Ah, I missed writing in class instead of working. >.>
Chapter 19 - Part 2 Zero struck first, flicked his wrist, and sent forth the first round of cards with masterful skill. Shadow sprung to the right, but was still grazed on the shoulder. "Pathetic." Shadow growled and raised his hand to cast arrow rush. "It ends here you pest." "That wouldn't be any fun, now would it?" Zero moved in a flash and flung out another round of cards, this time making a direct hit. Shadow was knocked backwards and blinded by the dust kicked up by the explosion. Before Shadow could escape the whirlwind of dirt, card after card struck him from every direction. Shadow's vision began to blur. "What's wrong? I thought I was pathetic." Zero taunted in an eerily cold voice. "I will not lose to you." Shadow snarled and finally cast arrow rush. They flew toward Zero but only stuck him in the arm. "Hah." Zero raised his hand again. "But you've already lost." Zero visciously rushed at Shadow again. Running at full speed, he sprung into the air and released the final barrage of cards. Shadow couldn't even see the attack coming, Zero simply had inhuman speed. The final blow struck him and he fell to the ground. "The winner is Zero..." Ari mummbled and went to inspect Shadow's wounds. "Checkmate." Zero panted, then also fell unconscious into the dirt.
Chapter 20 - Part 1 An hour or so passed, Zero was the first to wake up, then Shadow shortly after. "Ow...my head is killing me..." Shadow grumbled. Zero was being strangely quiet. "Zero, you okay?" Ari called to him. "Huh? Yeah..." he nodded and dusted the dirt off himself. "Are you sure you're okay?" Ari asked again. "Just tired..." Zero yawned. "Oh. I almost forgot, Shadow, get talking." The cold tone returned to Zero's voice. Shadow and Zero stared at each other in a tense silence for a long time. "I already told you. You fell." Shadow finally said. "That tells me nothing. Fell from or off of what?" Zero struggled to keep an even tone. "How do you think you got that scar on your face?" Shadow replied. "I don't know, but I'm assuming that you do." Zero took a slow step forward. "Shadow, you did agree to tell him." Ari interrupted. Shadow sighed heavily. "Fine. I'll just get this over with." he sighed again. "Does the name Katsuma ring any bells for you yet, Zero?" "No, it still doesn't. That's my name, isn't it?" Zero asked. "No. That's not your name. You're not Katsu anymore." Shadow looked over to glare at Zero. "Before coming here, Katsuma was a good friend of mine. He was nothing like you. A cowardly and quiet bookworm, I could even say he was a crybaby. But he was a good person." Shadow turned away and stared out into the forest. "How did someone like that become friends with you?" Zero asked with burning curiousity. "Well, some guys were picking on Katsu one day at school, one thing led to another, and I punched the leader in the face." "Why'd you do that?" Zero inquired further. "Because he wouldn't stand up for himself, well, he couldn't. It made me feel bad for him, he looked like he was gonna cry. It was pretty...pathetic actually." Shadow laughed slightly. "He said something like 'I wish I could be as brave as you.' and we were friends since then." he sighed."But that didn't explain my scar. Did those guys beat me up while they were at it?" Zero tilted his head to the side like a confused dog. "No, they did not beat Katsu up." Shadow turned and glared at Zero yet again. "Well, one day, we heard about Caballa Island. Katsu insisted on going. I never saw him so motivated. He said he wanted to go to become stronger. Of course, I couldn't let him go alone. So we were on the ship on the way here...there was a storm. A bad one." Shadow looked at the ground with a solemn expression. "Me and Katsu were on both sides of the deck, helping people get inside. He was standing too close to the edge...I told him to get away, but right when I did, a giant wave rocked the boat..." he paused and took a deep breath. "Katsuma went over the edge. He must've scraped his face on the side of the ship, which is how you have your scar, Zero. I just remember calling out and never getting reply." Shadow almost whispered the end of his statement. "The crew wouldn't go look for him. I was angry that nothing could be done...A few days later, the ship docked on the island. I went off to be alone on the beach." Shadow looked over at Zero, this time without the glare. "And I think you remember the next part. You showed up suddenly, but you had no idea who I was, or who you used to be."