Chapter 5: The Split Up

After the incident at the Magician's 4 base, Akiza explained everything about her powers to the rest of her teammates. At first she was afraid they would shun her out of fear, but that wasn't the case. Jack and Crow readily accepted her, and Kalin promised her that nothing would change between them. And indeed, their group remained as tight knit as ever.

Her resolve regained, Akiza and The Enforcers continued their mission to bring peace to Satellite. Team Black n' Blue, Team Dirty Works, and Non-Securities, all fell to their superior dueling skills. It wasn't long before they were the only major gang in the area, all other ones either having had their territories absorbed into theirs or keeping low enough to not be a threat, For once in a year, Akiza felt like she could finally take a breath. But Kalin had other plans…

It wasn't a fast change, but over time she and the others began to notice a change in his personality. It started off small, with his eyes darting in every direction every few minutes, jumping at slight sounds, habits that he usually expressed, just more often. But then he really began to change. He'd be more agitated, yelling at the others for questioning him. Akiza could tell he wasn't getting enough sleep at night. He tried to hide it, but she could see the bags underneath his eyes. Akiza could tell the others were becoming afraid of him. She was beginning to wonder if she should be too.

One afternoon, Akiza and Yusei stood outside their hideout, staring off into the wasteland.

"Akiza…are you scared of Kalin?"

"I…I don't know Yusei. I want to help him, but he just pushes us away. Are you?"

"Very much. I'm scared of what he's become. It's not like before, where we were trying to keep our home safe. Now, it's about proving a point, about being the best. It's like he's become no better than the criminals we formed this team to fight."

"Yusei…what can we do?"

"I don't know, Akiza."

Just then, a high pitched scream filled the air. After a brief glance and not between themselves, Akiza and Yusei took off, meeting Jack and Crow as they ran out the entrance.

"You guys heard that, right?"

"We did, Crow. Someone needs our help."

"Where's Kalin?"

"Who cares? We don't need him to babysit us. I say we take care of this and save him the trouble!"

While Akiza didn't agree with the exact words Jack used, she did agree with the sentiment. Running as quickly as they could, they all stopped in shock when they saw what the commotion was. Well, they found Kalin alright.

A little kid, not even over the age of 10, was backing away in fear as Kalin approached him, his eyes wild with rage.

"P-please let me go! I was just looking for some food, I'm very hungry!"

"Should've thought about that before you wandered onto your turf, brat! Now we have to duel!"

"Kalin, stop!"

Crow tackled Kalin from behind, pinning him to the ground while Akiza handed the kid some bread.

"Here, take this."

"Thanks, pretty lady!"

The kid quickly ran off, Akiza smiling at his energy. Kalin, however, was very much less enthused.

"What the- You're letting him get away!"

"Kalin, he's just a little kid! I'm surprised he can even work a duel disk."

"Don't you remember? That kid was with Team Black n' Blue! They must be making a comeback!"

"Kalin, do you really think they'd want to mess with us? Even if they did, why would they send their youngest member?"

"They're getting desperate! But you can bet that if we let them rebuild their forces, they'll get us when we least expect it! We have to act now!"

Crow, having had enough of Kalin's madness, got up and walked off.

"That's it, I'm done. Fighting for what's right is one thing, but if it means going after every little kid who might be a gang member, then count me out."

"Crow, come back! We need you!"

Jack scoffed, and walked off as well.

"Crow's right. Besides, the pickings have been slim for a challenging opponent. Let me know when you get your life in order."

"Jack, please stop! Guys?"

Now Kalin was just a sad wreck, a crumpled up soul who could only watch in anguish as two of his best friends walked away. Desperately, he turned to Yusei and Akiza, his last two friends.

"Yusei, Akiza? You guys aren't leaving me, are you?"
Yusei and Akiza exchanged looks. Despite their earlier conversation, they knew they couldn't leave Kalin as he was right now. Without any friends to keep him restrained, who knew how far he would go?

So, despite how much they feared him, they stayed, hoping that Kalin would see sense soon enough and things could go back to normal.

As if there was ever a normal in Satellite.