July melted into August. Everyone started complaining that school was going to start again soon. Sarkas was neutral about it. He hated the work but they didn't have to train as long during school. Though Mr. Yami was threatening to increase the practices from two hours to three on the weekdays. Katie was looking forward to it more than dreading it. When she was surrounded by people and her friends she felt more like her life had more purpose than to just fight. One night on the second week of August she sat in her room looking over her schedule for the year. They had just gotten back from the school orientation. It was a little weird to be thinking she was going to be a junior this year. Part of the upperclassman group. She looked outside. It was all ready starting to get darker earlier. Suddenly she had an urge to go outside. It wasn't a strong urge. She felt no demon, it was just a feeling that she wanted to be outside and enjoy the nice cool evening air. Without thinking she walked out into the front hall and put on her shoes. She yelled that she was going out and stepped outside. It wasn't that dark out yet but the street lights were on. She walked down the sidewalk slowly and aimlessly. She got to the corner where her and Sarkas always caught the bus for school. This year Briana was going to be able to drive so she was going to give them rides. She stopped and looked around, trying to decided which way to go next. Left was the final winner towards the park and shops. Besides there was a male teenage looking figure down at the other corner under the street light. Katie smiled innocently as she slowly advanced. It was definitely someone around her age...and cute as heck too. Tall and blond. Probably had gorgeous blue eyes too. And he wasn't moving, he just kept standing there looking back and forth. He didn't notice Katie until she was about ten feet away then he jumped over to her. "Excuse me! Can you help me?" he asked. Anything, Katie smiled, "Yeah, sure!" "Do you know where the grocery store is?" the boy asked, "My family just moved here and I remembered seeing one not far from here so they sent me out to get some snacks, but now I'm all turned around!" he confessed. "You just go up this way two blocks then turn right and it's not much farther." Katie pointed down the street a head of them, "It's a lot faster if you cut through the park over there." "Thanks!" he paused and looked around nervously, "Would you mind coming with me? Just so I don't loose my way again?" he asked quickly. Katie smiled. He was shy but seemed nice, "Sure, I've got nothing else to do." Besides it had been a long time since she had been able to flirt with a guy without Sarkas being in the way. She led the way down the street and into the park, "Where did you move in to?" she asked trying to make some small talk. "Uh a house over on Koaldo street somewhere over there." he turned around gesturing back the way they had come, and stumbled over a bump in the ground. Katie giggled as he tried to stop himself from falling and turned back to face forward, "I'm okay!" he assured her when he had gotten his footing right. "Should I just call you clumsy?" Katie joked. "Naw, Dom is fine. But hey whatever works for ya!" he scratched the back of his neck. Katie smiled and shook her head, he really wasn't used to talking to girls, "I'm Katie." she told him, "Dom, is that short for something?" "Yeeaah." he seemed reluctant to say it, "It's short for Damasu." "Dama-wha?" "Exactly, that's why I tell people to call me Dom!" They talked all the way there. He told her that he had moved from the next town over because his parents were sick of driving through the traffic every morning. He had a little sister and a puppy named Chappii. Katie told him how she was in a Kendo program and how hard and strict the teacher was. By the time they got to the store it seemed like Dom's shyness had gone away. They were both talking and having fun now. Katie was thrilled. He was cute and nice and single to boot! When they got to the door he told her he could find his way back. His arm brushed against hers and she got chills. She was reluctant to go but finally gave in and started back. However odd it sounded she was feeling guilty that she was out of the five minute rule range. It took at least fifteen to get to the store by foot. It was darker in the park now. She looked up hoping to see some stars but they were covered by dark clouds. Oh well, still a beautiful night. A red light went off in the back of her head. She knew it. As soon as she stepped out of bounds they would come for her. Her eyes darted around. There, by the tree. There was a black floating blob. She still wasn't that far from home, if she called Sarkas he could be here in less than ten min- Her hand brushed against her pocket to find no bulge. She had left her cell phone at home. She felt her other one. No sunglasses. God her mind must have been dead when she left the house. She rattled off a few swear words in her head. She would have to take them herself. With any luck Mr. Yami was onto it. He would get Sarkas over there. There were two more on her other side. She had forgotten how hard it was to see them with out help. Calm down, she told herself, You can do this you just have to hold out until Sarkas comes. Don't concentrate on seeing them, feel them. she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Right! Her right hand snapped up and her black fire whip shot out. She felt it connect and die down. A small smile appeared on her face. Yeah, she was going to be able to do this just fine. Above! She looked up and saw two shadows falling towards her. Two bullets came out of her hands and hit their mark. At the same time another came from the front. She kicked it back and shot a bow through its center. Four down, how many were left? She could still feel their presence. It was all over. She had killed four on the first round. That's odd. It shouldn't have been that easy. They hadn't been that careless since the first few fights. Something was up. There! Both sides, two whips came out. One got caught the other dropped the ground and scrapped her leg. She cried out and shot a bullet at it. A small trickle of blood seeped down to her ankle. More! Three this time, two from the sides and one from above. They were getting serious now. She shot the one in the air and battled the other two. Another one joined. Soon she was going against four at once! They weren't being as careless anymore. She was getting hit. More than she would ever admit to anyone. Pain pulsed through her from every limb. Sarkas please hurry up. she pleaded silently as another demon joined the fight and a drop of rain fell onto her head. Sarkas looked up from the TV. Something didn't feel right. He clicked it off and went to the window. Thunder could be heard off in the distance. No, something was wrong. Someone was in trouble. The cell phone rang. He ran over and picked it up. “The park!” It was all he had to say. Sarkas dropped the phone without even bothering to turn it off and dashed out the door. He threw on his shoes but didn't bother to waste the air to yell an excuse. He ran out into a drizzle of rain. He shivered and practically flew down the sidewalk. In the park there was a huge circle of demons. They were thick, there must have been dozens! There was a small gap in the middle. Sarkas didn't need to think about who was in there. She needed his help there was no way she could take this many on by herself! With a short cry two swords busted out of his hands and he charged the main herd. As soon as he hit it they started pushing him back. They fought back, pushing him away from the circle. They were trying to keep him away from Katie! No! He had to get to her before they hurt her! With a short burst of energy black clouds came out of his hands like shields but they pushed the demons back enough for Sarkas to hit a few. He jumped at the crowd again and a new batch broke off to try and keep him away. He had hesitated last time. Let her get hurt. He wouldn't do that this time. He had to get through! He made a promise to himself and Mr. Yami. He had to help her. He couldn't let her get hurt again! His arms moved faster than they had ever gone before. Nothing was going to touch him. "KATIE!" he cried out. "SARKAS!" the response came from the middle of the group, desperate and choked. But part of her guard fell to yell the reply and one of them cut through her back, "AAHHHH!" The cry of pain snapped the last cord. Sarkas burst out another explosion to send the demons in the immediate radius flying. They're going to kill her! It was the only thing that he could think of. He charged again and this time he wouldn't let anything keep him from going anywhere but forward. He was completely focused and yet not all there, but it wasn't like the last time where he had been totally disconnected. He knew what he was doing and he willed the power out of him at god like speeds. It was pouring out now. The rain came down like little bullets against Katie's skin, just making her even weaker. She didn't know if there was an inch on her that wasn't cut or bleeding. It was all she could do to keep them from throwing that final blow. Sarkas couldn't even feel the rain. It wasn't stopping him from getting to his partner and therefore it didn't matter, it didn't exist. His arms moved like the devil, going this way and that. He was surrounded now, like Katie but nothing could touch him. And if one did manage a scrape or two they died about ten different deaths in the span of a nanosecond. I can't let her die! He would never make it in time going like this! She still seemed so far away. A blow to the head. Her vision was blurred and suddenly there were twice as many demons. Her mind was numb she was forgetting her teachings. She couldn't feel anymore. She just wanted the pain to end. A stream of blood dropped over her eye. She closed them to clear it and in that moment her heart was cut open, "AAAHHHHH!" "NNOOOO!!" He was not going to let her die! He brought the power to his hands one last time. The two bombs grew and grew, forcing the demons to step back. He was not going to let her leave! He watched as the black fire turned dark gray, then silver, then the core power at his hands burned with a fierce white light. She was not going to die!! His hands came together and light exploded from him, spreading out over ten yards in every direction, killing darkness the moment it touched. It disappeared as quickly as it had come. There was not a demon in sight. Sarkas finally felt the cold rain mix with the sweat and tears on his face but he had hardly waited for the light the clear before he was running over to where Katie was laying motionless on the ground. "Katie!!" he dropped to his knees and saw the cut on her chest. Rational thought was out of the question. Both hands went over the mortal wound. The mouth. That's right that would get to the internal organs. He switched one hand over her mouth and nose and poured the last bit of energy he had into her body. "Wake up." he pleaded as the black mist covered her body, "Come on Kat open your eyes." he sniffed and fought away the tears. He watched as the wound in her chest got smaller and smaller. The other cuts on her stopped bleeding. He had to have made it in time. She was going to live. But more and more got healed and still she didn't move. "No, come on!" Sarkas closed his eyes and shook his head, "I can't do this alone!" Suddenly he heard a pulse. His eyes snapped open. She was breathing. It was heavy but it was breathing. Sarkas smiled and kept pouring in the energy. Finally her eyes fluttered and closed again. Sarkas stopped and pulled his hands away. Katie lifted her hand and wiped the water away from her eyes then opened them. She opened her mouth to speak but all she came up with was a hard cough. Then she tried to sit up and Sarkas quickly moved over to catch and support her back. "Don't move. You're still weak." he told her softly. She just nodded and leaned back into his arms. "You must be even worse." she managed to choke out, "If you got rid of all of them yourself." "I'm tough I can handle it," he smiled. Now that she pointed it out he realized he still had a little bit of energy still stored up. He was surprised, an attack like the last one should have drained him completely. He remembered the bright white light, it seemed like his energy had increased rather than decreased when it appeared. "How come I'm not dead?" Katie whispered. "You're even tougher than I am." Sarkas told her. He didn't know if she knew he had given her his power but he decided not to volunteer the information. "Yeah, stop saving me...That's supposed to be my job." her breathing was still labored but she was going to be okay now. He had to give her credit, attempting a joke in her state, "You can play the hero next time." he smiled and leaned his head against hers, the stress from the battle finally sinking in. They just sat there for a while, getting their breath back and letting the soft rain cool them down. "That light." Katie mumbled after a while. "Hm?" Sarkas had been absorbed in the moment too much to hear. "A long time ago." Katie said slowly, "Before you came, I hated Mr. Yami and the demon program. The only reason I kept going to the gym every day was to relive the stress he was causing me. But one day he told me that soon another warrior would come to help me. And that warrior would have a special power inside of him. A power that could either win the war or destroy the world. And I was supposed to protect this warrior because he was vital to our future." Sarkas let that soak in, "I have the variation Mr. Yami talked about inside of me." he said finally. "We were created from darkness, but you have the power of the light." she closed her eyes and tried to sink even deeper into his arms. Sarkas could see how tired she was. Probably best to go home now before they both caught colds. "Child of darkness, warrior of the light." He liked the sound of that. He smiled and picked Katie up then slowly walked home.

Chapter 29 A week later Katie was completely healed. The dark events from that night were just a bad nightmare, and she vowed never to break the five minute rule again. No matter how hot the guy on the corner was. There was only a week left until school started again and Mr. Yami was pounding on the work complaining that their time was going to be cut short again. He decided that he was going to make them come to the gym right after school ended and go until six thirty so they would at least get three and a half hours in a day. Practices had gotten a lot more interesting since Mr. Yami had confessed about everything. That day the objective of the training was to be the first one to grab a blue diamond at the end of the gym but the old man could change it's shape and appearance so it would take the kids an hour to go the length of six basketball courts. Sarkas loved it more and more everyday. It was like going off to another world. Like a 3D simulation game except it actually looked real. Him and Katie weren't allowed to fight each other any more because they knew each other too well. They could predict moves and copy attacks, it almost became repetitive so Mr. Yami created fake demons for them to train with. The theme of the day was the African jungle. They used this one on a regular basis and it never got old. Sarkas creped quickly and silently through the trees, careful to avoid sticks and leaves under his feet that could alert anything around him. He grinned. For this moment in time he was an ancient warrior out on a quest to capture the magical gem and bring it back to his people to save them from the invading tribes.... Snap. Sarkas winced. This happened a lot. He would let his mind wander and then he would make a careless mistake. This is why Katie won out on him almost every time. He stood still a moment, listening carefully. Nothing stirred. Maybe they hadn't heard it. He started going again, slowly, his mind alert. Suddenly his mind snapped an threw him to the side. He ducked to the left just as a black disk whizzed past his head and smashed into a tree practically cutting it in half. He turned around to face a big demon coming out of the trees. Since they were only fakes they could be seen in the light. Sarkas put out his arm and fired two of his own attacks. The demon jumped away and disappeared through the forest. Sarkas turned again and bolted in the direction he had been going before. No point in being careful now, they were all ready on to him. A black shape dropped from the tree in front of him. A black sword erupted from his hand and connected with a copy from the demon. They clashed once, twice, the demon dropped and twisted around under Sarkas's arm. He turned in time and they met again. They struggled, each trying to push the other one off. Sarkas opened his hand, keeping his wrist against the sword so it wouldn't give under the pressure and shot a quick blast right in the demon's face. It disappeared and Sarkas took off again. He smiled and almost laughed a few times as he ran through the trees and bushes. Dodging and fighting off the demons that jumped out occasionally. He had been gong for a while he knew he was getting close to the end. Suddenly three dropped down at once all around him. He instantly jumped up high, above the forest. Some attacks followed him through the air, but most missed and a quick shield took care of the rest. There! A temple not fifty feet away. He came back down, the leaves brushing his skin as he fell and landed gracefully among the bushes. He ran forward as fast as he could. He could see it through the cracks now, the clearing with the blue diamond in front of the temple. He broke through the trees. It was so close now! That's when a giant demon rose up from the ground. A forty foot creature. It swiped at Sarkas with it's huge hand. He jumped up again, a long sword forming in his hands. He came down right in the middle of the demon's head, cutting right through it. He had only gotten half way down when it split and disappeared. Then he rushed ahead the last few feet and grabbed the gem. Everything disappeared. They were back in the gym. Sarkas found Katie wasn't far behind, she was poised like she had been in battle. "Aw man!" she complained when she saw Sarkas next to the wall. He laughed evilly and jumped around. He didn't beat her often and loved to soak it up when he did. "Good!" Mr. Yami appeared beside them, "Ms. Walker you are getting lazy again. Grab a sword and do your basics for the next ten minutes." he ordered. "Yes sir." Katie walked off to the side and picked up a wooden sword. "Mr. Carson." Mr. Yami turned to Sarkas, "I need to speak to you a moment." the old man led him down to the other side of the gym near the doors where he put up an invisible shield so Katie couldn't hear them. "Concerning last week when Ms. Walker was attacked." he began in a low voice, "Does she know how you saved her?" "If she does, she hasn't said anything." Sarkas replied and watched as Katie jumped up to the beams on the top of the gym. "Good. It is best she does not find out. The more that she knows the more danger you will be in. Non the less you did the right thing. If you had waited even a minute longer she would have been lost." Mr. Yami gave a small, hardly noticeable nod of gratitude. Sarkas smiled and nodded back, "I just did what I had too." He was going to mention the light that had come out of him when suddenly the front door opened and a head poked inside. "Excuse me?" A timid voice came from a teenage boy. Slightly taller than Sarkas was combed blond hair, "Is this place open to the public?" "No! This is a private gym! Do not set foot on these grounds again!" Mr. Yami snapped with a force that made even Sarkas step back. "Sorry." the boy mumbled and ran off, the door slowly swinging shut behind him. Sarkas wanted to say that was kind of rude but the look on the old man's face told he was not in the mood for any kind of comment. "That was the first time any one's ever come in during practice." Sarkas thought out loud to himself. "Because those doors are not supposed to be visible to the average human." you could practically see the steam coming out of his ears. The shield went down, "WALKER!" The giddy smile that had been on Katie's face disappeared. Seeing Dom again had made her day but that was not a happy tone. She jumped down from the ceiling in front of Mr. Yami and Sarkas, "Yeah?" "Did you see that boy?" Mr. Yami asked. "Yeah." she nodded. "Both of you, remember that face, stay away from it!" he ordered. "Huh? Why?!" that just ruined her momentary perfect day. "I do not trust him. I am serious, if you see him walking, cross the street! Do not get in his way, do not make any contact unless it is forced and you two are together!" "Was he a demon?" Katie asked as much as she didn't want to believe it. Mr. Yami shook his head, "I did not sense anything from him. Even the possessed humans give off a feel of them." "Maybe you forgot to disguise the doors today?" Sarkas suggested. "My mind is not that careless!" Mr. Yami snapped, "He could be a messenger from another higher power." he mumbled to himself, "They do not follow the same rules as humans either. They are rare though...the coincidence of one being in the same town...it is too much.... I do not know!" he waved them off, "You are dismissed for the day!" They were happy to get out of there, "Glad I'm not on his bad side." Sarkas muttered when they were a good ways down the street. "No kidding." Katie agreed.

Chapter 30 The first day of the new school year had arrived. Sarkas woke up with surprising energy for six thirty in the morning. He got dressed and ate some breakfast. At seven twenty he heard a honk outside and rushed out to find Briana sitting in an old car in Katie's drive way. He ran across the street and hopped in the back seat. "Good morning girls!" He said cheerfully. "Morning boy." both responded with lazy greetings from the front as Briana pulled out. She drove down and past their old bus stop where a small group was gathered waiting for bus. "Haha we don't have to stand there anymore!" Katie laughed at the freshman. "I've never seen him before, he's cute!" Briana mumbled as they turned the corner. "Oh My Gawd!" Katie spazed, "It's Dom!" she grinned. Sarkas snapped around and looked back. He knew everything about Katie's life but he had never heard of a guy called Dom. Then he spotted standing a little off the side of the group was the same guy that had walked into practice the week before! "You know him?!" Briana squeaked. "You know him?!" Sarkas followed surprised. "I only met him once." Katie confessed, "But he seemed so nice, let's go pick him up!" she jumped excitedly in her seat. "Yes!" the girls giggled out of control. "What the heck Kat!" Sarkas hissed. Her smile disappeared as she turned around, "What?" "That's the guy Mr. Yami told us to stay away from!" he reminded her. She smacked her forehead, "Oh yeeaaah." "What?" Briana glanced over, "The old guy dictating your friends now as well as your schedules?" "Only him." Sarkas assured her. "He walked into practice last week on accident and Mr. Yami flipped." Katie explained. She made it sound so harmless, "But I met him a while ago and he seemed so sweet and kinda’ shy. I think he was just over reacting because he's not used to having visitors. Seriously we should pick him up!" she grinned. Sarkas threw up his arms and opened his mouth to argue but Briana was faster. "Tomorrow." She agreed, "But we're like two minutes from school and I am not going all the way back there. Besides I wanna find out where all my classes are." Sarkas slouched back. He could argue tomorrow. "Yeah. When do you have English?" Katie asked. "Um, third hour I think?" she replied. "Really? Which teacher do you have?" "I donno....I think it stared with a B?" "Bauman?" "Yeah!" "Yay! You've got it with me and Sarkas!!" Katie smiled. "Really?! Wait, Sarkas I thought you were taking honors this year?" Briana asked. "I was gonna but then I figured I had enough to worry about all ready without adding school work into the equation." Sarkas explained lazily. "Ahh. Fun! I'm excited now, I know some people in class!" the girls continued to chat as they pulled into school and started the day. The three met up again third hour. The first thing they saw was the seating chart hanging up right in the front. It was by alphabetical order like it often was. But that meant Sarkas was stuck in the front while both Katie and Briana were close near the other side of the room. The bell rang and everyone slowly made their way to their seats. Sarkas had just sat down when he suddenly felt an urge to let out a scream. He kept his mouth shut but it was the weirdest sensation. He had been having a pretty good day, he had no real reason to be suddenly upset. Then one last person dodged into the classroom. It was Dom, the man of the hour. It's him! Sarkas's mind instantly accused as the boy casually found his spot on the seating chart and sat down. He wasn't totally human, he knew that for sure. The only thing to figure out was what. And another thing. He looked over to see Katie and Briana with big smile's on their faces. The kid had an effect on women. Whatever energy he was putting off that made Katie attracted to him made Sarkas loath the sight of him. He was glad the first day was only rules because he wouldn't have been able to pay attention if he tried. Sarkas was feeling better the next morning when he ran outside and got in the back of the car with Briana. When Katie tried to get in the front the driver shooed her to the back next to Sarkas. "You got the last guy that moved here this one's mine!" Briana told her laughing, "I talked to him yesterday a little bit and you were right Katie he's so nice!" Sarkas felt like someone had pinched him, "You guys are still planning on picking him up?!" he squeaked. "Chya!" both girls responded as Briana pulled out. "We can't! There's something not right about him-!" Sarkas started. "You're right, he's too cute!" Katie joked and the two girls cracked up. "I'm serious Kat." he grabbed her arm softly to make her look in his eyes, "We all know Mr. Yami has a unique way of judging other people," unique meaning he could see into people's heads, "And he doesn't trust him! He told us to stay away from him, I think we should listen! There has to be some reason other than just walking in on us." Katie looked reluctant to give in but he made a good point. Mr. Yami had told them they should only see him if it was forced and they were together. Well she was forced to see him in English right? She could live with just that time. She brushed off Sarkas's hand off her arm. It came up again and she stopped it. He moved it and she blocked it. Sarkas smiled and tried faster. Katie fought him back playfully. It was their own little version of a cat fight. "Okay fine, Bri lets just go to school." she said smiling and finally grabbed Sarkas's hand with both hers. Briana let out a mock laugh, "Sorry guys, that old guy may have told you to stay away from him but he doesn't have any power on me!" she suddenly slowed down next to the corner with the kids waiting for the bus, "Hey Dom! Want a ride?!" she called out cheerfully. His head looked up and he seemed surprised, "Huh? Uh sure!" he ran around and got into the passenger seat next to Briana. As soon as he got in Sarkas felt that urge to break something again. "Thanks!" the blond boy said meekly as he put his backpack down and the car started down the road again. "No problem!" Briana smiled. "Only now you have to help us with study guide for The Scarlet Letter when we get the book!" Katie bargained and Sarkas knew she had just forgotten everything he had said. "I can try! I can never concentrate on those old books though." Dom said. "Me either!" Briana complained. "I could fill out the entire study guide right now if I wanted to." Sarkas mumbled under his breath. Only Katie heard and she shot him a glance. He kept his mouth shut until they got to school. And he kept his mouth shut in English. And he kept his mouth shut the next day, and the next. But the longer he stayed quite the more he wanted to yell out. He figured out it was official, Katie had completely forgotten Mr. Yami's warning. She talked and flirted along with every other girl in the class with the new kid. Sarkas hoped that maybe he would cling to someone else, but no matter how hard the other girls tried he kept going back to Katie.

Chapter 31 Friday morning Sarkas tried to talk to her again, but Katie refused to listen. "I don't know why you're so worried!" she told him, "Dom wouldn't harm a fly. Mr. Yami was just over reacting, I'll prove it to you!" Dom climbed into the front as usual now, "Morning!" he greeted everyone. Just at the sound of his voice Sarkas had to keep from digging his fingernails into his arm. "Morning!" Katie said back, "Did you hear the new Savers movie is out?" "Yeah! I really want to see that!" Dom said. "How about we all go tomorrow night?" Katie suggested. At the same time her hand shot out and covered Sarkas's mouth. It kept him from making an outburst, though he didn't have to use his mouth to protest. His foot slammed against the floor so hard Briana's head darted around anxiously. "I hope I didn't blow a tire." she muttered. "Uh, sure that sounds good to me!" Dom agreed. "Great! I'll call you with the details later." Katie smiled. "You are so lucky I have as much self control as I do." Sarkas whispered so only Katie's sensitive ears picked it up. As soon as they got to school he dragged her over to the side, "Why did you do that?!" he demanded. "Because that way you'll get to know him better and you'll see he's harmless." Katie told him firmly. "Harmless?! I just look at him and I feel like hitting someone over the head with a desk!" "Oh please. Give him a chance Sarkas! I know what I'm doing, I'm not an idiot!" Sarkas sighed and massaged his temples, "Fine Kat. I'll spend one afternoon with the guy, but if I find even the smallest reason not to trust him you have to stay away from him from now on, agreed?" "Agreed!" Katie smiled and turned to go, "Have a good daaaaay!" she called back. Sarkas sighed again and walked off. He met up with them again Saturday afternoon after practice at the mall. Lindsay was there too. Sarkas could just see her demanding to go when she found out the Dom was going to be there. Made him want to gag. So they saw the movie and everything was fine. As hard as he was trying, Sarkas just could not find any fault in the guy. He was just as everyone had said he was. Nice, kind, a little shy but sweet and funny. He was a great guy and there was nothing Sarkas could use against him. So why did he still feel like stuffing that perfect head into the garbage can? They were walking out of the mall when Lindsay suddenly darted into a clothing store, "Oh oh! I gotta try this one thing on real quick!" she said. Most of the crew followed her. Sarkas stayed behind and walked into the Sam Goody next store to it. He knew how things went. They try on one thing, they try on ten things. He went over to where some of the Play Station games where set up and started playing. He enjoyed killing the monsters more than usual that day. "Wow, you're good." Sarkas looked over to see Briana watching the screen. She picked up the one next to him and started playing her own game. "Thanks." Sarkas went back to playing but when he looked over a few minutes later she had almost as high a score as he did! "You're a freak!" he laughed. He knew the quiet girl was good at sports but she played video games like an expert too! Briana smiled and killed another monster, "I'm a part time gamer." she said proudly, "Mainly RPGs and stuff." "Nice. Why aren't you in the store with the others?" he suddenly realized. She shrugged, "Got too depressed and felt like playing a quick game." "Why would you get depressed?" "I donno, just seeing Katie and Dom together I guess. Just reminds me how much I want a boyfriend but I'm not like her. I can't just say random stuff all the time. It's hard." "Yeah I know. So why are you telling me this?" Sarkas asked. Briana shrugged again, "I told you I have a hard time talking to guys, but there's no pressure with you. You're with Katie." "I'm not with Kat." Sarkas said coldly, "She's going after Dom." Briana set the controller down, "But see that's the thing. You are with her. You always were with her, you always will be. Even when I first met you, whenever I saw you two together I'd get this warm fuzzy feeling, like that was the way things were supposed to be. I still feel that. But when I see her and Dom I feel nothing. They look cute together but there's no connection." "What's your point?" Sarkas asked softly. "My point is I want to help you. She shouldn't be chasing after other guys when she's got one right in front of her. You keep her away from Mr. Perfect and I'll try and get his mind on other girls." "Like you." "Exactly!" Briana grinned, "You are good. So how about it?" "Sounds like a plan to me." Sarkas smiled. "Hey! You guys are worse than me, let's go!" they turned around to see the other three standing in the front of the shop. They rejoined the group and headed back. So by the end of the day Sarkas had no real reason to keep Katie away from Dom but that mean he didn't keep trying. Once in a while Briana would cut in, and then Katie would get mad at both of them, but a lot of the time there was really nothing either of them could do. That's how it went for a few weeks. Things started to get tense at practice too. The two would hardly speak to each other. They would try and out do the other, but it wasn't all fun like it used to be. It was real competition. Mr. Yami noticed the change in the atmosphere and started to keep them away from each other during the lessons.

Chapter 32 Three weeks went by and things just got worse and worse. Sarkas started to loose sleep again. The same insomnia he had had the year before when he had moved there. One year all ready. One year of hard training, one year of fighting, one year of learning, one year of getting to know someone he now knew better than himself. Or thought he knew anyway. He had changed more in that last year than in every year before that put together. And now the one person that had changed with him was being pulled away. Sarkas leaned against his locker staring up at the ceiling, waiting for Katie. They always met there after school then headed over to the gym. He had always loved practice, the rush and power but now it was just stressful. He looked down at the sea of people, all trying to get to the doors. There. Katie was walking slowly towards him, but the devil was right next to her! They were talking about something, but there were some many different noises and conversations going on he couldn't over hear them! They paused at the stairs and Dom headed up while Katie continued walked over to Sarkas. "I thought we agreed you'd only talk to him in the morning and in English when I'm there." was the first thing he said, "Mr. Yami told us-" "I KNOW what Mr. Yami told us." Katie sighed, sick of the daily verbal whipping, "But he wanted to talk to me about something not easily said in closed public areas." He was afraid to ask, "Like what?" Katie paused like debating if she should say it or not, "He asked me to homecoming." Someone hit him over the head, "What'd you say?!" "I said I'd have to think about it." she said casually. "What's there to think about, you should have said no!" Her eyes threw daggers at him, "Don't think you can try and make my decisions for me." she snapped, "I was thinking you could ask Briana then we'd all get a fun night with out breaking any rules." "I'm surprised you even still remember that rule." Sarkas said more to himself. "What's that supposed to mean?!" "It means that ever since he showed up he's all you ever think about! It's like you've completely forgotten me and Mr. Yami and our purpose! Since he walked in every thing has gone down hill! All you talk about is him, all you want to do is be with him-" "As opposed to what, being with you?" she interrupted him again, "Oh my god, you're jealous aren't you?" Sarkas threw his arms up, she was totally missing the point! "It's not about me Kat! It's about him! I would be fine with anyone else is this school, anyone but him! Pick someone! Any guy, ask him out right now I wouldn't care at all, it's him that I don't trust." "You don't trust him because I'm paying more attention to him than to you isn't it?! Well get used to it, you can't control me, you have no power over my mind and my decisions! What I do is my business, so just leave me alone about it!" with that she turned and started walking towards the exit. Sarkas wanted to scream. He turned and punched his locker. It made a huge dent and it hurt. And he was glad it hurt. He didn't bother catching up to her until they were outside and walking across the empty soccer field, "Kat, listen to me for one-" he put his arm on her shoulder but she turned, throwing his hand off and aiming a slap right for his face. His other hand snapped up and stopped hers but she tried a kick, but he caught that too. Fine, if she wanted a fight, he'd give her a fight. So he jumped back and dropped his backpack, she did the same and then the two leapt at each other in a blur of arms and feet. As much as Katie had changed mentally they were still equal physically. Neither got more than one or two hits during the fight, but neither wanted to quit. "Just leave me alone!" Katie yelled spinning and dodging. "I'll leave you alone when you come to your senses!" Sarkas snapped his arms around. "My senses are fine!" "I'm not the one that's forgetting everything I've been taught!" "I haven't forgotten anything!" "He's making you forget!" "Why can't you just give that up?!" "Because I want the old you back!" That's when her whole body stopped. Sarkas swung his leg around, sending her to the ground. He grabbed her arm and set his knee against her throat. She stared at the sky with a blank expression on her face. Sarkas realized that was the first time he had ever beaten her in one on one combat. And it was the one time he couldn't gloat about it. "I still am the old me." Katie said softly, "Aren't I?" Sarkas shook his head, "No, Kat, you aren't." he slowly let go and sat down beside her, "You've changed. Something about Dom has changed you. We can't have fun anymore. And that was our promise, that we were going to have fun together no matter what. You've forgotten that promise. I want the old you back so we can have fun again. That's all I want." Katie sat up and looked into his eyes, "I'm sorry Sarkas. I really like Dom and I'm not going to stop seeing him, but we can still have fun like we used to. If you lighten up, I'll stop obsessing and then everything can go back the way it was." "I'll lighten up if you be more careful." Sarkas bargained. "Deal. Can I just ask you to do this one favor for me?" "What?" "Ask Briana or someone to Homecoming?" "Kat!" "Plleeaaassee. For mmeee?" she leaned against his shoulder and made a pouty face. Sarkas sighed, "I'll think about it." "Thank you!" she gave him a quick hug and stood up, "We should get going. We're all ready late." "Yeah." Sarkas stood and grabbed his backpack then walked after her to the gym. "Of course I'll go to Homecoming with you." "Really? Thank you!" Sarkas put his hands together and bowed his head about ten times. Briana waved it off, "It's the least I can do." they were standing in Sarkas's driveway. He had asked her to come early that Friday morning. "I'm sorry it's such short notice." Sarkas had put it off about it week but it was only two days before the dance. "It's no problem. I can use the dress I wore for my cousin's wedding six months ago." "Thanks again, I didn't know who else I was gonna ask if you didn't say yes." Sarkas told her. Briana smiled, "Yeah right, you just wanted me to go because I can drive." "That too!" Sarkas joked, "Really though, you're the only one that understands this whole thing and I've got a bad feeling about tomorrow night." "You're afraid Dom will ask her to be his girlfriend?" she guessed. "I don't know, I just have this...feeling something bad is going to happen." it was the only way he could describe it. Briana nodded, "Everything will turn out all right in the end." she assured him. "I hope you're right." Sarkas nodded back. "Hey! What gives with the pick up change!" they looked over to see Katie running across the street towards them. They all got in the car and went to school.

Chapter 33 Sarkas stood still. Watching, waiting. He was inside but rain poured down his face. The setting was on top of a large building at night like the time him and Katie had gone downtown. So even though he was still on the gym floor it felt like he was eight hundred feet in the air. Suddenly four dark shadows leapt out at him at once. One shot a dark sphere at his head. A shield came out of one hand and a black sword out of the other. He blocked the attack and swiped right through the first demon that got to him. A quick cut through the middle took care of the next one. Then he jumped up high, the third demon following him into the air. It aimed an attack right at his chest. A close range shot like that had killed him more than once but this time he countered with his own, making it bigger and fuller so it canceled out the bullet and kept going to make a huge hole in the middle of the demon before making it disappear. Then he did a flip as he came falling down and cut right through the middle of the last demon. Sarkas closed his eyes and when he opened them again he was back in the gym, dry and warm. "Very good Mr. Carson." Mr. Yami complimented, "I have not seen you that focused in some good weeks." "I'm more alert than usual right now." Sarkas confessed. He looked around, there was a shimmery wall near the other side meaning Katie was still doing her training. That meant she couldn't see or hear them. Good. Sarkas turned back to Mr. Yami, "Teach me how to bring out the white power." he asked quickly. "You mean the light that saved Ms. Walker's life?" "Yes! I can't get it to come out again, please teach me how to control it!" he begged. "Now why do you want to know how to control it?" the old man asked softly. Sarkas looked back towards the shimmery wall, "Because I want to be sure that I can protect her in anything. I have this feeling something bad is going to happen soon and I want to be prepared for it." Mr. Yami nodded in approval, "Feelings are wise, it is good you are listening. Unfortunately I can not teach you about the light inside of you." "Why not? You can do anything!" "Yes, but the light is guided by your pure emotions." Mr. Yami told him, "Pure emotion is not something that can be taught. But it will always be there to protect you and the ones you care about strongly enough." "What emotion is it?" "Any emotion! If it is pure enough the light will come, be it love, hate, desperation, hope. That is why the light can be used for both good and evil. It is the emotion of the person that controls when it comes and goes. Here, let me show you something." there was a twinkle in the old man's eyes that told Sarkas something good was coming up. They turned and on one of the walls was a big screen. Mr. Yami waved a hand and Sarkas saw himself on the screen, walking fast through the rain down the sidewalk of his old neighborhood. It took him a minute but he finally recognized the scene. "This was the very first night I was attacked." the boy said softly. Mr. Yami nodded, "Watch." Sarkas watched as he passed by a fence. He stopped and looked at the shadow on the fence. Then he looked around. Suddenly the shadow came out at him. Sarkas watched as he did nothing but just stood there in horror as the demon wrapped its hand around his neck. He put his own hand up around his neck. It had been such a life changing event, but it seemed so long ago now. He remembered he blacked out and woke up later on the sidewalk. He was finally going to see who got rid of the demon. He watched as his eyes closed, but then they opened again and they were white as snow. His whole body began to glow and wisps of white streaks came out of his body in every direction. It didn't take long for enough of them to cut through the demon, making it disappear. Then Sarkas collapsed onto the sidewalk. He thought that was the end but the movie didn't stop. He saw Mr. Yami walk over to him and place a hand over his neck. "That's why there were no marks when I woke up." Sarkas concluded. The images went away and the wall came back. "Yes. Your pure desire to live saved your life." Mr. Yami explained, "And I had to get rid of the evidence or else you would have gone hysterical claiming someone had tried to kill you and the marks would have been there to prove it." "Makes sense." Sarkas said softly, "So what now? I just have to wait for it to come out again?" "It will come when it needs to come." Mr. Yami closed the subject.

Chapter 34 Saturday night Briana picked everyone up. Sarkas got to sit in the front that day since technically she was his date. They went to dinner at a buffet and he joked that since she picked him up, she was like the guy and should pay for everything. It didn't work but at least he tried, and at least he was trying to have some fun despite Dom being there and the impending doom that kept nagging his mind. When they got to the dance they found a table and helped themselves to the beverages for a while. They talked and everything was going fine. Then Dom asked Katie to dance and Sarkas was left alone with Briana. "You're holding up pretty good." Briana smiled as Sarkas dropped his head against the table. "Thanks. I'm trying not to smash his head into the floor." Sarkas finished the rest of his pop in one drink. "How about a quick dance? Maybe it'll help you relax." Briana suggested. "I don't dance." it was an automatic response. "Aww come on, it's good for it, it releases stress." she grabbed his arm and pulled him up. He didn't really care, he'd just dumb his skills down enough so it looked like he was decent enough. It only took about one song before the two found themselves next to Katie and Dom again. Katie took one look and Sarkas and shook her head. "What do you call that?" she demanded. "Uh, dancing?" Sarkas stopped. "For everyone else in this room it's dancing, for you its just humiliating!" she smiled and put her hand on Briana's arm, "May I cut in?" Briana held in a laugh, "Of course." she side stepped and Katie moved over. "You owe me a dance remember?" she said as the song ended. "When did I say that?" but he remembered the time perfectly. "Come on, take down the mask, let's show these armatures how to have fun." she winked. "Who are you trying to make jealous?" Sarkas reached out and took her hand as the next song started then pulled her close. "Everyone." Katie spun out and the two started a dance as fast, complicated and beautiful as their fights. Soon they had a crowd gathering around them, clapping and cheering them on. Their steps got faster and tighter and the ending was just as perfect as the beginning. When it was over Sarkas pulled her close again and hugged her, "Man I miss that." he muttered. "Miss what?" Katie asked as she quickly hugged him back. "That feeling when we're totally in-sync with each other." Sarkas said letting go of her, "When we can do anything." Katie smiled, "The feeling of pure fun." she agreed. She had no idea how special those choice of words were to Sarkas. "That was so cool!" Briana came hopping over followed closely by Dom, "Can't dance my butt!" she hit Sarkas on the arm. "Okay so maybe I lied a little bit." Sarkas grinned, "Just a little." "Teach me how to do that one thing with your feet!" she pleaded. "What thing?" "That thing with the twisting and moving of the feet!" Sarkas laughed, "Oh! That thing!" He didn't notice as Dom took Katie's hand and led her off to the side. There was a small balcony on one side. It was occupied by a few couples kissing and cuddling. He led her out there to the edge. "Do you ever think about life?" he asked leaning his back against the railing. "Sometimes." she replied softly. "It's so random and yet it's all so predictable. You go to school, you grow up, you get a job, get married, have kids, and you die. It's like the game of life." put his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes, "Yet no one can predict where that game will lead them." he leaned his head in close to hers. Her eyes closed half way as she could feel his warm breath, "And now the game is over." No. Sarkas was in the middle of teaching Briana the foot thing when the alert system in his head jumped into panic mode. Demon! There was one here, he could feel it, but where?! To the left. He walked away from Briana, leaving her feeling dejected and confused, but he couldn't think about that. There was a balcony, yeah it was somewhere on there. And there was Katie, and Dom. Dom! He knew there was something wrong with the kid since the moment he laid eyes on him! There he was right about to kiss her! Sarkas started running full out, darting around tables and pushing people out of the way. Didn't she sense it?! If he kissed her we would be able to get her power! That would be the end of her! "Katie!!" but it was too late, Dom kissed her. For a moment her eyes grew wide then slowly closed as her body went limp, "NOO!" the black invisible sword came out as Sarkas reached them and cut right through Dom's neck. The boy dropped to the ground as a black mist evaporated from his body. There were gasps from the people around. To them it looked like Sarkas had just smacked him across the head. But as far as he knew those people didn't exist. He grabbed Katie before she reached the ground and in one leap jumped over the railing and down two floors to the ground. Anyone who saw it wouldn't believe it later. Sarkas landed softly on the ground with Katie in his arms and he started running again. He had to get away from there, had to get back to the gym, had to heal her before something happened! Suddenly all the lights in the parking lot went out. Demons jumped out from every corner. Sarkas stopped dead. How many where there? Five? Ten? More than that, they were every where! He couldn't fight them. There was no way he was letting go of Katie. He jumped up high into the air, higher than he had ever jumped before. But they were after him, at least five jumped up after him. In the air there was nothing he could do! He ran into one, tried kicking another. Then they grabbed him at once, wrenching Katie from his arms! He landed outside the parking lot. He had to get her back! He expected a fight but as soon as the other demons landed they all took off, surrounding the one that carried his partner. He ran after them, going as fast as he could, but no matter how fast he went he never seemed to gain any ground. He never lost any either but that wasn't the point! He wasn't even sure how long they ran but it was long enough. Suddenly they were in the park and they all started disappearing! Wait, they were just going through a door! A black vortex in the middle of the park. That was where they stayed and hid! Sarkas increased his pace if that was possible and jumped through the portal one second before it closed. When he got in he had to stop. It was pitch black, he couldn't see or hear anything. He lifted his hand and he could see it in perfect detail. It was like the time Mr. Yami showed them the prophecy. And now he understood he could see himself because of the light inside of him. But that didn't help him find Katie. Sarkas. Help me.... Kat! It was her, he knew it but it hadn't been her voice. It was like her mind. Even so he started running again. For all he knew he could have been running in the same spot or in circles but he just felt like he had to run. Sarkas, hurry! I am I am! If she died now he didn't know he was going to do! A dagger cut his arm. He cried out and swung out with his sword, but here everything blended in. He healed his arm but another attack came at him from the other side. He tried to cut that too. He never knew if it hit or not. He just kept running and throwing out at anything that hit him. I'm coming Kat! his mind screamed, Hold on! Don't quit on me now, don't die! he could feel the demons were every where now but he couldn't see them! He felt like he was being suffocated. Sarkas.... It was fainter now. He threw out a shield to push the demons back. He didn't know if it was his imagination or if he actually saw a few falling down. he ran forward putting up a new shield as soon as the last went down. KATIE!! And then he saw her. It was just a glimpse of her head but it was enough. His next shield came out twice as big as the others and Sarkas was actually able to see the dark gray grow and push every obstacle out of his way. There she was again! He could see her whole body now. Suspended in the air she looked like she was sleeping but black claws moved across her body, tearing and scraping her skin. As they worked her body got darker and darker. She was disappearing! The gray sword came out, swiping and killing anything within a five foot radius. Sarkas pushed forward more and more. He didn't notice his body started to let off its own white glow, but he did notice the demons start to voluntarily walk away from him, blinded by the enemy. Then he knew he had a clear path to his partner. "KATIE!" he ran over unchallenged and took her into his arms. Tears were running down his face and without thinking he pressed his lips against her and poured his energy into her. As he did the glow grew bigger and bigger, forcing the demons to back away and killing those that didn't. Katie's eyes snapped open. She registered that it was Sarkas kissing her, not Dom. With effort she brought her arms around his neck and then the light erupted, spiraling out and filling the never ending cave with a bright glow. It absorbed everything and eventually even the two locked together. “Sarkas?!” Briana ran towards the crowd on the balcony. She pushed her way through the people. In the middle of them all was Dom still laying motionless on the floor, “Oh my god!” she bent down as she heard some other random person yell to get a teacher. She took his hand to check for a pulse. As soon as she touched him he groaned and opened his eyes. “Where am I?” he mumbled. Briana sighed with relief, “You’re at the dance.” she said with a small smile. “What dance?” he looked around at all the people, his expression quickly going to worried then panic, “Where am I?” his gaze fell on Briana again, “Who are you?” She dropped his hand, “Don’t you remember?” He propped himself up with his elbows. People were starting to back away now that they saw everything was okay, “The last thing I remember is I was walking home at night. School had just gotten out and I suddenly blacked out. And now I woke up here.” “School had just gotten out? That means your last memory is from…three, four months ago!” “I’ve been out that long?!” now he really looked worried. Briana nodded slowly, “My name is Briana. You moved to our city in August. Listen, I know where you live now I can take you back so you can figure everything out with your parents.” “Yeah.” he slowly got to his feet, “Four months…wow I’ve got a lot of catching up to do. So how do you know where I live? Are we going out?” Briana led him through the dance floor towards the exit and tried not to smile too much, “Not…really.” she replied softly.   Epilogue The next morning two teenagers walked hand in hand around a large rectangular plot of dirt. It was all the gossip in the neighborhood that some people swore there had been a big gym there the day before, while others told them they were crazy and it had always been that way. In the middle was a single sheet of paper. They picked it up and read. Congratulations, you have won the game! Your lives are now yours, so do as you like. You will not be bothered again and will die in your own time. I wish to thank you. That was the best game I have ever witnessed, and that was the most fun I have ever had! I had forgotten the power humans possessed in themselves. The light that killed the darkness came from somewhere deeper than I was able to touch. Seems I wasted my variable because you both all ready had it in you. Which led me to see that all humans have that power in them if they look hard enough. So now I wish you happiness for the remainder of your time. You will have an easy life, rest assured I will take care of that. But be ready for the day when I may drop in on you again to catch up on old times. Farewell my children. -Yami The two read over it a few times then let go and let the wind carry it away.

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