The Satellite is much emptier than I remember. Outside of the markets, it's so silent that all I can hear is my breathing and footsteps. It makes me afraid. I feel someone is watching me. I keep glancing back. When I arrived, I scoured the marketplace, looking for Yusei, Crow or Kiryu. Clearly, I had no luck. So, now I'm checking all the places we used to go. Every time I glance back, I can see the Daedalus Bridge in the background. That old story about the bridge comes back to me and I smile, it reminds me of Crow and how much he always loved that story. The air here is starting to take a toll on me. It's full of dust, so it's aggravating my chest which leads to lots of coughing. Despite this, I keep going. I need to make it to the old Team Satisfaction hideout. A few more people start to show up. I pinch the bridge of my nose as I try to figure out what's coming up ahead, and why there's suddenly more people. Probably a bar, to be perfectly honest because of where I am. I duck into an alleyway when I suddenly notice a crowd starting to gather ahead. A man fully dressed in black robes is on the side of the crowd nearest to me.
"Hope in the land of Satellite!" I watch from the alleyway as the man calls out to the crowd. "The Crimson Dragon that came forth in Neo Domino City is a Wicked God who brings forth disaster to this world!" Disaster? Is this what Godwin is resurrecting that Dragon for? "Should the City and Satellite be destined to tremble at the rage of the Wicked God and both perish from this world? No! The Crimson Dragon has chosen the City, the land of fools!" I can't argue with that. "O wise people of Satellite! Embrace hope! Those who have gathered around us shall definitely be saved from this curse! The hope of Satellite!" I'm about to walk out from the alleyway into the crowd when I noticed something strange.
"Hope." The crowd which was silent up until this point begin to say this word over and over again, as if in a trance. "Crimson Dragon, be gone!" They begin yelling this at the top of their voice. I back further into the alleyway and run. Something is telling that what happened there isn't normal. What could have caused such a reaction? When, in the City, people would walk straight past him. I'm a few blocks away from the crowd before I stop to catch my breath. I'm honestly surprised that after a little time in the Satellite, my stamina has become this bad. I curse my stupid lungs. I continue, despite my current state. After I ran, getting away from the crowd, I must have taken a wrong turn because I have no idea where I am. I try to walking back to a main road in hopes of getting back on track. That doesn't help because, despite how shitty everything looks, it all looks the same. I follow my instincts, which helps back to the road. I come back onto the road quite a bit after where the crowd was.
Once I'm back on the main road, I spot Daedalus Bridge. It's calling out to me somehow. Despite this, I don't walk towards it. I doubt they'd hid in the B.A.D., after all it would be too dangerous. By the time I reach the general area of the old hideout, I feel like my feet are about to fall off. Though it makes sense, given that the fact I must have been walking for hours by this point. Traversing the alleyways around the building makes me nostalgic. All of the memories from back then flood my mind. Even though Team Satisfaction wasn't even a year old by the time I was arrested, I have so many fun memories.
As I enter the old building, I call out for Yusei, Crow and Kiryu. No response, dead silence. I'm so confused, they should be here. As I walk up each floor, I keep calling out. Nothing. It's six o'clock in the evening, I check my phone. If they're out dueling, they should be back by now. I start to panic. My voice is now just short of a scream. I reach the floor of the building where we used to hang out. I look around, everything is covered in dust. The couch I used to lie on has greyed significantly and the upholstery has started to tear. The table where Yusei used to work on his little 'projects' as I called them is covered in dust. I put my hand on the corner and it wobbles more than I remember it doing. Tears come to my eyes. What's happened here? Where is everyone? I call out their names again.
In a last ditch attempt, I climb to the 'roof' of the building. There isn't really a roof, so to speak, we imagined it fell off during the Zero Reverse. I remember I used to sit up here every night, trying to spot a star in the smog-filled sky, mostly in vain. Though, my favourite nights were those when Yusei joined me. We used to spend hours up here, talking about anything that came to mind or saying nothing at all and just enjoying the company. A smile breaks out on my face, and I can feel the tears again. I really want to believe that Yusei is still the same as he was back then. But, that small part inside of me just can't. Between his involvement with Godwin and what the guy said about the Crimson Dragon. He said the Dragon will bring forth disaster to this world. Why would Yusei be linked to such a thing? What happened while I was gone?
I sit with my back against a section of what remains of the wall. I'm relieved to be off my feet. I'm trying to think of reasons why no one's here. I suppose the most likely answer is that they've just changed bases because someone found them. The idea that they went their separate ways creeps into my mind. That's ridiculous. We were so close, nothing could have torn us apart. Or maybe something did? That would explain why Jack and Yusei were in the City. I shake my head. Of course not, we were all friends. The thought still lingers in the back of my head, no matter how much I want it gone. I hold my face in my hands and take a deep breath, only to then attempt to cough my lungs up. No matter the bad thoughts, I need to come up with a plan. I should probably check the nearest market in the morning, then my best bet will be Martha's. As much as I want to see Martha, she'll probably rip off my head because I disappeared for four years without notice. Especially since I was going over to her house when I got arrested. I say 'rip off my head' when in reality, she'll probably drag me by the earlobes inside. That's probably more painful, since I have very sensitive earlobes from years of being in trouble with her. I suppose I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. Given the fact that Martha practically raised me, Jack, Yusei and Crow, she should have an idea where Yusei and Crow are. As for Kiryu, I'm at a loss for him, to be honest. It would be unwise to start moving again though, it will get dark soon and the 'scum of humanity' will come out. Which, given my status as a female, is not a good idea. I try to meditate in an attempt to rid myself of all these negative thoughts, but I only end up falling asleep.
For once, I'm not having that dream again. Instead, I'm sitting with the rest of Team Satisfaction. I think I'm reliving a memory judging by the fact I'm wearing my old jacket. It's a thing that duel gangs wear some piece of matching clothing. For us, it was a cropped sleeveless brown jacket with fur lining the arm seams. I managed to find a big package of factory defects in the trash, which thankfully were clean for Satellite standards, and tailored them for us. Even though I 'technically' wasn't a member of Team Satisfaction, I still got a jacket since I kept bugging them until I could have one. After all, I made the cool jackets, so I should get one. We're all sitting around in the usual place. Jack's staring at the window, in the direction of the City. Yusei is tinkering with his duel disk. Crow is dueling with some kids, though I can't hear what he or the kids are saying. I'm sitting on the couch, as usual. Kiryu walks in, proclaiming something, which once again I can't hear. They all gather in the centre of the room, not acknowledging me. I pout as they begin talking, that I still can't hear. I walk up to them and greet them, they ignore me. I pout as I wave my hand in front of Kiryu's face. He doesn't react to me at all, I'm confused. I strike me that I can hear absolutely nothing, not just the guys. I wave my hand in front of Yusei's face, nothing. I go to put my hand on the table when my hand fazes through it. My arm keeps going and I faze through the floor. I close my eyes to brace myself, but nothing happens. I open my eyes and find that I'm complete darkness again. I see Yusei standing a good distance away from me. I reach my arm out towards him. He turns around to face me. His eyes are cold and uncaring. I'm suspended in the darkness and I keep reaching out for him, calling his name. He turns away as I keep clawing through the darkness.
I throw my arm out again and open my eyes to find that I've woken up. I stare at my hand in front of me. I sigh as I remember Yusei's eyes in the dream. I open my eyes, that I didn't realise I had closed, and notice a bright purple light filling the sky. I feel sick to the stomach, just looking at it. I check my phone to see that it's two in the morning. I rush up and try to get a look at what's going on. In getting up, my head throbs. I can feel my pulse raging at the back of my neck. It's like during Ruka's duel at the Fortune Cup. I can sense some weird energy from the light. I hold my head and try to look around. I don't see much as the light only makes my head worse. I run down the stairs to try not take in as much light, still, no one is here. I end up leaving the building. The dark alleyway obscures some light. But still, the pain in my head only getting stronger. My stomach turns churning and I feel like I'm going to vomit. The pain of it all becomes too much, I can barely stand. Kneeling on the ground, my nails dig into my scalp as I try to null the pain, to no avail. Eventually, I succumb to the pain and everything goes black.
When I come to, I realise that I'm lying on the ground. My head is really groggy but I noticed that the purple lights have stopped as my eyelids aren't burning. I hesitate to open my eyes, after all, it's not safe for a 'girl like me' to be on the streets of the Satellite at night. I slowly open my eyes and look directly in front of me and spot a pair of feet, I freeze. Judging by the look of the shoes, I'd say it's a guy. Though, thankfully, I don't think they've come near me yet. I try to get a good look at their face, but it's too dark. I slowly try to sit up, in case my head starts again, but I'm grateful when there is no pain. I move to put my back against the wall. As I move, I pull down my dress, which is short and tight, so it ridded up a bit when I fainted. I stare at the guy across from me, as I sit up.
"Who are you?" I call out him. "Why are you here?" He laughs.
"What?" That voice, it couldn't be. He begins pulling down the hood, that was obscuring his face. "Do you not recognise me, Yuuka?"
"Kiryu!" A huge smile breaks out onto my face, probably my biggest smile in years. Then, it sets in. Why is Kiryu alone here in the middle of the night, judging by the darkness, alone? I gulp before I ask. "Where's everyone else?"
"Team Satisfaction is dead." His answer is curt. In shock, I cover my mouth with my hands. It's my worst fear, now a reality.
"What happened, Kiryu?" Tears are burning at my eyes. I fear the worst.
"Let's not talk about it here." I'm staring at his face. It's as gaunt as it was in my dream. I spot a red criminal marker down the right side of his face. But why would it be red? I don't think he'd appreciate me asking now. "You should come back to my new hideout. It's not safe out here."
"Okay." Something is making me hesitant. I feel like I shouldn't go with Kiryu. It's silly, Kiryu is my friend and he won't hurt me. At least, he wouldn't have four years ago. With everything that's happened, I'm not sure who I should trust anymore.