Pain was not strong enough of a word to discover being killed over and over again. Agony could not even begin to describe it.

"Again!" Ash panted, eyes red and glazed.

She'd lost count of the times she'd been sucked into that world consisting of nothing. She couldn't recall how often a blade pierced her chest before she could so much as get a word out. Each time she returned she was sent right back.

"You have no business here," Callous' shadow spoke.

"I won't stop coming back," Ash replied.

The blade embedded in her stomach was ruthlessly torn free and her consciousness was dragged back to the training room.

Ash gritted her teeth. A metallic taste filled her mouth. "Again!" Her strength was depleted. It was sheer willpower keeping her going at this point.

A hand landed on her shoulder.

"Let's leave it at that today," Keegan spoke.

"I can keep going." Ash panted.

Keegan cocked his head. "Having your consciousness destroyed anymore could lead to permanent damage. Get some rest." The hand patted her. "The next round of matches will begin soon. Preserve your strength. We'll try again after. In the meantime, try to not go overboard with how much power you use."

Still trying to catch her breath, Ash stayed seat while waiting for her vision to clear. Her mind was hazy from the pain and the memory was still fresh. After a moment, she struggled to her feet.

The hand on her shoulder left and Keegan took a step away.

Ash tottered before finding her balance. All color was gone from her face and the fatigue was easy to read. A dull throb warned of the impending headache and her body yearned for nothing more than rest. She pressed a palm to her forehead.

You can't go easy on me? She asked the being who silently observed until then.

Callous shifted. It's not like I can see what's going on in there...

Ash squinted.

I believe you're digging around in my subconsciousness, he continued. It's not exactly pleasant for me either.

Keegan motioned to the door.

Stumbling toward it, Ash continued to converse. How about you do us both a favor and just do it the easy way? Give me the answers. Who are you?

The presence in her mind retreated.

Ash hadn't expected an answer anyway. She reached to open the door.

"You improved."

Her hand paused.

Keegan shifted behind her. "You may not have felt it, but it took a little longer every time. You're making progress."

Ash nodded.

"Good job."

She turned her head. "Are you complimenting me?"

"Will you accept it?"

Ash grunted. She left Keegan behind, stumbling to her room. Exhaustion weighed her down and the moment she reached her room she fell into the bunk. At the moment, she could care about nothing but sleep.

Knock.

Ash tired.

Knock.

The banging on her door brought her back to reality.

Fighting her pounding head, the girl slowly sat up.

Knock.

As there was no window, she had no idea at first glance how long she had been out for. She moved her left arm that had gone numb from sleeping on it.

Knock.

Have you gone deaf? Callous probed.

Ash got to her feet. She felt a little better exhaustion-wise, but she would still much rather sleep some more.

Reaching the door, Ash had it slide open.

A man in a white uniform greeted her.

"You have a visitor," he spoke.

Oh? Callous perked in interest. A fan?

Ash blinked. We can't have visitors yet.

"Come with me," the man spoke.

Ash stayed frozen in shock. Did he come? She wasn't ready for this yet. It was too early. She wasn't mentally prepared. If it really was him, what would she say? Did he recognize her? Would he give her answers?

Her heart pounded.

"This way."

She found the man scowling at her from down the hallway where he'd turned after realizing she wasn't following.

Ash followed. Halfway down the hall, she realized she was still in her battle gear. It had been soaked with sweat from her battle with Callous shadow. She didn't want to think about what she looked or smelled like at the moment.

Running a hand through her tangled hair she tried at least to make some part of her a bit more presentable.

Oh? Callous was quite amused by her attempt.

Shut it. Ash couldn't explain her own actions either.

The arbitrator brought her down several corridors, seamlessly avoiding any crowded areas. It took Ash only a short moment to realize he was most likely not exactly acting according to the rules by allowing a visitor to see her.

Paid off? She pondered.

Callous stayed silent, content with watching the unfolding events.

They passed through enough different areas for Ash to lose all sense of where they were.

With a final cautious look around, the man cracked a door and motioned for Ash to hurry over.

"Ten minutes," he spoke into whoever was waiting before impatiently motioning for Ash once more.

Her heart was beating and all traces of fatigue left her as Ash walked through the door.

A hooded figure stood, back to her.

Click. The door closed.

Ash didn't speak, eyes on the person. Though she couldn't see the face one thing became clear right away. It wasn't him. The figure was too small. Disappointment filled her.

The figure turned, clutching hands before her.

"Zaria?" the name spilling from trembling lips.

Ash didn't move. A thousand thoughts ran through her mind like a stampede of Pegasus. Did this person confuse her with someone? Did she know her? Zaria; Was that her real name?

Pale hands moved to remove the hood covering the face. As it fell, Ash's eyes narrowed.

Dara. She recognized the commentator, the one who sat next to Christopher. One of the winners of Dragon Bane.

"Y-you..." Dara stuttered. A moment later she rushed forward and grabbed Ash's shoulders. "Don't you recognize me?" her eyes searched Ash's, looking for any trace of recognition.

Ah, the fun begins. Friend or foe? Callous relished the situation.

"Dara," Ash spoke the name. She felt not a flicker of emotion to hint at how she could know this person, and yet she had come while Christopher had not. What was the meaning? "Why are you here?" Ash continued. She neither denied nor admitted knowing this person, playing the card of caution.

Dara's eyes continued to search her face. A moment later, tears filled her eyes and she abruptly pulled Ash into a hug.

"I thought you were gone." She sobbed.

Ash stood stiffly. It took her a moment before reaching out to pat the back of the crying girl comfortingly.

Dara finally pulled back, grey eyes wet from tears. "Where have you been?" She asked. "Why didn't you come find me?"

Ash didn't reply right away as she took in the girl before her. She seemed to genuinely care. Her tears, her concerned questions, it all was very realistic...and yet she stayed vigilant. One kept asking the other questions, the other avoided giving answers, almost like a dance between two people trying to dig information.

"Why isn't Christopher here?" Ash gave a question of her own.

The other girl stiffened. She opened her mouth only to close it and shake her head. "Zaria, he and I..." she trailed off, refusing to meet Ash's eyes. "We really thought you were dead."

Ash didn't reply, but the reaction gave her an inkling of how things could have been in the past.

Those grey eyes flew back to her. "Just what happened? You let us think you'd died only to suddenly re-appear, here of all places." She hit a fist half-heartedly against Ash's shoulder. "We promised we'd all compete together!"

"And yet you went ahead without me."

Dara's eyes filled with tears again. Guilt flickered through them as she bit her lip. "We thought it was the only way to keep your memory alive."

Ash eyed the emotional girl before her. It was a little hard to place the delicate girl as a winner of the most difficult competition of all. Even if Christopher had somehow carried her across the finish line, she would need to have some strength to pass rounds where he wasn't present.

"Don't hate us," Dara whispered. She wrapped her arms around herself. "If we had known..."

Ash waved it off. "The past is the past."

Dara lifted her eyes, disbelief flittering through them followed by something along the lines of relief. A moment later worry took over. She grabbed Ash's hand and squeezed.

"You have to be careful, it's still early. Don't let anyone know yet..."

"Know what?" Ash asked bluntly. "Which of the many things can't I let them know?"

Looks like someone is a natural at bluffing her way through, Callous played the ever-present commentator.

Dara lowered her head, lashes covering her eyes. "That we're sisters," she whispered.

Ash did a double-take of the girl before her. Sisters?

Half, Callous corrected as he filled her on the words Dara was speaking along the lines of "even if we only share half of the same blood, who knows who will target you if they know family already won before," which Ash zoned out for a moment and the other girl continued to babble.

"Dara, what happened that day?" Ash cut her off abruptly.

Dara froze. She blinked. "What day?"

"The day you thought I died."

The girl before her didn't move. "Y-you don't remember?" she asked. Lines appeared on her forehead as she pondered.

Ash neither confirmed nor denied the question.

"Zaria..." Dara looked at a loss of words.

A blurry image flashed through Ash's mind. As she sank into those cold depths towards her death several figures stood looking down.

"Were you there?" Ash asked.

The other girl's mouth opened, distress in her eyes. "I-I..."

The door opened. "Time's up."

Dara's eyes flickered to the arbitrator who cut into their conversation. Ash didn't turn, watching the girl before her all the time.

"I'll come again," Dara promised as she flipped her hood back up. "I'll try to bring Christopher but he..." she paused, placing a hand on Ash's shoulder as she moved beside her, "it's hitting him hard that you're alive. He thought he'd lost you...we both did." She tilted her head back, revealing a weak smile. "Keep yourself safe. I'll be rooting for you." She hurried to the door.

Ash didn't turn, trying to put together the jumbled pieces in her mind.

"Zaria," the name was repeated twice before Ash realized she was the one being called. She turned to find Dara had stopped by the door. "Why did you come to Dragon Bane?" Her distance combined with the hood made it impossible for Ash to read her face.

A smile touched Ash's lips. "We said we'd all compete together, didn't we?" she spoke smoothly. "The two of you already won. It's my turn to catch up."

"Hurry," the arbitrator shifted impatiently.

"Bye," Dara whispered before hurrying from the room.

The man went with her.

You get full marks for acting, Callous remarked.

Ash didn't reply, still in thought. She never planned to dig into her past. Other than the smile she couldn't forget, she didn't think she wanted to know too much about the old her. It wasn't like it would change anything. Callous had offered to help her when they made a contract, but she hadn't wanted it. This made a new question rise in her mind: Why not? What was the reason she didn't want to take the offer when dying? Someone had obviously taken her life. So why would she feel no malice?

Curiosity flickered through her eyes. On top of that, it seemed that she had a sister...one who seemed very docile and sweet, who seemed to have been genuinely torn up by her death.

Her eyes narrowed. "She's hiding something."

Ah, you noticed?

Ash hummed in reply to the voice in her mind.

My my, you aren't as stupid as I thought. Callous praised. And here I was wondering if you'd be touched beyond suspicion by the sister you never knew you had.

"As far as I know, she's a stranger."

So, what then? You tear off her mask to see what's beneath?

Ash ran a hand through her hair as she considered it. "Let's see what happens." With that, she went back to her room. The plan was to get more rest, but instead, after a quick shower, she found herself pulling up old footage of the previous Dragon Bane's.

She searched until she found the matches Christopher and Dara were in. Clip after clip flashed before her eyes. Throughout every match, it became more and more apparent that Christopher was a force to be reckoned with. Dara, on the other hand, seemed almost too weak to be in the running. However, she always passed by what looked like a stroke of luck.

And then, in the final matches, all tables turned.

Ash hit pause. She gazed at the picture of the familiar figure. Dara stood in flattering red tight clothes; all innocence gone. She gripped a blood-covered spear in one hand. Those shaky grey eyes stared firmly at the camera, a chilling cold in them. A sneer twisted the pretty fear and not a trace of hesitation could be found. The spear itself was in the process of being pulled from the body of another contestant. Something that looked a lot like mist rose from the ground around her.

Ash compared the image of the girl before her to the timid one she had just met.

"Tell me, can a person change that much through the competition?"

Yes...but if I'm honest, this looks like a face without a mask.

Ash gazed at the vicious sneer for a moment longer. Her suspicions that the girl was hiding something only strengthened. "What a little actress." She turned the screen off.

She switched the screen off abruptly and lay back.

"What do you think they wished for when they won?" she shot the random question to Callous. The winner's wish was never revealed. Sudden wealth and power were giveaways for those who went that route, or those who decided to brag and overshare, but there were some contestants who took the secret of their wish with them to the grave.

Beats me, Callous mused. But if you ask me, if they really did care that much about you, don't you think they would have tried to bring you back to life?

Ash didn't reply as those tear-filled eyes flashed in her memory.

I heard Dragon Bane is powerful enough to bring someone back from the dead ... Callous continued.

"Is that why we're competing?" Ash asked.

All that should matter to you is that we win, came the smooth response.

Ash tucked her arms behind her head, staring at the ceiling while in thought. "I wonder what they'll throw at us for the next round," she murmured.

We'll find out soon enough. Callous yawned.

Ash lifted her hand up, curling and uncurling her fingers. She lowered it with a sigh. "We probably will," she agreed.

And it was only a day later that the first round drew to a close. As the new round began, the contestants braced themselves for the unknown ahead.