(GS3) Field: Rijuku Residential Area

[Jello]

"srsly m8? well, we need to meet up soon. got stuff to talk about. juicy gossip, so, later today? wen works 4 u best? -haru"

Haruka clicked his phone away for the time being. It was hard to text with one hand while holding Hana's with the other.

[Nobody]

"Anytime really, theres nothing for me to do/"

[Jello]

"hmmm, later today work for you? I'll text u the details. I hope u liek coffee cuz you're meeting me at work today lel -haru"

[Beryl]

Satoshi had spent most of his day sleeping. Camping with the Cardfight Club had been pretty successful. He saw a bright future for a lot of those teens. Maybe they'd do something with Cray on top of whatever it is they planned to do when they graduated.

Anything was better than being some home-schooled country hick turned articulate advertisement figure. Who just so happened to be "marked" for something coming.

In his head, a strange dream began to form...

---

A completely white space. Devoid of any sort of indication of being a real background of any kind. It was here that Satoshi stood across from someone who looked a lot like him.

Well, if you qualified "a lot like him" with being female. And wearing a hoodie and jeans like some kind of street rat. Otherwise, pretty much the same.

"Who exactly are you?" he asked. This girl felt familiar, even if it was a genderbend of himself for some reason.

The girl ran a hand through her own messy hair, pushing back the hood to do so. She chuckled a bit. "I'll give you a huge hint." She then proceeded to mock a booming voice. "'Lock away your troubles, Kurosaki.'" She started to laugh after repeating that phrase a few more times so he got the point.

"...So you're the presence that's been stuck with me and has me 'marked.'" Satoshi stood his ground like he was going to actually get in a fight with this girl, but she shook her head.

"Don't waste your time. This is all goin' on in your head, just like every time I used a voice modifier to make myself sound ominous and booming." She walked over to him, extending a hand. "They call me Cheru. It's a pleasure to get to interact with you, face to face, Satoshi Kurosaki."

"Cheru?..." Satoshi didn't know anyone named Cheru, but then again, the number of people interfacing with beings of ominous power was slim to none. Sure, there was Haruka with Sera, but Sera seemed a lot more protective than this Cheru did. "So that must mean you're..."

"The force responsible for makin' you go nuts and see that black 'n' red ring an' all that? You could say that, I guess." She patted his shoulder. "I'm also a pretty darn good advice-giver if I do say so myself. Wouldn't you agree?" She gave him a hug as though they were family. "After all, you got to only tellin' those who really give a damn about you as to what's goin' on. And all of 'em responded exactly like you thought they would, didn't you?"

Satoshi stared a bit. Yukino and Haruka...didn't exactly give him overwhelming confidence they were that concerned. Haruka especially didn't seem to care at all. Yukino did, but in a more robotic manner that being Yugure put forth. It was her responsibility as an entity, not as his friend, to have that concern. It was like he wasn't that special except for his blight. All last year, even...

Cheru grinned. She knew what her thrall was thinking about. "It really isn't fair at all, isn't it? But it's okay." She patted his back this time. "That's why I'm here. T'help you out a bit." She backed up and shrugged. "Well, soon, anyway."

Satoshi shook his head, refocusing. "What is it that you're after with all of this? Why me? Why not anyone else?"

The femclone laughed again. "Wait, wait, wait. Lemme try to clear a few things up." She started counting off on her fingers. "First off, I'm here because I'm doin' my faction a duty. I'm waitin' for orders from my head honcho to let loose some crazy, crazy stuff. But he still ain't comin' around for a little while longer." She bumped up another finger. "Secondly, it's 'cause you were an easy target."

"An easy target?"

"Yeah." Cheru put her hands behind her head, as if she were going to suddenly lay back for a moment. "Think about that time you first met Neu Edelweiss at those ruins on Cray. That dragon thing you saw. Of the people there, the ones stressin' over gainin' or losin' clans...you were the one least occupied at the time." She sniffed. "T'was a pretty good time to get into you. You've grown into such a handsome thing."

A sweatdrop formed behind Satoshi's head. "T...thank you?..." He wasn't sure he should be accepting complements from a being inside of him, but it's not like she was wrong, necessarily. He had most certainly grown up more in a year than he had expected. Perhaps that was partially what she was getting at.

"So, anyway...to answer your third point, you might be a little surprised." She snapped her fingers, and a black and red gyroscope figure appeared, floating above her palm and rotating endlessly. "We've been a bit busy, our gang, spreadin' the 'Word of the Ring' or whatever you wanna call it. People have been seein' it and wonderin' what it means. Chosen Sword's runnin' about all frantic tryin' to prepare humanity for it." Her grin reformed, but this time, it was a bit more sinister. "You might say it's all goin' exactly accordin' to plan."

Satoshi's look hardened. "So...humanity is supposed to be prepared?"

"Well, actually, they're gonna be prepared for somethin' a little less subtle than what we got in mind, but yeah. They're supposed to be prepared for somethin'. So that we defy their expectations and catch 'em completely off-guard." She let her toothy grin settle back to a smile. "She's gonna have 'em all ready for some dark forces, but is she really going to have 'em ready to fight their own hearts, as well?"

"Their own...hearts?..."

"Yeah. I dunno if you picked up on it yet, but..." She flung the black ring gyro at him and it collided with his heart. "The goal's to play with y'all's hearts." She winked at him as he cringed at the feeling for a bit. "But I like you, so I'm not exactly about t'just force you into it." Cheru's look then changed to something more menacing. "As long as you behave for now, of course."

Right. Satoshi was just about to ask what was stopping him from telling Yukino about this. And others, for that matter. "So I'm guessing if I went forward with any information..." he mused, still clutching his chest a bit.

"I'd make you go nuts and likely snap a few necks, like you could've done while you were on a rampage in your house before, yes." Cheru was very confident that he wouldn't do anything that risky, and she was right to think so. He couldn't bear the responsibility, especially when he had no control over himself...

"Alright, fine." Satoshi crossed his arms. "Just promise me that when this all happens...you're not going to put me into raw danger."

"Nah, don't worry about it." Cheru gave a dismissing wave. "You're a champion, and you're about to be one of the champions of this movement, too. Sorry I can't exactly let you have a say in what side you're on, of course, but...hey, at least people'll be able to help you out, right?" She winked again as she waved. "I'm gonna go back to plottin'. Don't be a stranger."

---

Satoshi woke up suddenly, feeling a searing pain on his left hand. When he looked over...

He had a mark on his hand. One of two black rings with red outlines, crossed over each other like a gyroscope. So this was the literal "being marked..."

[Golden Sage NovaRaizer]

Darren had to go through the Rijuku Residential Area in order to reach home. He sighed lightly as he said, "I probably could have stayed a bit longer, but..." He was speaking out loud even though no one was there. I guess there's still something that's bothering me. Maybe I'm anxious. It explains why I have so much energy... but what am I suppose to do about a feeling like this? His deck was clutched tightly in his hands as he thought this through.

[NeoBuster]

Neo walked through the residential area through the night. It had been weeks since the camping trip and nothing had really happened since. Neo didnt really know what to do now.

"I wonder whats next for me?" Neo said

[Hope]

A door to PSY Shop also opened to Neo, the air continuing to have a piercing eeriness to it.

"Enter." A voice commanded.

[Golden Sage NovaRaizer]

Darren blinked as he felt a strange chill. He turned and he saw Neo. He blinked slightly and said, "Is that... Neo from the Camping Trip?" He wasn't at an angle to see the door, wondering what Neo was doing there to begin with. "Hey, is that you, Neo?!" he called out. His eyes then went wide as he seemed to disappear. "Am I... seeing things?" After being teleported to the top of a mountain once before, he believed it possible that there was something special to this.

[Skyzlimitz]

Sky layed in his bed staring at his alrm clock, it had been 2 weeks since he lost Stern and he had been depressed ever since Tsubasa's words about losing units rang in his head once again, but Sky didn't understand. Cards don't just disappear it's not possible, then again neither is having said cards prophecy to you. Sky groaned and turned over he would have to go to work tomorrow he was told by the principal if he didn't show up he'd be fired. It was not his janitorial duties that Sky did not want to do it was his duties as a club advisor, Sky wasn't allowed to back out of it since he fought so hard and hassled the old advisor to get the position. Since that day Sky had not even taken his deck out once, but it looked like tomorrow he might not have a choice.

[OverDrive]

The night had technically just begun but for Tsubasa it was just an endless darkness that he would go to check for today, he was told that fireworks were mean't to be fired, in a view that is close to his apartment. A lot of people were there watching with their loved ones, but in his case Neu had not replied to his text, so he assumed she was asleep. That aside he needed a moment to relax from what has been brewing within this place...he would have preferred to spend it with Neu though.

"..I know I should ask her to come here but...she needs her rest.." he thought, taking out the small box from his back-pocket."This would have been the perfect time..."

The fireworks were going to begin soon so Tsubasa stood near his apartment awaiting for the show to start, as he glanced on his right and left and saw several couples and friends standing or sitting in wait for the show.

[Hope]

She got a text earlier about coming here, but she decided to reply to it later, but accidentally ended up ignoring it due to her desire to hava bubble bath. After that, she saw Tsubasa all alone here and decided to join him. In short, she feels like she popped in here uninvited even thought it was the exact opposite. Having just finished her bath, her hair was still kind of wet and a mess, but that was no problem with a little bit of divine intervention.

"Hi there. What's up with all these weirdos here?" She looked around at the couples. "Huh, what is it tonight, mating season. Dang you tryna be bold?"

[OverDrive]

Neu's sudden appearance shocked Tsubasa to say the least but his expression showed otherwise, he was generally happy to see her come so conveniently that he did not question any of it, instead he ran up and hugged her tightly, the box still in hand.

"You're here!" he said, his facial expression showing a genuine smile.

As he let go of her, he immediately noticed the box still being in his hand so he tried to instantly hide it, before she noticed as he began to explain to her the situation.

"..There are going to be some fireworks happening tonight, and yea haha most people here came with their mates and their friends to watch it happen." he said.

At her last remark he took her hand and found himself unwillingly saying,"Haha..I would only be bold with you, if you want me to." with a smile on his face.

[Hope]

"After this then sure." She shrugged.

"Anyways fireworks seem romantic and all I guess so that's cool." She looked up into the sky, knowing all of the events that had transpired on this day and that she would have to return to New York soon and make sure that things were going well there. If not, well, she would just have to fight. The whole situation with the invaders that for her started with the PSY Shop workers have been going from bad to worse. At the time she was able to treat it as a joke, but any further would make it a harm for Vanguard and she just couldn't have that.

[OverDrive]

Tsubasa felt like he was being too forward, but he felt like it was ok at some point, nevertheless he began to notice her dozing off into the sky, in a way she reminded him of himself in that regard. He also would stare at the sky thinking about his problem, especially on the scale of this one.

"..Hey you ok?" he said, tightening his grasp on her hand slightly.

"If there's something on your mind, we can talk about it Neu...i'll be honest I feel like you are worrying about the same thing i'm thinking about right now.." he said, as he began to look at the sky himself.

[Hope]

"I'm fine."

She looked up at the sky, anticipating the fireworks to already come, but whoever was planning to shoot them up was taking their time. "So really, was it just fireworks that you stood here for or?.." Neu scratched her head.