Author's note: This chapter contains a LOT of information--it's very confusing, and it's very long, so all I ask is that you DO read it, because it's very, very important; it actually explains what's going on. Sorry that it's so confusing, the Multiverse (and especially the Lost) are like that! After this, I promise, no more really, really long explanations about the nature of reality. Serafinamoon, thank you so much for reviewing so quickly!!! You've inspired me to write this chapter and post it quickly! Yeah, the whole thing is confusing, but don't worry--this chapter kind of explains things. I hope. It made sense to me, so hopefully it will make sense to other people!!! How Yugi can become a Lost is partially explained in this chapter, but the main reason is that he makes the mistake of believing the Lost. He consciously knows that they're wrong, but subconsciously, some of what they say seems true. So, because his mind is weakly connected to his physical body (at least less so than most people), he can more easily travel to the Realm of the Lost. That isn't the problem, though. The final straw was probably that Yami told him he wasn't himself, and of course Yugi believed him, causing him to become more Lost. And, Yugi is indeed the one with the power to stop the Overlord. I won't say what exactly that power is or the way the Overlord could potentially be stopped, but Yugi definitely has it. He couldn't stop the Overlord if he became a Lost, but hopefully he can still be saved....thank you again for reviewing, I hope this chapter explains stuff a bit!
Chapter 13--The Truth
Yugi's friends (and multiple doctors) were completely confused. Yugi's friends feared the worst, or at least what they considered to be the worst--that Yugi had been recaptured by the Overlord. They had no idea that their friend was in danger of suffering a much worse fate. Someone else, however, did.
The Star Warriors have strong abilities to sense when someone they mark as their own is in danger. Right now, Yugi was very much in danger, and that someone else realized it.
Vice was coming!
Yugi's friends, meanwhile, were leaving to tell his grandfather that he had mysteriously disappeared. Doctors had called police, who thought, for lack of a better explanation, that Yugi had been kidnapped; disappearing children was beyond the scope of their work. Yugi's grandfather could, of course, be told about things related to the Multiverse, but he wouldn't believe any of them; he was in complete denial about other Worlds. Thus, the best explanation Yugi's friends could give was that he had disappeared and they didn't know why. Needless to say, no parent or grandparent really wants to hear this. Before further explanation could be given (and disbelieved), however, one of the front windows burst open in a flash of silvery light, and a large falcon flew in and changed into Vice. Yugi's friends were more surprised by his sudden appearance than his shape-change; they had seen some of his magical abilities before. They were very glad to see him, mostly because they had a feeling that if anyone could explain things he could. Vice had never yet let them down (as far as they were concerned), and they were sure he would know what to do. First, of course, he needed to know what was going on. Closing the window, he smiled at them.
"Sorry to drop in on you. What's going on and where's Yugi?"
Yugi's grandfather just stared in silence; seeing a bird turn into a man can have this effect. Yugi's friends, of course, were less tongue-tied.
"Yugi disappeared!"
This conveyed no information to an experienced Multiverse traveler like Vice--he knew that there are many ways to disappear, not all of them otherworldly.
"Define 'disappeared.'"
"He was in the hospital--"
"Whoa, whoa--back up. Start at the beginning."
"Oh, right! The beginning--that would be...that would be...well....uh..."
Vice looked slightly perturbed.
"Please tell me you have any idea what's going on."
"Uh......"
"Well, Yugi got stabbed or something, or at least he was bleeding but there wasn't any weapon, and then he just kind of...disappeared. You know, vanished."
Vice thought about this carefully.
"Vanished how? I need details--different accompanying effects are produced by different methods."
"..........huh?"
"Different ways of making people disappear create different side-effects. How exactly did Yugi vanish?"
"Well...he kind of...faded."
They were very surprised to see Vice stare at them for a moment, then turn to Yugi's grandfather.
"Did you happen to light any candles at the time?"
Yugi's grandfather stared at him for a long moment, then mutely shook his head. Vice sighed frustratedly, then took a candle out of his bag and lit it magically.
"I don't know how much good it will do now, of course...but it's worth a try."
"Uh...Vice? What's with the candle? Is it...magic?"
Vice looked up vaguely.
"Huh? Oh...kind of...it's a spirit candle...this is only the third time I've lit it...it really only helps if you light it right before someone loses contact with themselves...of course, this is a special situation...I've never really done this before."
Yugi's friends were slightly panicked.
"Done what? What might not work?'
"Yeah--what's going on anyway?"
"Tell us, man!"
Vice whistled sharply, and another falcon (this time a real one) Gated in and settled on his shoulder.
"I'm not entirely sure...but judging from Yugi's disappearance, I'd say this has something to do with the Lost. They're among the only beings that fade entirely as they change..."
"Change...into what?"
"Into Lost, of course. Where did you think they came from?"
"Hang on a sec--who's lost?"
Vice ran a hand through his hair, seeking an answer.
"What are the Lost, you mean. There's no 'who' about them. Let me explain....
You know about Truenames, right? A Truename is a name bound to your soul. Some cultures--like mine--give them at birth, choosing names that reflect essence. Other Worlds, such as yours, give names to children at birth, and those names gradually become your own as you live under them. They become bound to your soul not because they are made to represent you, but because you make them your representation. These names are powerful--if the wrong person learns your name, they could potentially destroy it. That isn't the only way to lose your name, of course...there is another.
Some people--I'm sure you've met at least a few--are always seeking to become something they are not. They seek to deny themselves, to live under a new identity that is no longer their own. Many people live like this all their lives, never realizing that in the search for a suitable face, they have gained a mask for every occasion, and retain no faces at all. They don't know that they have denied their names by living an identity not belonging to them. Sometimes, however, this is taken to such an extreme that the consequences become dire. Deny your name deeply enough, and you can lose it forever.
Understand when I say this that losing your name through neglect is much more than forgetting it. You also forget that you have forgotten it, forget that such a thing was ever yours. You forget your identity entirely through denial of it. Once this happens, you cease to be whatever you were. You become a Lost. The Lost cannot easily exist in the Multiverse--it is a place where things are defined as something, and that something is what they are. The Lost are the essence of nothingness; they don't belong here anymore. What remains of the matter, energy, and consciousness that made them up fades away, into a new place--the Realm of the Lost. There they remain, until they fade even further in their most basic components of matter and energy. The consciousness that made them who they are is irretrievably lost at this point; before then, it's possible to regain your identity if someone who remembers you as who and what you were returns your Truename to you. It isn't as easy as it sounds--to restore a Lost, you must have seen that person so clearly in life that you can recognize them even when they have lost all semblance of themselves. To see like that...it's almost impossible to know someone so well. That's why the Lost stay in their Realm and most conscious beings stay in the Multiverse. Get it?"
Everyone sat in a slightly vegetative state, trying to take in this information. Finally, Tea stirred.
"Vice...where is the Realm of the Lost?"
"It's not in the Multiverse. In fact, it's connected to the Wilds AND the Multiverse. So, in a sense, it's more of an overlap than anything.
"Uh, Vice? What're the Wilds?"
"Yeah--and I still don't get this whole 'Realm of the Lost' thing."
Vice smiled proudly--he had thought of what he considered to be an excellent explanation of everything.
"Look at it this way...
The Multiverse is like a bowl of jello. Well, a bowl of jello full of marbles wrapped in cellophane, with the cellophane sticking to it in one part. The worlds are the marbles, the Outside is the jello, the cellophane is the Wilds, and the sticking-down part is the Realm of the Lost. Now do you get it?"
".....no....."
Vice was taken aback--he didn't know quite what to say.
"Look--all you need to know is that Wilds are a place, a very different kind of place than the Worlds, and they're full of matter, energy, and whatever else might make up everything in existence. Whenever a World dies or is destroyed, all the matter and energy has to go somewhere. That somewhere is the Wilds. When a World is created, that's where the matter and energy comes from. The Realm is a part of the Wilds, but it's a little different--it's separated from it, and the matter and energy there is more...apathetic, I suppose. Once the Lost revert to their most basic state, their remains return to the Wilds. There's something else in the Realm, too....the Eye of the Void. But you don't need to know about that; what you do need to know is that I believe Yugi may have started becoming one of the Lost."
Tea, Joey, and Tristan waved all of the complicated information aside and focused on the last bit--it was something they could understand.
"You're saying Yugi forgot who he is?"
"And now he's going to disappear forever?"
"What are we gonna do!?"
Vice held up his hands.
"Wait, wait. Yugi may not become entirely Lost--he has a major advantage over most of the Lost."
".....what is it?"
Vice smiled reminiscently.
"In my culture--or at least the parts of Dark World that have a culture--it is customary to give gifts to a newborn child and its parents. Back when I knew Yugi's parents and we were all fighting together, my friend Gashiru and I gave them a gift. Since we had nothing of material value, and we knew that even before their child was born the Overlord would want to destroy it if he could, we gave them a gift of protection--a name. Yugi's name can never be taken from him by force; it is bound to him deeply enough that it can only be lost in one way--self-denial. Since Yugi can't have lost his name unless he deliberately decided to deny it, there's still hope for him. There's only one danger...
I don't know much about the Lost--there isn't much documented information about them. But...as far as I know, the loss of their names produces a sub-conscious kind of fear towards them--they think there's something bad about having a name. If they convince Yugi of that...his name--and his identity--could be in danger."
"Come on--who would believe that having a name is dangerous?"
Vice looked grim.
"When you're forgetting everything that you are, illogical things can be very convincing."
"Well, what are we sittin' around talkin' for? We have to rescue Yugi!"
Vice looked at them sharply.
"No. Above all, you must not try to find Yugi. There is nothing you can do to help him now. Even if you could get to the Realm of the Lost without inflicting physical and mental damage to yourself--which you can't--you would never find him. You don't know him well enough to see him clearly."
"But--we know Yugi better than anyone! If we can't help him, who can?"
Vice looked sad.
"You don't know Yugi as well as you think. Death changes things so much...so does being a Guardian...most Guardians I've met are closer to their Guardian partners than anyone else. There's only one person who can help Yugi now...I only hope he knows what he's doing."