--Everyone stood outside Mia’s house, armored and ready to go. Anubis had a plan to tap into the power of all their armors to transport them to Mirsiniklos. Zoe was going, too. Uli was arguing with Mia.

--"But, Mia. Why can’t I go? I wanna help."

--"Uli. It’s too dangerous."

--"But I went to the Dynasty to help fight Talpa. That was dangerous."

--"But we had the Jewel to protect us and it just happened really. The Jewel is gone and we can’t stop fighting to worry about you. White Blaze will be with you and the Dark Sisters will be too busy to come around here. Your staying will help us, Uli. Then we can concentrate on the battle."

--"But…I might never see you again." Uli looked heartbroken. He’d seen more death and destruction than a kid should. Ryo came over and knelt beside Uli.

--"I promise I’ll keep an eye on her. We’ll all look out for each other. We made it before and we’ll do it again."

--The other Ronins came up beside him, nodding in agreement. Kento gave Uli the thumbs up. "We’ll take care of these creeps and be back in time for supper. Count on it."

--They all laughed. Sai jabbed him in the side. "Always thinking of your stomach."

--"Hey, man! Fighting takes a lot of energy. I’ll need my strength when we get back."

--Sage said, "For what? Sitting on the sofa watching TV?"

--Mia gave Ryo and the others a ‘thank you’ look. Their lighthearted talk seemed to calm Uli down. He was even smiling now. And it helped boost her own spirits. She wished it had the same effect on the others—Zoe, Anubis, and Trace. Zoe was too worried about her brother to engage in jokes. Anubis was, well, Anubis. Sometimes he seemed mildly amused, but he never really lit up. Maybe he just needed to be around people more, learn how to be social. Mia couldn’t figure out what was wrong with Trace. She didn’t know him all that well and her armor wasn’t giving her any clues on this one. He seemed distracted, sad. She heard Anubis calling her.

--"Mia, you stand here. Now the circle is complete. Is everyone ready?" They were about to teleport when a figure approached them from out of nowhere. Gilgamesh! The Ronins burst into action.

--"Let’s hit him with everything we’ve got. Nothing less will do it for this guy!" Rowen drew his bow and arrow. "ARROW SHOCK WAVE!" Gilgamesh braced himself and managed to block the arrow with his axe and nullify the shock wave with his own sonic shout.

--Sage and Sai blasted him at the same time with "THUNDER BOLT CUT!" and "SUPER WAVE SMASHER!"

--Gilgamesh had prepared himself mentally for the impact, but he couldn’t stand against their power. He was knocked back hard. Ryo called his friends together to join their armors as Inferno and finish him. Gilgamesh had no desire to fight them. He thrust his axes into the ground and waited for their attack. Ryo didn’t seem to notice as he powered up to strike. Mia, Anubis, and Trace cried out at the same time for him to stop. Just then, Trace jumped in front of Gilgamesh to shield him. Ryo stopped his attack barely in time. He’d almost blasted Trace with fire.

--"Are you crazy, Trace! I almost had him!"

--"I know, Ryo! But I couldn’t let you. I couldn’t let you harm …my friend." He turned to Gilgamesh. "Am I crazy? Or were you my friend once? Are you still?"

--"I mean you no harm. I know you will find that hard to believe. I came to help you if I can. I can no longer follow Astarte when everything in me screams that it is wrong." He walked towards Trace, leaving his axes behind. He stopped in front of him. They looked at each other, eye to eye. "It is you, isn’t it? I was not mistaken. Enkidu?"

--"I…I’m not sure. I think so. This is so strange. Did you really leave your kingdom behind, all that power and wealth, to go looking for a way to bring me back to life? You stayed by my side throughout my illness and…death?"

--Gilgamesh fell into Sumerian, the language of his youth. <"Did you think I would not, my friend? It was you who taught me the value of things beyond material goods.">

--Trace understood and responded in kind. <"Thank you for that. Though I think it wasn’t necessary."> They both laughed and embraced like brothers. <"It’s been too long.">

--The Ronins were confused. Rowen spoke up. "Uh…what’s that all about?"

--Anubis said, "The never-ending cycle of the universe repeating itself once again."

--Mia said, "Old friends catching up."

--Kento was still confused. "So do we fight this guy or not?"

--"I don’t think so," Sage said. "Looks like maybe Trace was right last night after all. Lucky for us, ‘cause he’s one tough customer."

--Kento didn’t agree. "He doesn’t look so tough. I was kinda looking forward to taking him on."

--Ryo came up behind Kento and said, "You wouldn’t say that if you’d fought him one on one. But if you really want, I could ask him to come over here and beat you into submission."

--"Uhhh…maybe some other time."

--Giglamesh came forward, his head bowed. "My recent actions have shamed me. If you go to Mirsiniklos, I ask to go with you and fight at your side."

--Rowen wasn’t so sure. "How can we trust you?"

--Trace put a hand on Gilgamesh’s shoulder. "I’m probably biased, but I trust him. With my life."

--Anubis endorsed Gilgamesh as well. "Everyone should have a chance to rectify their mistakes. To be forever tied to one’s past would be the most horrible of fates." He turned to Gilgamesh. "Join us."

--Mia also believed in him. She could sense his sincerity. She also had a feeling that his presence on their side would have an unsettling effect on at least one member of the Dark Sisterhood. "Okay everybody. Back into position. DARK FOG RISE!" A grey fog encircled the group as she sliced the air with her katana. Anubis stood in the center and using the power bestowed upon him by the Ancients, combined the magics of their armors to transport them to Mirsiniklos.