A.N: Hi guys! First fanfiction up on this account and I have hopes that it will go somewhere! I won't bore you with too many details now… If you read the summary, you should be okay. Enjoy!

"And you were just going to take off without telling Yusei?" The Black Rose Witch's reign of terror was back again. She stared deep into the eyes of the two men before her, silently daring either of them to protest in any sort of way. If she knew them as well as she thought she did, she wouldn't have to wait long.

Indeed she did as a moment later, Crow burst out in the manner of one no longer able to control oneself. "We had to! If we told Yusei about it, he would definitely try to come along and we don't want that!" The male looked as if he wanted to say something more though he quickly closed his mouth when Aki's cold glare turned directly towards him.

"Are you saying that you don't want Yusei to come along with you?" The woman's voice was low, her tone threatening Crow to say something more in his defense. The Blackwing duelist gulped nervously and next to him, Jack Atlas let out a soft sigh. Trust Crow to mess things up for them like this. The two of them could have easily been gone by now but no. Crow had insisted that they stop directly outside of Yusei's home, insisting that they should stop to tell Aki about their expedition. As Jack was attempting to convince him to abandon the foolish mission, said woman had emerged from the house, disturbed by the commotion outside. And here they were now.

"You know that's not what he meant Aki…" Jack attempted to pacify the woman, pouring all of his strength into not wincing when she turned her murderous gaze on him. Before she could spit out some scalding report, Jack continued. "You and Yusei have both just settled down here so well and it wouldn't be right for us to drag him away from all of this like that…"

He made a fair point. In fact, despite her harsh protests, Aki really didn't want Yusei to leave either. It had taken him long enough-an eternity it had seemed to her- for him to find her, living her own life so far away from the city known as Neo Domino. Even longer for him to convince her to leave all of that and return with him to the city they had done all of their world saving in so long ago, his argument only victorious when he came at her with the proposal of marriage. And so they had returned, settling comfortably into a cozy home that they could call their own. 14 years ago, they had had their first and only child. They had raised her, teaching her all they could of their own experiences and imparting with her the knowledge of their lifetimes. An exhausting process, Aki couldn't count the number of days they had fallen into bed, mentally and physically exhausted but more content than ever. Yet, it really didn't feel like it had been a long time. It seemed just yesterday that she and Yusei had held their darling Akiko between the two of them, cradling her as she babbled and grinned in that way that only babies could. Yet everyday, Aki would awake to find her household inhabited by not a crawling toddler but a beautiful young woman. She had seen her grow up, maturing so quickly, too quickly… Yes, it was much too soon for them to take Yusei away from her. Away from Akiko and their family. It would always be too soon.

Yet, her pride wouldn't allow her to admit that to the two idiots standing before her. To her, they would always be that same teenage boys she worked with so many times to save the city and possibly the world from its unavoidable destruction. "I… I understand," She sighed and turned her head away before quickly looking up again and fixing the two of them with a menacing glare. "But if anything goes wrong and the two of you don't come to us as the first people, you will taste my wrath,"

Despite her barely masked threat, Jack and Crow easily recognized the tender spirit of her reply. They had all but seen the memories move over her features in the guise of expressions and genuinely understood the vulnerability that she was most likely feeling at that moment.

"We will," Jack responded exactly as Crow exclaimed "You got it!"

Aki let out a soft giggle as she watched the boy's actions. How they were hoping to survive this mission together, she had no idea. But she had faith that they would not fail. They would not come back empty-handed. Still…

"Are you sure this whole mission of yours is worth it?" She mused, capturing the attention of the men once more. "I mean, the idea itself sounds unusual… Other dimensions?"

Crow gave a solemn nod, uncharacteristic seriousness captured in his tone. "That's what we found. We do owe Yusei the original mention of it in general, but this is what we found,"

"Is it not enough that you found the existence of these alternate dimensions?" Aki questioned. "Must you go and explore them on your own? You seem to have sufficient scientific evidence to back your theory up. Why don't you hand it over to the scientific committee and let them send out an organized search party?"

Jack shook his head as if the idea had occurred to him as well, only to be quickly shot down. "The fact of the matter is, we are not scientists. Any research done by us has little to no significance in their eyes…"

"That stuck-up lot…" Crow mumbled.

"My husband is part of that stuck-up lot if you don't recall," Aki growled in a warning tone. "And so am I for that matter,"

Jack shot Crow a glare, chastising him for messing up again before quickly continuing.. "What he means is that with no scientific background, we wouldn't exactly be taken seriously… It's better if we do what we can by ourselves for now and worry about everyone else later,"

Despite her obvious dubious nature on the subject, Aki nodded slowly and despite herself, a small smile crept onto her face. Jack had matured so much since those years so long ago. He took things more seriously now and it seemed the tides of time had slowly worn away his arrogance until it was nothing more than a slightly inflated ego. Still annoying though… Crow on the other hand seemed to enjoy himself a little more, probably because of the loose nature of his career option. Either way, they had both changed and it didn't seem to be causing a problem, so she was completely fine with it.

"Say hi to Akiko-chan for me will you?" Crow offered as parting words as both he and Jack turned to take their leave.

"Don't worry, I will," Aki mumbled as she watched the two men mount their D-Wheels, gunning the motors before skidding off down the road and into the night. Little did she know that she wouldn't exactly have too.

Turning, the rose duelist strode back into her house through the front door. "Akiko!" She called. "Did you finish those chores I told you to do?" She got no answer. Yusei was working extra hours at the lab that day so Aki knew that he wouldn't be home for some hours to come. Even so, the house seemed almost unnaturally silent as if its inhabitants had decided to spontaneously desert it all at once for no apparent reason. "Akiko?" Silence.

Slightly concerned now, Aki hurried into the living room, hoping to find her daughter there, a book in hand or headphones in her ears. Sure enough however, there was nothing to be found there, save a note written on a small piece of paper near a table lamp. Plucking it gently up, the woman read it over, her expression growing more and more grave as she went on. By the end, her face was as pale as a ghost. The paper slipped from her fingers as she ran into the dining room where she had left her cellphone and furiously dialed her husband's number.

Biting her lip as the first few rings went by without a response, she was about to hang up when a deep male voice sounded from the device. "Aki?" Is everything alright? Did you need anything?"

"Yusei!" Her voice was thin and reedy with panic and anxiety. "Akiko's gone!"

Akiko wasn't sure exactly where she was supposed to go. Jack-san had mentioned that the materials were at his house, which meant that they were likely going to do it somewhere close by. And by it, she meant dimensional warp. Who did her Mother think she was? If something crazy like this was even being attempted, there was no way that Akiko would be able to stay away.

Revving the engine of her own bike, the girl sped through the night. Usually, the beautiful lights that symbolized the Neo Domino's nightlife would enchant her. She would crave the feeling of the wind rushing against her face and the speed at which the road in front of her seemed to disappear, stretching out far behind her.

But not tonight.

Tonight she was too full of adrenaline to feel anything more than anxiety and excitement. Of course, somewhere in the back of her mind, a small voice that could only be her own nagged her persistently. "What if they don't accept you?" It asked. "What if they don't let you come?"

Nonsense, she told herself. There was no way that they wouldn't let her come! Crow-san and Jack-san would need all of the help that they could get! Right?

Shaking her head as if to clear it of the thoughts that clung to the inside like cobwebs, she scowled and twisted the torque, changing the gear and putting in an extra burst of speed as she rode towards Jack's house. It was a grand affair his living quarters, not capable of being described as anything other than a monstrosity of a mansion. It all but radiated the signs of a careless investor in its castle-like turrets and driveway so long, it rivaled the local highway itself. Personally, Akiko thought he had gone overboard when he had ordered a guard tower to be erected near the front gate. Yes, there was a front gate…

Either way, a cursory glance over the grounds assured Akiko that neither Jack nor Crow were still there. They had probably stopped by as was indicated by the tire marks along the dirt path running near the house. However, they were gone now. That left one more place to look for them. Kicking her D-Wheel back into action, she took a sharp right, making a u-turn back towards the park she had skirted around on her way there. Large, open, and all-but deserted at this time of night, it would likely be the perfect place.

Sure enough as she skidded to a stop, she saw Jack and Crow standing there in the empty parking lot, their bikes parked close by. They were both dressed in the tight attire of a riding duelist, Jack with a long white cloak of sort stretched out behind him. If there was ever evidence needed that he tended to go overboard, this was it… They appeared to be discussing something in hushed tones. The most unusual part however was that they didn't seem to be arguing. Weird…

Nevertheless, Akiko leveled out her own vehicle, sending loose asphalt flying in all directions. Pulling off her helmet, she jogged over, raising her voice in a call. "Crow-san! Jack-san!"

At that moment, the two men turned, astounded expressions visible on their faces. "Akiko-chan?" Crow all but exclaimed as she stopped in front of him, a winning grin on the girl's face. "What are you doing here?"

Looking up at them-she hated having to do that- she beamed again and stated in breathless tones. "I heard you talking to Kaa-san and I want to come!" Indeed it seemed like that was her plan. Jack's eyes went to the helmet in her hand along with the attire in which she was dressed. A fitted black and maroon tunic-like top of sorts accented her curves-obviously inherited from her more than curvaceous mother- and her usually loose long, wavy hair was tamed into a slick high ponytail. Her legs were covered in opaque gray leggings, the ends disappearing under the flair of her top. With a determined set to her gaze, she looked like she meant business…

Before Crow could even say "Huh?", Jack was shaking his head decidedly and reaching out a hand to grab the younger girl's wrist. "I'm sure you do but you can't. Now let's get you home before Aki throws a fit," Keeping a firm grip on her, the man attempted to drag her back towards the girl's D-Wheel.

Akiko however seemed to have other plans, thrashing wildly and kicking her feet like a mad woman in an attempt to pull herself away from him. "No! Let me come with you! I can help!"

Jack simply shook his head and continued to drag her in a less-than gentle manner. Crow however seemed slightly more dubious as if the idea didn't seem that bad to him. "You never know Jack… She could end up being pretty useful…"

Jack froze in his tracks and spun around, his face the picture of incredulity. "Are you serious? You can't really be thinking of putting her in harms way like that! Aki would have our head!"

"Actually," Akiko interjected, sensing that this was the only chance she would get in the evident upcoming argument. "Kaa-san knows that I'm here!"

"Oh really?" Jack countered, sarcasm all but dripping from his voice, could that in any way happen. "And did you verbally tell your Mother that you were going to be here, coming with us on this dangerous mission?"

"Well… No…" The girl shifted her weight nervously between her feet, looking away from the older man's face. "I wrote a letter… But that doesn't mean anything!" Jack shot Crow a knowing look to which the bird duelist flinched and let out a soft sigh.

"But I can help! I'm a good duelist!"

There was no way that Jack could say anything else in response to that one. He had seen Akiko duel on multiple occasions and all that he could say was that she was good… Almost unnaturally so. But then again, what was one to suspect from the child of Yusei and Aki, two of the best duelists of their generation?

"That doesn't matter-" Jack started though he was quickly cut off by the sound of his cellphone's ringtone resounding from the pocket of his dueling jacket. Reaching into the folds of fabric, he pulled out the vibrating device and checked the caller ID. "Well what do you know? Aki…" He glared pointedly at Akiko who instantly became amazingly interested in the design of her shoes before clicking the accept button along with that to put it on speaker.

"Yes Aki?" he greeted, all the while his harsh eyes piercing into the girl before him.

"Oh thank God Jack!" The woman sounded almost breathless and no less than distraught with fear. A pang of guilt coursed through Akiko when she realized that she had been the one to do this to her own Mother. The one who had never been anything other than kind and completely understanding towards her. "It's Akiko! She's-"

"She's right here," Jack cut her off before she could say anything more, not seeming happy about the fact either. "She apparently wanted a piece of the action… Would you like to talk to her?"

"There was a muffled noise on the other end of the line which Jack seemed to interpret as an agreement as he placed the phone in Akiko's hand, signaling for her to start talking.

With a icy glare up at the man, the girl sighed softly before holding the phone closer to her mouth. "Hi Kaa-san…"

"AKIKO WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" Akiko winced as her Mother's terrifyingly furious voice rang from the phone. Moving the device slightly farther away from her ear, she looked up at Crow and Jack. Judging by the pained expressions on their faces, she wasn't the only one who dreaded the wrath of the angry Black Rose.

"I, well-"

"NO EXCUSES! YOU'RE GOING TO APOLOGIZE RIGHT NOW AND THEN YOU'RE GOING TO NEVER LEAVE CROW OR JACK'S LINE OF SIGHT AM I CLEAR?" The younger girl opened her mouth to apologize when the words her Mother had just spoken registered fully to her.

"Never leave line of sight…?" Judging by the expressions on the faces of the two men, neither of them had been expecting this response. In fact, both of them seemed more shocked than Akiko herself. "K-Kaa-san?"

There was the sound of muffled laughter from the other end of the line and Akiko felt her muscles relax slightly. Was her Mother… Understanding? The very idea itself seemed backwards! Izayoi Aki was known to run a tight ship, and this was looser than loose! In fact, most of the crew would be drowning by now!

"Yes my dear… You can go," At this point in time, Akiko was sure that he jaw had dropped, mouth hanging open in the ever-so appealing fish-out-of-water look. When she said nothing for the next few moments, Jack snatched the phone out of her hand, speaking into it himself.

"Aki, you can't be serious!"

"I hope I'm not putting any extra responsibility on you both Jack… But Akiko can look after herself for the most part… And Yusei and I agreed that this is a good chance-"

"YOU TOLD YUSEI?" Both Jack and Crow erupted, their voice in high shrieks.

"Yes… But don't worry, he's not going to try to come… We realized that it's time we give our daughter a little more freedom than we have been. It's her turn to do something exciting with her teenage years-"

At that moment, Jack switched off the speakerphone capabilities and brought it back up to his ear, listening to Aki's words. "Yes… Fine… Okay…. I'll tell her… Bye," He clicked the end button and turned his gaze back to Akiko. "I guess you're in kid… No let me break down the rules for you," By the look in Jack's eye, Akiko was suddenly regretting her decision to come along…

"We'll get there with a card?" The idea seemed to stump the girl as she examined the card that had just been handed to her. "Cosmic Warp huh… How unimaginative can you get?

"It was all we could think of at the moment!" Crow protested in his defense as he fiddled with something inside of her duel disk. Seemingly satisfied, he set it down, attaching it quickly back to her D-Wheel. "Either way, this should make the dimensional travel run a bit more smoothly,"

Dimensional travel… She still couldn't get over the fact that she was about to actually warp herself to a different dimension! It wasn't like she was just leaving the city, but the entire world as she knew it! And if things went wrong, there was no guarantee that she would be able to come back. As fear inducing as the idea was, there was a certain amount of exhilaration that went along with it as well. To add to the emotional mix, there was a degree of confusion associated as well. That over her Mother's rather spontaneous change of heart. There had to be something going on… Something she didn't yet know about.

"Akiko!" The girl was snapped out of her thoughts by Crow's voice, blinking rapidly to clear her blurred gaze. Were those… Tears?

"Y-Yeah…"

"We're leaving now,"

The words brought the stark reality of the situation back to her and she took in a deep breath. Something seemed to be caught in her chest as she turned her head, eyes wandering over her surroundings. Would she never see any of this again? The way the fountain spouted water with a permanent splashing noise as couples wandered nearby, engaging in various displays of P.D.A. The way the branches of the trees rustled, twisting too and fro in the wind. The way her room was painted a "robin-egg" blue and the garage where she worked with her D-Wheel, continuously improving and innovating. The way the lights of the city gleamed at night and the smell of the street food of the East District. The way-

"Alright," The girl turned back to face them with a feeling of finality, a steeled determination filling her eyes where there had only been excitement before. Recognizing this change, the two men looked to each other before pulling out their own dimensional cards in preparation. Together they recited

"Magic Card, Cosmic Warp activate!" There was a blinding light, like something out of a science fiction movie.

And then they were gone.

As soon as Akiko felt her form solidify, she sunk to her feet, retching violently though nothing came out. After the white light, all she could remember was the feeling of being wrenched out of the tunnel she had been plowing through and thrown into a whirlwind of space and time. And now she as here. When the uneasiness passed, the girl struggled to her feet, grabbing onto her bike as she slowly pulled herself up. Swinging her leg over the firm leather seat and settling comfortably into it, she felt slightly more confortable though there were still some things she noticed that she couldn't dismiss. She had looked all around her, but Jack and Crow were nowhere to be seen. Now that she looked more carefully, she saw that she had teleported into some kind of alleyway, filled with filth and surrounded by tall, drab buildings. It was nighttime here too, but unlike her own Neo Domino City, there were no lights to warm up the obscured night.

"Crow-san?" Akiko gave a soft call experimentally. "Jack-san?"

"So you brought more did you?" A deep male voice cut through the surrounding silence, startling the girl and causing her to whip around, eyes narrowed as she searched for the source.

"Who's there?"

"Is that one of Academia's new inventions? The duel disks weren't enough?"

Now Akiko was confused. Academia? Who was that? "I asked who you are!" She mustered as much steel as she could into her voice, pulling her helmet over her head and gunning the motor, hoping for a threatening effect. "Speak now or forever hold your peace!" She couldn't help but add.

"That won't be possible," A figure stepped out from the end of the alley, shape still concealed in the shadows. All Akiko could see were there gleaming eyes of a hunter. "You still have yet to answer for the sins of your people,"

At that, Akiko scowled, all but fed up with this strange man and his cryptic talk. Aki had always said that she had all of her Mother's cold fury and none of her Father's patience. "Alright, if it's a fight you want, it's a fight you'll get! But don't expect me to go easy on you!"

"I'll make you pay for what you did to this city!"

Akiko grinned at the prospect of a good duel. She hadn't had one in ages! "Bring it on!"

A.N: First chapter down! Good God this stuff takes a long time to write! And I didn't even have a duel in this one! There'll be one next chapter... Either way, I hoped you liked it! I'm really out of practice with writing fanfiction so I apologize if some of the characters are out of character. Keep in mind however that these familiar characters of 5ds are adults now and have matured and grown since the original series. Yes, I know that Konami released a statement that the character of Jack and Crow in Arc V are not the same ones in 5ds but I thought that this one would be fun to write... So deal with it!

So, you've probably guessed which dimension our darling Akiko ended up in, but can anyone guess who this mysterious man on the shadows is? Or for that matter, what deck Akiko will use... If love to know what you think!

Anyway, I'm just starting off this story and I don't really have a plan for where it's going to go... So if you have any predictions, proposals, or suggestions, please don't be afraid to share them with me! Constructive criticism is always appreciated!

Thanks and until next chapter, Crystalzero bids you farewell.