Good Day Readers and welcome to the sequel to Pain of Betrayal, Pain of Loss! Thanks to all of you for the support and I hope that you all enjoy this latest edition of the Hope sisters.

Obviously I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh only Kylie and Katherine Hope along with the unique cards within their decks and whatever other OCs decide to crop up. Also italics symbolise a mind conversation, a video tape or something in a language that isn't Japanese. I would appreciate any responses that you have, please enjoy

Chapter 12: - The Runaway Train Duel

The ride back to the Hopkins' home was silent except for the slight sniffles that escaped from me, we'd lost Yugi and I couldn't even imagine how Anzu, Rebecca let alone Suguroku would take that revelation. Soon the wind turbines that surrounded the home came into view and I spotted the caravan, rubbing my eyes one last time, which I knew were red and puffy from the stream of tears that had escaped me, I looked up as the car came to a halt and I heard Yami rein in the horse he'd taken.

"Darling!" Rebecca cried. She ran forward and embraced Yami, not realising the difference between the ancient spirit and the one she'd called for. "Thank goodness you won, didn't you?" Rebecca asked. However, I saw the young girl's back stiffen as Yami's arms remained immobile, Rebecca pulled back as Anzu ran up to give her congratulations.

"He didn't win," Kylie stated. My sister had climbed out of the car, her back to the women behind her, so she didn't see their confused gazes but there was no doubt that she felt them boring into her. "Yami lost!" Kylie declared. Her tone was dull and empty, those of us who'd chased after her and Yami had got the tail end of the Duel but Kylie had seen the whole thing unfold and watched as Yami descended into the darkness within him.

"That's impossible! Because, if you lose in a match with Doma, your soul will be taken away, right?" Anzu protested. She was apparently forgetting one key thing that was different about Yugi when compared to the rest of us; Jounouchi insisted that it had been taken so Anzu threw her hand behind her. "But isn't Yugi standing there perfectly?" Anzu questioned. At her own words, Anzu spun around to look at the forlorn Pharaoh, whose crimson gaze was staring at the barren ground beneath his feet.

"You're lying… you're lying, right? Yugi! Please swap places and let me see my Darling!" Rebecca insisted. I climbed out of the car and walked over to the blonde girl as Yami apologised to her, explaining what Yugi had done; I reached Rebecca in time to turn the girl around and hold her to me, like Kylie had done only an hour ago for me, as Rebecca broke into tears. "Why… why? Aren't you just a soul residing in Darling's body? Why did you remain while Darling's soul disappeared?!" Rebecca questioned. Her voice cracking as she cried.

"Because Yugi is a selfless soul, who would willingly walk through the fires and ice of hell for those he cares about," I explained. My voice was raw and scratchy; however, my words didn't help Rebecca as she blamed Yami for the event occurring as she continued to wail in my arms, demanding that Yugi be returned to him.

"Rebecca is right," Yami agreed. Of course she was! Kylie had explained what had happened, how his pride had led him to activate the Barrier of Oreichalcos. "Partner was against me using the Barrier of Oreichalcos from the very start. Still, I… I deserted my Partner," Yami explained. I looked at Kylie who had moved to join me and Rebecca and she nodded her head to confirm that what he was saying was true.

"Stop it Yami!" Jounouchi yelled. However, Yami didn't listen to the blonde and kept blaming himself for what happened to Yugi. "Didn't I tell you to stop?!" Jounouchi yelled. He had charged forward and seized a grip on the jacket that Yami wore, in a flash Jounouchi lashed out with his fist, striking Yami in the face and sending the ancient spirit sprawling to the ground. "We still have a chance to get Yugi back! What are we going to do if you're all depressed like that!? King of Duelists, where did all you pride go?!" Jounouchi argued.

"But nobody has won against the Five Musketeers of Doma so far…" Otogi pointed out. However, Honda got annoyed with the game creator's point and immediately put the ravenette into a head lock and started squeezing whilst ordering the boy to stop talking rubbish; but it wasn't rubbish, it was the truth, of the two Duels that had occurred there had been a tie and a loss but no win.

"Otogi is right!" Kylie declared. Everyone turned to look at my sister who was looking up at the sky. "We know Rafael's strategy now; we can come up with countermeasures for it. As for Amelda, we can assume he's not as strong as Rafael since he had to self-destruct in order to avoid having his soul snatched. It's only Valon, Tsula and Margaret who we have to be wary of. From the sounds of it Tsula is targeting me," Kylie admitted.

"Besides that, the Barrier of Oreichalcos is the true problem. Its' effects aren't something we can stop, only the Nameless Dragons can compete with it," I admitted. Yami wondered if we had the power to compete with Doma. "Don't go giving up! You might have lost but not all of us have! We still have a chance!" I snapped. However after doing that, my throat was aggravated and I started to cough as the dryness in my throat became worse.

"Ok, getting you some water and strategising is our next step," Kylie insisted. We headed into the caravan and I was given a large glass of water as everyone gathered around. "Ok, here's what we learned from Rafael during the Duel. Apparently the Musketeers of Doma, and Mai I'm guessing, have a bond with the darkness in their hearts which is likely how they use the Oreichalcos. Apparently, their goal is to reset human history to zero because humans have strayed from the path Doma set for them and this decision was decided by the leader of Doma, whom I'm assuming is this Lord Dartz they once mentioned," Kylie explained.

"RESET!" I exclaimed. My eyes had widened in shock whilst everyone else was rendered silent by the revelation. "Their aim is to completely clear all on humanity's history!" I cleared up. Kylie nodded her head to show this was true as Yami vocally confirmed it, Honda believed that it couldn't be done easily. "That's probably why they're trying to revive this Evil God of theirs," I suggested.

"Kathie's right, we've all seen it already. What that thing can do," Jounouchi admitted. He was probably remembering the night when Kylie and Yugi had unleashed their Dragons onto that creepy eye. "They want to use our souls as sacrifices to revive that monster," Jounouchi reminded. That did seem to be their goal, from the repeated mentions they'd made.

"How can… we go against people like that!? We better report this to the police or some other people who can deal with this!" Anzu insisted. Her palms had struck the table and she'd risen to her feet as she made that protest, Kylie let out a sigh as she rubbed the bridge of her nose as if trying to keep her thoughts in order.

"I repeat 'we'd be lucky not to end up in an asylum.' Seriously Anzu, would you have believed any of this before Suguroku's soul got snatched?" Kylie pointed out. Rebecca added on that since Arthur's research was burnt down, any proof that could have helped us with our case had gone with it; Anzu admitted that both were right but brought up the underwater relics as a possible avenue of proof.

"That has already been claimed," Rebecca stated. The young girl walked over with her laptop so that we could look at what she had found, revealing that the underwater ruins had been destroyed and a curse escaped from Kylie at this fact; Doma was cutting off any avenue that might bring more people to our side, erasing any evidence of what was truly going on with all the weirdness happening.

"We cannot give up," Arthur spoke. I looked over to see the old man standing there, relieved to know he had recovered, the man had shown up right before me and the boys had taken off after discovering Yami and Kylie missing and Rafael's message to Yami that Rebecca had hidden from us. "Sorry for making you guys worry about me. I couldn't get back to sleep when I heard Rebecca crying. I have already heard roughly the gist of what happened," Arthur apologised. Yami requested to know if the man had any new insights. "Although I have not fully deciphered the cipher texts… but the real identity of 'Doma' may be from the ancient past. They may be the descendants from the land called Atlantis that was considered to be a paradise," Arthur explained. Kylie let out a small whistle at this information.

"That lines up with what Rafael said. How Doma's leader once led the world to Paradise. I always figure Atlantis was a fairy tale," Kylie admitted. All of us who knew of the legend was just as surprised by the story that Arthur told us; the man added on that the relics and texts inside were historical records of Atlantis. "I guess I have to give Plato more credit than I used to," Kylie admitted.

"In the past, Atlantis was rather highly civilised and they controlled many lands. The people there thus termed it as paradise and thought the peace would last forever. But Atlantis was suddenly destroyed by a monster that was summoned by a certain king," Arthur explained. Yami repeated those last three words and a dark look appeared on his face, Kylie suddenly wacked the spirit across the back of his head, surprising him as she gave him a heavy look.

"Don't even think about it! Atlantis ate the big one ten thousand years ago, seven thousand years before your first life. You were not involved in its' destruction. And from that vision me, you and Seto had it sounded like some evil god was destroying Egypt, again not you. So don't do that," Kylie chastised. Arthur continued his story telling, revealing a magical stone that Atlantis used that was bestowed with the power of God and likely passed to their descendants. "That is likely the creepy stone, that thing is evil," Kylie commented.

"Yeah, I don't know if it's a god's power but… that stone makes my skin crawl just looking at it," I agreed. Arthur didn't have any more for us as that was as far as he had deciphered; Jounouchi was stressed about this due to the fact that Doma had destroyed the research and Otogi believed this was because it contained something that Doma didn't want the world to know about, Honda both insulted and complimented Jounouchi for the thought due to how much of a knucklehead the blonde could be.

"Fortunately, Chiharu took copies of the relics and went back to her lab at the Florida museum where she is studying the relics, she's likely got further along in the deciphering than me by now," Arthur revealed. However, whilst the others were relieved, recalling what had only recently happened to Arthur sent Kylie into tense posture as I leapt to my feet.

"That means they'll be going after her!" Me and Kylie exclaimed. Doma didn't want anyone to know this information, that meant once they learned of the copies, our mum was going to be targeted; a powerful magic user she might be, but a talented Duelists she was not! If those Musketeers forced her into a Duel then there was every chance we'd lose her.

"It's a distance from here to Florida, Rebecca can I borrow your laptop?" Kylie requested. Her protégée nodded and Kylie immediately sent about tapping away. "I can't contact Dad, he's probably swamped with work trying to save our company, both by reputation and by stock shares. Plus if he find out mum's in danger he'll drop everything like a hot rock, not what we need. So I'll contact Seto for a pick up," Kylie explained. We soon connected to the CEO who looked back at us as Kylie clapped her hands together. "Seto, I've got a favour to ask from you!" Kylie greeted.

"What is it, Kylie?" Seto asked. I was relieved to hear that Seto was going to be listening to us, he was hunting for Doma so it be easy to get him to listen to us if Kylie managed to explain what we learned about Doma to him, he'd want to help if only to get closer to the enemy… that and he wasn't likely to let our mum get put into danger just to be stubborn.

"We've got new information about Doma! The clues are at the Florida Museum and we need a ride there! Dad doesn't know anything about this and I can't afford to distract him at the moment," Kylie explained. She fell silent in order to let Seto digest the new that she'd given him and await his response; but Jounouchi used her silence to jump in and mentioned about Yugi's soul… thus inadvertently revealing Yami had lost. "Dumbass! Shut up!" Kylie snapped. Honda seized the blonde by his face and pulled him away.

"Yami… don't tell me you lost!?" Seto asked. I stepped away from the laptop as I waited for the explosion that was likely to come as Honda and Jounouchi attempted to dig us out of the hole that Jounouchi had landed us in, Kylie was covering her face with her hand, a clear sign she'd given up. "Don't mess around with me! You're saying that the Duel King title I gave you on the Duel Tower…has been taken by some nobody we know nothing about?!" Seto bellowed. He was furious and everyone had fallen silent as we waited for the brunette to speak more. "I've misjudged you, Yami! I've got nothing more to say to a loser like you!" Seto declared. He then hung up.

"And he won't listen to us now," I admitted. Kylie nodded her head as she massaged her forehead, clearly attempting to ward off a headache as I pulled out my phone then handed Kylie her own. "I'll go call the airport to get us a Hope Industries jet, you sort out train tickets. This way Dad doesn't find out," I suggested. Kylie nodded her head and we both set about making our calls.

*Yu-Gi-Oh*

It was decided that Otogi would remain behind whilst Arthur recovered and then the three would join us in Florida; after bidding our farewells to the ravenette we boarded the train which started its' journey to the airport. Once there, we'd immediately get on the jet and head for Florida, Rebecca had wanted to come with us but Kylie had talked her out of it in a private conversation which I was relieved for, I didn't want to drag Rebecca into this dangerous fight.

The ride was smooth, but Yami was still depressed, something that worried us as Anzu tried to make him feel better with pointless chatter, but it didn't work. We weren't able to warn mum about the danger to her due to the possibility of Doma finding out, so I was antsy for the train to speed up and reach the airport sooner. Eventually Yami got tired of Anzu's prattle and walked away whilst the other two explained the situation to her, how he was thinking about Yugi.

"He's not the only one!" I snapped. I kept trying to find Yugi through my Soul Bond, but there was this buzzing and static over it, like a bad reception which meant I couldn't see or hear anything from the sweet boy. A hand rested on my shoulder and I looked up to see Kylie there, a concerned expression plastered on her face as I curled my legs into my chest and wrapped my arms around them.

A sudden surge spiked through my mind and I was on my feet quick as a whip, Kylie was also up and looking around, a wary expression on her face as we realised what had happened… all the other passengers were gone. Anzu, Jounouchi and Honda looked around as well, confused as to what had happened to the passengers who had been here moments ago, but now had vanished like the wind.

"That was an intricate illusion made of magic. One we'd have no hope of seeing through… something that powerful… I don't know who could have done it. But I've a gut feeling about who it might be," Kylie explained. We immediately searched the rest of the train, wanting to be certain no one else was here, there wasn't a soul so we returned to our car and found Yami had come back in. "Yami! We've got trouble! This whole thing is a trap set by Doma!" Kylie declared. Yami's face paled and he quickly spun around to run off.

I raced after him with Anzu quickly following me as the other three were behind us, we passed through a door and over into another car when Anzu called out to me and Yami. I spun around and my eyes widened when I saw that the car me and the Pharaoh was in, was decoupling from the one the others were in. Yami held out his hand to the girl and she quickly jumped over to us, we managed to pull her inside as I turned back to the car.

"Kathie!" Kylie yelled. She reached her hand out to me, but in the few seconds it had taken to get Anzu to safety, the gap between our two cars had widened and would only grow more; teleportation was out as getting onto a moving vehicle that way was guaranteed death, a bridge was impossible since we'd have to keep growing it and there was a limit to its' length.

"Kylie!" I cried. This was definitely Doma's doing, they were trying to separate us in order to choose who they wanted to target. "Let's slow this train down!" I suggested. We ran through the train – with Anzu trying to contact the driver and failing – until we reached the engine's car; with no way forward except to climb the ladder that was there, I started to climb the rungs.

"So, you finally made it!" A voice greeted. As the wind whipped at my hair, I looked up and saw Margaret standing there, I pulled myself up onto the roof of the car and I felt Yami and Anzu join me. "Duel with me! You damn bitch!" Margaret snarled. I knew there was no way out of this, so I raised my Duel Disk and activated it as the woman grinned before doing the same with her own Duel Disk.

"Katherine! Don't do this! It's too dangerous!" Anzu pleaded. It wasn't like I could walk away from this confrontation; Margaret was in our way of getting this train to stop moving and it wasn't like I could just force her to move; Margaret's grin twisted into a sneer as she focused her eyes on Anzu, clearly unhappy about being interrupted.

"Oh… you ought to keep quiet, girlie. I couldn't care less what happens to you. But don't you want to know where Muto Yugi is?" Margaret spoke. My eyes widened and my breath stopped as Yami demanded to know the location of the boy from Margaret. "Sorry, Nameless Pharaoh, but I'll only tell you if the little bitch joins me in a Duel… and manages to win," Margaret insisted. I nodded my head to show my agreement to this condition.

Katherine – LP: 4000

Margaret – LP: 4000

"It's my turn!" Margaret declared. She pulled a card free and looked at it before smiling widely at us. "I'd hold on to something you two or get down below before you're blown away. The other Hope isn't here to protect you this time. I activate the Barrier of Oreichalcos!" Margaret declared. The Barrier appeared and grew out to seal me in with Margaret, I quickly looked back and saw Yami and Anzu on the car behind us with them both crouched down and holding onto a raised metal section of the roof.

I looked back at Margaret and saw that same dark aura surrounding her body as the mark of Oreichalcos appeared on her forehead, I was going to have to be careful in this Duel but at least I didn't have to worry about potentially being forced into a dangerous enough position to be forced to play that damnable card since Margaret had already solved that for me.

"I Summon Elementsaber Aina! In Defence Mode" Margaret declared. She placed the card on the Duel Disk and allowed her to be projected onto the field. "Because of the effect of Barrier of Oreichalcos, my Monster gains five hundred additional attack points!" Margaret declared. The red eyes and mark appeared on the small shield bearer. "I also set two cards face down. Turn end!" Margaret declared.

Elementsaber Aina – Attribute: Earth, Type: Warrior, Level: 2, ATK/900, DEF/1800

Elementsaber Aina – ATK/900 – ATK/1400

"My turn! Draw!" I declared. I pulled a card free and looked at it before glancing over at the other cards I had available to me, I needed to get the lead in Life Points in this Duel and keep Margaret's field as clear of Monsters as possible, otherwise I would in a seriously dangerous position. "I Summon Guardian of Hearths, Hestia in Attack Mode!" I declared. I brought the heath keeper of Olympus onto the field in a raging inferno, one hotter than she normal summoned, likely because of the threat we faced.

Guardian of Hearths, Hestia – Attribute: Fire, Type: Pyro, Level: 4, ATK/2000, DEF/2500

"I set one card face down! Now Hestia! Attack with Embers of Olympus!" I commanded. The hearth keeper raised one of her hands, in which burned red hot pieces of coal yet she was completely unharmed; Hestia lifted the hand up to her mouth and blew on the coal pieces which sent the embers soaring in a fierce storm towards the small shield bearer, yet Margaret didn't look concerned about the in coming attack

"Trap, activate! Protective Seal Wall of Light!" Margaret declared. The card rose up and I felt my breath catch in my lungs as a shimmering line of light started to grow across the field. "By paying a multiple of one thousand Life Points I can prevent your Monsters whose attack is less than or equal to this amount! And I choose to pay three thousand Life Points!" Margaret declared. The line of light shot into the air, completely cutting our fields off and forcing the embers to smash into the transparent barrier.

Margaret – LP: 4000 – LP: 1000

"Why would you sacrifice such a massive chunk of your Life for that kind of Trap!" Yami demanded. A scoff escaped from Margaret as I felt sweat coiling down my face because of what this Trap meant for me and my ability to attack Margaret; it put me in an immensely dangerous position and could possibly lead to my defeat if I didn't get rid of it soon enough.

"I did it… because little miss bitch's Deck only had three Monsters with over three thousand attack points and we've got them already. Which means she can't attack at all!" Margaret declared. She began to cackle, as if enjoying the situation of my desperation. "Now then, it's my turn! Draw!" Margaret declared. She pulled a card free at looked at before selecting a different card. "I Summon Elementsaber Makani in Attack Mode!" Margaret declared. The new Monster popped onto the field with a flourish of wind blasting across the field.

Elementsaber Makani – Attribute: Wind, Type: Warrior, Level: 2, ATK/1300, DEF/1200

Elementsaber Makani – ATK/1300 – ATK/1800

"I activate Makani's Special Effect to send a Elementsaber Monster in my hand to the Graveyard and add an Elemental Lord to my hand. I end my turn!" Margaret declared. Her Monsters weren't strong enough to defeat Hestia, but that could change in a flash depending on how she played her cards. "I'm going to get my revenge on you, you bitch. I'm taking your soul after putting you through enough pain to sate my fury!" Margaret bellowed. I owlishly blinked my eyes, wondering at the words that she had hurled at me so suddenly.

"Who the hell are you?!" I exclaimed. Confusion pumped through me as I tried to figure out why this woman hated me so much.