Arlo breathed a sigh of relief as he found himself back at the train station he had used to arrive in Axen, finally, he would be leaving his place now that the preparations for the tournament were complete. He pulled his luggage into his private cabin and flopped into his seat under the air conditioning.

  The room was a decent size, but after asking for a deluxe cabin he had expected much better. Arlo snorted, it seemed he couldn’t expect much from Axen City even on the most basic levels.

  Around him, the faint sounds of train whistles bellowing faded into the background as the final call to board began, in a few moments his vehicle would begin moving and he wouldn’t have to think about this godforsaken city for a while.

  Taking out his phone, he read some messages from Mateo and the new member they had signed on. Arlo scoffed as if anyone could replace Mars. He quickly discarded the thought, reminding himself that Mars had abandoned them and not the other way around.

  Looking out the window at the passersby, Arlo wondered if he should have sent the picture to E.C. the night he took it instead of sitting on it, Mateo would chew him out if he knew Arlo had a chance to grab Mars but had let it slip by so easily.

  The train rocked to life, chugging as it began pushing towards its destination, Arlo felt the steady rocking under his heels that would smoothen as his journey progressed. As he continued to people-watch, he noticed a familiar figure walking towards one of the trains heading in another direction.

  The white haired man squinted, leaning forward until he was practically pressing his face against the window pane. His mouth slackened, staring as his eyes found Mars and the girl he had spoken to the previous night. They were boarding a train, but to where?

  Before Arlo could asses even more of the situation his train had pulled fully out of the station, now on its way back to Evangels.

  “Shit!” He cursed, squeezing his fist so hard it almost left imprints in his palm. He had missed her again, that was three chances now. If he had only grabbed that shrimp at the cafe last night he would have had a chance to talk to Mars before he left for Evangels.

  A cold sweat broke out on his forehead, so what would he do now? Would he tell Mateo he saw her? Or would he delete the picture from his phone and pretend it never happened?

  Arlo opened up his phone and scrolled past the screenshots of stats and boarding passes until he reached the picture of Mars and Atlas he had taken the night before. His thumb once again hovered on the image of Mars’s sad expression, it was almost as if she was staring at him.

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  They had been friends once, she had his back once.

  But those times were over now weren’t they?

  He tapped the delete button and cleared the picture away before he could have any more second thoughts about sending it to E.C. Arlo exhaled. There was no reason to bring trouble to his doorstep by starting the hunt for Mars back up again. For now, let her live her life and he would call this an unofficial favor from himself to her.

  For now anyway.

  ----------

  “Wow, this is so cool!” Aya said, running into the large train cabin, her uncle had paid for a private cabin able to accommodate up to three people and since it was just Aya and Mars they would reap the benefits of all the space.

  The chairs could convert into a bed but for now, they were arranged in a sitting position with a retractable table built into the walls of the room. The entire space had a dark green color with creamy yellow accents, Aya thought it was cozy but Mars, not so much.

  “Who the hell designed this? Couldn’t they pick better colours?” Mars said placing her backpack on the chair, Aya was already sitting down, practically bouncing with how excited she was to be on the train.

  Fred, after showing them to the cabin for the long ride, had left to board his train to Evangels before he missed it.

  “I’m just excited to be here.” Aya squealed.

  “Believe me, it shows.” Mars retorted with a smirk. She took out a sleek laptop Aya had never seen her use before, along with the Zephyr gear. “It’s going to be a 13 hour scenic route through the forest until we get to Mericross so I suggest you play a bit.”

  “But I packed my head gear up with the movers.” Aya whined, stretching her hand across the table towards Mars’s headset. The dark haired girl playfully smacked her hand away.

  “No, didn’t you get something from that guy earlier?” Mars said recalling the large man and the girl whom Aya had referred to as Renard and Nisha.

  Aya’s head perked up immediately, checking her duffle bag she pulled the gift into her lap only now realizing its weight. She shook it gently, trying to guess its contents.

  On the box was a letter from Renard, Aya read it carefully.

  [I got some old stock I wanted to get rid of and I thought you of all people would appreciate it.

  P.S.: Nisha may or may not have had something to do with it. ;)]

  Aya giggled and began ripping apart the wrapping to reveal the box of a new headgear. She gasped, lifting the box to show Mars who was busy setting up her Zephyr.

  “Mars look! Look!”

  Mars turned her head to look toward Aya who was presenting the box like she was a child, she sighed fondly and wondered how in the world she had become such close friends with a pipsqueak. She wouldn’t have had it any other way.

  Renard had given Aya a new headgear and as they read through the packing Aya found it was an upgraded version of her Revista.

  “Revista-i, as in Mark I?” Aya read out loud under Mars’s gaze. The dark haired girl nodded in approval.

  “Nice! They improved some of the features in this model, you should be able to taste and smell better in the game when you play now.” Mars said. She slid into the space beside Aya. “You brought your laptop right, I’ll show you how to set it up.”

  “Thanks, Mars.”

  Mars placed her hand in Aya’s hair and stroked it fondly.

  “No problem, I’m just happy you got some better equipment. I hope you didn’t forget our bet.” The girl singsonged. Aya blanched at the thought of having to fight Mars and was once again keenly aware of the difference in their skill level.

  “Oh, I totally didn’t forget.” Aya said nervously. Mars laughed again.

  “Silly girl.”