Fourth Sister

April, a blonde-haired, green-eyed teenage girl, jogged down Main Street beneath the blazing afternoon sun. She wore a blue sports bra and black athletic shorts, her steady footsteps echoing against the quiet storefronts.

Just before she reached the corner of Main Street and First Street, the strange symbols etched across her belly began to glow with a faint blue light.

April slowed instinctively, pressing a hand against the markings.

"Not now..." she muttered

She turned onto First Street and immediately noticed a sheriff's patrol car parked along the curb. Its engine idled quietly, and the driver appeared to be watching the intersection.

With every step she took toward the vehicle, the symbols on her stomach grew brighter and warmer.

April's pace slowed to a cautious walk.

As she drew alongside the driver's window, she glanced inside.

The person behind the wheel wore a sheriff's deputy uniform complete with badge and duty belt. At first glance everything looked official.

Then she saw the mask.

It was a strange, multi-colored mask that concealed the driver's entire face.

April's eyes narrowed.

"That's not a deputy," she said quietly. "That's Troy... one of the Big Seven."

Behind the mask, Troy smiled.

He had taken the appearance of a law enforcement officer because he enjoyed the sense of authority the uniform projected. People hesitated around a badge, and that hesitation often gave him an advantage. The only part of the disguise he disliked was the enchanted mask he was required to wear, its shifting colors making him stand out more than he preferred.

Still, none of that mattered at the moment.

He had been waiting patiently for a worthy duelist to cross his path.

The glowing symbols on April's body confirmed what he had hoped.

She was a duelist.

If Troy defeated her in a Shadow Game, he would gain the power to become her clone, adding another identity to his growing collection.

He opened the patrol car door and stepped onto the pavement.

"So," Troy said calmly, "the markings led you straight to me."

April shifted into a defensive stance.

"No," she replied. "They warned me you were here."

Troy tilted his head slightly, a confident grin spreading beneath his multicolored mask.

"I think I would look very beautiful as you," he said, trying to intimidate April. "Let's play a Shadow Game. I am ready to look beautiful."

He closed his eyes and spread his hands as if welcoming the duel.

April took a slow breath and closed her eyes as well.

The strange symbols on her belly flared with brilliant blue light, their glow spreading across her skin like flowing streams of energy. A warm breeze circled around her as the magical power answered Troy's challenge.

In a flash of light, a deck of Duel Magic cards materialized in her right hand.

The air around them suddenly grew unnaturally still.

Dark clouds gathered overhead despite the clear summer sky moments before. The pavement beneath their feet shimmered as a circle of glowing runes spread across the intersection, enclosing both duelists inside a magical arena. The sounds of passing traffic faded until only silence remained.

"The Shadow Game has begun," Troy declared.

"When I win, your appearance will become mine."

April met his gaze without backing away.

"You keep talking like the duel is already over."

She shuffled her deck with practiced movements.

"I don't intend to lose."

The glowing runes intensified, and magical energy swirled around both duelists as they prepared to draw their opening hands. The outcome of the Shadow Game—and Troy's plan to take on April's appearance—would depend entirely on the duel ahead.

"Draw!" Troy and April said in unison.

Both duelists drew their opening hands.

Troy attacked aggressively from the very beginning, summoning powerful creatures one after another. Dark energy surged with every move, and each attack shook the glowing arena.

"You'll make an excellent new identity," Troy said confidently. "Once this duel is over, I'll look exactly like you."

April remained calm.

"My appearance isn't yours to take."

She carefully built her strategy instead of rushing into battle. While Troy focused on overwhelming force, April assembled combinations that strengthened each other with every turn.

The duel swung back and forth.

Troy destroyed several of April's monsters, leaving her Life Points dangerously low.

"Give up," he said. "The Shadow Game has already chosen its winner."

April looked at the cards in her hand.

No," she replied. "It's given me one more chance."

She drew her next card.

A smile crossed her face.

"This is exactly what I needed."

With a series of carefully timed plays, April activated a chain of magical effects that revived one of her strongest monsters, enhanced its power, and cleared Troy's field.

Troy's confidence vanished.

"Impossible..."

"My turn isn't over," April said.

Her empowered monster charged across the battlefield in a brilliant flash of blue light.

"Direct attack!"

The impact echoed through the Shadow Arena.

Troy's Life Points dropped to zero.

Troy stood motionless on the sidewalk as the last remnants of the Shadow Game dissolved. The dark clouds overhead melted away, revealing a clear blue sky once more.

For a brief moment, everything was silent.

Then the pavement beneath Troy shimmered.

A circle of shadow spread outward, forming a swirling portal beneath his feet. Wisps of dark energy coiled around him as the magic of the Shadow Game carried out its final judgment.

"No..." Troy whispered.

The shadows engulfed him, and in an instant he vanished into the portal. It closed behind him, leaving no trace of his presence except the items he had been wearing.

Resting on the sidewalk were a sheriff's uniform, a duty belt, a badge, and the strange multicolored mask.

As April cautiously approached, faint, unfamiliar symbols drifted upward from the discarded uniform like glowing embers.

"The disguise was enchanted," she murmured.

She knelt beside the uniform and carefully examined its pockets.

Inside, she discovered several smooth stones, each engraved with dark, twisted symbols.

April turned one of the smooth stones over in her hand, studying the symbols carved into its surface. As she did, the mysterious markings on her belly glowed brighter, illuminating the engraved runes with a soft blue light.

She watched as the symbols seemed to respond to one another.

"These stones were once evil-possessed counterfeit Duel Magic cards," April said quietly. "Someone transformed them into stone to seal away the darkness inside."

She examined another stone, tracing the ancient characters with her fingertip.

“The symbols represent part of an ancient chant that would restore them to their original form."

Years of studying magic alongside her sister had taught April to recognize the structure of old enchantments. She compared the symbols on each stone, mentally piecing together the fragments of the spell.

Then she smiled.

"I see it now."

She held the stones side by side.

"The chant is incomplete."

Because each stone was too small to contain the entire inscription, only fragments of the ancient words had been preserved. The missing passages meant the restoration spell could never be spoken in full.

"Without the complete chant," April said with relief, "the seal can't be broken. The evil magic will remain imprisoned.”

Just then, a handful of glowing symbols drifted into the air from the abandoned sheriff's uniform. They floated silently like tiny lanterns, circling above her before gliding down the street.

April watched them with curiosity.

"They're trying to lead me somewhere."

The symbols paused a short distance away, almost as if waiting for her.

The symbols wound through quiet streets before turning toward the edge of town. Their blue light pulsed steadily, guiding her onward into an unfamiliar part of the city.

"What are you trying to show me?" she wondered aloud.

The glowing symbols continued forward without answering, disappearing one by one around the next corner as April hurried after them.

April followed the trail of glowing symbols through the quiet streets until she reached an old wooden fence at the edge of town. Vines climbed its weathered boards, and it looked as though no one had passed through the area in years.

She stopped.

In the center of the fence, where there should have been nothing but aged wood, a swirling portal shimmered into existence.

Its surface rippled like liquid glass, filled with shades of deep blue and violet.

The floating symbols drifted toward it without hesitation.

One by one, they disappeared into the portal.

The portal deposited April outside a lavish five-star hotel. The strange glowing symbols floated effortlessly through the hotel's glass entrance doors. April stood frozen for a moment, realizing that her sports bra and shorts were far too casual for such an elegant place.

She closed her eyes. A pink T-shirt materialized in her hand. Pulling it over her head, she took a deep breath and stepped inside.

The symbols on her stomach glowed brighter, while the mysterious symbols she had been following were already halfway down the hallway, silently waiting for her.

"How am I going to get past the front desk?" April wondered.

Then inspiration struck.

"I'll use my shadow powers."

Closing her eyes once more, April's body was surrounded by dark energy until she transformed into a living black silhouette. Cloaked in shadow, she quietly slipped through the luxurious hotel.

In one of the hotel's elegant banquet rooms, Bridget, Asia, and Alexis sat around a beautifully set table. The Shadow Game Deck Master had invited the three sisters to dinner, and while they waited, they laughed and chatted together.

Suddenly, Asia fell silent.

A strange presence.

Bridget and Alexis stopped talking as well, sensing the same unsettling feeling.

Asia stood and closed her eyes. A handheld phaser appeared in her hand. She adjusted its power setting to maximum.

"Stay here. I'll be right back," she said.

After closing the banquet room door behind her, she walked down the hallway.

The symbols on Asia's stomach glowed brighter with every step.

At the same time, the symbols on April's stomach shone with equal intensity as the distance between them closed.

The mysterious magic connecting the two sisters disrupted April's shadow cloak.

Her silhouette dissolved, revealing her normal form.

"Great... now hotel security is going to see me," she thought.

Quickly, she dropped to her knees and hid behind a large decorative plant as footsteps approached.

"Asia," April whispered when she recognized who was coming.

Hearing only her name and seeing movement behind the plant, Asia instantly raised her phaser. Her thumb rested on the firing button.

"Who's there?" she demanded.

"It's me... April," April replied as she slowly stood.

"April!"

Asia's eyes widened with joy. She slipped the phaser into her pocket and rushed forward, wrapping her sister in a warm hug.

After their emotional reunion, Asia and April walked back to the banquet room together.

April opened the door.

Inside, Bridget, Alexis, and the Shadow Game Deck Master were seated at the table.

As soon as the four sisters were together again, the strange symbols beneath each of their shirts began glowing brightly.

The Shadow Game Deck Master's expression turned to horror as he noticed the brilliant light shining through their clothing.

Bridget and Alexis immediately stood.

Without saying a word, the four sisters rushed together into a tight group hug.

An overwhelming feeling of destiny filled the room.

Somewhere beyond this reunion, they all sensed that the remaining three sisters were waiting.

Soon, the seven sisters would finally be united, and whatever destiny had been preparing for them was about to begin.