Turned out to be longer than I first expected. Enjoy!
"Let's go! Along with you guys!"
A flash of light and they were back in the underwater ruins. Rio was lying on the ground, finally awake, tears dripping down her face. Experiencing such things was new to her, and she couldn't help but be shocked. Durbe's look showed he had finally understood what had happened to them in their past lives, that they were indeed humans at first.
Shark fell on his knees, trembling. He had lived three lives already. Three lives of war, hatred, and sorrow. Nobody should have to suffer such a fate. But the world is cruel and this can't change. Not ever.
"Let's go, Nasch, Merag." said Durbe. "To our home."
"Not yet." came the answer from Shark. "There are a few last things we need to do in this world. Take us back to the hospital."
Durbe appeared thoughtful. The time was short on them. Yuma would be returning from the Astral World with Astral in a matter of minutes and Vector was messing with just about everything. The war was approaching its climax and there was no time to lose. But he couldn't deny his comrades and friends a proper farewell to this life which everyone, including themselves, thought was more than an illusion.
"Okay, but you must be quick." he said. "There's not much time left."
"Alright."
He opened the Overlay Network and they were sucked into it. The next moment they were at the hospital. Looking at the clock, they saw it took them only a couple of minutes to watch Nasch's memories. No longer than it takes to have a dream. It was no dream however. It was a war that began millennia ago and continues to this day.
The doctors and nurses were confused to see Rio awake and well all of a sudden. She was quickly discharged from the hospital and they all rode to the Kamishiro siblings' apartment on Shark's motorcycle. Durbe hopped off and held out a hand for Rio.
"Thank you, my knight." she said with a smile. Durbe frowned. The words pierced his heart. Memories came flooding his mind, memories that looked foreign and familiar at the same time. Ryoga said nothing. He couldn't say anything anyway.
"I… I'll wait outside." said the grey-haired boy. He leant against the wall and closed his eyes, trying to sort everything in his mind.
The two WATER Duelists entered the apartment. It wasn't particularly large, but wasn't a hole either. They called this house 'home' for one year now. After Rio's accident and Ryoga's disqualification, the latter decided to abandon the orphanage and live on the streets. Shortly after leaving Rikuo and Kaio's gang, he rented this apartment. Their family was rich anyway and the tournament rewards were high, so they could live on their own. Besides, all the hardships they'd been through made them think as adults from this young age. It was sad it had to come to this.
They went to the big chest in Rio's room and took out their keys. The chest would open when and only when both keys were inserted and turned at the same time.
"Are you ready?" said an almost crying Rio. Her voice was broken. She couldn't take all this.
Shark wanted to say 'Yes', because he had made a vow. A vow he had to and wanted to keep. But he wasn't ready. He spaced out for a moment and appeared in his mind. Two figures were there, standing in front of him. He concentrated strong enough and called forth a third being, a being from the depths of his soul, depths so deep even Kaito's Photon Hand couldn't reach. The knight of silent honor appeared and joined the god of the sea and the draconic shark.
Abyss was standing on the left side from Ryoga's perspective. He wasn't wearing his helmet, displaying his beard that looked like Shark's hairstyle. Shark Drake was on the right, its head hanging, unable to comprehend how it had come to this. It made sense to it now how the WATER Duelist could perform a Chaos Xyz Change and fill the Sea Serpent's existence with warm Chaos energy.
Honor came and stood between the other two Numbers. He was on foot and wasn't wearing his helmet or holding his spear. His face was that of a young, strong man, a man ready to battle to protect those he loved and crush those he hated.
Then, more entities appeared behind those three. All of Shark's comrades showed themselves. Nasch was the only Barian Emperor to keep his Deck from his past life. Not that Duel Monsters were known to ancient people. Only in Games of Darkness would they be used. The truth is, Duel Monsters created the world, but it wasn't until the last few years of the previous century that Pegasus made them known to humans. Industrial Illusions, Kaiba Corporation and all those companies seemed meaningless now.
Shark saw Black Ray Lancer, the monster that stood alongside him through thick and thin. He saw Aero Shark, his trusted assault unit. He saw Saber and Spear Sharks side-by-side, the two creatures that could penetrate any armor. He saw Silent Angler and Shark Sucker, monsters quick to aid their allies on the battlefield. He saw Big Jaws, one of his first ever companions and his heart broke. And then, he spotted the odd one out.
Crystal walked forward and opened her mouth to speak, but Shark cut her off. "We don't belong together." he told her. "But thank you anyway." She nodded, and disappeared with a sad smile. Slowly, all the aquatic creatures composing his dueling army disappeared and he was left alone with the three Numbers. His spirit partners in his past, present true and present fake lives.
"Thank you. Thank you for standing by my side through all this." he voiced his sincere gratitude.
"I'll never abandon you. No matter what you are called, be it Shark, Ryoga, Nasch or whatever else. You're you, that won't change." said Honor.
"You're the sea, and with the sea I belong." were Abyss's words.
"You and I are one; I will follow you, no matter what." Shark Drake muttered.
"Hey, Ryoga, you're spacing out." came Rio's voice and returned him to reality. "What's wrong?" she asked confused. The tears wouldn't leave her face and that killed him.
"Take this." he said giving her Crystal's card. "It is yours."
She took it and memories from her past life started showing up in her mind. Realization hit her.
"Numbers tell stories, the stories of those who ever held them."
"Yes, and together they'll unlock untold power. No one is worthy to hold it, absolutely no one in the universe. It is too dangerous." was his answer. "I'm ready."
They inserted the keys and turned them. A clicking sound was heard and the chest was unlocked. They reached through the items from their lives before the car accident that took their parents' lives. Rio unearthed a picture of the four of them in a fun park and she broke into more tears.
"Do you remember when we were little, how nobody would say we looked like our parents?"
"We are adopted, Rio. And never knew it until now." She sobbed. Ryoga continued. "But they are related to us nonetheless. The Kamishiros are descendants from my past life. The crest on our mansion's fountain says so. I don't want to believe in fate, but it can't be a mere coincidence that my very great-great-great-grandson came to the orphanage and adopted us. Ah, here they are" he said as he pulled the pendant and necklace from the bottom of the chest.
"I thought they were family heirlooms. It turns out they are not from this world at all." Rio whispered. Shark simply nodded. He took the pendant and placed the shark tooth-shaped locket with his "family's" picture back into the chest. Rio took the necklace without saying anything else.
They mustered enough courage to stand up and walk out to meet Durbe. He opened his eyes. "You ready?" he asked. They nodded. Shark locked everything and put the keys in his pocket. They'd be safe there after he Bariarphosed. Durbe opened a portal and they went to the Barian World, to the currently empty palace of the Seven Emperors.
The two walked up to the throne and stood in front of it. And they decided. Turning around in the blink of an eye, they shouted in unison:
"Bariarphose!"
So what do you think? The "pendant" is the one Shark wears in the manga. It is Shark's Barialapis, but disguised so as to not look exactly like the Barian Emblem. Review please!
EDIT: Just to let you know, this was written before Episode 125 aired, so Shark might appear different from how he was portrayed in that episode.