James talked to his sprites and asked, "Is this the best plan?" Anpu spoke first, "I believe this is the only plan." The crowd agreed before him. One of them said, "Killing is not the best solution, but in this case, it is the only solution." He saw a mid-20s 19th-century French man with a large hole through their head. James snapped at them, "There must be another way, another timeline!" An older, wealthy, white-dressed woman from the early 20th century said, "Saying sorry, son, but if you see any timeline, this is the only time." James glared at them dismissively. "Of course, you can't really help me," he said, and left the conversation.
The world changed as he looked back at the fire, then at the group of friends. They looked at him, confused. Jeff was about to speak before he got up from them. Jeff looked at Pia. "Is he going to be okay?" Pia, unsure, sighed, "Yeah, he just needed some time alone." Mason and Jeff looked at each other. Jeff was concerned.
Pia then spoke, "Let's talk about the plan." Mason agreed, Jeff thought about it before agreeing to, "I plan to move very quietly towards the palace. Avoiding the tower's light from breaching the stone wall, and making it to the main building. We kill any soldier or capture them and the staff. Till we find where the King is while he is sleeping. Mason makes his death weapons, killing him before he wakes up; he even knows he could do anything. Then we speak to Nolan on our escape, or find another way out of here after we fix it all, going back home." She said Jeff looked at her nervously, asking. "Do you think that plan would be that easy?" Pia looked at him, saying, "No, but I think that's the best I could think of at this very moment, unless you have a better plan?" Mason said, "It is a pretty good plan. We will think more about it tomorrow morning." Pia got up, saying, "I'm going to check on James." She walked away towards the distance, where she least saw him. She thought to herself, "Sister, I'm going to see you soon." Seeing a nearby lake, seeing her reflection, seeing that more than half of her hair was white, she pulled out a knife. Hearing a sound, pointing before saying, "James, is that you?" After no sound, she got closer, reading her knife, James popped out of the forest as she kicked him in the side. Saying, "I'm my apologies, James, are you good?" He said dryly, "Yeah, fine, why are you out here?" He got up and looked at her. "You know why I am out here?" James looked at her, "As I already said, I am fine." Pia rolled her eyes. "I know you are lying to me, Li. You know you could trust me." James looked away from her. "Now I know you are lying," Pia heart felt as if someone stabbed it, colder sighed. "I know we are not going to be with each other after this, yet we could still find another way to stay together." James snapped back, "That is not the problem, Pia!" She yelled back, "Then what is the problem, James!?" He cried out, "I can't help but kill someone again!" He covered his mouth, not trying to cry. Pia looked at him, "You know that was not your fault," he replied, looking at his ring running it. "Every time I look at this ring, I see him looking back at me. I remember their dead faces studying me, hunting me nonstop, and then-." He stopped saying anything else. Pia looked at him, hugging him, pushed herself away, feeling uncomfortable, "What else happened, James? What else are you not telling me?" He looked at Pia, hearing the last words, "Thank you for everything, James." He looked at her, "Not just a reminder of what they said to me." He brushed it off fast, "I'm sorry, what was your plan?" Pia looked at him, bringing his hand close to her, thinking to herself before telling him as planned.
Jeff got up, saying, "Goodnight, Mason," walking towards the tent before Mason said, "You going to sleep already?" Jeff smiled, "I'm tired from this day." Mason hugged him, saying, "You want me to get to bed with you. I mean not like that, I mean sharing the same tent area," Jeff Troyes to smile, "No, I am going to be fine by myself," moving away from the hug. "You should put out the fire so a forest fire will happen." Mason held his hand, saying, "Pia and James could put out the fire, so that meant it was just us two for a while. We can talk to you about anything you want." Jeff looked at him, thinking about the idea, starting to move closer, thinking to himself, "Do it right now. Kiss him. Do it! Do it! Do it!" Pushing those thoughts away. "Sorry, no Mason, but we could talk about this more in the morning." Moving away from him, Mason was dumbfounded, playing it off by saying, "Goodnight, my lover boy." Jeff turned his head, blushing in embarrassment, "Wh- why?" He stopped speaking and walked towards the tent. He unzipped it, went in, and fell asleep. "Hey kid, hey Jeffy, get up," he looked around, surrounded by light, then saw a small spruce wooden cabin with a new oak wooden fence and a lake with a dock around mountains. It was like a Bob Ross painting came to life.
Mason put out the fire before Death appeared in the gray smoke. He had a deep and hard laugh, "You need to flirt better and work on your flirting." Mason sighed, saying, "Why should I listen to you?" Death smirked, "Even Life agrees with me." Life then appeared; she smiled, walking towards Mason, "Do not listen to my husband." Mason hugged her as if she were his own mother. "Nice to see you again." Death moved behind him. Mason turned around, seeing his face once again. "I think you should confess." Mason's heavy soul sighed, replying, "I need to figure myself out first. Can you at least give me that, my dear friends?" Death looked at Life. She didn't say anything, but her eyes said more than enough. Death looked at him, "Okay, I throw the ball in your court just this once." Mason smiled, looking at the starry night and the large moon glowing above them. As James and Pia walked up to the camp, he waved back. Mason said, "Jeff went to bed already." Pia quickly replied, "Gezz, you worked him down fast." Both boys turned to her. She just looked at them, picking at the dirt underneath her fingernails. She replied, "What?"
Atlas' voice came back, "Sorry about that, kids, I want to talk to you about something important." Jeff annoyedly grunted, "It better be important." Atlas led him to the cabin. Jeff looked up, seeing a violet sky through a square window. Then, back at the cabin, opening the door as he sat by the fireplace. Seeing pictures of Atlas and other people he didn't recognize. Before Atlas spoke, his voice even, "There is no easy way to say this, I am dying, Jeffy." Jeff looked at them, stunned, "What!?" Atlas eyes filled with tears, but trying not to cry, "Ever since I fused with your body, I have been dying. I got less than a week at most." Jeff got up and walked to them. "Why didn't he tell me this sooner?!" Atlas looked away from him, afraid of looking his friend in the eyes. "I don't know how to tell you, Jeffy. I have been planning to tell you for months, but couldn't find the right words." Jeff stopped, he started to cry, "You will still die, and you have been my friend, you have been with me forever, you are my family." Jeff pushed, anger building in his mind, "I can't just let my family die because of me. I could try to fix this somehow." Atlas looked at him remorsefully, "I tried and looked at every path, but there was no other way." Atlas got up, their voice breaking, shaking, "I'm sorry, Jeff." Jeff was surprised about Atlas saying his name correctly for once, hugging them. Jeff asks, "Can you answer my questions just this one time?" Atlas nodded their head, breaking a smile from their puff face. Jeff asked, "Why did you pick me?" Atlas replied, "Because I saw a strong man who will grow up to be a better person than I was." Jeff asked another question, "How old are you?" Atlas replied, "13 billion years old." Continuing by reading Jeff's mind, answering the next question, "I did have a family, but their names and faces have been lost to me. I have no memory of them or what they were like." Jeff was uncertain what to say before asking, "How do you feel about dying?" Atlas didn't know how to respond that time, slowly saying, "I have somewhat come to terms with my death." They sat there as the ground began to shake. "Hey Jeffy, I always watched you grow up. It meant a lot to me, and say hey to your boyfriend. It sucks that I am going to miss my so- friend. I guess we have to wake up from a dream. I will be watching you." Jeff warmly smiled back, "I love you too, Atlas." He opened his eyes, looking around, seeing James and Pia with him, unzipping the tent, feeling the morning sun on his face, and re-zipping it. Then, seeing Mason starting a fire, he walked over to him. Mason smiled back, "Hey, you okay?" Jeff burst out in tears, "No, I am not." Mason ran, hugging him, "Okay am here." Jeff just bawled in tears uncontrollably as James and Pia saw them and ran over to him. Atlas heavily sighed, watching the scene unfold, saying to themself, "Forgive me, my friend, for what is about to happen to me."
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