XII. Bridge Keeper

"You are quite convinced of the veracity of this information," Z-one asked. Antinomy toyed with his sunglasses. Ah, this copy of his old friend was not quite as he remembered. Sometimes he wondered about the effectiveness of the memory removal procedure, especially as Paradox had been so against it. It couldn't be helped, though. Antinomy had regained his memories, quite by accident, and it had thrown a rather big wrench in their plans. Paradox had assured him everything could go ahead as scheduled and that, now that both of them were taking part in the WRGP, they wouldn't even need Fudou Yusei for their plans. Z-one hadn't felt comfortable with that idea, but it was clearly more auspicious to include as few outsiders as possible.

"It's practically the only thing that makes sense," Paradox said. He'd sent Z-one the data only half an hour ago, and he and Antinomy had appeared in Z-one's realm mere minutes later, arguing about what turned out to be Antinomy's discovery. Paradox was still messing around with the data on his tablet—one he'd clearly borrowed from Chiasma.

"Hmm, yes," Z-one said. Why did this make him so uncomfortable? It should have been good, or at least beneficial news to them. They had finally figured out what had caused the Momentum reactors to go out of control. That it was the reunion of Neo Domino City and Satellite shouldn't matter to him. It was sad, of course, that such a superficially happy event would lead to such horror and destruction. Maybe the discomfort he felt were some last stabs of pity for the people of this city.

He shook off the feeling and focused on his old friends. Paradox did look quite a bit better than the last time he'd seen him, when he'd brought the message that the Ark had already failed them once. Antinomy, like Paradox, looked more sure of himself now that he'd regained his memories, but he still seemed to carry with him a certain melancholy that Z-one hadn't seen in him before, not even after all the pain they'd gone through together. He missed the first Antinomy, like he missed the first Paradox. These copies had been supposed to be identical, but day by day it was becoming clearer that they weren't, and he didn't even think they'd realized as much themselves. The first Antinomy would have been able to explain to him why he felt so uneasy. He would have been able to help him through it. These two were barely children in comparison.

Antinomy took off his sunglasses, folded them and unfolded them again. "The thing is," he said, and then bit his lip. He took a deep breath. "The thing is, this is just Neo Domino. What about the other cities?"

Paradox cast him a worried look. Z-one was quite surprised— What a strange question for Antinomy to ask. He knew as well as they did how the Momentum reactors across the world had gone out of control. Maybe he should be checking him over to see if the memory loss had had any unintended lasting effects.

"The fear the rest of the world felt at seeing the Machine Emperors appear made the other Momentum reactors go out of control," he said. "You do know that, don't you?"

Antinomy frowned. "That's—" he started to say, but Paradox shook his head, and Antinomy closed his mouth.

"A sad truth," Z-one said. "However, our course of action has become clear now."

"Nuke the city."

Z-one wouldn't have put it in such harsh terms himself. "If you wish to put it that way, yes. Neo Domino City is clearly the issue here, therefore it is Neo Domino City that—sadly—will need to be done away with."

Antinomy flinched. Z-one could sympathize, but Antinomy knew just as well as the rest of them that they would have to go through with this. No matter how many lives it cost them, no matter how many of their friends they'd have to see die—

His best friend since childhood, dead under the rubble of a collapsed apartment building, blond hair stained red

—there was no other option. It was the only choice they had left to them. And like Aporia, it definitely wasn't Antinomy's first time killing people. Z-one suppressed the urge to sigh. Had Antinomy's memory loss been so detrimental to him? Z-one, too, remembered less of his life than he would have liked. He could imagine what Antinomy was feeling. Still, Antinomy wouldn't abandon him, not over something like this.

"It's really the only way, isn't it?" Antinomy said. He closed his eyes for a second. "Alright. I suppose that's how it has to be."

"Yes, it is quite unfortunate."

Paradox was frowning. "How far along is the Ark?" he asked. "Has Aporia been keeping track of it?"

"Quite, yes. Our data so far are inconclusive, but an optimistic estimate…" They had very little to be optimistic about these days, but perhaps, just perhaps. "An optimistic estimate states that the Ark will appear during the finals of the World Riding Grand Prix. While it is possible that the Ark Cradle will appear later than that, it should give us a relative time scale."

"Right, so that gives us… Two weeks for the next round, a week for the quarter finals…" Paradox counted out. "A bit more than a month. Right?"

"That is correct."

Antinomy fidgeted. The blue of his T-shirt stood in sharp contrast with the sterile white in the little world Z-one had built for himself. The last time he'd been here was back when he'd still been without memory, when he and Chiasma had been transported here, along with Fudou Yusei. How long ago was it now? How time went by. Antinomy had been sequestered to this timezone for almost a year. Aporia's three forms had been here for even longer. And Paradox… This Paradox was still a mystery for him. There was still another Paradox on his radar, one quite happily trying to sabotage Kaiba Corporation in 2008. Yet it wouldn't have been the first time they'd run into other versions of themselves, and what right did he have to doubt Paradox—Any Paradox—when he said he came from a future that had seen them all dead? The impossible had lost a lot of its meaning the moment they had been successful in figuring out the workings of time travel.

"In a month, the Ark Cradle will appear," he said. "When that time comes, you will need to be on board. You will be able to access it if you use your key cards. As the reversal of the Momentum engine will destroy the Ark Cradle from the inside out, I will only do so once the Ark Cradle has effectively materialized. It will give us a timespan of twelve hours to crash the Ark before it destroys itself. Its position will need to be centered right above Neo Domino City's central Momentum reactor."

The Momentum reactor was located right in the middle of the city, underneath the historical city center and not too far from the Word Riding Grand Prix stadium. Its coordinates had long been input already, but the fickle nature of this dimension, unbound by the nature of time and space itself, often made it necessary to perform a course correction. He had been keeping a close eye on it. Once the required energy had been gathered, he would perform the last check and then let the Ark Cradle materialize itself.

"Of course, the odds of our survival decrease the longer we stay on the Ark Cradle. Unfortunately, we will have to stay on board until the final crash, in order to deal with any counterattacks." The city of Neo Domino would undoubtedly launch an attack on the Ark Cradle, and if they wouldn't, Fudou Yusei was bound to.

"There will be people who survive," Paradox pointed out. Antinomy nodded, almost relieved.

"Twelve hours isn't enough to relocate the entire city outside the blast radius, but those people on the outskirts of Neo Domino will be able to get away from the city in time," he picked up.

"Yes, quite right. They will serve as a warning."

"So wouldn't that defeat the purpose? It's not the city that's the problem, but the people," said Paradox. Z-one closed his eyes briefly.

"They will be a minority that will be reintegrated in other cities across the country quite easily. Adding to that, the trauma of seeing their city destroyed will let them get over their petty grudges." If he made it sound convincing, he could perhaps believe it too. Sure enough, the destruction of the world had caused an outflow in sympathy towards others—for a while. Unfortunately, their goodwill had faded when resources started running low and defeating the Machine Emperors proved to be a harder task than originally imagined. But the survivors of Neo Domino City wouldn't have to deal with the Machine Emperors. They could begin a new life in a different city, and they wouldn't have to deal with each other at all. The destruction would be catastrophic, far larger than even the damage the Earthbound Gods had managed to do, but it was a necessary sacrifice. And however reluctant Antinomy might be, Z-one was quite convinced his friend was aware of that as well. Perhaps he would have been less troubled if he hadn't made friends with so many people in the city. Unfortunately, it couldn't be helped.

Paradox crossed his arms. "And Sherry?"

How peculiar that Paradox, of all people, had taken to referring to Chiasma by her old name. While it was true that Chiasma and the woman who'd provided Antinomy and Paradox with shelter had very little in common, it was nonetheless not one of Paradox's habits to make such a strict distinction between the different versions of themselves. "Is she aware of our plans?" he asked.

"Of course not," Paradox said quickly. "Seems unfair to her, is all. She's French, after all. Not a citizen of Neo Domino City."

Antinomy snorted. Paradox glared at him. Z-one resolved to keep a closer eye on them all. This really was quite unlike Paradox.

"You take a very active interest in her well-being," he stated.

Paradox shrugged. "We look out for our own, don't we? There's no need for her to get caught up in this."

Z-one considered it briefly. Sherry Leblanc didn't have the knowledge Chiasma had had, and as such she was quite useless to his plans. And still, maybe it was sentimentality… He had already saved her life once before, after all.

"If you can remove her from the city without letting her in on what will happen, I see no issue with it," he conceded. Paradox sagged. "Do what you believe necessary to ensure her safety, as long as—"

"—It doesn't jeopardize our plans, of course."

"I am glad we are all in agreement," Z-one said. Antinomy looked like he wanted to say something, but decided against it. "I shall inform Aporia's three forms of this new development. In the meantime, keep a low profile. Participate in the tournament as often as you can. The more people duel, the faster we will be able to collect the amount of duel energy required to summon the Ark Cradle."

"Would be easier if Sherry actually let me duel," Antinomy muttered. Had he too chosen to refer to the girl as Sherry instead of Chiasma? Ah, but he had met her when his memory had still been erased. Perhaps, in his case, it was understandable.

"I do believe I will see you soon," he said. Paradox nodded, as did Antinomy, after a fashion.

"Take care, Z-one," he said. Then both he and Paradox activated their key cards and disappeared in a haze of code. It left Z-one alone again, in the vast expanse of nothingness that was this in-between realm. Left to ponder the destruction of Neo Domino City, both the one that had already long passed and the one that was imminent. The citizens weren't aware of the damage they were causing. Sometimes these sacrifices were quite necessary, however much it bothered him. He had no true connection to the city—he'd arrived there as a scientist not even a year before the Machine Emperors had arrived. But Fudou Yusei… It had been Fudou Yusei's city, and that alone should have given it some extra value, something more than just any other city across Japan. Fudou Yusei had been supposed to protect it, after all. Up until his sudden disappearance in the chaos left in the wake of the destroyed Momentum Reactor, Fudou Yusei had never failed.

Fudou Yusei would undoubtedly try to stop them. And this time, more than ever, it was imperative that he not succeed. Their entire future depended on it. He couldn't let it be destroyed again. The death of Fudou Yusei tended to do uncomfortable things with the timeline and even, somehow, his own existence, but for once it might be an unfortunate necessity. A last push. Maybe after this, they'd be free to rest, their future safe and sound.

oOoOo

They were somewhere over Russia when Aki woke up, barely five hours after she'd fallen asleep and only eight hours after take-off from Tokyo. It would take at least another four hours before they'd reach Bergen. She yawned. These flights were endless. The one from Neo Domino to Tokyo had barely lasted an hour, and apart from too-expensive drinks, she had quite enjoyed it. Her parents had insisted on having her travel first class, and she couldn't say she'd protested too hard. It had barely mattered on the first flight, where the airline's idea of first class had been a curtain separating her from the rest of the plane, but on this intercontinental flight, the advantages were numerous. Already she was very grateful for the extra leg room and seats that actually reclined most of the way.

Explaining to the guys that she was quitting the team had been far less painful than she'd feared. Yusei already knew about Johan Andersen and had even agreed that going to him was her best chance for getting her powers back. He had been overjoyed at the prospect of seeing Judai again. Crow had told her he would have gladly given her his place in the WRGP, but Aki could see that he was itching to duel again. Convincing her parents had been a bit harder, but they had yielded after only two days. No one had suspected any ulterior motives on her part. Nevertheless, she had felt relieved when she'd said her goodbyes; sometimes she felt like the lies were written on her face clear as day.

They'd left near sunset in Tokyo, so now they were just following the night, and Aki hadn't seen daylight in the last nine hours. She could do with some. She activated the screen attached to her seat again and stared at the flight route. A little more than three hours to go, it told her, but she was hesitant to believe it, especially since their estimated arrival time was still four hours away. She scrolled through the menu, trying to find anything that appealed to her, but couldn't find anything interesting she hadn't already watched in the hours before she fell asleep. Eventually she skipped over a documentary about aliens building the pyramids, and settled on one that had them building Stonehenge instead.

It droned in the background while she slumped in her seat and closed her eyes, letting her thoughts wander. She already missed Neo Domino, but if she stayed there, she'd never be able to accomplish anything useful. And then there was Bruno, of course. They had been in touch briefly after their conversation in the hospital. She hoped the guys never found out. They'd worked so hard to reunite the city… For a better life for themselves, and for everyone on Satellite. To know that everything they'd done had only served to make the world destroy itself quicker? Aki swallowed, but it didn't get rid of the feeling that had settled in her throat and stomach. Had they really defeated the Earthbound Gods, only to bring about the end of the world anyway? Thirteen years, Bruno had said, but only two if they wanted to accomplish anything at all.

But Yuki Judai could help, and to get him back they needed Johan Andersen. Manjoume-san had told her, only two days ago, that Johan had been teaching kids around Europe, coaching them into gaining a closer bond with their decks and monsters. How exactly that would help with getting her powers back, she didn't know yet. Even so, it was far better than doing nothing at all.

She dozed off somewhere around the aliens turning Stonehenge in a landing strip and only woke up when a flight attendant shook her awake. The intercom was announcing their arrival at Bergen. Aki folded her blanket and fastened her seatbelt, but even so, it still took half an hour of circling around the airport before they were allowed to land, and another twenty minutes before they actually reached the terminal. So this was Bergen? Her first impression was that it looked very dreary and rainy. Maybe the actual city would be more impressive than the airport. Manjoume-san had assured her that Johan would be waiting to pick her up, but doubt set in while she was waiting for her luggage to arrive. What if no one was here? What if Johan Andersen had decided he didn't need someone who couldn't summon monsters? She had her passport, but she didn't know Norwegian at all and her English was sketchy at best.

Her nerves only increased when she'd gathered her luggage and made her way through a last passport check. The arrival zone was packed with friends and family members waiting for the new arrivals, but no one she saw fit the description of Johan Andersen. She stood there to the side with her luggage, feeling more than a little lost in this new country on the other side of the world. Was she just going to wait here all day? What if no one came for her? She had memorized Johan's address before she left, but would the people here understand her?

"Hello, you must be Aki," someone said right next to her in slightly-accented Japanese. She barely prevented herself from jumping and turned around to face the speaker: a European man with blue hair and blue-green eyes. Johan Andersen.

"Yes," she said, suppressing a sigh of relief. Johan Andersen smiled. It didn't quite reach his eyes.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," he said, holding out a hand. "I hope you had a good trip?"

Aki nodded, surreptitiously studying him. For someone who was only forty-one, he definitely looked older, and something about his eyes looked familiar. Not the color — she hadn't seen that particular shade of green before — but something about the way he looked around, something about the way the lines in the corners of his eyes were too pronounced, the eyes of someone who had frowned far too much...

Tenjoin-san, she thought. Tenjoin Asuka had had the same kind of eyes. Sad eyes. Manjoume-san had mentioned something about Johan having been Yuki Judai's best friend. Come to think of it, Manjoume-san's eyes were like that too.

"I'm glad you were able to come," Johan said. "Come on, I'm sure you'd like some time to rest."

Aki suppressed the yawn she felt coming up at that statement. Johan noticed and smiled gently. "It's hell, isn't it? I've made this trip too many times already but it never gets easier." He grabbed her bag. Aki wanted to protest but Johan waved her off. "We'll take a taxi."

They reached the taxi bay without incident and Johan provided the driver with an address that was all strange sounds to Aki. He and Johan struck up a conversation in rapid Norwegian. Aki, for lack of anything better to do, turned on her phone and wrote an e-mail to Japan. She'd promised she'd let them know when she'd arrived, after all.

The trip took longer than she'd expected — the airport clearly wasn't situated right next to the city and she'd already finished her e-mail after a few minutes. Johan was still chatting with the taxi driver. She pulled out the book she'd failed to read on the plane and opened it. Might as well do something. Looking out of the window got boring.

"Ah, Aki!" Johan said twenty minutes later, just as the plot of her book had started to pick up and she was becoming more interested in what was going to happen. She looked up, startled. "Sorry, I've been talking all this time. We're almost at the city. What do you think?" Johan pointed out of the window, and Aki saw that they were entering Bergen now. Unlike Neo Domino, this city wasn't using much Momentum-based technology yet. Maybe that wasn't a bad thing, Aki reflected, not with the damage Momentum might be causing far too soon. The lack of Momentum gave the place a very different look, like it had been transplanted here from the last century.

"It's different," she said truthfully. She'd spent most of her life in Neo Domino, and the very few times she'd been to Tokyo with her parents, when she was still a little kid, hadn't left much of an impression on her. Everything looked different in Europe, even the trees. At least Bergen still had a sea.

"Have you always lived here?" she asked, desperate for a change of subject before the homesickness overcame her again.

"For the most part." Johan looked thoughtful for a few seconds. "I stayed at North Academia a lot when I was a teen, but I bought my house a little before I graduated, once I'd earned enough prize money."

Right, Johan Andersen had been a Pro Duelist. Aki lapsed in silence as she watched the landscape go by. Fifteen minutes later, the car turned into a wide street and pulled up in front of a house surrounded by trees. It wasn't particularly big — Aki would've thought Johan Andersen would've been able to afford better — but the large garden more than made up for it. She could only see parts of it from the street, but it looked like it stretched out far beyond the house itself.

Johan paid the taxi driver while Aki got her luggage out of the trunk. Just a minute later, the two walked up to the front door. Aki thought she saw a flash of blue from the corner of her eyes, but on second glance, it turned out to be just a bunch of flowers. Johan fished out his keys and unlocked the door.

"Sorry, it's a bit of a mess," he said as they entered the living room. He wasn't lying; the large table in the middle of the living room had papers strewn all across it, almost entirely covering the small laptop sitting near the edge. Who still used paper?

Johan hurriedly gathered most of the papers in a messy pile and mentioned for her to sit down. "Make yourself comfortable," he said. Aki took a seat and stared down at her hands. Johan had been unfailingly nice to her ever since picking her up, but he had to know she didn't have her powers right now. She was sure Manjoume-san told him.

"I'm afraid I can't be of much use right now," she said. Johan shook his head with a smile.

"I'm sure you'll be a great help." Johan walked to what she believed to be the kitchen. "Now, do you want anything to eat?"

oOoOo

When Antinomy had come to him with the news of what exactly had caused the collapse of their future, Paradox had…probably been less surprised than he should have been. He had never been attached to Neo Domino the way Z-one was and finally figuring out what had caused the destruction of their world felt like a relief. After their conversation with Z-one a couple of days ago, he was almost perversely glad that Antinomy finally seemed willing to consider the Ark Cradle.

He should have known it wouldn't be that easy.

"Is there really nothing else?"

"We have to go through with it. The Ark is our only chance now," Paradox said, once more looking over the data Antinomy had come up with. He glanced at Antinomy, who had been very pale all day, and now looked slightly sick to the stomach. "If Neo Domino is the problem—"

"We have to get rid of Neo Domino," Antinomy finished his sentence. "I know, but is this really it?"

"What other option is there?" Paradox said. He had been doing the math ever since Antinomy had come to him with the data, days ago. They'd even had conversations similar to this one quite a few times over. This was one mission they really wouldn't be returning from this time. Either they succeeded, and they saved the world, or they didn't, and they'd die along with it. Again.

"But everyone here..."

Paradox whirled around. "Don't tell me you actually got attached to them? You know how this works, Antinomy. There's nothing and no one that should be holding us back, especially not Team 5D's. They're the reason we're in this whole mess anyway!"

"Oh, that's rich! Weren't you the one wanting to get Sherry out?" Antinomy said. Paradox immediately wanted to interrupt, but Antinomy continued talking. "So she would get to live and you can have what you want, but Team 5D's won't?"

"Sherry isn't a citizen of Neo Domino City," Paradox argued. "She's not involved in this."

"Because her life is worth so much more than anyone else's? Who's getting attached now?"

"So you just want her to die?"

Antinomy slammed his hands down on the table. "I don't want anyone to die, that's the fucking point!"

"We're a bit past that, aren't we?"

"So we just—" Antinomy took a deep breath. "So we just destroy Neo Domino City. That's it. End of the line." He sat down. "But you do realize that if it happens here, it could happen somewhere else as well."

Paradox was all too aware. The problem was, and always had been, Momentum, but whatever cruel force that governed this universe had declared Momentum a fixed point and nothing they'd tried had managed to stop the development of the program.

"I just wish there was a way to make people give up Momentum. Somehow."

"You know it can't happen." That was just politics, with an added dash of greed, despair and human nature. "It's the perfect energy source—"

"Almost no cost, no fuel needed, no pollution, limitless supply," Antinomy cited. "Yeah, I know. It's far too tempting. We're still using it ourselves."

Paradox snorted. Yeah, Delta Eagle ran on Momentum, as did his own D-Wheel, and even the Ark contained a Momentum reactor—reversed, however. Momentum was by far the most convenient energy source the human race had ever come up with. It was so easy to use, so easy to get access to, that even for him, who'd spent over a year in a time without Momentum, it was almost impossible to imagine a life without. But Momentum was still the source of all their problems.

"There should be a better solution than this. What happens if the same conflict breaks out in another city that has a Momentum reactor?" Antinomy said. Paradox didn't want to agree, but the reactors were still spreading in this timeline, and in less than a decade, almost every city in the world would have one. A few places had stubbornly refused to make use of Momentum, but that hadn't saved them from the Machine Emperors.

"If we remove the catalyst, it will give us time," Paradox said. Time was something they were somehow always short of.

"Time for what?" Sherry asked. Antinomy got up so fast he almost tripped over his chair. Paradox bit the inside of his cheek so he didn't make a sound. Sherry was leaning against the doorframe, her hair tied in a ponytail, still wearing her riding outfit. They hadn't expected her to be back for another hour at least.

When neither of them replied, she raised her eyebrows and leisurely walked into the room. "So that's the game you're going to play, is it? Don't tell Sherry anything? I do believe you still need a team."

Ouch, that was cold. He'd thought that they got along better than this.

"It's not that we're keeping secrets—" Antinomy said. He trailed off, because of course that sentence didn't have an ending. Telling Sherry about the Ark was madness. Telling her to leave Japan without a reason why would only make her more suspicious.

"I did think you were going to help me," she said. "Clearly I was wrong."

Was he the only one noticing the note of disappointment in her voice? Maybe he hadn't been wrong in his initial assessment.

"It's… dangerous," he said. Sherry, as he'd expected, was not impressed.

"My entire life has been dangerous. I almost died when I was a toddler. Twice. So either you fess up and I know what's going to happen or I'll drag it out of you."

Paradox sighed. Even as Antinomy shook his head, he said: "Neo Domino is the root cause of the destruction of our future."

"I'm aware. That isn't new, is it?"

"Paradox, what are you—" Antinomy hissed. Paradox cut him off.

"We also discovered the precise reason why the Momentum reactor in Neo Domino will go out of control. Unfortunately, it is already in the past."

"And why is that a problem?" Sherry said. She'd taken to the idea of time travel remarkably fast.

Antinomy was still shaking his head, but he sighed. "I guess Paradox is going to tell you anyway. Actually, it's Satellite."

Sherry tilted her head. "Satellite? How?"

"It's the reunion…" Antinomy swallowed. "There's so much resentment between the city and the people of Satellite, it's making emotions run high everywhere."

"Disturbing," said Sherry. She stole Paradox's chair and sat down. "So what do you plan to do about it? Ask everyone to play nice?"

"That wouldn't wo—" Antinomy started. Sherry snorted and he glared. "Yeah, you know very well that'd never work. What would we even tell them?"

"Depends. Do you want a stay in prison or in an insane asylum?"

Antinomy closed his eyes. Paradox could tell he was on the verge of one of his rare outbursts. "The issue is that we can't possibly resolve this in a way that's beneficial for everyone," he cut in quickly. Antinomy already didn't like what was going on. Sherry mocking them wasn't helping his mood, and right now Paradox needed him to stay calm and focused.

"Yes, I gathered. So what will you do?"

"The Ark," Antinomy muttered. Paradox looked at him, surprised, and Antinomy said: "Since you're already telling her everything anyway. Either she finds out now or when you make it descend."

Still with the you. He kept distancing himself from the Ark Cradle. Antinomy would have to decide which side he was on very quickly, or it would prove to be disastrous for all of them.

"The Ark Cradle… It's a city. It's a giant city between timelines we managed to construct. The city that could never be," Paradox said. Sherry's skepticism was clear on her face.

"Do I even want to know how that works?"

"It will crash on top of the city," Antinomy continued dispassionately. "The Ark Cradle's Momentum reactor turns in reverse to the one of Neo Domino City. If they crash into each other, the reversal of direction will take out everything in at least a hundred-mile radius."

One hundred and twelve point seven, Paradox didn't say. Sherry didn't need details now, not with the way her green eyes widened, the way she gasped and jumped up. The way she slammed her hands down on top of the table like Antinomy had done earlier.

"Are you kidding? You want to destroy the city?"

Antinomy laughed bitterly. "Want? I don't want anything. But we don't have a lot of choice in the matter. Momentum made that abundantly clear to us."

"So you'll kill millions of people, just to—"

"To save billions," Paradox cut in. He shrugged. "Do you think we haven't had the same argument a hundred times over? Because we've heard it all. We've made the arguments ourselves. If you and Mizoguchi leave now, you'll be safe."

"Like hell we will. What if it doesn't work? Then what will you do?"

"If we're not dead, we'll try again."

Sherry closed her eyes. "You're crazy, the bunch of you. Destroying an entire city… Is there no other way?"

"Not unless we can get the people of the City and Satellite to become magical best friends in the span of a few months, no," Antinomy said. "I really wish there was a way… I've been thinking and thinking, but it always comes back to the Ark."

"No," said Sherry.

"No?" Paradox looked down at her. Her eyes had narrowed, and she looked more determined than ever.

"I refuse to accept that. You two are so mired in your own preconceptions: 'Oh, look what martyrs we are, having to sacrifice so many people!' You're not even trying to find another solution."

"We're not martyrs!" Antinomy said, but Sherry only laughed.

"No? Poor us, look at the sacrifices we're willing to make! We'll take the guilt of killing millions of people just so we can save billions! We'll sacrifice our own lives and souls if that's what it takes!" She shook her head. "You're idiots."

"You weren't there," Antinomy snapped. "You don't know what we've tried already, and nothing has ever worked! Not even once! You didn't see them die—"

"And you did, congratulations. So are you going to stop being stuck in the past and move forwards?"

That was rich, coming from her. Paradox almost opened his mouth to say something, but Antinomy was already furious and Sherry wasn't far behind him. If he was the only one here who could keep his head cool, he'd better put it to use.

"Okay, right. Sherry, you say you can find another way?"

"I can sure as hell try." She grabbed Antinomy's laptop from him. "Give me that. What do we have? When's your Ark thing going to appear?"

"It… The circuit has to be completed."

"And what the hell is that?"

"The circuit runs on dueling energy," Antinomy said. "Other people have tried to collect it before, but they never quite succeeded, but we figured out how to collect it directly. That's why the WRGP even exists. It will complete the circuit in Neo Domino, and once it does, it'll provide the Ark with enough energy to appear in this world. Once it does…"

"When will that be?" Sherry asked. Their explanation clearly didn't make her happy. After this conversation, she'd be bombarding him with questions.

Antinomy bit his lip. "As far as we know, it will happen during the finals of the WRGP."

"Oh, extra dramatic. So that gives us, what, a month?"

"Something like that."

"Not enough time to get anyone to like each other…" Sherry pondered. "If only there was something they had in common…"

Antinomy's eyes widened. "That… A common enemy. I guess it could work, but then what would it be? There's nothing here that they'd want to fight against, not the both of them. Security made sure of that."

Paradox grimaced. Security. Another factor in this weird mess. He was caught up in his thoughts on the matter, and therefore Sherry's sudden laughter came as a surprise.

"Common enemy," she said, mirth written all over her face. "Isn't it obvious? You wanted to be martyrs so badly."

"What?" Antinomy asked.

"Their common enemy. It's going to be your fancy Ark. It will be you."

Next chapter: When your younger self roasts you #justtimetravelthings