When All Was Lost...
Chapter Four
4

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Days had passed since Sayer last checked in and spoke with Akarii any further on the matter of what happened...
Akarii hadn't seen much of Akiza either, since the incident.
She still checked in on Akarii a few times as she slept...but otherwise?

She was gone when Akarii woke up, and didn't return to the room until after she was asleep...probably fine tuning more minute details on whatever plan Sayer had in the works for The Fortune Cup...
A tournament Akiza had been invited personally to attend...

A Tournament where Jack Atlas is going to be too...
Akarii thought to herself.
She still thought back on the incident that occured that day...

And the familiarity of Jack in her memories-
Who was he to her?
How did she know him?
And not just him...but the other faces that flashed into her memory that day before she lost connection to the conscious world around her for a while...
Akarii recovered quickly thanks to Seria and the healers...but while she was stable once again- her body remained exhausted.
She slept a lot.
And during that sleep the same scenes played in her memory.
Jack Atlas...
The many other faces that had no names...
And then of course...

The Dragon.

What was that Crimson Dragon?
She wondered to herself.
Some kind of Duel Monster, maybe?

Though something inside her told her it was much more than that...
Once she had decided to rise from her bed once again...she found Akiza sitting in a chair in the back corner of the room...
She seemed to be keeping her distance...
"Good to see you up..." she spoke in a soft voice.
Talking felt awkward now.
She couldn't tell what Akiza was thinking...or how she felt...
That she was having doubts about Sayer, and this place...

The Arcadia Movement...
And that's even if Akiza wanted to talk to Akarii at all anymore...
Perhaps she too was beginning to sense Akarii's doubts.

"If you are feeling better...Sayer wanted me to tell you to go to the track." she said softly.
"The track? The race track?"
"He said he wants you to start your Duel Runner training as soon as you can."
"Duel Runner Training...?"
Akarii nodded to notify that she understood...
Akiza returned the gesture before walking out of their room once again.
This silence between them...

Somehow...

It seemed to be breaking them further apart...
xxx

Once Akarii arrived to the track, the instructor stood ready with some riding gear and a proto type runner.
The color of toner.
It was obvious that this was a make-shift machine they scrounged together-
Probably bought it used at an auto shop...
Though the fact that Akarii seemed to know that just left her with some even more puzzling feelings...
Nothing like the intricate care given by...
Wait...who was it?

"Good to see you, Akarii, I tuned up that prototype Duel Runner I have been holding for you...let's take her for a test run, yeah?"

The image of an ash haired male with eyes like the sea stood before her...
He looked so clear...so real...so solid...
Like she could actually touch him if she just...reached out...But...
She knew it was just another hallucination.

No...he isn't real.
It's my mind...It's tricking me again...

She closed her eyes tightly and quickly shook her head, to erase the entity that stood before her.
The one that she knew wasn't really there...
And as quickly as he had come, once she opened her eyes again...he was gone.

"Next up...Akarii."

The Instructor called her name and she wavered a bit to snap back into her present reality.
Accepting the gear she had been given to wear.
She went to change and when she came back out...
She saw Sayer.
He was in the stands...with Akiza.

So she came to watch me ride...
I wonder if she's worried...

"All right Akarii, mount."
"Yes sir."

As Akarii threw one leg over the bike before her, she familiarized herself with its shape and model.
A natural comfort washing over her
...It was fitting.
Akarii on a Duel Runner...

"Akarii! Hurry! take your Duel Runner and go on ahead! Now! GET A MOVE ON!"

She gasped as another panicked entity flashed before her eyes.
A wild haired ginger whose presence shook her from within.

No...

No...

You're not real either!
Who are you!?

"Akarii."
"Ah..." an outside voice echoed from the side, waving away the nonexistent entity who stood before her.

These hallucinations...

They're getting worse...

\
"No need to be nervous, Akarii." said the instructor, "Just ride to your heart's content."
"...Right..."

A count down began above her and she could feel Akiza's nervous gaze on her from the stands.
As soon as the signal to go was flared, Akarii took off like a bullet straight on the track ahead.

Faster...

Gotta go faster!
With each turn she revved another notch and pushed a little harder-
I need to escape...

Gotta get away!

She needed to escape these memories that haunted her-
NO...
She needed to escape this place...!
But...
It seemed that no matter how fast she went, these...images of familiar people she couldn't recognize- stayed with her.
Chasing her in each turn, pushing her in every motion.
Playing schemas in her head like a flash image movie montage-

Gotta go fast...Gotta go faster...
faster...FASTER!
I don't know who you all are...

But..I know you?

...Somehow...
How?
WHO ARE YOU!?

Going fast...

Itmade her feel...

Alive...
Her heart was beating in hyperdrive, filling her with an excitement and familiarity un matched by anything-
Everything a blur as she rode by-
A rush that was so addicting...
She never wanted to let go of this feeling!
For the first time, she felt free from everything...

A feeling taken from her that she longed to have back...
Where did this feeling come from?

I know...

I felt it before...

But...

Where did it go since then?
It was...stolen...
But...what took it away?
Who...took it away...?

As she passed by... reaching the end of her lap, she felt her head unconsciously move toward the stands...
Sayer stood there...he was watching, and when their eyes met, she felt a chill run down her spine.
Was it...you...?

The time wasn't nearly long enough- as she pulled back to the start after her one lap.
"Excellent time!" the instructor was impressed, "You don't ride like a rookie at all!"
Akarii said nothing but her polite thanks as she returned what was loaned to her.
Sayer and Akiza decided to greet her at the end.

"Excellent riding, Akarii." he grinned, so proud, and yet she felt more and more uneasy around him.
"You looked so natural out there..." said Akiza,"Have you...ridden before?"
Akarii flinched.
This question seemed to catch her by surprise...triggering an instinct deep within her.
"I..." she tried to respond- but Sayer interrupted before she could get a word in-
"That's enough Akiza." he snapped.
It seemed as though he wished to stop her from speaking...to avoid saying something she shouldn't...
"Surely she is tired...we should take her back to head quarters now."
"Yes, right...of course..." she seemed shaken, startled by his instant reaction to her rather normal question, but she pressed no further.
As they walked...the heaviness of Sayer's presence weighed more and more onto her.
He reminded her of...someone...
Who?

Akarii tried to press further on the matter to reach this answer she somehow knew, but yet was stopped from remembering...
However, doing so only brought about shocks of pain to her head.
Yet with each shock...new images would play in her mind.

"Akarii? Are you all right!?"

But she could no longer hear Akiza's voice, as it morphed into someone else's and her vision began to fade...

"Dammit, this is no good...!" she could hear Sayer's panic as he barked orders left and right to the followers around that only seemed to fade into the scenery.

"Go...head...Ak...za...I...tak ...re of it...k.."

His voice came choppy as a heavy ringing in her ears took over and she found myself falling into his grasp.
xxx

"Her consciousness is fading in and out, sir..."
Akarii could hear Seria echoing in the background...but she couldn't open her eyes.
"Well what's going on!?" Sayer's voice snapped," This is not the first time this has happened with her, and it is happening more frequently...!"
"I...I am not sure sir." she could hear Seria say, "But it seems her mind is unstable...the brainwashing is wearing off..."

Brainwashing!?
Is that what this is!?

"Perhaps she is experiencing shock, triggering from the past memories we locked away about her life..."
"Well, fix it, Seria!" Sayer barked, "Strengthen the brainwashing then! Whatever it takes for this subject to better resist these pests from her past...!"

Locked away...

My...

Memories?

"I'm afraid I simply can't do that at this time, sir." said Seria.
"And why not!?"
"Her brainwave is unstable! If we push her any further at this time, we could endanger the subject's life...!"

What!?

Everything came to a halt, and Sayer went quiet after that.

"Hmm...I see..." he sighed," We can't afford to make another victim here..." he huffed.

Another' victim?

What did he mean by that...?

"This one is an important asset...I certainly can't lose this subject!" His growls of frustration echoed all around as he tried to regain his composure, "Preserving the subject's life takes top priority...leave her to rest until she's stabilized...we will conduct more brainwashing later..."
"Understood. sir."

Akarii could no longer hear their voices...
She felt everything around her fade away...
Her consciousness slipping...
Into distant memories...

To Be Continued...