Jaden scanned through the document, his eyes quickly taking in every tiny detail. He lingered on the intricate penmanship, endeavoring to see some hidden scandal hidden beneath the facts, before shoving it away in favor of yet another possible dead end. With every move, he shifted from one file to the next, with a tiny, white trash bin sitting next to him filled with sheets of crumpled paper. He embedded the information in his mind, relaying it to himself quietly, as he turned up to the laptop setting beside him, surveying the screen for more relevant information. It wasn't long before he rubbed his eyes wearily, his impatience growing with each second passed.

Melancholic, evening rays poured into the once light-hearted room. He could easily feel the gazes of Alexis's stuffed animals boring his back, the shadows descending elegantly across their soft faces. Large, colorful quilts were splayed all over the floor, a testament to the illusionistic play his lover performed the other night. A few fairytale books were messily thrown toward the corner, the golden leaves capturing what little light was left from the weary day. The archaic letters stared up at the empty ceiling, and when he turned back, he saw the neglect filling its pages. After a few moments of silence, questions began filling the lonely void. When was their mistress coming back? Was she already grown up? No, that couldn't be; she's had them for the last decades. She wouldn't give them up so easily.

Jaden closed his eyes, trying everything he could to resist the urge to plop down on that comfortable bed, and sleep. As of this point, Alexis was with Sayer right now. No doubt she was was aiming on killing the guy, though of course, with the way he treated Aki, Jaden couldn't blame Alexis. In fact, he was a little jealous. Still, Jaden knew that if he tortured Sayer, the man might just end up dying in the next hour; after all, he never really was merciful. Alexis was more suited to the task, which, of course, left him with the ugly assignment of looking through the government databases. Although it was, in his opinion, more useful than mentally destroying some child molester off the streets, in the end Jaden knew he couldn't do anything about it.

His fingers started flying across the keyboard, summarizing the reports Yusei might need. For the past few days, Raines hadn't called either Jaden or Alexis. The hospital fire was supposed to have generated some curiosity; maybe she wanted to write the article herself, without any help. Or perhaps she found something, and she was now trying to follow that lead. Maybe she just wanted Jaden and Alexis out of the way, so that she could embark on whatever nonsense she found herself in. From the way Aki described it, it almost looked like the woman wanted to terminate his internship. That was fine with him.

And yet, he couldn't get Raines's interrogation out of his head. What exactly happened, when they lost their memories? Was he and Alexis hospitalized, just as Raines said? Impossible; there was no record of their visit, no footage showing them going into that prison. Then again, Yusei did say he'd gotten rid of most of the evidence, so the files Jaden was looking at, could very well be remnants after the fires; anything that contradicted this evidence was forever lost in some pile of ash. But of course, they were all probably just footage of he and Aki escaping the fires.

As Jaden poured himself from one document after another, he couldn't help but stop, one article capturing his attention. Carefully, he moved his finger toward the article, and clicked on the icon.

The New Turbo King were the first words that flashed his eyes.

Jaden sighed wearily. Before long, he pulled up Yusei's alias, and scrolled through the contents. Some pertained to a mother and father, who were nothing more than posthumous pawns in the game, others to skills that never existed. And even still, a database filled with minor infarctions, all of which did little to resolve the issue of Yusei's actual identity. Jaden wondered how many people accessed this file, how many people were fooled into believing his story. Goodwin was one, and Sayer was another. Raines probably saw this already, so revising the file might cause her to dig deeper into the case.

Jaden remembered convincing Yusei, so very long ago, to come to Domino City, if only to see the Aki he knew today. He remembered how skeptical the guy was, how he kept ordering them not to go back, no matter how tempting it was. But even so, Jaden could see the curiosity in his eyes, the spark of devotion that everyone had long since familiarized themselves with. To be perfectly honest, Jaden didn't know if seeing the girl was going to be a healthy thing for him; even after all these years, he was still mourning for their Akiza. But for some reason, he and Alexis kept pushing Yusei to see her. It took a while, but they finally did it.

And that was seventeen years ago.

From the moment he laid eyes on that girl, Jaden already knew something was wrong, so very, very wrong. From the way she talked, to the way she laughed, to even how she teased Alexis; it was as if he was looking at the leader they all missed. She was like a ghost, who had sprung from the very depths of hell, if only to meet her friends for one last time, or even a memory from Alexis's stupid fairytale books, who came there to grant happy endings and evanescent dreams. There was an almost enchanting quality about her, an aura that drew the two to her, like a warm, tiny flame in the midst of frigid darkness. It was the same presence he felt many centuries before, and now, to think that it was here, standing right in front of him, inviting him in for another lovely, delusional moment in some faraway lie.

Yusei said there was no way Akiza survived, that fateful day. Their leader was already weakened from the assault. Originally, it was Akiza's idea, to attack Fallen's final major branch; she'd long since been at war with the organization, for fifty years, Jaden, Alexis, and Yusei had been following her orders in annihilating the cruel organization. Everything went well, even if they attracted a few unwarranted eyes. The assault was supposed to mark Fallen's finale, with the Black Rose coven blooming into dominance.

But before she could escape, the experiments came, and stole her away. Akiza was already weak at the time, so it was easy for the monsters to slaughter her. They tore apart her organs, and ate her heart raw, like they would any other monster would. It was a miracle Yusei even managed to get away, but by the time he'd turned back, Akiza had already died.

It must've been a tough decision, abandoning her like that. But then of course, Jaden probably would've done the same thing. And her end was so gruesome Jaden was almost happy she died early on, so she that wouldn't have had to suffer through the pain for long.

He could recall Alexis's agonizing sobs, the moment she found out. She locked herself in her bedroom for days on end, not even bothering to eat anything. Whenever she did come out, she'd always remain silent, unlike the vibrant girl he'd known. She refused to accept the fact that Akiza was dead, and even when she did, the girl was always trying to play up some edge to bring apart of her back, from rereading Akiza's favorite story, to talking to an imagined version of her when she thought she was alone. Those very delusions was actually the reason why both he and Alexis came to Duel Academy, to see if they could find some way to bring her back.

Of course, Akiza's death took a toll on Jaden too. She was almost like an older sister to him, a kind of mother figure he could look up to. Even when she dragged them all into her stupid stunts, he admired her bravery, her courage, and, at times, even her recklessness. She was always smiling in front of them, and never once did she find anything ugly in the life she lived. After countless of experiments died at her feet, the nightmarish fires shrouding her frame in hellish purgatory, she still kept her liveliness, her strong disposition of never giving into the insanity she'd caused. He appreciated her friendship, and it was through his fearful respect of her he obeyed her.

And as for Yusei…

As for Yusei Jaden knew how much he loved her. Though he would never admit it, Yusei would've followed her anywhere. He was her Queen after all, and when the covens started turning against her, her concubine. Yusei was her most trusted advisor; a friend, a lover, and an accomplice, all rolled up into one. He would've done anything she asked him to, even if it meant turning his back on even his own desires. Though of course, it never stopped him from reprimanding her.

Jaden smiled. He remembered once when Akiza and Yusei decided to accept an invitation from the other coven leaders. As usual, Akiza showed him off to all the other leaders, which, of course, earned her glares from all the other women in the room. It wasn't long before a brawl had erupted from the meeting place. By the end of the meeting, nearly half the covens were subjected to the Black Rose's rule, while the other half quietly shrunk back in their corners, not even bothering to get involved with the hopeless conflict. It was so funny, too funny, in fact. And when they came back home, Jaden had never seen Yusei look so mad. All the while, Akiza just sat there, and laughed.

So, seeing this girl now…must be incredibly harsh.

But Jaden knew they needed to investigate her. They needed to figure out what was going on, lest more people should die from their negligence. The very fact that the girl existed even now, from the leader he remembered, seventeen years ago was suspicious enough as is. So more than likely she might be with Fallen, and with that mark on her arm, it was plausible enough for Jaden to look into the matter further. It took him a few moments to shove back his affections for the girl, and look ahead, knowing full well what would happen if they waited a moment longer.

Still, aside from the whole Aki incident, there were a lot of things Jaden couldn't wrap his head around.

Even after Yusei explained the concept of the game over and over, Jaden refused to accept the excuse. Weaklings? Traitors? Even after the game had ended, there are still plenty more within the coven. Not everyone is as stupid as the candidates now, nor are they as ambitious. A countless number of times, Jaden has thought about it; sometimes, he thought the game was just a tribute to Akiza, that it was just Yusei's way of moving on. And initially, like an idiot, Jaden bought into that excuse. After all, Akiza liked having fun, right? And the way Yusei established the game, it was exactly the way she would've done it.

It wasn't until he and Alexis met Aki, did Jaden finally noticed that something was wrong. Unlike Akiza, who let herself be hurt over and over again, before striking back, Yusei cut down his opponents in one, single blow. There were times when he'd let them charge at him, would allow them to even strike a few blows, though in the end, the result was the same. He saw the disappointed scowl on Yusei's face whenever he killed someone, and it was through that, a disturbing thought occurred to Jaden.

Did he really want to die?

But then Jaden shook himself from the observation.

From the corner of his eyes, he saw the new dollhouse Alexis mentioned. It took the form of a tall, looming cottage. The deep, amethyst roof blended well with the dark maroon of the bricks. Tiny, velvet curtains grazed the inside, and if he squinted, he could see the silhouette of a faded doll, who was residing in the inside. His mind wandered from time to time, bouncing back from Fallen's current projects, to the mysterious woman he called Aki. He turned away for a brief second, then turned back to the dollhouse, that strange silhouette gazing at him so easily.

He couldn't help but wonder whose shadow that was.

Akiza jolted at the sound of her loudly vibrating phone. It scared her so bad she almost fell out of her bed, though before long, the annoyance came racing back to her. She blinked, as she looked toward the clock; almost six.

She sighed, as she rubbed her heavy eyelids. What's wrong with her? She's been tired ever since she got back from the garage. Normally, she'd be pretty lively by now, and since her parents were coming home soon, she'd be enthusiastically racing around the house, trying to get everything ready for them.

Well, it looks like she couldn't blame this on some medication now, could she?

So she sighed, and pulled herself out of bed. She picked up her phone, flicked it open, and pressed it against her ear. "Hello?" she asked.

"Hello? Is this ah…Akiza?"

She knew that voice. "Angela?"

"Yeah, sorry. Is this a bad time?"

"N-no," Akiza stammered quickly, as she sat up. "Um…how'd you get my…?"

"…You gave it to me, remember?"

Akiza sat in silence, her slow brain shifting sluggishly through the piles of what she made out to be reality. Though she was still confused, she nodded. "R-right," she said sheepishly. "Sorry about that. Anyways, what'd you want to talk about?"

"I just wanted to know if Jaden and Alexis are alright."

She chuckled lightly. "Yeah, I guess. Jaden's an intern at the station though, isn't he? Why don't you ask him yourself?"

"He hasn't been around lately, so I wanted to know if everything was alright."

Akiza narrowed her eyes. Not around? She would've expected that kind of thing from Alexis, but Jaden? "Don't worry; I'll talk with him about it."

"Thank you. There's…one other thing."

"What is it?"

She could hear the paper rustling from the background, as Angela tried getting a sense of her bearings. Akiza smiled empathetically; she'd seen Crow and Yusei do that before, as they were trying to sort the bills from the junk mail. The frustration she'd see on Jack's face was pretty funny, even though he never did an ounce of work. Her dad was prone to disorganization, and sometimes, she was too. "Sorry," Angela said again. "But anyways, have you heard the name 'Amaryllis Nite' before?"

Amaryllis?

She was about to say something, but as her lips opened, her voice froze in her throat. She couldn't say anything; the words were frozen in place.

Amaryllis.

"Yes," she finally answered. "But I don't know where."

"How about Nikolai?" Angela pressed. "Do you know him?"

No answer.

"Akiza?"

"Why?"

"…I think those two might've gotten into some serious trouble," the reporter explained, the concern embedded in her tone. There was a short pause, as if she were attempting to assess the situation, before continuing. "I'm just trying to dig something up so that I can help them later."

Soundless answers kept dredging up from within her mind. Something poured out from her brain, moments that she'd never seen, actions she'd never known before. And yet, all the same, she clung to the assumption she had a while ago, and merely smiled, imitating the memories entwined in her mind. "I get it. I'll keep an eye out."

"Thank you."

Immediately, Akiza' s gaze softened. Well, she was a lot more courteous than all the other reporters she's had to deal with. Even Carly paled in comparison to Angela's professionalism. "Keep going," Akiza said kindly. "Nikolai; that's his name, right?"

"Correct. According to my sources, he was involved with a criminal organization known as the Arcadia Movement."

She bit her lip. To this day, the Movement still haunted her; though she was grateful for everything they'd done for her, she knew what Sayer did was horrible. She took a deep breath, and kept on, unsure of whether she should voice her true thoughts. "Involved?"

"He's fueled millions of dollars into the Movement," Angela explained. "And apparently, he's got a lot of dirt on some of the higher officials in the government."

She tightened her grip on the phone. "I see. But why ask me about it? What's this have to do with-?"

"Because his full name is Nikolai Izinski, and he's got ties with the Senator."

She balled her fists. She's never heard of that name, and even if she did, it would've been just a passing. But as much as she hated to admit it, the entire idea was feasible, that her father had been using this Nikolai person to keep an eye on Akiza. But even that would contradict her past memories; he was never really involved with her in the past, even when she joined the Movement. "So you think my dad has something to do with him?"

"No, that's not it," Angela said calmly. "I personally think it's just an alias. Do you remember the series of murders from before?"

Realization dawned on her then. "You don't think the killer's been caught."

"No."

"What is it then?" she pressed, no longer idly sitting on the side of her bed. "What happened?"

"I don't," Akiza answered, trying to suppress the rising panic in her chest. "But how does this have anything to do with Jaden and Alexis? Were they-?"

"-connected with the Movement?" Angela finished easily. "They had aliases too. Christoph and Arisé Izinski."

She was well aware of what her doll was seeing.

Writhing, clawing, screaming silently in pain, all the while trying to calm himself down, trying to see where he was, what exactly she wanted with him. Eyes filled with delicious fright, followed by hopeless realization that no matter how hard he screeched, no one would hear him or, at the least, not anyone she knew. Shadows shrouded over his body, tearing away at his flesh, ripping away at whatever dignity he had left, as he pleaded that she let him go, that she spare him, and no one else. Did she want money? Or fame? Or a trench coat? Go ahead; everything was hers.

Funny.

Alexis leaned against the rusted wall, her hands neatly on her lap, as she sat there, watching Sayer dance to his drug-induced hallucinations. Her legs lay flat on the ground, the bare skin callously ignoring the tiny puddles surrounding her. Just a few inches away from her, were bottles of hallucinogens she'd grown fond of, along with antipsychotics Jaden developed, specifically for her. Contaminated needles were spread across in front of her, and when she looked down, she made out the smallest traces of rust coating the silver. Normally, she would've cleaned them before reaching out to yet another torture session, but since Sayer was a special case, she could afford to be lazy.

Right now, she was in an abandoned parking garage, somewhere in the old district of the Satellite. Aside from the occasional duel gangs here and there, Alexis didn't see much of anyone. Well, the Satellite was just being rebuilt, so it all made sense; what with the new cheap, refurnished residential areas and all, and nearly half the district in construction, no one wanted to live in a dump like this anymore. Albeit a bit sad, Alexis still relished in her new, temporary park; no one would mind a few bodies showing up now and then. Sayer could even be the first.

Speaking of which, what was he doing anyways? She couldn't help but turn back then, an inquisitive smile on her face.

Gibberish mercilessly spewed from his lips, followed by pathetic cries that Alexis has already heard. Time and time again he's repeated the same sentiments, but of course, she ignored him. That's right; soon, this dose will wear off too. Maybe after this one, he might start talking.

"W-wait-!"

Yeah, one more.

She reached over and grabbed yet another needle. She then coated the tiny thing with her drugs, before she stood up, and walked towards Sayer. Before he could protest, she injected him with another dosage, not enough to kill him, but to ensure he suffered just as severely as he'd done for the past few hours now. She enjoyed listening to him; it was one of the things he could do to make it up to Aki. He hurt her, so he had to suffer.

Aki.

Alexis sank back into her spot, and stretched out her arms. Her bones ached from her stiff position, and though she didn't mind Sayer's begging, she still preferred the silence. By now, he's probably seen the rose on her neck, and judging from his expression, he knows all about Yusei. When he's on the brink of death, she'll save him, and annihilate whatever was left of his shattered self-esteem. She hated the way Yusei just let him go, so she's decided to remedy the problem the best she can. Turn him into an obedient mind slave that'd listen only to the leader of the coven, then string him to a building, and watch him dangle from there, or even have him gouge out his own organs, and let him gnaw at that for a while.

She closed her eyes, and gradually, began tuning out his incessant cries. She didn't like how Yusei talked about Aki; even if she was just another experiment, it didn't change how Alexis's saw her. Since she was nice and mature and everything, Alexis wanted to avoid getting her into as much trouble as she possibly could.

What was Yusei planning anyways? What was he going to do with Fallen? Alexis wanted to know, but she could never bring herself to ask him. She was afraid he'd just brush it aside, and ask her to do her homework. Either that, or there would be another assignment she would need to take care of, before anything else can happen.

Her eyes fell down toward Sayer, who was now beginning to fall silent once again. She cocked her head, as the failing light came away from the now cooling air; she remembered Yusei telling her about the Arcadia Movement. Though her memories haven't fully returned, she could still make out a few familiar moments. From what she remembered, he did decide to sponsor it, probably because Aki was in it. For what reason though, she'd no idea. Did he even meet her before he met Sayer? And what about all the psychics that'd gone missing? How was he planning on incorporating them into the coven? What benefits did taking the Movement on offer him anyways, aside from that fragile influence and the slew of backstabbers he needed to look out for?

She shrugged. It wasn't any of her business anyways. As long as he was happy, Alexis didn't really care. She'd only wished Aki wouldn't have gotten involved in this; if she hadn't, perhaps things would still be the same as before.

Just then, her phone rang.

Carefully, she dug the tiny device out of her pocket, and pressed it against her ear. "Hello?"

"…Alexis?"

Carefully, Alexis slid her gaze over to the unconscious redhead, who was lying comatose on the floor. She smiled happily to herself, before returning to the phone call. "Hey Jay, what's up?"

"What's going on? Where's Sayer?"

"Half-dead. I'm planning on playing with him for a few more hours."

"Well, when you're done, I need you to come back here for a sec. I think I found something."

She jolted up. "You tell Yusei yet?"

"He already knows."