Author's Note: So, we're back to the main plot. Ju and Qi sit down to talk about forming an alliance. What does Qi really want? Who is that silent, angry woman standing behind her? What are the two warriors? There seems to be something off about Qi here. I think We will focus on a different country next week. I will have to see how I feel. For now, enjoy this week's match.

Match Eleven: Tense Meeting:

Ju and Qi sat across from each other at the kitchen table.

"What are you doing here?" Ju asked.

"I came here to see you," the other woman said.

"What do you want with me?" the clan leader asked. Both sat, staring tensely at each other. One wore sweats and a baggie hoodie while the other wore a satin black dress. Ju had her eyes on a black woman standing behind Qi. This woman… What was with her? She looked like she was ready to kill someone. That spear by her side confirmed that.

"I want to form a treaty," Qi said. "Our branches should come together. I want to change my branch for the better." Ju gave her an odd look.

"Why would you come to me with this offer?" she asked. "What have I done to deserve such a proposition?" She glanced up at the woman behind Qi.

"I'm sorry, but does she have to be here?" Ju asked. "She gives me the creeps." The woman narrowed her eyes at her. Qi glanced behind her.

"It's fine," she said. "This is Noelle. She is my companion." Noelle had a hard look on her face after that last statement.

"Uh-huh," Ju said. "Right…" Qi took a sip of her tea.

"To answer your question," she said. "It is because you are my cousin." Ju sat back frowning.

"My uncle is an asshole, and I wouldn't trust him," she said. "What else do you have?" Qi shrugged.

"Fair enough," she said. "Give me a chance to prove my intentions to you." Ju folded her arms across her chest.

"What happened to your mother, if you don't mind me asking," she said.

"She's dead," Qi said.

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that," Ju said. She looked up to see Noelle glaring at her. Her hand inched towards the spear.

"Don't be," the other woman mumbled.

"Okay…" Ju said. The room felt cold for a moment. The clan leader cleared her throat.

"Anyway, why would I benefit from this alliance?" she asked. Qi leaned forward across the table.

"Are you familiar with the game to start the apocalypse?" she whispered. Ju froze. She wanted to say no, but something inside of her had heard this question before. She looked down at her hands.

"I think I have," she said. "What exactly is it?" Qi stared at her.

"You don't really know, do you?" she asked.

"Not all of the details, no," Ju said.

"Have you had strange visitors by your home recently?" her cousin asked. The clan leader paused. Her mind went back to those nightcomers who had been stalking her baby. Qi noticed the color draining from her face.

"I figured as much," she said. She sat back in her chair.

"This is going to be hard to explain," Qi said.

"Try me," Ju said. Noelle's hand reached for the spear.

"Stop," Qi said. The other woman lowered her spear. Ju blinked with a confused look on her face.

"Is she always like that?" she asked.

"Yes," her cousin said. "She is my protector." Noelle glared at Ju again. The clan leader rolled her eyes.

"Geez," she muttered. Ju should've thrown them both out them and there. Qi finished her tea.

"Anyway," she said. "There are three groups that are trying to start the apocalypse." Qi paused as if waiting for a response. Ju sat with her eyes on her, waiting.

"They are the Tandeki Group, Vozrozhdeniye, and Mam," her cousin said. The clan leader narrowed her eyes.

"Mam?" she asked. "Are those the crazy women stalking my baby?"

"Yes," Qi said. Ju narrowed her eyes.

"How do you know all of this?" she asked. Her cousin perked up.

"I had to do my research," she said. Ju stared at her with big eyes.

"You what?" she asked.

"I had to," Qi said. "I have to know who I am meeting in advance." Ju cut a look at her.

"Look, I am not going to bore you with the fine details about the game," she said. "You can look that up yourself. Instead, I am going to tell you about the two warriors." The clan leader gave her a strange look.

"The two warriors?" she asked.

"Do you have more tea?" Qi asked. "For the both of us." Her tone suggested that they were going to need this for the long story.

"Sure, sure," Ju said. She got up and walked over to the stove. Something seemed off about that woman. The clan leader couldn't quite put her finger on it. Still, she couldn't kick her out just yet.

"We can talk as the kettle is boiling," Ju spoke up. She returned to the table and sat back down.

"Fine," Qi said. "There is the legend of the two warriors that will bring ruin to us all. They will be destined to fight. The winner will determine the fate of man." Ju had a look of disbelief.

"What are you talking about?" she asked. "That doesn't make any sense."

"That's how they put it," the other woman said.

"What does this have to do with my son?" Ju asked. Qi looked at her with a hint of pity in her eyes. The clan leader shook her head.

"No…" she said.

"I'm so sorry," her cousin said. Ju shook her head.

"Hell no!" she shouted. "Not my son!"

"They have already chosen him," Qi said.

"He's only a baby!"

"That doesn't matter. They see him as the gold warrior."

Ju gritted her teeth. "No! I will not let them take him!" Qi reached for her hand.

"Then let me protect you," she said. The clan leader blinked for a moment.

"I don't understand," she said.

"Understand what?" Qi asked.

"Why are you doing all of this?" Ju asked. "Why do you care so much?" The other woman let go of her hand.

"Atonement," she said.

"Huh?" Ju asked. Qi had a somber and serious look on her face.

-Qi-

I've had five dolls in my life. Isaac, Lottie, Phillip, Ray, and Noelle. Noelle is the only one of my dolls to survive. The others disappeared and were never seen again.

It wouldn't be years that I learned the truth. The whole, ugly truth about my mother. She was a monster. Everyone knew it, but they didn't know how bad she was. I didn't understand it either at the time.

Noelle helped me to see the truth. She wouldn't be the only one either. It was her that compelled me to get away.

Now, I have to set things right. Not just for me. But for Isaac, Lottie, Phillip, and Ray. For the others as well. It's not just my mother's deeds I have to make up for. But for the rest of my branch. I know it sounds like too much. I shouldn't be carrying the sins of my ancestors and blah, blah, blah. But I have to be the one to break the cycle. This will all end with me. I have already decided that I will never have kids. That line will end with me. Noelle accepts my resolve. The only I can start is with Ju and her family.

The women looked up when they heard footsteps walking towards the kitchen. Yao stood in the doorway holding baby Jing in his arms.

"Oh, you're up," Ju said. Her husband had a confused look on his face at first.

"Uh… who is this?" he asked. Noelle held her spear by her side.

"Sweetheart, this is—" Ju said. Qi rose to her feet.

"My name is Fan Qi," she said, bowing. "And I here to keep your family safe." Yao's ears caught the name "Fan". He looked ready to attack. Noelle prepared to attack. Qi sat back down without a single word.