Bastion heads out for a training session in the morning. (Forgotten)

Jaden runs into a problem he can't put off any longer. (Blasphemy)

Chazz receives a message. (Holy/Sacred)

Year One - Cliffs

Every morning before class, before he ate breakfast, Bastion left the Ra Yellow dorms and trained out by the cliff.

The scenery was absolutely beautiful. Water surrounded the cliff, calmly reflecting the sunrise on its surface. Somedays, clouds obscured parts of the sky, but today it was clear. Calm, yet it had purpose. Exactly how Bastion himself should be when he dueled. Training in such an area didn't just give him the quiet and solitude he needed, it was inspirational, too. Nature was beautiful, and surrounding himself with it helped him come up with some of his best strategies.

Yet even nature itself wasn't good enough to beat Jaden Yuki.

Nothing Bastion had tried so far worked. His efforts were focused almost solely on defeating Jaden now, and it still wasn't enough to beat Jaden. He's thrown every card into the equation, thought through every simulation, calculated every formula, and it still wasn't enough. And until he could figure out a way to beat Jaden, he could never consider himself the best duelist in their year.

Was being the best duelist the most important goal for Bastion to set his sights on? For him, it really wasn't just a matter of status. It was about the skill, planning, and calculating involved. Defeating Jaden was more of a puzzle for him to solve than a status to strive for. Still, the fact that he couldn't beat Jaden meant Bastion had room to improve, too. He could still do better, be better. And until Bastion could reach that point and be satisfied with his efforts and abilities, he would still continue to work and train and think harder.

Still, being able to say that he could beat Jaden in a duel would be very satisfying.

Jaden was the best duelist in their year, and was an unforgettable person. Jaden wasn't one to run calculations or strategize. Rather, he believed in his cards and knew how to best utilize them, always finding a way through any situation. He was very upbeat and could become friends with almost anyone if he set his mind to it. And he was competitive, but never let the competition truly turn him against his opponent. It was definitely more than just his skill that made him unforgettable; it was hard to forget someone like Jaden. But his skills and talents still definitely contributed to that, too.

And perhaps, if Bastion was the best duelist in their class, he'd be more noticeable and rememberable as well.

Bastion was a person of science, only believing in truth backed by hard evidence. Yet, he was nearly convinced by this point that he was cursed by some power that made him practically invisible. More and more, it seemed his presence went unnoticed. Teachers would completely miss him during attendance and think he was absent. His friends would not even realize he was there and around. Something about him was just…hard to notice, he supposed. He tried not to let it get to him. He still had good friends here at Duel Academy, and he was grateful. He knew his friends cared about him and tried their best to include him. But the whole thing was still a bit disheartening, when no one ever seemed to see him.

Worse than that, was an unspoken fear he tried not to think on too much. But if Bastion was apparently invisible to the rest of the world most of the time, how hard would it be for everyone around him to forget about him completely?

Not too hard, he hoped, but he wouldn't know for sure until it happened. And he feared it would. What would it take to become forgotten? Would it happen naturally, whether he was at class and with his friends or not? Would it just take the brief separation of a school break? Would his accumulating losses against Jaden pull him down the ranks into obscurity?

He didn't want to think about it. Bastion would rather think about his training, or the upcoming class, or… Well, look at the time. He should get breakfast soon if he wanted to eat at all this morning. There was also an email on his PDA from Jaden, another invitation to duel if he felt ready, but no pressure if he needed more time to prepare.

Bastion was still remembered today. He hadn't been forgotten yet.

Time Unknown - Location Unknown

Jaden stared down at his Slifer jacket, hanging by the sleeves from his hands. He really should've been more careful, it was caked in mud now.

There was no avoiding this, he'd have to clean it. It was his only Slifer jacket, though, and he had to wear a jacket. It was too cold to go without, for one thing. The only other jacket he had, he hadn't worn since he started at Duel Academy. It was completely black, and maybe the sleeves would be a bit short by now, but surely it'd work, right? It couldn't be that bad.

The only problem was he usually wore a black shirt under his jacket, and a black shirt and a black jacket was too much for his liking. He still had a red shirt around here somewhere, he'd probably worn it the last time he wore the black jacket. That should work.

"Whoa, Jaden, I barely recognized you," Alexis said as she looked over him.

"What do you mean?" Jaden asked as he sat down next to her. Pharaoh, from seemingly nowhere, sprinted over to jump onto Jaden's lap. Jaden patiently told him now wasn't the time as he tried to get Pharaoh onto the ground.

"Your clothes. I'm used to seeing you in the Slifer outfit," Alexis explained. "So the black jacket and the red shirt just…feels wrong, now."

"Besides, that look belongs to The Chazz," Chazz added as he leaned over to glare at Jaden. "You can't steal my look."

"This is what I wore before we started at Duel Academy, so if anything, it's my look, not yours," Jaden explained. "And I can't help it. My jacket needs to be cleaned, I can't wear it."

"It's just…like, against nature for you to wear a jacket that's not red," Chazz told him.

"I feel like it's actually against the law," Alexis weighed in.

"Blasphemous, even," Chazz finished.

Jaden shrugged. "Well, if it is, I must've slept during the class that taught us about that. They can't arrest me if I don't know, right?"

"Maybe, but karma will catch up to you," Chazz warned.

"If not karma, at least the natural aging process." Alexis pointed over at one of Jaden's sleeves. "There's some threads coming lose, and the start of a tear along that seam. Looks like the sleeves might get too short in a year or two as well. You've definitely had this for awhile, you might need to replace it."

Jaden groaned. "I don't want to pay for a new one, though, this is the only spare jacket I have…"

"Well, when you get a new one, make it's red, because it really does look like we were trying to match outfits," Chazz told him.

Jaden grinned. "Just for that, I'll make sure it's another black one. I'll try to get one that looks more like yours."

"You're the worst, slacker."

Year Four, Second Half - Obelisk Blue Boys Dorm

Chazz,

It'd be pretty sweet if you read this letter before looking at the card with it, but that's probably not how it went down. So you're probably angry. Before you rip up this letter or throw away the card, please let me explain.

"Yeah, you're right about that one," Chazz mumbled as he looked over the letter in his hands. The card it came with was on the floor in front of him. Yeah, he'd looked at the card Jaden gave him, and yeah, he was angry. Jaden had about five seconds to explain himself before he got a lot angrier. But he read on, because he wanted at least some explanation for this, and Jaden better pull through on that promise.

Yubel's not evil, the letter went on. I know what you're thinking, and I know everything that happened. Trust me, I was there too, I remember. I don't have the time or space here to explain the whole reason why, but Yubel was being influenced by the Light of Destruction, and that influence is gone. They're chill now. And if you want the whole story, you can ask them yourself. I mean, you can talk to duel spirits and I left you their card, so it doesn't get easier to that. And they'll explain if you ask, no problem. They told me they would, that you deserve that much if you want it. And, they said they're sorry about what happened to you. Just trust me on this. Yubel's not going to hurt anyone anymore.

Chazz looked down at the floor, where Yubel's card was sitting, where it landed when he'd thrown it away from himself in anger. He was willing to trust Jaden on most things, much as he hated to admit it. But this? This seemed a bit much. After everything Yubel pulled, after everything Jaden pulled last year, and everything's supposed to be fine now? Well, whatever, Jaden said that Yubel would explain if he asked. Maybe he would after he finished reading this letter. Or he could wait until after dinner. Give it some thought, and actually think about it more than just this initial reaction. If he still didn't want to put Yubel through a paper shredder by then, he'd at least still want to know the details.

Please give Yubel a chance. If you were still willing to give me a chance and be my friend after I came back, then please give Yubel the same chance. I left Yubel for you so Yubel can help you, not to make things worse. I don't know if anyone else has noticed it yet, you and the others probably haven't, but something bad's coming. I'm not exactly sure when or why. But it felt like it was coming towards Duel Academy, and I can't just do nothing about it until it gets here.

All the stuff that's happened so far, it's happened because of me, or I was central to someone's plan. It doesn't feel like this'll be much different. I don't want to put you all in danger again, I don't want any of you to get hurt again for my sake. So if I can take the danger away from Duel Academy, you'll all be okay. If I leave Duel Academy, you'll be safe. So that's what I intend to do.

"You're leaving?" Chazz whispered. He gripped the letter tighter. He…wasn't expecting that. Yeah, Jaden had been more distant ever since he came back from…wherever he was. Sure, he stuck to himself more, refused to leave Slifer, barely attended class, and conveniently made himself scarce whenever anyone wanted to find him. But Jaden belonged there, Jaden being at Duel Academy was just an undisputable fact. He couldn't just leave. Where would he go without Duel Academy? What would the school do without Jaden?

And apparently some kind of threat was coming? He wasn't even giving Chazz or any of his other friends the option of helping out. That hurt just as much as Jaden leaving itself. That slacker should know by now that his friends always had his back. They weren't going to just leave him to struggle alone. After everything they'd been through forever, they deserved the choice. And they would always choose to help. That never changed, and it never would.

That had to be why that choice wasn't even being offered to them. Jaden was putting everyone else over him, which was why he was suddenly trying to work alone. What an idiot.

I'm leaving Duel Academy. But I still don't know for sure what this thing is after. It could be after Duel Academy, not me. So, in case it is, I still wanted to warn you so you were ready. I know you guys will be able to handle it if you have to. But I can't just leave you with nothing if that's the case. So Yubel's staying behind, with you, to help you guys out. And if this thing shows up at Duel Academy, I'll come back.

Either way, I won't make you hang on to Yubel forever. And, I'm gonna want Yubel back anyway. They're important to me, too important for me to let go of again. So I'll be back no matter what to take them off your hands. We'll see each other again, Chazz. It's not goodbye for good.

"It better not be," Chazz muttered.

Somehow, reading the rest of the letter had managed to make him only angrier. This slacker was just too much. He was just leaving them like this!? When he wasn't even sure if it would work the way he wanted!? And it wasn't like he needed to anway; Chazz would much rather get caught up in this mess than be left behind. Whatever it was that was coming after them, he was going to give it a piece of his mind.

He picked up Yubel's card and glared at it.

"Yubel, if you're here, you better start talking now," he told them. "Otherwise I'm going to throw you in a paper shredder and I'm going to go after that idiot and punch him in the face for this."