The last half an hour of Aki's life had left her too stunned to speak.

First of all, the dinner went off without a hitch. Yusei had loved her cooking, which made her feel fuzzy inside. They talked all through dinner about themselves and what they'd been up too, which made her even happier. Getting a better look into his life made her feel so much better.

Then there was what happened after. After eating and sitting down, the two had gotten to talking and, before long, their feelings had come out. They'd both admitted to waiting on the other for all this time, and their passion exploded in that moment. Even now, Aki could feel her body jumping and twitching from the experience. She felt beyond angry that it had been ruined.

And where was she now?

Now she was on the back of Yusei's D-Wheel, riding at top speeds to his own apartment.

"Divine escaped The Facility."

Even now, she was mentally still in that moment. She was still underneath Yusei, fiddling with his belt as he echoed this message to her. The message that Ushio had tried so hard to relay. Divine had escaped prison. He was on the loose and, even worse, could only be placed at said prison a few days ago. He could be anywhere by now. He could've sent Ushio to them as bait. Where was he? What was he after? Her?

Aki's grip on Yusei's midsection tightened in fear. The idea of Divine escaping had never occurred to her. He'd already spent over ten years in prison. Why break out now? What could he be after all these years later?

The D-Wheel came to a stop, and Yusei took his helmet off.

"Come on," he said stoically, "let's go." He'd reverted to his leader persona now. The idea of doing anything except keeping her safe and getting inside the building to talk to Ushio was gone. He cared for nothing except the facts of the situation. She would have been excited by it were she not horrified. Entering the lobby of the building, the first thing she noted where the officers everywhere. They seemed to be securing the building, which made sense. After all, the two people in the lobby were the heads of Neo Domino's Police Force. She saw the man they were looking for standing near the front desk, along with another woman she recognised. They looked up as Aki and Yusei approached.

"Yusei!" Mikage Sagiri said, managing a smile in this situation. "Aki!" The blue haired woman had let her hair grow out since Aki had seen her last, now wearing it in a ponytail. She was wearing a black suit and shirt, which seemed to suit her well. Aki accepted the woman's hug as she received it, still feeling hollow inside.

"It's so good to see you," Mikage said as she back up to smile at Aki. "It's a shame it's under these circumstances."

"Yeah," Aki mumbled with a weak smile. "It really is." She looked up as Ushio approached her. He looked about the same as he did before, if a bit older. He also wore a suit that matched Mikage's.

"Aki," he said as he took reached out for a hug. One she gladly accepted. "I'm glad to see you safe and sound." Aki resisted the urge to bury herself in Ushio's chest and cry angrily.

"Thanks," she said. The tall man moved away from her and looked over to Yusei.

"Let's go and sit down," he said. Aki followed them over to a table surrounded by some chairs nearby, where they sat down. Aki sat next to Yusei, who took her hand in a vain attempt to comfort her. It really didn't work. All she felt was rage.

"Tell us what happened," Yusei said, "Everything, now." Ushio looked irritated by it all, understandably.

"We don't know what happened," he said, "that's the problem. All we know is that today, the guards were suspicious at his silence. He wasn't eating, either. They went in and found his cell empty. The camera's displayed him there, but he never moved. He'd left that to fool us, gain some time."

"Wasn't he at the maximum security level?" Yusei demanded.

"That's the problem," Mikage replied. "Yusei, that entire floor is covered in security camera's and guards. For Divine to have slipped by them all, much less everyone else and all the tech on the way out..."

"Did he have help?" Yusei asked.

"As far as we can tell, no," Ushio replied. "He's never had a visitor, or spoken to anyone other than guards who have all been cleared. We don't know how he got out."

"Isn't that obvious?" Aki asked. "He used his psychic powers to escape." The two officers watched her quietly.

"We considered that," Mikage replied, "but for Divine to use his powers at that level, to hit all that tech and manpower and not be caught-"

"He had ten years to feel the prison out from the inside," Aki said, interrupting her. "He had a decade to search out all the camera's, the tripwires, the guard positions. He used it all to his advantage. I'm surprised he took this long."

"Is that even possible?" Ushio asked weakly.

"Yes," Aki replied as she calculated Divine's movements in her mind. "He would have had to spend a lot of time doing it, and even more time executing it, but it's possible. We already know from our duelling abilities that psychic powers interact with technology powered by Momentum, which everything in this God forsaken city is. If I had to guess, Divine influenced both the tech and guards with his powers and erased his presence from them all. If he could do that, he could walk out the front door without a care in the world."

"The amount of power and concentration to do that..." Mikage said.

"Is massive," Aki agreed, "but Divine was one of the only people back then who could match me in strength if he tried. And now he's out, because you guys are incompetent."

"Aki," Yusei spoke up, watching her warily. She sighed weakly and rubbed her eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I didn't mean that."

"You did," Ushio grumbled, "and you're right. This is a blunder that could put us all out of a job." Mikage nodded.

"This is a horrific accident," she said, "But now all we can do is try and correct it. For now, we keep the public uninformed. It's better to avoid hysteria, and better yet it will keep Divine calm, maybe he'll get sloppy."

"And next we get anyone he has a grudge against protection," Ushio said, "which obviously includes the both of you. I'd argue you both more than anyone else."

"What good will protection do if Divine can sneak past them?" Yusei demanded.

"None of the guards will reveal themselves as police," Mikage replied. "Hopefully that'll mean he won't influence them. If they spot him, they call in backup. If he gets violent, they're instructed to shoot to kill."

"I could go after him," Aki offered. She'd said it quietly, but clearly everyone had heard her from the looks she was getting. "What? He's too powerful for some random officers. I need to do this if we want to stop him."

"Not a chance," Ushio replied. "That's exactly what he wants, you alone. No, we go with our original plan. Guns trained on him should he be spotted will have to do." Aki grunted in irritation.

"Hit him in the head," she said, "or else he can use his power to keep his blood pumping. It's the head or nothing." Ushio nodded.

"We'll tell them," he said. Yusei rubbed his hands through his hair, sighing angrily.

"So what do we do?" He demanded.

"Now," Ushio said," we get you to a safe house. Both of you. And Aki, your parents are already secured. But you can't contact them until this is over, it's for safety."

"I understand," Aki replied. "Can I speak to them before I get to my own safe house?" Ushio nodded.

"I'll drive you by," he said, "so you can speak to them. I've got a hoodie for you, pull the hood up and don't show your face. Yusei, you'll go with Mikage to a separate safe house. Now that we know Aki is back in the city, she's priority number one. No one can know where she is."

"Which includes you," Mikage told him in a scolding tone. "Do the hand off and don't look back, got it?"

"Yeah I know," Ushio replied with a roll of his eyes. "So, let's not waste time. Aki, I'll take you back to your place so you can grab anything you'll need. Are you ready?"

"Can we talk in private?" Yusei asked suddenly. Both of them nodded and got up, leaving her and Yusei alone. "Aki," he said, "are you okay?"

"What do you mean?" Aki asked, "I'm fine."

"Don't lie to me," Yusei said sternly, blue eyes boring into her like drills. "I know you better than that. What're you planning? Are you gonna ditch Ushio first chance you get? Maybe influence him to forget you like Divine did? Then what? Find him on your own?"

"It'd be safer then letting the police do it," Aki said as she matched his gaze. "Yusei, you heard my theory about how he escaped, didn't you? If he can do that, a few guards and a safe house isn't going to stop him. I need to do it. I can resist his influence, I'm psychic too."

"That'd be exactly what he wants, Aki," Yusei hissed. "To isolate you, make you go out on your own."

"Well I should!" Aki replied, "Yusei, I helped him, don't you remember that? Without me he never would gave gained so much power, so much trust from psychics...I helped him, so I have to be the one to stop him."

"No you don't!" He insisted, grabbing her hands. "Aki, this is our problem. The city's too, not yours. Promise me you won't be rash and go out on your own. Promise me, Aki." She stared back at Yusei quietly, trying to figure out if she was going to lie to him or not. She didn't want anyone else to get hurt because of Divine, but Yusei was making a good point. Going to him would be exactly what Divine wanted. Still though, Aki felt it was all pointless. If Divine could escape The Facility, a few plain clothes Security officers weren't going to stop him. She knew that, and so did the others.

"I have too," she insisted.

"No, you don't," Yusei replied. "You just said earlier that you were still scared of him. What happened to that?"

"Of course I'm still scared!" She replied, "but someone has to stop him, and some Security officers can't do it! Yusei, he's not going to stop until he gets to me. To you. Divine never stops, he never quits."

"Please," Yusei pleaded, "for me, Aki. Don't do anything rash until we're certain we have no choice." Aki glared at him in irritation, but eventually sighed and let her shoulders slump.

"...Fine," she finally said, relenting. "I won't go after him alone. I promise." Yusei managed a smile at this.

"Thank you," he said. With this, Yusei leaned forward, wrapped his hand around the back of Aki's head, and pressed her lips into his. Despite her anger and fear, Aki melted into him and accepted the show of affection. It almost made her forget everything that was happening, wanting only to focus on him. But she couldn't and, even more annoying, they were in public. Pulling away from him, Aki sighed.

"Figures we finally get to this," she said, "and Divine has to escape from prison..." Yusei chuckled.

"Don't worry," he said, squeezing her hands. "Once Divine gets locked up, we can continue where we left off earlier." Aki shivered at these words, suppressing the laugh coming up her throat. Now wasn't the time for laughter. Yusei stood, and Aki watched him for a moment before standing as well.

"Yusei," she said, "I need you to promise me something too."

"What?" He asked, turning to look at her. Aki walked up to him and grabbed both his hands, looking up at him.

"If by some chance Divine finds you," she said, "I need you to promise you'll lead him to me, if that's what he wants. I'll text you later where I get taken, you can tell Divine if he-"

"No," Yusei said, "I won't do that." Aki frowned.

"Yusei, I'm serious," she said. "I don't want you getting hurt."

"And I don't want him to find you," Yusei countered, "I'd rather die."

"Yusei!"

"Aki." The two stared at each other for a moment, Aki still holding his hands. He didn't relent to her gaze.

"Don't say that," she whispered, "you don't mean that." Yusei made a face.

"Maybe I don't," he said, "But I don't want him to find you."

"And I don't want him to hurt you!" Aki replied. Yusei stared at her for a moment before he groaned and rolled his eyes.

"Fine," he said, "I'll...think about it." Aki supposed that was as good a reply as she was bound to get. Wrapping her arms around Yusei, she hugged him tightly. His arms came around her as well, holding her close to him. They stayed that way for a good long while, neither wanting to let go. Who knew when they'd see each other next? That just made Aki angrier. Only half an hour ago she was about to have him to herself, and now she didn't know when she was going to see him again. Things had really gone downhill in the last thirty minutes.

"Let's go," Yusei said, "we need to hurry." Aki nodded against him, not letting go.

"Okay,", she replied.


Aki stared out the window of the police cruiser, silence between herself and Ushio. They had already stopped at her place and picked up a few things, which really just amounted to Aki's laptop, phone charger, and changes of clothes. She watched the sidewalk pass by silently, not saying a word. She absentmindedly pulled the hood further around her head when she saw a few people walking around, just to be sure.

"When did you get back in the city?" Ushio asked suddenly. Aki took a deep breath.

"Two days ago," she said. Ushio grunted.

"Same time frame of his escape," he said. "I don't get how he knew." Aki frowned.

"Maybe he didn't," she said as she looked to him. "Maybe it was a coincidence."

"Shitty coincidence." he said, Aki agreeing. "Well, I'm happy your back, Aki. City wasn't the same without you guys. How are the others?"

"They're good," she said. "Leo is still winning amateur tournaments, Jack and Crow are around the world. Luna is studying to be a teacher, I heard."

"Teacher, huh?" He asked, "good for her. She's got the heart for it, putting up with Leo all day." Aki scoffed.

"That's true," she said. There was a silence between them then, Ushio sighing.

"I'm so sorry about this, Aki," he said, "we never imagined Divine could...We never thought he was that strong." Aki watched the policeman quietly, knowing this must have been hard on him. Ushio had always been a good man as far as she recalled. His tune on Satellite residents had changed a long time ago, and since he'd been a good ally. To mess up on this level must have been haunting him. She was surprised he wasn't crushing the steering wheel, given how white his knuckles were.

"It's okay," Aki said.

"It isn't," he said. "Divine is a threat, a big one. To let him go free...It's a massive blunder."

"We'll find him," Aki said, Ushio nodding.

Damn right we will," he said, "and then we'll lock him up in a tin can and toss him in the ocean. Then you and Yusei can get back to what you were clearly up to when I called." Aki felt her face blush as Ushio smirked at her.

"Uh," she started weakly, "H-How much did you...?" Ushio laughed at her.

"Not much," he said, "But it's unlike Yusei to talk like that. Plus, you guys made it easier to connect the dots when you tried to eat each other back there." Aki slunk down in the seat, Ushio laughing still. She wanted to throw herself out the window, in all honesty. She pulled the hood over her eyes in embarrassment.

"This is so embarrassing," she hissed.

"For what it's worth, you guys make a great couple," he said, "I always figured you were crushing on him back in the day. Nice to see that finally bear fruit." Aki managed a weak smile at this.

"Yeah," she agreed quietly. "What about you and Mikage? Want to talk about obvious crushes, you and her make a good pair." Ushio snorted.

"I know," he said, "she makes fun of me every day for it. But we're good. Our three year anniversary is coming up soon."

"Huh," Aki said, "I totally forgot your wedding was around now." She had been to said wedding three years ago, it had been a big event. All the Signers showed up, along with people like Misty and Kiryu. That was a good reminder. "Speaking of that reminded me, Ushio. You need to find Misty and protect her too."

"We know," Ushio said, "we got in touch with the police in Paris, let them know. The odds Divine gets out of the city are slim but, if he does, they'll protect her."

"And Carly," Aki said, remembering that day in Arcadia Headquarters years ago. "Carly might be in danger too. Hell, you need to talk to the other Signers too."

"Noted," Ushio replied. "We'll make sure we get in contact with them." Aki nodded thankfully, turning to look out the window again. "Aki," Ushio started, "Do you have any ideas where he might have gone? Any idea at all?" She frowned at this.

"No," she said. "Security's old investigation into Arcadia should have eliminated all safe houses and bases he had back then. I can't think of anywhere he might be hiding." Ushio hummed.

"Damn," he said, "Was hoping you might have known."

"No, sorry," she said. Ushio began to slow down, pulling the car over to the side of the road.

"Your parents are in here," he said, pointing to the housing complex next to them. "Hood up, hide your face, and go on in. You've got fifteen minutes before Kazuma comes for the hand off." Nodding at him, Aki pulled her hood up and stepped out of the car, rushing into the building. She was immediately greeted by officers, so she pulled her hood to show it was her.

"Sorry ma'am," one of the officers said, "we've been told to ask you a question only the real Izayoi Aki would know. What occurred to a woman named Martha during Yusei Fudo's first battle with the Dark Signer Rudger?"

"She was taken by the Earthbound Immortal," Aki answered. The officer nodded, moving to allow her entrance. Aki had to admit, that was a good question. Ushio had been there, so he knew, but the officers wouldn't. Therefor if Divine did come, he couldn't read their mind to find it out. Then again, it probably wouldn't do much if Divine could just erase his presence. Huh. Not to mention she'd just given those two the answer.

All this did was reinforce her belief it would take a psychic to stop Divine. No one else had the power to if he was unhinged. Growling, she shook her head. She was being to hotheaded, they were right. Her being alone was exactly what Divine would want. She needed to trust her friends to help her.

Going up the stairs, Aki followed the trail of officers to a room where the door was open. Peering inside, Aki saw her parents inside, who looked up as she walked in.

"Aki!" Her mother cried out, rushing to her. Aki accepted her hug, holding her tightly. Her father came too, holding them both. They moved away after a few seconds, watching her worriedly. "We got taken here out of nowhere, and now people are telling us that monster Divine escaped prison!"

"That seemed to be true, unfortunately." Aki replied with a frown. "He got out."

"For God's sake," Her father hissed as he ran a hand through his hair, "how could they let something like this happen?!"

"Apparently he's planned this for quite some time," she said, "seeing as he got out without being detected." Her father didn't looked pleased by this, instead looking livid. Her mother just looked concerned.

"Aki," she said, "is he after you?" Aki shrugged, making a face.

"I don't know," she said, "but everyone who even interacted with him is being warned and protected, and seeing as you guys are my parents..."

"We need to be protected," her father finished. "Because he might try and hurt us." Aki nodding, looking down at her feet.

"This is not what I wanted when I came back to he city," she mumbled sadly.

"This isn't your fault sweetheart," her mother said, smiling at her. "That madman has gone to far. The police will find him and bring him to justice." Aki doubted that. If Divine had been able to get out of The Facility, he wouldn't get sloppy now, Best she could hope for is that he'd get a bullet in the back of his head.

"I hope so," Aki said, "otherwise we'll need a different plan."

"Like what?" Her father asked. Aki's face darkened at this.

"Otherwise I'll do it myself."