Chapter 4:

Again in the mind space. Atem found himself spending much more time in here. Though it was falling to pieces he preffered it as opposed to reality. Here he was able to walk, meaning he was able to search for his lost friend. Yugi was more than that… They were as close as two individuals can be, even sharing the same body. He was desperate to find him, so he tredded through the damaged and destroyed world of his mind. The strange purple clouds hung in the air all around and spirits lurked in the distance. He was fortunate they hadn't noticed him. Last time he'd had an encounter with them he'd barely escaped with his life… erm, afterlife?

Thinking about it, all Atem was was a restless spirit, a drifting soul. Maybe he was falling apart because he was on his own? In a body that wasn't his? But that didn't seem quite right. Atem looked around, this time really looking. This place was familiar… extremely familiar. The purple clouds, the lost spirits, the graves. This was the Shadow Realm. Somehow his mind and the Shadow Realm were becoming one, mergeing together. But how? He had so many questions. One thought haunted the forefront of his mind: Where's Yugi? He started running, for no actual reason, in the direction the island pathway took him. The was a break in the bridge ahead, so he came to an abrupt halt at the edge, nearly falling off due to momentum. The other side of the broken bridge loomed just out of his jumping distance, seeming to taunt him. He stood at the edge, staring down into the cloudy purple abyss, for eons, unsure what to do. All the pesky thoughts he'd pushed to the back of his mind returned in that instant, and finding Yugi seemed hopeless.

"Don't give up…"

That voice shook him from his misery. It was familiar. It was Yugi's voice… but it seemed so far away.

"Yugi?!" He shouted into the shadowy void, but he received no answer. It definitely had been his partner, of that he was certain, which meant that the boy was still out there. Atem stepped back a yard or two then began running forward again. A leap of faith…he thought as he jumped from the edge of the broken bridge. He only made it halfway and then he fell, but he hit something hard instead of falling into the void below him. This confused him greatly. Picking himself up to a sitting position he ran his hands over whatever he had fallen on. It was solid, and reminded him of glass. Atem stood up and stared down at the empty space. He didn't see anything besides a cold heartless abyss, yet he hadn't fallen into it.

"An invisible platform?" he inquired to nobody in particular. Shaking it from his mind, just being grateful it was there, he jumped to the other side of the bridge. There was no time to ponder over the mysteries of the shadow realm: He had to find Yugi.

The path he was on wound into a dark forest. Purple mist shrouded the black dead trees making the entire place seem more eerie than the rest of the Shadow Realm. It reminded him of a movie Tristan and Joey had brought to Yugi's house to watch. It was about a group of kids wondering through the woods in the middle of the night looking for their friend who'd been kidnapped. Joey had been hugging his knees curled into a ball when one of the movie characters was killed and Tristan was trying to look like he wasn't scared, but he winced and went pale whenever there was blood. Yugi, for his part, was too scared and hid in his Mind Space while Atem took over. He watched the entire movie until the ending credits, but he couldn't see the point in it and didn't understand what everybody found was so terrifying. Now, putting himself in the movie character's shoes, he was beginning to understand. This was different from the movie though, everything here could actually kill him. Also, the Shadow Realm was more dangerous than a serial killer in an ordinary forest; dark power coursed through everything living there and gave the creatures unimaginable strength. He would need to be very careful to avoid them or else have his journey cut short in the worst way. With this information at the forefront of his mind and fueled by his desire to rescue Yugi he began his trek through the ominous forest.

He had no idea how long he walked for. Time was difficult to tell in the Shadow Realm. One wouldn't be capable of differentiating between night and day here. He looked from side to side, but couldn't tell where he was. Everything looked the same, it was no use trying to figure it out. Just as he was about to turn around he noticed an apparition walking some ways down the path. It was far off, but he could tell it was human. Without any better options he ran after the specter, attempting to catch up with it and see if it could aid him. As he got closer he could make out its features. The ghost was in a blue jacket with blue pants and had tri-colured hair that was spiked in every direction in the back. The semi-transparent figure of Yugi walked on, oblivious to his presence. Atem came closer and closer to the boy, but to his dismay he soon realized that the closer he got the more transparent Yugi became. Upon reaching the spot the boy had been there was now nothing in his place. Atem didn't understand. Yugi had been there only moments ago. He looked down the path again, and the spirit was the same distance away that he had been the first time. But how? Atem didn't care, he just focused on catching up with Yugi. Again he almost got to him, but the boy disappeared before he reached him. Looking down the road the teen was there once more, like the last two times. Atem was breathing hard now. He stopped to slow his heart rate and watched Yugi get further away. Desperately he shouted to the boy, "YUGI!"

And this time the ghostly image of his partner stopped, then turned to face him. He was startled by the boy's appearance. He looked every bit as sickly as Atem did, only Yugi looked worse. His eyes were hollow looking and held all his pain and misery. His muscles were deteriorated to the point of looking skeletal. Atem felt deep sorrow for his partner. He had never meant for this to happen. The boy held his gaze for what felt like ages until he turned around and began walking once more. Atem chased him again and again, Yugi always vanishing as he got close. Always vanishing. Always…

"…Just Out of Reach."

Atem nodded, lamenting to the whispering words of his partner. It had shocked him the first time he heard the miserable broken voice, but now it only filled him with sadness. He watched Yugi closely as he ran. He just continued down the pathway, like he was meant to be doing so, like there was a purpose behind it. He stopped for a moment, realizeing something, "Are… Are you leading me somewhere?"

Yugi stopped and turned his head slightly, so he saw Atem out of the corner of his eye, and nodded once before continueing on. Atem followed again, this time walking at the same pace as Yugi. He didn't know where they were going, but he trusted his partner.