Soul of a Duelist

By The Walking Paradox

Turn 9: There and Back Again: Vardøger

"Somehow…I feel like I've been here before." Aegis couldn't help but feel a sense of déjà vu as he ate a cheap hotdog he bought from a vendor that could feel no cold in the brisk winter air.

Aegis looked around himself, an air of familiarity to his scenery. In all directions there were bare trees in vast open space that had been covered in a blanket of white snow. The colors of Spirare's city park had been wiped away; the winter had turned it into a single blank canvas. It really didn't do much good for inspiring much in Aegis in terms of writing spirit, but there was a strange resonance with his background and his soul.

Moving his good eye down and to his side he noted that he was sitting in the same spot he was in a few weeks ago. It was the exact same metal park bench that he tried to take a nap on previously. The nagging thought that it was also the last day he tried to write came barging through his mind as well. Money seemed to have fallen off of Aegis' list of priorities, but suddenly money seemed to be a very big problem if his next course of action would succeed.

Finishing off the last bits of ketchup soaked bread and sausage, Aegis stood up and made his way to a nearby frosted over metal trash can. However he noticed a newspaper sticking out of it, the date be the following day after Vincent had beat him in city hall. The front page was obstructed by other articles of trash, but it didn't stop Aegis from reaching in with his gloved hand and pulling out the discarded newspaper.

Much to his dismay, Aegis found that there was a massive image of his duel plastered onto the front page. The image was taken during the final moments of the duel, Vincent's Vagabond dispelling the darkness and the spectre conjured by Endless Night, the blade a mere moment before it would be plunged through Aegis' body. At the top a large headline screamed: "Delinquent Duelist Conquers Death!"

Aegis skimmed the article, though it told him exactly what he suspected. The article spoke of how Vincent barged into the mayor's office and challenged Aegis for the chance to enter the Millennium Tournament on behalf of Spirare. It continued to go on to tell of how Aegis' performed atrociously, was implicated as a criminal, even an accomplice to murder and millions of dollars in property damages. In other words, Aegis was as good as a wanted man.

"So this city has finally rejected me too?" Aegis shut his eye slowly, tossing the dirty paper back into the trash can. "My life ended while I was in Spirare. I've stayed here lurking in the shadows ever since that day. Maybe it's a sign I should pick up the pieces of my life and move on?" A sort-of condescending chuckling came from his lips, a cynical smirk forcing his lips upwards.

"Yeah. Probably. But I still need to finish a few more things here."

Before Aegis left the scene, he couldn't help but look back down into the trash can and at the large photo. His eye wandered to the image of himself, arms up and bracing for an impending impact. It was only a week since the duel, but Aegis felt completely different. The image of the man he was looking down at simply didn't feel like it could remotely be himself.

Though, Aegis believed it was partly because of the fact he had traded in his battered royal blue trenchcoat for a simple gray winter coat, a black beanie covering his head, with simple gloves on each hand and a pair of jeans covering the rest of his body.

After giving it another thought, Aegis discarded the notion of his appearance being the cause for the disparity in identity. More than likely it was because of his trip to Origin and the effect it had on him. He had kept a shard of glass from the torn down orphanage he grew up in with Noah. For some reason there was significance in the jagged glass. To protect himself from it he had wrapped the glass up in a cloth, still he could feel the edges through the material.

"I'm over-thinking things. Still, I can only imagine what would happen if I went back to the drop-in center…" Aegis cringed as he recalled the events following the duel against Vincent.

Mayor Winston's already inhospitable treatment had become downright cruel. The politician was in a state of dignified fury for being humiliated in putting his faith in Aegis. As a result he had quickly decided to hand over the entire bill for operating the center to Maria. No amount of arguing or protesting could move the mayor; it only seemed to make things worse.

After returning to the center as a broken man, Aegis broke the news of what transpired before it could hit the papers. No one said a word, but it was clear that Aegis was no longer considered the hero he was mere hours ago. Though he received no direct backlash, he was shunned and neglected by the people in the shelter; not even the children dared approach him to ask for a dueling consult.

Aegis decided to leave the shelter that night. There were too many things bogging his mind down. To make his life easier while travelling, he decided to get rid of his trenchcoat. It was his defining feature, the large coat that covered up his body from view. Instead he opted for second-hand winter clothing in a donation bin from a church.

"And now here we are. But I need to find someone that might still be on my side. I…" Aegis paused. After tracing over his thoughts, he felt ashamed in wanting to still find a way to enter the Millennium Tournament. It would start in a week, yet it was held somewhere across the globe from here he stood. "Maybe it's still too selfish of me to want to fulfill a pointless dream like winning the Millennium Tournament when the drop-in center won't last for more than a few months…"

"Still…I really don't want to give up on this. The next time I'll have a chance to enter is going to be in another four years!" The impossibility of the task settled in. During the train ride back to Spirare, Aegis wrestled against his logic to try and delude himself into believing he could find a way to do the impossible. As he stood fixed in place, hovering over the image of his former self a feeling of hopelessness spread out from the bottom of his heart to the rest of his body.

In a short period of time Aegis felt like he had travelled long and far in finally understanding who he was. Yet conviction could only carry a weary soul so far. The rest of his aspirations would need footing in the physical realm to keep him moving.

Then it hit him.

Aegis' body seized up, all of his muscles contracting at once. On his left shoulder he could feel the heavy presence of a hand slamming down on the puffy winter coat. As the hand sank in to make contact with the shoulder beneath it, Aegis' mind was screaming to run. However a deep-rooted guilt had seeded him in place, turning his legs into lead.

"You're a hard boy to find." The voice of the past spoke into the back of his head. It was a gruff older voice that spoke in mute tones. Aegis recognized it to belong to Earl, the homeless man who had briefly helped him out as he recovered before facing Iris.

"Those who don't learn history are doomed to repeat it…Isn't that how the saying goes?" The relics of a past just weeks ago had already caught up to him. Aegis looked into himself, at the fear, the guilt, the torment, all of the emotions that held him back. Aegis swiftly crushed it with a solidified resolve.

"Let the past come for me. I won't run."

"I was out of town for awhile." Aegis surprised himself with how casual his answer was. With a casual wave of his arm, Aegis turned around to face the man calmly.

"Explains it then. Everyone in the shelter was looking for you." The news dealt a rather heavy blow to Aegis' resolve; he had never expected to be so loathed that it would invoke a few hundred people to search a city for an entire week!

Still, for Aegis to crumble yet again was totally unacceptable! Aegis thought back to the broken man he was when Vincent crushed him. That pitiful shell was not someone else, the torment and shame belonged only to Aegis. It was who he was for so long. He finally gained insight into the condition and had a chance to break free from the pain he kept in his heart.

"Let's go then." Aegis nodded his head as he spoke firmly. Earl appeared unresponsive, perhaps it was just easier if Aegis didn't struggle, at least that's what he thought. Early motioned to the east, Aegis was to walk ahead with Earl following close behind.

Thankfully, even though Earl could recognize him with the new attire, the majority of Spirare would still be unable to tell that he was the infamous Aegis Hallow.

Yet there was an almost dark undertone to the scenario. As it was late in the year, Christmas was coming, with it the usual peddlers for charities would stand outside and try to get donations. One particular man, dressed in dark winter clothing that covered up all but his face, slowly rang a bell. Each time the clapper struck the inside of the brass bell, an eerie ding ran through Aegis' head.

The streets were empty as the weather was particularly inhospitable, leaving the city rather baron. The sights and sounds ultimately made Aegis feel as if he was walking through Death Row. "One way or another, this is how things should be. I can't run away from this for five years." Aegis surprised himself once more with how determined he had become. It was starting to border defiance against anything and everything coming his way in life.

As the scenery became a bit more baron, a bit more familiar, Aegis could accurately estimate the time it would take him to close in on the drop-in center. Five minutes until that large overturned dumpster. Four minutes until the graffiti covered bus stop with it's a chipped bench. Three minutes until Aegis reaches the corner that led straight into the drop-in center's doors. Two minutes until the steps of the drop-in center. One minute until Aegis would reach out and push open the metal doors.

Finally there was no more time. Aegis halted in front of the shelter's worn metal doors. His right hand frozen in midair as it reached for the metal bar, an act of habit really. Despite Aegis' newfound confidence, there was still a sizeable part of him that did want to make a break for it.

"Come on, they're waiting for you." Earl beckoned onwards. Aegis forgot that Earl was looming behind him the entire trip. There was no real easy way of escaping from the start. Aegis jolted his right arm forward to latch onto the metal bar, pulling it open slowly. "Here we go, let's do this."

Aegis slipped through the parting metal and stepped into the drop-in center for the first time in a week. At first he went unnoticed, the inhabitants moving back and forth carrying out their daily routines. Then Aegis noticed something strange.

The normally rather cluttered and dirty floors were cleaned, the tiles actually shining in the light. There were only a few things left on the floor, all of the mattresses had been removed and placed elsewhere, same with all of the personal affects people would leave behind. In fact the entire shelter appeared much cleaner than before, giving it a rather professional feel.

With Earl shutting the doors behind him, the resulting metal clang caused a few heads to turn. Aegis did his best to appear casual, first removing the beanie from his head as anyone would after entering from the cold. It was rather difficult to avoid the stares he was receiving however. As one person noticed he had come back, they would tell anyone nearby and then they would do the same.

Aegis' confidence shrunk under the staring. But he could feel a small fire still burning in his soul, it was only lit a few days ago and was fragile. But it wanted to burn brightly. Gripping the covered glass shard in his pocket, Aegis forced his eyes upwards off the floor and to stare straight back at those around him.

And yet another strange thing happened. At first Aegis couldn't distinguish what feeling was being conveyed on the faces of the audience. It wasn't exactly anger, but it wasn't contempt either. No, it wasn't anything remotely related to anger or contempt. After a moment Aegis tentatively put forward the only plausible word to describe how he was being received: relief.

"Aegis! Where have you been?!" The first to speak was a shrill tune, but it was familiar and Aegis knew it was how Maria sounded when she was stressed.

"Well I-" Aegis didn't realize the question was rhetorical, Maria parting the gathering crowd in an instant only to shoot her arm forward and latch onto Aegis' left ear. She wasted no time in tugging on it to bring Aegis' head down to the ground, the man hissing and protesting vividly as he tried to get her to stop. The pain was horribly unpleasant, and it made him feel like a naughty ten-year old.

"Do you have any idea how worried you made everyone?!" Maria made sure to speak very loudly and clearly into the captured left ear, Aegis' entire body convulsing in sync with each vibration of the air. It was an unending torrent of worried accusation, in some ways Aegis was suddenly alright without having a mother, Maria could do the traditional scolding very well.

"We found your trenchcoat out in a trashcan! Your duel-disk was even in there! With the deck still inside!" Maria's voice intensified as she continued shouting at point blank range.

"If someone didn't find it what would you do about the Millennium Tournament?!" At those two magical words Aegis could always break out of any strife. He stopped struggling against Maria's grip, which ultimately caused her to let go of the battered ear. For a moment Aegis forgot that he had been robbed of his one chance awhile ago, the unhappiness stirring inside of his stomach.

"What do you mean? You were there with me when the mayor changed his mind. I'm not in the Millennium Tournament." Aegis couldn't hide the sadness in his voice, he had desperately wanted to shoot for the title of best in the world.

Maria sighed and shook her head, her deceptively strong hand reaching out for Aegis once more. He stood in place as he received a flick in the center of his forehead that made him shut his eyes momentarily form the stinging. "If you stayed around then you would know." A collective grin travelled throughout the gathered members. Aegis looked from side to side at the smiles; the situation was drastically different than what he had envisioned.

"Long story short, you're going to enter the Millennium Tournament." It was Earl who stole the moment, breaking the news before Maria could, which caused her to be very annoyed.

Aegis' jaw dropped, had the laws of physics not been in play it most likely would have hit the ground. He was dreaming. No, his ear was throbbing and caused a great dull pain. Was it a prank? A twisted way of getting him back where it really hurt the most? No, Aegis didn't believe that Maria would have allowed something so underhanded to occur. Then…It was true.

"Are…Are you serious?" Aegis did his best to stifle his overflowing excitement, speaking in only a whisper. There was no audible response, just a unanimous set of nodding heads from all sides. His legs suddenly gave out, Aegis collapsing to his knees for no real reason. It wasn't out of agony or torment, it was an act of disbelief, he was shocked.

"But I thought…Why did you all do this for me? Because of me the shelter will run out of money..." Aegis looked to see a characteristic reaction, yet there was no loathing or resentment, still only smiles.

"The solution was simple, we just make more money!" A young man suddenly jumped into the conversation, shouting the answer so easily despite being homeless and unemployed.

"I…But Earl seemed unhappy to find me awhile ago…I really did think…" Aegis' mind had turned itself off at the news. The rest of his body trying to operate without any higher thought processes. Earl sighed wearily and lowered himself down to one knee, letting his hand land roughly on Aegis' shoulder.

"Boy, ever since you left I haven't had a good night's sleep! I've been looking for you high and low, I'm sure I've combed through every bit of Spirare twice! You know I'm happy to see you, but I'm just too tired to show it!" Earl moved in closer to Aegis to let him see the heavy bags under his eyes. Aegis didn't notice it at first as he never got a real good look at Earl's face, but he looked absolutely exhausted. Still, he had a half-hearted smile on his tired face that washed away anymore of Aegis' doubts.

"How did you do this?" Aegis wracked his mind for the last week for a way to accomplish the daunting task of entering the Millennium Tournament. Yet, it almost seemed like a trivial chore for the shelter's members.

"A day after that article was printed the announcer from the last tournament stumbled in here looking for you." A female voice spoke this time, older, wiser in her years than Aegis was in his short lifetime.

"He was real worked up after hearing what Mayor Winston did to you! That judge didn't believe the article and thought you were played by the mayor. So he asked all of us to work with him to get you entered!" A little girl, a very energetic child that fed off of the atmosphere simply burst the next segment of the story.

"Turns out because you were a dueling legend five years ago, and since you did so well against Iris, the committee accepted your application!" Now it was the young boy next to her who continued the telling.

"But how am I supposed to get there? I don't have enough money…Wait…Don't tell me…" Aegis felt horrible inside as he realized the only source of money that was readily available. These homeless men and women who had worked alongside of Aegis to keep the shelter open, they had given it all up, just for his sake. The happiness he felt was becoming corrupted with feelings of uncontrollable guilt, he suddenly didn't want to accept the second chance. It cost too much just for him to indulge in a childhood dream.

"Don't even think about it, boy!" Earl shook Aegis roughly as he saw the impending signs of his conscience take over. "You haven't heard the entire story yet, so don't jump to conclusions until you do." Earl's gruff voice stopped Aegis' mental gears cold.

"At first the folks around here weren't too happy about the news of what happened. But we all got thinking. Isn't it shameful that all of us have to depend on one boy to make sure there's somewhere warm to sleep?" Earl paused as a consensus was agreed upon by all the drop-in center's inhabitants. "You did a lot for us, boy-no you're not a boy, I can't call you that anymore, Aegis. You did a lot for us. And it was more than win us some money."

"When you left we realized that we were making you work so hard for us, so we had no right to be upset. So, we decided to follow your example!" Earl motioned to a middle-aged man near the back of the gathering, the man smiling and waving back at Aegis.

"That's Jonathan, see he got divorced and never got back on his feet. But now he's really trying to turn his life around, has a job and is even talking to his ex. Oh, and Gloria over there," Earl turned Aegis around at a rather young adolescent who looked down shyly when mentioned.

"She never really fit in with her family and ended up here, but you should've seen how fired up she was when someone said how we might have to all go our separate ways. Aegis, you showed us that this was more than a haven from the winter. It's our home." Earl's words struck something in Aegis' soul. The flame that began to burn a few days ago redoubled in its efforts, igniting and illuminating the depths of his darkened soul.

"You're a real hero, Aegis." Finally Maria began to speak, only in a much more embracing tone than what she used to scold Aegis. And there it was once again. That word. Hero. Aegis could feel inadequate whenever someone wanted to label him with those four letters. The feeling that he was such a noble figure never sat well with him.

"I'm not…At least I don't think I am." The idea was being thrown at him so often that Aegis couldn't help but feel that some of the hero mantra was starting to stick.

"You are. Aegis, a hero inspires us to be more than we are. They make everyone around them want to be better. A hero is always looking forward, always moving ahead, and everyone around them just wants to chase after that strong back. We just want to run forward after you, Aegis." Maria's speech suddenly made it almost impossible for Aegis to deny his applied title.

"I thought writing corny lines was my job." Maria appeared as if she was trying to stop from grabbing onto Aegis' ear yet again. Aegis' body had rebooted itself, his frontal lobe was receiving blood again, the motor cortex becoming responsive and able to force his legs to operate. Aegis stood back up and took in the moment.

Somehow, something from above saw fit to give him that second chance. It was perfect. Somehow he had made things worse, yet the world allowed things to get better. Or maybe it really was something that he had started. A seed he had planted in the hearts of every one of society's neglected that gathered in the center. The harvest was done without even knowing, and the profit was simply handed to Aegis.

"Is it really that simple? I just…Get on a plane and that's it?" Aegis realized at the end of the day, the big life changing moment really was just defined by walking onto a plane.

"That's the plan at least. You're lucky you came back now since the plane is leaving tomorrow!" Maria shrugged off the snipe Aegis made, ensuring the mood would still be intact. "You have a lot to do tonight, Aegis."

Maria reached to the side and onto a tabletop, picking something up off of it. "The first thing is to get rid of those beat up clothes for this." She produced the royal blue trenchcoat Aegis had left behind. The article of clothing was still worn out and fading away, yet it almost felt like it was brand new in some way.

Earl began to shift at the sight of the long coat. He reached into his coat and mumbled something under his breath wearily. Aegis looked over at what was going on just as Earl pulled his hand out of the coat, in it the tarnished silver gauntlet that was Aegis' duel-disk.

"Where has my head gone? I forgot to give this back when I first ran into you." Aegis smiled to himself amusedly. A fair bit of grief would have been saved if Earl had gave him the gauntlet earlier, but it was fine. He took the metal garment from Earl, turning it over in his hands to examine its scratched exterior. "This is who I am after all."

Aegis strapped the metal glove to his right arm, flexing his fingers and rotating his steel covered hand before clenching it into a fist. "Right then. I have a lot to do, let's get started."

The night before the beginning of the Millennium Tournament Aegis found himself unable to sleep. He stayed in a hotel that was a twenty minute walk from the tournament site, but it was the best he could do being such a late entry and not being sponsored by a prestigious company, or a city for that matter.

The flight from Spirare seemed to be a passing dream. Aegis was fortunate enough to have a window seat and spent the entire flight looking out the window at the clouds. After landing he took in the change in scenery. The buildings looked the same as in Spirare, though he was halfway around the world from where he started nothing really seemed to change too much.

To describe the city in a word, it was blank. A perfect Tabula Rasa from which Aegis could write the story of his epic as he shot for the championship of the Millennium Tournament. It was an incredible feeling that empowered his body with superhuman strength and stamina.

Aegis walked the entire way to the hotel, a staggering two hour trip by foot in a gentle snowfall. But the cold could not affect him, his body was burning up in thinking of dueling the world, an honour that would only come to a select few every leap year.

After arriving at his hotel he wasted no time in unpacking his one duffel bag worth of possessions. All he had taken with him was the dozens of hats he had gotten from the drop-in center, and a few extra cards they had also given him before the flight. Aegis first dismantled Noah's deck for the very first time. It pained him to violate the sacred privacy of the deck, it simple wasn't his so it made him feel wrong. The original deck Aegis used was lost years ago during the incident with Noah, so with no other choice Aegis murmured an apology and sought to prepare for his first match in a few days.

Aegis spent his time in his room, not preparing so much as he was just relaxing. Laying on the satin sheets and watching European television. Despite how big of a moment it was, Aegis couldn't fire himself up to the point of toiling away in preparation. It just seemed more appropriate to enjoy the moment.

Still, it didn't stop him from taking apart Noah's deck a second time on the night before the opening day of the Millennium Tournament. By the time Aegis finished it was well past midnight. Knowing the value of a good night's sleep, Aegis did his best to fall into slumber. Yet he couldn't calm his racing heart or his burning soul. He wanted the new day to dawn in the next second so he could start on the path to glory.

At three in the morning Aegis gave up any attempt to fall asleep and instead stepped outside onto the balcony. Opting to sit in a char he dragged outside with a warm cup of tea in one his left hand and his head resting in the cool metal encasing his right.

Aegis amused himself by retracing the day's events. He had not done very much so it might be why the day felt so short. Then again, from years of being a vagrant Aegis found he normally travelled in the night. During the day he would stay fixed somewhere with enough light to write by. By night he would have to move to somewhere safe for the night. Thus, he was a natural dweller of darkness.

"I used to wake up extra early to try and get the most out of the day. Now I think I feel the most alive under the night sky." It was the middle of the night during winter, so no one would hear Aegis musing aloud. His hair was messy from tossing and turning to fall asleep, and as a result it was one of the few times both of Aegis' eyes were visible. It gave him a clear view of the cityscape, just shadows with patches of light thrown in here and there. A rather gentle and surreal view.

He was amused with his life to a certain extent. Tracing the steps that led him to where he sat that night. The man he was and the man he is. Somehow the two were very different from each other, yet there was no true difference, only in perception.

"In the end, the sky will always be the same. Just how I see it will change night form night. When and where I look up there it'll always be the same sky." Aegis' words almost seemed to have meaning beyond what he intended, only saying the first thing that came to mind without any real thought.

"I…Never thought I'd come this far again. I missed the last Millennium Tournament because of what happened five years ago. I already disappeared from this world by the time it came around." Aegis paused and swirled around the steaming cup of tea he had in his hand.

"Five years later I'm back in this world. Yet nothing seems different about me. No, I was different before. Now I'm starting to find the person I used to be, who I really am supposed to be." Aegis chuckled. For making a joke out of the speech Maria gave the day before, he felt he had to suffer some karma for saying such things himself.

"Nightfall came. It stayed for a very long time. But the sun will always rise again, daybreak will happen sooner or later, and the veil will be lifted." Aegis let his mouth vocalize the thoughts as they came to him. For a moment Aegis wanted to get out of his frosted seat to get a pen and paper. "I should write this down. My editor might like it."

Another laugh escaped Aegis. A hearty sound that made his body quake with each reiteration. The tournament would start in a few hours. The Millennium Tournament. Aegis' dream. It was a day he waited his life for and it was dawning.

No amount of snow or ice kept the crowds from lining up hours before the Millennium Tournament's start. All for prime seats as close to the action as possible. To sit so close to the duels that they could feel the breath of each monster. And to Aegis' boyish delight, he would have no part in it. Simply flashing the duelist card he was given and bypassing everyone.

Aegis knew that his friends from the center would be glued to the television to watch his duel. So to honour their dedication to a shabby man like himself, he made sure to wear at least one hat each duel. Starting the day, Aegis opted for a black cowboy hat. It was the closest to his old travelling hat and provided him with the ability to hide his face, his favorite tactic of intimidation.

It worked rather well no matter how many times he did it. The other duelists instantly recognized Aegis from his long flowing trenchcoat and the possession of lavish headgear. After hearing of his performance against the tournament favorite, Iris Lifian, Aegis' mere presence invoked fear and competition in those around him. "I love it! This feeling of rivalry! I can't get enough! And for such high stakes! I feel invincible!" Aegis did feel like a kid in a candy story as he walked into the lobby area. It was simply too good to be true, but it was.

"Aegis Hallow." Aegis Hallow froze up at being beckoned. The perfect moment ended. That voice. That overconfident, smug, superior tone. That singsong, almost alluring voice. Who else could it be? Iris Lifian.

Aegis tipped his hat up and turned around to confront the source of the sound. Much to his annoyance, Iris mimicked the action with his hat. The hat that Aegis had lost in the wager against Iris was very quaintly worn by Iris for their confrontation. It was maddening.

"Iris." Aegis couldn't hide the disgruntled undertones, he didn't bother trying either. "Not here to give my hat back are you?" The question went unanswered, though Iris did smile slyly.

"I heard of what happened in Spirare." Iris wasted no time in going on the offensive. For some reason Aegis found everything she said was able to hit him off guard.

"Yeah. Well. Stuff happens." The response was weak at best. Aegis could feel himself sweating a bit as the confrontation had also drawn the attention of other people.

"If Spirare has disowned you, then who are you representing?" Iris posed a very strange question. Aegis still found he was annoyed to be surprised at such a strange tangent in the conversation.

"No one. I'm representing myself." Aegis answered honestly, though he felt a bit tentative in pushing forward the response.

Iris' smile widened for some reason. The response amused her perhaps? She tipped her won hat down over her face to only leave a smile in sight. "Is that so?"

Aegis flinched instinctively, recalling the woman's very blunt way in dealing with Aegis during their parting last time. "Y-yeah. Who are you representing? I heard that Spirare decided to send three people, are you here on Spirare's behalf?" No good, Aegis should've learned by then that it was impossible to beat Iris at her own mind-games. His question only made her smile widen.

"No. I don't live in Spirare so I cannot represent it, Aegis." Aegis wanted to then follow up with the next most logical question, why was she in Spirare then? But Iris moved faster and took control of the conversation yet again.

"Your first opponent, do you know who it is?" The question seemed rhetorical in how it was asked. But Aegis knew the answer.

"Yeah. Some guy named Ark. Don't tell me he's your rival or something." The prospect of dealing with someone that was considered to already be on the same level of Iris would be a lot of pressure for him, especially since Aegis' match would be the very first of the Millennium Tournament.

"No. I don't know who this Ark is." A sigh of relief escaped Aegis, which instantly flipped Iris' smile into a disapproving frown. "That's the problem. No one knows who Ark is." Suddenly a stone plummeted into Aegis' stomach.

"Well…I'm also an unknown technically. What's the big deal?" Aegis had developed a foreboding feeling. A spectre had materialized behind him, wrapping its arms around his neck in its icy embrace. His silver eye had begun to throb behind the curtain of black hair as well. Perhaps Iris was right, there might be something more to his opponent, Ark.

"Possibly nothing. Good luck then, Aegis. I will be watching." Iris' parting words didn't help Aegis one bit. It actually made him feel more nervous, saying such a thing usually meant some ulterior motive. Aegis watched as Iris turned around and very elegantly carried herself out of the room, actually the eyes of all the other male duelists were tracing her progression.

"Can't…I ever enjoy a moment?"

"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the opening of the tenth Millennium Tournament!" A familiar voice blasted through the massive stadium. David was a very high ranking judge in the administrative world of Duel Monsters. He had worked diligently for years and it was not his first time as the announcer for the prestigious event.

David stood in the very center of a massive metal field with endless rows of seats that circled around him, going upwards to the sky above. The stadium was twice the size of the one David announced at in Spirare. With the best quality sound system in that part of the world and massive monitors everywhere that showed the dueling field in ridiculously high definition. The ceiling was built as a clear dome. It allowed natural sunlight to pierce the stadium and illuminate all present.

"It is my honour to be here with each and everyone of you as your announcer today! But enough about me! You've all waited very patiently these last four years to see these duelists fight it out here! The very finest of the world has gathered here today to sweat, to cry, and to pour themselves into their duels for all the world to see! Let us give them the respect that every one of these fine men and women deserve!" David's skill in working the crowd was impressive as usual. Even Aegis felt a strong bond with David just because of what he said; his skill was truly awe inspiring. "I really need to thank David. Well, I'll put on a good show for him to watch at least."

"To kick off the tournament, we have two spectres facing off against each other! One of them is a ghost from the dueling world five years ago, and the other drifted in from the netherworld to shoot for the title!" David lowered his voice to try and put forth an eerie mood, trying to unnerve some of the weaker willed in the audience.

"The man who has conquered death and even tamed the Grim Reaper himself, I give you the ever mysterious Aegis Hallow!" Aegis' controversial status caused a great deal of mixed reactions, from cheering to jeering. But none of the negative reactions could piece the armor Aegis had formed from his new confidence. The glass shard from Origin that told him who he was. The people that believed in him from Spirare. These two things were all Aegis needed.

He strode out confidently, the cowboy hat sitting nicely on his head. A defiant smirk all over Aegis' face as he savoured each step towards the metal dueling field. "I don't care who this Ark is! I won't back down after coming this far!"

"And his opponent, an enigma in itself, all I know is three little letters about this duelist, 'A' 'R' 'K'. Here he is, Ark!" The introduction was simple, but it was sufficient for the entity that walked out opposite of Aegis.

Ark was a towering man, standing at almost seven feet tall. However there was not much else to his appearance. His entire body was covered up in a long white trenchcoat that went down to his ankles. His hands were covered as well in white gloves as well. Ark even went far enough to cover his entire head with a large white fedora. But it seemed like there was also a white cloth wrapped around Ark's head, Aegis wondered how he could even see in such a state.

But it wasn't just Ark's appearance that was strange. He walked very oddly as well. All of his movements were jerky and exaggerated, he moved like a puppet. Still, Aegis wouldn't be surprised if the man had his share of eccentricities, it wasn't like Aegis hadn't met a strange person.

Ark reached his position on the dueling field, a portion of it opening up in front of him to let a metal pedestal appear. Ark had no visible duel-disk on, so he had to use the built in holographic projectors of the stadium. Aegis got over his strange luck at dueling yet another oddball, arming his duel-disk swiftly, the blade ejecting and lighting up.

"Not a word between the two, what serious duelists! Alright, let's start the Millennium Tournament! DUEL!" David leapt off of the dueling field as he shouted, the crowd roaring. The monitors lit up with portraits of both duelists appearing, the life point counters ticking up to 8000.

(Ark: 8000 Aegis: 8000)

Aegis appeared to have the first move, though it was hard to tell if Ark let him have the initiative or just couldn't object in time. It didn't matter, he was on his way to getting the first of many wins.

With a grandiose swipe, Aegis added a sixth card to his opening hand. When he looked at it he felt an old sense of familiarity. "Noah…This one is for you!"

"I summon Orpheus in attack mode! (1900/1600)" Aegis' signature monster took life on the metal field. The mechanical silver body given life, Orpheus' red scarf flapping in stimulated wind as his slit white eyes stared forward past his snowy white hair. "I'll end my turn with that."

Ark's right arm jerkily twitched forward, clumsily grabbing onto a card. The duelist did not even appear to look at the card before playing it wordlessly. It appeared from the effects of the projectors that Ark was summoning a monster.

On Ark's field a silver humanoid body formed. Its limbs were oddly shaped and were a bit disproportioned for a human body, but it was definitely human based. On the monster's back there was a large stringed instrument strapped to the thin torso. The head of the entity was black skinned, having only two colorless slits for eyes that blended in well with its white hair.

Aegis stumbled backwards, as if he was struck by a truck. His right eye began to sting the second the monster's form came into sight of the milky eye.

"Impossible! That's…ORPHEUS?! (1900/1600)" Aegis knew it was impossible. It had to have been a monster with the ability to copy another monster. But even in that case such a card would always show its true form first. But the pain in his eye told him it wasn't the case.

Ark paid no attention to the stunned duelist, or the confused expressions of the crowd. Instead his jerky hand reached for another card and placed it onto the pedestal, the reaction was immediate. A green spell card formed on the field, the image and the name was something Aegis knew.

"Spirit Light?! How?!" Aegis' body tensed up, his guard and defences mobilizing. Who was Ark?!

Aegis watched carefully as Ark's jerky right hand showed him the spirit monster Yamata Dragon. A 2600 attack spirit which Aegis knew he would discard to empower Ark's Orpheus. The doppelganger of Orpheus glowed a fiery crimson, a flame encasing the silver body. The second Orpheus then reached for his harp, armed it and then struck a harsh melody for Aegis' Orpheus. A jolt of lightning streaked through the sky and besieged the original, an anguished cry coming from its mechanized vocal chords before shattering.

(Ark: 8000 Aegis: 5400)

"What's the meaning of this?! No one else can have these cards!" Aegis' right eye began to ache more after the destruction of the original Orpheus. Ark gave no response, simply staring at Aegis without any eyes.

Aegis' instincts told him that he was in grave danger, and it acted on it. He plunged his left hand into his trenchcoat and took out the wrapped glass shard. In one fluid motion he unravelled the cloth that concealed it and swiftly launched it straight at Ark with the expertise of an assassin.

Ark did nothing to avoid the glass, a direct hit in the face. The man bent backwards from the sheer force Aegis used in his throw. The audience gasped, Aegis had just launched a deadly weapon at his opponent, and it appeared from where it struck it was a fatal blow.

Ark's white hat fell to the ground, and so did the white wrapping. Yet he himself did not tumble over. Instead he actually jolted straight up, with a large glass shard lodged in the center of his 'head'. That was the problem, what was his head.

Aegis was floored at what he saw. Ark had no face. What was under the hat and the wrappings was nothing more than a bundle of hay. Ark raised a hand to point at Aegis, but in the process the glove had slipped off, there was no hand there, just more hay. Ark was nothing more than a bundle of tied hay!

"What's going on…?" Aegis took a step away from the entity. His right eye was almost screaming for him to escape. Something was going to happen, but he couldn't think. It was too late anyway.

All of a sudden the false head of Ark changed dramatically. A pair of black eyes opened, staring straight at Aegis. Beneath them a mouth opened up, a black void that twisted into a demonic smile. There was no escape.

Ark's body broke free from the white trenchcoat, black streams firing out from the body. The entire dueling field erupted in black matter that shot up into the air. Aegis tried to run, but a wall of the black substance cut him off from the rest of the world. The only part of him that escaped in time was the cowboy hat he had on, falling off of his head when Aegis halted before colliding with the black barrier. The light slowly faded, the sun vanishing from Aegis.

A chill went down Aegis' spine. All he could see was a sinister void. A black nothingness. It was darkness manifest, and Aegis knew exactly what it meant. He was back in the Shadow Realm.

The feeling of hopelessness, of despair, it was overwhelming. Aegis found it hard to stand; he could feel his confidence crumbling under the weight of the memories of five years ago.

"Master of the shadows."

Then a voice began to speak. It spoke loudly. Confidently. It brought Aegis out of his spiral into the past and into an impossible present.

"The man who could tame Death."

It was a familiar voice. No, it wasn't just familiar, it was real.

"His soul would burn the brightest in all the universe!"

Aegis began to raise his eyes upwards, off of the void below to start to look forward.

"The King of Kings!"

Somehow, somehow Aegis saw something that should not be before him. He opened his mouth, just as the other did and in unison they both cried:

"NOAH ETHEREAL!"