Mitsuro and her friends come back to San Diego, unaware of what is coming. But along the way, Mitsuro has a dream in which her brother communicates with her. She learns of where he has been and of what has happened to him after he escaped. But he can't tell her his location for fear of losing his new body. So now she has to figure out where he is. Around the same time, Sora duels stronger duelists and his newfound power is startling and scary to them. When they get back to the base, what will happen?

Chapter 21 - Communications of a Dream

The sound of the sea rushing past the ship was all she heard as she stood alone on the bridge of the USS Rising Dawn. Mitsuro sighed as she looked down at her deck, fingering it. She had modified it after returning home for summer vacation, adding some cards from her brother's deck into her own. So, now it contained a small portion of him as well.

She removed it from its holder and flipped through it, her eyes landing on a certain card her brother had given to her a few weeks before he vanished. Tears pricked at her eyes as she looked at it.

"Jason… Where are you?" she whispered, holding her deck close to her.

She held it close to her chest for a few minutes, feeling as if he was right there with her. It was a calm feeling, and she didn't want it to end. She stood like that for a few minutes before she removed her deck from her chest and inserted it back into its holder before slumping back in the commander's chair and falling asleep on the spot.

"Mitsuro…"

That voice… It sounded so familiar…

"Mitsuro?"

Wait. Could it be…?

Mitsuro struggled to open her eyes and succeeded. She was still on the bridge of her destroyer, but something was off. She got to her feet and looked out the windows, noticing in shock that the ship was now in the middle of a beautiful island archipelago. She glanced around, trying to spot her crew, but they weren't there.

She and Jason were the only ones on board.

Jason? She whirled, her eyes widening in shock and amazement at seeing her older brother standing on the bridge with her. He looked the same as ever physically, but there was a different look in his eyes, almost as if he had been trapped somewhere for a long time.

Jason smiled at her as he approached. "Hey, Mitsy," he teased, rubbing her hair with one hand.

"Ah!" Mitsuro yelped as she batted his hand away. "Jason… It's really you…" she whispered, her voice filled with hope and disbelief at once. "What… Why… How?"

"How did I wind up here?" Jason asked.

Mitsuro nodded. "Yeah."

He sighed and closed his eyes. "I'm afraid that I have to explain it simply this time. I don't know how long I can communicate with you like this."

"Wait, what? What are you talking about?" she asked, stunned.

"Basically, all those years ago, when my ship went down, I was captured and held in prison within the Shadow Realm for ten years, almost eleven. I was unable to do anything, let alone feel any kind of relief from the pain of the shadows that bound me to the walls of that place," Jason explained. "It took me a while to learn a technique of 'reaching out' so I could get out of there."

"Wait. What do you mean by 'reaching out'?" Mitsuro asked, now confused. "And how did you get captured in the first place?"

Jason looked down at the deck beneath his feet. "Remember that ship that was preying on innocent vessels?"

Her eyes widened as she recalled that day. "You fought it?" she cried.

He nodded. "Yeah."

"But that was suicide! I could've lost you! I did lose you!" Mitsuro yelled. "Why did you even have to go do it? Why not let someone else do the job for you?"

Jason shook his head. "As for the reason, we had to do it. The only other ship was undergoing repairs in Kuwait. We were the only ones that could do it. I'm sorry. And you're wrong. I'm not dead."

"Huh?" She blinked, unable to fully understand what had happened. "Then, why aren't you a zombie?"

"A zombie is only a dead body with no true soul. But the technique that I learned from a fellow prisoner is one of transferring the mind directly from one's own body into a different form. No matter what it is," Jason told her.

He turned and walked over to the window of the bridge, looking out at the clear blue water lapping against the hull. She joined him.

"So, what happened exactly?" she asked softly.

Jason shook his head. "I can't say exactly what happened, but the short story is that I was able to transfer my very mind to someplace else. And I can't say as to where. Otherwise I'll lose my shelter there. It's one of the downsides to this little trick."

"Not even a hint?" Mitsuro was stunned. There was some kind of price?

He shook his head sadly. "No. I'm sorry."

"So, you're free?" she asked, realization dawning. "Free from the Shadow Realm?"

He turned to look at her and smiled sadly. "Yeah. I am."

She ran at him and hugged him close. "Jason…I missed you so much," she murmured.

Jason returned the hug. "I know. I missed you too, kiddo."

He removed his arms from around her and looked at her for a moment. Then a smirk spread across his face. "Well, you've grown into a very attractive young woman," he teased.

"Knock it off!" she laughed, playfully batting his hand away.

"And a commander of your own ship to boot. You've sure been busy," he said.

"Yeah. But aside from that, where are you exactly?" she asked, wanting to know.

Jason shook his head. "I said I can't tell you. Or else I'll lose my new body."

Mitsuro looked down at the deck beneath her feet, disappointment filling her. And when she was so close…

"Damnitall…" she muttered.

"I'm sorry, Mitsuro," Jason murmured. "But it's the price for breaking free from the Shadow Realm."

"I know," Mitsuro said softly. She clenched her fists and her eyes flashed as she looked up. "But why does it have to be that way! Why must there be that kind of a price?" she cried.

"I don't know, little sis. But it's just the way it is. I can't change it, no matter how much I want to," her brother murmured, stepping closer and wrapping his arms around her.

Mitsuro threw her arms around him and started sobbing into his chest. "Jason, I don't wanna lose you again!" she sobbed.

"And you won't," Jason whispered. "I'm not going anywhere again. I'm free this time. For good. I made sure of that when I transferred out."

He rubbed her back a bit before he suddenly looked up.

Mitsuro glanced up at him, confused. "Jason?"

He released her and stepped back. "My time is almost up here. I have to go back."

"Back to your unknown shelter?" she asked.

He nodded. "Yeah. Even though I can't say directly where I am, just know that I'm always right here with you, no matter what."

"What do you mean?" Mitsuro asked.

"I'm always there. Remember that." Those were his last words as his body finally faded from sight and the calming light filled the bridge of her ship.

"I'm always there, Mitsuro. And I always will be."

Mitsuro snapped awake, her eyes flying open as she woke up. She glanced around the bridge, surprised that she had actually even fallen asleep there. The light from the sun shone in through the windows, making some of the consoles glimmer in the morning light.

She got out of the commander's seat and looked around, for some reason feeling like she was being watched by Jason. She had no idea as to why, but it didn't bother her in the least. She threw her arms up over her head and stretched her aching muscles. It felt good to do that.

"Man! That's the last time I fall asleep in the bridge!" she murmured.

It didn't take her long to get dressed and ready for the day. She arrived in the mess hall a few minutes after nine, right when the rest of the crew was there eating. After the kitchen staff loaded her plate with food, she took a seat beside Antov who was busy looking at a schematic of the ship's AI programming.

"Hey, Antov," she said.

The Russian glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and nodded. "How'd you sleep?" he asked.

"Fine" was her reply, but she was busy thinking about her dream. It felt so real…

Around the same time, Sora chuckled as his opponent ran off, scared and freaked out by his abilities. "Perfect," he whispered.

Ever since his duel with those mysterious people, he had started challenging more experienced duelists to duels, trying to test his new skills to their max. And so far he was winning. But there had been a few times when it had been forced to a draw by the other.

But he still hoped to duel Mitsuro and see if she could stand up to his newfound power.

He glanced out at the sea, his eyes fixed on the horizon. "Mitsuro… Next time we meet, it is you who shall lose, not me!" he hissed.

A sudden surge of energy caused a tingle to run down Mitsuro's spine. She glanced up, her eyes widening as the faintest hint of their other colors appeared in place of emerald green. Something was wrong, and she knew it.

"Hey, is something wrong?" Tai asked as he noticed her tense up.

"I…I think so," she murmured, glancing at him. "It felt like there was a surge of energy coming from somewhere close by."

"Ah, c'mon! What can be out here that can give off that kind of energy?" Hunter asked from a nearby table.

"No. It felt like a burst of shadow energy," Mitsuro said, raising a hand to her head.

"Oh, boy…" Hunter knew what that meant. It meant that a new foe was close by.

The entire crew finished eating and got to their stations an hour and a half later, prepared for anything.

But nothing showed up, making them wonder if it was just a false alarm. They relaxed a bit, but they never let their guard down.

Since it was a calm, clear day, the ship anchored off a few lesser known islands to conduct a few maneuvers to keep the crew's skills up. The maneuvers went well, and after that, Antov did a few runs on the helm to see if it was going to freeze up again. But when it didn't the crew decided to head back to San Diego and see if there was anything else that needed to be done.

However, they had no idea as to what lurked in the shadows…

Deep in the unknown realm, the man let out a howl of rage and hatred. The reason: X was dead. His body had been found drifting in the sea close to one of the many cliffs that towered over the ruins of the city, badly mauled beyond recognition. He had never felt such rage in his life, and he wanted so badly to take out someone. But since no one was there, he threw a punch at the wall, causing it to crack and dent under the force of impact.

He removed his hand from the wall and walked towards the window.

He looked out upon his realm, and his eyes flashed angrily. "So, that fool thought he could betray me, huh? Well, he made a big mistake! No one can defy me forever no matter how hard they try! And this realm that dares to defy me will be the first to feel my wrath!"

He clenched his fist and dark energy began to flow across it. "Soon indeed!"