Lee here to welcome you to another chapter of our slowly continuing story. You'd think with quarantine we'd have more time to work on the story, but our real lives have different plans entirely. Unfortunately, between work and family, we've had to take more time to finish, but we've done it haha. Anyways, as always thank you, dear reader, for continuing to stick with us, and an ever-present and huge thanks to our Beta reader Eneko. We hope you enjoy the chapter.

Chapter 39

Threads of Faith

Part I

Duel Academy

Forest

Kanoa and Meryem walked along the tree-lined path leading from the Slifer Dorm to the Ra Dorm, leaving a straight line of walkway on the ground ahead of them and a narrow strip of star studded sky above. They saw no sign of anyone having left the path, so they continued onward.

Meryem had her tablet out and was attempting to track the signals from the missing students' disks. Emphasis on "attempting"; the wide area she was used to operating with was, for whatever reason, causing the indicators to jump all over the map like nervous grasshoppers. A shorter range solved that problem, but of course made it take that much longer.

"Did you bring the night-vision goggles? If I'd known we were gonna be playing park ranger I would've brought mine," Kanoa remarked with frustration as he looked around the area.

"And we wouldn't even be out here if you'd done your job properly, but we can't have everything, can we?" Meryem sighed while trying to adjust the parameter on her device. "I just hope these erratic signals don't mean their disks are broken. At least they're still powered on…"

The Slifer professor stopped in his tracks, turning around to face his co-worker.

"I told you before, they're my students, not my prisoners. Just because going full Big Sister is Watching works for you doesn't mean it's the only right way to teach. Seriously, Mery—"

"First of all, I do not go full Big Brother. Second of all, don't call me Mery! We're professionals, Kanoa, act like it!" she snapped, glaring at him. "You and I are here to guide the students through their academic careers. Not to be their cool older best friend. The whole time we've known each other, you've done nothing but act like every problem can be solved with a couple heart-to-hearts and a dance party. It's like the idea of putting your foot down never even occurs to you! You never take anything seriously, and that's exactly why we stopped dating!"

She took a moment to compose herself and take a few deep breaths, feeling a bit better after letting out all her frustration.

Unfortunately, her co-worker also had something to get off his chest.

"Meryem, I'm walking around a forest on Christmas Eve, in the middle of the night, looking for a bunch of kids who left on even shorter notice than Nick gave me for bringing friends over. What part of that makes you think I don't care?" Kanoa began. "Even if they aren't in the same dorm, I still feel responsible for them. I failed them once by not knowing and being there when Nick and Jessie had that illegal ante duel. I honestly wouldn't be able to look at myself in the mirror if I let something even worse happen to them."

The agony in his voice was almost palpable, and Meryem softened a little as she looked at him. Perhaps she'd hit too close to the mark with her outburst earlier…

"And don't forget, I wasn't the one who ended things between us," was his last statement before grabbing her tablet and continuing down the path without her.

Meryem watched him walk away with a frustrated sigh. She hated lashing out like that, especially at people close to her. Remembering Kanoa's obvious surprise when she'd confronted him about the missing students made her feel even more ashamed. How could she be angry at him for something he hadn't anticipated either?

And to her surprise, she realized she wasn't, this time. If she was angry at anyone, it was herself. She had all the best tools and programs at her disposal, but they'd been dodged or proven useless multiple times this year and she had no idea why.

She didn't have the answer to this mystery and that was a first for her. Meryem hated goofing off, but what she hated more was a problem she couldn't solve.

Even knowing that, and that this particular problem actively endangering students gave her a right to be frustrated, she also knew she was in the wrong for taking it out on him. His last comment reminded her of all the times she'd tried to make things right but come across as pig-headed instead.

She started walking again, hoping to catch up to Kanoa before he got too far away. She owed him a proper apology for her behavior.

Unknown to either of them, the students had bigger problems to deal with than emotional turmoil and misbehaving tablet programs.

Waterfall

The sound of rushing water echoed through the portion of the forest, drowning out the usual noises of bugs and nocturnal animals. Though the sight was breathtaking as it showed not just the stars, but the ocean that the waterfall led too. Though one person wasn't there for the sight.

Sera pushed through the foliage with an annoyed expression and the sound of crunching leaves. Her Duel Disk was attached to her left arm, probably more out of habit than anything else.

Like the others, she'd woken up a few minutes ago on a completely different part of the island. Luckily, she knew how to find her way back thanks to having studied the map along with everyone else. This did not make the prospect of being in an unfamiliar area all by herself at night any easier to deal with. It was taking a serious effort for her not to curl up somewhere and wait until morning.

But despite the fear, she knew her best option was to head for a familiar landmark and hopefully meet up with her friends.

"This feels way too much like a horror movie… The absolute worst…" Sera muttered to herself. "I swear, I'll never leave my room after dinner again if I get out of this intact."

She plucked a leaf out of her hair before clicking her tongue in annoyance.

"And hopefully less dirty…" she started as she began trying to wipe the grimy feeling off of her hands.

Before going off on another tirade, Sera's attention turned to the sound of water, noticing the nearby river leading towards the falls. With a silent thanks to the heavens, she quickly ran over to it. In seconds, she dipped her hands into the stream, washing them to the best of her ability.

It was freezing cold, but that didn't stop her.

After drying her hands, Sera leaned back against a tree and sighed in relief. Cliche or not, she did legitimately feel a little better now that at least her hands were clean. Part of her thought about getting out her phone, but it had been strangely quiet the whole time. Either she was in a signal dead zone or everyone else was.

Lights flickering on nearby interrupted her train of thought, and she froze, pressing herself against the tree like she was trying to merge with it.

After a few seconds of said lights not moving, though, she got up and began walking towards them.

"Sure, willingly move towards the thing that just freaked you out, great horror movie heroine-level plan," Sera groaned. "Those two are gonna wish they were just dealing with a slasher next time I see them."

She soon found herself at the most peaceful portion of the island, the Academy's Botanical Garden.

It was a building just large enough to hold a few classes at a time. It was more commonly used by the Gardening Club, though occasionally a handful science classes would trek out to the building for specific lessons. Illuminated by the exterior lights, Sera could see a small stream surrounded by various bushes and shrubberies. A few decorative rocks helped contain the stream, and the exotic flowers here and there provided a nice splash of color. It would be a lovely and relaxing place to be if she weren't here in the middle of the night.

"I swear I've read this fanfiction before," Sera muttered.

With no better ideas and despite the nervous little voice saying it could be a trap, she walked forward, past the entrance and into the unlocked "main" building.

She kept going down the main hall until she reached a set of double doors at the end. There wasn't a lot of light to work with, obviously, but she could tell the doors led into the garden, and someone who looked like a janitor was also there rearranging something.

Sera pushed open the doors with a sigh of relief. It wasn't much, but she'd take all the human contact she could get in this situation.

Purgatory

The garden itself was warm and brightly lit, a sharp contrast to the rest of the building. Not just from the inside, either; the sky outside the garden was now clear blue, and the sun shone directly above her. Sera was just glad this particular oddity wasn't playing into her anxiety like the rest of her trek had.

Looking around, Sera noticed that the plants looked much more vibrant than usual, almost pulsing with life energy.

She went a bit closer, gently moving her hand to grab one of them.

"I wouldn't recommend that," a female voice spoke.

Sera flinched and turned to whoever had spoken, pulling her hand towards her.

Rather than the janitor she'd seen earlier, the mysterious person was a woman in long white robes and a matching cape, gently moving a watering can over a row of plants. The ends of her sleeves were red, as was the sash loosely tied around the waist. An oversized gold necklace with a white and green pendant at the center rested over her shoulders.

What really stuck out to Sera was the woman's close-fitting mask. It reminded her of some Carnival photos she'd seen in a magazine once, with the painted-on blush and carefully modeled nose. As far as she could remember none of those masks had ever had rays of sunlight coming from the top, though.

Even with how little she seemed to fit the gardens, Sera still got a soothing vibe from the woman. Like the times she and Barclay sat down on some grassy patch and just enjoyed a beautiful day.

"The young ones don't like being touched. I can see you're interested in them, so if it's not too much bother, would you mind taking the other watering can and helping me with them?" she politely asked, not taking her eyes off the can. "I'm afraid I may not be able to get to all of them by myself."

The Ra Student looked around a bit, eyeing the watering can not too far from her. She focused back on the woman, trying to make sense of what exactly was going on.

"What's your game?" Sera asked cautiously. "You're clearly part of that group that's after my friends. Why are you being so polite if you're here to… what? Kidnap me and hold me hostage?"

"I won't deny my membership, but unlike my associates, simple thuggery isn't my style," she replied nonchalantly. "Besides, there's no harm in a civil conversation, is there?"

Sera let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and looked back to the watering can. The other woman was right; there was nothing wrong with helping her and talking to her like the reasonable people they were. She picked it up, surprised to feel it already had a decent amount of water in it.

"That row in front of you seems to be impatient."

She turned to look at the flowers in question. If she didn't know better she'd swear they looked sad, slumping forward the way they did. Despite her green-thumb roommate's best efforts, she couldn't tell much beyond that their condition obviously wasn't normal.

Fortunately, Laura had given her a general idea of what to do, and the little window box hadn't died so far. Sera gently tilted the watering can over the first few plants, trying to give all of them a decent amount and not rush things. Each flower stood back up soon after she'd moved to the next one in the row. After a few more go-rounds of this, she finished the row and looked back at the older woman.

She was also finished, looking back at Sera before walking towards a bench near a small pond close to the flowers.

"Come, sit," she proclaimed as Sera looked on with worry, but soon went towards her and sat next to the woman.

"Who are you?" Sera asked, keeping her eyes on the figure next to her. "And why wait for someone here of all places?"

"These days I go by the title of Sun," she introduced herself. "And like the star, I came in response to those who needed me. Such a strange thing, isn't it? One creature needing to depend on another for their survival. I have to wonder why the universe would be designed that way."

"Well, hardly anybody depends on other people forever. For me at least it's more like helping them grow, develop the skills and eventually do the same for someone else in need," Sera replied after a few moments of thought. "Even if they don't always recognize it or show their thanks."

"Ah, my dear naive girl… You yourself don't believe such nonsense do you?" Sun remarked, turning to meet Sera's eyes. "Needing others, helping them grow… It's all an illusion. Humanity would easily consume others if it meant they'd reach higher levels. They are flawed and horrid creatures who think of nothing but their own ambition and greed."

"If we were all only out for number one civilization would have collapsed a long time ago, possibly not even developed. I'm not saying humans aren't selfish on some level, we are, but that doesn't mean we can't work together and make something greater than all of us," Sera retorted with defiance.

Sun stood up from her seat with a light chuckle and walked towards a nearby pond. "You must be confident in people to say such things. Let's put that belief of yours to the test, shall we? Nothing too complex; a simple trip through your past to see if you've ever encountered people working for something other than their own interests.

"Don't look so worried, my child, I won't hurt you."

Sera had gotten up from her seat, backing away slightly as she was uncertain of what exactly her opponent was going to do. However, after a few seconds, she couldn't feel any bad intent coming from her. With that, she walked forward at a hesitant pace and stopped a few inches from her.

"Now let me see if I remember how to do this…" Sun knelt at the edge, laid a hand on top of the water, and murmured something under her breath. The algae and random dirt vanished instantly, and to Sera's further surprise, water actually rose from the pond like a curtain as Sun lifted her arm. "Ah, good. I've found that I can show more detail if I do this beforehand."

Soon after, Sera saw a familiar cafeteria emerge on the water's surface, along with a bright-eyed and mocha-colored face she'd hoped never to see again. But it was hard to forget a boy who always looked like he'd just walked off a name-brand photoshoot, especially when he'd been her first big crush.

In the scene, the two were sitting together at lunch, talking happily, laughing. He didn't shy away from her friends and even asked if he could follow along when they went on shopping trips. She saw several scenes of him approaching after walking away from another group just to talk to her.

Whenever she was working on one of her smaller sewing projects, the ones she could easily transport at any rate, he would ask her about them. All the right questions, about the material, the color, the stitches being used. Occasionally, he even seemed to almost remember some of the jargon. He praised her knowledge and skill with needle and thread, and every time he did, her face warmed.

Then they were walking through a fair, hand in hand, smiling and laughing as always. Then Sera caught sight of a beautiful necklace resting on the prize rack of one of the game stalls. Her eyes sparkled at it, and the boy had tried numerous times, spending more than it was probably worth to win the necklace. She pulled her hair aside as he struggled a bit with the clasp to secure it around her neck. Fireworks went off in her chest, convincing her thirteen-year-old heart that he was the one.

Sera walked through a door, hearing the voices of the boy and one of her friends. The boy turned rapidly towards the door. It was at that moment his eyes widened with horror. He pushed the friend away to arm's length and rapidly started wiping at his mouth.

"Oh… Hey Sera," he uttered with a nervous chuckle. "What… what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Sera replied coldly.

"I was just—" he started.

"He was helping me rehearse for the play," her friend interrupted.

"The one that ended last week? Exactly how stupid do you have to be to think I would believe that excuse?" she retorted bitterly.

He gestured at the friend. "It was her idea—"

"Don't blame me for this! You told me you weren't even sure you liked her beyond—!"

"That doesn't mean you get to make passes at me!"

"I'll let you two get back to your little lovers' quarrel. Have fun at rehearsals for the next show, and don't bother showing your faces to me again." Sera turned around and slammed the door behind her.

"Sera! Sera, wait!" she heard the voices call after her as she ran away, tears blurring her vision.

The scene ended with water washing away the image, leaving only the wall of water once again.

"I know what you're tempted to say, that everyone makes mistakes as a child," Sun remarked gently. "But that doesn't change the kind of lasting wound a fragile thirteen-year-old heart would suffer from such a betrayal, intentional or otherwise."

As she said this, another scene appeared on the water. Sera returned home, red-eyed and still wearing that necklace, and headed straight to her room without even looking at her parents. Then she locked her door and buried her face in the pillow for a good long cry. After what seemed like hours, she finally settled down and lifted her face from the pillow, feeling the necklace against her chest. Realizing that she still had it on, the dark-skinned girl took it off and threw it at the wall with a frustrated sound.

It broke like the cheap metal and plastic it was. In hindsight, the contrast between how important it had been for her and its low-tier construction was an excellent metaphor for her relationship with that boy. If she'd recognized it at the time, though, she'd ignored it in favor of taking a half-repaired backpack and tearing the shoulder strap off. And ripping multiple socks straight up the back (not hard for the ones that already had holes in the heels). The handful of unfinished shirts were harder to tear in half, but more cathartic.

Finally, she slumped against the wall, holding a mangled shirt sleeve in one hand and feeling even more hollow than before. A few fresh tears rolled down her face; Sera felt her own eyes water just reliving it. She blinked them away, and the scene changed.

This one hurt more than all the other memories. She saw herself and her oldest friend, the same person she'd caught with her ex, standing across from each other in an undefined area. Her friend was clearly trying to explain her actions, judging by the pleading look on her face and the gestures. Sera just turned and walked away, not wanting her friend to see her cry (again).

With that, the water stopped showing anything and fell back into the pond, leaving Sun and a softly crying Sera alone on their knees.

"To be used, just to get closer to your friend whom he really wanted to date," Sun continued. "What part of that was him making a simple mistake?"

Sera was quiet for a few moments, still a bit raw from reliving those memories. When she felt a little more centered, she got back on her feet, wiping the remaining tears from her eyes.

"The part where we were a bunch of dumb, hormonal teenagers. I certainly learned a lesson from all that," Sera replied, sounding slightly bitter even to herself. "The other two broke up a month later after the same thing happened with another girl, so who knows whether they learned anything. Part of me hopes they did, but maybe I really am as naive as you say."

The Ra student walked away from Sun, though something stopped her when she got to the plants she'd watered earlier. The carefully manicured blossoms were wilting under the harsh sun (had it been this harsh earlier…?), their leaves drooping toward the ground. Other plants had begun to curl and turn a sickly brownish-yellow. If she looked closely she could almost see a shimmer in the air above the stones and walkways.

"And such is the fate of those that use others," said the woman. "Yet despite knowing this, you still bonded with two others just as lost as you?"

Sera turned around, opening her mouth to deny it, but the heat intensified and actually made her feel dizzy.

"Think about it, my dear. Those young men you call your friends believe we're the villains based on what? Unlucky coincidences? The word of two Spirits they barely understand? And even if those Spirits are correct, you said so yourself: One or three bad apples don't spoil the bunch. Whether or not they realize it, they're being tricked and have taken you in with them. Would someone who cares about you and their relationship to you do such a thing?"

The Ra student began breathing a bit heavily, feeling her legs give out as she fell to her knees once more, not noticing Sun walk up and kneel in front of her.

"You can still change the ending of your story, if you let go… Join our family, then no one will ever abuse your trust the way they have again…"

It might have been the heat and the dizziness, but when Sera looked up, she was certain she saw an angel where Sun had been, offering a welcome hand.

She smiled at them with tears in her eyes again. The heat was still there, but it didn't feel that bad anymore, not really. Like a warm shirt on her as opposed to a searing summer day. However, as she reached out to take the angel's hand, her mark produced a light of its own, sending new energy into her and a recent memory to the front of her mind.

Day Earlier

Hot Springs

Since their group heart-to-heart at the train station, the group of students hadn't had much going on apart from their studying and preparations against whoever was trying to steal the Gate and Key. Deciding that they needed to de-stress, Laura invited them to go visit the Hot Springs that were built on the island for students from Japan. Though it was open to everyone who wanted to experience it for the first time.

There were actually two hot springs on the island, but one was restricted to Obelisk Blue students, so the public-access hot spring it was. The spring itself was in a large building near the main academy one, open most days to anyone with their Academy ID card and housing two separate spots for male and female students. Unlike normal hot springs, these ones covered about the size of two city parks in total, to make sure students had plenty of room to relax.

The group split up on arrival, and about half an hour later both parties were enjoying the warm waters and calming atmosphere.

This was especially true for the girls, who were all nearly unconscious by how relaxed they were.

"Ah… This is the life," Laura remarked with a smile as she leaned back on a rock. "I would've never expected that basically dipping in a giant Jacuzzi would be this relaxing."

"Indeed," Atsuko added, floating by in an inner tube with a little rubber duck. "I'll have to remember to come back after finals are done, I'll really need to relax by then."

Sera chuckled from her spot next to Laura, but didn't lose the distracted look on her face.

"You must be the only girl on this island who can look nervous in a hot spring. You know that's gonna give you crow's feet, right?" Laura remarked.

"Sorry, it's just a little hard to relax when our friends are in danger from some unknown enemy that seems to be able to attack from anywhere at any time." Sera replied, a little sharper than she had intended.

"We've done everything we can to be ready. I'm worried too, everyone is, but I also don't want to burn myself out trying to deal with this," said Atsuko.

"I… I know that, but I just can't relax. There are too many variables to be able to prepare for everything." Sera sighed before getting up from her spot. "I'm just going to step out, I'm feeling a bit light headed."

With that, the dark-skinned girl wrapped her towel around herself and walked out towards the locker room. She couldn't help the twinge of guilt as she did this, or the sigh she let out once inside the locker room itself.

She knew Laura and Atsuko were trying to help, and they definitely weren't wrong about taking a break for one day. (Especially one so close to Christmas… where had their semester gone?)

Despite that, the Ra student knew that this wasn't just some fist fight on the streets, it was a serious life or death situation, and that made it even more scary.

She dried off, changed back into regular clothes, and walked out to wait in the lobby while the others soaked as long as they wanted. The spring had definitely been a good idea, but she felt dehydrated and sweaty now that she wasn't in the water anymore. Fortunately, there was a vending machine with her favorite juice in it nearby.

Before grabbing one however, her attention focused on a familiar brown-haired student seated on a bench nearby.

She was honestly surprised; she'd expected Barclay to be the last one out of the waters. Judging by the look on his face he hadn't been able to really relax either.

The Ra student looked over the vending machine's options again and smiled. It wasn't much, but she figured buying a bottle of Earl Gray along with her juice was a good way to help him out.

Both drinks in hand, she walked over to the bench and gently pressed the cold tea against his arm, prompting him to look up at her.

"Thanks. What's brought you out here so soon?" he asked, taking the tea from her hand and opening the bottle.

"Couldn't relax… You?" Sera replied as she sat down next to him.

Barclay finished his long sip of tea and smirked. "The opposite problem. I almost fell asleep and drowned in there. That or the heat got to me faster than I realized."

"This from the guy who was stressing the most about being prepared?" Sera raised her eyebrows skeptically.

"Stress and heat wear me out like nobody's business. Combine the two and we're lucky I'm not comatose at the bottom of that spring." he chuckled.

"We need to get you some better coping mechanisms." Sera sighed while taking a drink from her juice. "You're practically narcoleptic."

"Sleep's something that can't be taken from you." Barclay shrugged.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, turning to face him.

"That the best defense is to be somewhere else?" he said dismissively. "That or whatever else I'll at least be well-rested, haven't exactly done the science on this."

"You're avoiding the question," she said, eyes narrowing.

Barclay seemed suddenly reluctant to look right at her. "What, were you expecting me to spill my life story?"

"If that's what'll help you relax for once. And don't quote movies to distract me, either. Look at the floor if that helps you answer the question."

She continued to stare at him, not saying a word as he seemed to have some internal battle before sighing in defeat.

"Alright, fine. I always thought I had a pretty normal home life; both parents, me, my little sister, two cars in the garage, all the nuclear family set pieces. Sure we fought sometimes, but that's normal too, right? But the more I've heard from everyone else about their own home lives… the more I've realized mine barely had anything normal to it at all," Barclay said.

"Nobody can agree on what normal is, so I wouldn't worry about it if I were you," Sera responded, which drew a smile out of Barclay.

"Pretty sure most definitions of normal wouldn't include a hyper-critical mum and what you only realize later was a lifetime of emotional abuse, but I appreciate the thought." Barclay sighed slightly. "I never knew when or how the rules for what I could and couldn't do would change. Even the times I did something right, Mum just got that 'I'm so disappointed in you' look and found something disproportionate to punish me with later.

"And you know how with siblings, you sometimes feel like one of them can get away with basically anything when you'd get a lecture for doing that same thing? That wasn't just a feeling in my house. My little sister never had to lift a finger if she didn't want to, and you can guess how often she wanted to. Got everything she asked for no question. I definitely resented her for a while over all that.

"Then my parents divorced. It was a pretty nasty process, still is from what little I've heard, so I hope you'll forgive me for not opening that particular Pandora's box. I stayed with Dad while she went with our mother," he said. "Suddenly having freedom to muck up and do things I was interested in was… overwhelming, at first. In retrospect I don't think Dad quite knew how to deal with the change either; he worked a lot and I didn't know how to ask for help. But I realized how exhausting it had been, being in trouble all the time. After a couple months of adjusting and feeling a lot better about life, I started to realize something. Mum's favoritism aside, I did genuinely want the best for my sister. Somehow it had settled in my head that I was taking all that crap from Mum so she didn't have to. And since I wasn't there to protect her anymore…"

"You shouldn't have to protect your sister. That's not something any child should have to worry about," Sera said. "Parents are supposed to be the ones protecting their children."

"If I can't protect her from a known threat, how can I protect any of you from an enemy I've barely seen before, never mind gotten familiar with?" Barclay asked quietly, leaning over with his elbows on his knees. "Someone else should have this responsibility, someone stronger."

"What you're doing now is how you're protecting us. Making backup plans for the backup plans, having multiple places to meet up in case of something or other, staying calm when one of us is panicking externally…" she replied. "But considering the only sign of all that stress you've shown has been sleeping a lot more, I'm not sure that counts as strength. Maybe stoicism or bottling up your emotions is more accurate."

"So, what do you suggest I do?" Barclay asked, looking up at Sera.

"Talk to a professional?" she replied, leaning back in her seat. "If you meant about the whole… Gate and Key thing, I'm probably not the best person to ask. I worry too much even without all the things we can't possibly know or plan around."

"So, an emotionally stunted fool just asked a bundle of nerves for advice?" Barclay chuckled.

"I mean, I wouldn't have said it like that, but…" Sera laughed before looking towards the night sky from the skylight. "Gosh, it gets dark so early now. Time flies when you're opening up about your past, I guess."

The soft chuckles and laughter slowly grew as the two began laughing at the absurdity of their situation for several minutes before the laughter naturally died down. They smiled at one another, having let out all the stress and frustration that they were keeping inside, feeling more weightless than before.

Though something began pushing them towards one another, closing their faces in on each other, almost like they were going for a kiss of some kind.

However, that fantasy was short-lived as they suddenly heard the loud gulping of Takashi, who had gotten milk and drank it quickly.

"AH! Nothing beats a bath like some cold milk," Takashi declared. "It soothes the soul and helps the bones."

"Need some work on that rhyming big guy," Nick added as he drank some juice.

"I liked it," Atsuko replied with a blush.

"Of course you would," Laura remarked, poking her red cheeks as they laughed in her response.

Sera smiled as she turned to Barclay, who gave a sigh but returned her smile as the two got up to meet them.

Present

That memory allowed Sera to regain her senses, realizing what she had forgotten after that day. She did have faith, even if everyone else would turn their backs on them, she'd stand with them. How could she not? They were just as scared and terrified as the others were, having to face such powerful enemies alone. And if she could help them out, even if it was just being a scapegoat for them, then it would have been worth it.

Looking at her hand, Sera realized she was inches away from grabbing her enemy's hand and gave a small smile. In seconds, the power of her mark surged and released a powerful pulse of energy.

Sun went flying backwards, and the garden rapidly disintegrated around them. It was surreal, watching plants and benches break apart into nothingness but still feeling sunlight on her face.

Wherever they were now, it was black and empty except for the spiraling void in the sky above them. The floor (ground?) shone faintly, reminding Sera of obsidian, and bent slightly under her feet like a bouncy house.

Before the Ra student could wonder about the logistics of any of this, her attention focused on the woman who'd attempted to recruit her. Sun was on one knee, slightly winded from the energy pulse.

"So… This is what you chose," Sun began. "To side with people that will likely hurt you once more? Truly, you are a foolish girl."

"Maybe I am, but if I let one dumbass from my past keep me from moving on and fully enjoying my present, I'm an even bigger fool," she replied.

Sun, evidently deciding now was a good time to slip into more comfortable robes, lifted up her hands as if in prayer. Seconds later, a pillar of white light burst from her hands into the void. It was far brighter than Sera's own burst of power had been, and she barely had to think before closing her eyes and turning away.

Eventually, the light settled down and Sera carefully opened her eyes. Not only had the pillar stripped away what little of the garden remained, Sun's clothes had a completely different look to them.

The white robes were now a black and gold cloak over a tight red dress and matching pair of thigh-high boots. Not only that, the cloak had some sort of gold ribbing towards the bottom that held it together around her legs, giving the impression of a fancy layered dress. She'd also gained a pair of red fingerless gloves that flared out at the elbow, and multiple belts with gold accents. Close-fitting black fabric covered from the end of her gloves up to the neck, and her new mask did the rest.

Said mask depicted a dark red face with a skinny bound beard like the ones on Egyptian death masks. An arrowhead-shaped gold crown with a ruby set into the front covered the rest of her head. Rather than being gold all the way around, the sides and back of her crown were black with gold accents.

"If you truly wish to fight for them, then you'd better be prepared to lose your life," Sun announced as a glow covered her right arm, stretched out slightly, and then solidified into a pitch-black Duel Disk with little white dots scattered across the base. Multiple golden triangles poked out from the base at overlapping angles, shining in a way that made them look legitimately sharp.

Her construct manifested soon after, taking the form of a slightly curved steel blade surrounded by what seemed like armor pieces from the same collection as her crown. The middle of it had a stylized engraving of a solar eclipse "orbited" by small flares.

"I hope you're just being overdramatic, as I fully intend to walk out of here in one piece," Sera retorted, activating her own Disk and patchwork box Construct.

The Disks made cheerful beeping noises as they connected, and despite the obvious lack of Solid Vision generators Sera put her Visor on out of habit anyway. It just felt right.

"Let's Duel!"

And we come to another cliffhanger (laughs evilly) Sorry, we just gotta try to get some suspense in this. Ray here and thank you all for continuing to follow our story, even if as lee said, its slow going. I know things are crazy with the protests and the quarantine, but we hope that this helps everyone to cope with it. It's a crazy storm, but we'll all weather it and make it out on the other side. We'll be back with another chapter, so until then, be safe and be careful.