Another week, another chapter. Ho-hum. Well, my life has been pretty busy lately. How about you guys?

My thanks go out to FiringShootingStar, Shinn Tsukishiro, theforgottenpeople96, Darkangel2221, Rapis-Razuri, Seeker Heart, Mixer18, melan anime, Poohbear4u, Rose-Aki, RobotFish, RunoandAkizafan, and TFRiD Queen for their reviews!

And anons this week are Mariah, LDC, ChibiX, name, and PDS. Mariah: Yeah, I think every girl would like a boyfriend who makes a gun for them XP The necklace is an added bonus. LDC: A wedding, eh? You think Daddy Izinski is on the right track? Well, I can't promise anything, but I think you'll like where this goes. ChibiX: Kaliryu (Kalin/Kiryu) having a connection to the Dark Signers? Hm, interesting thought, I admit. name: Well, the Crimson Dragon is essentially God in this fic, so being a servant of it isn't that strange. Technically, one could say anyone of faith is a servant of their god. Just sayin'. PDS: Leader of the Crimson Dragon? Now, that's an odd thought, considering ol' CD is their god. I'm not really sure how a leader of a god would work.

Now, I replied to most of the signed reviews and told them this, but as far as the Signer thing goes, there will only be three Signer marks featured in this fic. The Head Signer holds a little more importance than the others. It'll all be explained soon :)

That being said, enjoy the chapter!

And, as always, many thanks to my awesome beta, RobotFish!

Sunset Horizon
Chapter 25 – Signer of Legend

"Wh… What…?" Yusei muttered, staring in shock at Luna's kneeling form. "What the hell is going on?"

She slowly shifted to stand, but kept her eyes down. "You aren't aware of what this means, then?"

He shook his head. "That's why I'm asking you."

She sighed heavily and looked towards the ground. "The Archbishop sent me here to track you down and bring you back to the Capital. His Holiness only told me the basics."

Leaning back against the wall, he crossed his arms and said, "I don't know anything about this thing. Please, Luna. Tell me what you do know. What does it mean?"

"It means…" She took a deep breath and looked him in the eye. "It means you're the Signer. You have a link to the Spirit World. I don't know exactly what it entails, but I was told that once I found you and brought you back, the Archbishop would explain everything."

He shook his head. "Not happening."

She stared, wide-eyed. "What do you mean, 'not happening'? This thing," she said, reaching out and taking his wrist to hold up his arm. "-is dangerous! It holds a powerful threat and you need to know what it means!"

He pulled his arm away and sighed. "I've had this for thirteen years and the only adverse reaction I've had is when it glows. It does that when I smith and stops when I clean up. I haven't managed to unleash any holy terror yet, so I think I'll be just fine. Besides, I swore I'd never set foot in the Capital again."

Rolling her eyes, she shot back, "And you'd risk the safety of everyone for a petty grudge against the city?"

"Petty?" He turned on her, pointing a finger threateningly in her face. "You think my grudge is 'petty'? You don't know what I went through in that place. I'm not about to go back for something you can't even be sure of. So the Archbishop told you I'm a threat. I haven't accidentally done anything yet, so I don't think I'm going to start. If he's really worried, he can come out here and tell me himself."

"Yusei, please." She reached out, holding his hand comfortingly. "Please just consider it?"

He sighed heavily. He knew he could never stay angry with her. She was just doing what her beliefs asked of her, just like any member of the church. "Fine. I'll think about it, okay?"

She smiled brightly. "Thank you!"

Giving a short nod, he turned to walk back towards the ladder leading upstairs, silently pushing the thought to the back of his mind. He had only said that so she wouldn't feel so bad. He never wanted to return to that place and vowed that he never would.

…

The next day had yielded another one full of routine, causing the Enforcers to gather at the bar to play a game of cards. Carly was still helping Akiza in the bar, though today was her first lesson on actual bartending. Bruno was managing the bar for the most part while Akiza showed Carly any tricks to the trade.

Misty sat in a chair at the next table over from the guys, occasionally glancing over at the game. Her appearance must have been a strange one to anyone else in the building, with her long black and green traveler's robes and silky black hair. Add her sophisticated dress style onto her delicate seating position with one leg crossed over the other, one hand under her chin, and her book propped in the other. She stuck out like a sore thumb in the backwater town. The strangest part was that her pet lizard, Ccarahyua, was settled on the top of her head, sleeping peacefully.

She was a strange one, that was for sure.

She sat behind Kalin, occasionally pointing to cards in his hand and telling him to play them. He would look at her oddly, and she would smirk and tell him to trust her. He won every hand that he followed her advice on, so either the woman knew a thing or two about cards, or her foresight ability was coming into play here.

Yusei didn't really care, and all Crow had to say on the matter was that she better sit behind him in the next game. Jack had been oddly quiet the entire time, his attention somewhere else entirely. Yusei could guess, but he knew better than to say anything.

He looked up with a smile as Akiza walked over with a tray of refills, accepting her kiss as she leaned closer to greet him. He loved it when she did that. There was just something amazing about kissing the girl he loved in public, especially when none of his friends had a girlfriend. They all had women they liked, but Yusei couldn't help but feel a swell of pride when he got to show off the fact that he had a girl and they didn't.

Not that his affection for Akiza stemmed solely from the desire to flaunt her in front of his friends. He loved her more than anything and found himself literally dreaming of her as his wife. Of course, as soon as he woke, he would balk and choke on his own spit. He loved her, yes, but whenever the thought of marriage would push its way into his mind, he found himself terrified of the idea.

However, he hadn't voiced his thoughts to Akiza and pretended to be completely ignorant to the idea of marriage. He was happy with their current relationship. Being able to hold her and love her was the greatest feeling in the world and he didn't want to create a rift by mentioning something he wasn't ready for yet.

He drew back from their passionate kiss with a lopsided smirk and muttered, "Ya khochu, chtoby brositʹ tebya i lyublyu tebya pryamo zdesʹ i seychas."

She smiled in return at the seductive tone of his voice, only catching onto a word here and there. From across the table, Misty looked up with a disgruntled expression before saying, "Eto otvratitelʹno! Ya gluboko oskorblen."

Yusei glanced over with a sheepish look before scratching the back of his head. Averting his gaze, he murmured, "I… wasn't aware that anyone else knew Sephylon."

She scoffed and turned away, burying her nose in her book in a huff. Yusei bit his lip and turned to Akiza before saying, "Well, I don't think Misty's going to get over that very quickly."

Crow's eyebrow rose before he asked, "What'd you say?"

"Something dirty," he replied casually.

"Well," Akiza started. "Since Misty's going to be like that, I don't think there's any reason for you to stay here and be ignored."

He scratched the back of his head again. "Nah, she'll get over it."

Rolling her eyes once, she cleared her throat and tried again, "I meant, if you're not welcome down here, then you should probably head upstairs. Where our bed is."

A light shone in his eye as he realized what she was insinuating and settled his arm on her waist to guide her towards the stairs. "I didn't realize you were coming, too."

Kalin watched them go before giving a slight cough and glancing back towards Misty. "Looks like we have an open spot. Want to join us? It looks like you know the rules."

She nodded and closed her book before standing and walking over to take the seat Yusei had occupied a minute ago. She took his refill of whiskey left untouched from the tray and took a drink, frowning thoughtfully as she processed the taste. "Hm. Not bad."

Jack was still lost in his own world as Crow leaned on the table and asked the travelling beauty, "You know Sephylon, then?"

She gave a short laugh and glanced into her glass with a mischievous smirk. "Actually, no."

Kalin's eyebrow rose. "Then what just happened?"

"I knew a friend a few years back who knew it. I think his wife was from Sephylon. He taught me that phrase and told me to use it if I ever heard someone say something that sounded sexual. He never told me what it meant, but he said it would be hilarious. I assume I used it properly, based on Yusei's reaction."

"So it seems," he replied, taking a sip of his beer before passing the desk of cards to the former Earthbound. "Your deal, Misty."

…

Yusei laid under the covers, smoothing his lips across Akiza's shoulder and hummed contentedly as her hands folded into his hair. His palms slid across her sides and hips, worshipping her figure before he sighed and drew back slightly. Her eyes opened halfway, her mind left dazed by his affection as he shifted to prop himself on one hand and moved the other to brush her hair from her eyes. Giving a slight smile, he bent to kiss her lips once and said, "I'm sorry. I… I need to talk."

"Mm…" she hummed, shifting to slide into a sitting position against the pillows and reached out to play her fingers through his hair. "What's on your mind?"

He caught one of her hands and kissed her palm, gradually shifting to sit on his knees over her legs. "Akiza…" he started, reaching out to hold her hands. "I… talked to Luna about my tattoo."

She cocked her head curiously, absently moving to run her thumb along the mark in question. "What did she say?"

He swallowed the lump in his throat, her tone telling him that she was hurt he didn't wait for her. Settling his free hand on her cheek, he murmured, "I'm sorry I didn't wait for you. I just… I had the nerve built up, so I did it. Please don't be angry about that."

Nodding, she leaned closer and kissed his lips gently. "It's all right, Yusei. I understand."

He flashed a quick smile of appreciation and tightened his hold on her hand. "She said she didn't know a whole lot, just that it somehow connected me to the Spirit World." Under his breath, he added, "Whatever that means…"

Frowning, she murmured, "She mentioned something to me before about it possibly be being dangerous. What did she mean by that?"

He shook his head slowly. "I don't know. She said she was told it was dangerous, and that I should go with her back to the Capital to find out what it really means."

She averted her gaze and held his hand more tightly. "I see…"

"Akiza," he said, offering her name through a small laugh. "I'm not going. I told her I'd think about it, but there's no way. There are too many painful memories there, plus it'd mean I'd be forced to be away from you for months. The trip is a good month long with a map either way, adding in however long it takes to find out what this thing is…" He shook his head with another short laugh. "It's not happening."

Her face cracked into a smile for a moment, then shifted back to a frown as she glanced back at his tattoo. "But what if it is dangerous?"

He brushed the backs of his fingers across her cheek soothingly before saying, "I'll tell you the same thing I told her. I've had this for thirteen years and nothing bad has happened yet. I think we'll be just fine."

A small chuckle fell from her lips as she murmured, "You do raise a good point." Her somber attitude returned once more as she averted her gaze and licked her lips in detached thought. "Yusei…"

"Yeah?" He leaned closer and touched her chin to bring her eyes back to his. "What's wrong?"

"I…" Her face crumpled into a broken smile as she reached out to cup his chin with both hands. "I have something I should tell you, too."

He ran one hand across her shoulder and down her arm, gently smoothing along her skin to comfort her. The other stayed on her cheek, keeping her eyes on his as he murmured, "What is it?"

Despite him holding her chin steady, her eyes still drifted to look away, but quickly moved back to the magnetic stare of his cobalt gaze. "Yusei, I… I was reading through…" She swallowed the lump forming in her throat and tried again, saying, "I was reading through the books Misty gave me."

His concern heightened exponentially. What if there was something wrong with her? Was there something about psychics having shorter life spans? Would she live longer than him? What could she have possibly found that would upset her like this? His fingers folded around hers tightly as he brushed her tears away with his other hand. As firmly as he could, he said, "Akiza, whatever it is that you found, I'll always stand next to you. I'll never leave you, no matter what."

Her lips curved into a slight smile again as she managed, "Several of the books—from different authors— say that psychics… We have a much smaller chance of ever having children. If we even can. Some sources recounted psychics living their lives in healthy marriages with plentiful sex and still no children."

He bit his lip, trying to figure out the best way to respond. Clearly, the subject was important to her. He wouldn't have minded if they'd had children or not, though he wasn't all that keen on being forced not to. Although it did explain why they weren't already expecting a child. They were having a lot of sex. He had wondered for a moment how it was possible that she wasn't getting pregnant, but had chalked it up to good luck and moved on. But now…

He reached out, wrapping his arms around her, and rolled to lay back, hugging her tightly against him. "I love you, Akiza. Even if we can't have children, that fact will never change."

She snuggled into his side, her tears falling against his shoulder. "But, I… I wanted to carry your child one day."

He felt his own eyes water at the sadness and anguish in her voice and pulled her even closer. "Akiza…" he started, then paused for a moment to collect himself. "But you said it's not impossible for psychics to have kids, right?"

She nodded slowly, shifting to bury her face in the crook of his neck. "It's not impossible, no, for some psychics…"

He pressed a kiss to her hair and smoothed his hand down her creamy back. "Then we'll have to try that much harder when we're ready."

A choked laugh bubbled from her throat as she moved a little bit, lifting her head so she could kiss his jaw before muttering, "You always say the stupidest things, but it never fails to make me laugh."

…

Two weeks later, Yusei wandered down the street with Akiza, Carly, and Crow. The first three were on their way home, while Crow was promised to finally be told where Luna was hiding out. His friend had been a little surprised that Yusei knew and he didn't, but he quickly tried to assure him it was Akiza's choosing. Shortly after, Akiza had interjected, saying she had demanded that Yusei kept quiet and cleared the friends of any strife.

He appreciated the notion, and now walked with his friend and the two ladies back to his home. He felt a twitch in his gun arm and turned suddenly, drawing Stardust while instinctively stepping in front of Akiza. All of his senses were telling him there was a threat nearby, but there was no trace. He sensed Crow draw Black-Winged, knowing his leader's instincts were the sharpest of all the Enforcers. Akiza stayed behind him, now gripping Black Rose Dragon in her hands. She wasn't trained for a fight, but she had her powers, if nothing else.

"Yusei!" Akiza called from behind him, causing him to turn on instinct and point Stardust. A shadow passed over them as a figure leapt down from the rooftops, clutching a knife. A blur passed by, knocking him off his feet and throwing him a decent distance away. Akiza fell to the ground next to him as Carly shot past, skidding to a halt somewhere near them after pushing them out of the way.

Gunshots sounded as he reached one hand for Stardust and the other out towards his love. His eyes shot back in the direction of the assailant to find the scraggly young man lying in the dirt, eyes staring blankly ahead while blood soaked the back of his shirt crimson. He turned to Crow, nodding a quick thank-you before shifting to stand and helping Akiza back to her feet. "Thanks," he said, directing it towards Carly this time as he holstered Stardust.

Crow walked up next to the guy and poked his shoulder once. "Hey, man. You know I'd fire if it meant helping a friend, but, well, that wasn't me. I didn't kill this guy." Digging his fingers inside the wound, he grimaced as he yanked the bullet out and held it towards Yusei. "I fired, but I missed. These shells are too small to be from Black-Winged."

He walked over, gripping Akiza's hand tightly as he bent down to look. "You're right… Then who shot him?"

"That would have been me."

Yusei opened his mouth to say thanks as he turned, then froze at the sight of the person in front of him. The boy was around Leo's age, dressed in traditional tan leathers. He wore his long red hair in a half-braid falling down his back and held two small pistols in his hands, flipping them easily before tucking them into holsters on his lower back. He took a few steps forward, a cocky smile on his face as he stopped a few feet away. "My name is Lester Noble." He fisted one hand over his heart and gave a slight bow. "A thank you would be acceptable."

"What the hell?" Crow muttered. "We don't need the help of a kid!"

"Please," Lester snorted. "I may be a few years younger than you, but trust me when I say you do need my help. Don't worry, my bill is being covered."

"Your bill?" Akiza asked, stepping around Yusei slowly. "Are you… a bounty hunter?"

The kid gave a shrug while a crooked smirk stayed on his lips. "We'll go with that. My employer paid for my work and sent me to assist you."

Yusei crossed his arms and raised his eyebrow. "Who's your employer? And when you say 'assist you,' who exactly are you referring to?"

He crossed his arms as if to mimic the young leader, then said, "I was sent here to assist the Enforcers, and my contractor is a man by the name of Zero."

"Zero?" he asked, his raven eyebrow rising higher. "Who is he? Why does he want to help us?"

Lester shrugged again. "I don't know. My job is to get orders and follow them, not question every little detail. Oh, and, for the record, I'm not your servant. I was ordered to assist you, not to take your orders. Don't think you can boss me around, all right?"

He caught sight of Carly flinching somewhere to his right and said, "So what's your purpose here, then?"

"I work with you, not for you. Clear?"

"Clear."

…

Yusei walked into the bar, holding the door for Akiza with a smile, frowning as Lester pushed his way to the front and marched inside. He continued to glare at the back of the kid's head, his expression softening as a pair of lips touched his cheek gently. He turned to smile at Akiza and reached out to wrap his arms around her waist, pulling her against him before kissing her lips. "Hey," he murmured, his lips brushing against hers as he spoke. "Did you sense that guy at all before he showed up?"

She drew back slightly and asked, "Lester, or the one that attacked us?"

He thought about it for a second. "Well, both, but I was asking about the one that's dead now."

She nodded. "I sensed desperation from him. I think he was given a task and had to fulfill it. Lester, no, I didn't sense him, but it's hard in a busy town sometimes. When he came into view and I could focus, yes, I could sense him easily. If you're planning to ask if we can trust him, I think we can. He's cockish and full of himself, but he doesn't have any ill intent coming from him. Not towards us, anyway."

"'Not towards us'?" He asked. "Then who?"

"I'm not sure. We'll have to ask him."

He nodded once, glancing up as the kid's voice calling out, "Bruno! Fancy meeting you here."

Yusei raised his eyebrow in Akiza's direction, realizing for the first time that he really didn't know a lot about her bartender. He wrapped his arm around his love's waist and guided her over to the excitement as Bruno chuckled and said, "You've grown since I saw you last, Lester. You were… ten back then?"

"Hmph!" he snorted, crossing his arms in a huff. "You've grown, too, you massive lug. Working as a bartender, are you? How low the once-mighty have fallen."

He shrugged with a carefree smile. "Work is work."

"In that case," he muttered, holding up a finger and winking. "I'll have a beer."

"Sorry," he replied, still smiling lightly. "I can't give liquor to anyone under sixteen. It's the law."

"Ergh…" he grumbled, gnashing his teeth in anger when he didn't get his way. "Primo lets me drink beer! Why don't you?"

"Because I'm not Primo."

Akiza finally interrupted the two, asking, "You know each other?"

Bruno nodded, but before he could speak, Lester blurted, "Of course. He used to work with my brother, Primo, back in the day."

Nodding, the blue-haired man added, "We were bounty hunters together. I just got sick of fighting all the time and decided to settle down." Hanging his head, he sheepishly added, "The plan was to meet a girl and settle down for real, but, obviously, that hasn't happened yet."

Akiza smiled and said, "Don't worry, Bruno. One day, you'll make a special girl a very happy woman."

He flashed a quick smile and scratched the back of his head. "Thanks, Akiza. That means a lot to hear."

She smiled and moved to walk behind the counter and pulled glasses from underneath before filling them with the Enforcers' usuals. Lester opened his mouth to speak, but the psychic cut him off, saying, "No, I won't give you beer, either."

He pouted and marched off, walking through the bar and pulling a chair up to table where Jack and Kalin were waiting. Dropping into an empty chair, he planted his feet firmly on the table and crossed his arms behind his head. The blond already there raised his lip into a snarl and demanded, "What the hell gives you the right to waltz over to our table and-!"

Yusei came up behind Lester and stopped next to him, then reached out and shoved his feet just enough to knock them off the table. "Feet stay on the ground."

The kid glared and crossed his arms. "And why do I have to listen to you? I told you, I'm not your servant."

"No, but I'm the guy who shares the owner's bed. I'm just enforcing her rules. No feet on the table," he repeated, eyes narrowed.

Kalin raised an eyebrow and carefully asked, "Who is this kid?"

He sighed heavily, flicking his fingers through his bangs before muttering, "Guys, meet Lester. He's apparently our accomplice from here on out. No choice, sadly."

"What do you mean, no choice?" Jack blurted, jumping to his feet and slamming his hands down on the table.

Crow walked over, holding a mug of beer and kicked his foot out, knocking Lester's chair to the side and pulling his out next to it. "The kid's a bounty hunter, supposedly. Someone named Zero is paying his bill, then ordered him to follow us around. Seems to me like someone has a grudge with us."

"I'll ignore that insult," Lester muttered, "Because you're spot-on."

"Eh?" Yusei blinked, turning to face the kid as he sat in his own chair. "What are you talking about?"

Akiza came over with a tray filled with the drinks and slid it onto the table, leaning closer to kiss Yusei briefly before turning to face Lester. "What's going on?"

Lester leaned forward in his chair, crossing his arms and resting his elbows on the table. "The Underground isn't happy with you. They're getting ready to make their move."

Psychic birth control! We haz it. Or, rather, Akiza does. I added that scene because a few readers were wondering how they weren't having a kid yet. So, yeah. The angsty-ness is all your fault :P Actually, you can blame my beta. It's his fault for being a biology major and pointing out the factual side of all the sexy fluff I was giving you guys. Blame him XD

Well, I can honestly say that stuff is about to hit the fan. Things are going down and we're getting closer to reaching the action-packed scenes! Enjoy!

Oh, and I started a collection of drabbles for the month of October. I'm writing a new one every day with a Halloween-like theme to it. If you want to read them, the collection is called Thirty-One Days of Halloween. Yes, I'm aware the title isn't very imaginative, but it's really hard to name something where every chapter is a little different.

Please review!

-Valk