*Somewhere in the forests of duelist kingdom*

The sound of breaking glass filled the arena, as three large, goblin-like creatures shattered into millions of pieces, then quickly faded to nothing. The entire stadium erupted into never-ending cheers from the fans. The sound of thunderous chanting, rung out for miles. One name touched the lips of every person in the stadium as they cheered for their new hero. Yu-sei! Yu-sei! Yu-sei! The crowd was on their feet, cheering for their hero; the duelist that just took down the riding duel champion, signaling an end to a two year win streak, the rule of a corrupt champion, and the birth of their new King.

Chapter 1: King

With cupped hands, Yusei splashed warm water over his face. He paused for a moment, watching the tiny droplets of water, drip into the sink, and slowly creep their way into the drain. 9… 10… 11… He counted them as they fell.12… 13… Each drop flooded him with memories of the past; Memories he had tried to suppress for more than two years. The room around him faded, as his memory took him back to the night the real Yusei Fudo died.

He was standing in Neo-Domino City Square. The sky was blanketed with thick black clouds. Heavy rain fell from the sky like a never ending waterfall. Monsoon winds blew relentlessly. Any cars that had been parked on the road were now crumpled against trees, or protruding from nearby houses. Fires raged in every building, flaring ever larger as if the falling rain was gasoline. Not a single structure in the city had been left standing. Amidst all the rubble, the raging fires, the pouring rain, and the unrelenting wind, Yusei Fudo stood alone in the center of what was once the busiest street in Neo - Domino City; his ripped and blood-soaked clothing clinging tightly to his frame.

The sky above let out a mighty crack of thunder silencing all other sound. Another crack of thunder, and Yusei dropped to his knees as searing pain flooded his entire body. He pressed his hand over the gaping hole in his chest, in a futile attempt to stop the blood from flowing out. The loose gravel on the road nearby shifted a little, alerting Yusei to the presence of another person. As he turned to see what had caused the gravel to shift, he found himself staring down the barrel of revolver.

"Yusei Fudo", the voice was deep and hollow, "You and your friends have made quite a name for yourselves. "The Great Six!" Isn't that what the people here had called you? What a joke! Look at all the good their faith has brought them. I toyed with you all from the very beginning, giving all those pathetic people hope, just so I could enjoy the horrified expressions on their faces as one-by-one, I killed each of your friends and took away the people they cared about most. Now, at long last I can eliminate you and finally fulfill the wishes of my master. Though"… There was a long pause before the voice spoke again. "I'll admit, you and your friends certainly kept things interesting for me. It really is a shame that this has to end now".

The barrel of the gun lowered a little. No doubt by now, the figure had sensed that Yusei was in no condition to put up much of a struggle. "To be fair"… Another pause, "I should tell you how your friends died, each life taken by my own hands of course. They all fought gallantly to their deaths. Your friend Crow sang a beautiful song of pain as he told me how sure he was that one of his friends would bring an end to all this chaos. That is... Until a bullet to the head silenced him".

The hollow voice had grown cold and malicious. Yusei could hear the excitement bubbling into the man's words. "I had fun with Jack. He claimed that he would never fall to the likes of me. But a bullet in each leg brought the former king to his knees. His screams were delightful, but eventually I grew tired of him and decided that the wolves nearby deserved a nice meal.

Then there was Leo and Luna. Those puny brats were no fun at all. Engulfed by flames, they didn't make a sound. They just held hands as their flesh burned from their bodies. I imagine it must have been quite painful, so kudos to them for depriving me so well.

And finally, there was the unforgettable Akiza Izayoi. Her unique abilities proved quite a challenge for me. While perusing her, she managed to wipe out my entire guard of personal duel soldiers. She even gave me a few small scars to remember her by. Though… Her latter actions proved her to be unworthy of her amazing power. She fought hard but when it came down to it, she turned tail and ran from me like a coward"!

Yusei felt saliva hit his face as the voice spat the last few words. "I made sure such weakness would never reveal itself in my master's world. As she ran from me I sunk three rounds into her back. Watching her luscious body collapse gave me immeasurable ple-"

Yusei heaved himself in the direction of the voice before the sentence was finished. He felt his head slam into a solid wall of muscle which he assumed belonged to the voice. The two of them dropped to the gravel road; Yusei on top.

"NOOOO!" Yusei screamed as he threw punch after punch upon his faceless victim. His
vision was blurred by a mixture of his victim's blood and his own, preventing him from seeing where his punches were landing. Again and again he screamed at the man beneath him as he bombarded his target with punches refusing to acknowledge the futility of his attacks. The damage had been done… His friends were all dead, murdered by the unknown figure whose blood now seeped between Yusei's fingers.

"Why?"

Yusei screamed at the figure, "What's so great, that it justifies the deaths of so many innocent people?" His punches continued. Yusei was now sitting on top of the voice's chest, and was throwing punch after punch directly at the source of the voice. "I won't let you leave here alive! I'll bring you down, and then your master!

"That's enough!"

The voice was deep and hollow again. Yusei was tossed from his perch atop the figure, and sent flying into a nearby tree. He crumpled in a heap on the muddy ground. The heavy rain pounded his face as he lay unmoving, at the very bottom of a mountain of soulless corpses.

"This will be such a suiting end for you Yusei. Taking your life, as you lay in front of the corpses of those who looked to you for protection. I find it funny how… When you promised these people that you would protect them with your life, they gave their lives to keep you in hiding. Think about this as you reach the afterlife… You and your friends are directly responsible for the deaths of these people. You killed them." There was another crack of thunder and Yusei's vision faded to black.

Yusei reached for a towel and dabbed his face. It had been a long time since he had remembered that night's events so vividly. He slowly raised his head, recovering from the impact of his memories. A wave of anger, regret, and sorrow flooded through him. "Dammit!" Yusei shouted as he slammed his fists into the counter. Yusei's entire body was burning with hatred and anger. Blood dripped from his hand as his nails sunk deeper into his palm. "One day!" Yusei whispered, "One day I'll kill you!"

There was a loud knock at the door, snapping Yusei from his enraged state. He whirled around and snatched his duel disk from the shelf next to him. Collecting himself a little, Yusei called for the person on the other side of the door to come in. The door opened slightly, just enough for a little boy to poke his head through and peer around the room.

The boy had shaggy pale blue hair that looked almost white under the dim lighting of Yusei's dressing room. His face was soft, not yet tarnished by the effects of time and labour. More than anything else, it was the boy's eyes that caught Yusei's attention. His eyes were a shade of green that made Yusei think of lush green grass on a hot summer's day. A scene which Yusei had longed to see for over two years.

Yusei found himself standing in a soccer field. His left arm poised in front of his chest bore a shiny, silver and blue duel-disk. His other hand was ready to draw the next card from his deck. "It was a great duel Crow, but now I end this", Yusei's voice called out, with an excitement that had since disappeared. The young man opposite him had a head of bright orange hair, pushed up by a dark blue bandana. He wore tattered blue jeans and a yellow-orange T-shirt, partially covered by a soft brown denim vest.

"My turn… draw" Yusei shouted, as he pulled a card from the deck contained within his
duel disk. He placed the card in the spell card slot, and their surroundings became engulfed in a bright light. The light slowly faded, revealing both Yusei and Crow, flat on their backs, laughing hysterically.

The boy finished scanning the room and directed his attention at Yusei. "You can come in you know" Yusei encouraged, from a space between counters which formed the kitchen. Quietly the boy entered the room, careful not to make any noise as he closed the door behind himself. He stood just inside the door without a word, unmoving until Yusei gestured him towards a nearby chair. The boy shuffled shyly to the chair, and hoisted himself onto it which was too high for him to just sit down on to.

"What's your name?" Yusei asked as he opened a carton of juice which he had pulled from his refrigerator. "We'll have to share if you're thirsty. It's my last carton and there really isn't a lot left".

The boy stayed quiet and expressionless as Yusei poured two glasses of juice.

"Are you here alone?" Yusei asked, hoping for some kind of answer."

With a cup of juice in either hand, Yusei joined the boy in the sitting room.

"Can I help you with something?" Yusei asked, hoping the boy would respond to a more precise question.

The boy opened his mouth as if to speak, but no words came out. Instead, he rummaged through the pockets sewn into the rags that served as his clothing. From the depths of his clothes, he pulled a single, tattered scrap of paper. He held tightly to the scrap of paper as if it contained something more precious than life itself. His eyes turned dark as he placed it on the table between himself and Yusei.

The air in the room was heavy and hot. Seconds seemed like hours. Each breath Yusei took seemed to shake the entire room. A branch from a tree outside snapped and Yusei leapt from his seat and bolted to the dirt-stained window, tossing aside every piece of furniture in his path. With the palm of his hand, he cleared a small space on the window to see through.

He gazed through the smeared dirt. He located the broken branch, too large for any of the remaining wildlife to have broken. Something bigger was out there... He scoured as much of the area as the night sky would allow, for any sign of something large enough to break that branch. There was nothing...

Yusei abandoned his search, and turned back towards the sitting room. The boy was gone. Yusei scoured his entire living quarters in search for the boy. Questions danced through Yusei's mind, teasing him with false answers, impossible assumptions, and outrageous theories. Each thought that worked its way into Yusei's head, sent him to ever darkening places. Did the boy simply happen to have to leave at that moment? Was he kidnapped while Yusei was distracted? Where could he have gone? What could anybody want with such a young child?

Yusei felt the familiar feelings of fear and guilt swelling inside him. His stomach became a knot, as he recalled the final times he had seen his friends smiling, and the guilt he felt for surviving, while everyone he cared about was murdered. His heart stung as it was speared by the reality that he was helpless to save anyone he cared about. Then, as if a finger had flicked on a light switch, all Yusei's dark emotion turned to a burning desire to become stronger.

"I will become stronger! No more hiding and winning pointless battles. I'll obtain the power to save everyone! No matter what it takes. My friends are gone, that can't be changed, but the world can be revived!"

Out of the corner of his eye, something caught Yusei's attention. His eyes became fixed on the torn paper that lay neatly folded on his table. He stared at it for a moment, too scared of what horrible thing might happen if he were to open it.

"It's a simple piece of paper... What harm could it be?"

He reached for the paper, carefully plucked it from its perch, and opened it up. His eyes grew wide as he gazed at the paper. It was a message. As if every moment of this night had been planned, the words he read seemed to be the only thing Yusei still needed. The note was short and simple. But the message it contained was inconceivably powerful. He read it aloud to himself again and again.

~ There IS still hope. You ARE the king! ~

For the first time in years, Yusei had a soundless sleep. He was going to change things. Starting with the tiny village he has currently hiding in, he was going to bring an end to the rule of the emperor. Just like he had done with the village champion. He would revive the world and create a utopia in its wake. Tomorrow he would take down all the gangs in the village, and eliminate the emperor`s guards that ran the town. The king Yusei had defeated earlier was the head of the guard for this town, so taking down the rest would be a walk in the park. It was time for a change.