July 3rd

0852 EST

Bristol didn't know where she was. Everywhere she looked, she saw shadows and darkness. Moving made her disoriented, like she was moving through the water at the bottom of the ocean. She could hear footsteps, and spooky noises, but besides from that, she had no recollection of where she was.

"Let me go!" Bristol yelled. Her voice sounded distant, like she was yelling underwater.

Footsteps echoed throughout the dark room, and while Bristol couldn't see what was approaching, she sure could feel it. Their movement sent shock waves through the hazy air, and for a moment, she thought that it was Avi. The resonation she felt reminded her of the other girl's abilities, but these shock waves...they sent shivers up her spine. It was like each movement was triggering a tidal wave of fear.

Then it hit her.

"Phobos!" She shouted. "Let me go!"

"And why, my dear Elemental Empress, would I do that?" A deep voice replied.

Bristol grit her teeth. "What do you want?"

"I want you to choose." Phobos said tiredly.

"Choose what?"

Suddenly, a few feet away--well, she thought it was a few feet--the floor opened up. Two crystalline pillars rose out of the ground. Once they stabilized, Bristol felt the restrains on her fall away. Carefully, she stepped towards the pillars.

Atop both pillars were misty orbs. Flashes of light shimmered from both, but they both contained drastically different contents. The first orb contained images of her worst fear; her friends lying dead because of her secrets. The more she gazed into it, the more she felt it was actually happening.

Bristol tore her gaze away, half-expecting to find her friends lying in pools of their own blood at her feet. "Why are you showing me this?!" She roared.

"Look into the other orb," Phobos responded. "That possibility might be of more interest to you."

Skeptically, Bristol turned back to the second pillar. This orb seemed brighter. She saw her friends rejoicing, she saw herself with CJ only for a split second. The image changed to her with Tristan, before an even more surprising visual appeared.

It was herself, standing triumphantly in her super suit. She seemed stronger, happier, and Bristol saw herself wielding all for elements with ease. Her deepest secret seemed to be nonexistent in this orb, and Bristol was tempted to see it come to life.

"Have you decided?" Phobos asked lazily. His voice seemed closer, but Bristol couldn't feel his intimidating presence anymore.

"Why do I need to choose?" Bristol mumbled. Her gaze was locked on the second orb, and she saw herself locking hands with someone happily...but she couldn't make out who.

There was silence for a moment. Finally, Phobos took a breath. "You can either continue down this road you have set up for yourself, and see death and destruction."

Bristol flinched as the contents of the first orb became brighter. "What happens if I choose the second orb?"

That question seemed to please Phobos. As he spoke, his voice was laced with a sort of pride or happiness. "Everything you have ever desired will come to pass, my dear."

Bristol bit her lip. Something seemed off. This didn't feel like a dream or nightmare anymore, it felt all too real. There was something Phobos wasn't telling her.

"There's a catch, isn't there?" She asked.

"None," Phobos said. "You will be stronger, happier. No price to pay."

Bristol took a deep breath. "Why me? Why do I have to choose?"

She couldn't see, but Phobos must have grown a sinister smile. "You're powerful, it's as simple as that. You could be of great use."

Bristol turned back to the pillars. Slowly, she outstretched a hand to the second orb, her fingers barely grazing its misty surface...

Bristol shot awake, breathing heavily. She looked around quickly, confirming that she was safe in her bedroom at headquarters. It had been a dream, a bad dream. Nothing more.

She groaned to herself as she stood. Phobos's words struck a chord with her, but she didn't like focusing on them. It was just a dream, there was no importance of what he had said. His powers were fear-based and he was simply extorting her fears. Yeah. That was it.

A while later, Bristol was prepared for training. She jogged out of her room and down the corridors, until she approached the control room. Sheepishly, she entered.

"Bristol," Priscilla said sharply. "Glad you could join us."

Red-faced, Bristol mumbled a grudging apology to their caretaker before pacing over to the wall. She leant against it, folding her arms over her chest.

"What'd I miss?" She asked.

"Priscilla was just about to give us some...important news." Tristan answered. From across the room, Bristol could see that his blue eyes were icy, as if he knew what the news was going to be and he didn't like it.

Tristan's look and her dream from last night didn't give her much hope that things in the Union's life was going to get any easier. She took a deep breath, anticipating what was to come.

"Liv will be joining the Union as a temporary member. She has recovered from her amnesia, and she possesses a great control over fire. Once we defeat Rune, she will no longer be a part of the Union." Priscilla announced.

Bristol looked over at CJ, who she could tell didn't like this idea just as much as her. She gave him a glance and he seemed to understand. As he drifted towards the corner of the training area, so did Bristol.

"I will hear no complaints or rebuttals about this decision. That is all. Now get to training." Priscilla ordered, standing up and walking out.

Bristol shot CJ a sympathetic look, nodding her head to beckon him over to her. She glanced at Tristan and Avi, who appeared to be huddled together as they left the room.

"This is gonna take some getting used to, huh?" CJ suddenly said from beside her.

Bristol jumped. "Don't do that!" She laughed, whacking his arm.

"Sorry, sorry," CJ laughed. "Force of habit."

Bristol rolled her eyes, but together, she and CJ headed for the door. "I wonder how she got over her amnesia so quickly," she mused.

Beside her, CJ shrugged. "Maybe it was her old friend Psyche taking pity on her."

Bristol gave him a look, but she couldn't help but think the same thing. She couldn't shake the suspicion that Liv was a proxy of Rune's, and she wasn't sure she wanted to believe it. Bristol turned her attention back to Tristan and Avi, wondering what the two were discussing.

When she looked back at CJ there was a strange look on his face.

"What is it?" Bristol spoke out.

"Tristan knows something..."

Before Bristol could respond the speedster became a blur. The odd thing was, CJ wasn't in the training area anymore, and she couldn't help but feel a little sad that he wasn't around her anymore.

Bristol just shook it off and walked toward the others.

"So," Bristol clapped her hands as they arrived in the cortex. "Liv's joining us."

Tristan looked over his shoulder and smirked a bit. His eyes had lost the icy luster, but Bristol could still tell that something was off. "Indeed she is," he said.

"I personally do not believe it is wise to recruit a new member at such crucial times as these. There are multiple red flags regarding Liv, and I believe that there may be more to her than we are realizing." Avi reported. Her face was set in a scowl, as if she had witnessed firsthand something suspicious related to Liv.

Bristol opened her mouth to speak, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw a figure. She turned around and spotted the very girl of their conversations.

"Speak of the devil," Bristol mumbled.

Liv stood atop the training platform, hands outstretched as she executed specific training movements. She looked over her shoulder and spotted the official members of the Union. With a mischievous smile, she straightened up.

"Glad you could make it," she said brightly. Her words were amiable, but her tone was condescending.

Bristol decided she didn't like this whole situation one bit. This was their home turf, and as far as she was aware of, Liv was an enemy.

"Come on Elemental Empress!" Liv said in a sarcastic tone. "Let's see whose fire is stronger."

Bristol felt her face warm up immediately, she definitely didn't like this situation. A flicker of flame began to dance around her finger tips, but before she could react to the challenge she felt an icy cold grip around her hand.

"Don't do anything stupid, Bristol." Tristan exclaimed.

Bristol clenched her jaw. "I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself," she squeaked. She took a deep breath; naturally, her fear poked through her facade of aggression.

When she looked back up, she saw Tristan smiling down at her in amusement.

"What?" Bristol huffed.

Tristan grinned. "Nothing, you're just cute sometimes. Like when you try to be all tough but then you blush or stutter or squeak."

Bristol couldn't fight the blush. "I'm cute all the time, what're you talking about?" She mumbled.

"Are you done flirting with my brother, Bristol, or should I find you both a room?" Liv called from the platform.

Bristol's glare turned as icy as Tristan's hand that was still clenched with her own. Quickly turning to face Liv, she extricated her grip from Tristan's and marched onto the platform.

As she marched, she saw CJ in the corner of the room again, and judging by the look on his face where he went and what he found out, it wasn't good. She couldn't exactly stop and walk over to him, but she shot him a reassuring look.

"Now, how do you want to play this?" Liv asked once Bristol stepped onto the platform.

"Fire versus water," Bristol said almost instantly.

"Fine by me." Another conniving smirk.

Bristol suppressed a roll of her eyes. The nice part of her was saying to be nice and give her a chance, but the suspicious part of her was telling her to run and never look back. Despite it all, she listened to the nice part.

The walls of the platform lowered, and Bristol padded to the opposite side as Liv did the same. They took their stances and attacked.

Liv pushed her hands outward, and instantly, a surge of scarlet flame rushed towards Bristol. The heat was somewhat unbearable, but nothing Bristol couldn't tolerate.

The brunette girl dove, rolling on the ground and coming back up with a whip of water. She maneuvered it at Liv, who retaliated with her own flare of fire.

"Not bad," Liv managed, dodging another one of Bristol's attacks. "But not good enough."

Liv launched a volley of flames in all directions. Bristol couldn't believe the control Liv had over her power. It would have been unbelievable if Bristol wasn't witnessing it herself. From what she knew, Liv had no training throughout her life. So why were her powers so strong?

Bristol forced her suspicions away as a ring of fire flared outwards towards her. She leapt backwards, summoning a monstrous orb of water in front of her. She moved her hands quickly and the water formed into a wall. With one more sharp movement, Bristol sent her wall of water flying towards Liv.

The elements collided in a burst of steam. Liv's fire disappeared and Bristol's water evaporated, the steam billowing in the center of the platform the only indication of the clash.

"I can see why my brother likes you," Liv called, taking a stance.

Bristol made a face. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh don't play dumb, I don't care if you like him back. I got my eyes on speedy over there." Liv said, while biting her lip.

Bristol felt as if she had been slapped twice in a row. "Okay firstly, don't call him speedy. That's my nickname for him. Secondly, Tristan doesn't like me."

Liv tilted her head, giving Bristol a sympathetic look as if she knew some sort of secret. "Do you see the way he looks at you?"

"Who?"

Liv sighed. "Tristan, of course. Although it looks like CJ's got eyes for you too."

Bristol bit her lip. "When did our training session turn into girl's night?"

Liv smiled. "Necessary break," she said, stretching a bit. "Now, which of them do you like? Tristan or CJ?"

Now normally, Bristol was an eloquent and confident girl. She could carry herself diplomatically and strongly in front of Priscilla and even the Contingency. But God forbid someone asks her about her love life, because in that moment, Bristol kept stammering over her words with cheeks as red as Liv's fire.

"Oh, I see." Liv let out a laugh. "It's one of those Twilight situations isn't it?

Bristol winced. "I guess so," she sighed, laughing sheepishly.

Liv laughed once more, running a hand through her platinum blonde hair. "Don't worry, I won't tell." She winked.

That didn't make Bristol feel any better, but she feigned a smile. Here she was, confessing her mixed up feelings for the two boys in her life to a girl that she couldn't even pin a straight alliance on. Go figure.

"Would you just lay off?" Tristan's voice echoed throughout the cortex, breaking Bristol out of her reverie.

"It's a simple question, Tristan, I don't get why you're so defensive over it!" CJ retorted.

Bristol glanced at Liv. They shared the same bored and condescending look. The same message ran through them: boys.

Jogging over to the control panel, Bristol raised the walls of the platform. She padded across it, hopping down to the floor. Surely enough, CJ was following Tristan around like a shadow.

"Why does it matter?" Tristan pushed, clenching his fists. Bristol shivered a bit; the temperature was dropping with Tristan's rising anger.

"We're a team, remember, Captain Cold?" CJ glared. "I know you saw something when Liv was in the infirmary!"

At that, Bristol decided it was as good a time as any to intervene. She jogged over to the bickering boys, holding her hands out in between them.

"Alright, what's the problem, princesses?" She asked sarcastically.

"Oh, nothing, CJ's just being his normal obnoxious self." Tristan spat.

CJ narrowed his eyes, and Bristol could see sparks flickering around his figure. "Watch it." He said in a deadly voice.

Bristol saw the guilt all over Tristan's face, but she knew CJ prying out information this way would get them nowhere. So she grabbed CJ by the ear and dragged him away.

"Listen, Speedy," She whispered. "I'm on your side, he is hiding something. But I'm also gonna vouch for Tristan because you poking and prodding isn't gonna get any of us anywhere. Okay?"

CJ knit his eyebrows. "So you say you're on my side but you're vouching for him? What even is that?"

"It's called being neutral," Bristol sighed. "But that isn't my point. My point is that we will figure everything out as a team. No one is going solo or starting their own investigation, alright?"

CJ pouted, averting his gaze. "Alright, but I always wanted to go solo. Have you seen Nightwing?" he mumbled at last.

Bristol smiled softly, put a hand on his shoulder affectionately, and turned on her heel. She walked over to Tristan, who was scowling up a storm in the corner.

"You done sulking yet?" Bristol asked sarcastically, folding her arms.

Tristan met her gaze coldly. "You done consulting the enemy?"

Bristol groaned. "Tristan, when will you understand that CJ isn't an enemy? He's the exact opposite, he is our friend and teammate and you need to play nice."

The sapphire eyed boy gave her a wild look. "And why on Earth would I do that?"

Bristol smirked a bit. "Because I asked you to." She said haughtily.

Tristan walked over and stood in front of her. He looked down at Bristol, a challenging look in his eyes. Eventually, the facade broke. He sighed, running a hand through his dark hair.

"Oh, alright," he grumbled. "But only because you asked me too."

Bristol smiled. "You're the best, Tristan," she said, a laugh laced in her voice.

A smile tugged at Tristan's lips but before he could say anything, Avi darted into the cortex. She was prepared to speak but must have somehow forgotten the fact that Liv was present.

"What's up, Avi?" CJ asked, crossing from his corner over to meet her halfway.

Avi's green eyes rested on Liv suspiciously for a moment before she glanced at CJ. "The ceiling, CJ, you know this. Beyond the ceiling lies the atmosphere, consisting of--"

"You know what I meant." CJ sighed.

Avi smiled impishly, waving Bristol and Tristan over. However, her smile melted. "I have found an object of great importance."

Bristol knit her eyebrows. "What?"

Avi shook her head, her short hair shaking as she did. "Come with me."

~~~

The Union--well, everyone except Liv--forged down the metallic hallways. They approached a doorway, a bedroom that could only be Liv's.

"Avi, why were you in Liv's room?" Tristan folded his arms over his chest.

"I was curious." She shrugged simply.

Bristol laughed airily and followed Avi into the room. It was fairly new, considering that up until yesterday, Liv had been a resident of the infirmary. Her bed was made but slightly rumpled, the desk in the corner was empty, as well as the closet. A backpack was leant against the corner, and on the back of a desk chair hung a ratty old hoodie.

"What could you have possibly found, Avi?" CJ asked under his breath.

Avi ignored him, crossing over to the desk chair. She reached into the pocket of Liv's hoodie and fished something out. At first Bristol couldn't make it out, but when CJ let out a gasp, the teleportation amulet came into view.

"Is it the same one?" Tristan asked in disbelief.

Avi shook her head. "No, this is a different amulet. It possesses the same abilities and contents, but it is not Psyche's. However, I do not have the slightest idea of who's this could be."

Bristol stood in confusion, she scanned the room, and when she saw CJ she became even more confused. He had a look of realization it seemed. His eyes darted back and forth as if he was putting all the pieces together.

Bristol glanced back at Avi and the amulet for second before looking back where CJ used to be, but he had disappeared. Which left an anxious feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"Where has CJ gone?" Avi asked, puzzlement in her voice. The amulet dangled from her fingers, catching the sunlight in the window and sending shimmers out from around it.

"I'm not sure," a voice purred from the doorway. "But I've got a better question. What the hell are you three doing?"

Bristol's heart stopped as she turned around to face Liv, leaning against the doorway with a hostile look in her eyes.