escaped and joined the Squid King," Mitch said. Ian smiled a bit as Mitch heard Quentin chuckle.

Jason crossed his arms. "Unfortunately it isn't up to me to make the final decision about whether or not you are allowed near Larissa anymore, that was taken out of my hands an hour ago," Jason said making Mitch smile.

"So Ty took it?" he asked.

Jason nods. "Yes, I'm no longer the commander. Ty is now while I'm his second in command and Ian is third in command until we can get Seto back that is," he said as his lips curled into a small smirk.

"Good, that's how it should be with Adam gone," Mitch said. Mitch sighed and looked at Alister. "How is Jerome?"

Alister looked at Mitch. "Well, he should be fine with some rest. Overall, he's in a good health physically. But from what Michael told me, his mental health is a different story," he said.

The archer nods, agreeing with the doctor. "Yeah, I know. Don't worry, he and I are going to have a stern talk after he wakes up," he said.

Alister looks at the archer and points at him briefly. "After you get treated for hypothermia," he said.

Mitch's eyes harden a bit as he looked at Alister. "I don't need treatment, it is like I told the nurses, I'm fine. I'm just irritated that no one told me about Larissa Crane being back," Mitch said.

Alister stepped towards the archer as he shook his head. "Yeah, well, can you at least go change out of those wet clothes before you actually do get hypothermia?" he asked. As much as Mitch wouldn't admit it, he was freezing cold and shivering from the wet clothes that cling to him.

Mitch sighed and nodded, giving in. "I can do that, just tell Ant to do that too since he jumped in the water after me after I was pulled under by the squids," he said shocking them all.

Jason's eyes soften a bit. "Wait, there was an attack?" he asked.

Mitch nods. "Yes, after I was pulled into the water, I saw them in the water. Squid Hybrids, I don't know how many of them were hybrids, but they have gotten significantly smarter because of the hybrids. When Michael and Ant pulled Jerome up onto the dock, I was pulled under. Ant jumped in after me while Michael protected Jerome. I'll tell you more after Jerome wakes up...I want to figure out why he doesn't want to help us so badly. Oh and this discussion about Larissa isn't over," Mitch said before he left to go change out of his cold wet clothes for dry ones.

Michael looked at Jason. "Is letting General Hughes talk to--"

Ian looked at Michael before he spoke, "Jerome won't talk to the rest of us, Michael. Jerome will only tell Mitch the truth. They're best friends...if anyone could get the truth out of Jerome, it's Mitch."