Fire. The black smoke rose into the air. It was so thick that not even the brightest light could shine through it. Children ran through the desert streets screaming as ash fell around them. Honey eyes watched in horror as some were trapped with in the flames. A burst of wind blew a hole in between the flames allowing the children to run. That was when the teen finally noticed the young woman.

Jou looked at the woman as she helped every child into the small tunnel. He continued to watch until a beam from one of the buildings began to crack. The blond shouted, but the woman stared at him before raising a golden hand.


Amber eyes shot open as the young man flew into a sitting position. Jou looked around and saw white. The bed sheet was a light blue and he realized that he was still in the hospital. He swung his legs over the edge before looking up to see Anzu.

"Anzu, what's going on?"

Anzu's head shot up from her knees and revealed a tear-stained face. Jou stared at his friend, tilting his head to the side.

"Yuugi, he…..the doctor said…..Jou; Yuugi stopped breathing. They have him on life support." Anzu stared at her hands.

Jou turned his head to the door. It was the door that led to Yuugi's room. The doctor had let them stay the night in the hospital. He stood on shaking legs and peered through the window. The small teen lay in the bed, a peaceful look on his face. His small chest barely moving as a small cloud formed on the oxygen mask.


"Where am I?" Yuugi looked out. It was a desert. The stars were winking at him. He was next to a large oasis.

Yuugi ventured to the edge and looked at the water. In it, he saw a reflection. A tall man with blonde hair and maroon spikes stood next a shorter woman with hair as black as the midnight sky. The man had light blue eyes and the woman had light red. In between them was a small child, star shaped black hair with blond bangs and maroon spikes.

All he realized was that it was his parents before tears poured down his cheeks. Yuugi looked again to see them waving and his mother blowing a kiss before they faded.

"Don't go!" Yuugi shouted to the reflection before another image appeared.

This time it was a girl with black hair pulled into pigtails and blond bangs. Maroon streaks lined the black. Yuugi looked at the image. Tears filled her garnet colored eyes.

"Daddy!"

A ripple in the water interrupted her image. Yuugi looked up to see a blonde woman standing on the other side of the oasis.

He stared at her, "Are you, lost as well?"

She stared at him with Jade colored eyes, "No. I brought you here."

"You brought me here?" Yuugi shouted.

"Hathor's gonna kill me for destroying that message. Yes, I brought you here. You needed a break; I gave it to you. Enjoy it while it lasts." She flipped platinum blonde hair over her tanned shoulder. It was then Yuugi noticed the Millennium Item hanging from her neck.

"Why do you have the ankh!" Yuugi shouted at her.

She fingered the ankh and looked at him with sad eyes, "you'll find out."


Yami stood at the door of his soul room. He stared at the handle. For some reason he couldn't make it turn, he had tried, but every time he did, all that happened was a clicking noise. His shadow magic wouldn't open it either. The lock mechanisms kept changing.

"Yuugi, what's going on? You've never locked me in here for this long…."


Jou walked down the school halls. He wasn't paying attention much when he ran into someone. Books flew everywhere as he tumbled backwards before a hand caught his wrist. Amber eyes shot open to see Kaiba holding his wrist.

"Watch where you are going mutt."

"I'm not a mutt." Jou murmured as Kaiba let go of his wrist.

He bent over a picked up his books and looked up. The blond looked back and forth but Kaiba was gone.

"Damn, and I was going to thank him for catching me." Jou whispered when he noticed the steps behind him.


"Damn, and I was going to thank him for catching me."

Kaiba stood in the classroom door and listened to Jou walk away, "you're welcome Katsuya."


"Seto! You promised that we would visit Yuugi! Come on!" Mokuba stood at the door of Seto's home office.

Seto sighed, he had promised, and he wasn't about to break his promise to his brother.

The older brother walked his brother into the hospital after the short car ride. He stood outside when Mokuba walked in and began to talk with Sogoruku-san.

"What are you doing here?" Jou asked as he walked forward.

Seto turned and looked at the golden haired teen, "What do you think mutt, visiting Yuugi."

"Why would you do something like that? Not like it's in your heart to care."

"I would do something like that because it's what rivals do." Seto crossed his arms over his lithe chest.

Jou snorted, "like you would do that for me or any one else in this group."

"You'd be surprised Katsuya." Seto looked in to see Mokuba staring sadly at Yuugi.

Jou stared at the taller male, "did you just, call me…"

"Katsuya is your name is it not." Seto stated. He looked down at the blond.

"My name is Jounouchi or Jou to you, no one calls me Katsuya. Not even my parents." Jou stared sadly at Yuugi.

Seto sighed and rubbed his temples, "look, Jou, we're both here awaiting Yuugi's recovery. We could try to get along, for his sake."

Jou stared at him, "fine, but when he's better, you're dead for calling me Katsuya."

Seto smirked before Mokuba came out of the room.


"Daddy!" The young brunette cried to a finely dressed young man. He stared down at the teenager, "is everyone safe Kendra?"

The brunette bowed, "yes father, Hathor is still missing though. So is Pharaoh Yuugi."

"Yuugi….and what about Jono?" He asked, he fingered the cold golden eye of the Millennium Rod.

"Papa is looking for Malik." Her brown locks tumbled down her shoulders and hung in front of her face.

The man took a step forward and placed to large, golden hands on her bare shoulders, "Go help your Papa."

Kendra looked at the brunet before clutching onto him.

"Watch for Atemra. Protect each other." He spoke as another brunet appeared in the doorway.

"Father, what are you going to do?" The boy asked.

"Take care of each other, and Hathor, when you find her. Send the Pharaoh, Malik and Bakura here when you find them. Send your papa as well, give him a hug and a kiss goodbye."

"Daddy?" Kendra asked as Atemra grabbed her thin golden arm.

Atemra looked at his father's cold blue eyes, "Good bye, High Priest Seth."

Seth stared at his children before turning to the tablet being carved and seeing the Millennium puzzle in pieces.


Seto's blue eyes shot open. He sat up slowly and rubbed his temples. That dream again, what did it mean?

He looked out the window to see the stars winking back at him. The dream had haunted him during Battle City. Then gone away for a while. Now it was back, it had started again when Yuugi had fallen into his coma. That was almost three weeks ago.

Standing up, the man went to the door and walked downstairs before hearing a knocking.

"Who is it?" Seto went to the door knowing it could very well be paparazzi.

He opened the door to see a mop of gold hair. A panting Jounouchi was kneeling on his doorstep.

"Jou?" Seto kneeled down to about eye level. Jou looked up into sapphire eyes.

"Seth…."

Jou collapsed onto the brunet making him uncomfortable. Seto barely caught him, taken back by the word that came out of his mouth than the fact that Jou had come to his house, in the middle of the night. Just to pass out on his doorstep.


"Are you going to answer any of my questions?" Yuugi asked the blonde. So far in what seemed like hours, the blonde had only answered one of his questions.

He had asked a while back who she was. She responded with a trivial answer that reminded him a lot of Isis. He then asked if she knew Isis, she had responded yes to that thankfully.

"Why should I answer any of your questions when the answers are so clearly in front on you." She was sitting on a rock in the middle of the Oasis.

"Because I don't know what you are talking about. All I know is that a bunch of shadows led me here." Yuugi shouted.

He sat down and pulled knees to his chest, "I want to go home, I want to see Jii-san, Anzu-chan, Jou, Yami…. every one…."

"But a little while ago, didn't you want to be left alone by all of them, did you not hide your pain from them? You couldn't stand that people were happy while you were not, so I brought you here. It might seem lonely now, but wait, you'll get used to it here. Most people do. But then they leave again. And I'm all alone again." She looked down into the water.

Yuugi looked at her, "Don't you have any friends, family?"

"Oh I do, but they can't help me with this. You see, I can control this place; I created this from my own mind. I'm kind of like a spirit of my self. Just like Yami is a spirit and the darkness in your mind, I am the dark side of my mind. But am not a separate entity as he is."

Yuugi stared, his amethyst eyes looked sad, "are you, trapped here?"

"No, right now, I am though, because I am keeping you from getting lonely, if I were to leave, well, I suppose you would still be with the shadows, receiving more wounds to your body. If it weren't for me, your body would have died a week ago. But, your soul would have stayed in the shadows for much longer."

"So, you need help?" Yuugi asked, his head tilting slightly.

"No, you do, listen, you can hear him crying."

Yuugi frowned, what did she mean by that. She stood on the rock and jumped on top of the water.

"Here, you can't hear him can you? I suppose sorrow only comes to me since I can see into everyone's mind…."

The water rippled a scene began to take place. Yuugi leaned forward before tumbling backward, eyes widening further than they should.


Hey everyone! I updated sooner than I thought, I have the next three chapters already written since I sat in the car for two hours on Thursday night and three this afternoon so, yeah, I'll update during the week, see ya all then!