Yet another episode. Personally, I'm so happy I've made it this far! Please remember to leave a review, because I love reviews! Enjoy!

It was getting to be late in the evening. Everyone had eaten and the scenarios for the upcoming mission. Leo, Dexter, Rally, and Luna had already gone to bed, and many others were starting to do the same. Yanagi raised his arms and yawned as he went up the stairs. Tanner and a few others thought it was a good idea and soon followed suit. After departing from the dining room, the only people that were left were Aki, Mina, Yusei, Sidney, and Jack.

"So, are we all clear on what's expected?" Mina asked. Everyone nodded. Sidney's eyes began to droop. She could feel her energy had been sapped in her battle with the Faceless Mage. Akiza put her hand over Sidney's hand resting on the table.

"If you're starting to get tired, you should go to bed, Sidney. You need to be at one hundred percent tomorrow." She urged her. Sidney tried to reassure her that it was alright, but Yusei could see her trying to hold back a yawn.

"Akiza is right. It's ok if you need the sleep." He told her. Jack eye's widened. Now was his chance. Sidney stood up from the table.

"Gosh. I wish I could stay up a little later. I mean, if there's more to talk about…" Sidney looked at Mina. Mina shook her head.

"That's all you need to know at this point. Mr. Goodwin will probably have something to say to all of you in the morning. So don't worry about it, ok?"

"We're all going to go to sleep soon too." Akiza said. Sidney wished everyone goodnight and walked tiredly up the stairs, stretching as she went.

In the meantime, Jack looked around before standing up and going as well.

"I am also feeling tired." He excused himself. Yusei watched him carefully as he walked out of the room. He didn't seem all that tired to him.

"So…is it true? That my father built the original reactor?" Yusei asked.

"What happened?" Akiza asked. Mina sighed.

"I can't give anymore information until we reach Satellite. But, I can tell you that it is true that Professor Fudo was the head of the R.R.D., the team that built the Ener-D reactor. Strangely enough, I found out from Mr. Goodwin that Sidney's mother designed the building that the original reactor was located in."

"Sidney said that she heard that in a vision back in the Spirit World…So it's true…" Yusei recounted thoughtfully.

"Goodwin said he didn't pay much attention to it until Sidney showed up and he took her in. He happened to be looking through some old files when he found her mother's name in the records." Mina explained.

"Did she know my father?" Yusei asked.

"He didn't say." Mina admitted regretfully.

"Although…didn't you and Sidney mention that my father said he knew her parents? It's like we're all connected to this. Do you think that's part of the reason we were chosen as Signers?" Aki wondered.

"It's an interesting idea. But what matters is reversing the reactor and defeating the Dark Signers. As Mina said, the reactor was showing signs of re-emitting negative energy…That looks like trouble, if you ask me."

…

Etsuo walked outside and breathed in the night air. It was a cloudless night; the moon was full and stars dotted the sky. He smiled and hoped Midori could see them, too.

Crow was not far behind him, the two had been talking for several hours after supper.

Just then, a thought occurred to him. He looked over at Crow, and grinned. Crow got a puzzled expression on his face, nut sure what to make out of it.

"Tell me, Crow, you think a lot of my grandbaby, don't you?" he asked. Crow's face started to turn red. Etsuo chuckled when he saw this.

"It's hard to explain…" Crow's voice trailed off. Etsuo sat down in the grass and cleared his throat. Crow sat down next to him, looking up at the sky.

"Well, you head me earlier, didn't you?" Crow asked.

"Of course. You wanted to go get those Dark Signers because they did something terrible to her. I do too, by the way. I know that when you found her, that she managed to escape. I know you took care of her, and put her in the hands of people you could trust. She's safe right now, and I'll see her again soon. But that's not what I'm getting at…"

"Ok…then what?" Crow cocked his head to one side.

Etsuo was just about to speak when one of the children came running out.

"Mr. Tsukino! My friend says you're not a real biker!"

"Not a real biker! Why's that?" He asked. The kid looked at him pitifully.

"Because you don't have a Duel Runner…"

"Of course I have one…it's just that it's back at my…" Etsuo looked down.

"Ah, nuts."

"It's back by your apartment?"

"Yeah. If I had that, I'd be more than ready to take on the Dark Signers with you and your friends…" Etsuo sighed.

"Well, why don't we go get it? You said you didn't live far from here, right?"

Martha came strolling out when she heard this.

"Where do the two of you think you're going?"

"We're going to get Etsuo's Duel Runner. We figure Yusei and the others need all the help they can get. Etsuo wants in on this." Crow explained.

"For my grandbaby…"

Martha nodded. "Alright, but you two should get some sleep first."

Etsuo grinned cheekily. "You got it, ma'am!"

…

After taking off his jacket and collar in his room, Jack furtively tip-toed up the stairs, so he wouldn't wake anyone. He stopped short of the stairs leading the third floor, where Sidney's room was. He didn't want to give away that he was following her. When she had gone into her room, Jack crept up after her.

After about ten minutes or so of waiting, he approached the door, checking to make sure nobody was coming. He slowly turned the knob and peaked inside.

The lights were turned off and Sidney was tucked away into bed. His heart was starting to beat hard and fast.

Sidney heard him moving and sat up. She couldn't see very well, but she saw his outline and knew someone was in the room. Quickly flipping the switch, the lights came on and Jack froze just inches away from her.

"Jack? What are you doing here?" She gazed up at him innocently. Not being phased by her expression, Jack swiftly pushed her up against the wall. He pinned her wrists with his hands, and in the tight space he had confined her to, there was no point in her struggling.

"Jack, if this is about what I think it is…"

"This isn't just about you anymore. I'm going to make Yusei pay…He's stolen enough from me!" He grazed her cheek. As Sidney's eyes wandered around, she was trying to find a way out. Then she remembered her vision from the Crimson Dragon. Did it really have to go this far? Was it worth tearing the Signers apart for something as petty as revenge?

She noticed something sticking out of his pants pocket. It appeared to be a pair of eyes glasses. Sidney got an idea.

"Jack, if it's revenge you're after, then you're no better than the Dark Signers…" She remembered what Crow told her about Midori and the Dark Signer, Kiryu.

He growled at her angrily.

"Really? Ironic…I was supposed to protect you from them."

"We've already had this conversation. I love Yusei, and even though it may not be the perfect solution…I trust him. I could learn to trust you too," Then it dawned on her, "I want you to be my friend. I heard you and Yusei used to be very good friends! I want you and Yusei to be friends…again."

Jack slightly backed off, but still restrained her.

"Woah, I'm not your friend! Yusei isn't my friend, either."

"But we're a team! We have to be friends if we want to prevent the world from going to hell in a hand basket!" She was still keeping her focus on the glasses. Why did he have them? Where did they come from?

"What is that?" She stared at them. He looked down and his face turned red. He had forgotten to put them with his coat. How could he have done that?

For the moment, Jack became distracted. She managed to struggle free and jump off the bed standing by the door in a threatening manner. He shrugged and pulled the glasses out. They had a chip in them, but Sidney sensed she had seen glasses like those before.

"These aren't mine…they belong to someone I know." His voice seemed to grow distant and dreamy, almost regretful. Sidney had a gut feeling that he felt guilty about something. Did something happen to them?

"Her name is Carly."

"I know her! I remember now! She was a reporter." Sidney smiled at her sudden flashback of the clumsy journalist. In some ways, the two of them were alike. It was funny that Jack mentioned he knew her, Sidney thought.

"I assumed she was paling around with me to get a story. That's why I turned her away…and now she's missing and it's MY fault."

Sidney looked down. "I'm really sorry. Do you think the Dark Signers got her?"

"Most likely. But I swear I'm going to find her, though! I owe her for her kindness to me. She…picked me up when I was down, you could say."

Sidney perked up. She realized he was cooling down, and now that she was near the door she could run if things got scary again and go find Yusei.

"Aw, that's so sweet!"

"It's not what it sounds like!" He insisted.

Sidney giggled. This could be a lucky break for her.

"Whatever you say…"

"Don't think this means you're off the hook!" Jack started to approach her in an intimidating fashion. Sidney turned the knob, preparing to dash out.

"Hey, why not instead of taking your anger out on me, you put your energy into saving Carly? I think she's the kind of person who needs a little rescuing…

Besides, you just want to get in my pants, right?"

Jack stopped and sighed.

"But you have taken steps to take care of me, even if they weren't really the right thing to do. Plus, I am impressed that you care enough about Carly to want to go rescue her…I mean, isn't that what we're supposed to be doing, rescuing everybody? Now you have even more reason to fight…That's why I hope we can be friends. But, I will make it clear for the last time…my answer is N-O!"

"You talk too much." He grunted, "Why should I listen to you?"

"I'll tell Yusei. It won't matter if you hurt me, because he'll still care about me. If you try to hurt me, you'll be betraying everyone here…"

She thought for a moment. He was slightly unsettled, but his anger was growing.

"Better yet, I could call Laura and arrange for her to turn you into a girl with a pair of scissors. How does that sound?" Sidney opened the door and stepped outside in her pale nightgown. Jack wasn't really afraid of Laura, but just the thought of being castrated made him feel intense pain.

There was the sound of footsteps coming up. Yusei emerged from the stairs. He wanted to wish Sidney goodnight. But, when he saw the scene upstairs, with the two of them glaring at each other, he put his hand on Sidney's shoulder.

"Hey Sidney, what's going on?"

Jack breathed deeply and walked out of her room.

"It doesn't matter now. She's made her point." Yusei tried to get him to elaborate, but Jack ignored him and him dragged his feet down the stairs and retired to his room for the night. Sidney sighed with relief.

"Did Aki go to bed already?" Sidney asked him. Yusei blinked.

"Yes…do you want to tell me what just happened?"

Sidney looked down shyly and back at him again.

"Honestly… not right now. I'm so tired…but… Basically Jack was still mad about the whole engagement thing. He almost went berserk with this whole idea of getting revenge, but…

I convinced him it wasn't worth pursuing, let's leave it at that."

"What? He didn't hurt you, did he?" Yusei worriedly checked her over. Sidney blushed. He looked up to realize she was concealing a nervous laugh.

"I'm fine, Yusei, really, I am!" She assured him.

"The Dark Signers are driven by anger and revenge…We can't allow ourselves to fall prey to the same demon…"

"That's pretty deep. But, it makes me wonder…if there's a way of also convincing the Dark Signers to abandon their vengeance… Perhaps it is how THEY can be saved, don't you think?" Sidney wondered.

Yusei thought for a moment. "It hasn't worked so far with Kiryu."

"Maybe…you just haven't been given the right tools. I mean, do you know how he became a Dark Signer?" She inquired. Yusei saw the point she was making.

"Not exactly, no. There may be hope. Perhaps I can save the friend I once knew from the darkness that has enveloped him."

Sidney kissed him on the cheek.

"I believe you can…I'll do my best to save every single person I can, too!"

He smiled before taking her in his arms and returning the kiss.

…

Midori felt herself drifting away into her dreams again. She was nervous about having to face her nightmares. Would she now be able to overcome them?

Unexpectedly, the young Oracle found herself in the middle of a highway rising high above a field of grass, as far as the eye could see. The night sky was cloudy as a light rain started falling. But then, the peace was shattered by the roar of a Duel Runner speeding down the road.

Instinctively, Midori ran away from the noise. It was Kiryu, she thought. She could feel it. But, as is common with nightmares, she was slow to move. The sound got closer and closer as she struggled to run. But then, a thought occurred to her.

She scampered to the center of the road and waited. There was no trying to escape this time, she thought. It was time to stand and fight.

The silhouette of the blue, orange ornamented Runner came into view. Suddenly, a second Runner, followed by a third, came up on either side of it. They were both black. But, one of them seemed to be shaped like an arrow with wings. The other looked like an old fashioned Harley-Davidson, but it was outfitted with Dueling Equipment and had green flames painted on the sides.

"Crow? Grandpa?" She gasped. The three Runners came to a halt just a few feet away from her. Crow jumped off of his and ran over to Midori, shielding her.

Kiryu cackled as Etsuo glared at him.

"Just you wait; you're getting what's coming to you."

Midori held on tightly to Crow. In the distance, there was another figure running up towards them. He wore a brown vest and black gloves and pants. What caught her eye was the red shirt he wore and purple cloth tied around his head.

"Wait!" Midori gasped when he got close enough for her to recognize.

"There are two Kiryu?" She wondered aloud. The other Kiryu panted as he stopped to catch his breath. Unlike the Dark Signer, he had bright gold eyes and there was no marking on his arm or face.

"I am the Kiryu that Crow and the others used to know. But my anger and thirst for revenge left me prey to the darkness, and I became this monster." He pointed at the Dark Signer. The dark Kiryu laughed.

"You were already losing it before you became a Dark Signer." He said.

"I get it now…But, what does this mean?" Midori clung to Crow nervously.

"My darkness must be swept away; the Dark Signer I have become must be defeated… By Yusei. My soul will never find peace, otherwise…"

There was a silence. Etuso stroked his mustache thoughtfully.

"Then what should I do if I'm not supposed to Duel you, huh?"

Crow looked up at Etsuo. Midori buried her face in his shoulder. Etsuo smiled at Crow in return. Crow looked at Kiryu bitterly.

"We will have our day. Each of us plays a role in defeating the Earthbound Immortals… That I am sure of. No doubts."

Midori suddenly fell away from the scene, like descending into a lake of nothingness. Her sleep was empty and deep for the remainder of the night, only to be disturbed by the light of the morning sun.

Well, that wraps up another episode! Be here next time to see Etsuo and Crow go hunting for Etsuo's Runner…and much more. Don't forget to Review, I love them!