A New World

Zeon looked around him. He was obviously not on the mountain anymore, and he probably wasn't in Aeternitas anymore. He looked around him. He was in the middle of a hallway of what appeared to be a hallway with many doors on both sides of the room. He appeared to be in a apartment. Zeon supposed he should find someone to answer some questions.

"Is anyone home?" He shouted at the top of his lungs.

Ami Suzishima had found this apartment earlier in the week. Her time off pretty much required her to have a place to live for the next few months, since her superiors were intent on giving her at least half a year of paid vacation. She wasn't allowed to work any cases whatsoever. So now, she was stuck here in this city, with nothing to do, not even a frog to dissect.

The apartment had come fully furnished, and she was grateful that it had, because she really didn't want to sleep on the floor, and didn't feel like buying furniture just for a few months of time. Currently, she was taking advantage of the couch in the living room, laying across its length, her feet and head on the armrests, a book in her hand and glasses on her face. Honestly, it did feel good to finally get to relax. She just missed work.

Her thoughts drifted to the man she'd been mountain climbing with earlier in the week. Who was he, really? She'd enjoyed his company on that mountaintop, learning of duel spirits and life in the wild. But then he disappeared...leaving her all alone on that mountain. She silently wondered if she'd dreamed it.

"Is anyone home?"

The voice broke through her thoughts and she lowered the book so she could look at the front door. The landlord had assured her that there were no noisy neighbors. Ami placed her book on the back of the couch, rolling her eyes and then rolled off the couch, landing lightly on all fours. She arched her back in a simple stretch, waking up her body from its rest. She sighed as she stood and moved to her door. What could possibly stir someone to shout so loudly in the middle of a hallway?

She unlocked the latch and opened the door. Her reddish-pink hair played over her shoulders as she poked her head out the door. Out in the hall she spotted a young man who looked a little lost. "Hey...can you keep it down? Some of us are trying to relax." She removed her glasses and gave him a once over. "Can i help you with anything? You don't look like you've ever been here before."

Zeon turned and saw a girl with brown hair who was holding a pair of glasses. He hoped that she would be able to help him. He wanted to know what planet he was currently on, since he was no longer in his own dimension. But he figured if he asked that question she'd think he was crazy.

"You there, what city am I in? I seem to be rather lost."

Yeah, you'd have to be if you're in an apartment and asking what city you're in. Ami's eyes widened a little as he asked his question. But she decided if it would quiet him down, then why not go for it?

"You are in Tokyo, Japan." She opened the door a little further and stepped outside. She was wearing a light pink blouse and a long, gray skirt, but her feet were bare. Her hair was down, and reached to her shoulder blades. It was her normal outfit...a blouse and skirt....mostly because she liked skirts and the long skirt actually hid a bit of her past that she hated talking about. It was a reminder as to why she was working for Law and Justice and for Health. "Is there something i can help you with? Are you trying to get anywhere in particular?"

"I see." Zeon at least knew where he was now, sort of. He supposed this woman could help him, although what she could do would be limited unless if he told her the truth, and that wouldn't end very well. He defiantly did need help though: none of his powers were working properly, mostly because the nexus lines, the source of magical abilities on his world, didn't exist here. He could only defend himself with just the fighting skills he picked up back on Aeternitas.

"Well, I was trying to get somewhere, although now I think it's impossible to get there by any means right now. I don't know what I can do at this point. I suppose I can go somewhere where I can find out my relative location and then get back to where I was going to." He hoped that whoever was in charge of this world was a little less strict then the rulers of his world; in his world, just going to the library meant risking your life if you didn't have the correct papers. He then realized that he had no where to go in the meantime. Should he just go wherever he could go? He didn't have any money, so a decent place was out of the question.

Now Ami was suspicious. That was way too much vagueness to be up to any good. Her instincts kicked in, and suddenly she was cautious. Unfortunately, she didn't have anything on her....a gun, a duel disk, not even her deck. She wasn't wearing the utility belt that carried all her medical equipment....everything was in her apartment. It would look odd for her to just go back in and come out armed suddenly. It would raise his own alarms and if he was up to no good, he'd be gone before she had a chance to find out.

"Ummm....well....that's a lot of somewheres." She lifted her hand to her chin and looked up in thought, her index finger touching her lips. "Hmmm....perhaps if i knew where you were trying to go...." She smiled at him. "I've only been here for a week or so....but i know the place a bit."

"It's a place called Ascensio. It's a very obscure town. I have business I have to attend to there though." This wasn't going to end well. This girl was getting way too suspicious, and even though he didn't mean her any harm, she did have a right to be suspicious of him. He couldn't even make a good lie right now; he had no idea what the places outside of Tokyo were called. He should probably get out of here as soon as possible.

"Is there a library in this city? And do you have a map?"

"A map? Yes, I have one inside. I'll only be a moment." Ami rushed inside, closing the door softly. This was the perfect opportunity to grab what she needed. At the very least, she could escort this guy to where he needed to go. If she felt any reason to detain him, she would.

She grabbed her duel disk, thrusting her trusted deck inside of it. If she got into a tight spot, she wanted to be ready right away. Her duel disk was designed to grab at an opponent to keep them from running. It was how she detained most of her criminal suspects. The duel disk itself was agency issued, but it wouldn't announce her presence as an officer unless she activated its grabbing feature.

As she bustled about grabbing her things, she thought of where he had said he needed to go. She'd never heard of such a town....and she knew quite a few, even outside of Japan. She decided to ask him about it later, if no sign about it came up along the way.

She grabbed her small firearm and knelt down, strapping it to her leg under her skirt. Then she wrapped her toolbelt around her waist, feeling the weight of all her medical supplies along with a couple other items. It felt good to have everything back on her person. She smiled and shook her head. "I really am a workaholic..." She grabbed her map of the city and then grabbed her keys, attaching the disk to her left forearm.

"Alright, I have a map here," Ami said, opening the map as she closed her door and locked it. "There's a library just down the street from here...." she pointed to the map and moved her finger down the line that was the adjacent street. "I'll help navigate wherever you need to go, if that's alright with you."

Zeon noticed the disk on her arm now. It looked like she had used his request as an opportunity to defend herself. Or attack him; he really didn't know, considering that he knew nothing about her. He stuck a hand inside a hidden pocket inside his cloak and made sure his duel disk was still there. After confirming it was, he turned to her again.

"Do you mind if I look at that map while we're walking? And is it a local map, or does it show surrounding cities?"

"Unfortunately, it is only a map of the city. I do not have a map of the rest of Japan." She handed him the map and waited for him to move. Always let them make the first move, that was how she usually took care of her suspects. The first move always showed her what she was up against, even if just a small taste. It at the very least opened the door to allow her to do what she needed as an officer.

"There is an elevator just a couple doors down....we can take it to the lobby and go from there." she pointed to a set of elevators. They were on the 11th floor. She wondered why he would come to the 11th floor in the first place. There had to be some kind of explanation.

"Let's get going then." Zeon had usually liked to walk behind most people he was with, which was something he had not practiced since the days before he could teleport. Being behind someone gave you a lot of advantages. Now that he couldn't teleport anymore, he was tempted to walk behind her. But he didn't want her to suspect him any further. Besides, if he walked ahead, he could prepare himself without her suspecting. His cloak could hide what he was doing as long as he didn't turn around. He headed towards the elevator, putting his duel disk on his left arm, and then hiding it under the cloak.

Ami smiled as he walked past her and then walked just a couple steps behind, letting him lead. He was certainly acting suspicious. His hands were in his cloak (which was odd attire to begin with) and she had the sudden urge to tell him to leave his hands where she could see them. But then she would give away who she was. So instead she just followed quietly.

The adrenaline was beginning to rush through her body. It'd been a while since she felt the thrill of the chase....so to speak. She decided to strike conversation to relieve some tension.

"My name is Ami," she started softly, "You don't seem like you're from this area at all....can I ask where you're from?"

"My name is Zeon. I grew up in a place called Ascensio City. I don't like it as it is right now though." Zeon made it to the elevator, frowning as he looked at the doors. He then looked at the buttons for a few seconds, looking confused. Finally he pressed the down button, and after a few seconds, the door opened. He went inside the elevator and waited for Ami to come in.

He looked like a lost puppy. It was almost as if he'd never seen an elevator before. Ami smiled, almost giggling as she entered the elevator. She pushed the button for the lobby and leaned against a rail inside as the doors closed and the elevator lurched to begin its plummet.

"Zeon, huh?" She brushed a bit of hair behind her ear and waited. "That's an interesting name. I've never heard one like it....well, I have heard of similar sounding names, but never Zeon." She smiled at him. "Not that that's bad or anything."

The elevator dinged and the doors opened, granting them access to the lobby. She stepped out and asked the attendant about the library. He pointed her to the right of the building and she smiled and bowed in thanks, then turned to Zeon.

"The library is just a couple blocks from here, according to the attendant. I'm surprised you didn't see it on the way in. He said you can't miss it." She waved her hand towards the door and waited for him to lead her out of here. Her comfort level had risen and now she was talking to him as if he were an old friend. But really, she was still cautious about him, and wasn't about to let him out of her sight for long.

"I can't believe I missed it earlier either." Zeon was staring fascinated by the street, with all the cars zipping by. He had known that better technology existed in different time periods and across dimensions, but this was the first time he saw something like this. He wandered how his world became the mess that it was today if it was once something like this. *I suppose nothing is infallible* he thought to himself. He hoped that was the case for the Order of Solari; he would not rest until he had crushed that group of religious extremists. He turned to Ami. "I guess I'll get going then." He started off towards the library.

Ami followed him to the library, walking beside him now. "So, forgive me if I am intruding on personal matters, but if you are lost....then what exactly do you need at the library?" She was genuinely curious, and she kinda swayed a little as she asked her question with curiosity.

Something about him seemed different right now. For a moment, she forgot that she was tagging along beside a possible criminal. For now, she felt as if she were just chatting with a friend whom she hadn't seen in forever.

"I need to check out something I need to know. Also there might be more maps around in there. Or maybe an Atlas or something like that. I need to get a general idea on my position. Of course, I'm not taking anything out of the library." Zeon was trying to stay calm. He was on another world with no way of getting back to his own. His abilities didn't seem to be working properly. And he had absolutely no idea how to get back to his dimension. He didn't know if there was anyone powerful enough here to open a portal back. And the war wouldn't stop just because he was gone, and he had no idea how things would turn out. His main reason to go to the library was to look up information on dimensional portals and possible things that could create them. Of course, he wasn't going to tell Ami that. He continued to walk towards the library.

One could call Ami alot of things, but dumb was not one of them. She had made high marks and top of the class in every single one of her classes. She was considered a prodigy by many, though she didn't believe that part. The point being, she was very good at putting two and two together. Something was very off about this man...and she was going to get to the bottom of it.

"You know...the way you talk sometimes, one would think you just kinda dropped out of the sky into the apartments. I really don't understand how one can walk through Tokyo, find their way into a random apartment building, then be so lost as to where he is. You act like you don't even know what planet you're on!" Ami stopped suddenly as she thought about this. The prospect of aliens had always both intrigued and scared her. There was no way this man could be an alien! Was there?

The ran at full speed and skidded to a halt in front of him, whirling around on him and pointing a finger at him, almost touching his nose. "Unless of course, you really don't know what planet you're on! Are you......." she looked around and leaned to whisper to him, ".....an alien?!"

"An Alien?!" Zeon sputtered. "How did you come to that conclu...." Zeon then sighed. *Might as well tell her before things get really out of hand. If she can believe that I'm an alien, then she shouldn't have trouble accepting this.

"No actually, I'm from another dimension. I accidentally got sent here and ended up appearing in that building you lived in. My world is a bit more.... simpler in terms of machines. Unless if it's one of those relics from the past or short distance communicators. Although there is plenty of magic there, which is kind of how I got here in the first place. A lot of powerful people, including myself, were fighting over something, which apparently opened a portal with all the crossfire, and I got sucked in. And the source of most of my abilities, the Nexus Lines, doesn't exist in this world. So now I need to find a way to get back."

Her eyes narrowed as he told his story, revealing his true origins. Of course, any normal police officer might have laughed then taken him in to be psychologically evaluated. But Ami had had her share of experiences with different realms, so she was ready to believe him. Of course, she was still suspicious of him....but she had a feeling that he might actually be telling her the truth.

She lowered her hand slowly and straightened herself, then cocked her head to the left slightly. Her eyes softened and she looked him over once, evaluating everything about him. He looked human, standing at a little less than 6 foot tall, possibly athletic although she couldn't really tell with the clothing he had on. Very healthy. She looked at his eyes, noticing their hazel hue. They seemed to sparkle in the sunlight, but she could tell that he had seen much pain and suffering. No non-human could ever imitate the story that eyes could tell. Without thinking, she stepped forward and brushed a bit of his silver-ish hair from his face, gazing into his eyes.

"Such pain...." Her voice was soft, almost a whisper. She closed her eyes, and as she did, a gentle wind blew, tossing her hair over her shoulder lightly. To her the wind was warm and welcome, bringing a peace over her. "Nephthys...." Her eyes opened and she stepped back from Zeon. "I believe you. And I would like to help if I can." She smiled at him. "Ami Suzishima, at your service."

Zeon stared at her with surprise. He had encountered many strange things in his life. He had encounted quite a few beings with unbelievable power, and some really strange people. He was expecting her to run away or call him crazy, or just not care. He had encountered little empathy towards him throughout his entire life. Yet this woman genually believed him, and had even offered to help him. He felt a wave a gratitude throughout his entire body. *Don't get to attatched to anyone here. You have to get back to your own dimension eventually and finish things off. Besides, if she knew about the things I've done and intend to do, she wouldn't be so forgiving of me.* Zeon looked her over again.

"Thank you, Aki. Now do you think we can find out about other dimensions at the library? Or should we look somewhere else?" Zeon was also wandering what she meant by "Nephthys." Was a god that was worshiped on this world? Or was did she mean something else? He wouldn't ask about it though.

Ami had spent much of her time in the library when she was younger, and especially during her days at the academy. She had learned much through all the books she'd read, learning in subjects ranging from duel monsters to the shadow realm, from medical aspects to law enforcement. The only problem was....every library was different, no two libraries having the exact same set up of books.

"I have not delved into the Tokyo library as of yet." She looked up and noticed that they had been standing in front of the library this entire time. Two large shi-shi dogs looked down at them, one with its mouth open, and one with its mouth closed. "My only answer is that we go in and see what we can find. The worst that can happen is that we don't find anything useful." She turned to smile at Zeon. "Won't hurt to try, right?" She grabbed his hand and pulled him up the steps and inside the cool foyer of the library.

Inside, the building was spectacular. Rows and rows of shelves, and about 5 floors. This was, perhaps, the biggest library she'd ever seen! Excitement began to build in her and she dropped his hand and folded her hands under her chin with the excitement of a school girl. She jumped once and giggled softly. "Sugoi....now this is my kind of place!"

Zeon watched Ami as she jumped and giggled. He was glad that she wasn't grabbing onto his hand anymore. He felt really weird while she was holding his hand; his face felt hot. It wasn't necessarily a bad feeling; it was just something that he wasn't used too. Her behavior was a bit unusual from most of women he met; although he supposed this was a good thing, since despite their personality differences most women were trying to kill him. This woman's cheerfulness was a nice change of pace. But he would have to get used to it. "He started to look around. Zeon was amazed with the amount of people here. He was starting to realized this world was a lot more lenient then his.

"So how do you propose we start looking?" Zeon asked.