Arabella Quartz was thrown against the ground, her gemblades cracking against the stone. The monster stood above her, laughing cruelly. She had felt so Powerful before... She had defeated the seven Gembeasts, purified the seven gems, and chased away Forrester and his minions... She'd saved the city... And now she was getting destroyed by a creature of glass and limestone... It was... Embarrassing... It was just a monster like the Gembeasts, why was she struggling so hard against it? Had her Power meant nothing...? She stood up again, trying to blast it, but her powers failed her... She was thrown back even further, lying against a pile of broken concrete and rebar. She knew one more hit, and she was dead... She would have to be reformed in the gemstone caverns, she would feel so weak, and Powerless... But that hadn't happened yet... How did she know this...? She couldn't tell the future... not yet... Yet...? Her head hurt, even without all the pain... The monster stomped closer, preparing to kill her... Such a lame ending to her story... Dana was wrong... Wait, who was... Wait! She tried to throw up a crystal shield... Only to be stopped by a barrage of **Pulses**. *You're too tired to fight, Arabella. You're not strong enough.* "Not... Strong... Enough... Not... Not... NO!" At the last second, as a massive arm of glass and limestone came down, Annabella threw up a shimmering crystal shield, the giant arm bouncing off. Another **Pulse** flowed through her, almost causing the shield to dissolve. *Stop fighting, Arabella. Just Surrender.* "Stop... No... WON'T. STOP. FIGHTING!" She rolled away from the strike, panting, and grasped her shirt, just above her heart. With all the strength she could muster, she crushed THE DIRECTOR'S pin, standing up, breathing heavily. "Time for a new ending."

Charging forward, Annabella manifested a crystal blade and slashed the foot of the monster, knocking off a large chunk. It roared, confused, and lost its balance. It began to topple over, landing on Annabella's crystal shield, and she sent a blast of energy into it, launching it across the construction site. Several parts of it shattered, but it still approached her, a furious mass of materials. Energized though she was, Aralise was still exhausted, and she was grabbed. The monster roared, then threw her as high as it could. As she watched the ground grow smaller beneath her, she knew that a fall from this height would kill anyone. So she wouldn't fall. Summoning all her powers, she manifested a pair of shimmering, crystal wings, and began to glide down, picking up speed. The monster had no idea what was happening... And neither did THE DIRECTOR. Her blades held before her, she slammed into the monster's torso, shattering it into a thousand pieces, but she kept going. With her wings spread out and her blades crossed, she slashed through the camera and dive-bombed THE DIRECTOR. As she clashed with the metallic chair, she could feel her identity returning to normal, as THE DIRECTOR'S mental effects faded. And so Annalise stood proudly above THE DEFEATED DIRECTOR, lily mantis blades and tropical shimmerwings on full display. THE DIRECTOR groaned, and muttered, "AND... Scene." Her director's slate closed, and she fell unconscious. 

Annalise took a deep breath. She did it. She finally saved the city! Without needing to call the League for help! Although... As she looked around, at the massive set that had been created from a real construction site, at Dana lying unconscious in a metal costume, and remembering how many people must be stuck in the break room... She sighed, and went to find her communicator. Luckily Dana hadn't stored her costume in the Break Room, and she grabbed the League pin that doubled as a communicator. She gently pressed the top, and spoke quietly into it. "...Hey, uh, Miss Redheart? I... I think I need help cleaning up after a supervillain..."

---

A week later, Tina and Annalise were chatting at the College's book club when they saw someone wheel in who hadn't come there in a while. "Dana! How are you feeling?" Dana grinned awkwardly as everyone in the room paid so much attention to her. "I'm... feeling better. I think I came down with the spore sickness or something, I was pretty sick..." Everyone gave their condolences, and Annalise and Tina shared a look. Bluemist and Whisp from the Prismatic League had taken a look at her to make sure there were no lasting effects from the technology, and evidently that was the cover story they developed to explain her long absence. They returned to chatting, but Annalise was quickly distracted by what Dana was saying. "...I do have something to show you guys, though!" She pulled out a blank disc, and Annalise felt a jolt of fear. "Uh, what is that, Dana?" Dana grinned mischievously. "It's a surprise! Just... Don't tell anyone about this, okay? It's top secret!" She moved towards the DVD player, and Annalise tensed up, her hands shaking. Tina looked at her sympathetically and whispered. "Don't worry, the League's done this hundreds of times, I don't think there's anything dangerOUCH" Tina recoiled her hand away as she got shocked, and Annalise grinned nervously, whispering back. "Sorry, Induction Eel electromagnetism is the quickest way to shut it off if it's a brainwashing thing." Tina laughed nervously, and they both watched with bated breath as Dana put in the disc. The TV turned on, and...

It didn't look like a brainwashing thing. It was a skyline shot of a city that started panning through the streets, until it stopped in front of a store titled 'Gemstone Caverns'. Quite a few excited whispers sounded among the group, and Tina leaned over to Annalise. "...They let her keep the movie?" Annalise shrugged. "I guess they didn't think it was anything too risky. It's just a movie, there's nothing bad ab-" Annalise stared at the screen as she watched a girl, who looked strikingly like her, shyly browsing through the store, nervously muttering to herself. One of the other members of the club glanced over at her. "Hey, she looks kinda like you, Anna!" Annalise buried her head in her hands. She'd ALMOST managed to forget that...

Despite her hangups, Annalise agreed it was a very good movie. It was edited very well (almost as if the editor had Super Powers), It was shot very well (almost as if the cameramen were tiny flying robots), and all the acting was very good (almost as if all the actors literally believed they were their characters). And even Dana had to admit: The ending, with Arabella suddenly gaining a burst of strength and destroying the monster before slashing towards the camera into the credits, was very good. After the movie, Dana explained the situation. "So, they've actually been filming this movie in secret over the past few months, and it might be ready to release soon! I have an, uh, advance copy because my cousin... Knows The Director!" Annalise snorted.

The rest of the book club was entirely filled with discussions about 'Arabella Quartz', and this secret movie, and how much the actor kinda looks like Annalise. Annalise and Tina got up to leave a bit early, but Dana stopped them at the door. "So, uh, Annalise... How'd you like the ending?" Annalise felt a chill run down her spine. Did... Did Dana realize she was Wildheart? "Uh, I mean, yeah, I liked it, uh, why?" Dana looked confused. "We spoke about the endings a while ago, remember? You said you'd prefer it if she won!" Annalise laughed nervously. "Ohhhh, yeah, right, I forgot about that! Yeah, the ending was much better, in my opinion!" Dana smiled. "Yeah, I have to admit it was. And, you know, it was that conversation that got me working on the screenplay!" She smiled, before nervously adding, "Uh, I mean the screenplay I'm writing for the second movie! Hypothetically! If it comes to pass!" Annalise nodded. "Ahhhh, got it. Well, anyway, me and Tina need to leave. Seeya!" Dana happily waved goodbye as they left. Tina jokingly whispered, "You know, I thought the lead actress did pretty well~" Annalise rolled her eyes and grinned. "Yeah, but I get the feeling they'll need to recast her in the sequel."