Welcome back everyone! bhj16 is here with a new chapter!

Prepare for the worst day in the life of Yuri and Selena everyone (lol). Two runaways versus an entire legion of Lancers mainly consisted of teenagers led by an adult who somehow did not enter prison for war crimes like his own father (seriously LDS is still just a company under Japanese jurisdiction, no governments in this would should be stupid enough to let a private company control a large part of the country or even the world).

And worry not fellas, duels will happen soon, it is just as of this chapter Dueling is still not the top priority.

To Bluedada: Writers are cruel for a reason (lol). But seriously, our little Predator couple really needs a break from all of the drama before facing another drama, that is pretty much how people function in life: life sucks our spirit out until we cannot stand up, we then rest for some time to heal, then we let life suck it out again, the cycle repeats over and over until we die.

To Guest 01: I believe many writers have written about Yuri and Selena before me but I do really like my version of them in nature, especially the polaroid camera part. And yes, I understand ARC-V focused more on Yuzu and Selena but at least they could have given Ruri and Rin's bracelets more things to do than just passive plot devices.

Have a good time reading everyone and don't forget to prepare tissues!


Spiral 5: Reality


Without opening his eyes, Jack Atlas slowly moves his right hand, reaching for the remote control on the small round table next to the bed. With a simple flick of the hand, the control is now comfortably in the proper grip of his large hand, allowing the long index to touch the red button on the top right of the device. The TV flashes and opens to life, showing the current Duel King morning news.

News about the riot in City finally going down, the ongoing abolishment of the Tops-Commons class system and its effects on the citizen mindset both positive and negative as per usual period of change, the capture of rogue criminals and extremists who naturally lost benefits from this change of ruling system, the attack of Academia in City now known as the Synchro dimension and its effects on people here, the discussion about whether the Friendship Cup will be cancelled or not since the original purpose of dividing Tops and Commons is now gone with the past and what the Lancers is doing. Jack Atlas has to admit that one of them, the borderline idiotic yet optimistic 17-year-old Pendulum boy Sakaki Yuya has changed the way City works for the long time using his own new founded voice in Dueling; while the situation in City during and after Academia's attack prevented a direct showcase, Yuya has confirmed it to Jack in a private conversation before he got off to rescue Yuzu. He looks forward to seeing the fruition of his Dueling arrow soon after the annual tournament is open again.

But that is for the home dimension part. Just because he does not live in Standard, Xyz or Fusion does not mean they are not as equally important as Synchro. Fellow Commons Crow Hogan and Shinji Weber, before Jack knows it, have joined the Lancers on the final attack against Academia on Xyz; he had reservations at first since they are definitely not disciplined soldiers by any means, but then, harsh conditions of this competitive society has molded a lot of Commons into grunts who can take punishments and keep standing up no matter what to achieve the goal just like how Jack used to be and sometimes grunts who can do jobs well at the end of the day are better than soldiers who may break down for not having enough mental endurance. Not to mention actually fighting with the Lancers directly have made them more reliable teammates than Jack could be.

If only he foresaw the ambush and went with them instead of trying to manage the situation of City over here as they told him to…

"Hey." A female voice next to him. "You awake?"

"Uh." Jack answers. "Good morning Carly."

"Morning Jack." Carly leans closer to Jack and the two change the distance to the number zero with a tender kiss. Despite the fact that there was no extreme need to hide this few-months-long mutual intimate loving relationship between the few-years-in-reign Duel King and the relatively popular reporter like those idols in South Korea, both Jack and Carly agreed to keep their relationship private for the unnecessary trouble that might happen; after the long tired weekdays of having Duels, promoting sponsored brands, doing whatever events the manager arranges for Jack and constant news-hunting for Carly, they would meet up once at weekends every two weeks at a private, scheduled location to consummate their love and affection to one another.

But schedule is not always on stable repeat. The sudden attack from Academia has more or less shaken up Jack greatly, and he needed Carly for emotional support more than ever. Sooner or later Jack must be going to help the Lancers as soon as they call him to regroup.

After brushing his teeth, Jack goes to the kitchen table and grabs one of the peeled apple segments Carly prepared for morning.

"I'll be going to the High Council building in an hour. You working soon?" He turns to his girlfriend.

Carly finishes biting a piece of apple and speaks to Jack. "No. I'm staying here today."

"Sorry about that Carly…"

"It's okay Jack." Carly reassures him, turning off the laptop she is using. "I understand, you need help, I can help."

"It's not like I can do anything right now with the City. It's now healing without my help further."

"You don't have to help a big city like that you know, a structure needs time to change, and the Lancers has made the first step."

"Yeah, big thanks to them." Jack drinks water. "All I did during my few years being King is realizing there is no way for me to change it. Something rotten to the core like that is beyond my capability to do anything."

"As always, only a huge change that affects anything can shake off the old structure away." Carly speaks. "If only they can change sooner before so many people are gone in cards like that…"

"I guess we're lucky…" Jack mutters. "But now it's not just this City and this dimension anymore Carly, it's the four dimensions. Roget is already bad enough, but that asshole Akaba Leo wants to unite the four dimensions into one and rule over it and his army is not afraid to card anyone. That's what happened to Crow and Shinji too."

Jack pauses a bit, contemplating. "My work is done here, I have to fight there… with the Lancers… and yet…"

Carly moves to Jack's side and sits close to him. "You're afraid."

Jack says nothing, but his silence basically tells anything.

"You're afraid of being sealed like Crow and Shinji, or killed like Kurosaki Shun."

"Yeah…" Jack admits. "I am still at the top at this moment Carly, still have full benefits of the winner. My life as a Common is bad, that's the reason I tried my best to be here in first place. You understand?"

"I do."

"I don't want to lose everything I gained here…" He looks at Carly straight to the eyes. "Especially you, the Top who does not judge me for where I come from."

"Jack…" Carly whispers, her lips curl into a warm smile. "I know that… but if you don't do something with the Lancers, can you feel at ease?"

Jack remains silent.

"You beat yourself up for being a tool for Tops PR for a long time, now the Lancers finally come, that's your shot right there to finally do something right. I'd love to do it with you too but you know I'm not a Duelist so those words are the only thing I can give to you."

"How… how about you?"

"I'll be fine…" Of course Jack can know how unsure Carly really is, but pointing it out definitely does not help. "I'll be fighting the war for the change in here while you keep every dimensions at peace. That's the deal. Deal?"

"Deal." The two smile at each other. "Hey Carly."

"Yeah?"

"It's still early…"

Carly's laughter gets louder and more hysterical as Jack holds her up and carries her to the bed.

"That was easy Asuka." Jack says to the young girl sitting on the passenger seat of the truck. "How about the poor taxi driver?"

"He'll wake up without ever knowing why." Asuka reassures.

"Hopefully with a swollen head or a fractured ribcage. No one expects those punches from a girl like you."

"That's not funny Jack." Asuka stares at the Duel King, pressing the joints of her fingers. "Wanna taste some big man?"

He slightly chuckles in return. "Whatever…"

Jack drives the truck further down the dark road, eventually heading for the gate of an abandoned port in Nagasaki which Asuka and Yusho have scouted right after the former spotted the runaway Fusion duo and turned it into the Lancers' temporary base of operations in the Fusion Dimension.

Ryoga and Yuto quickly pull the large gate open (as naturally the automated system controlling it no longer works) and close it as soon as Jack goes in. They immediately run towards the warehouse at the middle of the port where Jack finally stops and along with Asuka and the rest of the Lancers carried the unconscious Selena and Yuri in.

"Finally we got those two bastards." Ryoga talks to Yuto as they run together. "Time to find out why."

"Hell yeah." Yuto speaks. "I'm still quite surprised you came along with us Ryoga. You're sure leaving Heartland like that behind?"

"The war's still not over yet Yuto. Heartland might be ours again but the four dimensions are not. ARC Area Project is still going on and we need to stop that fricking dictator. Besides, my sister Rio can handle things fine without me, she's a strong person."

"And those two lookalikes of Ruri and I is our first step to stop Akaba Leo."

"Yepper. Hey Yuto."

"Yeah?"

"I can hold myself together mostly fine, but take care of Ruri okay? I don't know what happens if she sees them again."

"I'll try, but looks like she already did." Yuto and Ryoga run into the warehouse lit by several standing lamps strategically placed around the center spot, Tsukikage and Yugo close the doors as soon as everyone is inside.

Every available Lancers stands outside the illuminated spot, at the center of the spotlight is Yuri and Selena tied to two chairs on their arms and legs, a sack over each of their head.

"Time to wake 'em up."


Yuri wakes up to a slap on his right cheek. The strong and bright neon white light briefly makes him blind to everything around, but whatever small visage he can get is enough to tell him he is tied up. Again.

"Ugh… Dammit…" Yuri mutters. "Where… where am I…?"

He dashes his eyes to the left and to his shock, Selena is there, just as tied up as he is.

"Se… Selena…!" He speaks in a pained hoarse voice, still feeling the painful effect of the anaesthetic. At least there is no thallium or mercury like that bitch mentioned, otherwise he would be gone by now (not that he would die from it anyway).

Hearing someone weakly calling her name, Selena turns her head to the direction of the voice.

"Yu… Yuri…?"

"Selena… you're okay?"

"You two better hope so." A voice from their front, male, strong, dominating energy. The two teens slowly look forward, fighting through the bright light that eventually fades out enough to give them the silhouetted image of their captor.

Or, for a more accurate word: captors.

Sora, Gongenzaka, Yugo, Tsukikake, Sakaki Yuya, Kamishiro Ryoga, Sakaki Yusho, Yuto, Kurosaki Ruri, Kotsu Masumi, Jack Atlas, Tenjoin Asuka.

And standing at the centre is the source of that voice.

The leader of the Lancers.

Akaba Reiji.

"Break's over kids. Time to return to reality."

Two vs thirteen.

Tied up vs free.

No Duel Disks vs thirteen ones, hopefully without sealing function.

Broken beyond repair, Selena and Yuri painfully admits.

There is no way out of this.

"Everyone…" Selena whispers out, hesitantly looking at her former friends and comrades. "I…"

"So this is it huh?" Ruri speaks up, her voice calm yet obviously full of anger. "This is the son of a bitch you sold us out for?"

"What are you talking about?" Selena pretends.

"Ain't it obvious?" The Heartland Clover Branch student now Resistance fighter Ryoga speaks up. "Or you want proof?" He turns to his Duel Disk and opens a holographic picture of Yuri and Selena running in the rain smiling at each other. The two captives sink down, feeling the gravity of shame pinning them down the ground. "Don't worry, we left that poor woman alone, she's better not involved in any of this shit."

"Two Academia runaways in love." Yuto steps forwards a bit, keeping his distance with Ruri close. "Would be a good story to write about, if it did not include flattening our comrades to cards… and killing my best friend Shun!"

Images of Shun flash through Selena's mind again, the Fusion girl desperately tries to keep herself normal. Yuri quickly notices.

"Look…" He turns to the Lancers. "We… we don't want any more trouble with all of you… just leave us alone."

"That's too much coming from someone like you Yuri." Sora speaks up. "You carded so many people for your own pleasure, now you have the audacity to speak like that?"

"Didn't you behave like that before?" Yuri fires back. "You always boast about yourself and want to prove how superior you are. How many people have you carded? How much blood is in your hands Sora?"

"That was a long time ago. It's all in the past now."

"My past is also the past too hypocrite!"

"Not for us!" Gongenzaka suddenly yells. "You Academia destroyed Xyz, terrorized Standard and Synchro, carded many people, killed many people, including our friends! Michio, Teppei, Sawatari, Crow, Shinji, Sayaka, Allen, Kaito, Shun! And so many more! That's not something you can simply wipe of your shoulders as "the past"! That's trauma for life! Don't you understand that?!"

Yuri answers after a long silence, to the Lancers' shock. "I do… I know it…"

"You're joking." Masumi grits her teeth. "No one turns over a new leaf that quick. You carded my friend Todo Yaiba and that bitch Selena over there carded my other friend Shijima Hokuto, and now my other friend Hiragi Yuzu is captured! Do you know how much pain you caused me ever since that day?"

Remembering their deeds, Yuri and Selena hold their gaze down the ground, unable to say anything in return.

Yuya places a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down Masumi. We all share the same pain of losing friends but this is not the time."

"I can't Yuya…" She gently puts his hand down. "I couldn't go to school anymore after that day… all because of them and Academia…! I could only keep Dueling and Dueling every day because I missed my friends so much. Unless I beat their asses and get them back, I cannot be normal again."

Yuya steps closer to the LDS girl. "I lost Yuzu too, you know how important she is to me. But right now we cannot do anything yet, even if you beat them up however you want, then Yaiba, Hokuto and… and Yuzu…" Masumi's eyes wince painfully at the mention of that name. "They would still not be returning to us. So just calm down okay?"

"He's right Masumi." Asuka turns to her.

Masumi eventually calms her breaths down. "Yeah… I'm fine now…"

"Okay kids, better not waste any more time." Yusho speaks up. He looks at the Fusion duo and speaks in the fatherly manner after sitting down on a chair in front of them. "Yuri, Selena, we would very much like to unleash our anger and rage on you for what you did if we want to, but anger only leads to misery and we all had enough misery already. That is not the reason we captured and put you two here."

"Then… why?" Selena speaks up, refusing to look at the man she screwed up.

"We want to stop Akaba Leo and his ARC Area Project. From what I know, you two escaped Academia a few days ago."

"And you want us to… guide you in?"

"That's right." Yusho confirms. "Tell us everything about Academia, especially how to get in."

"We can't…" Yuri speaks shakily, the feeling of fear visible on his face. "We can't go back in there… we can't…! Leave us out of this!"

"Yuri…?" Selena turns to her boyfriend.

"Don't worry about that coward." Yugo speaks up. "We just need to know how you two got out and then we will simply trace back."

"Stand down Yugo." Yusho stops him. "He's having a panic attack."

"What?" Yugo has to do a double check to confirm. Yes, Yuri is shaking very hard and sweating profusely right now and Selena looks at him with a worried face. "What the hell is going on? Are you kidding us, pawn of Fusion? Where's the sadistic face I saw a few weeks ago asshole?"

"Stop it Yugo!" Selena turns to the boy. "He's panicking don't you see?!"

"All of you SHUT UP!" Yusho yells, the suddenly intense demeanour snap shocks everyone present, especially his son Yuya and even the usually stoic Reiji.

"D…Dad?"

"Yusho-san…?"

"Everyone stay the hell back!" He orders again. Having no other choice, Yugo quietly returns to the Lancers' circle.

"At least you got my name right this time bastard."

"Really? You only care about your name's proper pronunciation right now?" Yuya whispers to him.

"Shut up Yuya… But what's really going on with them in the last few days?"

"Something horrible perhaps?"

Yusho faces Yuri and Selena again.

"Let me guess, something has happened in Academia to you right Yuri? Reacting with such fear like that, it must be big enough to make you shiver that badly."

Yuri does not say anything and only keeps staring at the ground and darting glances at Selena for emotional support.

"Does it have something to do with… Akaba Leo?"

Yuri and Selena widen their eyes in surprise, not expecting of this information.

"You know him?" Selena asks.

"That's right. My closest friend from the old times, forgot to tell you that before you went to Xyz." Yusho confirms. "Before he wanted to rule the four dimensions with an iron fist. Still a hunch though, lucky guess I guess?"

Yuri chuckles slightly. "Funny old man. But yeah…" His voice gets quieter, unsure of whether to say something or not. "He's the reason why…"

"You ran away." Yusho finishes for Yuri, he remains silent before reluctantly gives a small nod.

"What did he do to you?"

Yuri breathes heavily again, the traumatizing memory of the incinerator flashes back in front of his eyes. He shakes his head repeatedly like a broken robot, his eyes start having watery substance on it.

"Yuri?" Yusho calmly speaks to the boy. "Are you with me Yuri?"

Yuto angrily shouts. "Stop faking panic attacks asshole!"

Yusho quickly turns to the Xyz boy. "Stop that Yuto!"

"Yuri…" Selena softly calls him. "Yuri, don't be afraid. Focus on me…"

"Focus on my voice Yuri…" Selena's voice gets more echoed in his ears; her bracelet faintly lights up in violet.

"Selena…" The moment Yuri thinks about her, different memories appear in front of his eyes. The peaceful time when he was young, the fun time he had playing games…

The good times he got with Selena back then and now…

Yuri closes his eyes, taking deep breathes one by one.

Feeling his heartbeat stabilized enough, he opens his eyes and turns to Selena who faintly smiles at him.

"Yusho-san, please stop doing this!" Selena pleads to the man. "I know I have no position to talk to you like that but-"

"It's fine Selena." Yuri cuts her off.

"Yuri?"

"You helped me too much already…" Taking a deep breath again, he faces Yusho. "Akaba Leo… he…"

"He…"

"He ambushed me… then…"

Yuri swallows. "He put me in the incinerator and burned me alive…"

Besides Selena, everyone else in the empty warehouse takes this information in the way anyone would expect: shocked faces, widened eyes and opened mouths, several have two and others have all three.

"What the…"

"Incinerator…?"

"But… how? How could you BE here?"

"I wished I wouldn't be here!" Yuri cries out. "I wished I stayed dead! And I know I was dead there! But somehow I wasn't… then next thing I knew, I woke up in my last foster house…"

"That means…" Yusho says.

"Right, I did not escape. I died and somehow got resurrected far away from Academia."

"When?" Yusho asks.

"…What?"

"When did he burn you like that?"

"Maybe…" Yuri stutters. "About 3 or 4 am… a few days ago… after Academia ambushed you…"

"Wait!" Yuto notices. "You said 3 or 4 am?"

"Yeah… so what?"

"That's the same time Yuya, Yugo and I lost consciousness!"

"Hold up." Reiji speaks up. "So Yuto, what you want to say is, when Yuri got burned in the incinerator, at the same time all three of you boys screamed and lost consciousness?"

"That's the theory…"

"Something else happened?"

Sora turns to the Lancers' leader. "Yeah I remember! Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon was shining up very brightly too."

"Same thing with Dark Rebellion." Ruri reveals.

"Probably Clear Wing too. Hold up let me check." Yugo takes out the card from his deck holster. Something in it surprises him. "Uh… what?"

"What's that Yugo?" Yuya asks.

"Check your dragons." Yuya and Yuto do it.

"What the hell?"

"The effects… changed?!"

"Yeah…" Yugo confirms. "Clear Wing does not target the activated monster anymore; it negates the activation right away now."

"Oh yeah… Odd-Eyes has a new Pendulum effect here…" Yuya shows the card, confirming what he said.

"My dragon does not target Level 5 or higher monsters anymore…" Yuto notes. "And it detaches two Overlay Units now…"

"But the boost is permanent." Ruri notices. "No need for Phantom Knights Possession to give Xyz monsters Levels any longer Yuto."

"Yeah… that's… kinda a fair trade I guess?"

Sora wonders. "How about Starve Venom?"

"Forget it." Yuri speaks up, catching everyone's attention. "My Deck and Duel Disk were burned along with me too."

"Wait up…" Masumi, feeling completely bewildered, asks. "What is going on? Effect change, resurrection? What the hell is that all about?"

"Something strange has been happening to Yuya, Yuto and Yugo ever since the war Masumi." Gongenzaka explains. "Honestly we don't know the full detail, but sometimes they suddenly turn angry, their eyes glow up, and they duel more aggressively too."

"When they along with Yuri were in the underground station in Synchro." Reiji talks to Masumi. "They even chanted something like "becoming one"."

"Becoming one?"

"That's pretty much what we know so far. But it's shouldn't be a surprise. Yuzu, Ruri, Rin, Selena, four girls with the same faces, then you have the same thing with Yuya, Yuto, Yugo and Yuri. Akaba Leo knows about all eight of them, he wants something with the girls and all of the boys gone. And he succeeded with Yuri after reaping all of the benefits that boy gave him…" He turns to the Fusion boy. "Or so he thought…"

A tear silently runs out of Yuri's eyes, the proof of who he really is to Professor hammers further into his fragile mind.

"So, to sum up." Jack says. "This Akaba Leo only wants the four girls for ARC Area Project. He used Yuri like a controlled sadistic hunter then got rid of him once all of the four girls are in his hands and he proved troublesome to that madman somehow. A tool without knowing, what a life…" Nobody wants to admit it, but they all feel some sort of pity for that predator. One of the greatest enemies they have to face turns out to be a disposable tool who now seemingly only wants to run away for a new life. "I guess being a Common and then a PR target for Tops is still better than that, but don't misunderstand, you don't have any of my sympathy, Yuri, Selena."

"Yes…" Yuri says hoarsely. "That's everything we have… We only want to live a new life now… so…" He bites his lips and hisses his nose, trying to keep the tears from falling down. "Please…"

"Leave us alone…"

"That's not everything Yuri." Yuya tells the Fusion boy. "You really think both of you committed those atrocities, then you can run away for a new life together? Justice and karma, they exist for a reason."

"Then what else are we supposed to do? Do nothing?" Yuri then looks at Selena. "Whatever happened… Selena and I are simply tools for Akaba Leo… but we are not tools! We're…"

"We're humans!" Pure desperation on his voice, no trace of deception, only honesty which only angers Yuya more and more. "We have a choice to dictate our fate!"

"You lost that choice the moment you carded the first person in your life!" Yuya yells, his hands clenching into fists. He angrily approaches the captives. "Doesn't matter if Akaba Leo broke you like that, you still carded the first person by your own will. Then you carded everyone else in Xyz, then you captured Rin, Ruri and Yuzu! Do you know how much pain you caused to everyone still alive and grieving for them?! Kids wondering where their parents are, teenagers fighting through the pain of losing comrades everyday, adults who run away from the sight of these Duel Disks!"

"Oi Yuya!" Gongenzaka holds Yuya by the shoulder. "Get back!"

"Get off me Gongenzaka!" Yuya violently pushes the hand away. Yusho immediately stands up and silently holds Yuya back. However, he does nothing to calm him down, knowing it is better to just let his son release the pending rage inside him out as he has gripped him in place strong enough to avoid any physical fights possibly happening.

Yuya points at his Duel Disk on his left hand. "I use this, I use Duel Monsters to bring smiles and joy to everyone, yet you people use it for war! You Academia destroyed the smiles and the lives of so many people that I cannot enjoy Dueling anymore! And now Yuzu is kidnapped again and Shun is dead!"

The next words coming out of his mouth are in a dangerous whisper. "I'm done with bringing smiles Yuri, especially to assholes like you, I'll just turn all of you into cards if I can!"

Everyone widens their eyes in shock, Yusho stares down at his son with complete denial on his face.

"S…Son…?!" Yusho manages.

Yuya breathes heavily, unable to believe what he just said after the negative rush wears off.

"Yuya!" Reiji yells his name, alerted at the boy's complete shift. Yusho raises his hand up with the palm open, a sign not to do anything.

Yuri can only keep staring at the angry face of Yuya, the same visage he used to wear each night after daily torturous training cursing Selena and the world for beating him up that way, the same face that twisted Yuri into the sadist he was before.

"I'm sorry dad, everyone… I lost it…" Yuya calms down a bit, signalling his father to let him go. "But at the very least Yuri, you were abused to turn into like that." He turns to the tied girl. "Not for you Selena, you chose to betray us all by yourself. We were friends Selena, why?"

Dammit, does anyone remember those words to torment Selena every moment possible?

"He's right Selena…" Yuto speaks from behind. "We saw you as our friend."

"So why did you…" Yugo takes a step forward. "Why did you betray us for that asshole over there?"

"Say it now Selena!" Ruri orders. "I thought I could see you as a friend too… then you did that and killed my brother! Why?!"

Selena fearfully leans her back to the chair, trying to run away from those angry faces. Those nightmare-like faces would have kept coming closer to her if Yusho, Reiji, Tsukikage, Gongenzaka, Ryoga and Jack did not stop them.

"Selena…" Yusho turns to her after clearing the teens out. "Should I be angry at you now?"

"I don't know…" Selena weakly whispers, avoiding his gaze at her. "But I know I don't get to say anything after what I did…"

"We trusted you to go to Xyz with Yugo and Rin to fight Academia and establish the connection from there to Fusion. You proved it well, so you clearly had a reason to betray us like that. Am I angry? Yes. But like I said, anger solves nothing in the long run. It's better to talk it all out, then we figure out a non-violent way to solve. So, since Yuri has revealed his side of the story, it's only fair you do the same thing as well."

"Yusho-san… I…" She stutters.

"I'm listening, we all are. But not enough patience before we hit the limit." He subtly warns her. Clearly all of them are VERY angry at her but they do not want to use their hands right now.

Selena looks at Yuri, who silently nods, giving her the signal.

"Alright…" Selena breathes. "It's true that I considered the Lancers over there as friends. Real friends for life even. But no matter how much new friends I have, it does not change the dirtiest spot of my story…"

"Yuri." Yusho points out.

Selena nods. "Yuri and I were orphans. We first met each other at the foster house when we were 6, then we pretty much got glued together ever since. When we turned 13, Akaba Leo adopted us to Academia."

"Akaba Leo?" Reiji notes.

"Yes. We thought he was looking for potential Duelists for his school so we accepted. Turned out we were captured to a military base…"

"So you tried to run away, that's when I met you."

"Right. But as you knew, he captured me again and kicked you back to Standard. Eventually though, they brainwashed us to believing the "uniting four dimensions in harmony" shit and fighting with honour. Still, Yuri and I still stayed close together, until that day…"

"What day?" Yusho asks.

"A few months after we got in Academia… Akaba Leo told us that Yuri has been chosen to receive "special training" from the advanced Academia program intended to produce best Duel soldiers for the front line. I wasn't… and in a heat of a moment… I made the worst mistake in my life…"

"I…" Selena stops a bit to hold herself together. "I thought Yuri has bribed Akaba Leo to run away from me somehow, thinking I was holding him back… and I cut off my ties with him…"

"Then let me guess…" Ryoga speaks up. "That "special training" is…"

Yuri suddenly cuts him off. "Continuous duels with the trainer named Sanders from early morning to late night every single day. Each time I lost he would whip me about ten to twenty times and force me to stand up and duel again. Only when I win do he let me rest and eat. It happened for three years until the invasion on the Xyz dimension was coming close." Despite the detached and monotone way of detailing, Yuri can feel the pain inside him rising up again. Three years of constant pain and misery had twisted him into the foolish predator like that. All Lancers present cannot hide their utter shock at Akaba Leo's cruel treatment of that boy.

"I didn't know why he subjected me to that back then… but now…" Yuri loses control of himself and cries out. "He really hates me for some reason…"

Such a heartbreakingly pathetic scene going on that no one dares to say anything. Even for the worst of the worst, they all know Yuri definitely did not deserve that cruel treatment. Yugo even silently gives Yusho a face cloth to let Yuri cry on.

When Yuri finally stops uncontrollably crying out like a toddler, Selena wipes her own tears with her shoulder and continues. "During the all-out-attack, I got information from the Tag Duelists Gloria Tyler and Grace Tyler that the high-ranking enforcers of Academia has another mission."

"What mission?"

"To eliminate Sakaki Yuya, Yuto, Yugo… and Yuri." Selena reveals.

"That's why…" Yuya remembers. "Edo Phoenix told me he wanted me dead."

"Tenjōin Fubuki too." Yuto recalls.

Yugo speaks up. "Same thing with Kagemaru."

"I abandoned my best friend Yuri for a stupid mistake." Selena resumes. "Then watched him getting tortured every day for three years, then a full year as the feared predator of Academia. I tried to run away from that and forget it all, but I couldn't… and his death was very near… Therefore, I had to return to Academia to find him before it was too late…"

"By making a deal with Edo Phoenix." Ruri says.

"Yes… I told him the location of Yuzu, Rin and you and I got to return to Academia. The rest is as you all knew…"

"So…" Speaks Ruri shakily. "Because of that filthy "childhood friend" of yours…" A tear runs down from her eye. "That Shun had to die?!"

"It wasn't meant to be that way!" Selena frantically explains. "Everyone was only meant to be carded and you girls were only meant to be captured, but Shun helped you escape so Edo was angry…"

Ruri's tears run down more and more, a barely concealed look of pain and rage on her face.

"My dear brother died because of you, you bitch!"

"I'm sorry Ruri, I'm sorry everyone! I did not want any of this to happen! I did not want any of this to-"

"SHUT UP!" Ruri yells. In a quick motion, she quickly dashes towards Selena, swiftly passing through the attempted hold from Yusho and punches the Fusion girl so hard that both of them fall over far away.

"Selena!" Yuri screams.

Ruri quickly gets up and punches Selena again.

"Ruri stop!" Yuto and everyone else restrain her. Still very pissed, Ruri fights through the struggle with all of her strength and kicks Selena in the stomach, causing the poor girl to spit out blood.

The second kick to the stomach before she is completely restrained is also a success, but not at the person Ruri wants to.

Still tied to the chair, Yuri has somehow stood up from his spot and lied down in front of Selena, taking a hit for her.

"Please…" Yuri speaks through pain and tears; he spits out blood from his mouth. "Please… don't…"

Everyone stands still, not doing anything.

Yuri mumbles through the pain. "I… I let myself… become a twisted mess… and ruined everyone's lives… and Selena she… she did even worse to bring me back from the deep hole I created…"

Selena faintly looks at the back of her boyfriend blurred by the tears in her eyes.

"If you want to beat someone… fine, beat me… You want to know how to attack Academia… fine… I'll say everything I know… Just please…" His voice slowly slips to something unrecognizable. "Don't hurt Selena…"

The Fusion boy and girl cry out again with the latter hiding her face in the back of the former, staining the purple T-shirt of his with tears; Ruri sobs heavily into Yuto who moves both of them out of the warehouse and Ryoga follows suit. After several minutes of stunned silence and emotional emptiness, Yuya and Yugo move Yuri and Selena up on their chairs, Masumi and Sora then get the first aid kit from the truck to stitch them up.

"Everyone." Reiji talks. "Yusho-san and I will keep watch over Yuri and Selena for now, we'll keep probing these two for information."

"You sure about that?" Sora asks.

"Letting all of you release steam this much is already enough, and as you have seen, we still got nothing so far. Tsukikage, keep watch outside and inform us if there is something wrong."

"Roger that Reiji-dono." Tsukikage nods.

"The rest of you, feel free to take a rest around this harbour, just make sure to stay indoors or out of sight in case of Academia trackers and Juvenile Officers."


If one wants to take a look at the harbour from afar, they will most likely be choosing the top of the mountain overlooking the gate and therefore the entire large landscape structure for shipping products in and away. But even with that advantageous spot for sightseeing, what lies behind the large land of containers will still be hidden, which makes it a perfect spot to hide from anyone choosing the mountain to overlook.

Asuka leans against the wall of the empty red container, the cold night wind flowing by sweeps her dyed blonde bangs over her sad brown eyes. Holding a cigarette on her right hand, she moves it up towards her mouth and smokes it; the red fire at the top slowly spreading backwards, burning the white paper and the chemicals inside it. The heat from the smoke keeps Asuka calm in the night somewhat.

She blows the smoke out of her hand, looking thoughtfully and thoughtlessly at the same time at the greyish trail. The moment the image she tries to imagine appears faintly as a spectre from her self-deluded eyes, the deeper the young adult girl feels a painful choking of her iron- coated will.

"Asuka-san." Gongenzaka approached her from the left.

"Oh! Gongenzaka-kun." Asuka acknowledges the big boy. "You don't stay with your friends?"

"I checked and talked to them already so I went outside for some air. How are you hold up?"

"As normal, just relaxing before tomorrow. Have some?" She gives him the cigarette.

Gongenzaka politely shakes his head in denial. "No thanks. Smoking's gonna kill you in the long run you know; a young girl like you should not indulge in it."

"You think I'm young Gongenzaka? I'm 20 already and I don't know whether I get to survive long in this fight. Better indulge in anything while I can." She makes a suggestive look at the Steadfast Duelist.

Uncomfortable, Gongenzaka sighs and ticks his tongue. "Stop it, I'm only 17 right now."

The girl chuckles. "Just messing with you big boy, why resorting to double standard that quick?" Asuka flicks the cigarette down to the ocean below. "How are you doing?"

"…" Gongenzaka remains silent before eventually slipping out. "Not sure… Everything just went up and down and gets messy all over."

"Uh huh."

"You know what? I… I first joined the Lancers to stop this war… I thought this was a simple good vs bad, we do our best and win and call it a beautiful day in history… then it just kept getting more complicated as it went on…"

Gongenzaka stares at the vast sea ahead, trying to find some comfort in it. "Synchro was a shithole, Xyz was worse, but then we had a true win in there… and then Selena just… crashed it all down, all for that asshole Yuri. How ironic… the same thing from Yuto and Ruri, Yugo and Rin and especially from my friends Yuya and Yuzu that lights up the dark days became our downfall…"

"Yeah…" Asuka sighs. "All of our efforts, gone, because of a selfish desire to bring back someone from the dark side… But to be honest, If I was her, and if there is a chance, no matter how small it is, I would try doing the same thing."

"You mean your twin brother Fubuki?"

"Yep…" She looks up at the sky, a sad look on her face as she recalls. "Just like Yuri and Selena, Fubuki and I were very close, then we got caught into the "righteous mission" Professor declared. At the start of the invasion he was chosen but I wasn't and stayed here; Professor explained that although I did have Fusion, my main playstyle is Ritual, therefore it is not fitted for the motto we were aiming for."

"Were you jealous that you did not fight in the front lines?"

"Of course…" Asuka shamefully admits. "Jealous of those in the front lines, and even my brother too… until they returned…"

"What happened then?"

"I found a girl sitting quietly at the corner of the front yard, she was… depressed… I asked her why, she replied she and her comrades carded many innocent people, women and children even… would that ring any "righteous mission" to you?"

"No."

"Hence, we tried to run away."

"Your brother?"

"No… I tried to warn him, but he refused and even threatened to card me and the girl… so I had no other choice but to leave him behind… we escaped on the boat, but when we got to shore, the Juvenile Officers were already there. They carded the girl and I was about to suffer the fate too…"

"Until Sakaki Yusho saved you." Gongenzaka says. "He told me that before."

"And the rest is history…" Asuka reaches for the pocket of her blue jeans and takes out a card; printed on it is the image of the carded Tenjoin Fubuki. The beautiful memories of the past returns to her mind like a one-reeler as soon as she looks at it.

"Thanks for getting this back to me Gongenzaka-kun."

"No problem…" Gongenzaka says hesitantly. "We had no idea who this guy was until you told us… I'm sorry…"

"It's not your fault… He is my brother… but… he chose to fight against me and you… so there was no other choice…"

"Whatever happened Asuka-san, don't forget Akaba Leo is the real enemy out there, that's the person responsible for everything on both sides."

"There, all done." Masumi finishes administering the adhesive bandages on the face of Selena after wrapping white bandage around her stomach and arms and legs since Ruri attacked her while the Fusion girl was still tied. "Don't thank me. After what you did to Hokuto, be glad I cannot beat that beautiful face of yours any further than that."

"Hokuto?" Yuri speaks up, eyeing at Sora who stands near the door of the warehouse. "I don't know about him, but Sora said he was an asshole."

"But he was still my friend, and so did Yaiba. Just like how that bitch is to you Yuri." Masumi reminds. "I don't forget what you two did to my friends. If you hadn't done that, I would have not been this much of a mess now."

Selena sighs. "Masumi… whatever you think… we're all way past that point now… it's not about personal vengeance anymore… it's the four dimensions now."

Masumi pauses briefly. She gets up and stares emotionlessly at Selena, then in all of a sudden she swings her right hand right at the left cheek of the Fusion girl, catching everyone in the warehouse by surprise.

"Really…?" Sora sighs.

"Bitch slap." Ryoga whistles.

"Selena!" Yuri gasps in shock. "Masumi… stop!"

"Girl's talk Yuri, so shut up." Ignoring the Fusion boy, Masumi turns to Selena. She grabs Selena's chin and turns it to make that traitor look at her. "Then what did you do about a week ago, to the Lancers and Resistance? Especially to Yuto and Ruri?! Ain't it personal? Tell me something else if going back to that son of a bitch there is not personal?"

"Alright that's enough." Reiji has approached from behind Masumi. "Masumi, it is best for you to take a rest now."

"And you, Akaba Reiji." Masumi turns to face the leader who does not say anything. "You dared to erase our memories and lied to our parents. I know now is not the time, so after everything is done, I'll deal with you later…" The last words were spoken in a whisper.

Masumi gets out of the warehouse and with a map already in her head she goes to the control room not far away. Opening the door to get inside, she is surprised to find out she is not alone.

"Oh shh-" Masumi quickly diverts her eyes away from the scene inside.

"Masumi?!" Ruri's shocked voice, her face blushing heavily.

"Already at second base?!" Masumi says, a little disgusted.

"What? You like the scene?" Ignoring his own burning cheeks, Yuto harshly fires back as he and Ruri quickly adjust their clothes and hair to normal.

Masumi looks at the cleaned Xyz couple now. "Of course not you idiot. I can't imagine my friends Yuya and Yuzu doing that okay? Same faces shit…" She mutters.

Ruri crosses her arms. "Well get used to it girl. What are you doing here anyway?"

"I was looking for a place to rest, not a scene I regretted knowing since I was 12. Any spare room?"

"Tons of chairs in the control room back there." Yuto points at the door behind him.

"No bed?"

"This isn't the sleeping quarters. War is not nice to anyone Masumi, even girls."

"Not like you two will need beds anyway…" Masumi trails off as she opens the door to the control room. A large room with many computers and machines large pane of mirrors giving whoever in there a nice view of the large portion of the harbour and the sea ahead of it. "But even if there were beds, nobody would be sleeping well at night after losing things…"

"Yeah… I get it Masumi…" Ruri murmurs. "Academia ruined everything…"

"Sorry for that but uh…" Masumi clears her throat. "The night's still long and… we all probably won't be sleeping soon so… would you two mind a talk?"

The Xyz couple stare at Masumi, unsure of what to say.

"C'mon, you two still playing the "avoiding" card ever since I got here? I don't like this either you know."

Yuto and Ruri eventually relent despite the bad feeling they all feel. All three of them go to the control room and sit down, facing each other.

Masumi sighs deeply as she takes a look at the calm waves afar. "How long has it been that way to you two?"

"About a year, give or take." Yuto answers.

"It's only a month for me…" Masumi bites her lower lip. "And it's already so overbearing."

"You don't have parents to talk it out?" Ruri asks.

Masumi smiles bitterly. "I do, and I did, my dad even brought me to hospital to treat my mental health. I'm no stupid protagonist who ignores mental issues." All three chuckle at this smart diss.

"But still… it did not help… I honestly can't imagine how you two dealt with Academia's invasion."

"We have no idea how we did either." Ruri speaks up. "We lost our parents, lost our friends, our relatives… then our comrades got sealed in cards one by one until there was so few of us left…"

"How about the time when you got kidnapped?"

"Hard nights once again… I cried thinking about our comrades, our friends… Sayaka, Allen, Kotori, Ryoga, Kaito, Yuto and…" Ruri carefully glances at Masumi, knowing how badly she would react hearting this. "My brother."

"Yeah…" Masumi murmurs. "Your brother, Kurosaki Shun right? The same person who attacked LDS two months ago."

"Alright Masumi, stop." Yuto halts her. "If this is why you sought us for, then don't say anything else anymore."

"Not yet Yuto. He might be a precious person to you two who rightfully searched for his abducted sister, but to us and especially to me he's the start of misery; there are always at least two sides of everything." Masumi shifts her back up and crosses her legs.

"First off, my LDS course teacher Marco got turned into a card, then when I asked for his friend Tio he returned in a card later the same day too, then three more LDS employees. That alone was enough to send their families and friends to distress."

Ruri looks down in shame, Yuto silently places a hand around her.

"Judging by that face, I guess your brother and your boyfriend never told you that." Masumi points out.

"Masumi…!" Yuto grits his teeth at the girl.

"Don't Yuto…" Ruri touches his embracing hand gently. "Let Masumi talk…"

Staring in silence for a bit, Masumi continues. "Then he attacked me, Hokuto and Yaiba, we thought we would be turned into cards soon until that asshole of a CEO Reiji came and erased our memories. I spent days wondering about the wounds in my body and thinking Kurosaki Shun was our friend all along…" Masumi pauses, letting the gravity of her words press down Yuto and Ruri.

"In the name of her sister, he made the first step destroying my life. You were there right Yuto? Why didn't you stop him?"

"I tried…" Yuto weakly answers. "But he was too angry to reason with…"

"Yeah… and when Selena and Yuri carded my two other friends, and when those memories returned… I realized I got hurt forever for something that doesn't matter to me at all… I couldn't sleep normally anymore, I couldn't go to school like normal anymore…" Masumi takes out her Deck and slams a green card with the spiral artwork down on the control panel. "All because of this card…"

Fusion.

Yuto and Ruri hold hands, trying to find the heat from each other to calm down. They could lash out at Masumi for doing this if they want to, but truthfully, they have no right to do it since however small it was, they took a bit of a part in ruining Masumi's life.

"I chose Fusion course because I wanted to, not because of wanting to piss off Shun and you two, and yet I got hurt because of what? The inter-dimensional war? The Lancers? The greater purpose? Just because I am not in a war doesn't mean I get to suffer this much!"

"Then find Shun and rage on!" Yuto raises his voice, unable to take this much more. "Not us! Don't make Ruri cry anymore Masumi!"

"I'd very much love to… if only he was here and not a few inches below the ground."

"You…!" Ruri jolts up and nearly charges at Masumi if not for Yuto holding her back.

"Ruri please!" Yuto pleads at her. "This is not the time Ruri… calm down…"

Realizing what she nearly did, Ruri relaxes her breathes and sits down again.

"Do not speak about him like that to us Masumi!" Yuto warns the girl. "You know how painful that is."

"Then my pain doesn't count?" Masumi sharply counters. "Whatever happened, he is remembered as a heroic fighter for Heartland and the Lancers, a good brother and a good friend, and suddenly everyone forgets what he did to normal people like me? Don't say "it's war" to me Yuto, your pain is big but I did not play any part in it, yet I got sucked into this war with no one giving a care but myself!"

Deafening emptiness.

Ruri wipes the tears in her eyes despite trying best not to let it form in.

Yuto exchanges between glaring at Masumi and comforting his girlfriend.

Masumi does not say or do anything besides quietly keeping her eyes on the two people the guy who wrecked her life did it for. Such a cruel irony perhaps, the man this girl wants to let out all of her anger and rage on is dead and will be remembered positively in the long run and she had no other choice but to remind them the reality of his darker side with her own sharp tongue despite knowing how bad of an image she will leave. In the larger scheme of things Masumi's misery does not matter at all and just like Selena has said to her, they are all way past the point of personal hatred. But can anyone really live with that pain alone?

"Look…" Ruri manages after a long silence. "The depth of your pain, I am really sorry about that, but who is not in pain here?"

The two girls quietly stare at each other.

"Nobody." Ruri continues. "And who is the real origin of this pain we are all suffering?"

Masumi answers. "Akaba Leo…"

Ruri nods. "Right. He started all of this… creating a chain reaction that made everything like this. I'm not diverting the blame off my brother here Masumi, but let me ask you this: why did you join us when you know we indirectly break your life?"

Masumi leans back on the chair and breathes out. "For a chance to bring my friends back to life, to rescue Yuzu… and…"

"To forget the pain." Yuto finishes for her.

"Yeah…" Masumi nods. "But honestly I'm not sure about that part… not all pain can go away…"

"No one's certain about that, but you got the drive to do what you want to do. I know you didn't join the Lancers for anything greater than getting your friends back and you don't like Reiji or Shun or us two at all, but you did; therefore, even if you hate us, nothing positive can come out of it."

"Don't get me wrong, I don't hate any of you." Masumi tells him. "But like I said, there are different sides of one same story. And now we are all fighting together as Lancers for the same end goal right? Can't let any negativity between us dragging on, which includes you two avoiding me."

"That's why you found us? To let it all out?"

"Yeah… and I'm sorry for venting my hatred on you two like that…" Yuto and Ruri glare up in surprise, Masumi diverts her eyesight away from them. "I could not hold it further, and I know you two will know it better than anyone else."

Surprised at first, Ruri eventually accepts the apology. "Yeah… that was mean, but I don't blame you for that, I'd do the same thing If I were you."

"It's fine if you hate me, I don't care, I know who I am."

Yuto slightly nods at that. "Then I guess we are even now right?"

"I hope so… We're all not gonna sleep much anyway so…" Masumi grabs her Deck and raises it up to Yuto and Ruri with a small smile on her face. "How about a table Duel?"

Ruri glances at Yuto for a bit, then she takes out her own Deck too. "Why not? I'll call Ryoga."

"I'm in too." Yuto joins in. "Let me find a table."

"Hey Mom." Akaba Reiji speaks to the microphone of his Duel Disk placed on the table.

"Reiji. You okay? How are you doing?" Despite the occasional static from the still-beta connection between two dimensions, Reiji can still feel the warmth from his mother Akaba Himika.

"I'm-" A child voice interrupts him.

"Brother! Are you there?" Hearing Reira's voice from the other end puts a smile on Reiji's face instantly.

He says to her in a cheerful tone. "Umm. I'm good Reira. How about you Reira? Why are you up so late like this?"

"I'm doing good brother!" Reira says excitedly. Despite the call being limited to normal voice call, Reiji can imagine the cheerful face from her. "Mother Himika has been treating me well, we even visited You Show Duel School to play with my friends there this morning. I couldn't sleep until I told you that."

"That's good to hear." Indeed. Before asking Tsukikage to bring her back to Standard back when the younger Akabas were still stuck in Synchro dimension, he had ensured that Tsukikakge would deliver his message to his mom: treating Reira better than sending her with him to the war zone. Reiji still could not accept that it took nearly seeing Reira turned into a card by the hands of Yuri and desperately calling for him for help to realize how deeply immoral he has become.

"How is everyone out there brother? Are they okay?"

Reiji quietly looks out of the improvised peephole of the truck to look at the few people there: Yuri, Selena and Yuya, Yugo, Yusho, Sora.

"They're okay Reira, don't worry." That was anything but the truth, but why would one want to break a young child with brutal reality?

"Is Selena-neechan okay?" The question freezes the leader. "Don't tell me she's captured like Rin-neechan and Yuzu-neechan brother."

Reiji bites his lips to avoid letting out a sigh. "She's okay. We got her before Academia did, don't worry Reira. Selena and Ruri are okay." Half-truth is enough; full truth will break the girl who valiantly protected Selena back when she got paralyzed by Security.

A brief silence as Reiji hears his mom saying something inaudible to Reira.

"Mother said I have to sleep now for the next morning at school. Good night brother!"

"Umm. Good night Reira."

Silence again which Reiji assumes that his mom has brought Reira out back to her bedroom. The leader of the Lancers glances at his side where a bottle of alcohol is just a reach away.

"Son, you there?"

"Yes I'm here. Thanks for not letting her know about Selena mom."

"Don't mention it. After what we both did to that poor soul, this is the only thing I could do for her."

"Leo Corporation's still good?"

"It still is son. Don't forget I've been in the business scene for longer than you, especially after that asshole disappeared."

Reiji chuckles. "I know… I was stupid back then but I know now mom… running a company while dealing with a mad husband who left you and a stubborn son like me… You're incredible mom."

"You're exaggerating again Reiji." Reiji could imagine the smirk from his mom and her usual counter towards that word he usually uses to compliment her especially during every March 8th.

"I'm not mom. And I never saw you drinking in front of me either, although I knew for certain you usually did when things got rough."

Himika sighs deeply.

A long silence.

"Don't drink Reiji-kun…" She says softly. "You have a bottle near you right?"

"Can't hide anything from you huh?" Reiji grabs the bottle and looks at it with a sad smile. "Being a CEO or a leader has one same shit mom: pressure. And after what Selena did…"

Reiji pauses. Each sentence after are said with a breath of pressure.

"I couldn't deal with it anymore…"

"I'm losing myself everyday mom… I… I uh…"

"I don't know if I could deal with this any longer…"

Reiji puts the bottle away, he buries his head under the table, closing his eyes and placing the Duel Disk close to his face.

"How could you…"

"How could you go through that time mom?"

A pause again.

10 seconds.

"Reiji-kun." Himika speaks up.

"That's something I cannot really figure out in words… but if I can say something… then…"

"Whether the pressure and the pain hit me bad, threatening me to cast out my mentality, I always think of the reason that gives my life meaning."

"And that is you."

Like a kid receiving a blessing, Reiji slowly opens his eyes.

"The best gift Heaven gave to me; the person I can always feel proud of no matter what."

"Then the pain goes away and I can keep going."

Reiji keeps staring into the dark space ahead.

"You have the Lancers to fight for Reiji, they trust you and care about you like I always do. Fight for them my son."

Reiji relaxes, his lips form into a small smile. "You always know to how to give a pep talk to me huh?"

"That's what mothers are best at Reiji-kun. Now rest and fight for tomorrow."

"Thank you mom… Good night."

"Good night." Three peeping sounds, the connection is offline. Reiji takes the bottle back to his bag then reaches for something in it. He takes it out.

A picture of the Resistance and the Lancers celebrating the liberation of the Xyz dimension. Everyone was smiling brightly and full of hope, compared to now…

Despite keeping a cold exterior, he could not help but feeling attached to those people he is willing to play like chess pieces. Perhaps his years without a father, with a grieving mother and full responsibility as a CEO later on has stunted his touch for the humanity inside; so when he finally fought in the front lines with Resistance and his team for real Reiji has somehow passionately unlocked it again. The bravery and the camaraderie of those believing in him has resonated his icy soul, the reason he smiled in that picture also.

"That's the whole team?" Says Yusho standing at the door of the back of the truck for who knows how long.

Surprised for a bit, Reiji quickly regains normal stoicism. "Yes Yusho-san. The whole team. Where are they? Why only you here?"

"My son went outside with Jack, Yugo and Sora."

"Ryoga?"

"He went with Yuto, Ruri and Masumi. Said it was some sort of table Duel or something."

"Yuri and Selena?"

"Probing's still dead on its track so I let them rest for a bit, they're sleeping now."

Reiji puts the picture back in the bag and went out of the truck.

"You know." Reiji speaks up, keeping watch on the traitor and the predator. "We have not really talked deep much right?"

Yusho smirks. "The first time you talked to me was for convincing me to help you fight your father, no one calls that deep."

"You really should have not tried to go there without me knowing Yusho-san, three years of watching your wife and your son suffer emotionally was hard for me."

"Yeah…" Yusho sighs. "I was too stupid; on the day I was supposed to duel against Strong Ishijima even… that's something I can never forgive myself for."

"No, I should be the one to say sorry… I gave that idea to your head in first place…"

"Would it matter now Reiji? We already have three years feeling like shit because of our impulsivity."

"At least Yuya finally sees you again for real. Oh by the way, he asked me whether you released the information about Real Solid Vision when Academia attacked Xyz. Is it true?"

"It's true." Yusho confirms.

"Why not earlier?" Reiji inquires. "You had two years in there after all."

Yusho eyes around the door and the captives before explaining in a whisper. "If I did, Xyz would eventually use it for war and personal gain like Akaba Leo did no matter how long, which is something I cannot stand for. And even if I try to explain, they will put me in a mental ward, then one way or another they will find out about my Duel Disk, then Real Solid Vision. It's the Morton's Fork either way Reiji."

"LDS and the governments around Standard work hard to prevent that scenario from happening and the Xyz dimension used it anyway when Academia attacked and you leaked the info." Reiji points out.

"Back in the 20th century, people found out about nuclear fusion and instead of power plants the peace way, they dropped two nuclear bombs in our country the war way. It's just human nature to use scientific breakthroughs for war and destruction Reiji." Yusho pauses a bit, checking ths situation inside and outside.

Good, Yuri and Selena are still sleeping and no one was eavesdropping from the outside.

"I'm optimistic that I can bring smiles to everyone through Dueling but I'm not stupid Reiji. I hate to see things turned out that way for the Xyz dimension, but sometimes it's impossible to do things we want to."

Reiji nods. "So you let it happen and gave them a fighting chance… cold equation huh?"

"Not like you are not used to that already. Promise you'll never tell Yuya about that OK? Last thing he needed is his image of his father completely broken, especially right now."

"I'll try, but you need to watch out for your son, he's starting to become like you…" Reiji turns back to the still sleeping Yuri and Selena. "And… I'm tired of cold equations…"

Yusho does not say anything besides keeping an eye on Reiji, waiting for him to say something.

"It's like… somehow I shredded it off, some of it… then Selena did that, Kurosaki Shun died and… I just broke… it's getting harder for me to keep myself together Yusho-san… That's why I sent Reira back to Standard, can't let her see me like this…"

"Well… that explains the alcohol and that beard and hair." Yusho says. "Plenty of experience with that myself. You can let it all out to me Reiji."

Hesitantly at first, Reiji takes a deep breath. "Are you sure that those kids trust me Yusho-san?"

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

"You know, most of them are not 18 yet, some of them even have families, and I took them to this war. I let a ton of others carded back in Standard too to form the Lancers in first place. No one in their right mind would trust such an immoral leader like me."

"They knew why you did what you did Reiji."

Reiji shakes his head. "But my conscience says no. My mom told me to keep going for the Lancers that trust me, but somehow I don't think I have their trust at all, not that I deserve it. Hell, I don't think I can even trust myself anymore Yusho-san…"

"Look." Yusho taps on Reiji's shoulder. "War's no black and white business, so many grey areas all over. You think I approve you bringing my son into this war? No."

Silence.

"But at the same time, I understand why you did that to him and other kids too. And eventually, you got proven correct on what you did many times over, you won their trust and their hearts."

"Yusho-san…"

"That's why I'm telling you not to give up now. Whether you want it or not, you have those youngsters who trust you and I know you trust them back too no matter how much you deny it. They trust you with their lives now, so fight for them."

Reiji finally feels like a burden lifted off him, he turns to Yusho and smiles warmly at him. "Thank you Yusho-san…"

"No problem."

"You two done convincing yourselves?" Yuri suddenly speaks up from his chair, surprising the two adults. "Gotta admit, that's a good convincing speech Sakaki Yusho."

"How long have you woken up?!" Yusho says unnerved as he and Reiji approach Yuri and Selena.

The Fusion boy cannot help but let out a supressed chuckle. "Enough to hear how flawed you two really are."

"That's so much hypocrisy coming from you Yuri."

"That's the point. You're a hypocrite too for trying to lift off what Reiji did."

"Then I guess we're all even on that huh?" Yusho sits down facing him. "That's what war does to people Yuri, and you took a very big part in it so it's useless claiming moral ground here."

"I know… and I'm not proud of it anymore, I just want to go away with Selena."

"We're all too deep in this shit to just get out now." Reiji says. "Academia is still hunting Selena, sooner or later they will catch her; and if they find out you are still alive they will capture you too. You two should feel lucky that we got you two first instead."

"Perhaps…" Yuri mutters, he darts his eyes to the still sleeping Selena. "She convinced me to run away with her for a new life, but deep down, I know it ain't gonna work forever, so…" He looks directly at Reiji. "How about a deal?"

"Deal?" Yusho wonders.

"I will tell you everything about Academia, especially its security system and how to get in the fortress. In exchange, Selena does not go to prison after this war is over."

"What is this audacity are you talking about?" Reiji talks in a cold whisper. "What Selena did to the Lancers and Resistance is unforgivable."

"Selena betrayed your team for a person like me, I cannot doom her future Reiji, Yusho. I can't…" Yuri struggles to say, feeling emotional again. "It's fine if mine's gone in prison, I don't deserve it; but Selena deserves a second chance… So please… accept my condition before she wakes up…"

Reiji looks at Yusho for help.

Yusho nods.

Reiji turns to Yuri, the cold and firm glare of a leader returns.

"Alright…"


Well that was another emotional ride right?

Yuya, you better not losing what remains of your ideals…

ARC-V has SO MANY good original characters but they wasted their potential in favor of Crow and Jack, uh… In particular, I really like to see how the LDS representative trio would react if they found out about the war, what Shun did and what Reiji did. What a bitch Masumi is acting right? But that is consistent to anime: straightforward yet perspective girl.

And as you can see, many perfect characters are actually not perfect at all just like real life. Jack, Reiji and Yusho are each a mess themselves in a different way which Yuri (the only person most fitted for this) naturally points out.

Next chapter preview:

Spiral 6: Ultimate Battle

Academia vs Lancers. The final battle to stop the ambitions of Akaba Leo vs the final chance to capture the remaining two girls finally begins.