Yu-Gi-Oh 5Ds: The Judgement of the World
Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix
Beta By: Lady Lunar Phoenix
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A snow cap mountain pierced the diamond studded heavens. A lone mountain that surpassed all other mountains, For this was no mountain, but the lowly minds' interpretation of something much grander. That lofty silk white blanket of a peak served as a cushion for the mountains' duty, balancing the eternal night sky. Its pure gray stone flowed down veined by a multitude wide rivers, breaking apart the further down it wandered. Some to stay as rivers, others to break into smaller streams. All reaching for the eternal, vast ocean that ringed around the mountain.
Time is a river, indeed.
Yugi stood by one such river, looking about to see the occasional counterpart. Bits and pieces of his conversation with Yusei floating to the surface of his attention. 'I remember how shocked I was when I got here the first time.' All around him was rolling hills, groves of trees, with distant shadows of his counterparts. Some moving about on their own, others still on the ground undoubtedly sleeping.
"So if you're God..."
The sentence hung off his ears the way metal hoop earrings did. Going over and over in a loop whispered repeatedly causing Yugi to rub his eyes. He stood among several of his counterparts, a silent vigil for a river that was coming to an end. Woefully far from the ocean it had every right to reach. While the universe for that stream possibly continued onward, the earth itself, their only real focus; was gone.
They stood in respectful observance of, to the casual observer, the inconsequential end of a river that had shrank down to a stream, to a trickle and now to this. For the aware however; it symbolized the protracted death of billions of lives. Both born and to be born over the span of twenty year. With its end, with those deaths, another star burst into life above them, heralding to all who may have missed it.
Another game lost. Another reality destroyed.
"How can one man destroy reality...? So many realities and yet this one man when he comes into being..."
Yugi was too busy hurting to focus on the voices around him, mingled as they did with Yusei's own. The hurt burned in his chest until it ignited again into anger.
"What if this was home? The reality is gone and there's no way for one of us to return..." Yugi flung his hand out in frustration towards the endless sea.
"If not one way, than another," his European counterpart replied, his voice quiet and respectful. "All of this is merely metaphors so we understand after all."
"Save what you can; if we can't go home, we can always go back," the other added in the most kindest, encouraging voice she could muster.
"You know I didn't care about losing until the weight of the world was put on the scale," Yugi remarked as he felt the slightest of tugs.
"I think that's how we all feel, we just have our own ways of showing it... At least that's what I tell myself." The Tibetan girl that was also Yugi answered, before bowing politely as her mane of vivid sunset hair tumbled over her shoulder. Before she left to drift endlessly along the river banks as all the others.
"You can lead a horse to water, Set has ever been the proof of that," the male counterpart added before departing as well. Outside of the shape of the eyes and the slight shifts in skin color, it was hard to tell the two were from different countries. Though that Yugi covered his hair like gramps did...
But hey, Yusei wanted to talk again and it was as good an excuse as any to leave the dead to the rest. So Yugi turned away as well, returning to a river he had only left, heartsick and feeling so alone. Only to find Yusei sitting outside under a night sky... "Wasn't I just here today?"
Yusei tensed up as he heard the mans' voice behind him, cursing himself for apparently 'praying' again... Wiping away the shameful tears from his eyes he stood up to face the 'God' of the Duel Spirit world. A wordless stare was about all he offered as an answer as he looked at Yugi, before some semblance of manners came back to mind. "Sorry, I just got some bad news after you left."
"I know that feeling, I guess today ended up pretty bad for both of us."
Yugi couldn't keep the weight of disappointment from his voice and that 'he' had a bad day was enough to get Yusei's attention. A momentary distraction but if 'Yugi' had a bad day... "What happened..."
"Perception happened," Yugi answered with a faint sigh. "When the world ends, a stream dries up."
Yugis' tone was neutral with a hint of irritation and his reason was enough to push Yusei's own grief to the side for a moment. Losing a person compared to a whole world? In the light from inside the condo, Yusei could see Yugi shoulders huddled in just slightly, in a posture well used by people from Satellite. The typical 'don't mess with me' stance. "How? You're a..." Yusei began only to be shot a look that made him quickly reconsider finishing that sentence. "Welcome to hide here until you're ready to go back..."
"Close Yusei, you tried though," Yugi answered with a faint hint of sarcasm in his voice. "So why did you call me here?"
"I didn't think I did," Yusei pointed out, as he moved to sit back down. "I was lost in thought is all."
Yugi blinked before shrugging and settling down in that pseudo sitting style he used. Looking up once again to see actual stars in the sky and allow himself to be immersed in a reality, even if not his own. The minutes dragged on, turning a peaceful sky watching night into something a little awkward. "How did talking to Ruka go?"
"I'm not."
Yuseis' answer, calm, stoic as ever was enough to give Yugi pause and to look at the teen. A frown began creasing Yugi's face before he bothered to speak. "Why?"
"She's a child, its not her responsibility to deal with this," Yusei answered, quiet yet firm.
"Because you saw how you turned out when you found out about how you are the son of the creator of the Momentum?" Yugi asked coolly as he looked at Yusei from the corner of his eyes. 'Like Malik really, why do all Yusei's act like they hate the mantle of leadership? Only to follow it up by deciding having a death grip on it?' He tried to remember a single version of Yusei who 'didn't' have a passive aggressive reaction to responsibility. Officially give them the responsibility and they railed against it, only to start giving out orders the second a back was turned.
"There's nothing wrong with how I 'turned out'," Yusei retorted turning to see that corner look he was getting from Yugi.
"17 going on 67, no you're turning out like several people I've know," Yugi answered with a raised eyebrow. "Well every person I know who was messed up in the head due to trauma. Or Malik when it came to Isis' love life. The 'everyone should be free to do what they want, until 'I' decide so'."
"She's a 'kid'," Yusei pointed out disbelief entering his voice.
"You could die in the next five days. She goes on with her life not knowing and poisoning herself simply because 'you' decided what was best for her. Without her right to even 'know' what was going on. One day her brother will finally resolves his issues and she never has another attack. But how long will she be dosing herself for 'no reason'?" Yugi argued fairly glaring his disapproval at Yusei from where he had settled back. "If she knows and opted to keep taking the meds fine, its her choice. But it should be 'her' choice."
Yusei sat there silently seething as he tried to think of a way to get it through to Yugi. Only to keep having every route end up in a dead end. The logic that 'magic wasn't real' didn't apply to Yugi clearly, or them really. The argument that Ruka couldn't deal with the responsibility, when confronted head on, already had a glaring issue. Yugi had already stated he could reassign the Marks at will and he knew all possible futures. Meaning that Ruka had the Mark because it was already confirmed, whatever the future held. She could handle it. Even now.
And saying 'I don't want to tell her because girls shouldn't have to deal with stuff like this', screamed patriarchal.
"I guess that's what makes you the 'king of games'," Yusei finally answered in displeasure and self loathing. "But I can't just talk about it tonight. We just found out Aki died. How do I approach her with a discussion about her medical condition? She was already seeing Aki as a big sister."
"Well it helps if you start off with that last line so it sounds more like you're being considerate. Instead of just a know it all jerk." Yugi suggested even as he admonished Yusei for his run around attempt at avoiding the issue at hand.
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Eyes open.
Like a light switch, one minute Marta had been soundly asleep, her eyes shut and her rest uninterrupted. The next her eyes shot open staring up at the darken ceiling above her small bed, with nothing to show for why. Just, suddenly awake and very aware of her surroundings though there was nothing going on. Absolute silence outside of the normal little sounds. The quiet settling of the orphanage with the open waters just far enough away to not be noisy yet loud enough to help lull a person to sleep.
There long had been a sense of defenselessness about the orphanage. Satellite was considered lawless outside of whatever gang in charge dictated. Few were the rules about what was off limits, doctors were given a free pass due to their obvious importance. Coupled with the unwillingness to be viewed as complete savages the 'threats' about the place weren't awful in retrospect. Generally the teens fought over the cast off Duel Monster cards, all the more so because of the abandoned Turtle Game Shop.
But that didn't stop the occasional break in. Starvation was a great motivator to get a person to break in. Or rifled through small gardens. With that in mind, Martha got out of bed and pulled on her bathrobe. A few steps and she was at her window, glancing out at the darken back yard and looking over said garden. Though the light from Neo Domino was faint, it was more than enough to help her see any activity among the plants.
The whole of the backyard appeared undisturbed, not even a leaf was stirring yet now that Martha was awake. Sighing the woman went to check the time, 'Not even 3am...' she thought as she looked about the room. Her gaze fell back on her bed and for a moment she entertained the thought of just going to sleep. But 'something' woke her up, 'and I won't get a lick of sleep until I check everything... fine fine...' she grumbled mentally as she moved off from her room and began her rounds.
Every door, every window was checked with the children sleeping peaceful in each room. A confirmation that there was nothing threatening here. The back yard was as empty as the front, the building was undisturbed leaving only the shed to check. So with robe firmly wrapped up and knotted, Martha made her way outside with flashlight in hand.
Stepping outside still made her shiver despite her robe as the air was just about to hit early morning chill. But for now it was still that slightly colder 'nope still night' chill. Enough to wake her up but not enough to send her looking for something warmer. The branches on the trees rustled slightly from what little of the ocean breeze that could reach them. There was a weak patch of yellow that warmed the ground from near the shed. Warning her that whoever was 'here' was in 'there'.
She approached the side of the house, where the light from the shed bloomed out of the windows and door. Lights on door open would make her think of theft, that the person inside would want a quick exit. Lights on and door 'closed' on the other hand was a boys thing, when Yusei would come to work on something. So where was his D-Wheel?
With less caution than was probably wise, Martha made her way to the shed and peered into the room. No D-Wheel, but there 'was' a noticeably irritated Yusei cleaning up the shed. At an incredibly odd hour and wasn't he supposed to be living with the twins? For an impish moment she thought about sneaking in and startling Yusei. But she hadn't brought the keys with her when she stepped outside. Forcing the more responsible route of a brisk knock on the door earning Yusei's startled reaction as he turned to face the door.
A deep frown was on his face as he pulled open the door, staring at Martha with an exasperated gaze. Even his arms were in positions to block her from entering the shed, tell tale signs that he was upset about something. The absence of his D-Wheel and not bothering to let her know he was coming screamed he did something. Something with two other boys she knew that could have resulted in something incredibly stupid.
"Are you going to let me in?" Martha asked before adding, "or are you coming in at all tonight?"
'How do I even...?' Yusei thought, his expression stoic, his mind in full panic.
"No, but I 'can' create portals and destroy them!" Yugi cheerfully answered before Yusei stopped feeling the ground under his feet.
Dark Magician at his side, Yugi ordered the monster to open a portal under Yusei. Dropping the guy straight down into the shed without so much as a 'by your leave'. Resulting in an undignified crash as Yusei landed unceremoniously on the ground. His hands had reached out in reaction only to pull down a rack of various containers.
For which now Yusei found himself at a loss; since he couldn't exactly say, 'the God of the Duel Spirit world decided to drop me in here.' "I didn't think I made that much noise."
Martha barked out a laugh as Yusei backed up so she could come in from the cold. Even if the shed was also cold. "Oh you weren't. It's just one of those nights where one minute I'm fully asleep and the next wide awake." As he closed the door behind her, she took in the room a bit better and noticed the spill that apparently happened. Which was odd given that Yusei knew the shed, it was strange to think of him merely tripping to cause it. "So what brings you here in the middle of the night? Did you and your mechanical girlfriend have a fight?"
Marthas' tone was light and teasing, increasingly so as Yusei began to visible fume. "She realized you really 'have' a flesh and blood girlfriend and kicked you off her back?"
Yusei crossed his arms and fairly threw himself against the work table so he could have that 'teen angst' lean. Something that just put a large bulls eye on his back as he folded his arms across his chest. There was a tightness in his chest that he didn't want to give voice, and of all the people it was 'Martha' who found him.
"Or are you practicing your breaking in skills? So you can slip into her bedroom without alerting her parents?" Martha asked with a grin plastered on her face for when Yusei turned to glare at her. Getting Yusei to blush or expressive was difficult in the aftermath of him discovering his parentage. But at least she now knew 'why' he had become so closed off for so long.
Yusei's shoulders hunched inward instead, his head came down and the grin on Martha's face froze. Before it began crumbling down as concern began to fill the space of time when Yusei didn't respond, leaving the shed awkwardly quiet.
'Did they get in a fight? Aki is a dignified girl, but I figured the pair could get along. Yusei's personality isn't like Jacks' and Crow could take some time. But he wouldn't offend her enough to reject Yusei...' Martha thought as she rested her hand only to feel a slight trembling sensation. "Yusei, what happened between you and Aki?"
"She wouldn't listen. I told her to wait and she didn't..." Yusei mentally cursed the trembling in his voice, as he tried to clear it without making noise. At that moment Yugi was telling Ruka about her heart condition from his point of view. At least he could have kept his voice steady for 'that' not this.
"Yes, well, Aki's a big girl. Come now, tell me what happened." Martha began as she caught a glimpse of Yusei's face as she moved about to face him. 'Its not that. Oh Lord, my boy looks like he's trying to not cry. What happened?'
"Aki didn't wait for me."
It was all he said. But the tears that began to roll down spoke volumes.