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Sidney felt herself slam against what felt like the ground, but she wasn't sure. She stood up and called out for Luna, but could see her anywhere. But then, she could hear her whimpering. She ran around, but soon found herself going in circles.
"What am I going to do?"
Just then, a light seemed to come from beneath her feet. The ground became flat and transparent, like a mirror. Sidney lay down, flat on her stomach. She had a bird's eye view of what looked like the living room back at the safe house. Her body was resting peacefully on the couch, with Luna wrapped up in a chair. Yusei was near by, with Aki sitting beside him.
It seemed very real to her, but she suspected it may be part of whatever illusion the Faceless Mage had trapped them in. Her Fog Dragon stayed close, watching his master carefully with the intent to keep her safe.
In the meantime, Luna was still falling through the darkness, calling out for Sidney. As she felt fear starting to creep up on her, she saw Ancient Fairy Dragon, seemingly free, and fly towards her.
"Luna!!!" But this fleeting moment was cut short by rusty chains that shot forth from nowhere. They wrapped around the dragon's neck and seemed to be choking her.
"No! Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Cried Luna.
More chains bound the dragon and a bronze cage formed around her, imprisoning her. Luna whimpered as she heard her friend cry out in pain, with tears running down her face. But, as she tried to fall towards it, something blocked her way. She found that she was now suspended in the air, watching helplessly as Ancient Fairy Dragon suffered in misery inside of her prison.
Sidney, on the other hand, had not yet seen the worst of her vision. Everything was quiet and still. It made her cringe. But, finally, Akiza put her arms around Yusei and rested her head on his shoulder batting her eyelids. Sidney knew it was fake. Akiza never batted her eyelids that way in the time she knew her. But a part of her wanted to believe it because she hadn't known Akiza for that long.
"If she's not coming back by now, Yusei, she's probably not coming back at all."
Sidney scratched her nails against her glass floor, which seemed to be their ceiling. She tapped on it to see how thick it would be. But she supposed that trying to break the glass would be futile. Still, she felt herself pounding on it with her fist.
In the meantime, Yusei looked at Sidney and smirked. Yusei never smirked, Sidney thought. THAT she knew to be true.
"You're probably right. You know what that means…" He replied suggestively. Sidney up above was starting to pound harder and faster. She gulped as she saw him take his arm around Aki's waist and kiss her passionately.
"I'm a free man. Who needs that whiney little girl, anyway? I've got a WOMAN right here…" The illusionary Akiza smiled flirtatiously.
"Gag me," Sidney muttered, "Is that the best you've got? You don't expect me to get all bent out of shape over this, do you Faceless Mage?"
Sidney stood up and started jumping. Despite what she told herself, she was furious. Indeed, if Yusei would break his promise so quickly, why would he have made it in the first place? He wasn't that kind of person. Aki was also acting out of character. She was too catty. Akiza was more direct than that. But, how did she know that? She's not a social wizard. Sidney thought for a moment.
"I know these people," She realized, "They're my friends. It's true, it hurts. It would hurt me. I know that I was jealous of Aki, and it might be that I still am in a small way. But Yusei made me a promise. And Aki is a good person. She never had many friends; I doubt she would betray the ones she just made so easily."
The glass floor began to crack. This gave Sidney an idea. She kept talking to herself. She hoped Luna would figure out how to free herself as well.
Luna was still struggling to reach Ancient Fairy Dragon. Suddenly, she heard a bass voice booming in her ears. She covered her ears as they rung in pain.
"Don't kid yourself, child. You have FAILED! Ancient Fairy Dragon is now my prisoner forever!!!" The voice cackled. Luna blinked, and thought for a moment.
"But, I've barely just begun, how can I have failed before I even begin to try?" Suddenly she managed to move closer to the dragon. She smiled and kept questioning aloud. The booming voice tried to drown out her defiance, but she wouldn't let it stop her. Luna kept talking.
"I haven't failed yet. I can't fail…I won't fail. I have my friends beside me. I refuse to accept anything you say to me, FACELESS MAGE!"
At that moment, Ancient Fairy Dragon was set free and everything vanished. Luna managed to feel the ground beneath her as she gently came to rest on her stomach. She stood up, wondering what to do next. Sidney in the meantime finally shattered the glass floor and fell into the room below. The illusions of Akiza and Yusei disappeared, as did the ones resembling herself and Luna. The room was completely empty except for the furniture and shards on glass now scatter on the floor.
"Luna! Where are you?" Sidney called. As she looked up, a roof formed over the ceiling; the darkness was swallowed. She looked around the false version of the safe house, hoping to at least find a clue to Luna's whereabouts.
"Luna! Luna! Can you hear me?"
She started to hear whispers coming from upstairs. This was another illusion, she thought. But it might be an opportunity to find Luna or the Faceless Mage. She followed the voices up the stairs and cautiously peered around the corner.
Yusei was there again, leaning against the wall, chatting calmly with another person. Sidney was shocked when she recognized who it was.
"…Daddy?" She mumbled. Sidney's father was wearing his red suit, and his blonde hair was combed back the way it had always been. He seemed to be talking with Yusei about Sidney and what had been going on since he had died.
"I can't tell you how much this means to me, Yusei. My daughter…she's taken on a lot of responsibility. It makes me proud to see how much she's grown up." He spoke in the baritone voice he always used. It made her smile. At the very least, the Faceless Mage managed to portray her father correctly. She hid behind the wall, continuing to listen to the conversation.
"I'm glad. I'm just really sad you won't be able to attend the wedding. Sidney would have really wanted you to be there." Yusei sighed. He seemed more like the real Yusei this time; he was more tranquil and composed.
"That's right! I heard you two are getting engaged. It's a funny thing…my wife…her mother knew many people, like Akiza's father very well. She designed the building that the original Ener-D reactor was built in. It was her last project before she left me…" Her father was slightly shaken. It was typical. So it was true that Akiza's parents knew hers? She realized she didn't really know that much about her parents before she was born. Her father didn't really like to talk about the past. But he always said her mother loved to play the piano in her spare time. He had kept a lot of her sheet music that she had left behind.
"Why did Sidney's mother leave? What happened?"
"She was having an affair with another man, Yusei. She thought of me as too absorbed in my work. I was no longer the man she had married, that's what she told me… Her friends…including Akiza's parents…and…they tried to talk into ending it and reconciling with me. But…she was a troubled person, Yusei," He explained, "I just couldn't give her the help she needed. I was neglectful…Because of that, I lost her. She divorced me and left with him…and went off somewhere else and never heard from her again!"
Sidney whimpered. Her father always blamed himself. But was it true? Did her mom leave them for another man? Who was the man?
"Gale wasn't a bad person, though, Yusei. She was kind and sweet…and creative. But that man! He took advantage of her! He convinced her to leave me and her daughter behind. That's why I promised to always be there for Sidney, because I had failed my wife. But, I have failed her, too. Now I'm dead!"
Sidney couldn't take it. She zoomed into view and confronted her father.
"Daddy, it isn't true! It wasn't your fault! The terrorists bombed the place! You risked your life so everybody could get out! You're a hero!"
Her father started to tear up. "Sidney…I couldn't be…"
"You'll always be there for me. That's what you promised me. I…I felt that you left me all alone. I'm still mad at you. But, I don't want you to feel that you failed me, or anybody else. I want you to be ok."
He nodded. Yusei smiled. "She's right, you know."
Her father tried to put his hand on her shoulder, but she motioned to him that now wasn't a good time. She was afraid of what might happen. After all, this was entirely a creation of the Faceless Mage, wasn't it?
Her father shook his head and laughed.
"I was one to think you couldn't even DATE until now…but…I'm glad of all people, you're marrying this guy. You know what I mean?"
Sidney allowed herself to laugh. Just then, one of the doors opened and Luna came barging in. She had a worried look on her face.
"Sidney! There you are!" She rushed over and clung to Sidney. Her father and Yusei laughed quietly. Sidney pet Luna to reassure her.
"Well, it looks like we're all here now. It's time to end our little game." A raspy voice echoed from nowhere. A light formed around Sidney's father as he disappeared. Sidney wanted to reach out to him, but pulled back her hand. She knew better than to do that. Yusei also disappeared, and the room melted away as the forest returned around them. Sidney's Fog Dragon let go of her waist when it saw Big-Tusked Mammoth and Sunlight Unicorn return.
"We're back!" Luna sighed with relief.
A dark shadow loomed over them as a figure materialized out of the air.
"It's not over yet, Luna." Sidney pointed.
A tall, willowy woman draped in a midnight robe with blue lace walked gracefully towards them. She had dainty finger with long black nails, and curly black hair. But, she had no face.
"So, the Signers were able to resist my illusions? I guess I have no choice but to confront you directly." Her voice was harsh like an old woman. Suddenly, a pair of black eyes formed on her face, followed by full devil-red lips and a button nose. She was the image of a dark beauty, but only on the surface. Luna felt her presence, full of hate and corruption. Fog Dragon hissed at the woman.
"I am the Faceless Mage. Not what you were expecting, right?" She smiled sardonically. Luna beckoned her Sunlight Unicorn as it stamped its hooves.
"Why did you create that barrier? Do you work for the Dark Signers?" Sidney climbed onto her mammoth as Luna pulled herself onto the unicorn. Fog Dragon drifted above them, its eyes glinting. The Faceless Mage sensuously licked her lips.
"I don't work for just any Dark Signer…I work for Demak, who bares the mark of the monkey. In fact, he created me, a product of darkness and the earth upon which you walk…combined with a drop of his dreams and corruption… He is the one who is able to keep Ancient Fairy Dragon locked in her stone prison. All thanks to his servant, Zeman, the Ape King." She seemed calm and unaffected.
"So, I take it he wishes to destroy the spirit world…" Luna looked at Sidney worriedly. Sidney shook her head.
"It's not so simple, is it?"
"Indeed," the mage replied, "Demak wishes to envelope this world in darkness in the name of the Earthbound Immortals, reshaping it in their image. In return, they will grant him sovereignty over this land. Quite the power hungry guy, if you ask me…he was like that in his normal life, I hear. Businessmen…"
"So, do we battle you or what?" Sidney signaled to Luna to prepare to fight.
The mage mused. "My job is simple: I must prevent anyone from entering the Lake of Secrets and speaking with The Crimson Dragon. What it knows…could rip apart the Immortal's plans. My master cannot allow it, and I won't either…"
The mage raised her hand and pointed her finger at Luna. A bolt of Lightning came forth as she attempted to strike her. But, in a flash, Fog Dragon took the bolt and screech as it was electrocuted and forced to return to Sidney's deck.
"Big-Tusk Mammoth! Charge!!!" Sidney cried. The Mammoth wailed loudly as it bull-rushed the mage. Sunlight Unicorn followed suit, presenting its horn for a gore attack. But, the mage jumped into the air, the tail of her dress flowing in the air.
"Is that the best you've got? Brute force? Don't make me laugh!"
But, the mammoth managed to wrap its trunk around the mage's ankle and pull her down. She yelped as the massive creature slammed her to the ground. Sunlight Unicorn started to gather a beam of light energy in its horn. But the mage retaliated by zapping Big-Tusked Mammoth with a dark energy shock. The beast slapped her aside as it cried out. Sidney held on tight and tried to steady her mount.
"It's ok, take it easy. I think we need more fire power here. You just sit tight." She grabbed her deck and resummoned her Lunar Solstice Dragon. The mighty creature soared above the Faceless Mage, its ivory scales aglow in the sun.
"Luna! Have your unicorn release the beam on my dragon! It will absorb the light energy and give it an edge!" Luna cocked her head.
"But Sidney! Won't that hurt your dragon? How…"
"Metalmorph!" Sidney pulled out her favorite trap card, and held it up to the sky. A light burst forth, and Lunar Solstice Dragon took on a metallic sheen.
"That's the combo you used at the hospital!" Luna gasped.
"Exactly. I think this will work. Just try it."
"Ok… Sunlight Unicorn!" Luna commanded. Sunlight Unicorn neighed as it released a burst of light at Lunar Solstice Dragon. The Faceless Mage flow into the air to intercept it, but wound up being scratched as it hit the dragon. The creature began glowing with intense light, blinding the mage.
"I can't see! It's so bright! It's hurts!!!"
"Lunar Solstice Dragon! Attack the Faceless Mage with Eclipse Blast!"
When the light cleared, the Faceless Mage had retracted her eyes so protect them from the bright light. But in doing so, she had briefly compromised her sight, and had to stand still and focus in order for them to reappear. By the time she opened her eyes, it was too late. A white energy beam struck her down. Sunlight Unicorn shot another beam of light into the ray, intensifying its effect. The mage screamed as her body began crumbling into lavender dust and fading away into the wind.
"Nooooo! I wasn't powerful enough to stop them! I have failed my creator, Demak! I have failed to serve my purpose!" In a few more seconds, she was gone. Lunar Solstice Dragon closed its mouth and the ray glimmered and flickered away. Sunlight Unicorn recalled the beam of light.
"She's really gone?" Sidney wondered. Her dragon swooped down and sniffed the air. It turned to the two girls and grunted affirmatively.
"I think we won't have to worry about her again. Look!" Luna pointed. The barrier slowly started to fall and fade into the earth. The ground rumbled as the last of it seethed and died. Big-Tusked Mammoth snorted with content. Lunar Solstice Dragon eyed the girls curiously, as if wondering what they would decide to do next.
Sidney called back her mammoth, since it would probably not be able to swim. Luna also recalled Sunlight Unicorn. The two of them slid onto Lunar Solstice Dragon. The creature straightened its body and took off like a bullet to the center of the lake where the island was. Sidney smiled, being reassured by its familiarity.
"This really is the place I visited in my dreams! It sort of makes sense now!"
…
Meanwhile, in the human world, Yusei still watched over Sidney with patience. It hadn't been that long there – only an hour and a half- but he had a feeling that the return of Sidney and Luna was close at hand.
His friend Rally had come to sit with him and handed him a cup of hot chocolate.
"We thought this might help…you doing ok?" He asked. Yusei took the cup gratefully and blew on it gently. Akiza had gone elsewhere for the moment. The phone rang and her parents wished to speak with her before the Signers would leave tomorrow.
"Where are the others?" He asked.
"We were getting things together for dinner. Despite what's happening, we've still got to eat. Anyways… We wanted to come with."
"It's dangerous, Rally." Yusei warned him.
"We know. But, we thought Martha might need some help. Tough times call for extra hands, you know? Besides…we want to cheer you on, Yusei! We're your friends!"
Yusei nodded. "Thank you."
He glanced over at Sidney, and noticed a faint smile had formed on her face. He breathed a sigh. Rally peered down at her and shrugged his shoulders.
"Wherever she is, she's ok." Yusei explained.
"You really like her, don't you, Yusei?" Rally grinned.
"…You could say that. It's complicated, though."
Rally giggled. "It's ok."
"There's something I need to say when she gets back. Until then, I guess."
At last this episode is complete! Tune in next time for the next episode! Remember to R&R. Seriously, I love reviews. Keep them coming! Be here or be square!