Last of My Kind

But Had to Hide it

        I knew I had to find a way to show everyone the truth about Vector. But considering how naive and overly allegiant Yuma is to his friends, it won't be easy to convince him of a betrayal. And Vector having Yuma keep it a secret from Astral doesn't make it any easier for me. As complex as Vector's plan is, it's surprisingly clever and he has all sorts of ways to cover all of its weak points. No doubt exploiting the truth was going to be a challenge in itself, but I'd have to find a way to do it somehow.

        However, what I did know was that I was completely exhausted. I spent the entire night speaking with the Barian emperors. I really wanted to do something about my gauntlet, because I could not get it off. It was as if that thing was part of my body the moment it materialized on my arm. But when I concentrated on it, the silver turned into a thin-banded bracelet, with the crystal the same size. Not long after I got back to my house, I managed to get myself cleaned up. Once I got into some nightclothes, I thankfully went to bed, falling asleep instantly.

        (Star Dreaming) A creepy-looking man was walking through the halls of a hospital. His name appeared to be Chironex, and his footsteps created small amounts of water. A nurse walked up to him, sternly asking where he was going, and that the area was for staff only. The man said he wasn't going anywhere, and that the nurse was going to sleep for a while. Weird tentacles extended from his long sleeves, jabbing the nurse in the back and knocking her out.

        He continued walking to one of the rooms, his footsteps continuing to form a trail of water. When he found the desired room, he entered it. In the hospital bed was an unconscious Rio, though I don't know how she got that way. His arm raised and the tentacles appeared again with a single thought in his mind: target identified. Yuma, Tori, and Trey suddenly arrived on the other side of the hall. One of the hovering tentacles poked Rio in the neck; a small glint of light appeared where it made contact.

        The machines connected to Rio went haywire, and Yuma demanded to know what he did. The man turned to Yuma and immediately recognized him. Yuma was confused as to how the stranger knew him and wondered whether he was a Barian. Chironex started to glow, saying that after he was done with Rio's brother, Yuma was next. He then turned into a large sea wasp and faded until he disappeared. Trey realized that he was going after Shark, and they needed to warn him. Yuma tried calling Shark, but he wouldn't answer, much to their frustration. The three of them decided to split up and try to warn him. Tori called the SSNHIC; Trey called his brothers. Before they did so, a familiar mind came in and asked Trey what's wrong.

        (Star) I woke up feeling much better than I had when I first got back home. But when I looked out my window, I saw that I had slept for the entire day. The sun was already going down, and hopefully I didn't worry anyone. I got up to get something to eat after such a long night, mainly because I didn't eat anything since yesterday. But I wasn't ready to go back to sleep again; I wanted to find something out about my family.

        After having dinner, I went up into the attic of my house. I found Shadow hunting through some tight spaces, coming out with a rodent in her jaws. At first, I didn't suspect anything, until she turned and looked at me. Then, I noticed that her eyes were now the exact same color as my own. The spirit of Dark Magician came out of my deck.

        That was my handiwork, he explained and gestured to my cat. You're father wanted you to have a companion to come home to. On their orders, I enchanted a cat to have the same features as you. It was in the Shadow Realm while you grew up, so it wouldn't age and it'd be there when the time came.

        I smiled wistfully at the memories of my parents before the incident. They really thought of everything for when I'd come to Heartland City.