A/N: I totally did not even notice I updated the wrong Chapter. Chapters 14-18 are being taken down and this is the new Chapter 14. No wonder you guys might be confused. I am so so sorry about that. Chapters 14, 15, 16, 17, and possibly 18 are supposed to be updated together since the storylines are different than they are in the show..obviously. The version of Chapter 16 that used to be up here was draft 4 instead of draft 6. Massive changes happened and I don't know how I updated the wrong Chapter. Seems I need to work on my organization skills.

With that being said, I will do a Double Update today and I will not leave you guys on a cliff-hanger since I don't know when I'll be able to update again anytime soon.

Thank you guys for your PMs and your reviews and I can't thank you enough for your continued support with this story.

Gasping, she bolted upright. The bright yellow sheets slid down her trembling body to pool into her lap. Her shaking fingers clutched her throat as her eyes scanned the dark room for any sign of an intruder. Her chest heaved up and down in a frantic rhythm.

The faint moonlight outside her window crept through the slats in the blinds, setting her nerves on edge. Her eyes landed on the bedroom door. The lock was still secure and the dim yellow kanji symbol pulsed on the metal handle.

It was just another dream.

Sweat forced her curly blonde hair to stick to the sides of her face. The cold air and the sweat caused goosebumps to appear on her body and a shiver to run down her spine. There was no way she'd get back to sleep tonight.

Still shaking like a leaf, she barely managed to pry the sheets from her sweaty trembling form. She gently swung her legs over the edge of the bed and used the edge of the bed to help her stand. Resembling a newborn baby deer, she attempted to walk to the adjoining bathroom.

Once there, she shut the door softly then turned on the shower. Hopefully the hot water would soothe her extremely tense muscles and allow her mind a chance to relax.

After prying her soaking wet pajamas off of her body, she pulled her hair into a bun at the nape of her neck. She pulled back the white ruffled shower curtain and stepped over the ledge of the bathtub. She let out a sigh once the hot water touched the bottom of her feet. Keeping her back facing the wall, she splashed her face with the hot water. She'd wash her hair after training. And using the hair dryer at this time of night was a guaranteed punishment she was happy to avoid.

Once she was satisfied the smell of sweat had disappeared completely, she turned off the water and opened the shower curtain. She grabbed her yellow towel from its position of hanging off a hook on the bathroom door. The soft and fluffy material was nothing like the scratchy faded material she'd used for years. She inhaled deeply and the faint smell of lavender tickled her nose. She lowered her head and tugged the towel to her nose. Inhaling deeply, her body relaxed at the calming smell.

Ignoring herself completely in the reflection of the mirror, she opened the door and her grip on the towel slipped. She barely managed to press the towel against her body before she sank to her knees. Sobs escaped from her mouth and she quickly muffled the noise with the back of her left hand.

Everything that would happen to her team would be her fault. Every time they worried or got hurt or cried out in pain would be her fault. She was nothing but a weak person...a weak person who hated herself for wanting to trust Jayden.

His kind baby blue eyes that stared at her with that soothing hypnotic expression. His calming voice that eased her anxiety with every word. The way his fingers ghosted across her skin, like he understood her pain and fear and her reluctance. His worried expression as he sat there waiting to make sure she got home safely. His anger at the markings on her face.

She did not deserve someone like him.

And as she sat there on the floor, crying and cursing herself for being so weak, all she wanted was his voice whispering reassurances into her ear. Telling her she'd be alright even if he didn't mean it.

Rather than trying to go back to sleep, Emily spent the rest of the night sitting on the roof of the Shiba house with her chin resting on her legs and her eyes waiting for the sky to lighten and the sun to rise.

Her mind kept switching from memories of this very same position in a quaint little countryside house and her recent memories of training with her team. Every time she blinked, a new memory fought for dominance and flashed across her eyes.

Her father pushing Serena out of the way of a bullet.

Her first training session with Jayden.

Her step-father's dagger sticking out of Serena's chest.

Her teammates sparring with each other.

Serena's outstretched hand with the Ape Zord pointing towards her younger sister.

Jayden's smile when she agreed to watch a movie with him and Mike.

Finally, the lightening of the sky from indigo to blue brought her back to the present. She watched the faint light of the sun begin to glow the edges of the blue horizon. The trees radiated with signs of life as the sun rose higher and higher in the sky.

Sunrises were Emily's favorite. It meant she managed to survive another day.

Her ears pricked at the sound of something rustling in the dojo. Slowly calming her heartbeat, she uncurled her arms from their position around her legs and she quietly crawled up the side of the roof. Her eyes peeked over the edge and she sighed in relief.

Jayden was setting up the training dummies for today's practice. His training uniform already on, he tightened his belt after placing a wooden katana in a dummy's hand. His sandy brunet hair held no trace of bedhead. The muscles in his arms ripples as he pushed the dummy to the center of the dojo. His blue eyes and his facial expression seemed troubled about something. His lips down into a frown, his eyes held a faraway glaze to them as he continued setting up the dojo.

Emily watched in curiosity from her spot on the roof.

Suddenly, as if sensing something, he stopped moving the training dummy. His back straightened and his posture tensed. He froze in place, his blue eyes immediately dropping to study the ground as his ears strained to listen for something. His lips parted and his fingers inched towards the training sword. His head snapped up and Emily ducked down, hoping not to be spotted so easily. The sound of a katana hitting the ground ricocheted through the silent training area and Emily sucked in a sharp breath of air.

"Jayden?" Ji's voice drifted from the doorway.

"Thought I heard something." His clipped tone still possessed an edge of suspicion yet he picked up the katana, making sure to scrape the hilt against the brick floor so the intruder could hear. "Probably just a bird." He muttered in disappointment. "Whatever it was, it's gone now." Emily slowly rose her head, watching him once again.

"I want you to take training slow today. Maybe have Emily and Mike spar instead. You used a lot of energy against that Nighlock yesterday." Jayden resumed pushing the dummy towards the center of the training area, a small scowl adorning his face.

"I'm fine-"

"You're tired. And just in case another Nighlock shows up...I don't want you using your energy in a pointless sparring match."

"Understood." Jayden grumbled, sliding the katana back into the training dummy's hand.

"How'd you sleep?"

"Not well." He sighed, stepping away from the training dummy. "I kept tossing and turning all night."

"I see." Mentor Ji hummed in response. "Not only are you physically exhausted but you are mentally exhausted as well. I stand by my decision to have you sit out of today's training."

"Ji-" He attempted to protest.

"Perhaps if you had lied about your sleeping I would have let you train with Kevin. At least you would've learned an important lesson."

"Ji-"

"Breakfast will be served in twenty minutes. I suppose you better use your time wisely." Jayden sighed rather harshly, his eyes narrowing at the doorway. After a few seconds, his eyes softened and he bowed his head.

He finished his chores, making sure all katanas were pointed down in the barrel they used to house them. The hilts were wrapped with each individual ranger color tape. By the time he finished, Ji was waiting at the doorway again.

"Would you like to get Emily or should I?"

Jayden opened his mouth before shutting it abruptly. He ran a hand through his hair, tousling the strands this way and that in his apparent nervousness.

"I suppose I have my answer." He stepped outside with the ape zord in his hand. Jayden's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion and Emily ducked down again, knowing she got caught. "Monkey believes our yellow ranger is missing. However I believe something different." Ji directed his eyes to the roof. "You can come down, Emily."

She closed her eyes, wincing slightly at being discovered. Nevertheless, she opened her eyes and clambered over the shingles of the roof. She jumped down once her feet had reached the gutter and drain pipe. Her feet barely made a sound when she landed. She squared her shoulders yet kept her eyes on the grassy lawn. Meeting Jayden's eyes would only twist her stomach into even more of a knot.

Her feet carried her into the training area. She waited nervously for their reactions. Eavesdropping was one of the worst punishments she could receive. Try as she might, her ingrained survival tactics remained more prominent than ever since her nightmare no matter how much she struggled to fight them.

"I didn't mean to listen-" Ji held up his hand, causing her words to die in her throat.

"I do not believe that was your intention. However, I must ask why you were on the roof in the first place."

"I was watching the sunrise."

"Ah. Yes. I suppose the roof is the best place for that." Ji waved her to come closer. She took a few hesitant steps over to the older man. "Help me set the table while Jayden finishes his chores." Jayden opened his mouth, fully ready to tell him otherwise. "I do not believe he wiped off the practice mats from yesterday." A pointed stare from his father figure had the red ranger turning around on his heel.

Slightly irritated and more nervous than he should be, Jayden briskly walked over to the bottle full of sanitized wipes across the dojo. He popped open the canister, inwardly cursing at his own stupidity. Now he had been benched and he admitted to not having enough sleep.

He hurried through his final task, anxious for their first training session in two weeks to begin. And, he was slightly hungry. He barely touched his food last night-even though Mia didn't do any of the cooking. He was too worried about Emily.

Why would the Ape Zord lead her in the wrong direction of a power disk? The zords were programmed to never be wrong.

He threw away the used wipes then washed his hands using the sink outside to save time. He dried his hands with a clean red training towel before setting the towel on the counter. He built up his courage then entered the house. He turned right, hearing no sound coming from the kitchen.

Emily was sitting in a chair, her eyes focused on the plate of food in front of her. She was biting her lip, the amount of food on the plate more than she could ever eat in one sitting. Another plate was placed on the other side. Scrambled eggs, toast, and bacon were piled onto the plate waiting for him.

"Where's Ji?"

"He has to go into town. He will not be overseeing our training this morning."

"Oh." He said as he sat down opposite from her. "Looks good. I'm starving." He picked up his fork, scooping some egg onto it. His eyes shifted from the food to her face. "Have you ever heard of twenty questions?" He placed his fork into his mouth, his eyes carefully studying her face. She swallowed and winced at his question.

"I don't want to play." Her soft reply gave him a boost of courage. He'd had enough breakfasts consisting of sitting alone and eating in silence. This was not going to be another one.

"Fine. Then why don't you ask me some questions instead." He took another bite of his breakfast and relaxed his posture by leaning back in his chair. "Training today will be different. I want to do this my way." He took another bite before pointing his empty fork at her. "Eat. Or I will ask you questions." She picked up her fork then stabbed it into her portion of scrambled eggs. "So, what do you want to know?"

He watched as she moved some pieces of egg around on her plate before she looked up at him through her eyelashes.

"Is your favorite color red?" Surprise shot his eyebrows upwards, however a gentle smile spread across his face at the innocence of her question.

"My favorite color is black. Goes with everything." He scooped up more egg from his plate.

"Who would you rather spar: Kevin or Mia?"

"Mia. Kevin and I are too much alike." He answered. True to his word, she placed her fork into her mouth. She chewed and swallowed before hesitating. "You can ask me anything." His voice had lowered, his tone and expression soft. His eyes held a sympathetic light to them as he watched her struggle to find the right words. Her lips parted, drawing his attention from her conflicted expression.

"Have you ever been scared?" The seriousness of her question caught him off-guard. He set his fork down on his plate before leaning his arm on the table. He reached out for her, only for the blonde haired girl to lean back in her chair in response.

"Of course. It's natural to feel scared sometimes."

"No...like..." Emily shook her head, her eyes briefly glancing towards the ceiling in aggravation. Why was it so hard to ask him?

"The last time I was really scared..." Jayden inhaled sharply before powering through. In order for her to trust him, he had to answer honestly. "I was really scared yesterday. I wasn't sure the Beetle Disk would work. I didn't think I had enough energy to channel my symbol power. And if I failed, I would let you guys down. I would've been too injured to help you fight the Nighlock. We could've lost because I wasn't strong enough to master the Beetle Disk."

"But you've been training every night to master it."

"Just because I train every day...it doesn't mean I've already mastered every disk we have. The Beetle Disk drained a lot of my energy and I wasn't even sure it was going to work against that Nighlock. If I didn't have you guys helping me out there..." Jayden trailed off, thinking over the right words to continue. "I know what it's like to fight for survival, Emily. But the thing about fighting like that is it shows us just how strong we really are. And it's okay to lean on your team. There's five samurai for a reason. Nobody has to fight alone. Yesterday's battle is proof of that."

"But what if Mike and Kevin and Mia get hurt because of a mistake I made?"

"We all make mistakes. The Beetle Disk could've been a really fatal mistake. But even if they did get hurt yesterday, we are a team. And we are only as strong as we are when we stand united against whatever evil forces stand in our way." Her troubled expression only deepened as her hazel eyes stared down at the plate of food in front of her. "Whatever you're running from, Em, it can't get you here."

"But-"

"They'll have to go through Ji and Mike and Kevin and Mia first before they can even lay a hand on you. And if they somehow manage to make it past them, they'll have to go through me. Because I promise I won't let anything bad happen to you here."

"I don't want you to make a promise. Promises can be broken and-and-" Emily shuddered, tearing her eyes from her plate to look at his.

"Then what do you want to call it?" Fiery determination met uncertainty and she bit her lip, thinking over his question.

"I don't know. A-A pledge or-or an oath or something, I guess."

"What about a vow?" Her lips parted and she inhaled sharply.

"A-A what?"

"A vow. Like..." Jayden pursed his lips, deep in thought, "...like...I vow to protect you and keep you safe from whatever you're running from."

The casualness of his sentence knocked the air out of her lungs. She stood up on trembling legs, her shaking fingers gripping the edge of the table for support as the feeling of dread tightened the knot in her stomach. Even Serena couldn't hold up her end of their oath.

Serena, beautiful golden curls fanning her shoulders. Serena, covered in blood at the base of the stairs. Serena, hand outstretched with the ape zord, her eyes begging for Emily to take it before their father would. Serena, beautiful in death with her forest green eyes staring blankly at Emily's hiding spot.

"Unless you don't like that word." He raised an eyebrow at her uncharacteristic behavior.

"I-no-what-do you-how can you say that so...vows are-are-they-vows are for-for-" She scrambled to form a complete sentence. "You-you...I-I can't..."

"Stupid girl. Talk in complete sentences or I will make it so you don't talk at all."

Her breathing became shallowed and she struggled to keep the images of fists flying at her face out of her head for her inability to speak. She attempted to back away from the table, only to trip over the leg of the chair. Her fingers tightened their grip on the table and she pulled herself upright as the legs of the chair rocked back and forth.

"Emily-"

"I'm sorry." The words tumble out of her mouth and she can't say those two words fast enough. "I'm so sorry. I-I'm so clumsy." Her eyes took on a panic gleam and her curls whipped side to side as her fingers moved to steady the chair. She took a wobbly step, her shaky movements forcing the chair to continue to rock. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. Let me fix it." She gripped the back of the chair to keep it steady.

"Emily, it's okay." He slowly stood up, setting his fork down on his plate. Her eyes followed his every move and she took another step backwards. She raised her hands out in front of her in an attempt to keep him away from her. He noticed the way her body trembled, the way her hands violently shook. Her eyes were wide and filled with a frantic sort of panic. Her cheeks held no color and her complexion had turned pale white.

"I didn't mean to. I-I swear. I won't touch it again."

"Emily, it's fine-"

"I-I won't. Just-Just let me go. Let me fix it." Her shaking hands kept moving up and down as she spoke. "I'll fix it. I'll fix it. Just let me go." Her voice wavered and it sounded like she was choking back tears. Water filled her hazel eyes and a stray tear created a wet path down her cheek. "P-Please." She begged, her crest-fallen expression causing his heart to contract painfully in his chest. Whatever she was pleading for, he'd comply just so he could never see that pained look cross her face again. "I-I...I d-I don't..." He slowly took a step forward, towards her. She immediately launched herself backwards so she was away from him, using her hands to shield her face. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry." She sank to her knees once her back hit the wall of the kitchen, her arms raised protectively over her face. Her face had turned to the side and she screwed her eyes shut. The long black sleeves of her training uniform rose up and his eyes briefly landed on the faint scars peppering her skin. "I'm sorry. I'm s-sorry. It's all my fault. It's all my fault. Everything's my fault. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Slowly and quietly, he walked around the table. He knelt down in front of her. Her blonde curls stuck to the wetness on her face, her tears out of place on her face. Her breathing was uneven, unsteady and rapid.

He gently grabbed her wrists, wincing at the sharp inhale and slight choking sounds coming from the girl in front of him.

"I-I-"

"Sh." His own quiet voice whispered, only loud enough for her to hear however it echoed around them in the empty kitchen. "Emily." He lowered her hands from her face. She put up a struggle.

"I'll fix it! I'll fix it!" She thrashed in his grip. He tightened his hold, causing her to freeze.

He used her moment of stupor to lower her arms from shielding her face. He held both of her wrists in one hand and used his other to cup her cheek. She flinched away however he persevered and planted his hand right on her cheek forcing her tear-filled hazel orbs to snap to his calm and trusting blue ones.

"Emily." His thumb began to rub soothing circles on her skin. Her body wracked with sobs, all she could do was cry.

"It's-It's my f-fault. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Her lips quivered with the intensity of her sobs.

All he wanted to do was pull her close and hug her like his mother used to do for him whenever he had a nightmare. Instead, he heaved a soft sigh. He had no idea what the right words to say were, or how to keep her from having another more powerful panic attack. But the three little words his mouth managed to say tasted sour on his tongue.

"I'm not him."

Jayden wasn't sure how long he kept repeating those three words in a soft whisper. He only stopped once her tears began to subside and her sobbing began to lessen. Vaguely, he wondered how his forehead had fallen against hers and how his cheeks began to cool once her breath no longer fanned his face, however he decided in the end it didn't matter. She was calming down.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his voice still barely above a whisper. She nodded, dropping her eyes to their hands. He let go of her wrists and dropped his hand from her face. She drew in a shuddering breath of air.

"I'm sorry-"

"Don't be. It's okay." He cut off her apology, standing up to his full height. "I think we'll skip today's training. We can watch a movie or something instead."

"Are you sure?" She scrambled to her feet, her movements still shaky and wobbly. She stumbled and his hands shot out on reflex. He helped her regain her balance, lightly gripping her biceps as he guided her onto her feet.

"Yes." He said sharply, his head automatically nodding along to his verbal confirmation.

He slowly removed his hands from her biceps and lowered them to his sides. He stepped back, giving them some space. His thoughts whirled as he processed her behavior.

"I'm so sorry I'm so clumsy." She tried to give him a smile, however her lips turned into a frown.

"You know, for a samurai so light on her feet, it's weird you lose your balance over a chair." The corners of her mouth twitched and her eyes briefly flickered to the ceiling.

"I know, I know. My mother used to tell me the same thing. I guess I got the klutzy gene from her. She was always tripping over stuff too." A small smile spread across his face.

"C'mon. Let's finish eating." Hen jerked his head towards their abandoned plates of food. She took a small step back, pulling her arms over her chest. He took that as a sign she was retreating back into herself and he struggled to find a way to keep her here and keep her talking with him.

"Oh, I'm not hungry. I think I'm going to go work on my symbol power. It helps me relax after..." Emily trailed off, biting her lip.

"Stay. Please." He reached out his hand, hoping to convince her to stay, then lowered it back to his side once he realized what he did.

"I'm not great at conversating."

"It's okay. I'll talk. Just...stay." She eyed him warily. Biting her lip again, she lowered her arms. Her chin held high and her mind made up, she looked at him expectantly.

"Alright. I suppose I have a few more questions." A mixture of shock and relief had him hurrying to the other side of the table. She sat down and waited for him to do the same. Once he was sitting, she leaned back in her chair and allowed her posture to relax.

He made a vow. He might not be able to keep it, but it was the closest she had received since Serena died. If her older sister was supposed to trust him to lead her, then Emily would put her trust into him as well. Besides, Serena's words swirled around her head as Emily picked up her fork.

Never give a man a vow unless he was standing beside an alter in a church, dressed in a tuxedo, proudly declaring his love for everyone to see.

Well...it's not like they were making vows beside an alter in a church. And it's not like he was standing and confessing his love for her or something. And he certainly wasn't wearing a tuxedo.

It was breakfast, in their training uniforms, conversing like teammates. She could handle that. She was strong enough to handle that. And if she wasn't, she'd leave. If only he'd stop being so nice to her...

"So, what do you want to know?"

The rest of the day went by in a blur until their afternoon sparring matches.

She sparred with Mike. Mia sparred with Kevin. Jayden stood off to the side, watching. Though, he mainly observed Kevin and Mia. Which she figured was kind of odd considering her panic attack this morning, but if Jayden wanted to pretend she could hold her own in a fight today then who was she to stop him. Perhaps he wanted to give Kevin and Mia some helpful tips.

Seriously, why wasn't he watching her like he usually did? His blue eyes often flickered her way several times throughout practice no matter where she happened to stand. Or sit. But mainly stand because Emily is not a weak person. At least, she thinks she isn't. Especially today.

Panic attack aside, that gave him no right to mess with her head like he was. First, this morning with the whole twenty questions thing, and then there was that panic attack fiasco, but not even bothering to make sure she could hold her own was a little insulting.

Then again, Jayden did get benched.

And some of it might've been because of her.

But who needs to dwell on specifics like that?

"Ah." She hissed once the back of her head connected with the stone tiles beneath her.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Mike's worried green eyes stared down into her hazel ones and she shook off the oncoming panic as best as she could.

"I'm fine." She sprung up on her feet, nearly kicking him in the head in the process. "I said I'm fine and I meant-mean it. Let's go again." She raised her hands that were balled into fists level back with her chest.

"Usually I'm the one hitting the mat, Em." She shook her head to clear it from the sound of the voice which haunted her dreams.

"Don't call me that." She snarled, sinking into a crouch. Those green eyes whispered promises of pain. But Emily was stronger than this. That's why she came to the Shiba house. She's stronger than being pushed around by an alcoholic deadbeat loser. Now it was her turn to bring the pain.

Show no remorse.

Fight without mercy.

Cheat if it's necessary.

Don't be afraid to play dirty.

"Emily-"

"No!" She roared, desperately craving the quiet peace Jayden brought her this morning.

Jayden...Jayden was here. She wasn't in the warehouse anymore.

He's not here.

Until she looked into those jade green eyes again and every memory, every time she felt so stupid and small and pathetic and helpless overpowered her mind all at once.

"Emily, c'mon."

"C'mon little girl, show me what you're made of." That voice made her skin crawl and she involuntarily shuddered.

He can't hurt me.

If I hurt him first.

She struck first, her punch landing square in the middle of his chest. He staggered back a few steps, shock and confusion replacing the worry in his eyes.

"Em-"

"C'mere little Emy Emy. Time to come out and play."

She launched herself forward, continuing with her onslaught of attacks. Most of her punches and kicks were not able to be blocked in time and Mike's back hit the floor faster than he could think. She continued to punch his chest, causing him to struggle for a breath.

"Hey!" He wheezed when he finally caught her by the foot, only to have her break free a second later. "Emily-" He coughed, batting her hand from her attempt at breaking his nose.

"No!" She roared, her blonde curls twirling in the wind created by her fast movements.

She brought her leg down again, fully intent to kick him in the ribs, when a shadow fluttered in the corner of her eye. She switched up her attack just in time to block a wooden katana blade from striking her in the middle of her back. She kicked the sword to the side, using the palm of her hand to keep him down by his chest. Another shadow danced across her vision and her heart hammered in her chest.

He never fought fair.

Three on one.

Just like last time.

She was outnumbered.

She placed her free hand on the stone, her eyes scanning around for a glimpse of the shadow as she summoned her energy. A quick movement on her right had her flicking her palm clockwise. The ground beneath her rumbled and trembled as she directed the shock waves where to go. She raised her hand then smacked it on the ground.

The stones trembled and crashed together like waves of water in the ocean. Still, the shadow danced in the corner of her eye, toying with her for fun. Glancing at the man beneath her hand, his wide eyes scanned his surroundings for an escape. When they connected with hers for a moment, his lips parted and moved yet she couldn't hear it over the pounding in her ears.

Something strong wrapped around her arms and she struggled to break free as her hand rose from the earth. Thinking quickly, she closed her eyes and summoned the last of her strength as her feet lifted from the ground. Her fingers traced the familiar symbol and she swiped the air with the palm of her hand.

Flames erupted from the surface of her skin and she crashed to the ground as her captor released her, breathing heavily yet knowing the fight was far from over. She crawled her way forward but a steady jerk of her ankle pulled her farther from the stray wooden katana lying on the floor. She kicked out sideways before bringing her other foot up to kick the thing holding her down. She scrambled to her feet, making a mad dash for the katana.

A wall of fire sprung to life, the flames hissing and licking the broken stones as they soared higher towards the sky. She curled her fingers close to her sides then extended her arms out, blazing a trail through the flames and letting her jump through unscathed. She rolled onto her feet and into a crouch, her knee pressed against the ground, only for her eyes to snap up at the dark shape standing above her. A red light flashed across her vision and she brought her hand up to shield her eyes.

The light vanished and a soft pulsing heat radiated from the palm of her hand. She lowered her hand. In the center of her palm rested a red glowing kanji symbol. Her chest heaved with each pulse of heat from the symbol. She lowered her hand to her side. Her eyes rose to the figure towering over her. Black spots danced around her vision but she forced them back.

Jayden stood tall. A blank expression smoothed out his facial features. His eyes held a mixture of sadness, relief, and worry.

"Is that really the best symbol you could do?" Her heavy breathing caused her words to slur together, yet she fought through the exhaustion. "And you said you were nothing like him-nothing like that monster." She cradled her palm to her chest. She rose unsteadily to her feet. "What a fool I was." She laughed darkly, a sneer twisting her facial features into a grimace softly. "Nothing but an airheaded fool." She shook her head and began walking (or stumbling) towards the door of the dojo.

"Emily-"

"Save your breath for someone who cares." She pushed the door open, her arms trembling as she used strength she didn't have left.