By the bye, the colors in this chapter are choice: not so monochrome that the individual characters don’t pop, but the blood-red theme does a lot to give this story its consistent, urgent atmosphere. That was mostly Jason, I think.

Rachel’s hesitance over the word “brothers” may underscore the point. Despite how horribly wrong things have gone, she still has nostalgic feelings for when it was just her and her sisters against the world. It is hard for her to accept the reality she now faces: not only does she no longer have those bonds with Hestia, Blair, and Tamara, but others have taken their places in her heart. I thought my love for my first girlfriend was forever, and I tried to maintain it for a long time after things were over. Letting the passion die felt like a betrayal, you know?

Phil did prevail upon me not to have E-Merl bust out a signal fireball. One-handed, his ability to cast flame is severely limited, so he uses an illusion-self instead.