Well... Here I am. And here's the first chapter again. And a lengthy AN. If you want to skip it, just scroll down to the bold.

Honestly, I was just about to scrap this one... but then I noticed something. This story, with a mere 4 chapters, has apparently outperformed my other two stories, even though I thought they were better. Not sure why this is- maybe my main character is more relatable, or the writing style I had back when I first started writing this was better... I don't know. But instead of deleting this story, I decided to delete my other two instead, simply because people just like this one more. *shrug*

So, instead of meshing Promises, Nameless, Despair and Hope together into Misdirection... I think I'll mesh Promises and Misdirection into Nameless. Because I do love Misdirection... And unfortunately, Promises will never continue, because my friend and I... are no longer friends, unfortunately. I don't even know why. I might not include anything from Promises at all. I don't see the point.

I'm redoing the first four chapters because.. Ugh.. I just hate how my writing style used to be. It makes my skin crawl to look back at it.

Our nameless protagonist will remain the main character... but there will be a lot more to this story than I had planned when I posted the first chapter the first time. I've decided that the story will start roughly around when Yusei hits Neo Domino. There will probably be flashbacks, though, because some of the ideas I had took place either during or before that arc. And I don't want to start up another story.

If I get support for this story like I have in the past, I can guarantee that as long as I have internet and a notebook, I will endeavor to finish it. Until then, I hope you enjoy. And reviews are always welcome.

Chapter 1- The Girl With No Name

The breeze twisted and swirled through the park like a snake, unfurling itself between trees and among the neatly cut blades of grass. It brushed past flowers and leaves, playfully lifting a girl's brown curls up and down, yanking gently like a child. She absently patted her hair back into place as her stare cut into the darkness of the forest beyond the grass.

"Do I?" She glanced down at the card in her hand, not doubting her vision when the angelic figure appeared to nod.

Her concentration was swayed when the loud voices of two children met her ears.

"Come on Ruka! Tenpei dared me!" The boy whined, tugging the arm of the girl next to him toward the forest. The girl sitting some distance away adjusted her position in the tree, startled by the vivid cyan color of the childrens' hair. The assumed sister of the boy resisted and shook her head.

"Haven't you heard the rumors?" On cue, a harsh caw echoed through the trees and made the boy jump.

"O-oh come on, Ruka! I'll protect you!" The girl with the brown curls smiled slightly at the quaver in his voice, the obvious false bravado made to reassure his sister.

"Can't we just go home? I'm tired..." The boy deflated, looking helplessly on as the girl next to him turned away from the dark throng of trees and toward the park's entrance. He grudgingly followed, mumbling complaints that the curly-haired girl in the tree couldn't quite make out.

"Whew..." She breathed out in exasperation. "Kids these days..."

The breeze rustled above her head in agreement and then vanished, likely off to blow some poor sap's hat right off his head.

The girl slipped off of the bough and slipped the card from her hand to one of three deck holders at her side. "Off to see the wizard, then..."

The midday sun beat down on the girl's back as she swept the broom across the broken sidewalk squares. It didn't occur to her how so many rocks came to rest there, but it was not her concern- she continued to brush them away, to the street or a sewer grate where they were someone else's problem. As much as she hated to not care, caring simply hurt too much anymore.

The jingle of the store's bell grated against her ears as the door of the store behind her swung open. Two children and what likely was their mother waltzed out, a to-go box in the mother's hands as she ushered her offspring to their car in the parking lot. She watched sullenly as they drove away, still envious after seeing them so many times. Escaping Satellite had not given her claim to the life she had sought for so long. She was barely able to make rent some months, though recently she had been somewhat financially stable.

She sometimes worried. Had it been right? She had left her best friend behind, as well as another stalwart companion. The fourth member of their group had left even before she had, but they all knew he wouldn't feel guilt. His motivations were both understandable and despicable. Now he was traveling abroad, surfing across the pro leagues with his skills, which had somehow developed beyond what she had. As much as she worried about the other two... she certainly didn't worry about him.

To be honest, she hadn't made the transition well. In Satellite, she knew where to get food, cards, illegal goods, weapons- here? It was nothing like Satellite. Sure, you still had the shady alleys and corner dealers who you could get just about anything from... but the atmosphere was completely different. The language itself seemed warped. It had already been a year, and still she struggled with the culture.

"Saro! Get back to work."

Saro sighed and continued sweeping. Her career as an underground duelist was only slightly more exciting than her day job. But it payed the bills far better- it was the only reason she didn't live in the slums. Instead, she had a decent apartment in Daimon. Though she still had trouble affording it.

'I wonder if Oshimo is getting by okay... if he's still running that stand with the ugly awning near the docks. I almost miss that awning... except I don't. Huh.' Saro smiled to herself and swept with a bit more vigor. He would be okay. He was always the pillar of their little band...

The young man grinned with a ferocious grace as he revved his runner and waved at the crowd, who was cheering on his latest victory. The joy he felt at being adored and admired, and respected- something he had never gotten in Satellite, except when he had dressed up in a silly little cloak and mask- was what kept him going. What kept him alive. Even the putrid smell of exhaust around him couldn't deflate his mood.

"Shit, he's unconscious! Get the paramedics team!"

The voices coming from near where his opponent's duel runner had crashed into the barrier cracked the young man's fervor. He looked over at where his fellow duelist was being carried away on a stretcher, and sighed. Even in Satellite, ground duels were far safer than turbo duels. Unless, of course, you happened to be dueling against a psychic...

"You think this is some kind of game, Kanber!? I'll show you who's really laughing!"

He grimaced slightly, but not so much that it would break his triumphant smile. The memory of his former leader stung slightly, more because he regretted not bringing her with him than how he had let them down. Saro was a worthy rival- stronger than most of the other duelists he had ever faced. Perhaps the strongest. The only other he respected so much was another pro duelist in Neo Domino...

Jack Atlas. Master of Faster, Sultan of Speed, Crowing Rooster who wouldn't shut the fuck up.

Kanber had watched over the past two years as the man he had once considered his equal and maybe even his better regress to a pawn of his sponsors. It was revolting. And he feared that he was becoming that, too. A complacent puppet. He shuddered slightly as he drove his runner back into the tunnel.

"...And we have just been informed that the famous King of Freeze, Nicola, has died! Yes, the injuries he sustained..."

Kanber shut out the announcer as he removed his helmet, setting his long ponytail of violet strands free, and watched the pit crew roll his runner away. One thing he didn't regret was his Celeric Harpy. A medium sized brown runner with light blue wing designs on the sides. He had considered adding actual wings, but decided against it.

"Excellent work, Kanber! Why, you're definitely going places..." Kanber stared blankly at his sponsor, ignoring the meaningless words of praise that were only meant to snare him further. He would not give his loyalty to a man with eyes only for profit. He had much better things to do with his time. A dumb nod always sufficed to silence the people that sought to use him, and that's all he ever gave them.

'Do it.'

The boy standing at the edge of the hole looked down with blank eyes, but his mind was in chaos. This was the heart of the B.A.D. Area, where not even the most soulless of sinners dared to step foot. There were no junk piles- just an eerie, flat expanse all around, where nothing lived and all things came to an end.

Why was he here? A good question, considering. A year ago, he would have scoffed at the thought of venturing to such a God-forsaken place. But now, he didn't know. And he wasn't sure if he should care or not anymore. When Saro had left, she hadn't cared, had she? The young man let out a wilted chuckle, trying to reassure himself of some wasted possibility.

And then the voices. His mentor had taught him long ago how to turn them on and then off when he was young, but he assumed he had forgotten, because there was no filter. The beings that only he could hear, who just barely brushed against his consciousness, now whispered all sorts of things to him. There was only one- a high pitched voice that oozed malice- that he could clearly hear. It had long since fed off of his despair and depression until he could no longer think.

He had tried. Oh, how he had endeavored to be the best friend he could. To support his teammates, to always be there, to.. but nothing came of it, in the end. They had left, one by one, leaving him in an empty building with a fire pit out back where they had made s'mores and eaten hot dogs Saro had gotten from who-knows-where and-

Oshimo sobbed and collapsed on his knees. What went wrong? Had his efforts not been enough? They had been so fucking close, and now it was no more than dust in the wind.

He grimaced. Even the wind refused to blow near such a vile hole, so why in the world was he here of all places?

'To die, silly.' The voice sniggered, stretching out an incorporeal hand to urge Oshimo toward the pit. He shrugged the influence off and attempted to stand, but found that he had no strength.

'Don't you see? You've lost what made you valuable. They don't want you anymore... They've all moved on. Living happy lives in Neo Domino, leaving you to rot in this trash heap. You no longer have that strength that allowed you to stand as a pillar... You've crumbled, my dear. This is all you've got left. Team Eternal... Well, it didn't last, did it? Jump. You know it will make things so much easier...'

"Shut up." Oshimo snarled. "You don't know a damn thing about it."

'Oh, but don't I? I've been there. Longer than them. Longer than even your silly little mentor, and wouldn't you know what happened to him? He's long dead, little boy. He died after you left him in that cave on the coast. It flooded, and he drowned. And now there's not a soul alive that can fix you. Don't deny that it hurts, knowing you're all alone in the world... Nobody wants you, kid.'

"You don't know that! There's a world of possibilities. Literally."

'Hah!' the voice cackled. 'You think so? I beg to differ...' Oshimo gasped and clutched his head as images- too fast for him to focus on, but slow enough that he could understand- flashed in his mind. War, famine, plague, disasters, everyday suffering; pictures of a wretched fate from both current day and centuries in the past. He felt the insidious hand reach inside of him and squeeze.

'You want to trudge through all that, just to meet some crappy end? You want to deal with being abandoned all over again? Being betrayed? Forgotten? Kicked to the curb, like some stray dog? You deserve better. But I can only help you one way...' Oshimo's eyes strayed to the pit before him, so dark it seemed to go on forever. A welcoming darkness, that felt nothing.

'Follow this path, and I can guarantee... you'll see Sarobando again. You want that, don't you? To be with your best friend one last time? I'll make it happen. Just let yourself slip...'

Oshimo barely heard the voice laugh as he stood, still staring into the darkness. He thought he saw a light at the bottom.

A sudden push from behind sent him plummeting down into the darkness- deeper and deeper, until eventually, he was submerged by the light.

'It's Saro you want, isn't it? So call my name...'

"Isqui Oma!"

I suppose this was more of a character introduction than anything. But it's better than a lot of the stuff I've done... so, alrighty. Please review!