Epilogue
Until now, Yoshi had not known the meaning of agony. His very soul felt rotten, torn, a plaything in the hands of six vengeful gods. What world remained beyond his mind, he did not know, nor care. For the power within him was infinity greater than that without; the only battlefield that now mattered was his own mind, and he was not even a combatant.
No longer was his mind the white realm that Diamair had created. That world had been compromised, tainted with searing flames and dark seas, torn by jagged mountains and raging winds, bathed in blinding light and crushed by impending darkness. Within his soul dwelt the contradiction of all things, six spirits trapped within him and freed through him, ancient gods of diametric opposites, forced together as one.
In the center of this mental world, all that remained of Yoshi withered and wailed, huddled against the natural forces battling around him. The Crystal Dragons were fighting, brother versus brother, sister versus brother, every dragon for him or herself. They screamed at one another in overpowering thought, each striving in vain to convince their siblings to their cause.
Loudest and most dangerous of them all was Obsidiusk, who alone seemed as if he might stand some chance of controlling the others. He demanded that they bow before him, surrounding their might so that he might become lord of all existence.
But Diamair rebelled, dismissing his temptations of changing the world and exposing them as the empty promises they were, for under his rule, the planet would surely know an age of endless darkness. Without continuing change, she argued, without the ability to improve and adapt, all life was doomed.
Saphrine, too, refused to cooperate with her dark brother, for his vision was the furthest thing from peace imaginable, save Rubustion's dreams of complete annihilation, which were also incompatible with Obsidiusk's quest to control the world, for if all things were destroyed, there would be nothing left to rule. Nor did Hematera fall for the dark dragon's pleas; she saw quite clearly what the creation of his boundless empire would mean to all life on earth, how it would ruin any chances humanity might have of ever achieving stability.
But it was the final dragon, Ambriliant, the dragon of light, who remained the most opposed to his brother's quest. He had opposed Obsidiusk from the very beginning, and now he denied him even the pleasure of debate, instead focusing his attention on the one spirit who had, until now, lain forgotten within the deepest recesses of his own mind.
Yoshi, I need you to listen to me. I need you to hear me, and obey. You must take back control of your body before our strife extends to the world beyond, tearing it apart. I can use my powers to free you for the briefest of moments, but I cannot tell you what you must then do. You are surrounded by good people; look to your sister and the others for guidance. I will hold off my siblings for as long as I can, but you must act quickly. Now is the moment of reckoning, and for the sake of all that is good in this world, you must succeed.
Before he knew what was happening, Yoshi found himself back in the physical world, overwhelmed with the sudden sensations: the cold of the early morning air, the sound of his own screams, the taste of blood and dried sweat, and the feel of many hands clawing wildly at him. He lay trembling on the lowered dueling podium, and in the starless night he could see dark figures surrounding him, trying to hold him still and speaking words that he could not comprehend.
For a brief second he spotted the face of his sister, overcome with grief and worry, and he could not help but smile. Then the moment passed as Kira was knocked to the side to make way for a new arrival, a face that almost made Yoshi wish he had remained in his mind, where the dragons yet continued their war.
Prince Jimu fell to his knees and wrapped an arm around Yoshi's shoulders, holding him steady. With his other gloved hand, he held the back of Yoshi's head so that their eyes locked. And to his surprise, Yoshi beheld not malice, not hatred, not a cold, heartless murderer, but merely a man, a man who understood better than anyone else what Yoshi was going through, and wanted to ease his suffering, no matter what the cost.
"Yoshi," he said. "Yoshi, look at me."
Obsidiusk made another bid for dominance of Yoshi's soul and it took all his effort to keep the monster at bay. When he came to again, the Prince was still talking.
"…trust me. I'll do what needs to be done, I promise. I'm ready to repent for the terrible mistakes I've made. Please, Yoshi, it's the only way. Give me the cards."
The cards. The six Crystal Dragon cards that were, somehow, clutched in Yoshi's left fist. The vessels that contained the souls of the dragon-gods. Yes, that was the answer. If he gave them to Jimu, he would be rid of this infinite torment, no matter what else happened.
With his very last bit of resolve, Yoshi pried open his fist. With lightning-fast reflexes, the Prince grabbed the six cards and as soon as the last one left his hand, Yoshi felt as if the weight of the entire world had been lifted from him. The burden of the dragons was no longer his; whatever fate was in store for the world now lay with Jimu.
The Prince stumbled backward one step and with a terrible scream raised the cards to the sky. In some ancient language beyond Yoshi's comprehension, he began to chant and as he did, it seemed that the power of the dragons began to exude from him. His feet lifted off the ground, his arms extended rigid to either side, and as the chant ascended into one last, insufferable, all-encompassing scream, his eyes rolled back into his head, there was a flash of blinding light, and the world itself seemed to halt.
Yoshi's eyes had reflexively closed against the blast, and it took three full breaths before he gathered the strength to open them. Kira, King Daichi, and the rest of those present had all been knocked off their feet, but one woman quickly rose again, rushing to where the Prince's body lay motionless, the Crystal Dragon cards still clutched within his right hand.
"My Lord!" she screamed, tearing his cape away from him, searching desperately for any sign of a pulse. "My Lord! Speak to me, please, wake up."
It took a minute for Yoshi to recognize the woman as the officer he had battled what seemed like an eternity ago, but was in reality less than a day. Captain Minami was her name, if he remembered correctly.
And the Prince responded to her pleas, though when he spoke his voice was faint, and his words were those of a dying man. "Yoshi…"
Minami aimed a sharp finger at him. "You, come here!"
Kira helped her brother scramble to his knees and crawl the few feet to the Prince. Jimu's eyes were open, though they looked distant, unseeing.
"Yoshi…" He uttered a series of noises that seemed a mixture of wheezing and amused laughter. The hand that held the Crystal Dragon cards began trembled. "Take these…," began his final words, "Keep… them… safe."
And then Prince Jimu was gone.
Save for the wordless wails of Minami, all was silent for a long time. Then Kira helped Yoshi to finally stand again, and he turned to King Daichi, unsure how to word the question he wanted to ask.
"I don't know," said the aged king. "But I think, somehow, that we are safe now."
At last, Captain Minami seemed to regain her military composure, wiping her tears from her swollen eyes. She remained on the ground, cradling her prince's limp form, but looked up toward them. "He gave his life to entrap the dragons in their cards. Your father, Yoshi, did the same thing, many years ago. It was through his sacrifice that the world was saved, for a time. Perhaps this time, the peace will be permanent."
So that was what had happened to their father. Had he not just witnessed Jimu's death, Yoshi wouldn't have believed her. But it made sense; the last piece of the puzzle clicked into place. When Professor Hiroka and the Prince had freed the dragon-gods, the former had trapped their spirits in the six cards at the cost of his life, a sacrifice the latter had now renewed.
"There will be peace," Daichi added. "That duel was broadcast live to all of Asuka, as was its aftermath. The entire country just saw their Prince give his life to protect them, to undo all the harm he had unleashed. Perhaps we can all learn something from the example of my nephew."
"Country," Captani Minami repeated. "Don't you mean countries?"
"No. Asuka must be reunited once more. I cannot speak for my brother, but after the death of his son, I doubt he wishes to go on with this pointless war any more than I do. I don't know how, but we'll resolve our differences and restore peace to all Asuka. It was Jimu's dream, and through his death, we shall make it a reality."
The news made Yoshi very happy, but it was still not the foremost thought on his mind. He bent down and picked up the six cards. They felt strange in his hand, light, as if they were once again just normal Duel Monsters cards. But he knew the spirits resided in them still, dormant, but not destroyed.
"What should I do with these?"
"They should be destroyed," Kira said.
"I can't. These cards are the homes of the gods now. They're indestructible."
"Then I have a better idea." Minami closed the lids of Jimu's eyes before standing. "The power of the dragons was awakened when Jimu battled Takuni. If my understanding is correct, they can only be reawakened through a duel. So I say we hide them somewhere they can never be found again."
"Where do you suggest?" Despite all that he had just seen her go through, Yoshi wasn't sure he trusted Minami quite yet.
"None of us can know. I can pilot one of the choppers. I'll take you and you alone and fly out over the sea. At some point, you can drop them all into the ocean, where they won't be found for a very, very long time, if ever. I'll be piloting the chopper, so I won't have any idea when you drop them."
"I think that's a good idea," Kira said. "Only I'm coming along too. To make sure you don't try anything funny."
The Captain nodded. "If it's okay with your brother, it's okay with me."
"You should get going now," Daichi said. "Before anyone has a chance to change their minds. I'll declare an immediate ceasefire and order the skies to be kept clear."
"Thank you, your Majesty," Yoshi said. "For all your help."
The old man smiled. "It is you we should be thanking, Yoshi. It was your courage, your trust in yourself that allowed you to stand up to Jimu, and give him the defeat that returned him to his senses. All of Asuka is in your debt. When you return from your errand, I'll see what we can do to begin repaying it."
Too embarrassed to say anything, Yoshi just bowed, slipped the cards into his pocket, and turned to follow Captain Minami and Kira to one of the helicopters. Minami found a small strongbox in the cargo compartment and handed it to Yoshi.
"You can put the cards in here. This should be heavy enough to send them to the bottom of the sea."
He checked the box for hidden locator devices before reaching into his pocket and pulling out the cards.
Minami handed him a key. "This is the only copy. I think it would be best if you kept it."
"Thanks, but if it's all the same to you, I think I'll throw it overboard too, just to be safe."
She nodded. "Suit yourself. I'm going to go get it started."
As Minami climbed into the cockpit of the large military craft, Kira and Yoshi made their way into the back. Yoshi pulled out the cards, locked them in the strongbox, and put the key in his pocket.
Kira rubbed his arm and gave him an encouraging smile. "You were magnificent back there. That was the best duel I've seen in my entire life."
He could feel himself blushing, but knew she didn't mean it. "Thanks, Kira."
"No, I'm serious. This makes you the best duelist in the world, you know. As soon as we get home, I'm challenging you to a duel so that I can reclaim that title."
He laughed at that and slipped his hand into his pocket, gently touching the one card still there. Minami had said that the only way to release the dragons again was for two of them to do battle, and that meant there was no harm in him keeping just one. This time, however, he silently promised himself that he would never, ever use Diamair again in a duel.
As the helicopter lifted off the ground, a sliver of sun cut into the night sky, and the morning breeze brought with it the scent of a well-earned peace.