A/N: There's no actual pairing in this story. Even the 'Master' is genderless. I tried my best to make them never saying the Master's name ovo)9. I hope I make them quite in character. My view on the Volcano Island tower's 201F. That 201F is very creepy for me, and this sudden inspiration hits me X'D. I originally make this in the group chat of my guild. After re-typing it on the laptop, correcting some misspellings and making little changes here and there, here it is! XD Anyways, enjoy, hope you like it. :)

Disclaimer: Ayakashi Ghost Guild isn't mine.

Loneliness

"Dragon King, what's supposed to be beyond those stairs?" Mira asked, as she noticed the set of stairs further at the end of the hallway.

"What stairs? I thought it was only 200 floors…" Dragon King said, obviously confused. He then turns to the Dragon God. "Do you know about this?"

The Dragon God shook his head. "Through experiences from previous generations of Dragon King, a 201st floor never existed."

"Interesting…" Dragon Princess commented. "Mira, doesn't this spark your curiosity?"

Mira looked at the set of stairs and the large door at the end and back to you. She stared at you expectantly, hoping something from you. You sighed, knowing what she wanted.

"Fine, let's go", you said. The 201F actually sparked your interest a bit too. You decided that there isn't any harm investigating it.

"Yay, thank you, Master, I love you!" Mira excitedly said as she tackled you with a hug. You smiled slightly.

"Should we go now then?" King's Sword chirped in.

"Let's go, champion", King's Vestment to the Dragon Princess.

The Dragon Princess nod. Turning to Mira, "Let's go", she said.

"Alright!" Mira said, releasing you from her deadly embrace and follow after the Dragon Princess and her two equipments.

"Be careful." You turned, seeing Dragon King looking at you with a serious gaze. "I have a bad feeling", he said.

You nod.

Dragon King nod back before closing his eyes, shifting back into his card from. 'Use me if you need anything.'

"Thanks", you whispered to his card.

You climbed the set of stairs, Mira, Lucrenzia, Sword, and Vest waiting for you at the top of the stairs, ready to open the door whenever you're ready.

"Ready?" you asked, and they nod simultaneously. You slowly opened the door, a blinding light made you covered your eyes. When the light dimmed, you opened your eyes slowly. What met your eyes was surprising though. The floor, unlike any others, are too fancy, too colorful, too strange, too… distorted. You realized ever since you stepped on the island, that everything is pixelated. This one is the same, but there's just something in this floor that irked you, sending shivers frown your spine. This floor is really too distorted in its own way.

"Master? Are you alright?"

It was when you heard Mira's voice that you realized that you've spaced out. "I'm sorry, what is it?" you asked.

"You've been spacing out ever since you saw this floor. I guess this floor is weird, but, are you alright, Master? Should we just head back?" Mira looked at you worriedly.

"Champion, wait!"

You heard Sword's voice and you immediately followed his field of vision. Dragon Princess has already excitedly ran through the hallway, not quite far yet, beside her, Vest following closely.

"Hurry, this hallway is very long, maybe we can find another stairs at the end of the hallway that can take us to 202F!" she called out, her voice echoing on the vast hallway.

You sighed and forced a smile as you looked at Mira. "It's not an option anymore. We have to move on."

Mira chuckled slightly. "I guess", she said as she followed closely behind you.

It was no joke, the hallway was very long. It seemed endless. Many whining come from Dragon Princess. Sword and Vest tried their best to entertain their champion though. Poor them. At least handling Mira wasn't as hard.

Finally, you reached at what seemed the end of the hallway, another set of stairs and a large door at the top of it. "At last!" Dragon Princess exclaimed as she ran up the stairs.

"Champion!" Sword said as he and Vest hurried to her side.

"I'll open it 'kay?" she asked, looking expectantly at you.

You nod as you slowly climb the stairs.

Dragon Princess opened the door, revealing a what supposed to be the next hallway only it was with the exactly same interior as the hallway you've just passed on.

"Huh?! More walking?! I can't take this anymore!" Dragon Princess pouted as she turned herself to a card form. 'Call me only if you found something interesting', she said. You nod lazily as you stored her card in the set of cards you brought with you.

Sword sighed. "I'm going to rest too", he said, turning back to his card form.

"Good luck", Vest said, following her brother.

You stored both cards. Only you and Mira left.

"Let's continue then", you said to her.

Mira nod. "Alright!"

You and Mira walked through the hallway in silence. It was after walking for a long while, still not a single stair at sight, when you finally decided to break the silence. "Something's weird", you stated plainly.

Mira nod. It surprised you that she actually realizes it, being the usual happy-go-lucky she is. You studied her closely and Mira seemed to be on a full alert mode, ready to turn to her card form, either the anniversary or tower form, whatever deemed needed.

"There is no wandering ghosts at all. We encountered a few in the hallway before."

"Yeah", Mira agreed. "I have a bad feeling about this, Master."

It was after she finished the sentence when Full Frontal Ninja appeared suddenly in front of us with his usual signature laugh.

"Eeeek, wear something, Full Frontal!" Mira exclaimed as soon as she looked at him and involuntarily saw his… 'below'.

"Well, I wouldn't be called Full Frontal if I wear some clothes…" he countered.

"You have a point there", you nod, not one bit bothered by the ninja's nakedness and finding this scene amusing. In fact, in the back of your mind, you felt relieved to encounter some other life finally.

"Besides, having less clothes—"

You looked with wide-eyes when suddenly his form became pixilated, the pixels creeping up from his toes to his head and covering all of him before the pixels suddenly seemed to shatter like glass and disappeared, blown by an unseen force of wind.

"What…"

"Full Frontal…?" Mira nervously asked, hoping for an answer.

"Hey, where did you go?! Aren't you supposed to challenge us again, even after your chain of defeat?!" you looked around, fist clenching beside you. "Don't mess around!" you gritted your teeth. You can't help the fear that suddenly run through you.

The wandering ghost, Full Frontal Ninja has just disappeared, right in front of you.

"Mater?" Mira called out nervously.

You turned to her, the only acknowledgement you give her that you actually heard her.

"Is this… what happened to the other wandering ghosts…? Crabby, Herby, Nautilus, Fellpur… even Ono and Dragon God?" she asked, fear clearly etched on her face.

You looked away, can't stand seeing it. "I hope not", you simply said. Despite that though, deep in your mind, you know that there's a high chance of them getting the same fate as Full Frontal.

You stopped walking after awhile. "Let's go back, Mira", you said, turning back. It was then when you realized, that even Mira was nowhere in sight. You looked around. "Hey, Mira?" you desperately called out to her, fear started to crawl through your whole body, freezing you. "Mira!" you yelled, hoping for an answer. Only your echo answered back though.

You then ran. Ran through where you came before. 'This is just a dream, it's just a dream', you chanted repeatedly in your head. 'I need to go back, back to 200F, back to those blue underground walls, and when I'm finally back, I'm sure they'll all be there, even those wandering ghosts, laughing at me, saying 'You fell for it!' or something of the sort. Please, please, please God.' You kept on running and running. Even when you felt your feet becoming sore, you ignored it and continue to run. Only run and run, hoping that you'll see the familiar door, and a flight of stairs down. You run and run.

Neither come in sight though.

You tripped. Falling to the hard floor of the distorted hallway. It hurts. Your palms hurt from trying to break the fall. Your knees hurt from hitting the floor. Your feet sore from the run. It was then that it came to you.

This isn't a dream. It's real. The disappearances of the wandering ghosts, the disappearances of Mira. It's all real.

You felt tears prickling at your eyes, but you stopped it. No, you won't cry, never. You'll stay strong even until the end. A realization dawned on you as a spark of hope lit up inside you, the cards.

Dragon King, Sword, or Vest can surely help you. Even the Dragon Princess must've been able to help! With that hope slowly growing, you stumbled with the card holder tied beside your waist. You fumbled with the opening and hurriedly open it, hoping to see their images on the card—when your hope was crushed.

There, on your hands, was what supposed to be the Dragon King, the Dragon Princess in her gown, Sword, and Vest 's images, only to find them replaced by a blank of white. You turned, looking at the same seal and ancient word you've seen countless of times ever since you've become a ghost agent imprinted there. The other sight though, the part which was supposed to be the daemons' images, were replaced by a white. A blank white. White, like a paper. It looks like an ordinary card with no images imprinted. You can't feel it's power. It's empty.

You stared at them before grabbing all of the cards inside your card holder. Each and every one of them, scattered all around you, and each and every one of them, empty.

'Where?' you thought desperately. 'Where, where, where? Dragon King, Dragon Princess, Sword, Vest, Tsukuyomi, Amaterasu, Ameno, Pipe Fox, Kotetsu. Where, where?! The twelve zodiac spirits would be fine too, be it Fallen or Pure! Even Kaede or Aboro would be fine! Heck, even Tourmaline, Obsidian, or Crystal would be fine! Anything, just not this blank of white!' you thought desperately, scanning each and every one of these cards.

You numbly took your phone from your pocket, hoping to be able to at least contact the Ghost Guild, only to find your phone dead and can't be turned back on. You searched your bag for the small hand mirror Professor Yata gave you when you visited the guild once. "In case of emergency", he had said.

You felt the design of its case in your hand and you hurriedly pulled it out and open it, hoping to contact the Professor, only to find the mirror shattered. You looked around, the blank cards scattered around you, the endless hallway, all distorted, around you.

You felt alone.

All hopes seemed to have lost for you. You pulled your knees, burying your face in it. You said softly, "I will not cry. I will stay strong throughout the end."

You silently decided, even if you're trapped in this wretched hall without being able to go back, only continuing forward to be stuck in an endless loop of this island's tower. Even if you're doomed to be alone for the rest of your life in this tower. Meeting your end alone in this tower.

"I will not cry."

You silently repeated, with a hope in your heard, that you'll soon wake up from this nightmare.

Because loneliness is humans' worst nightmare isn't they?

~Owari

A/N: I don't even get why I add the "I will not cry" part, it doesn't seem relevant to the whole story but I felt that I just had to add it. I used Full Frontal simply because his the wandering ghost that I can beat… and thus knowing his losing dialogue… in case I need to use it… and besides, I rarely encountered the SWG… and I never encountered Ono, so… yeah. -v-)a I altered the dialogue since it's always the same dialogue no matter how many times you encounter it, and, making it into a story, it's kind of stupid. XD And those cards that turned white, noooo, I don't own them! ;-; I recently acquired Ammie from an SS event, but I don't own Tsukuyomi, Vest, and Sword... orz I wish I got them...

Oh, and, did you like the card mechanisms? XD I certainly do, it's kind of amazing... for me. :')

Anyways, hope you enjoy it, and I hope that it's not too weird. XD On a side note, congrats to those that manage to obtain Ameno Uzume [Snow]. .w.) SS events aren't really my cup of tea and it's kind of awesome that one can obtain 60 of them.. :'D

I need to stop my ramblings and thank you for reading! w

-Kai