Despite volcanic rock forming the island, it was almost as cold as Snowchester. From the front of the group, Vermillion placed his hand out in front of him, almost expecting snow to fall into his palm from the abyssal sky above him. Only the wind whips around his fingers, inviting him to use it. Vermillion lets his hand drop. The wind doesn't slow down around him, though. It continues to blow, swirling around him and the others traveling alongside him. He closes his fist with a determined resolve flooding through his system.

The ground beneath his feet begins to slant downward, but other parts of the ground continue to be level. The decline brings him and the others into a ravine-like structure until they walk underneath the shadow of a cave roof. They continue to descend, and the roof lowers down to be parallel with the ground. The wind whistles around them, but it comes from within the depths of the cavern. The cold, too, seems to be coming from whatever is at the end of their journey. Vermillion shivers, pulling his hood back over his head to protect him from the chill.

"Get ready, pussies. We're almost there," Vermillion whispers as soon as he sees a dark purple light starting to wash across the black stone walls. He hunches his body forward as he presses up against the left wall. He places his gloved hand against the sharp rocks. The room he steps into is a huge cavern. It is formed from stone walls that are far too smooth to be natural. Something, like a powerful energy beam, blasted across them to carve out a room spacious enough to hold a supernatural creature.

The supernatural creature in question was lying dormant at the center of the room. The hot pink and silver gyroscope forming the creature's heart pulsated from within an illusory form. The creature's main body seemed to take inspiration from dragons and spiders, weaving together void-like darkness and purple light to create an appearance meant to inspire terror and awe. The most interesting part was the aura of purple fire that burned around the main body at all times. It was the one thing the Ender Heart could never mask: it's intense hatred. The Ender Heart seemed to be in a state of rest or deep relaxation, and Vermillion found himself grinning. The group had caught the Ender Heart at the perfect moment. It was distracted, most of its mental capacity was split between the other members of the council.

Everything else was against their favor. With the cavern, Crowfather didn't have much room for flight. If the Ender Heart's attention wasn't divided, Siren's power wouldn't have done a single thing against him. While Blade had a lot of fighting prowess, his ability to manipulate blood wasn't fit for an opponent that couldn't bleed. Alone, Vermillion would have been stuck playing a dodging game without getting any offensive moves in. It was only if they could work together that they stood any chance against the monster.

Vermillion tilted his head to look at the people behind him. Siren and Blade were admiring the Ender Heart, but Crowfather was looking right back into Vermillion's eyes. The vigilante wondered if his father figure was thinking the same thing he was: could they work together? It had been such a long time since they had, and it's been even longer since they've seen eye-to-eye. Vermillion knew that a lot of undiscussed emotions remained in their relationships. They might love him, but Vermillion knows they don't trust him- not fully, anyway. Vermillion doesn't blame them. He wouldn't trust himself if he was in their shoes.

Crowfather smiles at Vermillion with a nod. Vermillion's throat seizes up. They weren't thinking the same thing at all. Vermillion doesn't know what Crowfather was thinking, but that simple reassurance is enough to convince him that even if his family can't trust him, he will always trust them. They won't let him die, not when they've spent so long trying to keep him alive. They won't abandon him, not when they've spent so long trying to bring him back to them. No matter how the night ends, his family has got his back. Vermillion wonders belatedly as tears surface in his eyes if he's reading way too much into a simple gesture. He decides that is a question for another time as he pulls out his daggers, turning back to the cavern.

"Ready?" He whispers to them. Blade and Siren turn to him. They share a look between each other before their eyes settle on Vermillion. He swallows back most of the emotions circulating through his body. "Siren, dull his mind as much as you can. Blade, Crowfather, you two deal with the main body. I'll fight off the Arch Visages he'll summon."

"When did you start taking orders from the gremlin?" Siren complained with a good-natured smile, raising his hand to ruffle Vermillion's hair. The vigilante pushes him away, threatening his wrist with the dagger. As Vermillion fixes his hood, he hears Blade call out, "Cringe."

"Shut up, you assholes! Ugh, go die in a hole, bitch," Vermillion flips them both off as he races past them into the cavern. Without even looking behind him, he knows that his family is chasing after him. No- they're running with him. For once in his life, Vermillion isn't running away from them. He refuses to think that way.

He doesn't stop running until he's nearly at the Ender Heart's head. He takes a deep breath before whistling a breathy tune. It echoes a lot louder than it should have, and this prompts the Ender Heart to open on lazy eye. The creature stares intently at Vermillion, something akin to a smirk rising across its too-wide mouth. A purple light coming from the creature's mouth shines down on Vermillion like a spotlight. "Greetings, Theseus. It seems you have finally seen fit to give me a visit. I have been waiting for you. It is not often that I wish to kill someone, but I shall make an exception for you. Do not worry, however, for I shall be merciful. There is no reason I should prolong what you desire, no matter how much your rebellious spirit peeves me."

"Sorry, bitch, I'm not dying tonight, and I'm definitely not dying by your fucking hand. You don't even get the massive fucking honor of fighting me. You see, I have something that you will never, ever have," Vermillion told the creature with narrowed eyes. The Ender Heart shifted its massive head in a way meant to resemble a curious tilt. Vermillion despised the way the Ender Heart tried to act human. It was all an act to lull people into a sense of security. Vermillion wouldn't be easily fooled. "I have people who care about me, including Siren, Blade, and Crowfather."

Vermillion used the wind to propel him backwards. He landed several feet away from where he originally was. Siren immediately took his place. Like the pure waters of an oasis, Siren's words began to call out to the monster in front of him. Every syllable poured out like audible magic, manually twisting every gear in the creature's head like a clockmaker working on his craft. "Why fight us at all? You have spent so much time here, quietly passive. Why should you be active now? Why not rest for a while? Believe me when I say that it is much more comfortable to relax. Truly, there is no reason to resist. We do not mean to kill you, and we will only pay back every blow dealt to us. If you do nothing, we do nothing. If you hurt one of us, we will hurt you. It is quite a simple exchange. All you have to do is lie back down."

Despite Siren's power working on nearly every other human or hybrid, the Ender Heart's mind was not of this reality. His words could pacify parts of the Ender Heart, but he could not fully control the monster. The Ender Heart's body lowered down slightly to the ground, something swimming in the depths of his glowing eyes. He was being lulled into some state of pacifism by Siren's words. It didn't last.

After a moment, however, his mouth snapped wide open. A beam of energy built up between the gaping jaws, showing that the monster didn't have any teeth. As the energy began to leak out like radioactive sludge, Vermillion realized that something like the Ender Heart didn't need teeth. Whatever he ate- if he even needed to- would be incinerated the moment it went past his lips. Vermillion grabbed onto Siren's jacket collar to drag him back, hoping that his brother wouldn't get incinerated by that power.

His fears were unfounded as Crowfather launched in front of him and Siren. Crowfather's wings snapped around in front of him, protecting his body. The energy slammed against the crystalline structure, immediately dispersing into geometric shapes all around them. When the energy beam stopped, Crowfather's wings snapped back behind him like obsidian blades. His hands were closed into fists as he stared down the Ender Heart. The creature seemed rather unimpressed with Crowfather, but the hero was doing an excellent job at keeping the Ender Heart's attention on him.

Blade jumped down from the ceiling with his battle axe made from his own blood in his hands. The coagulated blood slammed right into the Ender Heart's back. Blade kicked his feet down, pressing them into the Ender Heart's scale-like structure. Blade dragged the battle axe down with him, creating a huge rift in the creature's illusion. It appeared like a crack in glass, not a wound that would typically be caused by the Blade's weapons. Blade placed his hand against the wound as he stopped. He was hanging off the creature's back with his hands around the axe still lodged in the creature's body.

"How dare you?" The Ender Heart demanded as it turned its head unnaturally to face Blade. The fiery aura around it sharpened until hundreds of spheres began to rain down on the battleground. Vermillion wrapped his body around Siren's body, using the wind to deflect most of the spheres. Crowfather weaved around them in the air, shooting towards the Ender Heart to protect his son. Blade flipped around his axe in order to spin in constant circles, like a professional gymnast. He was always a few seconds away from being blown to shreds by the spheres launching towards him, but he wasn't acting like someone who feared for his life.

"You normally talk so much. What fucking happened?" Vermillion said to his brother when the orbs stopped shooting towards them. He twisted off of Siren's body with his daggers shooting out to pass right through the closest Arch Visages. They were creatures about the size of preteens made from the same black void and purple light as their creator. They didn't have the same range of power as their creator, but they were a problem because of the way they could fade into the ground and multiply at an unnatural rate. If Vermillion let them fester, they would surely become a hindrance to them all later on. He just had to trust that his family could deal with the main body of the Ender Heart.

"I told you this would happen. I didn't lie to you. Now, you have to believe what I'm going to say next: we're going to defeat you if you continue to fight us. If you choose to give up, this can be resolved peacefully. Don't you want that? That wound must hurt a lot," Siren continued talking, momentarily choosing to ignore Vermillion's comment. He shivered, pulling his jacket closer around his chest as he felt a strong wind start to blow throughout the cavern. His head was coaxed to the side by the wind, and he saw something he never realized he dearly missed. Vermillion was jumping between the Arch Visages like a pinball. The wind was a solid force around him, lifting him off the ground as if he were actually flying. His daggers flashed around him, reflecting the purple light as they flashed around fatally. Siren smiled slightly at the sight of his brother, fighting at his side once more.

Crowfather flew as high into the air as he could go. Once his fingers could touch the roof, he angled downward at a near horizontal anger. His wings closed around him to cover his body. He shot to the ground like a speeding bullet. His wings cut right into the Ender Heart's body. As soon as they gained some purchase in the scalene skin, Crowfather made his wings expand. They tore right through the scales, chipping them off with the precision of a knife through butter. Crowfather twisted his body once the wound was created. He slammed both of his heels into it with as much force as he could make. His wings continued flapping to give him some extra purchase.

Before the Ender Heart could deal with that inconvenient pain, it felt someone climbing across his back. Its dignity flared in his mind. Its arm-like limbs snapped backwards, twisting in a way that a human or even its Ender brethren wouldn't be able to do. Its claws searched around its back for the gnat trying to climb it. It narrowly missed him as Blade raised his battle axe high above his head. The blood reformed into a claymore as Blade slammed the sharp edge into the creature's head.

The Ender Heart's entire body shuddered with aggravation and pain. Blade was thrown off immediately. He launched right into the air. Instead of panicking, he twisted his body so that his feet were flying ahead of him. The blood reformed into a longbow in his hands, an arrow appearing as Blade pulled back the bowstring. He let the arrow fly as his feet hit the cavern wall. Blade pushed off the cavern wall by straightening his legs. He launched toward the Ender Heart, his longbow reforming into a fishing pole. Blade casted the line. The hook swung around the arrow harmlessly embedded in the creature's side. Blade twisted his body, swinging around the Ender Heart's neck with the fishing pole in hand. The reel wrapped around the neck, and Blade landed right beside his arrow. He placed both feet on the Ender Heart's neck as he began pulling with his enhanced strength. The fishing pole disappeared, and a garrote was left in Blade's hands.

Unamused by the pain, the Ender Heart used its massive limbs to start climbing the walls. As it hung upside down on the roof, Blade found himself dangling from his garrote. He tried to maintain his grip, but his hands eventually slipped. He starts freefalling towards the ground. Crowfather grabs Blade's forearm. They begin flying around the room together, slowly getting closer to the ground as Crowfather dodges the Ender Heart's energy beams. Blade forms a longsword made from blood. He gives it to his father, and he lets go of Crowfather's hand. Blade rolls when he hits the ground, immediately looking up to see Crowfather launching himself at the Ender Heart.

"Do you see how pointless this all is now? Give up. You want to give up, don't you?" Siren yells to the creature, his voice carrying in the cavern. The Ender Heart's movements get slower as the words register in its mind.

Blade takes a steadying breath as he feels the blood loss starting to mess with his hand. Usually, he uses his opponent's blood- not his own. Blade opens his eyes to see Vermillion's blood on the ground. He calls it to him, and he forms it into a bow. He pulls the bowstring back to make an arrow appear. He starts shooting up at the Ender Heart. With his enhanced strength, the arrow flies straight into the Ender Heart's body. Blade continues shooting, changing his aim as he looks for a weakness.

Vermillion punches through another Arch Visage before it can charge up its attack. He rocks on his feet, looking around for another opponent. For the moment, all the shadowy creatures have disappeared. Vermillion scopes out the battlefield. Siren is still yelling, Blade is on the ground using blood to shoot arrows, and Crowfather is using a blood sword to strike at the creature's body. Vermillion assesses the Ender Heart's body. At the moment, nothing can be done. He needs Crowfather to make a very precise cut. He doesn't know what it is, but he'll know it when he sees it.

Vermillion hears a gurgle behind him. He flips out of the way as a pillar of fire launches into the air where he once stood. Vermillion swings his legs around, knocking them into the Arch Visage's lower body. The creature dissipates into shadows, but Vermillion already knows to jump out of the way. Arch Visages always appear in pairs, and if he can't see one of them, it is probably hiding behind the other. Accurately enough, an Arch Visage is standing there, ready to launch flames at him. Vermillion sends the wind to push back the flames, dispersing them around the Arch Visage. Vermillion follows up the wind with a punch right between the Arch Visage's glowing eyes.

Vermillion turns back to his family. He finally sees the cut he's looking for. Vermillion races towards his family, using the wind to make him faster. As he passes Siren, he grabs the hero's hand. Siren looks at him with wide, expecting eyes, and Vermillion issues his order. "On my command, order Crowfather to fall back."

Vermillion doesn't wait to answer questions as he continues to the Blade. He notices that the Blade has lowered his longbow with no arrow inside it as he stares up at Crowfather and Ender Heart. As he's running, Vermillion bites his hand between his thumb and index finger. The taste of iron fills his mouth, and he digs his teeth in harder to draw out more blood. When he's at Blade, he offers his hand to the hero. Blade looks like he's going to lecture Vermillion when the vigilante realigns Blade's shot. Blade quickly pulls the blood from Vermillion's wound to create an arrow. Vermillion stares up at the Ender Heart. He focuses his attention, keeping everything focused at this moment- this second- every individual particle in the wind. They can't mess up... he can't mess up.

"Now!" Vermillion calls to his brothers. Blade releases the arrow at the same time Siren yells out, "Crowfather, move!" The eldest hero flings himself back as far as his wings will take him with a confused expression on his face. Vermillion summons the wind to help carry the arrow to its predestined destination, increasing the arrow's speed and power. Finally, the arrow shoots right through a wound that Crowfather created. It slices through some skin, but it mainly strikes home in the gyroscope crystal that forms the Ender Heart's power source.

Vermillion reaches his hand out for Siren, and he feels the hero's fingers wrap around his palm. Blade grabs Vermillion's shoulders to drag him back, and Vermillion makes sure that Siren is with them. Once they are against the back wall, Blade wraps his arms around both of them, protecting them from the Ender Heart crashing into the ground with enough force to shake the very earth. Cracks form all over the ground and the walls, allowing rocks to plummet to the ground like the guillotine striking its victim. Vermillion folds both of his hands around Siren's hand, holding it right against his chest. He burrows his face into Blade's chest. He can only hope that Crowfather is okay.

The world stops shaking, but Blade doesn't let go until his mind is satisfied. He slowly removes his arms, looking at both of them with wide eyes. He examines them for wounds, and when he doesn't see anything noticeable, he looks towards the sky. Dust swarms the entire cavern, but they can see it parting for a pair of crystalline wings. Crowfather lands on the ground right beside them. Without any warning, he wraps his arms around them. He holds them close, another family group hug. Vermillion breaths out quietly, resisting the urge to cry.

"How the fuck are we alive?" Siren whispered with a brief laughter at the edges of his words. Crowfather sighs, and Blade says nothing. Vermillion pulls back a little to look at them. Siren stares back at him for a moment before his attention goes to the Ender Heart. "Is that thing alive?"

"I don't know," Vermillion mutters. The Ender Heart is an unknown entity to him. While he knows some basic personality, he doesn't know how to kill a creature from the End nor anything this powerful.

Siren stands up on shaky legs. He starts walking towards it, and Vermillion is quick to follow. Blade rests on his haunches, looking over Crowfather. The two of them are covered in shallow wounds. Vermillion has a few wounds himself, but he can worry about those when they're far away from the Ender Heart and his poisonously cold cavern.

"How do we put this thing into custody?" Siren asks himself. Vermillion shrugs his shoulders. He doesn't think they have power suppressors big enough for this creature. Even if they did, would it work on the Ender Heart? Did his powers come from the same place as everyone else's? Vermillion wasn't sure, and he hated not knowing something so viciously important.

As Vermillion was thinking, Siren got close to the creature. He was looking at the dragon-like snout. Siren didn't even notice the way the creature's eyes opened just a little, the purple light softly glittering beneath the black eyelids. The Ender Heart began to tilt its mouth open, little by little, the sparkling energy forming into a small beam. Vermillion noticed, though. He did not notice because he was paying attention. The light didn't catch his attention, nor did the lilting sound strumming in the air. The reason Vermillion's attention snapped to the Ender Heart is because his powers rose to the surface as his life was put in danger. Vermillion's eyes widened as he took all the information in. His powers, the Ender Heart, Siren-

And that's where his mind remained stationed. Siren was far too close to the Ender Heart. He was going to die. It wouldn't matter where Vermillion pushed him. It wouldn't matter how much wind he summoned to protect them. Siren was going to perish right here, right now, and Vermillion couldn't do anything about it on his own. He was powerless in this situation. Except... he wasn't powerless.

"Siren!" Vermillion finds himself yelling as he uses one arm to grab Siren's collar, pulling the man behind him. His other hand touches the Ender Heart's snout. His powers rush out of him like water pushing past a broken dam. Green cracks appear on Vermillion's skin, thick enough that it looks more like his skin is green with pale skin patches. The green cracks cackle like lightning as they flood away from him into the black scales of the Ender Heart. The cracks increase in size and light intensity as they spread all throughout the creature's body. Vermillion closes his eyes as the power begins to consume his mind along with the Ender Heart's body.

Finally, the pain and light becomes so unbearable that something explodes. Siren and Vermillion are flung away; Vermillion much further back. Vermillion rolls across the ground as his arm burns with residual marks from something like fire. The Ender Heart howls like a wounded animal, and the green cracks begin to seep into its purple eyes. Soon, the purple and green mix together to form a nasty gray. The Ender Heart shivers. It's dead, it has to be, and yet... it continues to move. It doesn't react, not even when Blade bashes its head in with a bludgeoning weapon. It only reacts when Crowfather races to Vermillion and Siren. The Ender Heart- if that is what it is- falls unconscious at the same moment Vermillion does.