I thought my life was going to be a somewhat normal life. I had graduated from high school, had my own trailer with a steady job, and I was getting ready to get married to the most wonderful woman in the world. But that was all before I found out what Destiny really had in plan for me, and how it got the people I care about dragged into it all. I'm getting ahead of myself though. Lets start from the beginning...
My wife, Christina, and I are snuggling in our bed after a long day at work. She's watching some tv show about ghosts while I re-read one of my favorite books. She glances up at me and gives me a small peck on the cheek.
"What are you reading, babe?" She asks in a small cute voice.
I smile, putting a bookmark where I was at in the book. "It's the third book in the Heroes of Olypus series. The Mark of Athena. It's really good. Every book I read makes me imagine what it would be like to be in the story myself. Or maybe what it would be like to have some of the powers the characters have and fight alongside them." I answer, glancing at the book.
She just giggles. "Yeah. It deffinately would be amazing. Being a demigod, a werewolf, a shapeshifter, or a..." At that moment, there's a flash of light that causes us to cover our eyes with our hands.
I leap to my feet grabbing the baseball bat next to my bedside table. As I raise it to swing, a strong lightly tanned hand zips out and yanks the bat out of my hand. All I could do was blink at the sudden jerk. In front of us, there's a young well built man in battle-worn military fatigue. His eyes are hidden behind a pair of glasses so dark that I couldn't even see my reflection in them. A facemask and a hood hide his face in darkness.
"Who are you?" I growl. My hand slides to my pocket knife that hangs onto my pocket. Christina is still sitting on the bed; her eyes are wide with fear.
"My name is unimportant. The real question is why I'm here." The man says. His voice is silky smooth like dark chocolate.
"Then why are you here." I demand, pulling the knife out of my pocket and flicking it out.
"Are you Dakota Martin?" He asks. I couldn't physically see his eyes, but I could feel him looking me over curiously.
I nod. "That's my name. What's it to you?" I take a step forward making sure his attention stayed on me and doesn't stray to Christina.
"Then you must be the Dimension Protector!" His tone is full of happiness.
"The Dimension what?" Christina asks sounding just as confused as I probably looked.
The man's gaze shifted over to her. "The Dimension Protector." He states again. "The legendary hero who is foretold to protect every dimension to exist. It is said that he possesses the powers from every dimension he visits and is able to master whatever power he wants."
My breath catches in my throat at that. I heard Christina gasp. With a slow deep breath, I look at the man quietly for a moment before speaking again.
"And how could that be me? I mean I'm just a simple McDonald's employee living in a trailer. I couldn't be anything that special." I interject, shaking my head.
Christina steps towards the man. "Is there a way to prove what you say? To prove that Dakota is this Dimension Protector you say he is?"
The man nods. "Yes. It is said that the Dimension Protector is able to see into these other dimensions whether purposely or by accident. To him, these... visions... could be dreams or just daydreams. In the past, the Dimension Protector has been painters, authors, or screenwriters. They think what they have 'seen' is just an idea coming to them, but in reality, they're seeing what happens in another dimension." He then looks back at me. "Are you an author?"
I nod slowly. "Yeah, but I don't have a book published yet. I've been working on many fanfictions here lately."
"And you get your ideas at random times, right? Regardless of if it's sleeping, awake, or if what you 'see' makes any sense to you?" He pries softly. His voice was almost begging, hoping that he's right. I just nod again. "Then you must be him."
I open my mouth to say something, but at that moment, the ground rumbles causing Christina and me to almost lose our balance. She clutches onto my arm looking around frantically.
"What was that?" Christina asks, moving the curtain to our bedroom window aside to look outside.
The man glances out the window too. "Oh no. She's found you. I've got to get you out of here." He reaches for me.
I take a step back. "Who's found me? And where are you wanting to take me?" My whole body is tense as if it's bracing for something.
"You have to trust me before it's too late." He says frantically, grabbing my wrist. "If she gets you, then everything is lost."
Again, I'm about to interrupt him when the wall behind Christina and me bursts towards us in a burst of smoke. Christina and I hit the floor underneath a beam from the wall. With a groan, I push the wood off of us. She is out cold, and I didn't have the strength to move as slender feminine hands reach out for me.
"You're not getting him!" The man yells. In a small shimmer, the mysterious man jumps between me and the unknown hands with a long glowing sword in his hands.
An evil cackle answers the guy's statement. "I will get him. One way..." The hands zip out and yank Christina's unconscious form away from me into the smoke. "Or another." There's another cackle that seems to fade as my vision starts to go dark.
"Christina..." I mutter before slipping into unconsciousness myself.
Unlike when I usually sleep, I didn't dream. The next thing I know, I'm waking up to see a wooden ceiling above me. I'm laying on a soft bed still in my camouflage pants, camo hiking boots, and my Halo t-shirt. The only difference is that the clothes aren't covered in sawdust from the wall bursting in on us; someone had cleaned them. My boots were next to the bed when I look over to my left. When I look to my other side, that's when I realized that I wasn't alone.
There's three people in the room. Two guys and one girl. They couldn't be much older than I am, I thought to myself.
One guy stands on the other side of the room. He has short blonde hair and electric blue eyes. His tan skin stands out against the bright purple shirt he's wearing. There's a small scar on his bottom lip and some kind of tattoo on the inside of his forearm. He tosses a small coin in his hands nervously.
The other guy has a mischievous grin on his face. He looks Hispanic with his dark skin, black curly hair, and dark brown eyes that kind of glint in the light. He's in a set of mechanic's overalls with a tool belt around his waist.
The girl is sitting in a chair next to the bed. She has tanned skin and looks native American. Her brown hair is pulled back in a ponytail, and her orange shirt has words on it that I couldn't read at the moment. A small silver dagger hangs at her side. Her soft brown eyes look over at me when I stir.
"Hey, Jason. He's waking up." The girl calls over her shoulder as she sits forward towards me. She raises her hands up in a sign of not wanting to harm me.
I sit up slowly. My heart races being in an unknown place with people I don't know. "W-Who are you?" I ask, stammering a bit.
"My name's Piper. This is my boyfriend, Jason, and our friend, Leo." The girl says softly. Then I noticed a small change in her voice. "You can relax. We aren't going to harm you."
With just those last few words, my body starts to relax, and my heart slows back to normal.
The Hispanic guy, Leo, just rolls his eyes then grins. "You don't need to use your charmspeak on him, Piper. I think her can tell we aren't some kind of aliens that are going to probe him or something." He makes a small popping sound as he sticks his finger towards me.
The guy in the purple shirt, Jason, sighs and smacks Leo in the arm. "Stop it, Leo. This is no time to joke. He's frightened, and he has every right to be." His gaze moves to me. "You don't have to be scared, Dakota. We are your friends and just want to help."
I felt like Jason and Piper were telling the truth. I place my legs over the edge of the bed and sit up. A dizziness overwhelms me causing my head to feel like it's being split open. I hold my head wincing.
"Here. It'll help." Piper holds out what looks like a yellow brownie. Hesitantly, I take the brownie with a shaking hand. I take a bite out of it; immediately, the feeling disappears. It tasted like Christina's homemade cookies.
"Wow. What is this?" I ask as Piper takes the rest from me, putting it in a small baggie.
"You know what it is." Leo rolls his eyes. "You have never tasted it before, but you definitely know what it is. You also technically know all of us too."
"Shut up, Leo." Jason hisses.
"Just go get Percy and Annabeth." Piper orders, glaring at him.
Leo rolls his eyes, but he strolls out of room muttering under his breath. I glance after him before turning my gaze back to Jason and Piper.
"What did he mean?" I ask softly. "How do I know what this is, and how do I know ya'll?"
They stare at each other for what felt like an hour before Piper looks back at me.
"Just think about it, Dakota." She says softly, staring into my eyes. "My name is Piper McLean. His is Jason Grace."
Everything hit me like a truck. Memories flash through my mind, but they weren't memories. They were more like a movie flashing through my mind. The empire state building, a camp safe for demigods, a group of teens saving the world….
Without saying a word, I rush out of the building as fast as I could. Jason and Piper hurry after me, calling my name. We are in a camp with cabins arranged in a U shape. In the distance, I could see what looked like the ocean. I streak past an amphitheater with kids of all ages training with target dummies. I race into a thick forest; my legs were a blur as I swerve around trees and leap over a flowing river. I skid to a stop in front of a large slab of rock too high for anyone to climb. As if controlled by someone else, I gently place a shaking hand on the rock face. A spark of fire leaps from my fingertip and travels up the rock. In the next moment, the cliff splits down the middle allowing me to step into what could have been an underground aircraft base.
Jason and Piper step in after me staring at me with bewildered expressions.
"How….?" Jason asks.
Most of the room was filled with incomplete machines and tables covered with tools of all kinds. In one corner of the room, there's a long table with a group of people lined all around it. As I walked closer, I noticed that most of the people were holograms except for three teens about my age. I recognize Leo from earlier. Beside him stood two other teens I didn't recognize at first until they all turned to look at me.
The first was a guy with sea green eyes and messy black hair. He wore an orange t-shirt and blue jeans. In his right hand, he carried what looked like a regular ballpoint pen. His gaze when he looked at me was one of relief.
The girl next to him had stormy gray eyes and blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail. She also wore an orange t-shirt with blue jeans, but she carried a bronze dagger at her side and a clipboard. Her gaze was more calculating and analyzing.
"How did you…?" Leo starts to mutter before the girl next to him waved a hand at him.
"He's the Dimension Protector." The girl smiles slightly at me. "I'm Annabeth and this is Percy." The guy next to her smiles and nods. "I guess Jason and Piper have caught you up to speed on things?"
Jason and Piper shake their heads. "Not really. He took off this way after we told him our names. We didn't get a chance to really soften things up for him."
Annabeth chuckles. "Alright. Well, lets get other introductions out of the way before we explain the situation." She waves towards the other five people behind them.
The first was a guy not much older than me. His black hair spiked up around his head with yellow bangs framing his face. He had an upside-down pyramid pendant around his neck, and some kind of disk on his left arm. His purple eyes studied me silently.
Next to him was a duo that looked very familiar to me. One was a guy in gleaming silver armor that looked like it was from medieval times. He held his helmet under his right arm. His hair was a sleek brown with flecks of grey on the tips, but he didn't look much older than me. His blue eyes were fierce but calm. The handle of a giant axe poked over his left shoulder. The girl with him was dressed in military fatigue with a pistol holstered on her right hip and a broadsword sheathed on her left. Her dark black eyes look me over silently. She brushed a strand of brown shoulder-length hair out of her eyes.
Behind them, a tall green creature towers over all of us. He had small tusks poking out of the corners of his mouth. He was clad in a simple grey tunic with beads swinging around his neck. His hair was covered by a grey hood that matched his tunic. He was muscular which must helped carry the huge grey stone hammer that he carried. On the side of the hammer, there's a wolf head carved into it.
And finally, standing next to Percy and Annabeth, a kid stood staring at me. His blue eyes were kind. His hair was a mess standing up in all directions. He wore a simple blue jogging shirt and black jogging pants. His clothes seemed a bit tight, but he didn't mind.
"I'm guessing you know us?" The large creature asks in a gentle tone despite how he looked.
I nod slowly. I clear my throat. "Yeah. Yugi Muto, Jake, Thrall, and Dragon and Ashley." I point at each of them in turn.
Yugi nods. "There are more of us on this counsel, but the others couldn't here right now. They're all scouting their dimensions."
"But onto the subject of what your role is…." Jake cuts him calmly. He glances at everyone.
"Where is my wife?" I ask quickly, glancing at everyone.
They glance at each other.
"We're searching for her." Dragon says, placing a firm hand on my shoulder. "We have our best scouting the dimensions for her. Mary and Dracorex are our best. They'll find her. I promise you."
"For now, we need your help." Percy states, nodding. "There is someone that threatens all of our worlds. Including yours.
"Is it a woman out to get me?" I ask.
"The one I saved you from?" Another guy stalks out of the shadows nearby. His skin was as pale as a ghost's, and his hair was almost as black as the shadow that he just stepped out of. He wore a black t-shirt with black jeans. A black longsword swings at his side.
"So you're the one who protected me from the woman." I say, moving my gaze to him. "Nico Di Angelo. Son of Hades."
He nods. "Yes. She is our target. Her and her new 'consort' are hell bent on destroying all of us and taking over all the dimensions. She has been calling herself Bellona after the roman goddess of revenge. Her 'consort's' name is the Conqueror. He is the…"
"The Conqueror is the archenemy of the Paragons." I interrupt, looking over at Dragon and Ashley. They both nod.
"Yes. The Conqueror has been opposing us since the very beginning. Whenever we think we have the edge on him, he always seems to be a few steps ahead." Dragon's tone seemed to have gotten darker and more cautious.
At that moment, a slender figure appears behind Dragon and Ashley. He wore a thick black cloak that kept his face hidden in shadow. The only thing that could be seen underneath the hood of his cloak are his icy blue eyes and a small glint of golden hair. He whispers something in Dragon's ear before disappearing in a burst of shadow. Dragon nods towards Ashley who disappears from the hologram as well.
He turns back to us. "Dracorex and Mary have gotten a lead on one incarnation of Bellona. She's in the Yugioh dimension. She's brainwashed some of the archenemies from that dimension and are wreaking havoc. They also informed me that she has a woman in chains following her." His gaze moves to meet mine. "I assume that would be your fiancé?"
I nod. "Yeah. I need to go save her." I turn to look around at everyone before looking over at Yugi.
Yugi nods. "I'll get the others ready." He nods to Percy and Annabeth. "Have him meet us at Kaiba Corp." His hologram then disappears along with all the others.
I turn to Percy. "How am I supposed to get to the Yugioh dimension?"
Leo hands me a small square with an empty slot in it. "Here's your duel disk, and as for a deck, just imagine what kind of deck you want to use, and it'll appear in the disk. Good luck."
I slip the disk on my wrist and close my eyes. When I open them, a fresh deck had shimmered into existence in the empty slot. I clench my jaw and turn to Percy. "Lets go."
A smile tugs at the edge of his mouth as they lead me down a long tunnel. After what felt like forever, we exit out of the tunnel into another large room. All around the edges of the room, portals glowed with power. There were too many for me to really count, but above each portal, a name was inscribed in simple black letters. Percy and the others lead me to a portal with the single word 'Yugioh' printed above.
"Just step through. Yugi and the others will meet you on the other side." Annabeth smiles and pats me on the shoulder. "Good luck. We hope you save your fiancé."
I smile back as I turn to the portal. "Thanks." I step through the portal. For a moment, all I see is bright blinding light. In the next moment, I exit out of a similar portal to be greeted by 5 familiar figures.
Yugi stood directly in front of me. He gave me a small smile and a nod. Next to him stood another teenager in a red school uniform. His brown hair was in a dome shape in my opinion. A silver glowing duel disk sat on his right wrist. He grinned at me.
The figure next to him had spikey black hair and yellow tattoos on his face. He wore a blue coat over a black t-shirt and blue jeans. A duel disk like Yugi's is on his wrist.
A boy about 14 is talking to the spikey-haired guy. He has some kind of tech on his right eye and a weird looking disk on his arm. He has black hair with two red bangs poking straight up at the front of his head.
The last figure turns and looks at me. His green hair flares out on both sides of his head with a layer of red hair towards the back of his head. He wore a pair of aviator goggles on his head and an orange t-shirt with a coat wrapped around his waist.
"Hey guys. This is Dakota. I believe you know everyone here?" Yugi introduces.
I nod. "Yeah. Jaden Yuki, Yusei Fudo, Yuma Tsukumo, and Yuya Sakaki. The best duelists of all time." I breathed sounding in shock. I couldn't believe that I was getting ready to duel next to the best duelist ever.
"And I thought we'd have to hunt for you." A female voice hisses behind us. We all whirl around to see a tall slender woman standing there with five other teens behind her. All the woman wore was a skintight jumpsuit that left very little to the imagination. Her pitch black hair is tied back in a tight ponytail while her face was hidden under a black bandana.
I recognized the five figures spreading out behind her. Each one had their own duel disk similar to Yugi and the others.
Yami Marik's sinister form stalk to the side, confronting Yugi. The twisted monstrous form of Yubel stands at odds against Jaden. Z-one's robotic form floated above Yusei menacingly. Don Thousand's alien appearance approaches Yuma without pause. A figure that looked a lot like Yuya, but more demonic in nature, chuckles as it glares gleefully at Yuya.
"You brought out all the best villains against us, Bellona." Yugi states as his voice started to get deeper. "But it won't be enough!" A flash of light emanated from the puzzle around Yugi's neck. When the flash disappears, a much taller and more confident Yugi stands before us. The pharaoh, Atem… I whisper to myself. "It's time to duel!"
"Lets get our game on!" Jaden shouts as his eyes become heterochromatic. One being blue and the other being orange.
"It's time to rev it up!" A red symbol blazes on Yusei's forearm as a dragon in the shape of a circle blazes to life on his back.
"We're feeling the flow!" Yuma shouts as his disk flips open.
"It's showtime!" Yuya shouts grinning at our opposition.
"Action cards dispersed." I hear from Yuya's duel disk as a gathering of cards in the air shoot out in all directions.
I glance at each of them as they start dueling. My gaze then shifts to Christina who is crouched behind Bellona in a set of glowing silver chains. A low growl escapes my throat.
"It's one thing messing with me, but when you mess with my wife, I will end you faster than you think!" I roar, drawing five cards from the top of my deck.
Bellona just chuckles, drawing five cards herself. "How sweet. But I don't think you have what it takes to save your precious little wife here." Her hand caresses Christina's cheek. Christina jerks away from her.
"Wipe the floor with her, Dakota! I know you can do it!" Christina shouts, flinching away from Bellona's hand.
"I draw." I draw a card from the top of my deck and study the 6 cards in my hand. "I summon Quillbolt Hedgehog in defense mode, and set two cards facedown before ending my turn." I slide the cards into the duel disk as a small hedgehog with bolts on its back instead of quills shimmers onto the field in front of two large facedown cards.
Bellona cackles at my monster as she draws a card. "You think you're going to win with that pathetic monster!? It's almost as pathetic as you and your 'fiance.'" She places a card onto her disk. I summon Raidraptor-Vanishing Lanius in attack mode!" A large green falcon shoots onto the field. It's green armor shines in the sunlight. "Attack Vanishing Lanius! Destroy that accursed hedgehog!" The falcon screeches as it streaks forward and blasts through my hedgehod, destroying it. "I then activate the spell card, Double Attack! By discarding Raidraptor- Wild Vulture, My Lanius can attack again. Attack him directly!" The falcon shoots towards me.
"I activate my trap card!" I shout, pointing towards my card on the left. As the card lifts up to where Bellona could see it, a large scarecrow appears between me and the falcon forcing it to stop its attack. "Scrap Iron Scarecrow! It stops one monster from attacking this turn! Then it goes back facedown." After stopping the falcon's attack, the scarecrow disappears, and the card goes back facedown.
Bellona growls at me. "I end my turn."
"My turn!" I draw another card from my deck. As I look over my cards, I hear a scream come from across from me. When I look up, I see Christina laying on the ground out cold with Bellona standing over her.
"Trying to escape from you, you little bitch?!" Bellona roars. "We see where that got you!"
Something inside me snaps and an unearthly growl escapes my mouth.
"You just made a big mistake! I'm not just going to defeat you," I shout, grabbing one of the cards from my hand. "I'm going to steamroll you! I summon Junk Synchron in attack mode!" A warriorin orange battle armor appears on the field. A large engine is strapped to his back. "I then activate his effect. I can summon a level two or lower monster from my graveyard. Welcome back, Quillbolt Hedgehog!" The hedgehog blasts back onto the field. "I then activate the spell card, Double Summon. This card allows me to summon another monster this turn. Come on out, Mystical Elf!" A small blue-skinned elf appears next to the warrior. She's kneeling as if she's praying. "I then tune my level three Junk Synchron with my level two Quillbolt Hedgehog!" The warrior turns into a series of three rings that surround the hedgehog. Then there's bright light that forces Bellona to look away.
"No! You can't be doing that!" Bellona shouts. Fear could be heard in her voice.
I grin as a large purple armored warrior blasts into the field. It strikes a pose and it's eyes glow red. "I Synchro Summon. Lets go, Junk Warrior!" The warrior nods at me silently before turning back to Bellona's raptor. "I then activate the spell card, Symbols of Duty. I can sacrifice my Mystical Elf to bring back a monster from my graveyard. Let's ride, Junk Synchron!" The small orange warrior takes Mystical Elf's place on the field. "And because of Junk Warrior's effect, he gains an extra 1300 attack points since Junk Synchron is on the field." Bellona's face pales as Junk Warrior's attack goes up to 3600.
"It's not possible!" She scrambles back away from me.
"But it is." I growl. "Now attack her Vanishing Lanius, Junk Warrior! Scrap Slam!"
The purple-armored warrior shoots forward faster than the speed of sound and slams the falcon into the ground causing it to burst into pixels. Bellona is blown off her feet from the blast as her life points drop down to 1700. She slowly crawls to her feet.
"But... I'm... still... standing..." She huffs. Bruises and scratches now cover her arms and face.
I scoff. "I'm not done yet. I activate my other facedown! Urgent Tuning!" The other card raises up to show her what it is. "This trap card allows me to Synchro Summon in the middle of the battle phase! I tune my level three Junk Synchron with my level five Junk Warrior!" Junk Synchron turns into three rings that surround Junk Warrior. "This will show you the true strength of my love for Christina. When I'm with her, anything is possible! I would go to the ends of the earth for her. To the moon and back! I love her more than life itself, and it's stronger than any monster you can summon! And my deck will show you that right now! I Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!" I roar right as a large white-winged dragon bursts onto the field in a shower of sparkles. The dragon's purple eyes match its purple chest. Its wings beat the air above me causing it to hover right above and behind me.
Bellona's eyes widen in shock. "No..."
"Oh yes! Go, Stardust Dragon! Shooting Cosmic Flare!" I point towards Bellona as Stardust Dragon takesa deep breath. Then a stream of white energy blasts from its mouth straight towards Bellona. A moment later, the stream slams headlong into Bellona. Her screams could barely be heard above the white energy blast. When the energy disappates, Bellona is nowhere to be found, and Christina is laying by herself on the ground where Bellona had been just a moment before.
The chains that were holding Christina prisoner are completely gone. I rush over to her side as the monsters and cards shimmer out of existence. I hold her close to me and run a gentle hand through her hair.
"Christina?" I whisper, tears welling up in my eyes. "Wake up baby. Please?"
For a moment, nothing happens, but in the next moment, Christina jerks awake and takes a deep breathe. Her eyes meet mine as she clasps my hand in hers.
"Is it over?" She asks softly.
I nod. "Yes. She's gone. I won. You're safe."
She smiles. "I knew you would do it. I love you, Dakota."
"I love you too…. To the moon and back, baby." I smile down at her as I help her to her feet unsteadily.
She grins back up at me. "And I'll never let go." She gently kisses me on the cheek as Yugi and the others stroll up to us.
I turn to them while my arm stays around Christina. "Did you beat the others?"
Yugi grins and nods. "Once you beat Bellona, they all scrambled off or dispersed into mist. As if she was the only thing keeping them fighting us."
"Well, she's gone." I say proudly.
Jaden shakes his head. "This incarnation of her was defeated, but she has incarnations in every dimension."
"So I have to defeat each of them to be able to defeat her for good?" I ask, tightening my arm around Christina's shoulders.
Yusei nods. "Yes, but for now, rest. That duel took a lot out of you. Go back to Percy and Annabeth. Get a plan together to find her other incarnations. We'll be here if you need some back up." A small smile tugs at the corner of his mouth.
Yuya and Yuma nod.
"Just a call away!" Yuya shouts with a grin. "We'll see you later, Dakota. Happy hunting!"
"Thanks guys." I wave at them as Christina and I walks back through the portal that I had come from.
Percy and Annabeth are waiting for us on the other side of the portal. Annabeth glances at us as we enter the portal room.
"Did you…?" She asks not completing her question.
Christina nods. "Yes. That incarnation of that woman is defeated. I guess it's time to hunt for the others?" She glances up at me.
I shake my head. "You are staying out of this. I'll help with defeating Bellona's incarnations. I'm not losing you again."
She grabs my chin and forces me to meet her eyes. "You won't lose me. If this is your fight, then it's mine too. We're a team, Dakota. You know that. I love you, but you aren't doing this alone. Got it?" I nod smiling slightly. "Good."
Percy steps forward. "But right now, you both need rest." He points towards a small doorway with soft lighting streaming out of it. "Go take a nap. When you both wake up, we'll set about finding Bellona's other incarnations."
Without arguing, Christina and I nod and walk into the small room. It was a simple room with a line of queen beds on either side of the room. We curl up on the closest bed almost instantly falling asleep….