Chapter Fourteen
Mirror Shards and Crystal Tears
The Dark Signer's voice spurned my continued movement through Kalin's memories. Moving on!
The scene swapped. Kalin leaned on the side of the dimly lit hall.
"Welcome back," he said with a smirk. Misty trudged past him. "Heh, what happened out there to get you so worked up?"
"I don't want to talk about it." Her voice was grave and ferocious, the same as when I'd first met her.
"Oh, come on…" Kalin trailed after her. "I'm guessing things didn't go well with Akiza?"
"She was this close to dying. Twice. First the duel couldn't be finished because the building started falling apart, and next she would have been crushed if your little girlfriend hadn't bailed her out!"
Kalin froze. "She… what?"
"She pushed Akiza out of the way. Last I saw, she was still under a pile of rubble."
Kalin grabbed her by her shoulders. "And you left her there?"
"If it weren't for her, Akiza would be dead! Why would she sacrifice herself for that Signer? Akiza left her behind, too! Stared right at the dying girl."
Kalin shoved her aside and sprinted away. The view flashed forward to the Arcadia Movement rubble, where Kalin knelt next to the unconscious me. He was wearing his regular outfit rather than the Dark Signer garbs. "Ah, Rain… what'd you get yourself into this time..?"
He stood and pushed the stone. In the end he was able to barely lift it off. He flipped me over, observing my wounds. He lightly traced the cut on my arm. "I can't help you here. I'll need to take you somewhere. You'll be fine, especially since… this hellhole is gone."
He lifted me and carried me off, and the vision flashed forward. Kalin was leaving the hospital empty-handed. Someone was calling his name, so he turned and-
Slammed Jack against the brick wall behind him. The street they were on was empty in the dead of night. Kalin's words dripped with malice when he said, "Oh! So you remember me now, do you? Well. It's a little late for that, pretty boy."
"What the hell is the matter with you? First Rain, now you- what happened to you two?"
Jack tried to push him off but Kalin bore down harder, holding his forearm as a bar against Jack's collarbone. "Don't act like you give a shit, Atlas. You turned your back on us and left us to rot. Coming up soon, you'll watch everything you care about fall apart and wish you'd been a decent human being."
"Are you threatening me?" Jack glared down at him. "You're still as crazy as ever."
"You're goddamned right I am," Kalin growled. He shoved him one last time for good measure then backed off. "Stay the hell away from that hospital."
"Why? Is she in there? Kalin!" He was already walking away. Jack didn't follow.
What? Jack knew Kalin was alive? But when I said… He let me believe-
He put two and two together faster than you could, G giggled. Why do you think he was so nice to you? It was because he felt guilty! Just wait. It gets better!
Kalin was turbo dueling Yusei and landed an attack that sent him spinning into the purple flames of the dark sign glyph. Red sparked within, and Yusei's runner burst away. Kalin growled, "What the hell did that?"
Yusei stared at his former leader. "You… How could you do this? I understand to me, but… How could you just leave like that? How could you leave Rain behind?"
Kalin's glare bore murderous intent. "Don't. Say. Her. Name. Because of you, I had to watch her be beaten day after day after day. Because of you, I couldn't do anything about it. Because of you… I lost my will to live. My Rain… because of you, she was better off without me. How dare you speak to me about leaving teammates behind? What was the first thing you did in the City, Yusei? Did you try to save my Rain, or even visit..? Or was your first priority your little dragon card?"
Yusei flinched back, and Kalin's wicked laugh followed it. "I knew it! You don't care about her, Yusei! You left my Rain behind. I'm not only here for myself… I'm here for the both of us!"
What..? Yusei forgot about me, too?
We're not at the best part yet!
"Um, Jack?" Leo asked on a hill overlooking the duel. "Why is the crazy dude saying 'my Rain?' It's super creepy."
Jack ignored him and stepped forward, his fists clenched. "Is that the truth, Kalin? She was beaten every day?"
Kalin giggled. "The King speaks of lowly peasants such as us? Of course it's true, and for the both of us! I hope you're not sitting on a high horse up there, either, Jack. You were in the City the whole time. You could have used your pretty boy powers to save her. Did you ever check the Facility? Or were there more… important matters than a couple of dying friends?"
Luna covered her mouth with both of her hands. Her eyes shone. "Please say you tried to help Rain, Jack! Please!"
His eyes were wide, and sweat poured down his face. He glared at his own feet. "I… never did… I never even thought of her…"
My chest constricted with a stinging ache. So that's the truth, too…
"Well! What a wonderful reunion this is! Nice to know we're all still as good of 'friends' as I thought we were! Ah, if only she were here to take her place by my side."
"In your dreams," Crow shouted. "Rain would never do that."
"Oh? Give me one reason why she shouldn't. You all left us behind! And, oh, Yusei." Kalin thinned his dark eyes. "Let's not forget I'm the only one who fought for her."
Yusei grit his teeth, shut his eyes hard, and lowered his head. "Well, there's an answer! Anything from the peanut gallery? Come on. Give me one reason. I bet you've all done the same thing to her. Forgotten about her, tossed her aside, used her! Ah, like you, in red. I know what you did. She saved your life, and you left her to die."
Aki's face paled. "I… I did… I let her down and thought she was dead. All because I wouldn't listen to her…"
"That was the night at the Arcadia Movement," Luna muttered. "When Rain stayed behind, I didn't think to check on her. I saw Akiza made it out, so I just… left."
"So much caring for dearest Rain in this bunch," Kalin said with a giggle. "You almost ruined her. You're lucky I was there to save her, aren't you?"
"Y-you did?" Aki shouted. "B-but you're a Dark Signer! You're… evil!"
Kalin raised his head and side-eyed her. "A shiny purple mark doesn't make me a bad person any more than a shiny red mark makes you a good one. Quite the opposite, in fact. All of the Signers left Rain and me to die. You're going to call me evil with that staring you in the face? I still haven't heard a reason why she should be on your side."
There was only silence beyond the engines.
No! Why? Why would they not believe in me?
"Maybe Jack, Yusei, and Akiza messed up, but that doesn't mean Rain would become a Dark Signer," Crow said. "You betrayed her, too! You left her in the Facility!"
"You need to work on those listening skills, Crow. I said she was better off without me. The guards were focused on causing me pain, remember? Can you guess what the best way to do that is?"
Luna asked, "What does he mean, Jack?"
"He means…" Jack struggled with the words. "He means they attacked Rain to hurt him, and it worked."
"Ding ding ding!" Kalin said. "We have a winner!"
"You lost me," Leo said. "Why would hurting Rain do that?"
Jack was still staring at the dirt. "Because Kalin loves Rain, and she loves him."
"What? Are you kidding me? Rain and this crazy dude? No way!"
"I hate to say it, pipsqueak, but you're right," Kalin said. "Rain deserves better… than all of us."
Aki lowered her head. "He… he really does love her. What will she do..?"
"She's going to become our enemy," Crow said.
What? They all thought…
Every single person was so sure you would become a Dark Signer, G confirmed. Even your big red dragon was terrified of your draw to Kalin. Oh, and don't forget… They didn't have the heart to tell you any of this!
"Oh, Crow! So quick to lose faith in a teammate! I expected nothing more. You were the first to abandon us. Now, this little blast from the past has been fun, hasn't it? I'm afraid… it's all over now. I have the card that will mean Yusei's death in my hand at this very moment. You will never hurt her again, Yusei. Never! I summon Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu!"
The Crimson Dragon soared beneath the Giant's fist and broke Yusei's runner. His crash was… horrible. Kalin seethed. "Goddammit, Yusei! Mark my words: I will kill you! When I do, it'll be slow! In the meantime, enjoy this pain! It's only a fraction of what you caused us!"
Kalin gave chase to the red glow of the Dragon. At its origin, he found me. That was the first time I saw him as a Dark Signer. The time I told him he was better off dead.
G laughed. Aw, and after everything he did for you!
For a minute, Kalin just stood there, his hand outstretched towards where I used to be. He clenched it into a fist and thrust it to his side, his face set in a scowl. He stormed back to his runner. The memory skipped forward.
"You didn't finish him." It was Roman's voice. He sat at the front of a long table. On it, a set of five candles burned.
"It doesn't matter." Kalin slammed a palm on the table then lifted up his other one as though he held Yusei's heart. "Now I've shown him my power. The fear is planted in him like a seed…"
He slowly closed his hand. "I'll crush him next time."
"If that's what you truly believe." Kalin walked past the table towards the hall from before. As he did, his mask faded, turning into the same scowl from before. He lowered his head in the same way as me, so a shadow fell over his eyes.
"Kalin!" Misty was standing ahead of him, but he tromped past her. Before she could say anything else, he slipped into one of the many rooms along the hall and slammed the door behind him. He sat on the bed and buried his head in his hands, ignoring the cries outside and focusing on the dull pain in his heart.
Once again, the scene skipped forward. Roman's voice came from outside the door. "Kalin… I have a job for you."
Kalin stood immediately and threw open the door. His face was blank, not a trace of the previous turmoil. Roman handed him a slip of paper and said, "Find out if this one is the Vessel of the Crimson Dragon. You know her, yes?"
"…Yes."
"Report back to me with what you find after my duel with Yusei."
"Don't take my revenge from me."
Roman raised his chin. "I don't plan on it. I'll have something to show that girl after the duel."
"Show her?"
Roman waved a hand and turned away. "It's of no concern to you. Act quickly. You have until nightfall if you recall."
Once his steps echoed down the hall, Kalin looked closer at the paper he'd been given. It was a photograph of… me. That was from the Facility after I'd first gotten my mark. A trembling smile spread across my partner's lips. "This is her mugshot… and she's smiling. Oh, God!"
The picture fluttered from his grasp and he nearly fell against the table. His pained voice whispered, "I love her so goddamned much..! She… Rain wishes I were dead."
He straightened and rubbed the back of his neck. He mumbled, "Or… does she? Never thought I'd be unsure about that. Normally she's so easy to read. Oh. I just have to act like I know and I can find out from her. That gives me an idea."
He was bluffing that whole time? He's… a really good liar.
Another shift in the vision. Kalin stared at my duel runner, which was parked outside the old hideout.
"You're too predictable." He climbed to the top room and noticed me lying there asleep. He tilted his weary head and whispered, "You're also way too cute…"
He noticed the deck on the table after that, and I remembered exactly what happened here. After I had left, he was… blushing hardcore. He wiped at his mouth despite nothing being there. "You make no damn sense, partner. If you want me, and I want you, why would you say no?"
Kalin looked to the Satellite's night sky and whispered, "What did you see, Rain?"
His eyes fell to his feet. "She's going to come for me. She has that Dragon for sure, and she's going to duel me. But I can't-"
Kessler. The deep voice of the dark god addressed him. I realized that it was G's true voice. Realize there is more than one way for a human to become a Dark Signer. Say she had a thirst for revenge as strong as your own… or a will to live stronger than death itself.
"Right. If I win, and she dies… I can make it happen." He closed his eyes and lowered his head. "After all I've messed up… She must- This will work. It has to! I'll save her no matter what it takes. She did ask me to, after all."
He shook his head again and dashed down the stairs. There was another forward skip. Misty stood in front of him in the hall, blocking his way. "Come on, Kalin! Talk to me. What happened with her?"
"None of your business," he muttered. He had his eyes hidden again. "Move."
"I told you, I'm not-" He pushed her out of the way and entered a room. After the door shut behind him, he removed his gloves and threw them hard on the table.
"I don't know if I can take this. When I said that to her – that look on her face… But it's to save her life. As long as she'll be alive, I have to..!" A scream sounded behind him. It took me a moment to realize it was my own voice.
"Goddammit, why?" Kalin spun around, looking as startled as I felt. Then, he noticed that it had come from the mirror… the same Misty showed him when he'd first come here.
"Oh, great. You don't have to be so damned persistent!" The mirror rippled like water as the view of it changed. It showed… me, and I had punched the tree outside of Martha's cottage. He turned away from it and crossed his arms back.
This is right before the war..! The night was black around me. Anger darkened my features. I said, "We were supposed to be partners. He said he would be by my side no matter what! How could he lie to me? Was it all lies?"
Kalin raised his fist and smashed the mirror into a thousand pieces. Tears streamed down his face though he kept his eyes shadowed. The part of the mirror he'd hit directly cut into him, causing several hairline gashes and beads of blood. A longer shard of the mirror had left a lengthy gash along the top of his hand.
"No, partner. That wasn't the lie. That wasn't…"
Tears still falling and eyes still covered, he backed into the wall behind him and fell to the floor. He left his cut hand lying open, blood pouring from the small wounds. The door burst open.
"K-Kalin?" Misty stared at him in pure astonishment. "Kalin, you… I'll go get help. We'll patch you up, okay?"
She ran back out the door. I thought, T-The scars… on his hand… Oh God, he's not supposed to cry..!
Misty returned with a first-aid kit and guided him to the B.A.D. Area. They trudged through fog towards the hall of mirrors where I'd found her dueling Aki. She sat Kalin down outside of it and removed items from the kit.
"I watched your duel with Yusei. Her siding with the Signers doesn't make any sense if you told her what they did." He remained silent. She used tweezers to pick out tiny shards of glass. Kalin didn't flinch. "I'm guessing you didn't, and of course they wouldn't either. You have to let her know they aren't to be trusted-"
"Shut the hell up." There was no anger in his words, only emptiness. "Telling her the truth would only hurt her. You don't know how much it stings for every person you thought was your friend to have forgotten about you and betrayed you. I would never want her to feel that. Besides- if I did, I really doubt she would join me, anyway."
"Why's that?"
"Just a feeling I have," he lied. "So. She's coming for me. I'll win, and she'll become a Dark Signer that way."
"I believe you." She searched his eyes. His hand and fingers were wrapped. "Kalin… this is where I plan on dueling Akiza and showing her the truth of what she's done. She's a monster, a murderer, and she'll pay."
Kalin snapped his fingers. "Hell yeah. Same with Yusei once I save Rain."
"You know where your tower is, don't you?"
"Duh. I've only waited months for this moment."
"Let's head back, then. I need to give Carly a hand."
"The new kid? Why take such a liking to her?"
"She didn't…" Misty frowned. "She didn't choose to become a Dark Signer like us. She's very confused."
"Tch! She should count herself lucky!"
"Come on, Kalin, have some sympathy."
"None deserved." He hopped to his feet and flexed his bad fingers. Dark stains covered the bandages. "Hey… thanks. For the help."
"We're part of a team, aren't we?"
Kalin scowled. "Don't say it like that."
She shrugged her shoulders and led the way back to the crater. Kalin pulled his gloves back on. He passed by the candlelit table, but no one was there.
He tugged his hood low over his face and left. A shadow followed him. He exited the crater and wandered the streets of the abandoned Satellite. Dark mists curled at his feet as he rounded corner after corner. Once his hooded stalker followed, he pinned them to the wall of an alley. "Who are you?"
"S-sorry, I'm so sorry!"
Frustration crossed Kalin's face as he let the girl go. Her Dark Signer outfit was traced with orange veins. Kalin said, "You're that new kid. Why the hell were you following me?"
She pulled her hood down. I was shocked to see Carly Carmine's face beneath. I never saw her as a Dark Signer. Her eyes were a startling blue between the black, and there was a small, red mark beneath her left eye. She said, "W-well, Misty told me to find you…"
"Listening to her was a mistake." He turned away from Carly.
"No, wait! I have to fight Jack tomorrow, and-"
"Jack's a piece of shit," he spat. "He's so full of himself it'll be easy to get the upper hand. Use his ego against him. Is that all you wanted?"
"You don't understand," she said, waving her hands in front of her face. "Jack isn't like that anymore. I know he used to be a jerk, but he's way better than that. I know because I… I love him!"
Kalin's eyes widened. "So Misty sent you here because…"
"You're going to duel her, right? How? I don't know if I can stand to hurt him!"
"You're thinking about this all wrong." Kalin stared at the gauze on his hand. His voice had lost its earlier edge. "The Dark Signers are going to win tomorrow. Think about it. Even Yusei couldn't beat me. That means the only way for you to save Jack is by making him a Dark Signer, too. We'll be the ones left, right? All you have to do is convince him… one way or the other."
Carly rested both of her hands over her heart. "Can I really do that?"
"Look. If you care about him the way you think you do, the most important thing is having him alive, right? It doesn't matter if you hurt him or he ends up hating you. As long as he's alive and okay in the end, it's all worth it, isn't it?"
"Yeah, I… I need to save him!" Determination sparked in her dark eyes. "Thank you, Kalin. Thank you! You're, um, nicer than you seem. I can see why she likes you."
He scowled and brushed past her. "Don't take it personally, kid."
It skipped ahead. The violet blaze of the Giant's sign ripped through the Satellite. Kalin and I rode between its lines. The Earthbound Immortal's arm crashed down on me. G laughed. Rain, darling, you can't comprehend how immensely gleeful it made me to have a taste of vengeance on you. Kalin made it all so simple. He was such an easy target, and you fell for every sucker punch.
I would have flinched at my colliding with the ground if I could. I'd give anything to look away. My body was pitiful and broken. Kalin was horrorstruck. He turn braked and stared at me.
"No! Rain!" The heartrending cry came from the higher ridge. Crow was on his hands and knees. Leo attempted to comfort Luna through her sobs. Yusei was stone-faced as though he were frozen in time.
When Kalin noticed them, he broke into his insane laugh. "You can save your last regrets. She won't be gone long!"
"What are you talking about," Yusei said, and his voice cracked. "She's gone forever. Rain, our teammate, our friend. How could you?"
"You have no goddamned right to call her a teammate or a friend!" Kalin shouted. "That'd take someone who actually treats her like one, which would be – can you guess it? – nobody. So! Couldn't you say she's better off dead in a world that would leave her for worse?"
The tool isn't right very often. Hold onto it, G said. They're not your friends. Every single one of them abandoned you. The single person you count on wanted you dead and gone. You were better off staying that way. What you think is your happy ending is the complete opposite. The Signers, who let you suffer, got off scot-free thanks to you!
I could feel my arm and saw the dark sign glowing there. She said, See, Rain, I was saving you heartbreak. I cursed them to save you from the truth. I didn't have to do anything.
Your 'friends' would have forgotten you no matter what.