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Yu-gi-oh 5Ds: Rise of Darkness and Corruption (Athene/ImaginaryMuse & Razgriz)


"I-I um .... "

What had happened, anyway? Luca had no honest to gods idea. Pain was normal. But that was a very ... different sensation, let alone on a very foreign location. It was faint, but an odd outline could be seen - to her, anyway; she had no idea if her twin had seen it or not - was now visible. Tempting as it was to trace the mark, she chose to ignore it for now. Several other people had noticed her grimacing, and it was embarrassing enough as it was.

"I mean, I'm fine now, yes. Thank you. Maybe some water may help. I can wait and remain here for the last fight. I don't want to have to leave unless absolutely necessary," she reassured, grinning wearily at her sibling.
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Fayth, meanwhile, was one of the few still having any pain taunt her at all. Her teeth bit hard into her lower lip. And while that gesture kept any whines or whimpers from passing her lips, she was starting to shake a bit.

Fuck! Even the first time was short despite being painful. Why's this worse?!

" .... Celeste? I ... really don't like just --- "

"I'm fine!" she hissed shaklly through gritted teeth.

"That much is obvious; you're anything but that." An eyebrow rose slightly when Judai brought up Mukuro. True. He had been rough, but ....

"Wasn't that on her wrist or forearm though? She's holding her shoulder ... that's the main thing making me think it's something else. Look, Celeste, if you don't want to see a doctor again, talk to us. Please."

Her head lowered onto her knees as Fayth panted, continuing to stubbornly try to avoid looking too weak. It was bad enough she was on the verge of tears - and knew it wasn't only from her shoulder stinging. No. It was hearing kind and concerned words like Yamichi and Ling were offering, and feeling so goddamn forced to keep lying. But with the initial message having finally been delivered ... did she even really have to keep doing that anymore?

Sorry, Reiji ... but you never did specify who exactly to remain hidden from anyway ...

Her head lifted, moving quickly from side to side. "Fayth .... "

"Excuse me?" Ling started to ask, only to be interrupted.

"Fayth Milner. I've had to use an alias. The whole story's too long to relay and explain now ... but I hate lying to some of the few people who've been accepting me. So please use Fayth. Just .... don't use it around pricks like Goodwin or anything."

Ling snickered softly, "Oh don't worry. I don't think any of us have any love for the man, so no problems with that request. I definitely don't. Well then ... Fayth? What do you want to do?"

A slight grimace spread over her face. "My main issue is I don't know how long he and Jack will be talking. So ... I don't want to test my own cursed luck and risk waling into the tent again with him there. Did you bring water again by chance?"

"No," Ling replied, not bothering to hide a slightly irked tone; directed at herself. "It ended up slipping my mind. Umm ... an ice pack? Would that help?"

"I'm not sure, but I'd be fine trying to use it."
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Yusei, meanwhile, was keeping his focus on the ongoing duel. It was bad enough knowing he already felt like he would partially owe Fayth an apology after this ... even though it was never fully his fault. Still, some part of him felt like he should have been able to control this damn thing ... this so-called mark. It seemed asinine to have an ability to affect everyone else, but that had always been the way it'd worked.

"I'm not gonna lie, Naizen-san. The temptation to quit was there for a few seconds. But no. I don't break promises. I'm also no good at giving up - even when I probably should." A very knowing smirk spread over his face as he uttered the last line, continuing to drive along the track.

Almost ... almost ....

And finally, the perfect opportunity arrived.

"Trap Card, Open! Lost Star Descent! I'll use it on my Junk Berserker. It loses a level and is forced to remain in face up defense position."

.... Interesting. He hadn't planned on making Shimoda so anxious he wouldn't attack. But Yusei would honestly take any advantage he could, including his Despair God not performing any attacks. "My turn! Draw! I'll flip my set Nitro Synchron! Next, I activate Battle Waltz on my Junk Berserker, making a copy of it! I'll use the recently made replica plus Nitro Synchron to tune!"

Once again, the monsters would jump up, the MC hyping the stadium as a new Synchro was being performed. And with the copy having only six stars also, it was easy to predict what was coming.

"Clustering hopes will become a new, shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!"

Yusei elicited a small sigh of relief. Good. The summoning hadn't been negated. If it had ... he very likely would have been screwed. Getting Stardust Dragon out was part one of his plan. Now ... he needed one more specific card.

"I'll set one more monster then end. Your turn, Shimoda!"
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"Hmmm .... "

If Kiryu hadn't yet been paying attention, he certainly would now. Her own mark - as well as Kiryu's - were glowing brightly. Thankfully, no one else was nearby, otherwise they'd definitely draw more unwanted attention.

"I can only assume the revival of Despair God caused this."

Of course, neither Kiryu nor Misty would know, but it was their signs acting up which was helping Fayth stay in a prolonged, pained state.

"So what do you think? Can he get rid of it again?"

Rooting and praying for a 'yes' was one thing. But Kiryu had knowledge of Yusei's deck. So it seemed logical to ask how good his odds were - or weren't, if that was the better wording.
 
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"Say no more!" Lua would say, jumping out of his seat, stating in an excited voice, "Let me know if I miss anything when I get back!" And like that, he was off quicker than anyone could blink.

One could say anything they wanted about Lua, but if there was anything that was true, he was utterly devoted to making sure his sister stayed safe and healthy. Even if his rambunctious behavior sometimes proved that to be very counter to that point.
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Yamichi and Takeshi both seem quite surprised when Celeste would snap at Ling for trying to help her out. Granted, they were sure that she was probably still a little freaked by everything that had happened, but Ling nearly died. "Oi, Celeste....Ling's just trying to help..." Yamichi would start, but stopped as soon as she continued. Fayth? What did she mean by that?

Takeshi raised a brow as she would then go on to explain her words. An alias, huh? He supposed he shouldn't be surprised; after all, he and Yamichi weren't exactly truthful about where they were from. Or at least Yamichi was, but Takeshi didn't know that.

"Fayth Milner, huh? Guess I can see why you choose Celeste...It fits." Yamichi would then say, not accusatory in the slightest. How could he be? He was one of the 'undesirables' that Goodwin always wanted to put down. To alienate and demonize. When she then asked for an ice pack, Takeshi would say, "I'll be right back; the doctor's tent should have one. Don't worry...I'll keep using your 'real name', heh." A short wink later, Takeshi would then go off to find one.

"So...If you don't mind my asking, why'd you need an alias?" Yamichi would then ask; Yuna had hinted that there was someone who she wanted to see was alright. Was this her?
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"Good! I don't want this Duel to end just yet! Not when it's getting good!" Shimoda would reply, letting Yusei take his turn. It wasn't much...But against a monster like Despair God? One had to pick their punches carefully. And so far, it had let Yusei survive over half his Life being depleted. The guy was good, and Shimoda was motivated to give the guy no less than his best.

And when he would Synchro Summon again, Shimoda just grinned, "So that's your secret weapon, huh? Not bad Yusei, not bad at all!" he would say; while he was trying to prevent the guy from Summoning any more Extra Deck monsters, he realized that part of it was his fault to attack last turn. If he'd destroyed Nitro Synchron last turn, then he probably wouldn't have to worry about the field as much.

Then again, with his monsters in the Graveyard, he could at least be sure that his monster would survive attacking. Something that he would prove to do when his next turn would come around. "My turn! Draw!"

He then declared, "Battle! Despair God, destroy his face-down! Final Crash!"

"Shield Warrior's effect!"

And right before Shimoda's eyes, a spectral version of the shield-toting warrior would appear, intercepting the attack. Something that definitely wasn't expected, but something the man could respect. "I'll set one card face down and end my turn!" he then said....Not knowing what it was Yusei had in mind, or what he was about to do.
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Kiryu did in fact notice; unlike the Signer's marks though, his didn't hurt. Not one bit. He looked down at his mark with a slight bit of interest; was it like Misty said, though? Did Despair God making a comeback trigger this? It must have been; knowing Yusei, even as stoic and calculating as he was, he likely underestimated the likelihood of such a monster being able to be revived so soon.

When she then asked her question, Kiryu just grinned, "He might, especially now that Stardust is out. There is a card in his deck that could send that thing right back to the grave...But the question remains if he can draw it or not. Knowing his style though? He's probably got it in his hand or at the very least, it will be the next card he draws. The guy's got ridiculous luck...And I can't wait to see it fail him when we next face each other."

And when Yusei would activate Shield Warrior's effect, Kiryu just laughed, "See? The guy's got a counter for nearly everything."
 
"Of course. I'll make sure to let ya know. Better hurry up!"

Only after Lua ran off did Luca offer her truly sincere partting words, "For real, be careful! Quick but efficient?!"

That was likely the best set of words to use. The 'hurry up' had only been somewhat of a jest. Still, it did make sense that if he wanted to avoid risking missing anything too exciting, he needed to be quick but cautious simultaneously. And really ... it would be the latter Luca would be most worried about.
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Though Fayth couldn't see the wink, she could 'feel' it, per se. It made her look up towards Takeshi and grin slyly. Her head lowered as he walked away, though not before giving him a quick "Appreciate it" in response to his promise.

"Why I'm here? I really meant it when I said that'd take a while. In fact, I wouldn't blame any of you for --- urgh! Fuck! Why is it so bad now?!"

"So ... this has happened before?" Ling inquired, causing Fayth to frown at her carelessness before slowly nodding. "Okay. So it's not random - that's kinda good. It helps narrow things down, at least ... "

But upon seeing poor Fayth breathing heavily, Ling quickly went quiet. "Eesh. Okay. Breathe .... umm ..... try .... would lying down even be smart? Maybe he should have grabbed a sling too; probably better to keep the shoulder elevated .... crap."

"I think you're on the right track, Ling. But like you said ... she probably should keep the shoulder higher, not lower, so .... if you'd be fine with it, Fayth, you can lean against me."

As Judai spoke, Fayth turned towards his voice, still panting every now and again. She gazed over at his direction for a few moments before finally asking, "Hand ... give me one of them, please."

Ever the nonchalant gentleman, he'd brush his own against Fayth's arm, signaling it was within reach. Fayth slowly let go of her shoulder, sending up a quick prayer no one would immediattely notice her mark before placing two fingers atop Judai's wrist.

"Oh, really? You can actually do that?!"

"Well, yeah. I've had to adapt to make up for not being able to normally see." Faytth chuckled softly, wincing as another surge of pain shot through her shoulder. "Goodness. I don't think I've felt a pulse more sincere in a long while. Okay, sure. Just umm .... "

"Ohhhh. No, no, I think I get it. It's cool. No ulterior motives, I swear."

The fact Judai had been able to finish her thoughts helped Fayth feel better. She first let go of his wrist, using her left hand to carefully scoot backwards. Both the fabric of Judai's shirt and jacket plus his hands wrapping around her midsection and helping pull her closer would indicate she'd moved far enough.

"Why the hell are you wearing such a heavy thing? Aren't you burning up?"

"Oddly, no. Guess I'm just too used to it. Anyway, worry about yourself. Relax and get comfortable while you're waiting for Takeshi."

Seconds after Fayth guided her head against Judai's chest, he asked something the - or had it been one of the other guys? - had pondered since they first saw Fayth. "So ... since you can't see in the traditional sense ... how do you 'see' people? Like ... do you just ask how they look, or ... ??"

"Well .... I don't usually worry about physical appearances, to be fair. It's personality I first try to get an idea of. But .... names can sometimes give hints. Like ... Ling asked he same thing in our room. Given the Asian sound to her name, I told her I figured she had black or some dark hair color. And since a lot of Asians tend to have brown as a dominant eye color, it was likely to be that. It is true I could simply ask ... but it's more interesting or me to figure people out on my own. If I'm wrong ... they can correct me. Plain and simple."

" ... Huh. Think you could determine my appearance sometime?"

"When I think more straight, yeah."

"Of course. I didn't mean now."
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"Sorta. That's one of my secret weapons, but yes. You're otherwise correct."

If only because he could keep his strategy vague, Yusei was perfectly fine hinting he did indeed have more parts to his plan than just summoning Stardust Dragon.

Soon, it was back to Naizen's battle phase. Before the attack would connect, however, he would pull a card out from his grave and move it to the remove from game section of his disk. "I activate Shield Warrior's effect! By removing him from my grave, I can keep one monster from being killed this turn!"

The softest of sighs passed Yusei's lips when Shimoda couldn't stop him from making his move.

"My turn! Draw!"

.... And there it was. The exact card he needed, which Kiryu and Misty would - unbeknownst to Yusei - see courtesy of the cameras. A low 'Heh' would be the next thing Naizen would hear, followed by, "I'll set a card and another monster. Your turn."
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" .... Wow. You weren't kidding."

Courtesy of the zoom-in, she managed to see the words 'Shooting Star' across the top of the card that was drawn before Yusei would set it.

"Seeing as he truly is that skilled and lucky ... do you have a plan for dealing with him, then? It appears you're going to need it, particularly if any of the other Signers try to intervene or help out somehow."
 
Shimoda knew that having Stardust wasn't good....But with Yusei having a face-down and himself running out of Graveyard materials to banish, he needed to play it smart. And the hand he had wasn't exactly conducive to being able to protect Despair God in case he was able to destroy it.

"My turn! Draw!"

His eyes did light up a little when he saw the card he drew. Awesome; if he could play this right, he could get the materials back he needed even if Despair God met his end...Though he was silently praying Yusei didn't have such a card. Not knowing that the very opposite was true.

"I summon Mystic Piper!" Shimoda declared, the flamboyantly dressed flutist making his appearance as the duelist would then state, "I activate its effect! By releasing this monster, I can draw one card, and if it's a Level One monster, I can draw another!"

Before he could though...The next move would hit him like a ton of bricks.

"Trap Card, Open! Shooting Star!"

And in a brilliant display of light and power, Stardust Dragon would bombard Despair God with rays of purifying radiance, the titanic demon howling in agony as it burned and shattered, leaving Shimoda absolutely speechless. The same unable to be said for MC, who was more than happy to announce over the cheers of the crowd "AND FOR THE SECOND TIME, DESPAIR GOD IS NO MORE! WHAT A TURNAROUND! THESE TWO HAVE BEEN TRADING BLOWS LEFT AND RIGHT! WHAT A MATCH!"

Well...That was certainly unexpected, and to be honest Shimoda was more than a little miffed. But...He also couldn't stay mad; Yusei played his cards well, and he'd made the mistake of not having a back-up. "Mystic Piper's effect still has to resolve! I draw!" he would say, pulling the top card from his Deck. A Spell Card....One that could help, but he needed to get extraordinarily lucky on this turn. And with no other monsters in his hand, he was literally stuck and about to take a serious whooping.

"Turn end! Let's go, Yusei!"
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Takeshi would return just in time to see Yusei put down Despair God for the second time, hand Fayth the cooling pack after breaking the internal pack for her, "Heh....Well, that's gotta suck for Shimoda. But, you know what? This has been one hell of a match so far, and it's still anyone's game."

Yamichi nodded, "Really is; Shimoda's being a good sport about it too. Something I'm sure we can all be glad for...Though I'll admit, I'm starting to get anxious. Those two are having such a close game, I'm just hoping we can live up to it. We're the last ones, Takeshi."

Takeshi just laughed, rubbing his knuckles across his chest suavely, "Yeah, I hear ya...But listen man. All we gotta do is bring our A-game, and we'll end this day on a high note no matter what. Just don't be too upset when I trash your monsters, though." That last bit was a friendly challenge, Yamichi replying with one of his own, "Oh I won't...Because I'll make sure yours stay right where they belong. In the Graveyard."

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When Misty asked if he had a plan to defeat him, Kiryu just shook "Oh Misty, must you have such little faith in my abilities? Besides...It won't be just me." It was here he then pulled a card out of his Deck: His Earthbound God, Ccacc Apu. "Me and this big lug are a team; we understand each other. What he wants, I want, you know?"

Sliding the card back in, he then added, "In any case, that's why after this tournament's over and little Fayth feels less exposed...We're going to get the info we need, then get rid of her. Speaking of which, any ideas on how to lure her to the graveyard? Figured we could use the revelation of her being dead to our advantage; not like she knows it or anything. Wonder how she'll take it anyway...I dunno, maybe because I'm already dead I don't care. But I like to think it'd weird her out quite nicely, wouldn't you agree Misty?"

And when Yusei would go on to activate his Trap, Kiryu snickered, "You're just full of nasty surprises, aren't you Yusei? Well rest assured....I got something that will shut down your little gimmicks. Just. You. Wait."
 

Fayth couldn't help but shake her head. Goddamn - was there anything Yusei couldn't do?

"Thanks, Takeshi," she murmured, taking the ice pack and placing it right on her shoulder, shivering and jumping slightly as the cold immediately went onto her flesh. With her clad in a tank top due to the temperatures having been on the warmer side, there was no sleeve to make it a bit less cold. Then again, it'd probably be more helpful if the pack was directly on her Sign anyway.

"Most definitely," Ling agreed when Yamichi pointed out Shimoda was being a far better sport than Bommer or Mukuro had been. "In fact, the top four are looking to be opponents that are only scary with their decks. But better to be with that than personalities."

"Mhmmm. I'd be more than fine with that also," Fayth softly replied. Her eyelids closed under the blindfold as she concentrated more and more on heeding Judai's earlier advice and relaxing. Maybe it was a male thing, but Fayth had never noticed before now all the guys' chests she'd used as makeshift pillows were soothing. Comfortable even.
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Admittedly, Yusei probably could have waited a bit longer. But when Shimoda started summoning more level ones, Yusei felt himself getting a bit nervous. Wheher or not Naizen had a second Despair God didn't matter nearly as much as whatt else the deck was capable of. And he was already pushing his luck a lot as i was. He really didn't want to make things more annoying than they already were.

So, before the effect of Shimoda's Mystic Piper could finish completely up ....

"Trap Card, Open! Shooting Star! When Stardust Dragon is on the field, I can choose any of your cards and destroy them. I'll select Despair God!"

Yusei's heart paused for a few econds, waiing to make sure this worked. Because if i didn't ....

So holy fuck was he relieved when it did. A small sigh of relief parted his lips.

"I fully intend to come at you, don't worry! Draw!"

While he'd felt certain killing Despair God a second time had secured his victory, Yusei saw some back-up plans. In case he could revive his ace monster yet again. "I'll set a card. Next, I flip my face-down Quillbolt Hedgehog to attack mode! Quillbolt Hedgehog and Stardust Dragon will directly attack you!"

"UNBELIEVABLE! MY GOD, FOLKS! NEVER IN MY LIFE HAVE I SEEN SO MANY AMAZING BACK AND FORTHS, PARTICULARLY WITH A FIEND AS HUGE AS DESPAIR GOD! THIS TRULY IS BY FAR ONE OF THE BEST COMEBACKS I'VE SEEN IN YEARS! WILL THERE BE A THIRD REVIVAL? OR HAS FUDO SEALED DESPAIR GOD AWAY FOR GOOD?!"

Now, the two duelists' life points were close, with only a hundred separating the opponents. 3500 to 3600, with Yusei having the barely lower amount. With him having caught up in life points, the two were now neck-and-neck on the track, with Yusei mere inches away from Shimoda.

"Turn end!"
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In all honesty? The truth to Kiryu's question was yes. Especially in certain areas more so than others. Leaving Yuna alive - even if mute - was a mistake in her mind. It had easily been one of the worst decisions Rutger-sama had made to this date. Sure, it'd take a while to write out what had happened. But the fact was, she still had alternative methods of relaying to whomever she'd been protecting so desperately what happened.

And then .... there was Kiryu himself.

His obsession with Yusei was an easy way to get himself killed. Again.

Yes, she had her own goals. Bu they weren't so strong that she felt an odd lust about her. With Kiryu? It felt like he didn't simply wish to defeat him. It also often gave her the image he had ... some certain carnal desires he'd unleash afterwards.

"It's mainly linked to your demon. They're fickle by nature. For now, he wants what you want. But are you sure that sort of agreement will remain that way?"

It wasn't a complete lie - she just simply opted to keep her main concerns hidden from Kiryu.

An eyebrow raised upon hearing the idea of luring her to the graveyard. "I mean ... save for freaking her out, why there? In any case, she's not overly stupid. She's been taking a lot of smart precautions. Getting her there - or anywhere, really - is going to require some planning. A bit more so than usual, that is."
 
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"I'm back Sis! What'd I mi..." Lua started to say as he handed her a large cup of ice water, but his eyes went wide when he saw a particular monster was no longer out in play. "Hey! Where'd the big one go? Aw man, don't tell me I missed Yusei thrashing it!"
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"Well then...Certainly seems like Yusei is going to the next round. Unless Shimoda has a way to bring back his ace for act three, of course." the Director mused, Akutsu replying "I'll admit I'm not well-versed in tactics of dueling, but...I imagine a monster like that is fairly resource-intensive. At this point, I would venture the young man is pulling at straws. A drawback of decks like that, I'm sure; so dedicated to one thing that if it's disrupted it all falls apart."


Jack paid little attention to them, focusing on the duel at hand; would he and Yusei face each other in the Title Match? At first he wasn't sure, and even now he wasn't one-hundred percent certain....But with each passing second, it was seeming to be the case. "Yusei....If you do make it, don't expect me to go easy on you. I will come at you one hundred percent." Jack would say within his mind.

Shimoda, meanwhile, was starting to get a little nervous, especially after his Runner wobbled from the direct attacks. He had to admit, it was a helluva comeback. And right now, his options were limited...Scarily so. But he would try to make something happen, even if it might cost him the duel.

"My turn! Draw!"

He frowned a little as he looked at his current hand; there wasn't a lot he could do...Except bet it on this next play. If it didn't work out, it would cost him the duel. But at the very least he could hold his head high and know that he made it this far with - an admittedly - very difficult deck to use.

"I summon Water Spirit! Then I activate a Trap card, Dōsei Dōmei Dōmei! I target Water Spirit, then Special Summon as many copies from my Deck as possible!" And with that effect, Yusei would see a second Water Spirit appear, the third resting in the Graveyard. "I then activate a Magic Card from my hand - Wan-chan?! Since I control a Level One monster, I can add another from my Deck to my hand! I'll choose Large Charcoal 18!" Unfortunately, he didn't have anything that would let him summon it...Which meant the drawback would take its toll.

"But...With that, I'll set a card and I end my turn! And by the effect of Wan-chan?!, I take 2000 damage!" The crowd seemed a bit surprised that he would lower his own life like that, down to a dangerous 1600...And in truth, he was trying to resort to an old tactic of a 'bait-and-switch'. If he could deter Yusei by playing a fake face-down, namely another copy of Machine Duplication Technique, then he might draw the card needed to get Despair God back for a third time.

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"Wow man, MC is right. Yusei's got some skills; he and Shimoda are inches apart at this point." Takeshi would say, arms crossing over his chest as he would watch the Duel unfold. It seemed like it was getting closer to the end. Which meant he and Yamichi would be that much closer to duking it out.

But after Shimoda made his play, Yamichi smirked and said, "Were mere inches apart...He must not have much, or has a setup to where he has to risk that kind of Life Point drop to make it work."

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"Aww, concerned for my well-being? I'm touched, Misty." Kiryu teased, being intentionally facetious; he was in quite a good mood, so why not have a little fun? He didn't seem to share the same concerns Misty did about leaving Yuna alive; and once he was done with Yusei...He would gladly pay her another visit, let her see that their last visit was just a warm-up. She thought being locked in a coffin was bad?

Ohhhh, the things he had in mind to do to her were so much worse.

"In any case, does it really matter? We're only alive because we have contracts with them. They want us alive to kill Signers? We kill Signers, that's it. Besides, surely you've got a murder-bone you'd like to pick with someone. Who says that oversized gecko you've got won't dispose of you once you've completed your assignment?" he would then point out; true, demons might be tenacious and underhanded, but these were Immortals. Any one of them could turn on them at any time, demon or not.

"As for the graveyard? That's exactly why; I don't understand the whole deal behind this Signer business, but anything we can do to throw them off their game is only going to make this simpler. Besides...I want Yusei good and riled. Fayth freaks out, gets herself in trouble...Yusei's own stupid sense of justice will practically force him to intervene. And if she's in danger, he'll be distracted. And yes, I know that for sure; had you been there at the pier when Fayth's friend interrupted, you would have seen it yourself. And as far as I know, none of the other Signers have a real vested interest in her aside from him."

It was here that he then asked, "Speaking of which...Who exactly are you after? You were talking to Carly about someone from 'Arcadia'; I have no clue what that is, but clearly it's some place of importance. Lemme guess...The boss did you wrong somehow? Or was it that redhead I happened to see you holding the picture of?"
 

"Hey brother," Luca replied, unable to help but giggle softly as she took notice of her brother's double-take. "Unfortunately, yes. You literally just missed it. Yusei had a trap - Shooting Star. That's what got rid of Despair God this time."

Reaching forward, Luca took hold of the water ... and cringed as she watched Shimoda's turn end, along with a considerable amount of his remaining life vanish.

"Ouch. Last ditch effort, I guess?"
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Yusei rose his eyebrow. God, he didn't really have enough to bring that monster back again did he?

While he was relieved on one hand as Shimoda's turn came to an end, he couldn't help but cringe as his own card wounded him.

"I think we're finally about to bring this to a close. But it's been a damn good fight." And even though Yusei probably didn't really need to go through with the first part of his turn, he pulled the top card off his deck. However, he didn't look at it; Naizen had made a fatal error, and it wasn't necessarily using his spell card. Rather, it was leaving a monster in attack mode ... one that Stardust Dragon could attack an easily defeat, thus depleting the rest of Shimoda's life.

.... Just in case, he supposed, Yusei snuck one quick glance at what he drew and nodded.

"I'll set a card! I then activate Graceful Revival on one of my Sonic Chicks!"

Mainly as a precaution more than anything. Definitely not to taunt like one would originally assume. Finally ....

"Stardust Dragon will attack your Water Spirit in attack mode!"

The next few seconds felt like they played in slow motion. He watched the silver dragon fly over. The head of his ace card pulled back and let out a long, deafening roar, sending a wave of sonic energy towards the target. A cloud of dust appeared ....

And as it faded away, people on the monitor would see Naizen's LPs reach 0.

"UNBELIEVABLE! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, AGAINST ALL ODDS, YUSEI HAS GONE AGAINST DESPAIR GOD NOT ONCE BUT TWICE AND PREVAILED! MORE THAN THAT, HE EMERGED THE VICTOR OF THIS DUEL AND IS OUR THIRD MEMBER OF THE TOP 4 FOR TOMORROW! GIVE THEM BOTH APPLAUSE, THEY DESERVE IT!"

Roars of applause and loud cheers went through the crowd as everyone - even Luca - stood up. She wasn't one for such gestures, but that duel truly had been a spectacle to hold. She had to agree with the MC on that part; this had been quite the display, and both duelists deserved the respect from the audience. Now with any luck, Celeste could have a much better opponent come tomorrow - she really had felt terrified for her when Mukuro tried to beat on her.

Fayth, meanwhile, grinned. Cautiously, she moved her shoulder, testing to see how it felt.

"Any better?" Judai inquired.

"Getting there. Still burns a bit, but ... it's like a throbbing pain more than anything."

That made Ling raise an eyebrow while she joined the audience in clapping. The hell kinda injury was that from? It was from a previous wound - right? It was the only thing that made sense. "Is it well enough you think?"

"Should be," Fayth murmured softly.

"Alright. You can stick around for when Yusei returns. I'll get this back to the tent."

" ..... Thank you .... " Fayth replied, trying to keep a straight face. Hopefully he'd only said that out of sincerity and not due to beginning to realize she did still have a tad of a crush on Yusei. She just ... kept it in line. No point in dwelling or hoping for an impossible fantasy, after all, and that was hinted when he didn't return a kiss of his own the day she gave him hers.
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"Yes. But I keep my 'murder boner' in check. You should too. That in itself will get you killed again, if not your own demon. Obsessions can become unhealthy, after all."

.... He even pointed out a possible error for his plan and yet, was so certain it would be Yusei hat would come for Fayth? Misty shook her head.

"See, it's things like that which make me question how well you'll end up doing. You literally just said it for yourself. Even if the chance is low, the fact is another Signer may come instead of Yusei. I recommend coming up with a back-up plan in case it's not your preferred target. We can flesh the details for this plan out later. We have time, at least a few days. If we're going to do this, no need to rush things. This time, we inform Rutger-sama beforehand. I'm not getting scolded because you went and did something hasty again."

It was true, too. They both had gotten quite the lecture - though it was much worse for Kiryu than herself, as it was learned Misty had been essentially dragged and forced to help out with Yuna's interrogation - lack of, she supposed.

And that had been Rutger's primary issue - that despite having kept Yuna hostage for two weeks, Kiryu got nothing useful out of her. She'd been too strong. And while Fayth likely didn't have the same physical prowess ... she was blind. That did require a certain amount of emotional and psychological strength, more so to keep living on.

... However she was doing that. It would be for that very reason she'd help Kiryu out at all; she was, admittedly, curious how Fayth was alive, yet dead at the same time. Especially because she was older than her previous self had been.

Although one of the spiders caught hints of her being from another dimension ... that seemed impossible. At leas before an explanation was given.

With the duel over, her Sign had finally ceased glowing. The final match woudln't be between two Signers, but ...

"We did watch this from the beginning. Still wanna keep observing the tournament? Or go and speak with Rutger upon returning to base?"
 

"Well....That's alright! From the looks of it, Yusei's about to win it right here!" Lua said in an excited voice, joining the crowd in high cheers when Yusei would take the last bit of Shimoda's Life. "Yeah! That's how you do it!" the young boy exclaimed; Yusei was going to the next round!
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Shimoda cringed as Yusei would wind up for his final attack, the majestic-looking dragon flying over and obliterating the tiny frosted spirit monster. And with that his Life would hit zero, signaling the end of the Duel. It was a hard fought battle between warriors, and one he could be proud of.

Pulling to the finish line, Shimoda would remove his helmet and ruffle his locks to get rid of the helmet-hair sensation; that was really the only gripe he had with this sport. Other than that? It was awesome, enjoying the thrill of speed and the heart-pounding action of a well-fought battle.

"Shimoda...That was fun." Yusei would say as he pulled up next to the man, their rides being towed back off the track to make way for the final two. "Really was, man...Like I said, best I've had. Thanks, Yusei." And with that the two of them would shake hands as the applause continued; while it was more for Yusei for winning, he certainly had some rooting for him for being able to summon such a powerful beast twice in one match, all the while walking back to sitting with the other contestants.

"Man...You two are nuts. I wasn't sure who was going to take it." Takeshi said, Yamichi nodding, "Seriously. I don't think I've seen so much back and forth in a match ever. Well played the both of you." Shimoda grinned, "Thanks. But you two have your own match right?"

"WHAT A MATCH, FOLKS! IT'S GOING TO BE HARD TO TOP THAT, BUT LET'S SEE IF OUR LAST TWO CONTESTANTS CAN FINISH IT ON A STRONG NOTE! LET'S HEAR IT FOR TAKESHI YAMAGUCHI AND YAMICHI HIZUMARA!" MC announced, Yamichi saying to his friend, "Well....Let's go, Takeshi. It's been a while since we last dueled each other though, eh? And to think we get to do it in a professional tournament. Should be fun!"

And much like the last two matches, they were queued up on the track. Engines idle before the crowd-supported countdown would have them rocketing off the start; and after a rather close race to the first bend Yamichi would emerge the leader. "Alright! Glad I changed out that piston before I came over! My turn! Draw!" Yamichi would say...But then his enthusiasm diminished a little. He knew going against Takeshi's deck would be hard, but this hand was not conducive to forming a winning strategy.

"I'll set a monster, then one card facedown! Your move, Takeshi!"
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"Ahem....I do believe I said murder-bone, not boner." Kiryu would first say, grinning haphazardly as he would try to suppress himself from laughing. And she thought he was a horndog. "And here I thought I had a dirty mind; even if we are technically dead, I'd be more than happy to help you scratch an itch, beautiful." Kiryu would continue teasing, clearly not taking her advice that seriously at first.

He did remember the chewing out Rutger gave them, more for him for obvious reasons as the kidnapping and interrogation was his idea...But he was more than certain he could handle Yusei. Besides, behind all that false bravado....Yusei was still deathly terrified of what he could do. He'd seen it when they'd last talked; he hadn't expected him to take Fayth for his own goals. And because of that, the silver-haired male planned on making Yusei continue to experience that fear. That sense of horror and reality.

He would relish it.

However, when she asked her next question, Kiryu would say, "Eh....I'd like to stay; the old man looked like he was about to bust an artery the last time we talked to him. Even if Yusei's not dueling, I wanna see how this ends. Who knows, might be able to find out something else about them this way." And with that, the next match would start. "Huh...So these are the last two? Wonder what they're capable of...Should be interesting to see."
 


"That really was just .... wow! Unreal almost!" Ling agreed.

Fayth had been busy trying to remove any lingering drops of water that had melted out of the ice pack. Yusei would be able to piece together it'd acted up worse than usual and really? She didn't want to ruin what should be a celebratory moment.

"Indeed. Congrats to you both. You each did something merit-worthy in that duel," she added, lowering her hands and placing them on her lap. She took a moment to do a mental list of the Top 4 Duelists. At the moment ... herself, Yusei, and Ling.

So now, it would come down to wheher she may face the most insane Undead deck she'd ever seen .... or a very competent and rarely used Scrap deck. Even in the Pendulum Dimension, she'd never really seen, barely heard, of anyone making use of that archetype.

Either way, the lis made her smile. No matter what, she could have a much better duel than today. That alone was more than enough to make up for the rough parts she'd endured earlier.

"Yeeeep," Takeshi agreed, exhaling deeply as he walked alongside Yamichi to the field. "This is less nerve-wracking because of the professional par and more because .... we usually duel sitting at a table, or with our duel disks. On a Wheeler though? This is like a pipe dream come true."

Especially since they, too, resided from the Satellite. Yuna and Hotsuma had a tough time as it was getting their own rides. So for them to have worked to help anyone else get their own Wheeler ....

... He needed to thank the both of them, now that Takeshi thought of it.

But that could wait. Right now, he needed to focus.

Sitting down and putting his visor on, he revved his engine up. And while he had a decent start .... he remembered why he was more of a cautious driver. One, his lack of luck made him more cautious than usual. Combine that with his anxiety about corners? Yeah. Poor boy subconsciously slowed down a tad, not trusting himself as much as he could have.

"Slow hand?" he asked, nodding in confirmation as he watched Yamichi start out on the defensive. "Well ... ready or not, here I come! Draw!" And unfortunately for the tech, his deck was the same; eager and raring to go. "I'll set one card and summon Shiranui Samurai, who'll go for your set card!"

He honestly half-expected it to be a damn Goblin. However, when Yamichi used his face-down, that made an eyebrow raise.

"Trap Card, Open! Kuzutetsu No Kakashi!"

Ohhh? Not a goblin, is it?

If it were, he wouldn't have needed to bother using that trap.

"Interesting. Well, that's it from me, I suppose. Your go!"
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Misty stopped, pressing an invisible 'rewind' button ... and cursed lowly as she realized he was right. "Hardly!" she protested. "We're all allowed a free mistake, yes? I haven't used mine yet, so there. Free proverbial 'fuck-up coupon' gone."

Clearing her throat, she fought her own urge - namely for her face to turn bright red in embarrassment.

"Fair enough," Misty almost hastily agreed, glad to be talking about anything but her mortifying error. "Besides, this match should give us enough time to return to him in a more ... tolerable mood. And both of these two have had a lot of hype surrounding them. I wanna better see for myself why."

Bad start for the Scrap boy? she wondered, noting the difference between the duelists' starting hands. One very much on the defensive while one was on the offensive from the get-go. Usually, both were pretty capable of starting with attacking their opponent.

Ah well. Yamichi - as the MC introduced - had also proven he could make turnarounds. And the duel had literally just started. Time would tell how this would or wouldn't go.
 

As the Duel progressed, Rex would watch on; even with only two Signers moving forward, at the very least this was ensuring that Jack would get a proper challenge. "Well Jack...I daresay no matter who you face, you're going to get a run for your money. Should be fun for the fans to see such a fantastic match-up."

Jack just nodded, watching as Takeshi would hammer his opponent's Life one hit after another...All the while keeping his own thoughts about what Fayth and Yusei had said to him secret. Thinking back, Goodwin had done some things - more than a few and more than either of them knew about - that he should have questioned more. Was he trustworthy, despite having helped him out so much?
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Yamichi cringed as Takeshi would go on the offensive; he knew this would be a hard match, but he was hoping that he could out for a little bit. Even with his Trap, he was having considerable difficulty believing he could hold out for long. Takeshi was already building a mounting offensive. It wasn't long before Yamichi was staring at an empty field, himself then staring down the eyes of Flame God, a monster boasting an impressive stat of 3500 Attack Points.

The tech knew this wasn't going to end well for him, try as he might. The only damage he managed to inflict was when he triggered Scrap Rage after his friend used Breakthrough Skill to negate his Goblin's battle immunity, but even then it was only a 700 point ding in his life. And in truth, he was kind of feeling like he was letting Takeshi down.

"Oof...Seems like Yamichi had my luck when we last faced off." Judai commented, watching as Takeshi would Synchro Summon once again from the Graveyard to bring out Blade God. And when the game was over, Yamichi's Life hit zero. "AND THERE YOU HAVE IT, FOLKS! WE'VE FOUND OUR LAST SEMI-FINALIST! AND DESPITE A FEW HICCUPS, THIS HAS BEEN BY FAR THE MOST EXHILARATING TOURNAMENT I'VE EVER HOSTED! GIVE THEM ALL A ROUND OF APPLAUSE, LADIES AND GENTS! THEY DESERVE IT! LET'S GET OUR ROUND 3 CONTESTANTS ON THE STAGE FOR A PROPER SEND-OFF!"

Yamichi pulled up next to Takeshi, taking off his helmet...And wearing a slightly despondent look on his face. "Oi....Bro, what's the matter?" Takeshi would ask, Yamichi shaking his head, "Some match, huh? There was nothing....Sorry, I shouldn't say that; this tournament's had enough sore losers today. You beat me fair and square." Takeshi seemed a bit taken aback, "Yami...Listen. I know you tried, man. And you made it this far...That counts right?"

Yamichi didn't seem to agree at first, but nodded as he climbed off his Runner, "I know, and I should be happy...But I just felt like I didn't give it my all. Usually my deck flows smoother than this....I just didn't feel like I gave you a worthy match is all." It was here that Takeshi would clap on hand on the tech's shoulders, "Bro...Worthy or not, we got to duel. Remember how many times you destroyed me back home? And look....People here still think you're a grade-A badass. You just had a run of bad luck, that was it."

Yusei would take his approach as well, having "Takeshi...Seems like I'll be extra careful. And Yamichi? He's right; and from what I've seen, that's not an easy deck to use. The fact that you made it this far is commendable. You should be proud of what you accomplished."
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It was so fun seeing a hardcase like Misty all up in aflutter because she'd embarrassed herself, that Kiryu was almost tempted to push it further. But he knew better than to keep at it, so - for now - he would let it go.

Just at that moment though, Demak of all people came through the door. "You could have knocked, you know...What if me and the lovely Miss Lola weren't decent? Or were you hoping to see some action?" Kiryu said with a slight scowl, Rutger wearing quite a sour expression but ignoring the remark. "Well? Any things your little get-together has shown us?" Kiryu just shrugged, "Sorry...Still trying to think of a plan to get them all separated. Only thing I did see was that little Faythie's got herself two guard dogs now. If we're going to get to her, we're going to need to split them up."

Well...At least he wasn't obsessing over Yusei, "That still doesn't explain why you feel the need to watch this; Rutger will not tolerate your dallying about much longer, boy. Our mission is too important to..." "To have me screwing around and obsessing, blah blah yakity-yak, I get it. Sheesh....Maybe the boss oughta get a leash for you...Or a muzzle."

Demak's eyebrow twitched, Kiryu's attention turned right back to the television as he would watch the rest of the Duel. "Ouch...That Scrap loser's getting pounded. Must have been dumb luck he got through. Guess all that talk about this Yamichi kid was just that, eh? What a fucking let-down; all he could do was Set the whole time. Should have just stayed in bed, dweeb, hahaha."

However, his attitude then shifted slightly as Takeshi would continue to Synchro Summon. "Hmmm....Now this Takeshi guy on the other hand. He's a strong one; in fact, almost all of his victories have been crushing ones so far." A wicked grin split his lips, "I think we can use him....If we have a guy like that on our side, maybe we can send him after Fayth. What do you guys think, eh?"

Demak had joined in watching, trying to see what was so damn interesting...But the boy was right. This 'Takeshi Yamaguchi', he could prove a very valuable asset indeed. And it would help with the balance of power against the Signers. In fact...He already knew of how to amplify the boy's strength. "I will speak with Lord Rutger about this...Perhaps he will finally forgive you both for your error in the Takeda matter."
 
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With Yusei having taken his usual spot beside her, it was easy for Fayth to hook her arm around his. She'd wait for his lead, standing when he did so, and began to head up to the stage.

Ling, meanwhile, would take a few moments to wait. She'd let Takeshi finish first talking to Yamichi before hugging her boyfriend. "Oi. Get rid of that look. It doesn't suit you. And if I had to be perfectly honest? I would have rather had our rematch in a more ... relaxed seeting. This is anything but that, you know?"

Her hands gently rubbed up and down his back, looking right into his eyes with a serious look.

"You did damn well, you know? And hell, you secured first place when gaining your ticket here. That wasn't a fluke. So don't stay depressed. I knew from the moment the match-ups were revealed you'd be in one of the toughest fights yet. I'm sure you did too. If nothing else? You didn't just win that selection tournament ... "

Her lips moved beside his ear, a sly grin replacing her more stoic expression as she whispered, "You won me too, one could say .... "

Ling would move her lips away, looking back into Yamichi's eyes. "So cheer up, okay? I'll be back soon." Somewhat begrudgingly, Ling pulled away from the embrace and joined Takeshi, Celeste - it was whom everyone else knew her as, for now - and Yusei up at the center of the stadium, where the dueling platform was.
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Misty's head would whip around, eyes narrowing furiously as her door suddenly opened. Her arms went over her chest, scoffing at the jest of being indecent. "On a serious note, Demak-san, this is my place. For that, I would have appreciated you not just storming in here. If it had been anyone else ... things could have gotten very ugly."

Her head quickly shook as Kiryu began berating Yamichi's performance. "No. I think the talk was accurate. This was simply not meant to be, hence all the dead-draws."

And when Kiryu offered his idea, her head tilted. It was definitely a good idea. Risky .... but it could work.

"My main concern ... is we only saw the matches. We didn't see any of the talks or ongoing happenings away from the track. So we don't even know if Fayth trusts him; however ... I do have an idea on how to find that out. It'll probably have to wait until the tournament ends, but, if it goes well enough, I can kill two birds with one stone. Get the answer to your question and bring him back for our uses. his plan, however, will strictly require a woman's touch, as it were. So I'll need to do this alone."

Of course, that was much more directed at Kiryu than Demak. Simply informing the latter, while being stern with the former and usually assigned partner.
 

With the Finalists now taking their places, Goodwin himself looked down upon them with a smile. Such a strong set of Duelists; if both Signers could be sufficiently pushed and one of them made it through to the Finals, this plan would move MUCH smoother. "Very nice....Jack, what do you think?" the Director then asked, Atlas replying "I'll only know for sure once I actually duel them. Speculation will get us nowhere."

The Director just chuckled, "Of course; ever the action-taker. But...In regards to Miss Milner. Jack, I might ask you keep an eye on her as well. I spoke with Un earlier; she had foretold a dark shadow hanging over her. Something watching upon her from beyond. I don't know who else might know of her status, but we need to be careful. Especially now, when everything is so close." Jack rose an eyebrow; why would he think to ask Un about something like that? She was the type to mostly answer pointed questions, sure...But even that seemed a little certain for her usual practice.

But...If Goodwin was right - and he eerily was, about a lot of things - then perhaps it would be worth to be around her. "Well...She's not going to be expecting me to be near her. How would I even approach her? She's not the type to like being followed." Goodwin nodded, "Well...You two are in an odd spot. So, tell her that Mukuro escaped custody; that ought to help you stay close to her. And much as I'm sure Yusei can help...Just feels better to have as many of you together as possible." Jack's eyes narrowed, "You know I'm not fond of lying."

Goodwin shrugged, "Then don't use it. You'll figure something out. Just...Try to keep yourself safe as well? This plan falls apart without you, Jack." Bidding the Director Farewell, the blonde man then made his way out of Goodwin's office. There were a few things he had to find out more about.
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Yamichi knew better than to act like this...But he also wanted to give his friend a worthy match, and that was the real reason he wasn't happier for him. It just felt like his deck handed Takeshi the win, especially he knew it was capable of doing so much more. Even so, he did hug his girlfriend when she would do so herself; it was true, really. What she said.

"I know, Ling, I know....It was just disappoint in myself really. But...Thank you. I do feel better." And with that, she was gone to be with the others on the center platform. Joining in the thunderous applause as their names and pictures would be played across the jumbo screens. "LOOK AT THOSE HANDSOME FACES, FOLKS! THIS IS OUR SEMI-FINALS CREW! EACH OF YOU HAS SHOWN SUCH SKILL AND VALOR IN DUELING! AND TO YOU, ALL YOU LOVELY PEOPLE IN THE AUDIENCE AND AT HOME! THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE TO CHEER THEM ON! THANK YOU TO BEING PART OF WHAT MAKES DUELING GREAT! UNTIL TOMORROW, I'M YOUR MC, SIGNING OFF!"

Once everyone was situated and off the stage, Fayth would be following Yusei before another voice intervened, "Yusei, Celeste..." Yusei would turn to see Jack standing off to his left, the two staring each other down. "You've gotten stronger since I saw you last. Both of you...Congratulations are in order." Jack would say, Yusei replying "Thank you...But this tournament isn't over yet." Jack was silent for a moment, then asked, "Apologies, Yusei....But can I speak to Celeste? Alone, please?"
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"Well, any plan will have to wait until the tournament ends; unless you feel like pulling an Aki and abducting a Duelist right in the middle of a packed stadium. Be kind of awesome to see you do it though." Kiryu grinned, Demak glaring at him with contempt. "Boy, you are lucky the insights that have worked out have accelerated our plans, else Lord Rutger would see you strung up for your insolence."

"Oh? Going to put on the ol' feminine charm, are ya?" Kiryu then said; and with Misty still sitting down she would find his head in her lap. Eyes staring right into her own with a wicked grin. "Any man that lies eyes on you would have to be blind, dumb or gay to resist you. But I'm going to assume the 'one-woman act' isn't up for negotiation?" At this point, anyone with sense would see he was just continuing to tease Misty for his own personal amusement, even if when push came to shove he would step in to help her without a second thought.

"Well...Looks like it is over. Now let us go, the both of you; Rutger has some ideas about how we can proceed." Demak grunted, Kiryu saying "Man, I was just getting comfortable too. Well...You heard the guard dog. Fun's over, back to work."
 
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Both Ling - and even Fayth - would allow themselves to smile. This was a hell of a spotlight to bask in, and each had earned their right to stand proudly up there. Neither were the normally vain type of woman. But for their fifteen seconds? Sure. They could allow themselves to be selfish, even if just a bit.

"So .... I'll see you guys back at the hotel?" Ling inquired.

"Mhm, definitely. I'm exhausted. I may just get a bath done in the morning .... depends."

"That actually sounds good. I may sneak a bath in before you return."

"By all means, go for it. See you soon!"

And as she kept her arm linked around Yusei's, her words she'd uttered mere seconds ago felt as if they would definitely come to an abrupt, grinding halt. More so as Jack's familiar voice hinted he wanted to speak with her alone. Certainly not expected. Well, not completely, rather. Sure, they now had a history of sorts. But in all honesty, Fayth had half-expected him to want to talk to Yusei. They'd been together longer ... wouldn't there be more to speak of?

Ah well.

"I'll .... I'll be fine, Yusei. I'd be lying to say I didn't have some stuff to talk to Jack about myself, so ... maybe getting that out of the way now would be better. Don't wait for me; but do tell the others I'm sorry and I'll give them all a rain-check later."

Even if Yusei wouldn't get it, he'd likely be filled on the talks that occurred during his own duel.

Fayth took a slight breath, slowly letting go of Yusei's sleeve before taking three slow steps forward, using Jack's voice as a guide. Her head lifted ... and only after she heard Yusei's footfalls become faint enough did she ask, "Is this .... anything involving what we started speaking about back in the medical tent? Or ... ??"
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Misty rolled her eyes, scoffing. "Please. Don't even compare me to that .... that ..... urgh! No, boy .... just no. I've go more brains than that bitch. I also don't have some wild-haired prick ordering me around. No, I - we, technically - have a leader with much more common sense than Divine will ever possess. No, no. The soonest would be like ... now. But then, it'd probably be weird for a reporter or fan girl to just suddenly show up so ... agreed. After it's all over would be easier."

A low 'Hmph' followed by the sight of Misty's head shaking no would be his reply for the next inquiry.

"Nope. The only way it'd be up for negotiation is if you agreed to look like a woman. But - no offense - you would not be able to pull it off. Nor enjoy it."

Misty was already up on her feet. Demak's presence all but spelled out his next order; to leave. So she was ready by the time Demak officially declared his words.

" .... When did we ever stop working, Kiryu? This was sill recon. A more fun version, yes, but recon all the same. Come now .... "

As she stepped foot outside, her appearance would alter. Unlike Kiryu, she wasn't fond of gathering unwanted attention. Thus, the robes would vanish, replaced with more appropriate attire for a typical civilian.
 
While Jack did want to talk with Yusei, that was regarding another matter entirely and could wait in his eyes. Their score would likely be settled in a Duel regardless, so words would have little to no consequence. And when she would tell Yusei not to wait up for her, he internally let out a sigh of relief. What he wanted to talk about was indeed what they had discussed in the medical tent; and to be honest, he wished for the conversation to be more private.

"To answer your question...Yes. I was wondering if we could perhaps discuss this somewhere more secluded, however. There are some things that I would like clarified myself...If it's not too much trouble, can we go back to your studio?" he would then ask.


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Moments later, Jack would pull up on his own Runner alongside Fayth's; he didn't have to worry about it being stolen, since he had a specialized tracker hidden deep within the chassis that very few were likely to know how to remove.

Besides...This was for the best. It was already looking suspicious to have the Duel King talking to a Fortune Cup contestant, but given that she was hard of sight he could argue that he was doing a good deed and helping her get back home. Granted, he was more than fortunate that no one was really around to ask, and that he'd avoided some of the flash mobs that seemed to lurk around every corner.

"Thank you...Apologies again for the intrusion." Jack would say, taking a seat in the living room. Where to begin though; he had asked about why they would want to invade. From what it seemed like, they had most everything they could ever need. But....If the role was simply to conquer, then was the desire really relevant? Some people just could not stand things being outside their control...A mentality he was all too familiar with.

"So...Before Bommer's little stunt, I believe you were about to explain some of the things in this 'other dimension'. Who exactly is planning to attack here? What could they gain by trying to ally themselves with anyone if they're such a tyrannical force? The only real 'evil people'..." And he used as much sarcasm and even air quotes, despite the woman beside him not able to see it, to evidence his displeasure with the common labels the media associated with the people of the island community, "Are the gang leaders in the Satellite. And they're not what you called an organized bunch...Save for maybe that Fiend character."

Waving his hand off at the subject he would then change topic back to his original inquiry, "Regardless...I suppose I'm most confused about these other summoning methods and their intentions."
 

Fayth would offer Jack a quick, affirmative nod, "Yeah. Definitely more private. I only risked talking with you about these things in the tent because I made certain we were alone. Otherwise, that discussion would have waited for a more appropriate time. In truth ... there was more I wanted to bring up, but we got interrupted. Plus, a lot of other stuff was already going on, so .... anyway. Yeah."

With the two using their respective Wheelers, Fayth and Jack would arrive at Miss Milner's studio a bit under ten minutes later.

After removing her visor and parking her ride away, allowing Jack and herself to use the garage, she'd lead Jack inside, stopping in the living room.

A soft giggle passed Fayth's lips as Jack apologized and even referred to the visit as an 'intrusion'.

"Hardly what I'd deem this, but no worries either way. If you don't mind .... I actually wanna get the shorter and simpler-to-explain bit of news out of the way. You still may wanna actually sit for this one. It is a big deal, all things considered."

Regardless of whether he took the offer or not, Fayth would begin talking after a few moments.

"First and foremost, I'm trusting you won't relay this to Goodwin. That's a good reason I'm even telling you this. After all she's done for me, I refuse to put her in danger. Yuna - one of the few people who helped look over me during my stay at the Facility - took time and a risk in coming to find me yesterday. After the first round ended, obviously. I suppose me and Yusei, since he was escorting me back ... "

Waving the technicality - and a hand through the air - aside, she resumed.

"Anyway ... she informed me .... Kiryu's been revived. Somehow. She didn't quite figure the 'how' part out either. But she .... well, she showed me and Yusei her memories. It was indeed Kiryu."

Her eyebrows furrowed as she briefly bit ontto her lower lip.

"There's no generous way to say it .... but he really fucked her up. And he isn't alone. Apparently, there have been a few other individuals - some Misty woman and another unknown male we saw - that tried to help Kiryu with his interrogation. On my location ... or any of us Signers, for that matter. For all of our sakes and her own comrades .... she held out. Didn't give Kiryu any names or answers."

Fayth slowly shook her head.

"Fuck if I know how. With all he made her suffer through ..... I wouldn't have blamed her at all. She's .... strong in that regard. Kinda envy her, truthfully. I couldn't do that, definitely not for two damn weeks. So at the end of it all? They left her for dead, but not before muting her. She ... had to bring one of her friends to even share this information via telepathy, in fact. Otherwise .... we never would have gotten the warning to begin with."

If only because she didn't have the full details on how Yuna obtained her power, she opted to keep that hidden. It'd be something she couldn't explain, and that wasn't what Fayth was going for. She was giving Jack more answers. Granted, there'd likely be some questions, but at least she could answer them; or so she felt confident about that.

"So first and foremost, no, I have no idea how her companion can do telepathy. Nor did Yuna explain that to me. So, aside from that, feel free to ask anything else about this. Last but not least ... want anything to eat or drink? This is gonna take a while to explain everything, especially about Academia. I'm probably gonna have to get a hold of Reiji since he has much more knowledge on that place than myself."
 
Even if it wasn't an intrusion...He was still in someone else's home. An odd sensation, for certain; normally he would be rewatching videos of the last Duels. Looking over the various strategies of how the winners came to be where they were. And with today's round of Duels...Any one of them could go on to face him in the Title Match tomorrow.

But that was neither here nor there. There were some things he had to figure out.

"What is said in here stays between you and me. Promise." he would say; he'd come this far, and it would do him little good to betray her trust. Especially since, like Kiryu and Yusei, she knew he was from the Satellite. That was one thing Goodwin also was unaware she had knowledge of, and he had no intention of divulging that detail. He had a feeling Yusei wouldn't stoop as low as Kiryu.

Speaking of which....She would practically the surprise from him as she mentioned Kiryu being revived. Okay, the whole talk with destiny and summoning the Crimson Dragon? Recent events had him easily believe that. But from what she'd told him, he'd thrown himself into the depths of the ocean...And didn't re-emerge. All the same, with everything he'd seen...Was it truly impossible he'd somehow been resurrected? Even so, he couldn't help but wonder if this was an omen of the evil Goodwin had talked about. "Normally...I would dismiss *that* as you hallucinating or something...But recent circumstances have shown there is much I still don't fully know or understand."

So rather than dismissing it, Jack would reply "And come to think of it...Something's been feeling off lately. My Sign...this Mark. It's been burning worse than usual each time it activates. When Yusei's went off, I just about went down on my knees. I can only imagine it's reacting because the Crimson Dragon is about to be called." Of course, he had no real idea what would make it do that...But it made as much sense as everything else he'd heard. It made him wonder if Kiryu was in fact part of it. There was a reason he'd split from Team Satisfaction, after all; Kiryu had gone entirely too far on too many occasions to want to stick around, and he had his own dreams he wanted to pursue.

"Yuna...Was it by chance the same Yuna I saw on trial? The same one who overtook the Facility with the Fiend?" he then asked, wanting to change; she had gone after the woman in the trial, and she'd been mentioned before, albeit not by name. "Well...If her treatment was as bad as you say, she's indeed quite strong. I'll have to thank her if I see her...At the very least, for helping you to survive the Facility."

When she offered refreshment, he would only ask for water; this wasn't a real social call, per se, and she'd done enough by granting his request for privacy. He didn't bother pushing the telepathy thing; how she got the information was ultimately irrelevant. He just needed to know how to prepare for a potentially brewing storm. "Reiji though...He sounds like a very important man to you. To everyone who's against this...Academia organization. And if he can help with any insight on what to expect...Well, it will definitely be appreciated."
 

"Thank you. Truly. Because ... she is on Goodwin's shit list, more likely than not. Even though she can hold her own more than fine ... I just don't want to become a factor that somehow gets her in trouble with him."

The moment she heard Jack's reply of wanting water, Fayth would vanish into the kitchen, soon returning with two bottles. One would be handed to the King while she sat down beside him. She started to unscrew her cap, taking note of his reactions. A small smirk spread over her face. "Yeah. This all does sound insane. But ... I'm basically in the same boat as you. I've felt and endured far too much. Plus ... she showed those memories to us. I can't envision Yuna as a liar, particularly with how blunt she was during her 'trial'."

When he brought up his own Sign had acted up, Fayth's hand stopped. She went over the flashbacks .... and slowly set her own bottle down before daring to drop it altogether.

"It never clicked until now .... but .... whoever Kiryu's with, they have their own marks. That's how they muted Yuna. The unknown male I mentioned ... a purple spider emerged from his own mark on his arm and bit her in her vocal chords. So .... is that why mine ... ??"

Lovely. Fucking lovely. These revelations were getting more and more beautiful with each passing second.

As if, Fayth bitterly thought, 'rolling' her eyes - or making hte motions as if she could - under her blindfold before sighing.

"Well ... it'd make sense. My own didn't stop until Yusei's fight ended. So when ours go off ... theirs do also? I guess?"

Another pause ... followed by yet another recollecttion of something hinted.

" ... Yuna did say something about an Immortal helping give Kiryu powers. But .... I don't really get what that meant. It felt ... unnatural, though. When she encountered him again .... " Her head bowed slightly as she tried to figure a way to explain what she saw. "It was like ... something made her slower to react. But it wasn't Kiryu himself."

Her head shook slightly.

"Unfortunately, that's one of the other things I didn't really comprehend .... nor did she too much."

Which was true, and not just another reason to keep the fact Yuna had her own 'powers' concealed. Although .... no. If she didn't have the full details, no sense in bringing up more baffling news. That had been what Fayth decided, and what she'd stick with.

"Anyway, as far as Kiryu goes ... I can only assume he's been hiding somewhere in the shadows, trying to figure something out. I'm not sure if he's even in the Tops or not. I'm almost certain that's where they held Yuna though."

Fayth would give Jack another affirmative nod, quickly adding, "Yes. She is the same who overtook the Facility with the Fiend. Yuna Takeda, they said when addressing her full name in trial, I believe."

Now that Fayth had calmed herself enough to at least keep from having another panic attack with all of these epiphanies, she reached forward, grabbing her water bottle, and finally taking a long sip of the cool liquid.

"He is very important, yes," she answered, a genuine smile on her face as the bottle was set back down. "Truthfully, Reiji seems like more of the CEO of our school than the actual chairwoman. He's in charge of the primary soldiers - the Lancers, as they're called. They're the front-liners fighting for LDS and the dimensions at the moment. I'm .... like an unofficial one. I help out, though I don't yet possess such a rank. Like how I came here to deliver my message and warning in the first place."

Her fingers lightly tapped atop her jeans as she tried to conjure anymore information about Academia .... and shook her head.

"It's not that I don't know anything. But he'll explain it much better than me. Okay then ..... "

Taking a slight breath, Fayth leaned back against the couch, placing her left arm across her lap as she activated the phone function on her duel disk.

"Ah, Fayth. Got an update or some -- ??"

The same silver-haired man wearing red-rimmed glasses would appear, only ceasing upon noting who was beside Fayth.

"Oh? I didn't think you were going to have company aside from Fuyu. Well then, Atlas-san, nice to meet you again on more pleasant terms. May I ask if you're part of the reason Fayth called me up in the first place? Mind you," he added, pushing his glasses up, "I'm not going to be mad or anything. I just wasn't expecting to hear from her this soon ... so I can only surmise you're somehow part of the equation."

"Sorry, Jack ... he can get really technical like that."

Fayth would feel Reiji merely smirk in response, waiting patiently to hear a verbal response back.
 
"That's the only thing that makes sense; it must be a way for the Crimson Dragon to tell that one of those that bears its mark is in trouble or something. Last it activated was when Shimoda managed to revive Despair God, after all." he would say, stopping when Fayth revealed that Kiryu had his own 'mark'. And not just him apparently; there were others?

Now that was curious; more and more, it was seeming like Kiryu was part of this group, and the timing was making it far too obvious that they were part of this 'evil' that might come. Especially as she went on to describe something called 'Immortals'; were they the driving force of Kiryu's new 'friends'? It would make sense, especially if they had similar marks to his. Regardless...Kiryu, impulsive as he was, was likely as Fayth said: Hiding in the shadows, waiting for...whenever...to come out.

He would need to talk to Goodwin, unfortunately, if he wanted any more information on the subject; it had seemed the man was hiding something from him. And he knew how to word to keep Fayth out of the equation in regards to her origins. The man knew she and Takeda had shared a cell; he could use that as a basis for his questions. After all, even Yusei had confirmed that someone inside the Facility told them the story. He could relay that fact to him, and he wouldn't be any the wiser.

And when she would contact Reiji once more, he was greeted by the same face that had confronted him when Fayth was imprisoned. "Likewise. Better we meet this way...Less, well, emotionally involved." he would say, replying as he inquired about Fayth, "She spoke quite highly of you, so yes, I asked for your insight into something."

Reiji raised an eyebrow; how strange, he thought. The Pendulum variant hardly ever asked for assistance, let alone his own. "Well, I'll see what I can do to help...But my experiences in the Synchro Dimension are very limited." the man would say, Jack shaking his head, "No...I'd like to know more about Academia. Their leader, what they want and who they are." Reiji smiled, "That...isn't what I was expecting to hear, but I'm glad. It's best we do let you know as much as possible."

"First...What exactly is Academia?" Jack asked, Reiji stating "Before it was corrupted, it was exactly as it sounds: It was a Dueling School, much like the Queen's Academy in your dimension. They still offer classes and such, but it's been effectively militarized. Now it's a front for the Professor's plan. Anyone who doesn't serve them blindly is either imprisoned or turned into a card." Jack stiffened a little; so that was something else that Fayth had been truthful on. "I don't understand...What do they gain by doing that? What is this plan of theirs."

Reiji pushed up his glasses, "So far as I can tell? Control, and a lot of it. Almost all of us who aren't opposing them directly are too afraid of them to do so...Not that I blame them. The people my father has recruit..." It was here that Reiji paused, now taking his turn - for the first time in a VERY long while - to have his cheeks tinge pink as he would stop his speech. "Wait...You're fighting your own father? What kind of man puts his own family in peril?"

Reiji let out a slight cough, replying after then letting out a small sigh, "Well...I've been wondering that myself...." Jack looked away, "Apologies...I didn't mean to offend..." Reiji shook his head, "No, you're right; something's changed with him. He wasn't like this...Not before. I can tell you all about Academia itself...But I'm afraid when it comes to their true intent, I'm at a loss. Their senior officers are far too strong and well-defended for us to get to easily."
 

"Probably. Most of the times mine's activated has been during some dangerous situation, regardless of whether that included a duel or not. That's a guess I've had about my mark for a while now, really. Hearing you think the same is a bit reassuring. Means the theory isn't as crazy as it originally sounded in my head."

A faint smirk spread over her lips and, finally, she'd go quiet upon Reiji's voice. Since this was primarily for Jack, she would keep silent.

That had been her intention at first, anyway.

When she heard a confession that she never assumed to ever hear, however, her eyelids rapidly blinked. "W-Wait a second. Everything we've been doing ... it's .... against your .... your otou-san?"

How was he not furious with her?

Apparently, because something had made him ... different. A truth which made her sigh softly in relief. Good. That made this revelation much less awkward to hear. Her head quickly nodded as Fayth internally opted not to apologize like she'd originally planned.

"Unfortunately, Reiji's right about their higher-ups. I already told you back at the tent, but it was one of them who ... incapacitated me. And he was smart enough not to be alone, so ... the same is gonna apply to the rest. I think though, Reiji, just better explaining Academia will be a good start. And your history with them is ... much more extensive than mine. So that's why I'm letting you explain this more. I still have ... visuals to use if Jack wants to see how they operate and such, but that can wait. It seemed smarter to use the verbal explanation first."
 
"Afraid so, Fayth...Apologies that I didn't inform you earlier, but I didn't want to distract you from the mission at hand." Reiji would say, Jack adding "That seems a fairly crucial piece of information." Reiji nodded, "While I agree, I also didn't want anyone to think that I was going to hold back when facing him or that he was somehow using me to quell any opposition to his goals...Which, leads me to my next point."

Reiji let out a small huff, pushing his glasses up once more, "I'm afraid there was one other matter that I haven't been entirely truthful on. I only told people here recently...But the truth is, I know the reason my father is doing what he does. Or at least what he's trying to do..." Jack raised an eyebrow, "But before you said..."

Reiji held a hand, "I said that I didn't know the full extent of his plan...But I know the reason he's trying so hard to get rid of people who want to stop him. The truth is...I have a sister. Younger, but a sister all the same. She was lost to the void between dimensions after a lab accident...Back when Leo was more...passionate about his work. About exploring the dimensions just to garner more knowledge; before all of this, he was actually a staunch advocate of keeping them undisturbed."

Taking a moment to pause, he would continue, "But...I think losing her unseated his sanity a bit. And...To be completely honest, I don't believe he wants to merge them all the way. Just get them close enough to where her body can rematerialize and he can get her back."

Jack crossed his arms, "And what's wrong with that?" Reiji stared at the man and responded, "That's like asking why two planets can't exist within a certain limit of each other. If the dimensions are allowed to get too close, they'll form rips within each other. Things from one will bleed into another and vice-versa, causing destruction on an unimaginable scale. That's the danger I tried to warn him about, but...As you can see, his actions have shown that he is overly confident in his ability to keep it from happening."

Atlas would pause, sitting back in the seat as he tried to process the information, a finger tapping against his knee before he would then ask, "That doesn't explain why Academia would go after people though." Reiji then added, "Actually....It's exactly the reason why they would. I don't fully understand how it works, but by 'carding' individuals, he can use their life energy to form a stable nexus without the need for physical restraints. A point of stability in the chaos between worlds, as it were."

Reiji would then look at Jack more pointedly, "It's also a reason I sent Fayth over as well; we have reason to believe that one of their agents is within every dimension so far. Even yours, Atlas-san."
 

.... Well, damn. Seems the Akaba family - in particular, at least - had more skeletons in their clsoet than anyone would have assumed.

The reveal about Reiji's own father being behind everything the Academia was doing had been a shock. But now to learn he had another sibling?

"So ... you have Reira-kun plus this another younger sister?"

I mean, I guess I kinda get the secrecy, but ... still ....

She couldn't lie, a small part of her was irked. Reiji knew pretty much everything about every single student in LDS. Naturally, this did include herself, and thus her own past she had worked on trying to forget. Even though steps were being taken to succeed in that endeavor, there seemed to be new ghosts - some literal in their own regards - attempting to haunt her. From Mukuro to Kiryu and then just the simple fact she may never be able to return back to the Pendulum Dimension.

There was, luckily, one saving grace, and it came in hearing Reiji had only started telling others about his other sibling. It made her feel less betrayed to know so many others had been kept in the dark.

When Jack asked what was wrong with not wanting to align the dimensions so close together, Fayth's head turned, wearing raised eyebrows.

"Jack ... I admit I'm no genius in this whole physics and dimension talk. But ... let me put it this way. Remember when I first showed you my XYZ cards. I didn't only avoid playing them because I didn't have the prerequisites to do so. This is the Synchro dimension. If I tempted fates by introducing something foreign - goodness, something that shouldn't exist - to this world, what do you think would happen? Probably nothing good. It's very much similar to the same concept of having two different places attempt to coexist, more so if they shouldn't do so in the first place."

Well, damn. That actually made her sound and feel like her IQ went up about ten to twenty points. Not that it was god-awful to begin with, but ... hey, an ego boost now and again wasn't too bad.

The good mood, unfortunately, didn't last long as Reiji revealed something she did not want to hear. A frustrated groan passed her lips as the news about an agent may be in the Synchro Dimension.

"Goddamnit," she muttered under her breath, rubbing her forehead, "Any chance we can narrow that down somehow, Reiji? I already got others here looking for me. Also in a non-friendly way and .... shit."

That was when a new thought came to her mind; one that made her eyebrows narrow.

"Does that mean that little brat Sora gave these agents my name? I haven't gone openly against Academia many times. He'd be one of the few who even could assume I teleported away to here."

As if she didn't already want revenge against that prick for blinding her. Her blood was actually starting to boil just from the mere thought. Any mercy she would have maybe possessed was beginning to steadily vanish.

Ultimately, though, the end verdict would be determined on what Reiji thought about her inquiry.
 
He imagined Fayth was more than a little upset...But unfortunately, keeping that part of his history a secret was a necessary evil. He only figured now would be a best time, since they were starting to ask questions; thankfully, Reira herself had stepped up and helped vouch that her brother wasn't someone who would sell them out. He wouldn't...And in truth he couldn't; Leo needed to be stopped. Much as he would like to meet this sister of his himself, a fact that the Professor had tried to leverage against him but failed...

The cost to do so wasn't worth it...Nor were the risks involved. Not right now; maybe at some point, they could find a way to rescue her from the interstice. One without the need for countless human sacrifices and potentially destroying all of reality.

However, her next question would serve to bring him back to reality himself, "I've been working on that. And sadly, no such luck; whoever they are must be high up in Academia's echelons of soldiers." A brow raised as she then inquired if Sora gave them her name, but after readjusting his glasses once more, he would reply, "I don't entirely know for certain, Fayth; so far my digging has yet to reveal that you've been exposed. Given that we found this out recently...I would say assume your identity's been compromised. We're still trying to find someone who can get over and repair your disk enough to send you back...But Academia's starting to launch offensives more frequently now, and the techs we do have are short on time."

It was here that Jack would step up though, and say "If the situation is bad as you say....How long would it take to repair her disk if she's in that much danger?" Reiji shook his head, "Too long; not to mention getting the network ready itself is a feat." Jack then surprised everyone by slamming his hand on the table, "Bullshit! If a friend is danger, you do nothing but work your ass off to get them back! What about right now? You're telling me you can't spare someone, if you have time to talk to her!?"

Reiji was definitely stunned by the sudden outburst, but took a small breath and replied, "Atlas...You have no idea about the scale of the conflict here. The you here, your Pendulum self, is on the front lines as well. Fighting against Academia as we speak. Even without Tyrant Red Daemon's Dragon at his side, he is holding his own but the constant fighting is running him down. Believe me, I would sleep so much better to have Fayth back here with us...But our resources are stretched so thin you can't even imagine it."

Both men were silent for a few moments...Only for Jack to break it once more, "Then...If it's alright with Fayth, and she has been located by the one who blinded her...She can stay with me. As she mentioned, there are others - very dangerous people - looking for her as well. I have a place of my own, with room to spare. Fuyu can also join, if she feels so inclined." Reiji raised a brow in surprise; well, this wasn't a development he was expecting to see. "If it's truly not too much of a hindrance....I would be grateful indeed. However...The ultimate decision lies with you, Fayth."
 

Fayth couldn't do much more than sigh upon hearing her identity may have been compromised. So ... not only did she have to worry about Kiryu and possibly even Mukuro, but even more unknown names and faces?

Fuck today.

It had been so goddamn emotional and, honestly? Every decent thing - such as her victory against said prick Mukuro - was feeling less and less significant.

"I understand," she replied in a soft, defeated tone.

Poor Fayth jumped slightly as Jack's fists landed on the table. "O-Oi, it's fine. Really. Jack, I'm still in partaking in the Fortune Cup. Even if he got someone over now .... "

Both her hands started to raise and rest on his shoulders ... only for the left to stay put. Otherwise, she would have literally put Reiji in Jack's face, and that wasn't something she imagined Jack would want. So, instead, her right moved, eventually finding Jack's nearest shoulder and lightly gripping it to try to calm him a bit.

Still, Jack wasn't wrong in his outburst. At the same time, it was very reassuring to hear she hadn't been forgotten about. With her lacking an official Lancer rank, it would have been laughably simple for anyone else to do.

Not now!

Not her Sign, thankfully, but something just as annoying. Tears. They were wanting to form yet again. She'd barely held back during Yusei's duel. And Jack had already seen her break down once. She didn't want him to have yet another show Maybe when he left ... but not before then.

Except ... he may not leave alone, as his idea implied?

Her eyebrows widened as she stared towards Jack, clearly not expecting his suggestion at all.

"J-Jack, I .... ummm .... "

Her teeth latched briefly onto her lower lip, nodding afer a few moments.

"I wanna talk to Fuyu about that exact point; if she'd even want to come along or not. I don't really envision her agreeing - mainly just because we are on a lease for this place. It'd likely be easier for her to remain here. But I don't wanna just ... up and leave, least of all with accidentally giving off the wrong impression. She deserves to know she won't have to worry about me if I accept. Assuming that goes well though? Yes."

Was it better or worse that the urge to cry was now being replaced - and fought - by blushing?

It definitely depended on one's point of view. Either way, she didn't want to give into these reactions; definitely not in front of Reiji of all people. He could be as bad as Fuyu in teasing if given the right incentives.
 
He realized that this would come across as very uncharacteristic for him; normally indeed, he wouldn't even think of letting someone else aside from either Goodwin or Mikage stay at his mansion for any extended period of time. All the same, part of her being in this mess was his fault; if she hadn't gotten locked up, she would have never met Kiryu. That wasn't to say he wouldn't target her all the same, but the likelihood of it occurring would have been lower.

So in a way, he was rather responsible for part of her predicament. Maybe not for whatever this 'Sora' was planning for her, but he could at least move her to a more secure location to assist her transitioning here. And...Even if it wasn't to the person he hurt, he could at least not abandon someone in need of help. "If it comes to that...Let her know that I will pay to break the lease, if she so chooses to come along." Jack would say, his tone firm and very articulate about his intent.

Even Reiji, a man Fayth would know to be quite capable of predicting outcomes from hard analysis alone, was left momentarily stunned; how odd. Only recently did their Jack Atlas start showing any measure of compassion for others; was this a result of the bleed between dimensions? Or something else entirely? He wasn't sure of anything in this moment, or whether to be worried or not. All he knew was that this was an inexplicable shift for this dimension's King...And perhaps it was best to leave it at that.

"While I'm sure she would appreciate the generosity, Atlas-san...Nothing needs to be decided right now. As for Sora? If he had found Fayth, he's not exactly the type to sit idly by...No, he would come for her almost immediately if he knew where she was at." Reiji would say, Jack nodding, "I imagine so. All the same, the offer is now on your table, Fayth. Talk over it as much as you like with Fuyu."
 

Fayth had to suppress a 'Hmph' from escaping her lips. Christ, that didn't even start to describe Sora, nor was it even remotely close. She figured Reiji was attempting to be somewhat tame and simultaneously civil. But there was no generous way to speak of Sora. Then again, that was probably just her.

Her fingers lightly began to tap against her lap, waiting to see if Jack had anymore questions. When she failed to hear him speak up, she nodded. Fuyu would likely be home soon anyway. So planning for her return would be a wise start, Fayth supposed. "Well, thanks for everything, Reiji-san."

"Of course. Talk to you three later."

" .... Excuse me?"

As if to answer her question, a frustrated "Fuck you too, Reiji!" made her lift her head up, fingers hastily pushing down to end he call. "Gods! Fuyu! How long have you ... ??"

"Enough. Urgh. He still ruins my surprises. Bastard. Sooooo ..... " Shifting her gaze between Atlas and Fayth several times, icy eyes landed right upon her comrade. Whereas one may have expected anger, there was that annoying, teasing smirk on her face. "Fill me in. Because I'm obviously missing something. I was just simply gonna ask if something happened at the hotel, buuut .... something happened, regardless of where. Soooo ... what's up?"

Fayth just rose her left hand, beginning to rub her forehead. She'd repeated herself so many times already; god, she didn't want to again. But she had promised to at least have this talk with Fuyu, so .... she'd do so.

"Okay. So ... why didn't you answer last night? Let's start there, as it is linked."

"Last night?" Fuyu repeated, clearing her throat after a few moments. "Crap. That's right. I guess I overdid hte sake. Work was more frustrating than usual, so .... I indulged in some. Didn't think I passed out that quick or hard, though."

" .... You drink?!" Fayth repeated, almost horrified.

"It's not an addiction or anything. But ... well, yeah. Hey, I'm legal. It'd be worse if you were. Point, please."

"Well .... I was trying to call you to let you know of some news Yuna told me. Well ..... Kiryu's back."

" .... Back?"

"Revived, to be more specific."

Now Fuyu wore an expression; one where a sttudent appeared to be solving an invisible equation. She even tilted her head up a few ttimes, liftted up several fingers, before shaking her head no. "Fayth, come now. She's go a warped sense of humor. Right? That's legit imp -- "

"Impossible. It should be, yes. But no. No, no joke."

"Soooo .... you told him and Reiji this?" When she saw Fayth tilt her hand, her arms went over her chest. "Just elaborate, please. I don't feel like playing guessing games."

"Well ... they were both told that bit of news, yes. But that was done separately. I informed Reiji last night. Jack wanted to --- "

"So this was something he wanted. Okay. Then if you don't mind, I wanna hear the rest from Jack."
 
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