A/N: So I've finally updated this for the first time in over a year. I'm not proud of that, but I just really lost inspiration for this for a while. I guess it doesn't really help that I also went off SSBB and haven't played that for a year either... so if some things are inaccurate, sorry! I rather rushed this chapter because I just wanted to get it uploaded, and I hope it'll get better again as I get back into writing this style.

I don't really have a plot (yet) so this is the boring introduction chapter. After this it will start to pick up, I promise! I know where this fanfic is going but I'm not quite sure how it's going to get there yet. I have some themes that I want to run through this that I've tried to hint at within this update, which are mostly going to revolve around around the Yami/Bakura/Ryou, Yami/Yugi, and Yami/T ea/Yugi relationships, but it won't be (too) dark and there officially won't be any yaoi - it's friendship here and nothing more.

Right, I'm done talking now, so try to enjoy this chapter! And do review, even if it's only to tell me how bad this is or shout at me for taking so long to update!

~Starbird out.

The Subspace Duelists

Chapter 2

The sun was shining brightly when Yugi awoke, which was strange because he couldn't remember falling asleep.

What had he been doing? Oh, that was right, I was at Ryou's house, playing SSBB, and –

And something unexplainable had happened, and he had ended up in this place where the sun shone brightly.

It was then that Yugi realised he was wearing a hat. Curious, and certain he hadn't put one on before he went to Ryou's, he took it off to get a better look at it. It was forest-green and pointed, rather like a traditional wizard's hat, only drooping and relaxed rather then pointing straight upwards.

He looked down at himself with trepidation and found, to no surprise, that he was wearing some sort of green tunic. It was an earthy colour, complimented by the snug soil-brown boots he had on. There was a belt around his waist, strapped to which was a sword in its sheath, and he could feel what he presumed to be a shield tied to his back.

Yugi had always been very intuitive, and it only took him a couple of seconds to figure out what was going on. Somehow he had entered the world of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and somehow he had become the character Link.

"Yugi! YUGI!" someone shouted.

Yugi turned around to find something in the sky heading down towards him. At first he couldn't see anything because of the sun, but as the figure drew closer, he began to recognize who it was. "Ryou?" Yugi gasped, taken aback.

Because it was Ryou, only he too was dressed in a tunic – this one flowing, and pearly white – with a golden wreath on his head and two beautiful angel wings sprouting from his back. He was holding some sort of shining bow which he threw down as he landed gracefully before Yugi.

"Wow, Yugi, you won't believe how glad I am to see you!" Ryou exclaimed. "I thought I was alone here!"

"Yeah, me too," Yugi agreed, secretly glad to find that someone else was there with him. "Wherever here is..."

"Well... I don't really want to say this, but it looks kind of like the Forest level from SSBB," Ryou suggested cautiously.

Yugi didn't seem all that surprised to Ryou, just nodding. "I... thought so. We're inside the game, aren't we?"

"I think so." The reality of those words hit Ryou for the first time. "That void... we went through it somehow and ended up here? This is so weird. This game is so popular over the world – we'd have heard about it if some kid somewhere got pulled into his TV while playing it. Or, do you think that maybe only my version of the game is weird?"

"That would be some coincidence. I think that's it's been waiting for us."

Both of them looked around automatically. Yugi started, "But what confuses me is how this game doesn't feel, well, like a Shadow Game."

Ryou laughed helplessly. "Yugi... I can't believe you. We've been transported into a video game world and the only thing that concerns you is how different it is from the last time it happened to you."

Yugi blushed. "Sorry," he grinned. "I think we should go and look for the others. If we're both here, it makes sense that they would be too."

"Yeah, I suppose so," Ryou conceded.

"You're the only one of us who's played this game before," Yugi said. "Have you any idea where we are, or where the others might be?"

A startling scream rang through the forest around them, causing the foliage to erupt with the fluttering of startled wings. Ryou and Yugi looked at each other.

"Téa!" Yugi exclaimed.

"I think that answers that one," Ryou grinned. They began to run in the direction of the shout, Ryou choosing to run beside his friend rather then fly, and both of them were secretly glad for the other's company.

The forest trail they followed soon opened out into a rather large clearing dominated by a wide tree stump roughly in the centre. A figure stood on it, instantly recognizable as Princess Zelda by her purple ceremonial robes and the Triforce glittering on her hand, mirroring the golden symbol one Yugi's own. It had to be Téa. She was facing away from them and towards another person, this one covered in deep blue fur. He was more beast than man and yet even from across the clearing, Yugi could see the deep solemnity and sincerity in his red eyes. This was Lucario from SSBB, there was no doubt about that, but he wasn't just Lucario.

He reached up to take Téa's hand in his own gentle, padded claws. "Téa," he murmured quietly. "Don't be afraid. It's me."

"Ph-Pharaoh?" Téa asked hesitantly, and at the same time, Yugi shouted, "Yami!" and charged across the ground towards them.

The Lucario turned to see them and his eyes filled with delight as his gaze settled on his other self. "Yugi!" he cried, in his familiar voice. And then Téa turned and saw them too, and everyone's names were shouted several times over in joy at their reunion.

Yugi and Téa hugged each other briefly, a little embarrassed, and then Yugi turned to Yami. "Partner," Yami smiled.

"Yami, I-I can't hear you in my head any more! How... how is this possible?"

"I'm not sure, Yugi," Yami admitted, but his voice was reassuring and calm. Yugi couldn't help smiling. If Yami wasn't afraid, then Yugi wouldn't be either.

"Right, now that that's settled," Téa began, hands on her hips, "Would anyone care to explain to me what on earth is going on here?"

"I don't –" Yugi began, but he was unable to finish his sentence.

Out of the shadows had stepped two creatures, about Yugi's height, with blocky dull green bodies. Both held some sort of laser guns, and they didn't hesitate to fire them at the group. Yami swept Téa up into his arms instantly and bounded out of the way, flying higher and further than a normal being could have. Ryou pulled Yugi away just in time – a lot less gracefully, but saving his life nonetheless.

"Wha- what?" Yugi was stuttering.

"We have to fight!" Yami growled, as he gently placed Téa back on the ground.

"How?"

The Lucario looked around the group. "Leave this to me." With the confidence and command Yugi had come to associate with his other self, Yami stretched his arms out to the side. Blue energy - aura, Ryou remembered - gathered around his hands, shaking the air with its sheer power. The magic came swiftly and easily to the three thousand year old spirit, and Yugi, who was still struggling to get his sword out of its scabbard, couldn't help feeling a little envious of his other self. Yami flung one hand towards his enemies, who threw themselves aside as the ball of sparkling aura smashed into the ground where they had been stood. Their dives had dazed them and now Yami had the initiative.

The Lucario broke into a run, far more athletic in his new pokémon form than he had ever been when he was in Yugi's body. He landed a flying kick squarely on one creature's chest and it vanished in a burst of brilliant blue aura. Yami turned his attention to the other just as it aimed and shot a burst of laser at him, grazing his arm. Clutching his arm to his chest, Yami pulled back, putting some distance between them.

Yugi, meanwhile, had finally managed to get his sword in his hand and he was determined not to be outdone by his other self. He ran at the creature with a wild yell, waving his sword above his head. Following his - Link's? - instincts, he rolled to dodge one beam of laser and he deflected another with his sword. Once close enough, he swung his sword, but the blow was parried by the creature's gun.

While the two fought a brief melee, Ryou drew back Pit's bow and let a blue energy arrow materialize on the taut string in the same way it did in the game. The creature stood between him and Yugi, so he had a clear shot, but this was marred by the fact that it kept moving. He knelt on the ground and looked down the humming arrow's shaft. It was a game, he told himself. It was a bit like that other war-based video game he had bought recently. Even when you were playing against other people, not just the computer, there was always a pattern in their actions. Perhaps it was Bakura's subconscious influence that made Ryou good at computer games, or perhaps he had his own skill too. Either way, once he picked a target, they were dead. Unnoticed by them, his character would track theirs with enduring patience, because eventually they would stop moving. One pause, one split-second hesitation, was all he needed. A single shot; death. They never knew what hit them. And now, watching the two combatants with one eye open, his skills at gaming were coming into their own.

There it was - when the creature blocked Yugi's sword once more it lost its balance, and there was that split-second pause as it decided how best to recover. Ryou released the arrow. He was smiling even before it moved because he knew he hadn't missed. When it struck, the creature vanished.

With the battle over, there were congratulations all around, even from Yami to Ryou, which pleased the timid boy. Téa was inspecting Yami's wound, but he assured her it was only slight, and the two began an awkwardly normal conversation. Yugi and Ryou found themselves together again.

Rather sheepishly, Yugi attempted to start a conversation. "So, this is it. We're really trapped in a game."

"Looks like it," Ryou responded.

When he said nothing else, Yugi searched for another comment to make. "What were those things? Are they from the game?"

"They're called Primids, I think." Ryou shook his head. "It's been so long since I've played the story mode on Brawl. If only I could remember more about it, I'd actually be able to help!"

"You know more than the rest of us do," Yugi told him reassuringly. "We'll get back home. All of us, working together like we did just then. Together we overcome everything, Ryou. Duelist Kingdom, Battle City… compared to those, how hard can this be?"

Ryou sighed, but tried a smile anyway. "How do we do it, Yugi? How do we get home?"

"We complete the game," Yugi replied with a shrug. "That's how these things usually work, right?"

"How do we do that, though?"

"We'll find out. Don't worry."

"I'm not worrying," Ryou abruptly snapped, looking over to where Téa and Yami were engaged in their harmless chat. "Where do you think Tristan and Joey got to?"

Right on cue they both became aware of a vigorous rustling in the bushes beside them, but they turned only to see three more primids emerge, shaking their small fists angrily at the pair of them. "More!" Yugi exclaimed, reaching for his sword with a growl of frustration - he had forgotten, in the elation of their last victory, what a pain it was to get out of the scabbard and stuck it back in automatically.

Ryou, on the other hand, acted straight away, although before he had time to release an energy arrow the primids were upon them. One of them struck his bow as he aimed and his attack soared harmlessly off into the treetops. Both boys began to back away cautiously, calling a warning to Yami and Téa.

Then someone else leapt out from the bushes, and all Yugi caught was a blur of pink and a cape flapping like wings before someone – Ryou – pulled him back out of harm's way and he fell over. Sprawled on his back, Yugi could see a cloaked figure brandishing a large sword in one hand leaping from the sky, an impressive black silhouette against the sun. The newcomer landed, cleaving through a primid with his sword as he did so. He crouched immediately and the pink blob bounced on his head, drawing a giant hammer out of nowhere and swinging it in a giant circle in mid-air. The remaining two primids were smashed into pieces. The man stood up and the blob flipped off the top of his head, landing on the ground on miniature feet, hammer at the ready.

"Yugi?" the tall warrior inquired, peering down at the boy on the floor. "Ryou?"

"Tristan?" Ryou gasped.

"The one and only," Tristan grinned. Now that the action was over, they could see him clearly: dressed as the warrior Ike, he wore the hero's blue battle outfit with ease. He even handled the sword like a pro. He was truly a splendid sight.

On the other hand, the small pink ball with the super-cute eyes beside him - Kirby - was not. "Hey, what about me?" it interrupted crossly, and Yugi and Ryou nearly did double-takes.

"J-Joey?" Yugi choked, because it was undoubtedly Joey's voice, but…

"That's right, you laugh. You two and Tristan ended up as heroes…" Joey growled.

It was a bizarre situation and it was hard not to laugh. Luckily, at that moment, Yami and Téa came over and the tension was broken.

"Tristan, Joey, I'm glad you're both okay," Yami told them in that calming voice of his once they had been properly introduced.

"We've been looking everywhere for you," Joey told them. "So what's going on here? Where even are we?"

Yugi answered. "We seem to be inside the world of SSBB. Other than that…"

"I don't know why we're here," Yami mused. "But I reckon we'll have to complete the game to get out."

On this point, they all agreed. "Well, we're all here now!" Joey told them brightly. "Let's get on with the game!" With that, and some scattered cheers of team spirit, the motley group picked a path at random through the forest and so began their long journey.

The last to leave the clearing was Ryou. But we're not all here, though, are we? he thought to himself as he looked up at the unfamiliar sky. If Yugi and Yami… Well, it's not like anybody cares. Least of all me. He looked at the others and attempted to shove his hands into his pockets in an uncaring sort of way, but the stupid thing he was wearing didn't have pockets.

As he began to trudge after the others, he repeated over and over in his mind, It's good. I'm free of him for a while. It's all good. But when he looked over at the others, chatting and laughing together, not even that thought could banish that old sense of loneliness creeping its way back into his soul.