Hey everyone! Glad you liked the last chapter. Here's a new one. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh GX or Jess, she still belongs to ladydream-chan.

Claimer: YAY! This ENTIRE STORY IS MINE!!!! And the one or two or three OCs that show up that aren't Jess are also mine. :)

xXx

Jaden's POV

Darkness had consumed the island where Duel Academy was. No moon shined in the sky, being the night of the New Moon. Stars tried to become the new focus of the sky, but dark clouds covered them. No crickets made sound off in the distance. Everything was quiet…somber…peaceful.

A twig snapped.

"Silence! Do you want us to get caught?" Blair snapped, smacking Chazz on the arm. He glared at her.

"Both of you shut it or you can stay behind!" Julie barked. They silenced immediately. It was nine that night, shortly after we all decided to head back to Ochi City and handle the newly awakened Skulls. We were hidden in the bushes only a couple hundred yards from the dock. A boat floated on the water, the captain pacing the deck.

"Everything clear, Jaden?" Jesse asked. I looked around the tree I was pressed against. I saw a guard up the hill with a flashlight. He was heading the opposite direction of where we were. The reason we were being so sneaky is because Chancellor Sheppard had just instituted the curfew for the island and now had guards that patrolled it. If we were caught, we'd be in bigger trouble than the normal curfew breakers. We weren't breaking it for kicks, but so we could leave the island.

"Hold on, the guard is almost gone," I whispered. Jesse nodded. He was pressed against a similar tree a few feet away from me, looking toward the dock for guards. There were none thus far. I kept my eyes on the guard. He disappeared over the hill. The coast was finally clear. I turned around, grabbing Alexis' hand. She was crouching in the bushes next to Julie. "Let's go." I flew out of the bushes, pulling Alexis behind me. Everyone followed after me. We flew down to the dock. The captain looked at us. He had a scraggy looking grey beard and now hair.

"You are all leaving?" he questioned, narrowing his eyes at us. Julie stepped forward, Maria sound asleep on her shoulder.

"Step off, Claude," she snarled. The captain, Claude, looked at her.

"I could lose my job if I take them all," he defended. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"You're going to lose more than that if you don't take them. Besides, you don't even work for Duel Academy." He frowned and stepped onto the boat, waving us on to follow him.

"That you know of," he muttered. She clonked him on the back of the head with her knuckles.

"You're a friend of my dad and a fisherman, Claude. Don't flatter yourself thinking you could work for Duel Academy." Claude just scowled at her but went to the front of the boat. It roared to life, shaking slightly beneath our feet. A moment later, we were speeding away from Duel Academy. Once it was out of view, we all began to relax.

"What are we going to do when Chancellor Sheppard realizes we're gone?" Syrus asked. I looked back in the direction where the school is.

"Nothing. He won't come after us. He's smart, he'll figure out something happened," I said. Everyone nodded, accepting the answer.

"You kids might want to go below deck," Claude said, walking toward us. He handed a key to Julie. "And stay there until we reach port, understood?" He kept his gaze on her. She gave him a sweet smile.

"Of course, Captain Claude." He just grunted and went back to the front of the boat. She winked at us and lead us to the door which lead to the place where Claude wanted us to be. She opened the door and I closed it, being the last one in. The inside didn't have any beds or bunks, just a large, plush couch that circled all three of the walls, leaving the door wall blank. Everyone dropped their stuff on the floor and sat down on the couch. I sat down next to Jesse and Alexis. Everyone stayed quiet, just looking around and trying to absorb all that happened today.

"Julie?" Atticus suddenly called. She looked up at him with an eyebrow raised. She was tucking Maria into the carrier that Jesse had carried. There was a pacifier in her mouth and she was already sound asleep.

"What is it, Atticus?" she asked.

"How do you know Yusuke?" She blinked once before realizing who he was talking about.

"Oh, the green haired boy that helped me out. I just met him today. He saw me looking around for you guys. He knew you and offered to lead me to you guys, that's the extent to it," she answered with a shrug. Jesse scowled at her.

"And you let this guy hold Maria?" I don't think he liked that. She just looked at him.

"It was either that or I carried her around while I fought Angelina to the death." He sighed and reached around her, tucking Maria in more. She pulled her hands free of the blanket and grabbed her dad's hand, holding his thumb and index finger tightly. She yawned, her pacifier falling out of her mouth, and went back to sleep, keeping a firm hold on her dad. Julie smiled at him and leaned back against him, reaching out to grab his other hand. He smiled at his daughter and then the love of his life. He pressed his lips against hers sweetly. I smiled at the scene playing out before me.

"What do you think is going to happen?" Alexis whispered. I turned away from the family in front of me and to her. She was holding my hand tightly, staring at the ground. I smiled softly and squeezed her hand, pulling her closer to my side. I leaned down and pressed my lips to the hallow behind her ear and then ran my lips around so I could whisper in her ear.

"I don't know, but you'll be safe. I promise." I pressed my lips to her temple and she sighed. She nestled into my side, her head resting my shoulder. After a few moments, her eyes drifted shut.

"I'm worried," Syrus said. I looked at him. He was sitting next to Hassleberry on the couch opposite mine. Chazz and Blair sat at the other end of the same couch. Aster, Atticus, and Bastion all sat on the couch between mine and Syrus'.

"About what?" I asked.

"What can we do?" I smiled at him.

"You'll think of something." He nodded and began to talk to Hassleberry again. I sighed and leaned back against the couch. Sure, I agreed to let the entire gang come with us, but I truly had no idea how they could help. The Skulls are much more dangerous than the Cribs and I wouldn't let them help even then. I sighed again and rubbed my eyes with my free hand. But, Julie was right, they are safest with me.

Everyone was quiet for the next hour or so, just trying to calm down and figure out what to do. The silence seemed to grow even thicker until someone's phone began to ring.

"It's Jess," Julie said. I looked at her. She and Jesse were curled up together just next to Alexis and I. Maria rested in her carrier just next to her parents. Julie untangled herself from her love and opened her phone. "Hey, Jess." She then disappeared up the stairs, probably to get better reception.

"What was that?" Alexis questioned groggy. She fell asleep shortly after she rested her head on my shoulder. I smiled at her and kissed her forehead.

"Julie's phone. Jess is just calling." She nodded and closed her eyes again. I began to run my hand up and down her arm.

"Do you have any plans, Jaden?" Jesse asked me. I shook my head.

"I think I'll think better when we're all back together," I said. Jesse smiled and nodded.

"Hopefully." I smiled at him. We were silent again until the door leading down to us opened again. We all turned to see Julie staggering down the steps. She was using her hand as support. Jesse stood up but didn't move to her. She looked up at us, tears glittering in her eyes.

"Julie, what is it? What happened?" Jesse asked as he began to walk to her. She swallowed and leaned against the wall, her arms coming up to wrap around her chest.

"Chris is dead."

Time froze. I couldn't breathe and it felt like my heart stopped. Jesse even froze in the middle of the floor. The gang looked at her in shock. Even Alexis, who I thought fell back asleep, sat up and stared at Julie in shock.

"How?" I gasped. She sniffed and looked at me. Tears ran down her cheeks slowly.

"The Skulls got him, Jaden. It was like a professional hit. He was on his knees, next to a bridge, with a bullet in his head." She choked back a sob. "Emmy's picture was at his feet! They used her to kill him, Jaden! Chris is dead!" She began to sob, sliding down the wall until she was sitting down. Jesse quickly made his way over to her, wrapping his arms around her. She clutched his shirt and continued to sob. I shook my head slowly, trying to absorb this information. Alexis grabbed my hand and held on tight.

Chris, my right hand man (next to Jesse), is dead. They used his girlfriend to do it, most likely threatening her safety. He was just like Jesse and I; he'd do anything to protect the woman he loved. It was probably the greatest weakness to any man, but most definitely us.

"What about everyone else?" I asked looking at Julie. She coughed a few times and looked at me. She rubbed her eyes on her sleeve, drying any remaining tears.

"They're at the house, all okay. Chris is the only one they got so far," she whispered. I nodded. I'm glad everyone is okay.

"Who will they kill next?" Jesse asked. Julie quickly looked up at him, terror in her eyes. Alexis did the same to me, clutching my hand to the point where I thought she would break it. I looked at her and then at Jesse.

"I wish I could say they won't kill anyone else, but I can't lie."

"Jaden!" Blair gasped. I shook my head.

"We're all targets now, all fair game in this war." I looked up at everyone. "And this time, no one may survive."

xXx

No! Chris is dead!!!! T.T Sooo sad!!

Oh, Jaden's all dark and stuff.

Please review! : ) Seriously, please review. I'm like…not getting any reviews! T_T Depression! If you read it, review! They'll bring faster updates, I swear!

-x-Anime-Queen-2011-x-

-o-Mel-o-