The Ark Cradle falls downwards further into our sky. It blocks the sun, casting a shadow over the entire City. The star shaped scar on my rib cage starts to burn. My body starts shaking violently. I feel my eyes burning, the corners of my vision tinted orange.
"Impossible! Since we won, the Ark Cradle shouldn't appear!" Various voices start shouting. "But it's actually here!" "It finally appeared."
"The Ark Cradle is mankind's final Moment that they brought from the future." Yusei mutters.
"Team 5D's!" Jaeger runs over to Yusei. "Go to the Public Maintenance Department immediately! Let's plan a strategy with the information we have!"
"Understood." I give the guys their normal clothes that I brought for them, in case their riding suits got damaged in the duel. My instinct was right. I change into my normal clothes too. I know that I'll need something more suitable for what's about to happen.
Everyone is flighty and panicking. Lots of whys and whats. I can't bring myself to speak. The image of Yusei's severed head in his helmet keeps flashing into my head. This could very well become my reality. That thought starts to sink in. No. My knuckles turn white as I grip my D-Wheel harder. I refuse to let it happen.
"The output is down to 30%!" Jaeger leads us into a control room. The workers start commenting on the Moment energy. "And it continues to fall!" "If this doesn't change, Moment will stop!"
"Check the system program! Also inspect all other systems!" Jaeger commands as the room plunges into darkness. I sigh, a blackout. That's not what we need.
"System down!" Someone shouts. "All systems in the facility have stopped!"
"Switch to auxiliary power!" Jaeger keeps barking commands. The power comes back on. We all just stare at the giant display in the room. Various bars indicating things I have no idea about. All I know is that bad stuff is happening and there's nothing we can do about it. Yet.
"Director, the old Moment located in the BAD Area is active." One of the workers bring up a map showing that it is, indeed, working. "It's spinning in the opposite direction."
"The old Moment!" Yusei exclaims.
"Is this because of the Ark Cradle?" Jack asks.
"I have a bad feeling about this." Crow mutters, pressing his hands to his face.
"Director, Chief Akutsu is contacting us." Another worker speaks.
"Answer it!"
"Director Jaeger!" The scientist exclaims, while spinning in circles. Clearly a man to be trusted right now. "While I was getting dizzy, I discovered many answers! The object is Moment with a negative spin!"
"Negative spin?" Yusei echoes.
"See for yourself!" An image of the Ark Cradle is brought up on the giant monitor. "This is satellite analysis of that object. At its center is a huge Moment surrounded by three Yusei Gears, and it has a negative spin!"
"It's causing Neo Domino City's Moments to stop spinning." Jack comments.
"Correct!" Akutsu comes back onto the monitor. "As long as it continues to spin in the opposite direction, all Moments in Neo Domino City are stopped." Akutsu manages to stop spinning long enough to do a small bow. "And there's something more terrifying! That object is gradually falling."
"What?" Yusei exclaims as everyone else seems to go into shock. It's just as I expected.
"At this rate, it will crash in twelve hours!" Akutsu continues. "The impact will spread several hundred kilometers beyond Neo Domino City!
"Only twelve hours…" Jaeger turns to the staff in the room. "How long will it take to evacuate everyone from Neo Domino City?"
"It will take at least twenty-four hours." One of them answers.
"That's not enough time!"
"I must let the people know that there's an emergency! Route emergency power to the City's monitors!" Jaeger leaves the room for a few moments to give the evacuation message. It plays in the room. I sigh, twiddling my thumbs. He comes back and stands in the centre of the room. "Evacuate immediately." He speaks to the staff.
"What about you, Director?" One of the staff stands up, putting his hands on the desk.
"I won't leave my post until the end." Jaeger lowers his head.
"But that means…" Another staff member mutters.
"I order all staff to evacuate immediately!" Jaeger puts his hand in the air, before going into a salute. "I pray for your safety." All of the staff in the room stand and salute Jaeger before leaving.
As soon as the room clears out, Bruno moves to a computer. He types for a few minutes while the rest of us are left in silence.
"I'm pointing all remote control cameras at the Ark Cradle. We might learn something." Bruno says bringing up pictures of the Ark Cradle from different angles.
"What's that?" Jack asks as it shows the buildings that make up the Ark Cradle.
"Is that... a destroyed City?" Aki mutters. Yusei suddenly gasps, stepping forward a little.
"Bruno, enlarge that image!" Yusei points at the screen as Bruno zooms in and rotates the image. A bridge sticks out from the mass of buildings. It's unmistakable. That bridge is the Daedalus Bridge.
"What? That's the Daedalus Bridge!" Jack exclaims.
"Can it be? It's the Satellite from the future!" Crow staggers back. I take a deep breath and exhale. This is only getting worse.
"So it's true?" Aki mutters. "Neo Domino City is going to be destroyed?"
"Isn't there anyway to stop the Ark Cradle?" Jaeger asks. The room is completely silent, nobody's looking at each other.
"Can't we do anything?" Rua repeats.
"Maybe we can." There's something in Bruno's tone of voice. I can't quite place it.
"What? Really?" Bruno nods, turning to the computer. The monitor shows a top view of the Ark Cradle and an estimation of the gears inside.
"The Moment at the center of the Ark Cradle has a negative spin." Bruno explains. "If we strike it with a large positive spin…"
"The negative spin will become a positive spin." Jack finishes.
"But there are no Moments in the City that work." Aki interjects.
"There's nothing we can do. You must evacuate immediately!" Jaeger exclaims.
"What's that?" Yusei points to a smaller monitor at the side, a security camera. Team Ragnarok are riding towards the camera on D-Wheels.
"Team Ragnarok! And they're riding D-Wheels!" We hurry outside to meet them. They're waiting at the entrance as we walk out.
"Team Ragnarok, why are your D-Wheels working?" Yusei asks.
"You haven't figured it out? It's because of this." Brave points to his Rune Eye which has started glowing.
"Just like how Yliaster couldn't affect us, negative Moment can't affect us either." Harald explains.
"I see! That means our D-Wheels…" Yusei, Jack and Crow move over to their D-Wheels. They test their engines, which rev in response. Their Signer Marks glow. This doesn't actually get a response from me, for some reason that is probably the Ark Cradle. This earns a cheer from the twins.
"I have something I want to ask." Harald meets my eyes, his Rune Eye glowing. "I want you to check if your D-Wheel is still working." I say nothing, moving over to my D-Wheel which is parked beside Yusei's. I press my fingertip to the scanner and rev the engine, which roars back at me. "It's as I thought."
"Why does Yuuka's engine work?" Crow looks at me with raised eyebrows.
"I suspect it's because I was in the Spirit World when Yliaster changed history." I meet Harald's eyes as I lie. "I wasn't affected by it." I feel Yusei staring at me. He probably knows that I'm lying.
"We can go to the Ark Cradle." Yusei says, breaking the tension.
"That would be a mistake." Sherry's voice comes over the speakers built into Yusei's D-Wheel. I glance over, seeing her on the monitor.
"Sherry! You're alive!" Yusei exclaims.
"My lady!" Mizoguchi shouts, running over to the screen.
"Yusei, I've seen the future." Sherry says, ignoring Mizoguchi completely. "You shouldn't come to the Ark Cradle. I saw you die at the Ark Cradle."
"I'll die?" Yusei echoes. Something inside of me snaps. You will fail if he finds out. That's what the other Yuuka told me. His death is a certainty.
"Yusei is going to die?" Aki mutters behind me.
"If Yusei comes to the Ark Cradle, that'll be his future." Sherry keeps her completely straight face. I feel tension in my muscles. "A certain person showed me that future."
"Yusei is going to die? That's nonsense!" Crow scoffs. "Who showed you that phony future?"
"Z-One." She answers, which Yusei echoes. "He is the Ark Cradle's ruler and has the power of a god. Yusei, we met him in the other dimension."
"He's the one running Yliaster then." Jack comments.
"Z-One's plans are correct." Sherry continues. "Yusei, you'll die if you try to save Neo Domino City. And the world in the future will be destroyed!"
"Sherry, you're fine if Neo Domino City is destroyed?" Yusei grabs the sides of the monitor, pleading with her. But it's no use. She's our enemy now. I've decided that. "Thousands... No, tens of thousands of people will die!"
"But those deaths will save billions of lives in the future. Including your life, Yusei."
"So much death won't lead to a peaceful future! Destroying Neo Domino City is wrong!" Yusei exclaims.
"You're going to die." She states it as fact.
"I won't know until I try." My hands start shaking at Yusei's words. He's willing to die if it means saving the City. I know Yusei.
"My lady! Where are you?" Mizoguchi asks.
"I'm at the Ark Cradle." She answers.
"He kidnapped you?"
"No, I'm here of my own free will. Mizoguchi, forget about me." She finally acknowledges his presence.
"My lady!" Mizoguchi exclaims.
"Yusei, if you try to stop the Ark Cradle, I'll stop you with all my power." That's it.
"Listen here, Sherry." I push Mizoguchi out of the way to get in view of the monitor. "I've seen the future too. In telling him that, you've made his death a certainty. I don't know what future you've seen." I grab the sides of the monitor in an attempt to stop my hands from shaking more. "But if you come for him, I'll end you before you have the chance." I feel my eyes glowing orange. My powers are barely being contained. I feel like they could spill at any minute causing a wave of destruction around me.
"Fine. I'd like to see you try" She scoffs.
"Why, Sherry?" Yusei asks. "I thought you hated Yliaster!"
"I changed my mind after I saw the future. I'm not like you." Sherry answers before the feed cuts out.
"Yuuka?" I hear Aki ask. I close my eyes, bringing my hands away from the monitor. I cross my arms to stop my hands from shaking.
"Come on, let's go back to the room." Yusei says, with some hesitation in his voice. We walk back in silence. I keep my arms close to my chest. There's questions on the tips of everyone's tongues, I can feel it.
"Yuuka, what did you mean when you said that you saw the future too?" Aki asks as soon as we get back into the control room.
"I saw the future in a dream." I answer, still not opening my eyes.
"How do you know that's not some phony future like Sherry's?" Jack sneers.
"Well, the last time I had dreams like that I saw myself fall into the old Moment while Kiryu stood over me. So, I think I'm a reliable source." The room falls completely silent. You could hear a pin drop. I look at Yusei, but he avoids my eyes completely.
"We maybe able to stop the Ark Cradle if we strike its centre with Moment's positive spin." Jaeger starts pacing and talking, but there's still tension in the room. "But Team 5D's and Team Ragnarok's D-Wheels and the negatively-spinning old Moment are the only functioning Moments. Can't we just use the old Moment's energy?"
"We can't use Moment's energy if it has a negative spin!" Jack answers. "Do you want the Zero Reverse to happen again?"
"We have to find a way to get there." Yusei crosses his arms, leaning against the front row of the tiered desks.
"All of the helicopters and planes are powered by Moment." Crow interjects. "There are no flying vehicles."
"But there's definitely a way to get there." Yusei says. "I'm there in Sherry's future, that means I somehow managed to get there. We need to find out how I get there."
How I can get there? His word choice strikes me. He's planning on going alone. That's what he's saying.
"I don't want you to find out how." Rua mutters. "You're going to die if you go there! You don't need to find out how!" He starts tearing up. He shakes his head, running up to Yusei. "I don't want you to die!" Yusei chews his lip.
"Me neither!" Ruka runs up, grabbing his arm.
"Even if you save Neo Domino City-" Tears start streaming down Rua's face before Jack grabs him by his shirt. I just stare at the ceiling. If I let myself feel anything, my powers will spin out of control.
"Stop whining!" Jack shouts. "I'll change the future that she saw! I won't let Yusei die!"
"Jack!" Crow exclaims.
"Jack, stop!" Jaeger puts his hand on Jack's arm. "He's just a child!" Jack scoffs, putting Rua back down on the floor.
"Rua, don't worry." Yusei kneels in front of Rua, who has started sobbing. "Jack is right. I won't die." The twins throw themselves at him. Yusei puts his arms around them as they continue to cry. "I'll be fine." They stand like that until they calm down enough to break away from him. The room falls into silence again.
"I'm going to get some air." Yusei suddenly says, walking towards the door. Rua shifts but Aki puts a hand on his shoulder, keeping him in place. Nobody says anything as he leaves. I should follow him. I wait a few minutes before leaving the room, muttering something about going to bathroom. I sense Yusei's aura upstairs. It's much easier because no else is around. So much for getting fresh air, I think.
I purposefully run up the stairs in an attempt to relieve some tension in my body.
Yuuka. I hear Kaoru's voice in my head, I let him continue. Are you okay? They're telling us to evacuate. What's with that thing in the sky? Do you know what's going on?
I stop halfway walking up the stairs and take a deep breath.
Kaoru, I address him inside my head. I know what's going on but I wouldn't dare to try and explain it now. It's not the time or place for that. Just know that I'm going to stop it. Listen to what Security say and get out as fast as you can. Take Kasumi and get as far away as you can, don't look back. Don't think about me until everything is over, I'm going to fight. If… anything happens to me, you can take my D-Wheel and my deck. You can do whatever you want with them. Give everything else to Yusei, he'll know what to do with it. ...Just don't forget me, okay?
Yuuka, what are you talking about?
Listen. I know this is dangerous but it's the only way. Just remember that you're the best brother anyone could ask for, and I love you.
Yuuka. The sound of him in my head sounds more and more desperate.
Kaoru, I love you but I'm going to cut the mental connection off until this is over. If the worst happens, I don't want you to experience it. I'll see you on the other side.
Wait, Yuu-
I lean against the wall and try to stop the tears from falling. My body goes into fits of shaking. I have to be strong. I tell myself as if it would do any good. Yusei needs me. I move up the stairs again, this time slower. I find Yusei in the cafe area, sitting beside the window. He's staring right at the Ark Cradle. I take a deep breath before walking over to him. I rub my eyes in an attempt to make it seem like I didn't nearly cry.
"I've made my decision." He says to himself.
"And what would that be?" I ask. It's then he realises that I'm there.
"What are you doing here?" His eyes are slightly wide.
"We need to talk." Yusei avoids my eyes and sighs.
"I knew this was coming." I raise my eyebrows at him. "You've looked angry since we got back inside."
"I can assure you that's just my face." Yusei doesn't seem to believe me. I know he hates any confrontation that's not in the form of a card game. I should probably sit down, but I feel entirely too anxious too.
"Ah okay." He looks back towards the window. "I can't let a tragedy like the Zero Reverse happen again."
"I won't either."
"Even if it costs me my life." Yusei's eyes meet mine, and I freeze.
"Yusei." I manage to cough out.
"I know what you're thinking." He sighs again. "If I truly am going to die, I want to, at least, stop the Ark Cradle from falling."
"Do you know what you're saying?" My hands start shaking. "You're just accepting your death. You're not even fighting it. You've fought fate before, and changed it. But now, you're just sitting there?"
"Yuuka." He barely holds eye contact for a second. "You said that my death was a certainty."
"That doesn't matter." I feel tears coming to my eyes. My voice raises and he flinches. "What about me, Yusei? If you die, you're leaving me behind. That's what you're saying. You don't care about us. All because you have this hero complex. You need to be the one to save the City, for something that wasn't even your fault, or your father's. All I wanted to do after we won the tournament was go out for a nice dinner, go home, crack open a bottle of wine and cuddle. I just want for us to be happy and live normal lives together. I want to wake up normal. To not worry about some prophecy about your death or the City being destroyed. Can't you do that? Can't we just be normal? Instead, I have to worry about if you'll be alive, if there will even be a home to go back to. I won't be able to go on without you. No, I can't live without you. I don't know what I'll do if… if-" Tears start streaming down my face. My entire body starts shaking. Yusei makes a move towards me, but I take a step back.
"Yuuka I-" I jump as I hear the sound of something hitting the floor. Water pools on the floor from a fallen water cooler. I follow Yusei's eyes to a shriveled up indoor hedge. He sighs, moving towards me.
"And you want to go to the Ark Cradle without me." I manage to splutter out. Yusei doesn't say anything in response. "You have nothing to say for yourself."
"I don't want to lose you." Yusei doesn't look me in the eyes, his brow furrowed. "I can't lose you again. I've lost you too many times before, and it won't happen again."
"You've made yourself clear." I mutter, wiping away my own tears as soon as I see Yusei's hands move. "I'm going and you can't stop me." Yusei looks torn apart, but I can't tell what way his feelings are going.
"Fine." He says. "I know better than to argue. But at least we're going together" The other Yuuka told me to go with him, if I can't make him stand down. I have my duel disk, I'll use that if I have to. I refuse to let him die. I might sound hypocritical. Bursting into tears at the thought of him dying, but willing to die for him not to. He could survive without me, I'm sure. He's not damaged the way I am. He has so much to live for. He could change the world if he wanted to. Me? I should have stayed dead in the Old Moment.
"Are we interrupting something?" Harald walks into the canteen with the rest of Team Ragnarok.
"No." I answer bluntly.
"Well, Yusei." Harald continues. "We'll build a bridge to the Ark Cradle."
"What?" Yusei asks. "You can do that?"
"In Norse Mythology, Rainbow Bridge Bifrost connects the world of the gods to the world of the humans." Harald holds up a spell bearing the same name. "The god of light, Heimdallr, stands guard at Bifrost base. Today, the symbol of light is…"
"Symbol of light…" Yusei echoes. "Are you talking about the old Moment?"
"That's right." Harald nods. "We will use the old Moment's energy to create Bifrost, and we will use the powers of our D-Wheels and the three Aesit to fix the old Moment's negative energy."
"We'll build the bridge here." Brave holds up a map with Daedalus Bridge highlighted in the centre.
"That's the Daedalus Bridge!" Yusei exclaims.
"Now, we just need the right supplies." Harald looks to Yusei, expectantly.
"We should have what we need in our garage." Yusei goes to call Bruno to us. They head back to Poppo Time. I don't join them. I think if I look at the garage again, I'll start crying. I don't know if either of us will make it back. I sit waiting at the bottom of Daedalus Bridge, looking up at the Ark Cradle. Even from here, I feel Z-One's aura. It's unsettling. I can't put my finger on why. It's eerily familiar, but not quite. More mechanical, something changed at the very core. Yusei pulls up beside me. There's silence between us.
"Yuuka." He starts.
"Don't." I say. He's just going to try explain his way out of a situation that he's already too deep in. I already know what he really wants to do, and why.
We hear rumbling so we turn around. The three Aesir stand tall above the Satellite, roughly where the old Moment should be. A rainbow light burst up between them. It flies up into the air, brightening up the sky despite the thick cover of cloud. The light of Moment shoots out from the end of Daedalus Bridge. It moves towards the Ark Cradle, spinning around it, creating a bridge for us. I hear the sound of oncoming D-Wheels from behind me. I sigh, already knowing who it is. This is only going to make things more complicated.
"The legendary hero is my idol!" I hear Crow shout. I turn around to face everyone else. "Don't think you can cross that bridge without telling me!" I spot Rua peeking out from behind Crow, and Ruka behind Aki.
"Everyone…" Yusei mutters, looking at everyone that's not me.
"We're coming with you." Jack says.
"How did you get here?" Yusei asks.
"I know more shortcuts in the BAD Area than you do." Crow bares his classic cheeky grin. "We drove here at full speed!"
"I'm glad we made it in time." Aki's shoulders slump in relief.
"I'm going alone." Yusei shakes his head. "I don't know what dangers await!"
"Well, I've already told you that I'm going with you, so you're not." I drum my fingers on the duel disk of my D-Wheel. We're wasting time, we don't know how long that bridge will last.
"Yusei, we won't try to stop you." Jack's mouth forms a straight line. I wish they would. If I could avoid Yusei going, that was perfect. "Because we know that would be pointless. But it's the same for us!" He pumps his fist. "Even if you try to stop us, we're still going! We won't sit back and watch you die!"
"Yusei, we promise to change your future." Aki nods.
"That's right, Yusei!" Rua moves his head further out from behind Crow. "I'm also a member of this powerful team! You should count on me!"
"That's right." Crow flashes a thumbs up. "We've always fought together. That's what Team 5D's is all about!"
"Okay!" Yusei smiles. "Let's save Neo Domino City!" The twins cheer before we start heading up the bridge. Aki and I trail behind everyone else. Our engines are not as good as the guys' engines. The bridge is unnecessarily long, spinning around the Ark Cradle as it ascends. But it's our only way up, so I won't complain, much.
I feel Bruno's aura all of a sudden. I glance further down the bridge to see a D-Wheel following us. That's not possible, I think. In looking back, I manage to see the three Aesir disappear. I start accelerating, pushing my D-Wheel to the limit. This bridge is going to disappear, I need to get up there. The guys are only getting further and further away from us. Yusei turns back for us.
"Are you two okay?" He shouts over the noise of the engines.
"Yusei, we can't drive any faster." Aki says, the anxiety clear in her voice. The end of the bridge is moving closer to us by the second. It's moments away from flying beneath us and leaving in a very bad situation.
"Ruka, jump over here!" Yusei answers. "My D-Wheel has more power! If you have less weight, you'll speed up!"
"But we're driving too fast to jump!" Aki scolds.
"If you don't, you won't survive!" Well, I'm doomed. That's what I'm hearing.
"I'll do it, Aki!" Ruka pulls herself up. Yusei moves the side of his D-Wheel upwards, stretching his arm out for Ruka.
"Hurry!" Yusei shouts.
"Here I go!" Ruka throws herself from Aki's D-Wheel. Yusei manages to catch her. I sigh in relief. The mysterious D-Wheeler with Bruno's aura comes up from behind us. He drives in front of us, making a slip stream.
"Yusei, get in my slipstream and follow me!" He shouts back at Yusei. That voice. The mysterious D-Wheeler from the WRGP and Bruno are the same person? What is going on?
"Understood. Follow me!" I fall in behind Yusei, with Aki trailing me. I accelerate again, moving onto the concrete of the Ark Cradle. Aki has to jump to make it. I sigh in relief. It's then I realise how high up we are. My hands start shaking and I have to grip the sides of my D-Wheel to stop myself falling off. The Moment energy of the Ark Cradle reflects on my visor, so I close my eyes. I have to push the image of Kiryu's gaunt face from my mind.
"Ruka!" Rua jumps off Crow's D-Wheel, running towards his twin. "Ruka, thank goodness!" He shouts, practically tackling her into a hug. I focus on them to stave away the anxiety.
"Yuuka, are you okay?" Yusei puts his hand on my arm.
"I'll survive." I mutter.
"Who are you?" Jack turns to the mysterious D-Wheeler.
"I've lost my memories. I came here to find them." How convenient I think. He's really Bruno, that's a certainty. But Bruno's true identity is another thing altogether.
"We don't have time for this." Crow scoffs. "You're fine as long as you're not our enemy!"
"Let's go!" Yusei pumps his fist. "We're going to the centre of the Ark Cradle! That's where Z-One is!" It takes a few minutes to reach the centre, as the path spirals around for far too long. We reach the rainbow dome that had been taunting us. "Is this Moment energy?"
"Looks like it." I sigh, looking around at anything that isn't it. "What do we do now?" I feel Z-One's aura throb and the floor give away.
My first instinct is to scream. Yusei, relatively near me, turns on his headlights, illuminating the darkness. The floor is nearer than I thought, so I pull my D-Wheel up. I land shakily, but upright after drifting. My body starts shaking again. I close my eyes and press both of my feet to the floor, disembarking for a moment. I lower myself to the ground slowly.
"Is everyone okay?" I hear Yusei shout. I feel his hand on my back. My hands are pressing to my face. My breaths are shaking but the oxygen is at least getting back into me. I hear everyone panicking but I can't bring myself to look.
"Everyone is safe!" I hear the mysterious D-Wheeler say, maybe I should just call him Bruno.
"However... We can't go together." I glance up and see everyone separated on different platforms. Crow and Aki stand together, while the twins are with Jack. Bruno managed to land near Yusei and I.
"Unbelievable. What can we do?" Crow asks.
"Look at this." Bruno says, walking to his D-Wheel. Wait, that's not Bruno's… You know what, I'm in a Moment reactor floating in the sky. I'm just not going to ask questions anymore.
"What is this?" Yusei moves away from me, to his own D-Wheel. I imagine there's something on the monitor.
"I scanned the Ark Cradle's interior." Bruno explains. "We're on three different paths that lead to three Yusei Gears that surround the Sun Gear. If we don't stop the Yusei Gears first, we can't give a positive spin to the Moment that powers the Sun Gear. Yusei, there's no time. If we don't hurry, the Ark Cradle is going to fall on Neo Domino City."
"Everyone, listen!" Yusei raises his voice slightly so everyone can hear. He moves over to me, helping me stand again. "We're splitting into three teams, and we'll each go to a different Gear. I believe in you. I know we'll reunite at the Sun Gear!" He sits back on his own D-Wheel, revving the engine. "Let's go!"
"Yusei! Fine, but you also better be careful. You better not die!" Crow shouts back at him.
"We'll wait for you at the Sun Gear." Aki says as I get back on my D-Wheel. I take a deep breath, grabbing the handles. Another deep breath. I'm okay. We're still alive. For now. Everyone's engines roars and they drive away.
"I'm counting on you." Yusei says more to himself than anyone else. He turns to me. "Come on, Yuuka. It's a straight path to the gear." I nod, heading off into a tunnel. Already, I'm lagging behind Yusei and Bruno.
"Stupid engine." I mutter. Yusei turns to me, clearly deep in thought. "You're not going on ahead. I know I'm driving a little slower than normal."
"Yuuka, we're running out of time." I close my eyes and think for a second. Knowing my life, a duel will be involved in stopping the gear. Yusei should be okay, he shouldn't die in a duel. There's no Dark Signers to lock him into a duel, which death of one duelist is certain. Right? Hopefully. I don't want to become a Dark Signer again, or face one for that matter. Why am I suddenly thinking of facing a Dark Signer? I've never considered it before. Maybe in a previous lifetime, I was on the other side of the battle.
"Fine." I say. "Just… stay safe, okay?"
"I will, don't worry."
"Take care of him." I look to Bruno. "He needs to stay alive." Bruno nods back at me. They speed up, slowly getting further and further ahead of me.
Just follow the path, I think to myself. Nothing will go wrong. Yusei will be okay, he'll survive. I've fought tooth and nail to get this far. I refuse to let myself fall here, the last hurdle.
The noise of my D-Wheel is the only thing I can hear. I spot a white light, the end of the tunnel. I drive out into an open space. I try not to look down into the abyss below. I drive in between two giant white gears. There's slivers of Moment's light moving through the gears above and below me, as well as in the axle, connecting them. I park my D-Wheel beside the axle, I take off my helmet, placing it on the seat. I walk out to the edge of the gears, looking around. Yusei and Bruno aren't here. Their auras feel faint, as if they're surrounding me. I try reaching out to Yusei's mind. Something about a star, space, Bruno. I groan, knowing that sounds like danger. The aura in the room is pretty strange as a whole. It feels almost overwhelming. I shake my head, must be all the Moment. My neck stretches out, looking at the gears seemingly made of Moment energy spinning below.
A blast of energy knocks me off my feet. I manage to grab the edge of the gear. My hair flies out of my ponytail and into my face. I swing my other arm, grabbing onto the platform in an attempt to pull myself back up.
"Z-One told me not to kill you." No. It can't be. "But I just couldn't help myself." Black dress shoes appear in front of my hands. I crane my neck to look up. Raiden Kimura, in all his glory, stands staring down at me. "Surely you'd understand, Yuuka."