Hello, everyone! Welcome to another chapter! Thank you all for being patient and taking the time to give this a read, you are all VERY appreciated! I don't own rights to YuGiOh! 5Ds! Let's get started!

Remove the Mask:

The Shadows That Follow

"Are you sure it was there that you saw?" Crow asked as he slid a plate full of pasta down the bar with a skillful twist of his wrist.

I nodded, picking up my fork and collecting a few of the marinated noddles. "No doubt. It makes perfect sense too." My eyes returned to my laptop screen as I began to eat. There was an old amusement park that had closed when they were smaller due to a radioactive outbreak. To this day it was still abandoned and Security had it under strict surveillance.

"She would never go back to that place, not in a million years." Jack agreed from his seat on my right. "You remember, don't you?"

We would never forget that day…

Flashback Begin

"Come on, Akiza, don't be chicken!" Crow called from the entrance to the park. The sounds of laughter and music filled the air, accompanied by the smells from popcorn to corndogs to funnel cakes. The sun was just touching the horizon so colorful lights began to bathe the amusement park in a playful glow. They had entered not too long ago and Crow immediately jumped in line for one of the haunted houses. Akiza was not one for those sorts of rides and was wanting to go on the carousel instead, but her eyebrow twitched at Crow's comment. "I thought you weren't a baby anymore," the orange haired boy jeered, shrugging. "guess not."

I patted her shoulder as she puffed her cheeks. "We can go on the carousel after."

"Fine," she huffed, crossing her arms. "I'll go in the haunted house if Crow goes on the Tilt-A-Whirl."

"Hey, that's no fair! You know I can't handle spinning!" Jack flicked Crow's forehead as he whined.

A sound from haunted house behind Crow caught the attention of those around us, their heads turning to its direction, but we were too short to see what they were looking at. It wasn't until they were moving backwards and away from the front of the line that we were able to see the smoke rising from the attraction. "Looks like something happened." Jack slipped through the crowd as we were pushed back to the line's entrance and didn't reappear until they had taped off the ride. "There was an incident with one of the adults. I didn't hear all of it but I did hear them say something about the shadows moving."

"Shadows don't move unless their source does," I pointed out as Akiza Shrugged. "whatever happened must have really spooked them."

"Carousel it is!" she cheered, leading the way to the brightly lit attraction. We didn't have to wait long and were running around it trying to find our perfect mounts. Crow chose one of the bird-like mounts, Jack settled for a mythic bird mount, I went for one that looked like a rocket and wasn't surprised to see her choose the carriage-like seat. The smile on her face had been so bright that night it made the lights seem dull. It was as the carousel was making its third rotation that I looked back at Akiza and saw utter horror written across her features as a black shadow rose before her. My mouth opened as it reached to grab her and then everything went white.

Flashback End

Reports state that one of the nuclear lines under the carousel had combusted, causing the ride to explode and utter destruction to overtake the area. If that were true, then the three of us wouldn't be here today. Akiza must have used her powers to save us from the blast…or been the cause. My thoughts turned back to what she had said back then and recently. "The Shadows must have been following her since then," I wiped a bit of sauce that had gathered in the corner of my mouth, my eyes rising to meet Jack's as he nodded. "question is how are we going to shake them, especially if they are watching out every move."

"What if they can hear everything we say?" Crow murmured, leaning against the bar sporting his own plate of pasta.

"There's one way to find out," I sighed, closing the laptop with a snap before opening a control panel that I had hidden in the bar. The private server and security systems looked fine, there weren't any implications or alterations that I didn't authorize myself…It was as my eyes scanned over the maintenance sequence that heat began to pool in my lower stomach. One of the ventilation covers had been moved close to four months ago and it wasn't for an inspection I had requested. It wasn't safe in my house anymore and I highly doubted that Jack's or Crow's wasn't bugged either. "doesn't look like anything is up." I flashed the screen in their direction, earning tense nods and grimaces, before returning the panel to its rightful place and slipped my dishes into the dishwasher. "Why don't we go out for a bit? A turbo duel maybe?" As discreetly as we could manage, we grabbed what we could and departed. It wasn't until we were on the road that I called Security and gave them permission to search my house for any other bugs that would reveal who was behind it.

There was one place that we could go without putting anyone in danger. Traffic blurred as we slipped through the streets, cars and buildings becoming masses of color as we zipped along. Jack had called ahead so they were more than ready for us when we approached the giant bronze gates. They slid apart enough for us to slip through then closed tightly the second we were through. The Goodwin mansion loomed ahead of us and for once I couldn't help but appreciate that the brothers governed Neo Domino. We slid to a stop before the front entrance steps and killed our engines as the brothers appeared. "Thanks for having us."

"Think nothing of it," Rex bowed lowly as assistants moved forward and moved the runners to the underground garage. "we are more than happy to have you."

"To think that they entered your homes and planted devices that would allow them to monitor every move or word you speak is deplorable," Roman shook his head, gesturing for them to enter and directed towards the main living area. Crow asked about the twins and earned a small smile from the much larger man. "They are quite the handful, to be completely honest."

My lips lifted into a smile as a familiar head of teal hair gathered in twin ponytails appeared on my right. The greeting that I wanted to express to her stalled as her emerald orbs met his sapphires and he found them to be strained. "What is it, Luna?"

"The sounds have been getting louder," she sat on my right, her hands grasping my navy jacket. "yesterday they were so loud I couldn't sleep."

"Not just that," Leo appeared on my other side, rolling up his sleeve so that his mark was visible. "mine has bene flaring up a lot. Not in a good way either."

Our movements froze as a collective heartbeat sounded, flooding the room with occasional thumping sounds. I flinched as the mark on my arm came to life as if it someone had pressed a red hot branding rod to it. The twins curled themselves around their own marks and I could see Jack and Crow favoring their own. What was happening?! My vision blurred as a scream pierced the air. It was deafening and caused the hairs on my body to stand straight. A tug on my right reminded me of Luna's place, an idea coming to mind as she released my arm with a cry and everything faded into silence. I quickly caught her as she slumped to the side, nearly falling from the couch we were sitting on. "I knew it." My whisper might as well have been a shout for how loud it sounded. I carefully rested her against the pillows as she came to, my hand rising to rest atop of her head. "Leave it to me."

"Yusei?"

"I think I know how to shake those shadows," I fixed Rex and Roman with a determined look. "but we need your help."

. . .

We didn't slow down, not even when the main entrance to the park came into view. "You all know the plan?" I asked, glancing to Crow and Jack, earning a nod. A single card appeared from the deck slot, one that sent a jolt of energy through my being as I drew it. "Alright, Stardust, show us the way!" With a roar and shower of stars, Stardust Dragon appeared ahead of me, closely followed by Red Dragon Archfiend and Black Winged Dragon. The second we entered the grounds was when it finally appeared, cloaking us it its fiery aura: the Crimson Dragon. It fixed each of us with a glance, then off into the distance of the Goodwin residence, then fixated ahead of us. My mark burned even brighter as it turned us towards the south end of the park.

The echos of an explosion caused me to glance backwards in time to spot a handful of shadowed figures collide with Crimson Dragon's aura. Each wore a mask of porcelain with different colored markings but there was one that was not knocked back; one with red lines under the eyes. Recognition of the underground duels hit hard as they came closer, their billowing cloak revealing a pitch black duel runner that looked as if it were made of nothing but darkness. It wasn't until they came up next to me that I was able to get a good look at their mask. There was a crack right under the nose, showcasing a familiar wicked smile. Stardust rallied on the Shadow, releasing a Star Stream in their face, then lashed out with its claws to send them reeling from their runner.

Shock filled me as they reappeared behind me, sitting atop of my runner's arch, their wicked smile even bigger. "So, we meet again," they chuckled, one of their hands rising to stroke their chin, my eyes widening as they laughed. "I will be honest, you're my most stubborn target."

"Edgar!" I stiffened as they pouted, tilting their head.

"Now, now, you have only yourself to blame for Omocha's demise." His hand that had been stroking his chin rose and removed the mask. "My orders were to simply watch over her, care for her at the most when needed. If it wasn't for you poking around, she would still be alive." He bent and grabbed my helmet, forcing my head back at a painful angle. "Since strangulation didn't work on you, why don't we try something else?" Just as he raised a blade longer than a butcher's cleave, an electronic straight-jacket appeared on his person. "What the hell is this?!"

The blade fell from his hand as a helicopter appeared above us, a line trailing from the contraption to where Roman held the other end. "You will pay for the pain you caused Omocha," I growled, sending him a glare as he was pulled away. "and for everyone else that you have killed."

"You think this will stop me?!" Edgar twisted and thrashed against the bindings, his violet orbs locking with mine. "Mark my words, I will break out and the first thing I'll do is kill that rich spoiled brat Izinski!"

"We will be ready for you in case you ever try," Crow called, his expression filled with anger that rivaled Jack's. "but for now you're going away for a long time. Hope you enjoy prison!"

A sound from ahead caught our attention and we slammed on our brakes in time to slide to a halt in front of the carousel. The dragons were fixated on it, even Crimson Dragon, it wasn't until we had dismounted that it became clear why: the once colorful and lively amusement park ride was now completely covered with pitch black vines. There, amongst the vines, lay a familiar dragon that looked so miserable yet so angry that it lashed out at the other dragons the second we approached. "Black Rose Dragon…"