With Yami's words still ringing in his head, Fader didn't notice as once again his surroundings swirled away from him like a morning fog, lifting away to reveal another tortured landscape. The sky ebbed in a crimson wash of a river that ran free with blood. The ground, broken and torn apart lay in ruins all around him. Devoid of any and all life, no signs of plants, animals, people. No signs that anything bust the dust and the rock ever lived save for the stench of death that permeated the air.

"Quite a little spit-fire you've got there," a voice said. Fader wheeled around. Sin was standing there, staring up into the sky. "She is definitely ripe for the picking."

"Serena," Fader whispered. "What did you do to her?"

"Nothing, I regret to say." He averted his gaze from the sky and locked eyes with Fader. "With a courageous spirit she picked up exactly where you left off. Defending whatever sense of love or courage you've seemed to have instilled in each other these past months."

Fader smiled. "She beat you. I'm so sorry Sin."

"Save your sarcastic blather. It is a temporary setback. We underestimated her power. You were wise to keep it secret that she had the Winged Dragon of Ra, I must say it took me completely by surprise."

"Ra? Serena has Ra?"

It was Sin's turn to smile, "Well, it seems it was a secret she hid from you as well. Interesting. It doesn't matter though, you have to know that right? Your Egyptian God cards are baubles compared to the real power my colleagues and I possess."

"If that's true then why were they so important to you? Why did you want them so badly?"

"For the same reason you swat at a mosquito as it encircles your head. To eliminate a minor irritation."

Fader paused for a second. He looked up into the heavens, searching for the answer to the question that rested on the tip of his tongue, hoping he wouldn't have to ask it. Resigned he turned back to Sin. "Sin," he started. "I know. What you are, what I am. We're the same. You have to feel it too, don't you? The power of the Dark Magician?"

Sin tilted his head, intrigued. "Yes. I did feel something as we dueled. Something that I felt when I looked into your eyes. I feel it even now as we talk here in the realm of shadows. I hadn't even dreamed until now that you could be Mahado. But that you are standing before me proves it." Sin walked over to Fader and placed a hand on his shoulder. "We are brothers Fader, kindred spirits, two sides of the same coin. Whatever you want to call it we are connected. You should be fighting with me, not against me, clinging to these misguided notions of good and honor. We are above those things, as far above those around us as they are above the mosquitos they swat at. Now that you know the truth about who you are, about who we are, how can you say no?"

Fader stepped back, removing Sin's hand. "Simple. I don't want the things you're dreaming of. I want nothing to do with your quest for power or domination or whatever over-dramatic cliched attempts at global control you think you can achieve. I don't want any of that. All I wanted when I started this journey was get answers, find out why my father died, to find out what I'm supposed to be doing with my life."

"And you think you can find that with the girl?"

"All I know is that she fits," he answered, placing a hand on his chest. "In here."

"How tiredly sentimental. It's pathetic."

"You know what it's like to fight for the right cause Sin. I know it. I remember that you stood by me and Yugi. You fought with us to defeat Pandora."

"He was a fool. Not worthy of the power that I could have helped him to attain. He was a weak minded fool who allowed him to be controlled like a puppet over the same foolish concept of love that you now cling to. And I refuse to be a slave to anyone but myself anymore."

"Then there's nothing between us Sin," Fader said sharply. "This bond you spoke of is non-existent. I won't let you hurt anyone, you can believe that."

"Then it seems the battle has just begun. And the winner will wear the crown of the king, and reign forever over this kingdom." With his last words lighting crashed down fro the sky, splicing the ground between the two, thunder roaring around them as everything faded once again.

----------

Fader opened his eyes, regaining his composure as his senses regained their composure. he felt the cold stone of the temple beneath his. The smells of the ancient ruins and dusting wafted into his nostrils. And then he heard them. The voices.

"He's awake."

Shadows immediately cast over him, blocking out the light from above. The voices became clearer as he began to come around. he heard Evo among the confusion.

"Are you alright Fader?"

He tried to sit up and as he did he felt set of hands aid in lifting himself back up to a sitting position. "I'm alright," he replied as he brought his hand up, reaching out for something or someone to rest against for balance. "Just a bit of a headache."

"I sympathize," Evo continued. "That duel took its toll on me as well."

"The consequences could have been much worse," Caecius said, speaking up from where he sat on the staircase.

"I agree," added Shadi. "The penalties for losing a Shadow Game are quite severe."

"Fortunately for us then that we didn't lose," Evo said. "The Lady Kaiba is quite remarkable."

"Serena!" Fader exclaimed, jumping to his feet and immediately regretting it as the swirling feeling of vertigo overcame him and he began to stumble. Shadi was there to catch him from falling back to the ground.

"Relax my friend," the ancient Egyptian spirit said with his soothing voice. "She is alive. The energy she used during her struggle with Sin have left her body drained. She is resting right now, Jaina and Adora are watching over her."

"I need to see her."

"Calm down, boy, or you may end up in another coma. And I don't think we can afford to lose you for another day much less another month."

Caecius got up from where he was sitting and hobbled over to Fader, leaning heavily on his cane as he walked. "Evo is correct. You must take care not to over-exert yourself. Sin and Discord have disappeared, so for the moment we have peace, a moment that would be wise to use."

"I'll rest when Serena is in my arms and I know she is safe," Fader bit back.

"Very well. Follow me." Caecius turned and led the impetuous youth to a small room adjoining the central chamber. In an ornate and intricate bed, Serena lay, comfortably sleeping on sheets. As Fader approached the bed Jaina and Adora stepped back to allow the young man access. He bent down and kissed he gently on the lips, and as he stood back up a smile spread across his face as her eyes began to open.

"Hi," she said meekly. "Did you bring me breakfast in bed?"

Fader laughed quietly. "Not this time. But we'll have time for that tomorrow, I promise." He took her hand and helped her up and out of the bed. For the first time in over fifty years all of the Millennium items and their holders stood together, in a circle of unity.

Serena looked at Caecius and was taken aback. "I don't believe it!" she exclaimed.

"What is it?" Fader asked.

"You...You're...the blind man."

"Serena!" Fader said, shocked.

"That's not what the lady meant Fader," said Caecius. "She knows me."

"How is that possible?" Jaina asked. "None of us have ever been here before and you haven't left here in her life time."

"That is true, but as the same time, not true. My body may not have left this sanctuary, but the limitations of walls do not close in so easily an open mind."

Serena spoke up again. "He was in Egypt, when Evo and I went there to meet with Adora. I thought that I had hallucinated the whole thing. That it was a dream. The blind man, the children, the..."

"The what?" Fader wanted to know.

"In my dream, or vision, or whatever. I was attacked, by myself. Or someone who was in my body. She stabbed me. And then Evo snapped me out of it."

"It was no dream dear girl. I will attempt to explain. I felt it necessary to attempt to contact you through the realm of thoughts, the astral plane. What I did not know was that their influence had spread so far already. Whoever Sin and Discord are working with, their power has stretched out beyond our realm and the shadow world into the other layers of reality. When I tried to contact Serena, they intercepted us and attempted to kill us in our minds. It took a great deal of effort to severe the connection I had established with Serena. I dared not make it again for fear that the same thing would happen. I was fortunate though that I was able to give her my gift."

Serena was confused. "What gift?"

"In your vision you encountered a young boy in the streets. A fan of yours, and of duel monsters."

"I remember the boy," she said.

"He was mearly as persona that I took on to interact with you. I used him to deliver to you the Winged Dragon of Ra."

"What? How?"

"Do you also remember the stone tablet he showed you? Of the monster you did not recognize?" Serena nodded. "I used the guise of the tablet to mask the gift of the Egyptian God card. You placed the tablet with your deck and Ra entered it. It would awaken when the power of your heart called for it."

"But it was just a dream, it wasn't real. How could I have gotten a real card from a dream?"

"The mind will make the vision a reality. Your desire to protect those children was real even if the dream itself was not. That desire was reawakened inside you when you fought to protect Fader and the love you two share. That is how."

As Serena and the rest of the group reeled from this information Fader turned to Evo. "When you were unconscious," he asked. "Did you have any visions?"

"No," replied the older man as he thumbed the Millennium ring. "I will assume from your question though that you did?"

Fader nodded. He told them of all he had experienced in his mind; his visions of the Dark Magician, his conversation with Yami, and finally of the conflict with Sin right before he woke up on the floor of the temple. Everyone listen carefully to Fader's tale and it was Evo who spoke up first.

"He mentioned 'the crown of the king' to you? Are you sure?" he asked Fader.

"Yes, why?"

" I know where they are heading next then." Evo looked at Jaina. "We need to get ready to leave immediately. We'll make a brief stop at the Fader estate in Haven and Kaiba Corp, but I want to be back at Industrial Illusions in less than twelve hours." Jaina nodded and then left.

"What's going on? Where are we going?" Fader demanded.

"Do you know about the tournament that they hold in America every ten years?"

"I think I've heard of it before. My father was supposed to compete in it just before he died."

"I do," Serena said. "Kaiba Corp is of the tournament sponsors. It's held every ten years for the past half century to honor the passing of Yugi Moto."

"Exactly. Every ten years this tournament is held so that they can celebrate Yugi Moto's passing in the way befitting his life, and to celebrate the passing of his title. Do you remember the tournament name?"

"Of course it's..." Serena paused and immediately knew what Evo was talking about.

"What?" Fader asked.

Evo completed Serena's thought. "It's called the King's Crown tournament."

"So Sin and Discord and whoever else they're working with are going to compete in this tournament. And by winning they're going to eliminate all of the best of the best in the world. Then no one would be able to stop them."

"Eliminate or recruit," Evo added as a grim thought. "We got what we came here to get. We''re leaving." With that he walked out of the temple, Shadi and Adora following behind him.

Serena and Fader were just walking out when Caecius called after them. "Fader please wait," he said. "I must speak to you alone." Fader nodded to Serena and released her hand. She exited the main doors leaving Caecius and Fader standing alone in the huge chamber of the temple. "I will not be going with you," he said. "I cannot leave this temple. My fate is here. I did not ask you to stay so I could debate this however. I have one final gift that I wish to give you."

"Gift?"

"Yes please." Caecius held out his hand. "Can I please see one of your cards. The Ceruvean Phoenix." Fader didn't understand but flipped through his deck and produced the card, placing it in the old man's hands. Caecius began to chant a few verses in a language Fader couldn't understand and the card began to glow. There was a bright flash and Fader watched as the phoenix image lifted itself off of the card tearing away for the constraints of its small prison and began to fly freely, encircling around Fader. Another flash and the bird was gone.

"My gift has been given," Caecius said. he handed the card back to Fader.

Fader took the card from Caecius and was shocked. The card was blank. No image, no text, nothing to indicate it had been anything more than a blank card. "What? Where did the Phoenix go?"

"It is always with you now," came the reply and the old man pointed to Fader's exposed shoulder. Fader looked and saw a tattoo had appeared on his skin, a simple image of a red bird, its wings spread. "It will be more useful to you in this form than as a card. Be well Fader. Take great care, there are many trials ahead of you and you must be willing to win no matter what the cost is, everything depends on your final choice. The past, present and future are yours to shape." Caecius then turned and walked back up the stairs entering his resting chamber, the stones closing behind him, leaving Fader alone.