*Six Months Later*

The pitch-black figure trudged its way across the sandy hilltop.

The Dune Sea is a treacherous terrain to travel. Especially far away from Anduruna, which was only on the south end of the desert. Water is an absolute necessity. Traveling the Dunes without it or without a water ryuu-neko is a death wish waiting to come true.

Jerome, the pitch-black figure, smirked in annoyance as the unforgivable sun blasted his heat-absorbing body with its light. 

If Nightmares were capable of having nightmares of their own, being stuck in the middle of a desert at noon is the worst nightmare they could have. But, for a Hell Hybrid, being half-Dreamkeeper, they are somewhat immune psychologically to light. As for physically, that's the difference.

Jerome licked his lips, feeling how dry they were. The inside of his mouth was equally as dry. 

Grabbing the flask that hung from his shoulder, he removed the cap and took the last gulp of precious liquid he had left. 

Suddenly, a small tremor in the sand almost caused him to spit the whole swig out. 

'A tremor? Impossible! There hasn't been any seismic activity here for millenniums!'

Jerome slowly rotated himself, searching for any sign that may have caused such a shake. Then, he saw something in the distance. A large structure of some sort that almost blended with the color of the sands.

Jerome realized it was an ancient Andurunan ziggurat. His family had long since discovered it when traveling through the Dune Sea for the first time.

Jerome could see from where he was that the statues that led to the top were tumbling down. 

'Looks like that old thing is finally on its last leg,' Jerome thought curiously. 'But, maybe I'll check it out just for grins.'

* * * * *

"Mission accomplised! Where's Bast and Lilith?"

Mace and Whip raced up to Namah, who sat perched on a stone outcropping, next to a pile of rubble that used to be the ziggurat's statues.

"Trapped, in a cave, at the bottom of a huge pile of rubble, created by a certain 'denier of directions' who should not have done what he did," Namah replied.

"You GAVE the signal," Mace protested.

"They'll be alright. They are together after all. They can take care of each other. In the dark. Together. Alone. With each other."

Almost instantly, Mace ran to a random spot and started digging with his bare hands.

"C'mon, Whip! We're DIGGING them out!"

Whip simply looked at Mace while Namah watched in amusement.

"Well, look who it is."

All three heroes looked back to see Jerome, walking up the rubble to meet them. 

"Jerry!" Namah shouted, jumping down from her perch. "Where have you been?"

"Oh, aside from escaping the grasp of a town full of mind-controlled civilians in Akbarel and killing my best friend in Macbeth, I've been here and there," Jerome replied.

The Hybrid looked over at Mace, who went back to shoveling debris.

"Nice to see you, too, shorty!" 

"No time! Gotta get to Lilith and Bast! Gotta make sure they're not having se-! Uh, seRIOUS... injuries to deal with!"

"Knock it off, Mace! We're gonna have to find another way down if we hope to retrieve them." Namah ordered. "And, besides, I'm sure they can handle themselves if they have any 'serious injuries.'"

Whip nodded in agreement. Mace simply scowled as he walked away from his excavation.

Jerome looked at each adventurer, then at the stones that they stood on. 

"Let me guess: You guys ran into trouble with a Nightmare, you formulated a plan to bury the thing in a pit by collapsing the statues. The plan went up in smoke and now Lilith and Bast are trapped in a cave, from what I heard while walking up, with this thing?" Jerome hypothesized.

"Oh, I'm sure we killed it," Namah confirmed. "But, yeah, two of our friends are trapped under all this."

Jerome looked at the rubble at their feet, then at the ziggurat. "Well, I assume there is an entrance to this place and somewhere inside will lead us to this cave. I might as well help... you... guys..."

Jerome stopped short as he saw something abnormal. The sand many feet away was flying up, as if someone was walking along and stomping the ground as they walked. But, their was no one there. The sand continued to puff until the puffs went behind the large staircase leading to the top of the ziggurat.

"What?" Jerome whispered.

"What's wrong?" Namah asked, sensing danger.

Jerome slowly began walking towards the ziggurat. "I don't know. I'll be right back."

But, just as he reached the bottom of the debris, it hit him. Only an invisible Dreamkeeper could cause such a phenomenon in the sand. And, their is a certain someone who knows how to turn invisible.

And, he was on Jerome's hitlist.

'Meth...'

Reaching into his trenchcoat for his revolver, Jerome found what he was looking for: footprints.

Gripping his weapon, he followed the trail.

His next target has appeared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jerome followed the footprints to the left of the staircase, into the shadows. The footprints turned and stopped right at the wall of the staircase. 

'Hmmm,' Jerome hummed mentally.

Then, he noticed a stone block was out of place. It was unsealed.

'Ah! I see.'

Jerome pushed the block and it slid into the wall as he pushed. There was a click and the wall split in half to reveal an opening into the inside of the staircase. Jerome stepped in and after a brief pause, the wall sealed itself shut. 

Knowing how unpredictable these kinds of places were, Jerome remained calm as he looked to his right to see the bottom of the outside stairs. He looked at his feet to see himself standing on more stairs, but going down. 

He looked at the outside stairs again. 'No doubt, these stairs also serve as a concealed entrance, but I guess the wall serves as a secondary opening if the main opening can't be found.'

Jerome turned to face the stairs leading down into the ziggurat's foundation. The staircase was lighted with torches lining the walls.

Jerome smirked at this. 'I seriously doubt these torches have been lit all these years. Someone had to have lit them. I don't have to guess who did.'

Glancing around at the narrow staircase, Jerome proceeded down the steps into the depths of the ancient shrine.

* * * * *

Only two minutes had passed and Jerome had already reached the bottom of the stairs. He entered a hemispherical chamber, hollowed out of the sand, the walls constructed with a mixture of rock and quick-drying substances. 

'So, this whole pyramid is solid with an underground chamber beneath the foundation. I can only guess what this place was for.'

Jerome looked around. The place was empty.

Except, for the skeletal forms of Dreamkeepers and wild beasts scattered throughout the large room. Torches lined the curved wall with a large fire pit in the middle of the chamber. The torches and pit were all lit with violet flames, unlike the torches in the staircase. This chamber appeared to be some kind of a sacrificial altar or a fighting arena.

"A fitting location, don't you think?" a calm voice called out.

Jerome looked up just in time to see Mephisto materialize in midair and land in a squatting position. 

"Been a while, hasn't it, Little J?"

"Do NOT call me that," Jerome said through clenched teeth, barely holding his composure.

"Come on, kid," Meth said humorously as he turned invisible. "What's with the attitude? Aren't you happy to see me?"

Jerome summoned a blade, bracing for an attack. "Yeah, I'm happy alright. I'm so happy I want to fucking puke."

"Manny is dead, isn't he?"

"CUT THE CRAP! Neither of us would be here if he wasn't dead! None of this would be happening if you hadn't have sided with the Nightmares! Why? Just tell me!"

"Oh, now that would be spoiling the surprise!" Meth answered. "But, I will tell you this: You think we'd side with the Nightmares without thinking about the sake of the Dreamworld? The sake of our people?"

Meth appeared again, this time straight towards Jerome's right. He swiveled to face the cloaker, but he was gone again.

"You're nuts! You don't give a damn about what happens to the world!"

"Oh, but I do, especially your father. You see, when he's done with what he plans to do, all of this will be like it never happened."

"Never happened?" Jerome mumbled. "What are you saying?"

Meth chuckled. "Don't worry, kid. You'll see. And, don't even try to stop your father. By the time you catch up with him, you'll be in time to witness history in the making. Or history in the re-making."

Finally, Meth reappeared in front of Jerome. The Hybrid reptile brandished a nasty-looking, double-bladed staff, which could also be cloaked along with his other assorted items. 

Jerome summoned his other katana and held both weapons at the ready.

Meth smiled as he slowly vanished. "Show me what you got."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jerome ran for the fire pit. With a leap, he sailed over the flames and kept running as he landed. 

His only chance to keep from being attacked unexpectedly was to keep moving. With his Power active, Meth was nowhere to be seen. No doubt he was staying on Jerome's heels, not allowing them to be distant. 

'No place to hide, no place to run,' Jerome thought. 'Except for the exit. But, I'm not running away. I have to stop this idiot here and now.'

Jerome spun around and crossed his blades. 'I'm not walking away from this for any reason!'

As predicted, Meth swung the staff parallel to his body, the weapon landing in between Jerome's blades. The unseen chameleon jumped away, leaving Jerome to remain stationary.

Jerome's ears twitched. He listened as carefully as he could for even the slightest sound that would represent Meth's position. 

The evil Hybrid could attack at anytime, but Jerome wasn't going to get anywhere in this fight if he doesn't mount any offense of his own. 

Then, he heard the squeak of a boot. 

Jerome spun towards the sound and threw his right blade like a spear. There was a rip of clothing just as the katana embedded itself into the chamber wall. 

Pieces of Meth's bulletproof vest appeared in midair and floated to the floor.

"Nice shot," Meth commented. "You're getting better all the time."

"Just come out of cloaking and I'll show you just how better I've gotten."

"Nah," Meth rejected. "I think we're better off fighting like this."

With his free right hand, Jerome pulled out his revolver and fired at the words.

Meth snarled as he quickly came out of invisibility. He gripped his left shoulder as it bled from the shot.

"Shit," Meth said calmly.

Jerome fired again, but Meth was already cloaked again. 

"You can't keep this up forever, Meth," Jerome called out, gun poised to fire. "You're gonna bleed out eventually."

"I wouldn't underestimate me if I were you," Meth replied, his voice now threatening.

Jerome turned just in time to have a crescent-shaped knife spin past his head, almost slicing off his left cheek. The knife sunk into the wall far behind Jerome. He cringed.

'I've got the feeling that he missed on purpose,' he thought.

Jerome holstered his gun and reached out for his katana, still stuck in the wall. In an instant, the blade transformed into a cloud of bright orange vapor as it swam back to Jerome's outstretched grasp. The blade returned to its normal form as Jerome grabbed the hilt.

Just then, Jerome heard the whistles of numerous knives approaching him. Without pausing to see them, Jerome went into a sprint.

As long as Meth had knives to throw, Jerome would be able to pinpoint his location by watching where the knives appear. Objects that leave Meth's body instantly become visible. As soon as a knife leaves his grasp, it will appear as it soars towards its target.

Already, Jerome spotted him. He was running on the chamber wall, parallel to the floor, as he tossed his weapons. Using his natural reptilian skills. 

Jerome turned in Meth's direction, while at the same time grabbing a missed knife as it went by. As concealing as possible, he stuck it in a pocket in his coat.

Realizing he had been spotted, Meth stopped flailing and jumped to the floor. Jerome heard him land, though. Stealthy he may be, but he wasn't good enough to not be heard by Jerome's ears.

'He may be good,' Jerome thought, closing in. 'But, he's not THAT good!'

Predicting his location, Jerome took a swipe with both katana's at the same angle.

The blades clanked against Meth's bladed staff. Both Hybrids paused, weapons locked, as Meth willed his Power away completely.

With a shout, he pushed Jerome back towards the fire pit as he unleashed a series of dazzling swipes. With each flurry, he pushed Jerome to the infamous flames as he parried each attack.

Now, just feet from the pit, their blades locked. Jerome chanced a glance over his shoulder at what was awaiting him.

'Clever old man,' Jerome thought respectfully. 'But, you're just no match for me.'

With a shout of his own, Jerome shoved Meth forward as he leaped up to get behind him. The fox swung his left blade, but the chameleon was already facing him to block it. Jerome swung his right, blocked as well. 

Slowly, Jerome turned the tables as he forced Meth towards the pit, inch by inch.

'He's just not strong enough,' Jerome thought. 'You're even easier than Manny. Just a little more strength is all I need.'

Jerome purposefully paused, allowing Meth to give his staff a swing. Jerome caught the weapon in a scissors formation with his blades. With the weapons stuck, Jerome delivered a swift kick to Meth's waist.

The Hybrid jerked back.

'Now!'

His speed now fueled by the sudden rush in his Power, it only took a single second for Jerome to brandish the crescent knife from before and practically teleported in Meth's face.

The chameleon staggered onto the pit's lip just as Jerome ran up to him.

Meth gasped.

The knife went straight into his heart.

Meth lurched forward, his hand shaking as it reached up to the knife. His heart skewered, he knew this was the end.

With a laugh, he smiled and said, "Well, didn't take you too long to finish me, huh?"

Jerome showed no emotion in his face. "I guess."

Meth looked down at the floor, feeling himself fading.

"You're good, kid, really good. Maybe even the best. Do you know why I say that?"

Jerome shook his head, wondering how Meth could still be alive.

"Because you made me realize something: We are what we are, Hell Hybrids. Any attempt to change that will just lead to more trouble. I understand now. I think you know what you have to do."

Jerome looked concerned now as Meth backed up to the pit.

With arms stretched out to his sides, he continued to smile.

"Give him one... for all of us."

With that, he fell into the flames.

Jerome reached out to grab him, but it was too late.

Mephisto was dead before he even hit the fire.

* * * * *

*Three Hours Later*

Mace punched the stone block to the ziggurat's secret entrance.

"This is ridiculous! What's it gonna take to push this block in? It obviously opens a secret door somewhere! But, why can't we push it in?"

Whip spat at the wall, sharing his disgust.

Namah leaned against the wall next to the entrance. "We'll figure something out. If Jerome managed to get it open, as indicated by the footprints, I'm sure we'll find a way."

As if in response, the stone block slid out towards them. The heroes froze as the small portion of the wall split in two like doors.

Out from the darkness came Jerome and Lilith, carrying Bast by his arms.

"Thanks for the help, you three!" Jerome said sarcastically. "Really appreciate it!"

"Hey! We couldn't get this stupid wall to open up," Mace countered. "Back off, will ya?"

"Uh, just wondering, but, is he okay?" Namah asked.

"Y-yeah," Bast grunted, using Jerome and Lilith as supports. He attempted to stand up, but he only collapsed back into their arms.

"Yeah, I seriously doubt that," Lilith replied. "We need to get out of here and find a place to treat Bast."

"Fleh shee kah doovoo leh Heevuh Hah, leh loo foop," Whip blabbered.

"Sounds good to me," Mace replied. "Whip says we should back track to Tyber Town, to the north."

"That'll take the rest of the day, but we've got no other choice," Lilith said, squinting at the descending sun.

"Agreed," Namah concluded. "Let's get going, then."

Jerome released Bast's left arm. "I hate to say this, but I've got other plans."

"You're leaving us again?" Lilith asked in dismay. "We just got back together and you're leaving again? We need you!"

"You don't understand, L," Jerome replied quietly. "My Father is about to do something that'll destroy us all. I just know it!

"Meth hinted at it before he died."

"Meth?" Namah repeated. "As in 'Mephisto?' He 'hinted' at what your dad plans to do? When did this happen?"

"Well, that explains the smell of burning flesh in that chamber underground," Lilith said with a cringe.

"Right. He told me that 'we are what we are, Hell Hybrids. Any attempt to change that will just lead to more trouble.' He said I made him realize that. I just have the suspicion that Father is going to somehow alter the Hell Hybrids, or the whole Dreamworld, maybe. I have to find him. I have to find out. If what he intends to do is dangerous to the world, then I've gotta stop him."

The heroes looked at one another, then nodded.

"Well, if you have to face him, then good luck," Lilith said with a smile.

"Thanks. All right, you better get moving. I'm heading back to Anduruna via Starfall. If this whole scheme is as big as I think it is, that's the first place he'll unveil it. Good luck out there, you guys."

The Hybrid and the Dreamkeepers said their good-byes and parted ways, with the heroes heading north and Jerome heading west, towards Starfall Mountains.

Ever since Meth's death, Jerome's mind has been reeling with questions.

Was Manny telling the truth? Are they really acting under their own free will? Is Trident's plan truly worth helping him bring it to fruition? Or is he chasing after a vision that if brought to reality, it will destroy reality itself?

Jerome realized one thing: The only way he was going to solve anything was to keep going and find Trident. 

Squinting through the retreating sunlight, Jerome marched on.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~